Meriadoc Brandybuck pasted a smile on his face as he led Estella back to the campsite, where they would no doubt have some explaining to do. He had agreed to her ridiculous idea -- to pretend that they were in love, and although he was starting to wonder if this was any sort of a good idea at all, he had his own reasons for going along with it.

Merry had loved Angelica (also known as Diamond) since the first moment he had laid eyes…and hands…and lips… on her. He had loved Pippin since the day he had been born. He had hoped that the three of them would stay together, a trio, for the rest of their lives, but when Angelica had accepted Pippin's marriage proposal, that dream had been shattered. Pippin had thought that his marrying Angelica would change nothing, and maybe Merry could have accepted that, but he knew in his heart that it would not be the same.

He had quietly tried to back out, giving them some space. He had gone to stay with Frodo at Bag-end and let Pip and Angelica have the big bed that the three of them had once shared. It was the right thing to do, Merry thought, as much as it hurt. In the daytime, nothing was different. He would be home by breakfast time and all day the three of them were inseparable. During the day, he could almost forget. Merry's nights, however, were lonely.

He supposed he could have stayed home while Pippin and Angelica went off to Ithilien to get the blessing of Faramir on their nuptials, but Merry had thought the adventure might do him some good. Besides, it would be his last chance to spend any time with Frodo, Bilbo, and Gandalf before they sailed to the west. Merry had developed a taste for adventure and was not quite ready yet to settle down and stay forever in the Shire watching Pippin and Sam's children grow up.

When Estella Bolger, who had been chasing after Pippin forever, showed up and announced that she was being sent to Gondor, Merry had been glad he had was already going. Estella was a nice girl, but she was only going to cause trouble with her mad crush. Merry didn't think Pippin even realized the potential for it, so he had silently vowed to keep his eye on Estella. He would not let anything spoil his cousin's happiness.

Merry had trouble believing that Estella's story about her going to be a maid of honor for Lady Eowyn. For one thing, since when did Estella's father know the lord and lady of Ithilien? The story sounded suspicious to Merry, but since no one else questioned her and simply allowed her to join the party, Merry said nothing either. He had simply vowed silently to make sure that she did not steal Pippin from Angelica.

But what if she did? Merry wondered…Would he have any chance with Angelica if it was broken off between the two of them?

He tried not to think about this. Not at all. It made him feel rotten and guilty, even considering the thought, but right now he knew that it was part of why he was letting Estella have her way in this charade. She thought to make Pippin jealous. Maybe, Merry thought, Angelica would be jealous as well. Maybe she would realize that she needed Merry as much as she needed Pippin. Maybe she would want them to commit to a threesome.

This was only one of the bad reasons Merry had for agreeing to pretend to love Estella. The others were even worse. He thought vaguely of the possibility of seducing Estella, which would have several uses. It would relieve his tension, and it would distract her from Pippin. However, he did not necessarily want Estella transferring her affections from Pippin to him. No, that was assuredly a bad idea.

Still, Merry thought, glancing over at her, he would not rule out the possibility. She was pretty enough, with her long, curly dark locks, her pert, upturned nose, and her generous mouth. Kissing her would be delicious -- and that much at least, Merry certainly intended to do.

The last bad reason was the most pathetic of all. It had to do entirely with his loneliness. He wanted to feel like he was in love, and maybe by acting like it, he could imagine what it was like to feel that way. He knew love. He knew love well, had never been without it all his life -- but he wanted that special thing that Sam and Rosie had -- and that Pippin and Angelica had. And Legolas and Ciendriel, for that matter. He wanted wine and roses, poetry and kisses. And now he was going to have it, even if it was a sham, an illusion, a fake. Now he was going to feel it.

Merry and Estella came out of the woods and Merry made sure his expression was slightly smug. He licked his lips and winked at Gimli, who chuckled. Merry did not have to look at Estella to know she was blushing. This would serve to heighten the idea that something had passed between them in the woods.

They sat back down at the edge of the campfire and Merry put his arm around Estella. She shrank away from him, so Merry pulled her up against him more tightly. It was her idea and he was not letting her off the hook easily.

"Well, Pippin, it turns out that Miss Bolger truly does like me better than you," he said slyly.

"Really!"

"Oh, she has proved it to me, absolutely beyond a doubt," Merry said.

"Is that so, Estella?" Pippin said grinning. Estella nodded, smiling weakly. "Because I always thought--"

"I've always been crazy about Merry," she said, her voice sounding faint.

