"Well, you have to make up your mind, Merry" a voice inside of his head told him.
Merry bit his bottom lip. He was weighing his options.
On one hand, he could go back to Hobbiton. He could wait for Pippin to come back.
On the other, he could head to Bree. He could ask if they had seen his friend.
Both options came with consequences.
If he went back home, then he would never know if Pippin was alright.
But, if he was to go the way of Bree, he knew that his food would run out before he got there.
Merry looked back down the road he had just come.
"No" he told himself.
"No, I cant turn back, I've done this before"
So, he started to walk down the road towards Bree. After a few seconds, he stopped. His mind had changed again. The other way was now looking more tempting. Merry started to get angry again.
He looked back to the way he was going. The hobbit took a deep breath and started to walk again. For some reason, he was scared to go that way.
Merry didn't know why he was scared to go that way. But, as he walked, the feeling of being scared went away. The pony that he had brought had run away. This time, for good. Merry couldn't see it on the road.
Origo was asleep. But, he was not out doors any more. A large blanket had kept him warm. His fur was dry and fluffy. A fire was crackling in the fire place.
A man sat in a chair, smoking a pipe. Origo had been placed on the empty chair. The day had started a few hours ago. Origo started to whimper. He slowly opened his eyes. The man looked up from his book. He had a few pages left.
"Well, I never" said the man.
He placed the book down and walked over to the pup.
"Didn't think you make it past the night"
The man picked up the puppy.
"Lets go and get you some food" the man told Origo.
Origo was too weak to bark. His vision was blurry and he couldn't make out where he was.
The pup continued whimper as he brought into the kitchen.
"Right" said the man, now holding the pup in one arm.
He opened the cupboard and looked inside. Inside were meats wrapped up on brown paper. Origo was looking around, his eyes were now open.
"Now, what would you like?" asked the man.
Origo sniffed the air. He could smell it, he just didn't know which one. He tried to bark, but he couldn't.
"Would you like…"
The man picked up a packet.
"Salmon?" he asked.
He looked down at Origo. But the man smiled.
"Umm…" he said, placing the pack down.
He took another packet and sniffed it.
"What about turkey?" he asked.
Origo hear these words and started to whine more then before. The man looked down at the pup.
"Turkey it is then"
The man placed Origo down on the floor. He needed two hands to open it. The blanket had been taken off and Origo stood there. His little eyes looked up at the man. It would be the first time that Origo had eaten in a few days.
A minute later, the man got out a small bowl and put the fresh turkey in the bowl.
"There you go, it's honey roasted" the man said happily.
Origo's tail was now wagging again. The bowl was placed on the floor. The man's hand was barely away from the bowl before Origo started to eat.
The man stood there, looking down at the puppy.
"Well, well, you must have been very hungry"
The man laughed. He started to think.
"Do you want more?" the man asked.
Origo looked up, he still had a bit of turkey poking out on his mouth. He nodded. The man smiled and looked in the cupboard again. There were still many packets there.
The man picked one out, he sniffed it.
"Tuna" he said, placing it back.
He looked at the packets, then picked a second one out. This time, it was what he was looking for. He stood up right again and started to open it.
"I don't know how hungry you are, but here is another bit" he told Origo.
The man felt strange feeling came over him.
"Wait a minute, I'm speaking to a puppy"
The man smiled and took the two packets and placed them in the wicker basket. He placed the lid back and looked around. The man then sat down on one of his chairs and continued to look at the puppy.
"You'll never guess who I had in my house earlier" said the man.
There was a few moments of silence.
"Peregrin Took!" he said.
Origo suddenly looked up. His eyes and the man's eyes met. The two of them fell silent.
"Do you… do you know them?" asked the man.
Origo looked around. He could smell something. Something he knew.
The puppy started to sniff the ground.
"Yes, there it was!"
The man slowly stood up and watched the pup. Origo was now sniffing around. He followed the scent out of the kitchen. The lounge door was closed.
The puppy hit his head on the closed door. He shook his head and looked up. The man smiled as he opened the door. There was a table, a couch and an old rocking chair.
Origo rushed over to the couch. He started to bark up at it. The man slowly walked in. It then clicked.
"Wait a minute" he said.
His face suddenly changed.
"I know who your looking for!"
Origo looked around.
"Your looking for the hobbits, you were going to Rivendell with them!"
The looked around, a plan was forming in his head.
