Hey everyone! This is my first one-shot. I am a HUGE Pippin/Diamond fan, and I've wanted to write this for a long time. There are lyrics for a song from the movies that I don't own, and I don't own these characters, either.
ANYWAYS...
A Diamond in the Rough
It had been a little over a year since the Fellowship had left Rivendell. Now safe and sound in the Shire, Pippin trotted down the main street of Hobbiton, enjoying the cool morning breeze. He had missed home, that much was true, but now he missed the thrill of adventure. The closest thing he had had to adventure before he had left the Shire was lifting crops from Farmer Maggot with Merry. While being chased away by Grip and Fang was fun and terrifying all at the same time, nothing compared to the things he had seen outside of the Shire.
After helping save the Shire from the clutches of Saruman, Pippin and his fellow Hobbits were widely known throughout the Shire and through most of Arda itself. Aside from returning several inches taller than he used to be (he and Merry and the Ent-drought to thank for that) and the residents of Hobbiton viewing him more as a hero and less as a troublemaker, life had pretty much gone back to normal. The Shire, as well as all of Middle-Earth, was finally at peace. Everything was happy again. And today, Pippin knew, would be especially joyous.
Because Sam was getting married. And he was headed to the wedding.
Pippin rounded the corner, flung open the gate to the closest Hobbit hole, sprinted up the walkway, and banged on the door.
"Merry!" he called. "We've got to go!"
Slowly, the big, yellow door swung open. On the other side stood Merry with exhaustion carved into his features. "Pippin," he yawned, "remind me to never ask you to come and get me for anything while the sun's still coming up. I had hardly put my feet on the ground when you knocked!"
Pippin chuckled apologetically.
Rolling his eyes and laughing a little, Merry waved his best friend and second cousin through the door. The scent of brewing coffee and frying eggs nearly knocked him over. Merry's home, just a little bit bigger than his own, had always been a safe haven for him. If something had gone wrong and he couldn't get home, Merry's door was always open to him.
After Merry handed him a steaming cup of coffee, Pippin saw him disappear around the corner again. A door shut, and Pippin was left by himself. He looked out the window and watched the sun peak out over the hills. A little bit of early morning fog drifted over the endless stretch of fields and farms.
As Pippin's eyes drifted away from the sunrise, he saw Merry's old suit of Roherric armor standing in the corner. His little sword hung over the helmet, and Pippin was suddenly whisked back to the days of his adventures. If he stole a glance at his Citadel guard armor back home, he often wished he could go back to Gondor. And he knew Merry would jump at an opportunity to visit King Éomer in Rohan again.
"Pip?" Merry's voice traveled to Pippin's ear.
"Mmhm?" Pippin's mind hadn't quite returned to the Shire yet.
"You ready?"
"Oh!" Pippin replied with a start. Jumping to his feet, he added, "Yes!"
"Come on then," Merry said, grabbing his jacket off of its hook by the door and wrapping it around him. "Let's get down to the Party Field."
"It sure looks empty without the Party Tree there, doesn't it?" Pippin heard an unfamiliar voice say sadly behind him.
He turned around, and a few Hobbits he had seen in town were standing in a small group farther up the hill. The speaker, a maiden that appeared to be a few years younger than him, looked down the hill and across the field. It was true, the field did look huge and empty without the Party Tree standing in the middle of it.
"It does," Pippin concurred.
The young Hobbit's eyes met Pippin's, and she smiled at him. Pippin nodded a silent greeting, and the other two Hobbits scurried down the hill past him, towards the tent that was being raised in the middle of the field.
"Peregrin Took?" she asked timidly, coming forward and stopping by his side.
He grinned. "Pippin," he replied. "And who might you be?"
"Diamond. Diamond of Long Cleeve."
"Pleased to meet you, Diamond!"
Diamond smiled faintly and sighed. "I don't think any of us thought we could be touched by the Enemy here," she said slowly. "And yet we were. The Tree being gone is a sharp reminder of that." She paused. "I've been meaning to thank you, Pippin, and your friends, for saving us that night."
Pippin nodded. "It's as much my home as it is yours. I had to."
Pippin stared at the ground, trying to think of something to add; Diamond's gaze stayed in front of her, across the field and towards the still rising sun.
Shuffling nervously, Pippin cleared his throat. Diamond looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and when he didn't say anything, she ever so slightly turned to him.
Pippin suddenly laughed. "I'm sorry! I just just completely forgot what I was going to say!" His eyes flicked towards her and then dropped to the ground, and he felt a little color rise to his cheeks.
Diamond only chuckled faintly and nodded. "Well, I guess I should be going. The others are waiting for me at the bottom of the hill..."
"Oh, then by all means, don't let me hold you up!"
Diamond smiled shyly at him. "Goodbye, Pippin."
"Goodbye!"
As Diamond gracefully glided down the hill, a ridiculous grin spread across Pippin's face. His head was swimming. He sat in the grass and watched as Diamond intermingled with the Hobbits at the bottom of the hill, her silhouette weaving in and out of the tent poles.
