Here's some Bagginshield love because I want to make myself cry and feel like shit. I can just imagine Thorin waiting for Bilbo so they can be reunited in the afterlife😭 Who desperately wants to watch LOTR and The Hobbit and have a marathon but are too scared because if you do then you'll cry and lose a part of your soul like Voldemort because of certain deaths (Thorin, Fili, Kíli, Haldir and Boromir) like honestly Tolkien, I'd rather you shoot me than kill off these beloved characters😭 Although it's Peter Jackson's fault that Haldir died because he didn't in the book... Stupid Peter.
"Elvish"
******
Frodo Baggins was tired. He was tired of this quest. He was tired of his burden. He was tired of losing people he cared for. First, Bilbo leaves the Shire and him, and now Gandalf. Frodo was tired and confused.
Uncle Bilbo didn't say that going on adventures also meant facing the loss of friends. Even when he told him of the deaths of King Thorin and Prince Fili and Kíli, he made it seem glorifying. Like they died for some amazing cause that would immortalise them in a way like the hope of their people, he did not mention the numbness nor the hurt. Nor the self loathing. He didn't tell him that sometimes things got so hard that you felt like giving up every step of the way. He didn't tell him any of this and now, he felt cheated.
If this was what being on an adventure was like then Frodo never wanted to go on another one ever again.
Looking around, he saw his sleeping companions living blissfully in dreamland. Pippin was cuddled up to him on his left side with Sam on the other side of Pip. Gimli was snoring loudly with his beard up over his face. Legolas was sleeping like the dead which made sense when he thought of the Elf as that's exactly how he imagined Elves slept if he was being honest. Boromir and Aragorn looked like they were both restless and tossed in their sleep. Eleniel slept soundly next to Frodo, her arms wrapped around him as she breathed evenly. Frodo felt a certain kinship to her, almost as if she was family and that as long as she was around then everything would surely turn out alright.
"I wish the Ring had never come to me." He whispered aloud to himself, as it stared up at the ceiling of the pavilion. His thoughts turned to the talk that he had with Lady Galadriel.
'To be a ring bearer is to be alone.' Is what she had said and Frodo knew what it was that he had to do but he was scared. He was no warrior and his skills were limited to being able to out drink most Men and even Elves, being able to tell the meaning of certain flowers and sitting down for a whole day without doing a single thing but those skills would not help him get to Mordor and survive. He felt the arms around him tighten a little, startling him as he looked at the now wide awake grey eyes. Those eyes softened when they saw his own teary eyes.
"I know that is what you wish my little friend," she said, sitting up and pulling him with her. She held her arms wide open and Frodo tentatively sat himself on her lap. He leant his back against her chest as she rested her chin on his shoulder. His cheeks were red from embarrassment and she heard him mutter under his breath that he wasn't a child which made her chuckle. "You have much courage, more courage than many people will possess in a lifetime to be able to carry such an object."
"That ring is altogether evil Frodo. You must remember, that it will always only have one Master and will use any means to get back to Sauron. I will not push you to carry it for I do not have that authority, only you do as you are the one carrying it but, I will say that in order to save Middle Earth, it will take the might of all its people. The Elves, Dwarves, Men and even the small Hobbits of the Shire." Here she smiled at him as he let out a little chuckle before sobering. "Middle Earth belongs to all of us even if I hail from Valinor, Middle Earth is all I have known for the last few ages." She frowned when she thought of her age again making Frodo laugh and tease her about how she's old making her pout at him but happy to see him smile and laughing.
"I cannot pretend to know of the burden that you carry but I have been alive for a long time, seen kingdoms be built and fall. I even saw when the first Hobbits settled in the Shire but even I know the pressure of burdens and I can only offer you this small advice:," Frodo moves from her lap until he's sitting facing her with a solemn expression on his face. She grabs his hands tightly within her own to offer some comfort. "When you feel the pressure of the ring, you think of those you love. Love may seem small and insignificant to many but it is the most powerful of magic in all of Arda. It is love that pushes us to keep going when things become hard. It was the love of your home, of your uncle that pushed you to leave that Shire and make the trip to Rivendell."
"It was the love that Sam, Merry and Pippin have for you that made them leave the Shire with you making sure you were never alone. It is love that everyone in the Fellowship have for their homes, families and people that made them leave behind their comfort and travel with you and when you stand in Mount Doom, where the One Ring will try it's hardest and utmost to ensure it's survival, it will be your own love that will clear your mind of the thoughts of saving the Ring and you will destroy the ring."
