Merry and Pippin had first called at the Bigg's smial and found Aramanta Biggs home alone; her husband, she told them, had gone out to the Buckle's Notch. Everybody was talking about poor Ilbie today. Since she had little more to tell them, they went to the Buckle's Notch next, and found not only Walderic Biggs, but Layther Downend, Lido Pebblebrook, Hyacinth Bunce, and Eliduc, all sitting together, talking excitedly.
Merry immediately focused his attention on Hyacinth Bunce, who was a cherubic boy of thirty with a round-cheeked, pink face and strawberry-fair curls. Merry had never paid much attention to him before--Hyacinth had been too young for him to notice during those days when he'd played about with the other boys in Bucklebury--but now he decided that he didn't like that silly, babyish face at all.
"He isn't that good-looking," he murmured under his breath.
Pippin grinned. "Not your sort, Merry? Well, that's not so surprising. You never had much taste for blond boys, except for Ferdi that once. You prefer dark-haired lads, don't you? The paler, the better, with the biggest blue eyes..."
"Shut up, Pip."
Pippin shut up, but continued to smile as they joined the group at the table. They were greeted with cries of surprise, and a barrage of eager questions:
"Imagine, Master Merry Brandybuck making two appearances at the Notch in one week! This is an occasion! What brings you here at this hour when you should be managing Buckland?"
"How is Ilbie? Poor chap. How awful this must be for his wife, and her with a baby on the way!"
"And poor Celie too, so soon after Merimas!"
"Is he going to be all right? We've heard some ghastly tales about how badly he's been hurt, but nobody seems to know anything, except that he isn't dead. Thank goodness for that, at least."
"Who could've done such a terrible thing? Is it the same person who killed Celie's husband? I daresay it is!"
"There must be a mad-hobbit running wild. Something ought to be done about it."
"Something is being done," Merry responded rather snappishly to this last, fatuous remark from Hyacinth. "That's why we've come, looking for all of you. We wanted to talk to everyone who was at Dodi's yesterday. We're hoping you saw something while you were walking home last night." Like Frodo, he tried to treat Dodi's guests as potential witnesses rather than suspects; they would only become angry and less willing to talk if he and Pippin made accusations.
While Pippin purchased a fresh round of ales for everyone at the table and handed the mugs around, Merry asked the group if any of them had seen anything odd or any strangers. No one had seen anything unusual. "There were a lot of people out and about last night after the funeral," said Lido, "but nobody who looked strange."
"How would someone look just after coshing a person over the head?" countered Eliduc. "He might look just the same as you or I, and not the least mussed."
None of them could recall the last time they'd seen Ilbie before they'd left Ivysmial, nor had they noticed him walking off. The interview would have been merely mildly disappointing, except that Pippin smiled at everything Hy Bunce said, and encouraged him to prattle on; Merry found this irritating.
"Did you all go straight home?" asked Pippin.
"I did. Hazel and I didn't want to be late for dinner," Layther answered. "My father-in-law's terribly punctual about meals and wouldn't wait for us."
"The rest of us stopped off here," said Walderic, "except for Marly. He had other reasons to tarry." In spite of the serious situation, small, knowing smiles flickered on several of the young hobbit's faces at this remark.
"Perhaps he finally worked up the courage to say a word to Celie... or at least take her arm while they were walking!" Eliduc said with a laugh. "It's early yet, but once she's over the shock of losing her husband, she might welcome a sturdy arm to lean on. You'll have to step quickly, or give up hope of catching the pretty young widow yourself, Hy!"
Hyacinth blushed at this japery. "We're only friends," he answered. "I never thought of marrying Celie, or any girl."
"Not even Violetta?" teased Lido. His wife Lilaca was the elder sister of the three unmarried Marishe girls.
The boy blushed more pinkly, and Pippin smiled meaningfully at him and put a hand over his on the table. "Don't you care for girls, Hy?"
That was too much for Merry. "Marry the Marishe girl if she'll have you," he told Hyacinth sharply, "but don't expect to get in with any of my relatives, my lad. You won't, if I have anything to say about it."
