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Promises Broken and Kept  by Periantari

10 Astron S.R. 1389

“Tell me again, Frodo, why are you leaving me?” asked Merry Brandybuck.

“I am not leaving you, dear Merry; I am just living with Uncle Bilbo so that I won’t be a burden to your parents and everyone else.”

“But you’re not a burden! We want you to live here and we’re happy that you’re here!” exclaimed a hurt Merry with tears in his eyes.

“There, there, Merry,” Frodo said as he embraced his younger cousin. “I’ll be back to visit! Buckland is not too far from Hobbiton!” He was happy at Brandy Hall, but he felt that the numerous relations sometimes hindered individual attention, which he felt that he needed. Ever since his parents had died, he wanted to be the center of attention, and sometimes, amidst so many Brandybuck relations, he felt lost in the crowd.

Grief did not wash away that quickly and even though he found joy with his young cousin Merry, but sometimes he just wanted an adult to talk with someone who remembered his parents and could remind him of how wonderful they had been. Besides, he dearly loved Bilbo and living with him would enable him to enjoy listen to many of his enjoyable stories and learn Elvish. Hobbiton seemed like an exciting place too.

The only thing making him reluctant was Merry’s reaction to him leaving. He had grown extremely fond of young Merry as well and he knew that this parting would be very difficult for him.

“Is it something I’ve done, Frodo? Do you not like me anymore? Do you love Bilbo more? Is that why you’re leaving?” cried Merry, tears freely falling now.

“Of course not, dear Merry! I love you and your parents very much but sometimes when a person grows older, they need to explore other places and learn other things. Uncle Bilbo knows a lot of stories and can teach me Elvish, and possibly he and I can go spot an elf or two. Don’t you want your cousin to be able to learn interesting things like that?

“Really? Bilbo’s seen an elf?” asked Merry, suddenly his sniffles subsiding a bit and his wide blue eyes looking up at his cousin in awe.

“Yes, and I’ll write about the stories he tells me in my daily letters to you, all right? And do not feel so down, my dear, cheerful Merry. You have your other cousins and friends that will keep you quite busy.” “Yes, Merry,” Frodo smiled pleased to see that Merry’s mood had brightened a bit. “And I promise to write to you every day. I will fill my letters with Bilbo’s stories so that you can enjoy them too. Please don’t be sad, my dear Merry. You have your other cousins and friends and I am certain that they will keep you very busy while I’m away.”

“Will you promise to visit often and will you really write me every day?” asked a doubtful Merry.

“I will. I promise.”

“But I’ll miss you a lot, cousin Frodo—you’re my bestest cousin I could ever have,” said Merry grasping onto Frodo’s legs tightly.

Frodo picked up Merry and held him close, kissing the top of Merry’s head and whispering, “And you’re mine too, dear Merry.” Now it was Frodo’s turn to have his eyes tear up. He had seen Merry born and in the past seven years he’d been in Buckland; this cousin had indeed come to inhabit a special place in his heart. “Whenever, you miss me, just mail me a letter and I’ll try to come to you, all right?”

“What if I miss you too much? What if I can’t sleep without your bedtime stories? What if Ma and Da won’t let me go through the woods?” Merry asked.

“Your Mama tells great stories too. Whenever I come visit from Hobbiton, I will have even better ones to tell because Bilbo has so many stories!”

“Can I come visit too whenever I want?”

“Of course you can. Anytime you wish.”
TBC





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