The funeral for Merimas Brandybuck was well attended for a small, private ceremony, for the Buckland and Stock gentry and Bucklebury relatives had turned out to pay their respects. Chief Muggeredge stood at a tactful distance from the assembled crowd, and Uncle Dinodas had shown up, although he hadn't bothered to change from his comfortable old tweeds. Merimas's friends were there. Frodo knew some of them, had spoken to them when he'd made his inquiries: Gorbulac Brandybuck, an older Bucklebury cousin, Salvo Goldworthy, a local gentlehobbit, and Ulmo Pogs, a tenant farmer. Some of the other farm-folk made appearances as well. The Todbrush brothers were there, but Frodo was surprised to see that Milli hadn't come even though she and Celie were friendly. She had been to Crickhollow this morning and was kind enough to press one of his good shirts for him, but must be too nervous to be away from her mother and little boy for very long.
Also present were a number of young hobbits who had no especially fond feelings for the deceased, but were friends of his widow and had been invited by Dodi to come to Ivysmial afterwards. It would be impolite for them to show up for the post-funeral reception without attending at the funerary rites first.
Frodo, along with Fatty, Dodi, and Ilbie, had volunteered to carry the bier from the back parlor to the Brandybuck vault. They were the same four who had carried Berilac's bier three years earlier; as they stood respectfully beside the flower-covered figure laid out on the platform before the open door of the vault and listened to solemn speeches about the young life cut tragically short, Frodo had the oddest feeling that this had all happened before. He was even wearing the same black coat with the velvet collar and a gold-threaded waistcoat very like the one he'd worn on that other occasion.
After the funeral, most of the guests went to Brandy Hall, where Esmeralda had arranged for refreshments to be served, while Celie's friends gathered at Ivysmial. Since it was a fine, sunny day, plates of sandwiches and seed-cakes were laid out on tables in the rose garden, rather than in the tiny cottage parlor. While Frodo had never attended the parties at Ivysmial before, he knew they were normally riotous. Today, the gathering was subdued.
Celie herself did not join this group immediately; like Merry and Melilot, she had to make an appearance at the Hall and receive the guests there first. These three came about half an hour later.
Before Celie and Melly arrived, Dodi introduced Frodo to his guests: Violetta, Dioica, and Lavendula Marishe, Lido and Lilaca Pebblebrook, Walderic and Aramanta Biggs, Layther and Hazel Downend, Hyacinth Bunce, Oleander Woodbury. Some other young Bucklebury Brandybucks besides Marleduc and Eliduc had also been invited.
As they stood surveying this crowd, Fatty Bolger murmured that these "younglings" made him feel "creaky as an old uncle," and Frodo knew exactly what he meant. Most of them were in the same range of age as his youngest Brandybuck cousins, between thirty and five-and-thirty--only a few years younger than himself, but they seemed little more than children, foolish lads and giggling, silly girls. He focused his attention upon the males of the group, particularly the unmarried ones. Dodi's and Ilbie's hints had led him to believe that Celie had been involved to some degree with most of these boys before her marriage; when he spoke to them, even the married lads freely admitted that they'd been out walking or boating with Celie, but they were also quick to add that that was a long time ago and they were simply good friends today.
Everyone said the same three things: how terrible it was that Merimas had been killed, how awful this must be for poor Celie, and how earnestly they hoped that whoever had done this horrible thing would be caught soon. If they did not grieve for Merimas, they refrained from expressing their feelings aloud in the presence of his widow, sister, and bereaved family, but Frodo noted that they all seemed more sympathetic to Celie's distress than Merimas's actual death. No one said so distinctly, but he suspected that a good many shared Dodi's opinion that Celie was better off free of her constantly disapproving husband. He also detected an undercurrent of fear and excitement in their talk, for Merimas had not come to his death through illness or an accident, but by violent murder, and his murderer had not yet been found. Everyone wondered who could have done it... except for perhaps one who already knew.
Frodo had kept to himself so much these past months that he was surprised to realize that everyone knew who he was. The famous detective living in Buckland was enough to cause talk even when he wasn't investigating. And now there was a murder for him to solve! His presence added to that sense of nervous excitement among the guests. Whether or not they were aware that they were invited here as possible suspects, everyone he spoke to assumed that he was looking into his cousin's death. Unfortunately, that tended to put them on their guard if he tried to probe beyond the most simple questions.
