Strolling with a Hobbit by nancylea57
Author: nancylea57
Title: Strolling with a Hobbit
Rating: general
Theme: Fix the movies
Element: Nettle
Summary: (see notes)
Word Count: 1560
Author's Note: My second choice of errors, what kind of an idiot leaves a DEAD friend to watch over the awakening of a sick unconscious person? Do you really think that if you woke up from a near death experience, and the first thing you see is a DEAD friend that you would smile and laugh? When your laughter, draws in your younger cousins, would you be happy to think them dead also, when all you wanted was for them to find a safer way?
Bypassing Cormallen leaves out many important healing and reconciling moments. Let’s try this one on:
Strolling with a Hobbit
It was after break of fast and nearing second breakfast, Frodo was inside the tent gathering together some notes he had been making over the last few days; he was meant to spend the afternoon in conference with the King. No one was allowing me to do any labor; meals were carried to us if we were not at the tables with the men. Dishes were carried away and washed by someone else. My dirty clothes disappear into the night only to reappear folded and neatly prepared for the next wearing. There is no garden to weed and no mowing of the lawns to attend. And goodness knows I’m not a healer, so there’s little or nothing to claim my time.
“Master Gamgee, my brother and I need to replenish some of our medicinal supplies; would you care to spent the afternoon in the woods, seeing Ithilien from another angle. Aragorn told us last night that he planned to spend most of the day with Frodo and Gandalf discussing how to handle the protection of Shire in the future.” Noting the blue beads in the braids of this elf, I realize that Lord Elladan has provided me with an excellent and timely way to avoid another afternoon of bowing and genuflecting admirers. I’m just a common hobbit, but all these people act like I did something as important as Mr. Frodo.
“Yes. When were you planning on going? Just let me tell Mr. Frodo that I’ll be with you so he doesn’t worry. Should I bring a jacket as well as my cloak, is there a basket or sack that I can use? Or should I grab Mr. Pippin’s rucksack?”
“Jacket, but no cloak. The rucksack isn’t a bad idea; we have several bags apiece for ourselves and thought that a pillow case might be best for you. ‘Ro is asking for a picnic lunch, so why don’t we go to the kitchen and make sure there’s enough. Sounds like you are eager to get away for awhile? Ahh, Frodo, I see you’re ready to walk over to Aragorn’s, can we help carry some of that? I thought I would steal your gardener and let him look at Gondor’s great garden before the repairs begin, unless of course you and Aragorn need him? Quick, grab your ruck and a jacket. ”
“Elladan, I thought I heard you mention a walk through the woods, how I would love to go with you. That afternoon with the rabbit stew; remember it, Sam. That was probably the very best day of the trip from the falls to Mordor. I could almost pretend that I was on a camping trip in the Shire. Well, you and Elrohir will have to make plans for another day and the four of us can go for an afternoon. Use this scouting trip well, Sam, I’ll expect you to have the perfect place for us next time. Here, Elladan; hold this a moment; turn around Sam let me straighten out your jacket and hair. We must get a pair of scissors you need a good trim.”I felt his hands brushing against the jacket in several places. “Now don’t be afraid to tell them if you need to stop and rest; they are healers and know it will take a goodly amount of time and care to heal you proper. Drink lots of water and pace yourself.”
“Yes, Mamma.” He stuck his tongue out at me.
“You know I don’t often get to give you the care that you give me. Let me have some fun.”
“Yes, Mamma.”I duck as he takes a swing at my backside. “Come let’s get you to Aragorn’s and then we will go get Lord Elrohir and our meals and let them know that you are at the King’s tent for second breakfast. Save someone the trip out here with a meal.”
We end up staying and having second breakfast at Aragorn’s because he had kept Lord Elrohir busy with some paperwork that came in the morning packet from Gondor that needed translating from Sindarin to Westron. Not the rewriting, a clerk did that but the translating and proofreading. Aragorn has so many pages and pages of paperwork that any help is appreciated. We teased Frodo that if his handwriting were back to normal, he could apply for a job. Aragorn dispatched a foot soldier, waiting for the return packet for Gondor; told him to have his meal and please tell the cooks that all four hobbits were here, if it would please them to send us breakfast. All of us have learned that if he doesn’t say ‘second’ breakfast there aren’t as many questions about how much we eat. He may have started out skimping on meals but he has learned to feed us often and well. By the time breakfast arrived, Eomer and Merry had come, and Pippin was summoned from his post at the picket line. (He had been caught goofing around yesterday, in uniform, after standing his watch with Aragorn; his sergeant told him that because he was in uniform he was punishable; because he was off duty it didn’t have to go on his record. So today, on his day off, he’s shoveling. I think that they go easier on him then on some of the others because of his youth and inexperience, but they are trying to teach him discipline.) Gandalf and I had made a list of which hobbit was going to be where and what food stuffs would be need when by each group. There had been a few additions suggested by Strider and his brothers for what would be nice; but I don’t think I need a three layer cake for tea in the woods, but I believe that Elrohir would have carried it if I had agreed; I think he has a sweet tooth. One of the cooks makes a really nice shortbread, and yes they all laughed over “short” bread for a hobbit. And one of the Northern rangers had found a honey tree just the other day, so there’s fresh honeycomb to be had.
At last we were on our way. “Lord Samwise, if you will call us Dan and ‘Ro, we will call you Sam, if you insist of Lord “this or that”, we know your official title also. We both have heard you call Aragorn Strider and Mithrandir, Gandalf; so we know you can relax when you want to. How about it, just friends: Dan, ‘Ro, and Sam out foraging the woods? And if you are really good I know where there’s a field of mushrooms just cropping out.”
“Well, ‘Ro, what are we looking for? Do we have any ideas what medicinal grows out here? Or are we dependent on Dan’s whims?”
“Basically Sam, we need some of everything and we have no idea what grows in the region and how likely it is to be in season. The soldiers I have talked with say that the weather has not been all that rough this year it was a mild winter and the last snow fall was some weeks ago, so just about any spring growth should be started. Also you must remember that we are not totally trained in human medicine and only marginally in hobbit lore so there maybe things that we overlook that you know about because I assume you have been consulted before about medicinal herbs.”
“Oh, my, yes. I go often when the healers are having a busy season and help to gather wild herbs and of course there are always those herbs that grow or should grow in everyone’s garden. But if you want a real education of herbs that healers use you should talk with Mr. Merry, he has dated more than one healer and often goes to the woods with them to help gather; now I’m sure he has other reasons but I happen to know he has learned a good deal from his exposure to healers.”
“Dan, look…nettles,” Ro pointed into the distance. “Now, Sam, here’s a plant that we need and one that our sister will be happy to know grows here. Do hobbits use nettles for fabric weaving?”
“I’ve never heard of weaving them, but hobbits like the taste of them.”
“The taste of them? No one I know likes the taste of nettle extract. It has to be blended carefully to cover the taste. What do your healers mix it with?”
“Healers, no, no, no; it’s a salad maker or soup additive. Fresh picked, soaked to break up the spines but not necessary to cook unless it’s getting older and tough. How do you prepare it?”
”Well it depends; there’s a way for heart trouble, one for joint trouble, one for skin trouble, our perfumers use it in shampoo sometimes for people who have itchy heads, father likes it added to any tonic for someone who has bleed a lot, injury or childbirth either one is apt to end up on a tonic with nettle for at least a week, maybe more. And in the case of childbirth, he likes to try to get them started before delivery if he can. ….And you’re say hobbits eat it ---straight?”
And thus began a wonderful afternoon of trading knowledge and exploring the bountiful woods.