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Sam, Merry and Pippin were in a bit of a fix. They had debated for the last three days what to do about Frodo's nail biting habit. They knew using any kind of force would remind him of his ordeal in Minas Morgul and they certainly didn't want to do that. On the other hand, Frodo himself had insisted that he wanted their help overcoming the habit, so they agreed to do whatever they could. The problem seemed resolved for now, but none of them expected that to last.

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Frodo's nails were one of the first thing he noticed when he woke from the healing sleep fourteen days after his rescue from Mount Doom. They had grown in and were perfectly smooth, quite a change after years of being bitten almost to the bone. He looked at them for a long time and thought about how much better they looked and the advantages of keeping them like that. He could use them to pick up small objects and scratching itches was much more satisfying. He could even use them to hang on to the side of a mountain, not of course that he ever wanted to be that position again.

So this is it, he decided. I will never bite my nails again! Of course, he know that was going to be easier said than done. He had bitten his nails for as long as he could remember and seldom knew he was doing it, so he persuaded the other hobbits to help him. He knew that was probably a mistake, but it was a chance he was willing to take.

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The hobbits were out for a walk the next morning when Frodo absent minded lifted his index nail to his mouth then cried out and spat on the ground. Pippin and Merry jumped back, leaving Sam directly in Frodo's line of vision as he turned and glared at them.

“What is this?” he demanded.

“Soap, Mr. Frodo,” Sam replied nervously. “I put it on your nails while you were sleeping, sir, begging your pardon.”

Frodo cringed, then managed to laugh. “Don't worry, Sam, you did the right thing,” he said, giving Sam a hug to show he meant it. “And this should be keep me from biting my nails without realizing it.”

Unfortunately, realizing he was doing it didn't make things any easier. To Frodo an unbitten nail was as tempting as a hot mushroom pie set on a window sill to cool. By the end of the day, he had simply found a way to bite while avoiding the soap.
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When Frodo woke up the next morning, he got another rather unpleasant surprise. He had almost no feeling in his hands and moving his fingers was difficult. Looking down at them, he immediately saw why. Human-sized gloves had been tied to his hands in way that made them almost impossible to remove.

“Now you won't be able to bite your nails, Frodo,” Pippin happily pointed out. True enough, however Frodo quickly discovered that they made it almost impossible to do anything else. Eating, for example become a lengthy ordeal. Frodo dropped his utensils at least three times, once in the soup and sent it flying all over the table. And of course, they soon made his hands uncomfortably warm so they had to be cut off.

It was then that Merry decided Frodo needed something else, so he arranged to have an assortment of vegetable cut into strips and made available to Frodo so he would have something to nibble on besides his nails. A good idea in theory, however by the end of the day Frodo had eaten so many that the mere thought of any more vegetables nauseated him.

The hobbits had run out of ideas by the next morning, however Frodo's nails were, for the most part untouched and remained that way for the rest of the day. Even more surprisingly, Frodo didn't seem to bothered by temptation. By early evening, however, they noticed he was he was rubbing his thumb nail on the left hand and looking a bit anxious. Before they could ask him about it, he excused himself to go and rest in his room. The others followed him, partly out of concern and partly out of intense curiosity.

“So Frodo,” Pippin said when they got there, “we haven't done anything all day, but we noticed your nails have stayed unbitten.”

“Yes, Frodo, what finally solved the problem?” Merry asked. “Was it the vegetables I got you the other day that gave you something else to nibble on?”

“Or the gloves I put on your hands that kept you from biting them most of the morning?” Pippin wanted to know.

“Or the soap that made them taste bad?” Sam asked, somewhat apprehensively.

“Actually, none of those things,” Frodo answered. “What finally did it was... “ There was a knock on the door before he finish. Merry opened it and a blond woman entered and greeted the hobbits.

“Good evening, Lady Eowyn,” Frodo said as she sat next to him on his bed.

“Good evening, Master Frodo,” she said. “How are you feeling tonight?”

“Fine thank you, aside from being a bit tired,” Frodo replied. “And this nail seems to be getting a rough edge again.”

“So it is,” Eowyn commented, rubbing it with her finger. “Would you like me to fix that for you?”

“Yes, thank you, my lady,” Frodo replied. “I would have done it myself, but as it is... “ He held up his right hand with the missing finger he was still adjusting to. Eowyn smiled sympathetically, then turned to the side table and took a small metal file from the drawer.

As the other hobbits watched, wondering what it was for, Eowyn gently took Frodo's thumb in her hand and carefully filed it until it was smooth again. Then Frodo smiled and held it up to show his friends.

“Is this what solved your problem?” Pippin asked incredulously. It seemed too simple a solution to be believed.

“Yes, Pippin, this is what finally did it,” Frodo told him. “I don't know why exactly, but a smooth nail is a lot less tempting than one with a rough edge."

“I used to bite my nails all the time,” Eowyn admitted, “and it solved my problem too.” Each hobbit was amazed to hear that and made a mental note to remember this simple remedy in case it was needed in the future.