He did manage to have a brief conversation with Marleduc and Eliduc. They naturally spoke of Celie, and when Frodo ventured that he'd heard Marly had been sweet on her once, Marledoc replied rather defensively:
"What if I was? Everybody was. Celie and I went around together, did a bit of kissing--nothing more! Of course I'm very fond of her. I might've asked to marry her when we were older, but she was matched off to Merimas before I was ready to think about marrying anybody. We've remained friends since, but friends only, Frodo. She's a married lady, after all, and that's that."
Frodo had heard this same declaration from Celie's other old boy-friends, but hearing it from Marledoc, he wondered if it was as simple as that. There was a tone of dejection in Marledoc's voice as he spoke that made Frodo think that Dodi understood the young hobbit's feelings about Celie better than Celie herself did. "She isn't married now, Marly," he reminded him. "After a suitable period of mourning has passed, I'm sure someone will ask for her. One of her old friends."
"I daresay you're right, but it won't be me," said Marleduc. "She doesn't understand how it is with the lads. Since she heard about me and Merry, and some other boys, she thinks I don't like girls at all. She doesn't think of me that way. I hope she does marry again, to someone who will make her happy, happier than she's been. That old stick Merimas was always scolding her for her misbehaviors."
"And he wasn't so pure himself!" added Eliduc.
Frodo pounced on this last remark with acute curiosity. "What do you mean by that?"
"It's only something I've heard," Eliduc answered, more reluctant to speak once he was pressed. "One hears stories. They say there's a girl or two who could tell a tale about old Merimas if they were inclined." But he could not produce any names when asked.
"I heard something similar once myself," Marleduc said, "but I can't believe it, not of Merimas. If it weren't for the two little boys, I'd find it hard to believe he ever unbuttoned himself for Celie!"
Frodo also doubted whether there was any truth to this tale. He'd never heard a hint of scandal attached to Merimas before. Quite the opposite. Merimas would probably have been more generally liked if he'd been a little more scandalous.
He hoped that Celie's friends would tell his deputized cousins, who had been instructed on the kind of conversations to encourage, whatever they wouldn't tell him. Dodi and Ilbie and their wives were on friendly and confidential terms with everyone present, and Fatty and Flora knew most of the guests well enough to chat with them easily. Pippin was also at ease among these thoughtless young hobbits, for he was of their age, just turned three-and-thirty, and had met many of them during his earlier visits to Buckland. His recent return from his travels made him of particular interest, and he regaled an enthralled audience that included the Pebblebrooks, Violetta Marishe and Hyacinth Bunce with tales of his life with the circus and displayed a few modest sleight-of-hand tricks. If he grew more vivacious after Merry's arrival, and paid more attention to Hyacinth, Frodo guessed that this was because he wanted to demonstrate that he wasn't hurt by Merry's rejection and could still have fun without him.
When Celie, Melly, and Merry arrived, they were accompanied by Amarilla Underhaye and a male hobbit whom Frodo had noticed at the funeral, but didn't recognize; he looked to be at least forty, dark haired and handsomely dressed.
Melly was talking with Amarilla as if they were old acquaintances, which they probably were if Amarilla had been a friend of Melly's older sister. It didn't strike Frodo as remarkable that his girl-cousins should be attracted to an intelligent and artistic young lady who lived by herself. Amarilla made a striking contrast to the rest of Celie's and her brothers' friends, but it wasn't so strange that the two would take up with each other after Mentha had died and Melly had married and gone away.
Amarilla introduced their companion. "This is my cousin, Darco Underhaye. He lives up near the Brandywine Bridge, but happened to be here today."
When she introduced Frodo, her cousin bowed to him rather stiffly and regarded him with interest and a curious expression of distaste. "Ah, yes. The famous investigator."
"Do we know each other?" Frodo asked. He didn't recall meeting Darco before, but the name was vaguely familiar and Darco seemed to dislike him for some reason.
"No, we haven't met, Mr. Baggins, but I've seen the results of your work before. I was a friend of Val Stillwaters," Darco explained. "I know what your investigation did to him. And after you were done, you went off from Budgeford. You didn't see how upset poor Luddy Binglebottom was because you asked him about Val--to help Val, you said, only it didn't turn out that way, did it?"
