Author's note: I've had some serious writer's block for some time and I never thought I could write another story about Frodo and Tansy but I did it! Also, encouragement and support from friends helped a lot and I'm so very grateful to you! Now because of the writer's block I've had, I'm not sure if this story will be good, so please be honest and let me know what you think.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of Tolkien's characters or anything in Middle-earth. But...I own Tansy, Calla and Rory Hortlebower.
Category: Angst, mystery
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Third installment of the "Fragile Choices" series. Frodo chose to stay in the Shire with his family and friends, but when mysterious events happen, once again he questions his sanity.
Chimera
Chimera: Illusion, fantasy, figment of the imagination...
Chapter One: Return to Hobbiton
It had been several months since the time Frodo returned from the Grey Havens and stayed at Bag End. And now it was mid-June in the first year of the fourth age. He woke from his pleasant slumber, something he never thought he could experience again after the madness. There were those days when his anniversary illnesses plagued him once more, but Tansy was always there, comforting him and nursing him back to health.
Frodo shut the closet doors. Fastening the top button on his white shirt, he crossed over to the right side of the bed and sat beside Tansy. While she slept, he gazed lovingly into Tansy's face. Frodo smiled and admired the way the sunlight graciously cradled her freckled face. Every moment or so, her eyes twitched as if she would awaken any second. Careful not to awaken her, he gently peeled away a few of her red curly bangs and gave Tansy a soft, good morning kiss on her forehead. Then Frodo eased away from her and tiptoed toward the door. His hand reached for the brass knob until...
"Frodo?"
At the sound of her tender and endearing voice, he came to an abrupt halt at the door.
Tansy added, "And where are you off to?"
Frodo turned to see her dreamy smile. "I'm sorry. I've awaken you."
Tansy sat up from the pillow, shaking her head. "No, you didn't wake me...and I would not mind at all if you gave me another kiss."
The smile she had shown him previously had morphed into a mischievous grin.
Frodo smiled back, raising his left brow. "You sneak!"
Tansy giggled while her husband returned to the bed and plopped next to her.
"Well," he said, edging his lips toward hers, "now that you're awake...good morning."
"Good morning," whispered Tansy and caught his lips into her own.
It was those moments when she was lost in his kiss, lost in his embrace; Tansy didn't care much to be found by reality—reality of the children waking any moment. And there was Sam and Rosie. One of them would be awake soon to cook breakfast.
Frodo, careful to avoid being lost himself, quickly broke away from their passionate kiss. He drew in a deep breath, desiring Tansy so much that he stared at her with sleepy eyes, as if he had already been to the Green Dragon and drank a few pints.
Frodo's four-fingered hand reached for her face and stroked tenderly along her cheekbone.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you, too," Tansy said, barely audible.
Frodo added, "I don't ever regret staying here with you, Calla and everyone I love. Though I must say...I miss Uncle Bilbo and Gandalf."
"I know you do, Frodo. We all miss them, too."
Frodo's eyes fell on to the tiled floor. A crestfallen expression clouded the joy he felt only moments ago, and then he cleared it away with a perky grin that grew across his lips. His water-blue eyes brightened as his gaze fleeted back to hers.
"Forgive my rude manners, I never told you where I was off to now did I?"
Playfully, Tansy shook her head and waved a finger that told him...naughty, naughty, naughty.
"Well," he began, "I was off to check on Calla and Elanor to see if they're awake. I don't think Sam and Rosie are up and about either. So I figured I'll make the breakfast."
"Now that I know you're off to the kitchen, you better be quick. You know Sam. He's beaten you many times before."
Frodo sprang from the bed. He hastened to the door and as he opened it, he stopped short and looked back at Tansy with a determined smile.
"Not this time."
A half an hour later, the round door of the Gamgee bedroom swung open and out came a smiling gardener. Rosie was also beside him as they stepped into the hall. Sam sniffed and breathed deeply the delectable aroma of butter and almond.
"Mmm!" said Sam.
At that moment, Tansy shut the door to the Baggins room and headed down the hall toward Sam and Rosie.
She stopped to say, "Good Morning, Sam. Good Morning, Rosie," Tansy greeted cheerfully.
"Good Morning," they said together.
Then Sam added, "Smells like pancakes you're making this morning?"
Tansy giggled. "Yes, they are, but I'm not the one in the kitchen."
Realizing it had to be Frodo, a little smile formed in the corner of Sam's mouth.
"Well," he began, "Mr. Frodo went and done it. He beat me to the kitchen!"
