Love Letters: A Frodo Investigates! Mystery by Kathryn Ramage

After a rapturous night of Sam's undivided attention, Frodo slept well and woke early the next morning. Slipping carefully out of bed, he left Sam asleep, washed and dressed, and went out to find the small, sunny, breakfast room at the far end of a long corridor. Merry was there, sitting alone at a table. They were the only people in the room, apart from the innkeeper's daughter, who had boiling water ready on the hob to make them a pot of tea.

"I'm surprised to see you up at this hour, Frodo!" Merry said cheerfully once the girl had gone to the kitchen to fetch their breakfasts. "We could hear something of what went on in the next room last night."

"We heard a few things too," Frodo confessed. "Merry, I hate to intrude-" but he and Merry had always been able to speak more frankly to each other about personal matters than they could to anyone else, even Pippin and Sam. "Why have you and Pip been quarreling?"

After a moment, Merry answered, "Pippin didn't want to come here. He'll do as you ask to help in this investigation, but he's hoping to go back to Tuckborough as soon as he can."

"To meet that girl his parents want him to marry?"

"She's expected to come for her visit in two weeks," said Merry. "That's not why he wants to go home. His father's promised that he doesn't have to marry her or anybody else he doesn't want to."

Frodo didn't understand. "But-"

"It's another love that's drawing him home: his nephew."

"Nephew? You mean, little Peveril?"

"You haven't been there to see it, Frodo. His sister Pearl lobs that blasted baby at him every chance she gets, and it's done more effective work in bringing him 'round than his mother's nagging or his father's being patient. Peveril's all he can talk about, and he's beginning to think he'd like a baby of his own." Merry laughed bitterly. "I've told him I can't help with that. He'll have to look elsewhere! Just wait 'til he has to change dirty diapers, or sit up all night with a colicky, squalling baby. That won't be so much fun, and he'll soon change his mind about it."

"But you're afraid he won't?"

Merry nodded. "I think he might actually look elsewhere. He says he's only going to be polite to this North-Took girl, but I know he'll end up marrying her--not because he loves her, or because it's what his family wants, but because he can have children with her. It's the one thing he can never have with me."

Frodo was sympathetic; he knew exactly what his cousin was feeling. He'd gone through the same thing with Sam. "You can't keep him from it, Merry, if it is what he truly wants. After all, it's only-"

"Only natural," Merry finished for him with a note of sarcasm. "Every hobbit wants lots of babies. Well, that need seems to be entirely missing in me. I like little children well enough once they get out of diapers and are old enough to talk and play games with, but I never wanted a child of my own. You feel the same way, don't you?"

"I thought about it once," Frodo admitted. "Last year, when I considered marrying Melly. She wanted children, of course, and for a moment or two I wondered if I could give them to her. Even if I could, it wouldn't have been fair to her, or the child. I wouldn't be there to see it grow up." Merry reached across the table to take his hand; Frodo gripped his cousin's fingers as he went on, "It wasn't easy for me to let Sam go to Rosie when he wanted a wife and family of his own, but I couldn't keep him from it just to make myself happy. We can't fight nature, Merry, any more than we can change it in ourselves."

"At least, you and Sam and Rosie seem to have worked things out between you."

"Oh, we've had our difficulties adjusting, all three of us!" Frodo laughed, perhaps a little nervously. "But it's what we all agreed to and we're trying our best."

"I wish we could do the same," said Merry. "I wouldn't mind it so much if I had to share Pip with a wife, but I don't see us setting up house together in either Tuckborough or Buckland." He sighed, then gave his cousin a soft smile. "You've always had an extremely generous heart, Frodo. I don't know if I can be as unselfish as you, but I won't keep Pippin with me if he doesn't want to stay. I couldn't anyway. I wonder if, in the end, it'll be just you and me left."

"If we are," Frodo rejoined, "then I'll marry you."

His cousin laughed. "If we are," he rejoined, "I just may take you up on that."
You must login (register) to review.