Flowers, Gems And Estella - Chapter XVIII
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Celandine awoke and sat up in her bed, looking groggy and tired from her antics the previous evening – Estella sat by the nearby window, which was shaded over, making the room look dark. She didn’t mind though, as Estella regaled to her what had transpired at the festival last night.
“So,” Celandine said eventually, “How drunk was I?”
“Well, it was one whole glass of ale that you drank, and it was pretty quickly – how did you not notice that it wasn’t your usual water?”
“I don’t know – I don’t really remember that much. Now, I know I noticed that it was rather sweet, but it wasn’t that bad, and I liked it – so I just kept drinking,” she said miserably, holding her hand in her hands. She looked up to say, “What happened afterwards – what all happened that I don’t remember?”
Estella paused for a moment, considering telling what really had happened – that she had told a great secret, concerning her and Merry. “Nothing, really – I think you went on about wanting to go swimming, or something crazy like that. It didn’t make sense, and you kept hiccupping – so I just ignored it as nothing that really mattered.”
“Really?” she said, a small but bright smile on her face, “Well, if that was all – I was thinking I might have done something to embarrass myself, or you – or maybe even both of us!”
“No, it was okay – Merry was there, he said you’d be fine. I suppose he’s been around Pippin when he’s drunk, so he knew what to do.”
“Or maybe he’s the one who gets drunk often, you know,” she said, smiling through her fatigue. Estella took the cue and left her to sleep off the still lingering drunkenness. Softly closing the bedroom door behind her, she left her alone and retreated downstairs – where in the living room, she found to her horror, Mentha and Melilot.
“Estella!” they said upon seeing her, “I suppose you’ve come over to see Cellie as well?”
“Yes, I did – the same for you two?” she said pensively.
“Yes, but not to comfort her, as it seems you have,” Mentha said.
“We think it’s perfectly terrible what she did – when a lass gets drunk, she deserves all the embarrassment she can get!”
“It’s very unbecoming of her, so we came over, to talk with her about this!”
“She’s quite the wild cousin, you know!”
“The wildest Brandybuck there ever was!”
“No, that would be her brothers,” Estella said, her voice unable to be heard over the two lasses.
“Now don’t think that we’re going to punish her, Estella dear!”
“But we want to have a serious talk with her – set her straight, you know!”
“You know,” Estella spoke up, “You’re absolutely right, about the punishing thing – let’s not punish her, and let her parents do that, right?” she said, pushing the two of them out the door and following behind.
“Right, Estella!”
“But for now, let’s leave her alone – she’s awfully tired, we can reprimand her later!”
The three of them were now outside, where the late morning sunshine shone over the Shire’s rolling green hills and plains – there was no one around, for which Estella was glad.
“Well, I suppose you’re right there, Estella – but she’s not getting off, although we’ll let her alone for now. Hey, look!” Melilot said excitedly, pointing towards the dirt road leading up to the hole.
Estella looked, seeing before her a pony-driven wooden cart, with a cloud of brown dirt rising from the road behind it – she squinted her eyes in the bright sunlight, so as to see whom the two hobbits atop the cart were.
“Say, that looks like –”
“Peregrin Took!”
She looked down upon hearing the girlish screams, but the two lasses were already gone and running across the wide lawn to greet Paladin and Pippin Took. She followed them, running not nearly as fast as they, making it to the cart a good two minutes after they had.
“Morning, Misses Brandybucks, and Miss Bolger,” Paladin said, tipping his hat to the lasses, “May I ask where Mr. Seredic Brandybuck and his sons might be?”
“Oh yes! Uncle’s out in the fields with Doderic and Ilberic, and Cellie’s inside sleeping because last night she –”
“Tripped!” Estella said suddenly, “As we were leaving the festival, she tripped and hurt her foot!” She nudged Melilot in the side, who said nothing more.
“How dreadful,” Paladin said. Pippin nodded in agreement. “I hope she’s not too bad, is she?”
“Oh no, not at all – the poor girl’s probably going to be bedridden for the next day or so, but nothing terrible. No, it’s just a slight sore, not even a sprain, so she’ll be fine,” she said, smiling perhaps a little too brightly so as to emphasize her point.
“Well, that sounds perfectly wonderful,” Pippin said.
“Oh yes! Right on!” Mentha spoke up.
