What Happened Thereafter {A LotR Fanfiction}

Ivy

[I dedicate this chapter to my friend, Antonio, because he is the most amazing person ever! I don't know if he'll ever actually see this, or read this, but I want everyone to know that he is a fantabulous person and deserves every ounce of this dedication. Thanks for being such a cool friend, Antonio.]

After Nettle left for the river to look for frogs, Ivy fell onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling for a long while. She could hear her older brothers, Diggory and Grigory laughing in the room beside her, and wondered what there was to laugh about. She wished Nettle would tell her what was wrong (because something obviously was wrong), but her sister didn't tell her everything and sometimes preferred Ivy not to pry. 

"Ivy, honey? Why aren't you outside with your friends?" Her mother stuck her head in the door and looked at her daughter who was laying across her bed, staring up at nothing. Worry found itself being plastered on the crease in Lily's forehead as she watched as Ivy slowly sat up and turned her head to look at her; her blue eyes dull and sad.

"What is it, Ivy?" Lily asked. Usually Ivy was able to conceal her hurt, but every once in a while she could see the feeling of abandonment and loneliness reflect in her daughter's face.

"Oh nothing, mother. I was just about to go out and look for Samwise Gamgee. I think he needs some cheering up today," Ivy said, when in fact what she meant was: "I'm going to go out to look for Sam because I need some cheering up today."

And with that, Ivy flounced out of bed, kissed her mother on the cheek, and skipped out the door into the cloudy day that seemed to reflect how everyone was feeling on that particular morning.

It didn't take long for her to find Sam, he was in their usual meeting place--in the secret cove near the river--sitting cross-legged underneath a tree. He was holding a slip of paper in his hands and was frowning down at it. He had initially come looking for Ivy just as she had come looking for him, but along the way something had caught his eye.

"Hello, Sam," Ivy said, padding up to him. She looked over his shoulder and read the words that had been written there.

"No Admittance, Except on Party Business. What does that mean, Sam?" she asked curiously. Sam looked up at her and smiled. Somehow she always knew when he'd be there.

"I found this in a thicket of thorn bushes. It must have been there for a long time, because the last time I saw this was the day Bilbo held his one hundred and eleventh birthday. It was glued to his gate, where Frodo lives."

"That's strange. I wonder if someone put it there for you to find?" Ivy sat down and rested her head on Sam's shoulder. Sam was a bit startled by this, but her head was warm and her hair soft. He rather liked the weight of her body against him--it comforted him in some little way. He looked over at her and smiled, and she smiled at him then sat up once again.

"Have you ever been swinging?" she asked, suddenly looking very excited. Sam looked perplexed.

"Swinging?" he repeated.

"Swinging." Ivy nodded her head and Sam watched as her long hair, that was in it's usual pony-tail, fell over her shoulder in gentle curls. He remembered how soft her hair was against his skin and blushed. Ivy took no notice, as usual, and kept on talking about...er, swinging.

"It's easy. All you have to do is find some vines, wind them together, sit down on them, and swing! I'll show you!" Ivy grabbed Sam's hand and for the first time noticed how safe it felt. She had held his hand before, in similar circumstances, and she had pulled him by the arm before as well, but she had never noticed anything out of the ordinary about it. What was different about it this time? Ivy let go of his hand and pushed a bundle of weeds out of her way, revealing a quiet, secluded grove of vines and swings that had already been made by her the last time she was there.