Frodo understood why this hobbit should dislike him over the Stillwaters affair, which had been tragic all around, but he couldn't be contrite over Val's fate. "I won't apologize for doing more than upsetting Mr. Binglebottom," he responded. "I meant to find proof Val's guilt or innocence, and your friend agreed to answer my questions. If I hadn't gone to him, I would have come to you or another of Val's friends."
"If you'd come to me, Mr. Baggins, I would have lied."
"You say that, knowing what you do now about Camellia Stillwaters' whereabouts?" Frodo asked incredulously.
"Val would then still be alive," Darco retorted.
"But Camellia wouldn't be." That left Darco momentarily nonplussed; he had no reply. Frodo retreated from the quarrel that was about to arise, and next asked, "Are you also a friend of my cousin Doderic, Mr. Underhaye, or of Merimas?"
Darco shook his head. "Neither. I came to Bucklebury to visit Amarilla, and since I'm not well acquainted with the Brandybucks, I thought it best to accompany her rather than intrude too long as a stranger at Brandy Hall. I'm afraid I didn't know your dead kinsman at all, but I was once a friend of another cousin of yours, who is also dead."
"Berilac," said Frodo, not surprised that Berry's name should come into this again. He seemed to be everywhere. "Did you never meet Celie before today?"
"The widow? I saw her once or twice when I visited Berilac." Darco turned to watch Celie, who had gone with Melly to greet her friends and receive sympathetic hugs, squeezes of a hand, or kisses on the cheek. "She was only a little girl in those days, but she's grown into a charming young lady. I can see why someone might kill for her, but I suppose you'll find that unlucky person and see him hanged too." With another stiff bow, he turned to find his host.
Amarilla had stood by and listened to this exchange without word, but her face was flushed and she looked acutely embarrassed. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Baggins," she said once her cousin had gone. "I had no idea Darco thought so harshly of you, but I should have guessed. He was devastated when his friend Val died, and I've known him to be... unforgiving of lesser slights."
Frodo assured her that he didn't blame her. The effects of an investigation on the innocent as well as the guilty was something he never liked, but it was unavoidable.
They talked about his previous cases. Amarilla asked about the book he was writing and his travels beyond the Shire. Frodo told her about places he'd seen, the ones he could describe with wonder and recall without pain: Rivendell, Lothlorien, Minas Tirith. Frodo wondered at first if she was trying a flirtation; he couldn't help being aware that, in spite of his doubtful health and peculiarities, he was considered an eligible bachelor, but Amarilla's interest in him seemed to be purely intellectual. He had been to places she'd never heard of and read books on subjects most hobbits were entirely ignorant of, and she was eager to hear about both.
Eventually, the conversation turned to Celie.
"Celie's a sweet girl," Amarilla told him. "Naive, yes, but she's still very young. Under the proper influences, she might grow into a lady of distinction. I think the elder ladies of the Hall did her a grave disservice. What she needs is an older sister to guide her, as poor Mentha did when she was alive. It's a pity Melly has left Buckland. She would do very well. At least, Celie's brothers have had the sense to marry intelligent girls a little older than themselves to befriend her, and I try to do what I think Mentha would have in my place, though of course I don't have the influence she did."
"It will be easier for you now that Merimas has gone," Frodo observed.
She gave him a sudden, sharp glance. "That's true," she admitted, "Merimas didn't approve of my friendship with his wife. I suppose Celie's told you that. He thought I was a bad influence, since I advised her to stand up to him when he treated her like a wayward child, or insulted her unjustly. Husband or not, he had no right to speak to her that way. He didn't approve of me as Mentha's friend either, but he had no power over his sister's choices. He couldn't bully her as he did poor Celie."
Even though Celie had said that she hadn't told anyone about Merimas's accusations, Frodo wondered if she had confided something of them to her friend. Amarilla's remarks suggested that she had a good idea what their quarrels were like.
The reception went on until late afternoon. When the last of the sandwiches and cakes were depleted, the guests began to think of dinner and straggled off in little groups after they'd made their farewells to their host and hostess and to Celie. Then Celie herself returned to the Hall.
"Thank you, dear Dodi, for having this party," she said to her brother before she went. "It's made me feel so much better--better than I would sitting and weeping with Mama and Aunt Melisaunte." Her spirits had obviously risen since the funeral and the color was coming back to her cheeks.
Marleduc, perhaps goaded by Frodo's observation that Celie wouldn't remain a widow long, offered to escort her home. After they'd gone off in the direction of Brandy Hall, his brother Eliduc went alone across the fields toward Bucklebury.
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