“Yeah, she’ll be fine – would you like to see her, Peregrin?” Melilot said.
“No thanks, if she’s as bad as you say, I won’t bother her,” he said, smiling rather fearfully. The two lasses were closing in on him, surrounding him as best as they could from the ground, while he was atop of the cart. Like two snarling beasts waiting to sink their claws in him – Mentha and Melilot had tangled with a one Peregrin Took before.
“Would you like to come inside, Peregrin?” Melilot said coyly.
“We can get you a drink after your long trip – you must be famished, can we get you some dates? I know they’re your absolute favorite fruit!”
“Do you even have any dates?” Pippin asked skeptically. Dates were not his favorite, anyway.
“Oh, I’m sure we can scrounge some up, right Mellie?”
The two lasses grabbed his arms and hauled him off the cart, pulling him towards the hole. Estella stayed behind, watching the scene with amusement.
“Peregrin always seems to have that effect on lasses,” Paladin said, grinning.
“Or maybe the lasses just have that effect on him – it could just be Mentha and Mellie, and their way with the lads,” she said, and waving to Paladin followed the three hobbits within the hole.
Mentha was sitting with Pippin on a comfortable couch in the living room, as Melilot was rummaging through the kitchen to complete the simple task of getting him a glass of water – to her, it was not as easy as it sounded.
“Estella, do you know where the glasses are?”
“I think they’re in the cabinet, Mellie,” she said, “Mentha, why don’t you help your sister – and Pippin, since they’re getting you a glass of water, surely you can do the same for them, right?”
Mentha smiled at her – Pippin’s face bore a dark look, as she dragged him into the kitchen. Estella watched from beyond the room their antics – it seemed very easy for Melilot to spill water all over the kitchen.
“Probably easier than it looks, though,” she heard a voice behind her say – she looked around to see none other than Doderic and Ilberic.
“You two!” she said, playfully punching their shoulders, “You switched Celandine’s drink, which is why she got drunk!”
“What, us?” they said, pretending to be offended, “Why ever would you think that we might do something like that, Estella?”
“Because you’re the only ones low enough to do something like that, and to your own sister! Merry and I had to take her away from the party, after you two ran off and left us all alone!”
“Oh – exactly how alone were the two of you?” Doderic asked slyly – Ilberic waved a nonchalant hand in his direction.
“Come off it, Dod, she doesn’t get what you’re talking about.”
“What? What it is he’s talking about? Is it about Merry liking me?”
Their heads did a double take as she said this – they turned to stare at her, surprised and confused at what she said.
“What? I just thought it was something she’d said in her state of drunkenness – nothing important and nothing true.”
They still stared at her – she expected them to disagree with her, which they didn’t.
“You mean it is true?” she asked disbelievingly.
They slowly nodded, still staring. Luckily there was a chair behind her, as she sat down without even looking to see if anything were below her – she stared ahead of her, much like Doderic and Ilberic had, but her eyes were glazed over, like they really weren’t perceiving anything that was in front of them.
“You weren’t supposed to know yet – guess telling Celandine was the wrong thing to do.”
“No,” Estella said softly, “No, it’s okay, I don’t mind knowing.”
“Yeah, but would Merry mind your knowing – especially when he wasn’t the one to tell you?”
“When was it that he told you?”
“The day he came to talk with you, the day after we visited him at Brandy Hall – when we got Celandine out of her room.”
“Merry first told us about it the night before, and we told Celandine while you were downstairs with him.”
“You know, I think I remember him advising us not to tell her.” Ilberic had a thoughtful look on his face as he said this.
“But what if I don’t feel the same?”
“We didn’t think you did – neither did Merry, but he was willing to keep his distance.”
“I feel bad, though – because I don’t feel the same way, I mean.”
“But that’s no reason to return the feelings, if you ever do. Don’t love Merry because you pity him – I don’t think he would want that.”
“That’s not the reason he loves you.”
“Why does he feel that way? Did he say exactly why he loves me?”
“Yeah – for quite a while.”
“But we don’t want to tell – cousin’s honor, you know.”
“Put it from your mind for now, though. You need give this time – you’re in shock, and for good reason. Think it over, consider the options – and make up your mind on how you feel about it.”
“How long will that take?”
“That, Estella, depends on you.”