Meanwhile, Pippin was walking down the road. A group of men were only a minute away from him. The road was long enough and straight enough to see the men coming.
Pip stopped in his tracks. He could see figures walking towards him. A sudden fear came over him.
"Oh no" he said.
A small bit of fear was heard in his voice. Pippin quickly looked around. Dolly was on her own, about a mile down the road. He knew that he couldn't get back in time.
Pippin quickly made up his mind. So, he ran into the forest that was either side of the road. He ran behind one the many oaks growing there.
The hobbit hid behind one of them. The group of men continued to walk. Pippin was now breathing heavily.
"Please don't find me" he told himself.
The group continued to get nearer. Pippin peaked around the edge of the tree. He could see men with axes walking down the road.
"Where is it?" asked one of them.
Pippin hid again. His heart rate started to rise.
"It's just up the road" said another.
He seemed to be the leader. Pippin looked around the left hand side. The men were still walking.
"I need to stop them" Pippin told himself.
So, he sneaked out from behind the tree. He scuttled along to the next one. The men were walking towards the cart. Pippin walked onto the road. The hobbit kept quiet as he walked behind them.
But he wasn't going to be there for long.
A twig was on a rock. Pippin stepped on it. The twig snapped.
Fear ran though Pippin like fire. He need down to see a twig protruding from either end of his foot. Pippin looked up. The men had stopped and looked around.
The ten men stopped. Each had an axe in their hands. The man at the back came forward.
"What?" he asked.
The hobbit stood there, rooted to the spot.
The lead man started to walk towards the hobbit.
"Who are you?" asked the man.
The axe he was holding switched hands. Pippin moved back. The man stopped, obviously sensing that the hobbit was scared.
"Don't worry, we wont hurt you"
Pippin looked at each of the men. He wished that he had not come this far.
"You must be the hobbits that are going to the elves"
Pippin, who still hadn't said a word, looked surprised.
"How… how did you know that?" Pippin asked, taking another step backwards.
The man smiled.
"Your messenger" the man answered.
Pippin was still confused. He looked at the men.
"So, you're here to help me?" asked Pip.
The man looked at him strangely.
"The boy told us that you were coming, but he also told us about the tree"
Pippin's heart rate, which had climbed, was starting to slow down. The hobbit now had a choice.
To trust the men or to decline their offer.
But, it was not himself that he had to think about. Pippin's goal was to get Diamond to Rivendell. Any help that he could get would help Diamond as well.
Pippin looked down. He was creating scenarios in his mind. Some good and bad. But, Pip couldn't see a way of knowing what they would do.
"Are you going to hurt us?" he asked.
The man smiled. He looked around at his friends.
"No, Halfling, we are only farmers and blacksmiths. We have no intention of hurting anyone"
Pippin started to smile.
"Lets get moving" said the man.
He turned around and stated to walk away. Pippin took a deep breath and started to walk after the men. Pippin walked slowly behind the men.
"So, tell me, what is your name" said the man.
Pippin looked up. He had not noticed that the man had fallen back to where he was.
"Peregrin" the hobbit answered.
"Peregrin Took"
The man looked at him.
"Are you now?" asked the man.
Pippin glanced up at the man. For some reason, he felt like he was not believing him.
"Yes" Pippin answered coldly.
The man smiled.
"So, are you from Bree?" asked the man.
Pippin took a deep breath.
"No, I'm not" he said.
The tree was a few minutes away.
Dolly was looking down the road. There was still no sign of Pippin yet.
"Were are you Pip?" Dolly asked.
She looked back at the cart. The clouds had started to gather. The wind turned colder. Dolly looked up. She could see the weather was going to turn again. The snow from last time was still there, but in small patches.
Dolly wrapped herself up again. She walked back to cart. Two baskets full of bread were sitting in the cart. Dolly got up onto the cart and grabbed the basket. She took out the small bit of bread that Pippin had left of the first loaf. She looked at it and smiled. The hobbit then took a bit.
"Dolly?" came a voice.
Dolly looked up. She knew that voice. She swallowed the bit of bread and listened. Dolly placed the bread back in the basket and climbed out. She walked around the cart to see Pippin standing there.
But she also saw ten men there as well.
"Dolly, are you alright?" Pippin asked.
Dolly's eyes darted between Pip and the men.
"Don't worry, their good people" Pippin told her.
"We're going to chop the tree down now" said the man.
Pip looked back.