Frodo felt tears run down his cheeks as he thought of his uncle, Bag End, the Shire, all the things that made him happy in the world; they would be what he held onto for the rest of his journey. "Do not despair. We shall be with you for the rest of your journey." He did not know what she was saying but he still found peace in her words. Feeling like a small child once again, Frodo climbed back onto her lap and into her arms, finding comfort in them like he use to when he was a fauntling with his Uncle Bilbo. He felt more arms wrap around him and looked to his sides to find a smiling Sam and Pippin, giving them both his own appreciative smile.
"I am happy to have you all with me." Frodo said, looking at Eleniel, Sam and Pippin. They all smiled back at him and just like that, Frodo found peace and rest in the company of his friends, his family, the Fellowship.
Unbeknownst to them, Eleniel's words had touched the hearts of everyone in that pavilion that night. None more notably than the Gondorian.
******
Boromir could not forget the words of that Elf. He realised how stupid he was for even suspecting that she was a servant of Sauron and she was right. Not telling someone your heritage was different to working for the Dark Lord.
With her words playing in his mind all night and even the next day, he decided that he needed a walk and fresh air to clear his mind. Walking off, he found himself sitting under the large tree a few ways from the Fellowship. He did not notice the Elven Prince in the tree until he heard his feet plant firmly on the forest floor.
"You seem troubled." Legolas said, looking over him with a concerned look.
He turned to his side, opened his mouth to snap back at the Elf that he was just fine, only for his mouth to snap shut. Boromir decided that telling the truth would be better than lying. "Her words... I know you heard her speak to Frodo last night. They seem to have stuck with me and now I feel like they will never escape me."
Legolas nodded before glancing at Eleniel who was talking with an excitable Gimli about whatever it was that they were talking about. The Hobbits were also sitting by, listening in and Aragorn had wandered off to see how Merry was doing. "Eleniel is very wise. Not very surprising considering her age but all things considered, her words have also struck home for me aswell. My kingdom, my people, my father, they are the reasons why I left on this journey."
Boromir nodded, understanding his reasons for that is also why he left Minas Tirith and also for his father and the pressure he has heaped on him. "You are a Prince so you must understand the pressure and I am but the Stewards son yet, I feel like the weight of the whole of Middle Earth is laid upon me. My father is a proud man and my people fail because of that. They go hungry and lose faith in him and my father turns to me to bring back the glory of our house."
Boromir stared at Frodo intently as he felt the Ring pressure him in his mind. 'Take the Ring and kill the halfling.' The Ring taunted him in his mind as he gazed off. Frodo must have felt the eyes on him because he made eye contact with him before swiftly turning away. "I fear that my words at the council has caused Frodo to already have perceived an impression on me. He does not trust me. And I do not blame him." He said, glancing to his side when he hears the sound of footsteps. He sees Aragorn arriving on Legolas right accompanied by Gimli, a thoughtful look on both of their faces. "I admit, when I first came to Rivendell, it was to persuade the Council to give the Ring to Gondor and I myself thought that it was the right thing but now I see that Sauron's evil has cast a dark cloud all over Middle Earth. Many people have died, not just my people in the fight against the forces of Mordor." He glances at Gimli obviously referring to the massacre at Moria that they had wandered through.
"The Ring has taunted and tempted me many times," Boromir shrank down in shame. The shame of not being strong enough to fight against the effects of the Ring.
"But, now after hearing her words, I know that the Ring can not be used against its own Master. It will instead try to destroy everything that I hold dear. My people, my city, they would have fallen all because of my fathers foolishness and my stupidity and loyalty to him where I would have followed his orders no matter what. I could have been the reason for the White City's fall but no more. That will not happen, not as long as I fight and sacrifice for the Fellowship." He spoke proudly and loudly for Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn to hear. Eleniel glanced at the four men with a huge smile on her face and nodded her head at them as if agreeing with his words before being once again distracted by the Hobbits who were dragging her away, insisting on going to see Merry now.
Aragorn moved towards Boromir and clasped him on the shoulder in a show of brotherly camaraderie followed by Gimli and Legolas. The two Men, Elf and Dwarf stood in a solitary silence looking around at the elves of Lothlórien and taking in the forests beauty, it was not awkward nor tense like it had been before between Boromir and the others instead it felt more understanding, almost familiar as if they all finally understood each other.
******
Gosh I have no idea why I feel the need to place these sad asf artworks in my story if only so I can reminisce with my followers on what could have been like I really wanted Bagginshield to become canon😭 Sorry, reading a lot of Bagginshield fanfiction lately so now it's all I'm thinking about currently lol. Anyways I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I didn't want to make Boromir too much of a dickhead and actually wanted to show some of the layers to his character like his love for Minas Tirith, his people, his brother and his father. I also wanted to focus on Frodo aswell because well Eleniel wants to ensure that the Ring is destroyed so she will try in any way that she can to help Frodo carry this burden even if it is only to hold him and listen. Next chapter will still be focused on the other members of the fellowship so until next time xx