At the table, a large platter of golden brown pancakes sat in the middle along with strawberries and other appetizing fruit. Every now and then, someone would reach for the platter, stick a fork into a pancake or two or three and carefully lift them back on to their plate. Amidst the chatter, it was Calla's turn to take another pancake. The three-year old gripped the porcelain plate, slowly sliding it toward her own. She plunged her fork into the pancake, lifting it from the stack. And just when Calla thought she had another one to eat, the pancake broke in half. Part of it crumbled onto the table and the other half stuck on the fork. Frowning at her mess, she side-glanced Elanor who sat beside her and giggled.
Embarrassed and annoyed, Calla sulked. "Hmph!"
Sitting on the other side of Calla, Tansy witnessed her daughter's little mishap. Taking a momentary break from the conversation, she took Calla's fork and effortlessly hoisted a pancake onto her plate.
At that moment, the conversation continued with Sam babbling on.
"Mr. Frodo, you should cook these pancakes more often," he said while dipping a piece of it into the strawberry sauce.
Frodo chuckled, shaking his head. "I would if you gave me a chance in the kitchen."
Sam nodded and before he ate his piece of pancake, he smiled. "All right, Mr. Frodo. It's your turn again in the kitchen tomorrow. But on the day of your anniversary, I better not catch you and Tansy doing any cooking. Rosie and I plan on cooking something special for you."
"Three years," Tansy whispered in disbelief, as if reality had yet to sink in about her marriage to Frodo and all they endured within that time.
Frodo eyed Tansy beside him, and then he gave her one of his shy smiles.
"Yes, it's been three years," he said softly. "And I'll never forget that day we were married."
Frodo caught himself again. He wondered what Tansy thought of his constant, 'I'll never forget this and I'll never forget that' And though her smile told him 'it's okay, I understand, it wasn't your fault'...Frodo could never escape the haunting guilt of forgetting her during the madness of the ring.
"What a beautiful day it is..."
Rory Hortlebower had a knack of cheering up folk with those words. But as he sat alone at the kitchen table and finishing up what remained of the bacon and eggs he had cooked, he wished he could do the same for himself with those words. Frustrated, he tossed the fork that struck the plate with a clank. His solemn, emerald-green eyes stared grimly at the plate mostly empty except for a few scraps of bacon.
For some time he wondered why Tansy never returned to Staddle about one of the hobbit-holes he wanted her to see, where he wanted her to live. He still remembered her face and the sadness in her eyes she could not hide from him no matter how hard she tried.
I understand how it feels to lose someone you love. I understand, Tansy...Rory's eyes fleeted from the plate to the empty chair at the end of the table. His glance skirted to another empty seat across from him. For a moment he heard the laughter of a child who once sat there. His wife also chimed in with her laughter. Suddenly, their precious laughter became helpless screams, relentless and blaring louder, louder.
"Noooo!" Rory cried aloud, shutting his eyes so tightly that tears wet the corners of his eyes. He opened them and shuddered. The screams were silenced. No more laughter, only empty chairs. His face caved into the palm of his trembling right hand. For what seemed like minutes, he sat like that until Rory suddenly straightened in the chair, as if to scold himself for giving in to what he considered a momentary weakness.
No, I must not think of it.
Rory sprang from the chair and when he walked out into the parlor, he opened the round door of his hobbit-hole.
Fresh air...That's what I need.
Rory stood outside, breathing deeply the vitalizing fragrance of grass and flowers of his garden. He gazed down the lane that led to many townhouses where the big folk lived in Bree—where he met Tansy for the first time. He had to see her again, even if it meant going to Hobbiton. Several years it was since his last visit. Too many years and now Rory gave it no more thought of whether he should return or not.
The day before summer, before Frodo and Tansy's anniversary, the market seemed busier than ever. The Baggins and Gamgees along with their children strolled past many vendors. While Tansy stopped alongside Frodo at one of the tables, she noticed Calla's hand tried desperately to unlock itself from around Tansy's fingers.
"Calla," said Tansy irritably. "You must hold my hand."
"But Elanor and I want to play!"
"You and Elanor will get lost in this crowd," she stated firmly while looking down at her daughter whose fiery red curls wavered in the breeze.
"That's right," said Sam to Elanor after he overheard Tansy's conversation with Calla.
A grumpy Elanor unwillingly held Rosie's hand and sulked.
"But, daddy," she pleaded, looking up at Sam and squinting from the sun blinding her eyes. "We promise not to get lost. We only want to look at the jewelry over there. Please?"
By then, Calla and Elanor had their parents undivided attention.
Frodo peeked at the jewelry table that was on the other side, not far from where they stood. His gaze shifted back to Tansy, Sam and Rosie and saw they had already surrendered to the constant nagging and pleading from the girls.