"Alright. Go as quick as you can"
The man nodded and looked towards his friends. The men moved to different ends of the tree. Thuds started to echo around the area. Pippin watched then as they raised the axe and struck the tree.
Dolly was not watching them. She was standing at the back of cart. She had gotten the bit of bread. Dolly looked over and smiled.
"We should be going again in an hour" Pippin said.
He saw that Dolly was eating the last of the bread. Pippin looked into the cart, sure enough, Diamond was still there.
"Don't" Dolly said.
Pippin was confused.
"What?"
"Don't eat the bread, we need it" she answered.
Pippin's hand was barely reached for the basket when Dolly had said it. Pippin sighed and looked around. The once blue sky above them had now turned a grey colour.
More snow was on the way. Pippin could see the clouds travailing the way of the Shire. He wondered if his friends back home were having fun in the snow.
The light level was beginning to fade. The men continued to chop the wood. The top part of the tree had been cut away from rest of the tree.
The men had built a fire.
"Save some for the hobbits" said the man.
"They'll need it more then us"
So, a bundle had been left to one side. All of the wood was dry and fresh. Perfect for making a fire. The trunk of the tree would be left by the side of the road to rot. The men continued to chop the wood.
They started to roll the large chunks of wood. The men placed it off of the road and left it there.
Pippin had been watching them.
"Wait here" Pippin said.
He walked over towards the men.
"Don't you think that's a big enough gap for the cart to get though?" he asked as he walked towards the men.
The lead man stopped. Even though it was cold, a bead of sweat ran down the side of his face. He looked at the cart and then at the missing tree.
"Well, we cut this piece and then you can drive your cart though"
Pippin nodded. He then walked away.
"Should be ready in a few minutes, lets get ready"
Dolly smiled.
"Lets just hope there are no other trees that have fallen on our path" she said.
Pippin smiled. That was his worse fear. More time wasted.
The men chopped the last bit of wood up. They started to roll it away and the lead man looked over at Pip.
"You can come though now!" he said.
Pippin, who had already gotten onto the drivers seat, nodded. He unwrapped the reigns from the small peg that was near him.
Dolly got on and the cart started to move. The wind hit Pippin's face. His hair blew all over the place. The cart rolled on like ever before. The day was getting old and the light level began to fall. A few snow flakes fell as well. But it would be a good hour before the rest would.
Origo was scratching the door. The man he was with was putting on his coat.
"I hope they haven't got far" he said to the pup.
He placed both hands though their sleeves. He had also got a scarf out of the same wooden wardrobe. He knew that it could be a day or two before he caught up with the hobbits.
But he didn't know how fast they were going.
For the second time that day, he would have to see his friend. The man got out a small blanket to put the puppy in so he wouldn't get cold.
"Come here boy" he said.
Origo looked back. He could a blanket in his hand. His eyes followed the man's actions. Origo started to bark at him. The man stood there.
"Come here, I'm not going to hurt you" said the man.
But Origo didn't listen. He thought that the man was going to hurt him. But the man was not trying to hurt him. The man stood there. The pup's fur was on end.
"Please, pup, I'm going to take you to your owners!"
Origo looked at him. The door to the lounge was open.
"Maybe that's a way out" Origo thought.
But it wasn't. Ori didn't realise that he had already gone in that room. So, Origo placed one paw forward. Origo and the man looked at each other.
Origo took another step forward. The waited for his time. His eyes darted towards the open door. He knew that the pup was going to go in there. The sheet dropped to its full height and width. Origo moved back slowly. The sheet was intimidating to him.
"Please just let me help you" said the man.
Origo looked back at the door. His little eyes made him looked scared. He whined, trying to tell the man that he wanted to go.
The man took a deep breath and threw the sheet in the floor.
"Please, pup"
Origo shook his head, his ears flopped. The puppy started to bark at the man. He ran up to him and started to pull his trousers. Origo growled as he tried to get the man to walk to the door.
The man's foot moved forward. Origo let go and looked up. He barked once and ran to the door again. The pup started to paw at the door again.
The man slowly walked forward. He looked down at the pup. Origo looked up and stepped away from the door. Origo whimpered, wanting the man to hurry up.
The man reached out and touched the door handle. His hand wrapped around the cold metal handle. His eyes looked down at the pup. Origo looked up.
So, the man put pressure on the door. Origo heard the door click. But he waited. He moved out of the way and looked out. Some of the snow was still around, but nearly all of it had melted.