Diamond had turned around to speak with one of the Hobbits that was helping to pitch the tent. She glanced at the up the hill where Pippin was sitting and caught his gaze. Comically, he looked towards the sky and pretended to stare at the early morning clouds. After hearing her snicker travel to his ear, he looked back at her again and winked. Smiling, she rolled her eyes and continued on with her conversation.
And Pippin was content to stay at the top of the hill, watching her and all the other Hobbits.
"C'mon, Pip," Merry's voice suddenly said. "We've got to get down there and help the..."
He noted Pippin's befuddled gaze and stopped short.
"What's that look for?" he asked.
Pippin sighed. "Oh, nothing," he replied, a huge grin involuntarily stretching across his face.
Merry folded his arms across his chest and stood in front of Pippin, cocking a suspecting eyebrow at him. "Really?"
"Oh sure!" Pippin replied. "I'm just in a very good mood..." He sighed loudly.
Merry rolled his eyes. "Get up," he sarcastically groaned, giving Pippin a good kick. "Now tell me, Pip, who was she?"
"She who?"
"This lass your head's in the clouds thinking about!"
"There isn't anyone, Merry."
Merry put his hands on his hips and smirked. "Oh really? Then who was the girl you were just talking to?"
Pippin grinned bashfully. "Oh? Her? That's just Diamond." He stammered. "Of Long Cleeve..."
Merry chuckled. "Pip..." he shook his head. "You've got it bad..."
"Got what?"
Merry's palm smacked his forehead. "Stop trying to deny it, Pip. It won't do you any good!"
Pippin sighed. "I think I need help..."
"Yes, you do." Merry snickered. "And I will help you."
"Help me? Do what?"
"Get Diamond's attention."
For the whole ceremony, Pippin stood in between Merry and Diamond. The sheer joy that Sam and Rosie had when they with each other had always been enough to bring a smile to Pippin's face, and as he watched them exchange vows, he was beaming. After kissing his bride for the first time, Sam turned to face the congregation with his arm wrapped around Rosie's waist. They were both grinning ear to ear.
Rosie tossed her bouquet into the crowd. Upon seeing it coming toward him, Pippin reached up and caught it. It was then he noticed that Diamond's arm was suspended in the air. With a sly smirk, Pippin nodded towards Diamond and winked. She shook her head and rolled her eyes, smiling just a little bit.
And Merry just busted out laughing.
"Pip!" Merry called when he found his cousin sitting at a table.
"Merry, you little saint!" Pippin grinned and reached out for the pint of Green Dragon ale that Merry had brought back for him.
Merry sat opposite of Pippin and pushed the pint towards him. They ran their mugs together with a clank and each took a sip of the delectable liquid.
Pippin sighed, "Oh, bless me, that's good stuff!"
Merry went cross-eyed with delight. "Yes, it is." He paused. Leaning forward, he said, "You asked for my help earlier."
"Was offered it, is more like it," Pippin corrected. "And I am just now accepting it."
"Yes, yes, yes," Merry said, waving his friend off. "Well..." he spilled. "You've got to do something to get her to notice you."
"I helped save the Shire, Merry. That's got to count for something!"
"It does."
"And when she talked to me earlier, she did thank me for it."
"Well, then. You've cleared the first hurdle."
"Thank goodness!" Pippin grinned.
"Unfortunately the second one is higher."
Pippin's shoulders slumped in slight defeat. "What is it, then?"
"You've got to get her to like you," Merry answered.
"And how do I do that?"
"Well..." Merry sighed. "I'm not sure. You could tell her about our adventures. Especially your tales about Minas Tirith. Those never fail to impress people."
The reception had already gone long into the evening when Merry found Pippin by a barrel, holding a mug of beer and talking to a young Hobbit-child.
"...and the troll came crashing through the door and into the next segment of the city. It was huge. And heavily armed. There were soldiers running everywhere. And orcs rushing towards us."
"The same nasty things that attacked the Shire? With Sharky?"
"Aye. But there were hundreds of thousands of them, or so it seemed." He caught Diamond's fleeting gaze, and raising his voice so she could hear, added "And Oliphants, too! And Gandalf and I came face to face with the Witch King himself at one point."
The sound of small feet quickly walking across the grass could be heard, and Diamond appeared behind the little Hobbit. She looked shocked.
"You saw the Witch King?!" she said, stunned.
"Yes," Pippin replied, remembering Merry's advice and standing a little taller. "As a matter of fact, I did."
"Oh, that sounds terrifying!"
"Were you scared?" the Hobbitling asked, wonder filling his little eyes.
"Oh, yes! I was petrified! His voice was chilling, and his shrieks were deafening and struck fear into the hearts of all those who heard him. I saw him at the Ford of Bruinen, just before I got to Rivendell."
"He was the one who stabbed Frodo, right?" Diamond said.
Pippin nodded.
