Sméagol's Redeption

Chapter 101

The following Saturday, for the JamFam meeting, Bri decided to throw a party at her house to celebrate all the wonderful things that had happened—Lea and Meredith recovering from cancer, Sméagol destroying the One Ring, Lea and Sméagol's engagement, and the birth of her daughter, Caitlin.. That afternoon, Lea, Sméagol, Aini, and Madilyn came early to help her and Damian prepare. They brought a whole bunch of snacks and beverages, helped her decorate the house, and set out the refreshments. Damian set up the karaoke machine and piano for anyone who wanted to sing. He also created a playlist of all Celtic Woman's songs to play in the background. Bri made a whole bunch of delicious hors d'oeuvres, and Aini ordered pizza. Nobody dressed up too fancy, but everyone was wearing something nice. Lea wore the same outfit she wore to the Celtic Woman concert, and Sméagol wore his zip-up Celtic Woman sweater.

"Will Adam and Mer be joining us?" asked Damian.

"Yep," Madilyn replied.

"And, will we get to meet your dog?"

"Yep, you will. They're taking her to get bathed and groomed right now."

"Um, is she gonna jump on me?" Lea asked hesitantly.

"Oh, yeah, pomeranians are usually very playful," said Damian.

"No," said Madilyn. "She's been very well trained. She doesn't bark, doesn't jump on people. She'll sit there, and just let you pet her. She's very mellow. She only gets playful and hyper when we play with her."

"Okay, good," Lea said, relieved. "I love dogs, but I get really nervous around them if they're hyper."

"So do I, but she's very calm."

"It has a dog?" asked Gollum.

"Yep, we do. You like dogs, Gollum?"

"We never met one before."

"He hasn't," said Sméagol, "but Sméagol has. Sméagol loves dogses."

"Oh, Gollum, you'll love her," said Madilyn. "She is the sweetest, most adorable dog ever."

Gollum smiled.

"Is she fluffy?" asked Lea.

"Oh, she's very fluffy and soft and very cuddly."

Lea giggled as if she were being tickled by a soft sweater.

Sméagol giggled, and smiled warmly at her. "Awww, you're so cute."

"So, Sméagol, how does everything feel now that you've destroyed the ring?" asked Bri. "Is it as bad as you thought it would be?"

"No, not at all," said Sméagol. "We feels free now."

"What about you, Gollum?"

"Oh, yes, Precious," Gollum replied, "we feels very free. We doesn't need it." He kissed Lea's cheek. "Lea is the true Precious."

Lea smiled.

"Awww, Gollum, you're so sweet," said Madilyn.

"Yeah, I'm really lucky," said Lea. "Hey, Aini?"

"Yeah?" Aini replied.

"I just really wanted to thank you for bringing him here. If it wasn't for you, I never would've found real love, and I probably would've been a goner by now, either from cancer or... you know. So, thank you."

"Aww, you're welcome, Lea." Aini hugged her.

"And, thank you for being an awesome friend, too. It's so hard to find friends I can be my complete self around without feeling like I'm being judged. You've seen some pretty ugly sides of me, but you still stuck around."

"Well, I don't believe in judging people unfairly. Being an angel teaches you a lot about love and friendship. You watch over so many people, people who are struggling, and when you really get to know their full story, you see just how beautiful they truly are. It all comes down to five things—listening to them, understanding their needs, accepting them, being patient, and above all, loving them. In the end, that's what we all need, love."

"If only everyone understood that," said Damian. "The world would be a much better place."

"You're amazing," said Lea. "You didn't look at Gollum or Sméagol, and see a villain or a fucking monster. You saw someone who really needed and deserved love."

"And, he got it," added Bri, "big time."

"That," said Aini, "and I saw so much good in him." She smiled at him. "And, I was right."

Lea rested her head on Sméagol's shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around her.

"So, who are these people you're bringing?" Bri asked Aini. "Are they the ones from Middle Earth you told us about?"

"Some of them," said Aini. "They're the ones who were most associated with Gollum—Sam, Frodo, Bilbo, Gandalf, Galadriel."

"We never meets Galadriel," said Sméagol.

"Bagginses will be here?" Gollum inquired.

"Yep," said Aini.

"This is awesome!" Lea said excitedly. "I can't wait to meet them!"

"They're some of the nicest people you'll ever meet," said Aini, "and I think they'll really like you all."