What Happened Thereafter {A LotR Fanfiction}

Daffodil

[I dedicate this chapter to my younger brother, Noah, who has autism, and is quite challenging at some times, but has also taught me to be patient and to see those with disabilities as unbelievably special people.]

Daffodil felt sick. After she had screamed she found that she couldn't breath, she couldn't talk, she couldn't do anything but stare at her father's lifeless body strewn at the ground in front of her. She was so shocked that tears hadn't even begun to form yet. She vaguely remembered Sam putting her arms around her, and then kneeling in front of her father and sobbing, but other than that, the events of the day were a complete blur to her now. 

The rain began as a gentle drizzle, but steadily grew more heavy and the sky more dark. Daffodil sank to her knees in a puddle of mud at her feet, put her hands to her face, and cried for her father. In death, he looked all the more serious than he had been in life, and his eyes-which were still open--stared up at the sky; stared at nothing. There was a pool of blood beneath his belly; a deep, fatal wound in his stomach, still fresh. Daffodil couldn't look at him any longer, but she couldn't muster the strength to move, either. Beside her, Sam was still weeping bitterly. He was grieving Ivy and felt sorry for Daffodil's loss, and though he hardly knew From, he couldn't help but feel remorse for his death. 

It felt like she had been sitting there crying forever, but it was only a few minutes after he had heard her scream that Frodo came to her. He frowned sadly at From's body, and wished he could do something to comfort his dear gardener and Daffodil, but more than anything he ached to take back everything that had happened since Saruman had invaded his home. Their home.

Oh, where was Gandalf when you needed him? 

"Daffodil," he said, clearing his throat. She didn't look up at him. He slowly walked over to her, then knelt down beside her and tenderly gathered her in his arms and stuck his nose in her hair when she buried her wet face in his shirt and let out a heavy sob that that shook both their bodies. her curly hair was losing it's volume, and there was mud on her dress and a tear in her skirt. She was a mess, but no one cared. In that moment, it was just Daffodil and Frodo. In that moment, they were the whole world. No one else existed as they held one another, desperate for each other's touch. 

To Daffodil, the world was spinning and the only thing solid and good was the hobbit that held her in her arms. He was always the one she could trust to understand her feelings of sorrow the best, and was the only one who had felt what she was feeling at that moment. She held on to Frodo with all her might, because she would not lose him. She sobbed into his chest and breathed in his comforting, woodsy scent, and squeezed his arms to prevent him from leaving her. He was hers, and she was his. Letting go would not be that easy.

To Frodo, the world was still and eerily quiet except for Daffodil, whose sobs could probably be heard throughout the Shire. She dug her fingernails into the flesh of his arms and pressed into him as if she were afraid he would die and leave her alone as well. He wrapped his arms around her and let the tears fall from his own eyes as she cried for the father who had raised her into who she was. Frodo knew all too well what it was like to lose family. His own parents had drowned when he was quite young, but he still remembered the incident like it was yesterday. It was the hardest thing that had happened to him until the trouble with the ring.

Samwise Gamgee, who was on the ground beside Frodo and Daffodil, wiped the tears away from his eyes and stood up. He looked down at his friends, and smiled, but it was a sad smile. His poor master--he had been through so much. But this time, Sam didn't know how to comfort him. This time, it was Sam who needed a reassuring pep-talk from the hobbit he'd shared so much toil with already. He half-wished that Mr. Frodo would stand up and follow him when he left, but was also half-glad when he didn't.

---

It was dark when Frodo and Daffodil finally broke apart. Her grieving had left Daffodil exhausted, and she was grateful when Frodo helped her to her feet.

"Thank you, Frodo," she said, unable to look at him. Frodo reached out and brushed a strand of her wet hair out of her face and smiled at her, trying to be the encouragement that she needed.

"The pleasure was all mine. Now what say we go home?"

It was the best idea Daffodil had ever heard, and after giving one last look at her father, she nodded and followed him up the path and to his house. When they got there, they were both surprised that the light was on, and then worried when Thorn stormed out of the house angrily and informed them that Nettle had been wounded.

"Nettle--" Daffodil's heart sank again, and her thoughts became frantic. "Is she alright? Let me see her!"

"Oh, she's fine. The only one who's really upset about it was Merry. He made the whole thing a much bigger deal that it should have been." Thorn replied and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, when are they going to get together? It's taking an unnecessary amount of time for them to realize they both like each other. It's so obvious."

Daffodil visibly heaved a sigh of relief, and pushed past her friend to get into the house. It was so much warmer inside than it had been outside in the rain. Frodo and Thorn were right behind her, and Thorn showed them where Nettle, Merry, and Pippin were. Nettle was in the guest bedroom lying on the bed. Her face was pale, and her side was bloody, but she slept with a smile on her face and Daffodil thought that she had never looked prettier. Merry seemed to have the same idea, because he couldn't take his eyes off Nettle. Daffodil's heart warmed at the thought of the tender relationship Merry and Nettle shared. Thorn was right--it was obvious that they liked each other. A smile lit up her tear-streaked face, and she smoothed her best friend's clammy brow. 

"We thought she could stay here!" Pippin said happily. he was smoking his pipe in the corner, and shrugged his shoulders like an innocent bystander when Frodo frowned at him.

"I'll stay with her!" Merry volunteered. It was Daffodil's turn to be perturbed.

"That's hardly appropriate," she said, "I'll be staying with her since I don't want to go home anyway."

Merry's face fell, and his eyes shone with compassion.

"I am sorry for your loss," he said. Daffodil smiled slightly.

"It wasn't your fault, Merry. I will miss him tremendously, though." Daffodil wiped her eyes with her hand and smoothed her dress down. Thorn patted her shoulder, and went to stand near Pippin, who offered her a go on his pipe.

Frodo put his lips against Daffodil's ear and she leaned into him, savoring his touch. Somewhere deep within her soul a flame was lit, and an understanding gripped her heart. Like Merry and Nettle, she knew that she and Frodo were close to each other as well, and when she really thought about it, her heart became heavy when she thought of ever leaving him. She couldn't imagine her life without Frodo Baggins in it, and so, she decided, she was in love with him.

"You can stay here as long as you'd like." Frodo whispered. Daffodil shivered, not only because she felt a sudden chill in the wind, but also because of his proximity to her. With a sudden urgency she never thought she'd ever feel, she turned towards him and planted a kiss on his cheek. His eyes widened and he lost his grip on her briefly, but then he kissed her back on her forehead.

"Get a room, you two, we really don't need to see your passion." Thorn said from the corner. Frodo turned a bright shade of red, but Daffodil crossed her arms.

"Right, just like we don't need to see your romance with Mr. Took over there." She grinned when Pippin flushed and Thorn jumped away from him and placed her hands on her hips. Her face wasn't as red as Pippin's but her cheeks were a rosy pink as she glared at Frodo and Daffodil, who had doubled over with laughter. After a few moments, she strode back over to Pippin and grabbed his arms. With a playful light in her eyes she said: "Nonsense, you're just jealous!"

The laughter that ensued thereafter was the best kind of medicine any of them could ever think of.