"Hm," Pippin said thoughtfully, frowning. Angelica turned away from the fire then, handing Merry and Estella each a plate of sausages and taters.

"I think its wonderful," she said.

"Oh, it certainly is wonderful, all right," said Pippin.

"I could not agree more," Merry said. He turned and kissed Estella on the cheek with a loud smack. "We're going to be very happy together."

"Take good care of him," Angelica said to Estella, bending close to the other female Hobbit. "I love Merry very much, and he really deserves a nice girl like you."

Merry's heart raced at her words, and he felt Estella trembling in his embrace. He withdrew his arm so he could eat his dinner, but Angelica's words unsettled him slightly. She loved him! But he knew it was not quite the same was as she loved Pippin, and there was nothing to be done about that tonight.

Gimli had gotten an odd look in his eye and he sighed, smiling grandly beneath his beard. "Ah, young love," he said. "It reminds me of when I was a young buck and would go visit my cousin Balin in the Mines of Moria. What a plethora of beautiful Dwarf women lived in those mines! And what skills they had! Cooking, cleaning!"

"The Mines of Moria were not so clean, as I remember them," said Merry, really not wanting to hear more about the skills of Dwarf women. He already knew far more about them from Gimli than he had ever wanted to.

"Is it true that they all have beards?" Estella asked, seemingly fascinated by Gimli's tale.

"Why, yes, they do," Gimli replied proudly. "There's nothing more erotic than the feel of a beard against your lips. Why, if you had not just promised yourself to Merry, I might show you, lass!"

"Hands off, Gimli," Merry said before he even realized he was going to say it. He turned to look at Estella, who looked back at him with slightly narrowed eyes. Merry smirked at her. "She's my woman now," he said loudly, but this time he was exaggerating for her sake.

"Oh, my," said Angelica. She took her own plate and sat down next to Pippin.

Merry looked across the fire at Gandalf, who Merry realized was listening silently. Bilbo was exclaiming to Frodo over the quality of the food and the skill of Angelica's (and his own) cooking. Gandalf smiled at him, his eyes twinkling.

"What are you thinking, Gandalf?" Merry blurted out.

"I am thinking," Gandalf replied, "That it is time that Legolas and Ciendriel returned from their patrol. Ah, and there they are."

The appearance of the two Elves caused a significant distraction. Merry took in their state of disrepair and sighed to himself. Some night, he thought, he was going to spy on them and watch. What a wonderful sight it must be, the ethereal, pale, long-limbed Elven bodies twining together in lovemaking.

Merry liked Elves, though he found it difficult to make love to someone who was twice his height. Not that it couldn't be done, he thought, thinking about the Elves of Rivendell. What a time he and Pippin had had there just before the forming of the Fellowship of the Ring. Elrond would probably never forgive them for it. He had certainly dressed them down over it the last time they had been there.

There was a rumor that Meriadoc had impregnated several of those Elven women, and that they had been sent away to the Undying lands. He wondered sometimes if that were true, if he had unknown half-Elf children out there, somewhere… He did know that Elrond would skin him alive if touched another Elf, so he had best keep hands off. Last time he had been too distracted by Angelica even to try anything, and this time, well, it would spoil the whole game with Estella if he sneaked off to lie with an Elf.

He finished his dinner and lay down to rest, rolling up in his cloak next to Estella. She rolled away. Merry rolled after her, gambling on the fact that if she rolled again, she would find herself up against Gimli. He was right. She didn't moved. Instead she turned over, face to face with him, and hissed at him.

"What are you doing?"

"Just snuggling up close to you," Merry whispered back.

"Well, don't."

"May I remind you that it was your idea?" Merry said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"Not all this touching!"

"Look at Pippin and Angelica then. They're touching far more than we are."

Estella sat up for a moment to peer over Merry at the other pair. She laid back down quickly, blushing again. Merry was beginning to think that red was her natural color.

"Well," she said, "All right, then, but don't try anything funny."

"Trust me, I don't find this even remotely funny," Merry said. "Anyway, we'll be warmer if we lie closer together." He lifted up his arm for her to move even closer to him. With a sigh, she did. Merry covered them both with his cloak.

"You're right," she said, stifling a yawn, "This is warmer. Good night, Meriadoc."

"Good night," Merry said, but the press of her body against his was having an unexpected effect on his body. He debated pressing it against her, knowing it would unsettle her, but instead shifted slightly so she would not be disturbed by his arousal.