Frodo sighed and looked down at both Calla and Elanor. "All right, but make sure you stay there until we come over."
Delighted smiles stretched across the faces of both girls and then they scuttled over to the jewelry table. They squeezed themselves between the crowd of elder hobbits and stared in fascination at all the many necklaces; broaches and even flower-crowns adorned with beads intricately woven around the vines. These were crowns that Tansy made and actually quite popular at the market.
Elanor eagerly pointed at one of the necklaces with a teardrop gem as blue as the morning sky.
"I like that one."
Calla giggled. "Me, too! I wish I can wear one, like the one mum has."
Golden spirals of Elanor's hair swung around as she peered over her shoulder. "Let's see what's over there."
"But," said Calla, "We were told to stay here."
"We'll find our way back. We won't be far."
Calla's water-blue eyes shifted nervously to where her parents stood on the other side of the market. She wanted to explore just as much as Elanor, and when her attention darted back to her best friend, Calla's face brightened with an almost impish grin.
"Okay!" said Calla and followed little Elanor Gamgee through the crowd.
After exploring many of what the vendors were selling, Calla suddenly panicked.
"Elle," Calla whispered. That was the nickname she gave Elanor, finding it easier to say Elle. And when Elanor didn't answer, Calla attempted once more. "Elle!"
"What is it?" Elanor answered, rather irritated, but not at Calla.
"I don't see our parents." Calla searched frantically through the crowd. "Oh, Elle, we're lost!"
Elanor sighed and frowned. "What are we going to do?"
Rory sauntered through the crowd of hobbits—some he recognized and some did not look at all familiar. He smiled to himself about the fond memories of markets he had visited in the past. Now at this one, he hoped to see Tansy but so far he had no such luck. Rory stopped at one of the tables where chickens were being sold. Instead of the chickens, something else caught his attention. Behind him, he could not help but listen to the frantic conversation of two girls.
Elanor went on to say, "Our parents will be very angry with us."
"We have to find them," insisted Calla.
"Are you lost?" A voice asked.
The girls spun around and looked up into the benevolent face of a hobbit unfamiliar to their eyes. He wasn't as stout as most hobbits and appeared to be the age of thirty-six or more.
Calla and Elanor sadly nodded at his question.
Rory bent down in front of the wary girls. His face beamed from the warm smile he hoped had comforted them. The sparkle in his emerald eyes told them not to worry; he would never hurt them.
"I know I'm a stranger," said Rory, "But you don't have to be afraid of me. I want to help. My name is Rory Hortlebower."
"Hello, Mr. Hortlebower," The girls answered in unison.
"And you are?" His eyes skipped from Calla to Elanor, and then they stopped at Elanor. "Let's start with you first."
"I'm Elanor Gamgee," she boldly told the hobbit whose sunflower-yellow vest complimented his butterscotch curls.
Rory waited for Calla who wasn't as bold but terribly shy of strangers.
"It's alright," he assured her.
"I'm—Calla—Baggins."
Rory wondered if she was indeed Tansy's daughter. She never told him about her first name, though he noticed the striking resemblance between Tansy and Frodo.
"Well," he said cheerily, "it's very nice to meet you Calla and Elanor. Do you remember where you saw your parents?"
Elanor quickly nodded. "Near the jewelry table!"
"The jewelry table...hmm...I know where that is. They may be looking for you. Come, I'll take you there. Hopefully after they searched, they'll go back to the table to see if you had found your way there."
When he stood on to his feet, the girls had no choice but to follow Rory through the crowd. Every moment or so, Calla peeked at Mr. Hortlebower, examining the way he confidently weaved his way around the market. She hoped he could help them find their parents and at the same time, terrified of the scolding they would surely get when they do.
A very disgusted and worried Sam shook his head.
"I knew it. I didn't much like the idea of Elanor and Calla going off by themselves."
The hobbits searched exhaustedly for their children and by then, Tansy grew frantic.
"Where are they?" she whined.
"We'll find them," answered Frodo and making an effort to sound optimistic. But he was just as worried as Tansy.
Rosie added, "They have to be around here somewhere," she paused and let out a frustrated sigh. "It's so crowded."
They were far from the jewelry table, but Elanor's eyes gleamed when she spotted her parents squeezing past other hobbits in the distance.
She pointed. "It's them!"
Rory grinned and excited about finding their parents. His eyes widened at the sight of Tansy but then his grin swiftly faded when he saw Frodo Baggins beside her. The rosy pink color suddenly drained from his face, and to someone else, they would think of him ill at noticing the shade of chalk-white Rory now evidently conveyed.