"Mr. Frodo was stabbed by a Ringwraith?!" the little Hobbit gasped.
"He was. That was the night that we met the King Elessar."
"And this was before we knew he was Elessar," Merry added. "To us, he was just a Ranger called Strider at that point."
"He crossed blades with the Witch King and saved the rest of us from the Wraiths. Then Lord Glorfindel showed up and ran them off."
The little Hobbit's face lit up. "You saw Elves?!"
"Yes, we both did."
"And the Witch King?!"
Pippin, amused by the child's enthusiasm, chuckled, "Aye!"
"In the same day?!"
"We sure did!"
"Wow..." The child's big, blue eyes sparkled as he looked on Merry and Pippin, wonder and admiration covering his face.
"Merry here actually had a hand in killing the Witch King, too! Lady Éowyn couldn't have done it without him."
"The Witch King was killed by a woman?!" the little Hobbit gaped.
"Sure was," Pippin answered. "And Merry helped!"
Merry stood a little taller. "Now that was terrifying!"
"I'll bet!" Diamond piped up.
Merry grinned and nodded at Pippin. "And just before that, Pippin saved the Steward's life! He would have been burned alive had Pippin not gone to get Gandalf to help him set things straight."
"What's his name?" the young Hobbit asked.
"Who's name?" Pippin said.
"The Steward's," Diamond clarified.
"Oh! Faramir! You'd really like him, Diamond. He's a very noble, wise person."
"But not so much that he is suffocating to be around," Merry added.
"Do you think I might meet him someday?" the little Hobbit asked.
"You very well might," Pippin replied. "He and his wife want to come visit me in the Shire sometime. He married Lady Éowyn, so you could meet her, too."
"That would be amazing!"
"Gastin!" a voice called. Pippin automatically assumed it was the youngster's mother.
"Oh!" Little Gastin jumped to his feet. "I have to go. It was nice meeting you, Master Pippin and Master Merry!" He took a few steps and turned around. "When I get big, I want to be just like you!" he added, and then scampered off.
Pippin beamed. "Nothing quite warms your heart like the wee ones," he chuckled.
"That's the truth," Merry concurred. "He seemed completely mesmerized when you told him about seeing the Witch King."
"He wasn't the only one," Diamond said softly, and smiled at Pippin.
"What was that, Estella?" Merry awkwardly called to no one. He rounded the corner and slumped to the ground, going far enough away so that Pippin and Diamond wouldn't suspect he was there but not far enough away so that he couldn't hear their conversation.
"You are very brave, Pippin," Diamond said quietly.
Pippin smiled bashfully. "I did what I had to," he stated, shrugging. "And I was petrified to do it, most times."
"But you did it anyway."
"That I did."
Pippin paused and looked at the ground. "You know, not everything I saw on my journeys was ugly and cruel. There were fair things, too. Beautiful landscapes and places, several incredible sunrises above the waterfalls in Rivendell, and the people of Rivendell were fair, as well."
"I've heard the stories," Diamond replied. "It all sounded amazing."
"It was." He added softly, "but I'll let you in on a little secret. None of it was as fair as you are."
Diamond smiled. "Really?"
"Do I look like I'm lying to you?"
Diamond laughed quietly. "No, you don't."
"Good."
Suddenly, a chorus of cheers and laughter erupted from the group of Hobbits that were all amassed around a few tables. Merry ran out from behind the tent to see what the commotion was about. Clapping his pint into Merry's hand, Pippin rushed forward towards the throng. Merry, after taking a huge gulp of Pippin's ale, asked Diamond to hold the cup while he chased down Pippin. And all at once the Hobbits began to sing:
Hey, ho, to the bottle I go,
To heal my heart and drown my woe!
Rain may fall and wind may blow,
But there still be many miles to go!
Pippin pushed through the crowd until he got to the table they were standing around. With Merry on his heels, he used the bench like stairs and climbed onto the table. Among more laughter and cheering, the second verse started up, and Merry and Pippin raised their voices and began to sing with them.
Sweet is the sound of the pouring rain,
And stream that falls from hill to plain!
Better than rain or rippling brook,
"Is a mug of beer inside this Took!" Pippin ended loudly. The crowd cheered and roared with laughter again.
Pippin could see Diamond timidly making her way through the crowd, looking up and him and chuckling. She lifted Pippin's pint to him, and gratefully, he tipped it up and drank until the last drop.
"Thank you, lass!" he said cheerfully, handing her the mug.
Diamond took the cup and passed it to her left hand, and she grabbed Pippin's outstretched hand with her right. Now she was standing above the rest of the Hobbits, next to Pippin. But unlike the other few times she had been with him, any hesitation or awkwardness had completely left her. She felt she was meant to have him by her side. And when the Hobbits burst into song again, she took one more step towards Pippin. She soon felt his arm around her waist, and she grinned ear to ear when Pippin drew her to his side. And when the song ended, she reached up and kissed his cheek.
He smiled at her.
And Diamond felt that there would be many more of those to come in the future.