He took a deep breath. She had a delicate scent to her, like wildflowers, sweet and aromatic. She was warm indeed, probably hot from all the blushing, Merry thought. Her hair was incredibly soft, and as he relaxed and finally inclined towards sleep, he curled his fingers around it.

"Merry. Merry!"

Merry did not remember falling asleep. He did know, when he awoke, that it had possibly been the best sleep he had ever had, at least while sleeping outdoors on the ground. It was too delicious waking up with Angelica in his arms… Wait. Not Angelica. Estella. It was her body that fit so neatly against his own, felt so right. He frowned.

"Meriadoc Brandybuck!"

"What?" Who was yelling at him? He looked up to see Pippin standing over him, looking tired and cross. "What do you want, Pip? Go back to bed, it can't be morning yet. I'm far too comfortable to move."

"The Elves are here to take us across the river. If you want to go, you had best get up," Pippin snapped.

"It's not like you to be so cranky in the morning, Pip," Merry said, still holding Estella in his arms.

"We're having breakfast with Elrond," Pippin sighed.

"Do you have a problem with breakfast?" Merry asked, astounded.

"No! I'm very, very fond of breakfast. However, having it with Elrond means that we won't get any for at least an hour. Or maybe two hours. Or three, if Elrond keeps us waiting!"

"Don't get hysterical."

"You know what Elves eat for breakfast. It'll be some fruit platter. Or even worse, lembas bread. No sausages, no crispy fried tomatoes, no--"

Angelica threw her arms around Pippin and kissed him on the mouth, mercifully silencing him. "Here's a roll," she said, stuffing it into his hand. "If Elrond's fare doesn't satisfy you, I promise that I will, later."

"Oh," said Pippin, calming down, "Well, all right then." He bit into the roll and closed his eyes, smiling. Merry's stomach growled. He hoped Angelica had another one hidden away for him somewhere. "Merry, you need to get up. We're leaving," Pippin said much more cheerfully, then walked away to help them finish breaking down the campsite.

Estella must have been exhausted, as all of Pippin's hysterics had not permeated her slumber. Merry gently shook her, muttering her name until she awoke. She opened her eyes and looked at him, smiling dreamily for a moment. Merry's heart skipped a beat… but then the smile faded into a look of disappointment.

"Oh," she said, "I was dreaming about Pippin. I thought I heard his voice."

Merry withdrew from her and stood up, leaving her on the ground. "You did," he said shortly. "He was telling us it is time to get up. Let's go."

Estella got to her feet and looked at him, frowning. A moment later, a light sparkled in her eye that Merry immediately knew was going to be trouble. "Didn't you say you were going to pick me some flowers?"

"Right now? We're supposed to be getting on a boat with the Elves. I'm nervous enough thinking of sailing even just across the river with Legolas. He doesn't have a good reputation with boats."

"You were the one who wanted to make it look good," Estella said. "I did what you wanted last night, so now you ought to do this for me."

Sighing, Merry decided that it was easier to pick the flowers than to argue with her. He looked around for the closest available plants, but there was nothing even remotely in bloom.

"I'll be right back," he hollered to the general company. "I need to pick some FLOWERS for my BELOVED!"

"You had best hurry, Meriadoc," Gandalf said gravely. "You do not wish to swim across the river if you miss the ferry."

Merry nodded, even more irritated, and ran into the edge of the woods where Estella had disappeared last night. He thought he remembered seeing some dandelions there. More a weed than a flower, and Pippin would try to eat them if he saw them before she did, but it would have to serve. If he had to swim across the river, he was never going to forgive Estella.

Quickly he yanked up a handful of the yellow weeds, the roots, with dirt still clinging to them, coming with them. He heard Pippin and Angelica calling his name and knew that the ferry was leaving with out him. Merry turned and ran out of the woods in the direction of the launching raft. Those damn Rivendell Elves couldn't have waited five more minutes?

Merry took a flying leap and landed on the raft, smashing into Legolas and striking his foot on the edge of the wooden boat. He cried out as pain shot up through his leg. Surely he had just mangled his foot beyond repair. He was going to be lame for the rest of his life. Maybe it would kill him, it hurt so badly… Merry found himself shaking and sweating, unable to hear or see anyone around him. He was barely aware of the fact that he had knocked Legolas into the water.

Estella loomed over him, her face filled with concern. "Merry? Merry!"

With the last of his strength, Merry lifted up the bouquet of dandelions.

"Here," he said weakly.

He closed his eyes and let the pain envelop him.