Hyacinth stared at him, mouth open soundlessly and face bright with shame, wondering what he'd done to offend Merry. The other lads around the table likewise looked appalled; even Pippin, who'd been trying his best to provoke a reaction, was shocked and drew back his hand.
Merry suddenly felt ashamed of himself. The boy, after all, hadn't done anything to deserve such an insult. "I'm sorry," he said. "I beg your pardon, Hy. Only, I'm sick of these jokes at Celie's expense." As if that was what he was angry about! "She only buried Merimas yesterday, and stick-in-the-mud or not, he was a kinsman of mine and he was murdered. Show a bit of decency, can't you?"
Some of the young hobbits murmured apologetically, but Eliduc said, "You have changed since you became Master, Merry! You never used to care what was decent. You were worse than the lot of us together."
"Me included!" interjected Pippin.
"You gave all the boys something to live up to in the ways of naughtiness, and taught us a thing or two. Pity you've grown up and got so stuffy."
"Where's Marly now?" asked Merry, ignoring this jibe.
"Home," Eliduc answered, "but I expect him along any minute."
"Were you here last night, El?"
"Yes, I was!" When he saw his brother come in at the door, Eliduc rose and went to greet him. Darco Underhaye came into the pub a moment later and went to the bar.
"Eli was here, but he wasn't with us most of the time," said Hyacinth, trying to be helpful and expiate the unaccountable dislike Merry seemed to have for him. "When I came in, he was sitting over there in the corner with somebody we didn't know."
"Who?" asked Pippin.
"Some lad, not one of our circle," Walderic answered. "He sat with his back to the door so we couldn't see his face very well. He was wearing a black coat, but so was everybody who was at the funeral yesterday. A rather shabby coat, I fancy."
"Now there's a mysterious stranger for you!" cried Layther.
"But he couldn't have been hitting poor Ilbie at the same time he was sitting here. Nor could Eli, if that's what you're thinking, Merry."
It did seem unlikely, Merry had to agree.
Marleduc came over. "I'm not surprised to find you and Pippin here," he said to Merry as he dragged another chair to the already crowded table while Eliduc went to get him an ale. "Frodo Baggins and Melly have just been to call at our house, asking about our comings and goings. I suppose you two are going around asking everyone who was at Dodi's last night where they were when Ilbie was attacked too? There's quite a collection of investigators up at the Hall these days."
"Ilbie and Merimas are our kinsmen," Merry answered, "and yours too, Marly Brandybuck. I think you'd want to help."
"I'd be happy to, if only Frodo didn't keep looking at me as if he was sure I had something to do with it. He's got his eye on me for some reason. I haven't done a thing--not to Merimas, and not to Ilbie! All this talk of what a wonderful detective he is has gone straight to Frodo's head. I know he's your particular boy-friend these days, Merry, but can't you do something about it before he has the sherriffs arrest me?"
While his relationship with Frodo might be known among the Brandybuck family, Merry could see by the wide-eyed reactions of the lads around the table that it wasn't known to the rest of Buckland--at least, not until now. "You won't be arrested if you haven't done anything," he assured Marleduc. "I'll see to that. No one needs to be afraid if they're innocent. But Frodo's got to ask questions if we're to find out who is going around hitting Brandybucks over the head. It's got to be stopped before someone else is hurt or killed."
"Well, he shouldn't be asking questions of us," said Marleduc. "Plenty of other people worth suspecting first."
"Speaking of questions, who were you talking to, Eli?" Pippin asked abruptly.
"When?" Eliduc asked back, startled.
"Last night, here."
"Oh." Eliduc turned to look at the unoccupied table where he'd been sitting, as if his companion of the evening before might still be there. "Nobody. Just one of the farm-lads. They don't usually come into the Notch, but he'd been at the funeral and wanted a drop of ale afterwards, same as everybody else. He was telling me that he and his brother were the ones who found Merimas under the Hedge."
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