Elanor grabbed Rory's hand. "Come, it's them!"
Reluctantly, Rory went along with the girls and caught up to their parents.
"There you are!" Rosie shouted.
"Well," said Sam while crossing his arms. He smirked. "You've gone and sneaked off."
"I'm sorry, daddy." Elanor pleaded.
"I'm sorry, too," said Calla softly. Her shameful eyes sank to the ground.
Tansy froze. Of course she was ecstatic to see Calla and Elanor again. But for that brief moment, it had been like time suddenly halted when she saw the man who stood with the girls, the man who was Rory Hortlebower.
A relieved Tansy embraced Calla, and then she looked up at Rory again, not knowing whether to smile or not or say something.
Frodo sneaked a glance at his wife. He wondered why she looked so spooked at seeing this stranger.
And Rory, he decided it would be wise to introduce himself.
"Hello, I'm Rory Hortlebower of Staddle. The girls were lost and I happen to be in the area to help them."
"Well," said Sam gratefully. "Thank you, Mr. Hortlebower. Very kind of you to help."
Rosie thought his name sounded familiar and when she remembered he was the real estate broker who Tansy met in Bree, she welcomed him with an amiable smile.
She said to him, "We're very grateful for your help."
"Yes," Tansy agreed but the words came out as if she had just awakened from a deep sleep and dazed. "It was very kind. Thank you."
Rory bowed his head slightly forward and smiled. "You're welcome."
Frodo could not understand why in Middle-earth was he so uneasy about Rory. Maybe it had to do with the way Tansy looked at him.
Stop it, Frodo Baggins. She had to have seen him before. That's what it is and nothing more.
Frodo shrugged his suspicions aside and extended his hand toward Rory.
"I'm Frodo Baggins," he said. Still uncomfortable with his four-fingers, especially with strangers, he firmly shook Rory's hand with his left. "This is my wife, Tansy. And this is Sam Gamgee and his wife, Rosie."
Not wanting them to see his disappointment about Tansy with Frodo, Rory continued to smile and flaunted his cheery demeanor.
"It's a pleasure meeting you all."
Frodo asked, "You're from Staddle?"
"Yes. I own property there. It's been such a long time that I've been in Hobbiton. My visit here isn't only for this day. I'm staying at the Green Dragon Inn so I'll be here for a while."
Frodo managed a feeble smile. "I hope you enjoy your visit here. And you'll see us again at the Green Dragon tomorrow."
"Really? Well, I look forward to meeting with you all again." Eager to finish the conversation, Rory bowed politely. "Good-day." He glanced at Tansy, their eyes locked briefly and then he went on his way.
During that night, inside the Baggins' bedroom, Frodo carried the lantern over to the table beside the bed. In his nightshirt, he sat down on the bed and waited for Tansy to come in. She was taking a bath and some nights he would join her, but not when she wanted to bathe in water filled with strawberries. Now that was something for a lass to do and some lasses didn't even do that, which is what he always found special about Tansy.
The knob slowly turned and when she peeked inside through the half open door, Frodo greeted her with a pleasant smile. Tansy shut the door behind her, strode toward Frodo in her ruffled nightdress and then she sat beside him.
The tantalizing aroma of strawberries lightly wafted under his nose, beckoning him to kiss her lips, her neck and shoulders. But before he had done that, he gazed intently into her cinnamon-brown eyes and could not avoid the question he needed to ask her.
"There's something that's been on my mind since meeting Rory."
Curious about his question, Tansy tilted her head a little and frowned.
"What?"
"You know him, don't you? I saw the way you looked at him."
Earlier, Tansy had a feeling he had been aware of her surprise at seeing Rory.
What am I afraid of? I've only met Rory briefly. So why not tell Frodo of how I've come to know him?
"Frodo, when I thought you weren't coming back from the Grey Havens, I decided I could not live here anymore. The memories were just too painful. So I chose Bree where I searched for a place to live. It so happened I met Rory there. He owns property in Staddle like he said. He wanted to show me a few hobbit-holes but...I changed my mind. I thought I could leave Bag End but I couldn't. And then...you came back. I was only surprised to see Rory here in Hobbiton."
Frodo smiled sheepishly and feeling foolish about his paranoia he thought silly.
"Frodo, I love you—very, very much," she assured him.
Frodo rested his head on her shoulder, and then he teasingly kissed along her collarbone.
"Frodo," whispered Tansy, "you're forgetting something."
He looked up at her. "Hmm?" Then he remembered.
Frodo turned around...the lantern. And when he blew out the flame, all that could be heard in the darkness from Tansy was a soft giggle.
TBC
A/N: Please read and review. Would love to know what you think!