But there was more on the way. It would be less disruptive then the last time. Origo stopped on thresh hold of the door way. He looked around. His fur blew a bit in the wind.
The puppy then started to run towards the road. He stopped in the middle. The man stood there. He watched the puppy look around. A bark then came from the small animal.
The man slowly walked out of his house. He looked around as well. There were marks on the ground where the cart had run over.
"They went that way, to Rivendell"
The man pointed down the road. Origo looked down the road that the strange man was pointing. The puppy barked.
But he didn't get an answer. The pup looked back at the man one more time. Origo had now had something to eat. His strength had come back.
Without a second look at the man, the pup started to run off. The man watched the figure getting smaller and smaller. He gave a little smile and walked back into his house.
Merry, how ever, was no nearer his goal. His pony was still nowhere to be seen and his annoyance had not calmed.
"Stupid Pony, running off from me!"
He kicked a twig. It spun in the air and landed as though it had never left where it landed. Leaves of many different colours lay on the ground.
Some were yellow, others were dark brown. Some were light green with dark brown spots. They were mixed in with the small bit of snow from the night before.
Merry's feet were covered in mud. He could feet the top bit drying on his skin. There were dots of brown mud on his cloths.
Bree was still a few days walk from where he was. But Merry was determined to get to Bree. He knew little of what Pippin had found out when he had gotten there.
Merry was walking to a place where hobbits were not hated. Pippin had found that out when he had gone there. But now everything had changed for Pippin. He had found somewhere to rest and get dry. It had snowed heavily in the night.
They were lucky to have someone find them when they did. Diamond had still not woken from her sleep. Dolly and Pippin couldn't figure out what had done it to her.
Each day that past, Pippin would get a bit more worried.
It was still another two hundred or so miles to Rivendell. But, they had sent a messenger on ahead of them. They hoped that the elves would come and help them.
But Pippin wasn't sure. He knew that elves were secretive. He wasn't even sure that they would be at Rivendell.
"They could have moved" he told himself.
But they had not. There were few elves at Rivendell now. For most of them had taken ships to the Undying lands.
Elladan had now taken his father's place.
But, Pippin had hope. It was the only thing keeping him from turning back. The hope was strengthened by Dolly. She had helped him in the most difficult times.
The coldness was deepening as the cart rolled on. It had been a few hours since they had stopped. Not due to resting, but due to a tree that had fallen on the road.
But it had been cleared an hour later. Pippin was now driving. Tiredness had started to get the better of him. His eyes were heavy and concentration was elsewhere. The cart rolled on. Dolly, who had been sitting in the back, had fallen asleep.
"Must keep going, cant stop" he kept telling himself.
The two ponies were not as tired as Pippin. They kept going on, heads down in the strengthening winds.
The weather was going to turn yet again. Another snow storm was heading their way. The light level was also dimming by the minute.
The sun went down earlier and earlier each day. The warmth of summer had all but gone. The sun struggled to fight against the clouds that sailed before it.
Origo was running down the road. He stopped every so often to see if he could see the cart. But he was miles away from Pippin. It wouldn't be until just outside Rivendell that he would see Pippin, Dolly and Diamond again.
His path would not get him directly to Rivendell.
The path split into two a mile from the man's house. Origo stopped at the fork. His eyes looked at the new road. The pup started to wonder which was Rivendell actually was.
Origo slowly walked over to the new road and stopped.
"I wonder if it's down there" he told himself.
He looked back down the road that he had already come from. There were no people there. Origo started to get worried.
"What if I never see them again?" he whimpered.
He lowered his head and whimpered sadly. But no one came.
No one was around.
Behind him, a sound came out of the trees. Origo instantly turned around. His ears perked up. His little brown eyes were scanning the area. But he couldn't see anything there.
The sound happened again. This time, he knew where it was coming from now. So, he slowly started to walk towards it. His eyes fixed on the point where he heard the sound.
Origo got to the other side of the road. There were many leafless bushes around. The twigs were so many in number that Origo could not see though. The pup tried to see what was on the other side, but it was useless. He had to get a closer look.
So, looking to the side, he could see a small way in. So, Origo started to walk towards the gap. He stopped and looked around one more time. He ducked his head and walked in. The twigs made it hard for him to walk though.
A second or two later, he was though the bush. The pup looked around. He could see a figure in the shadows. Even though it was low light, which was made even lower in the bush.
"Who are you?" he barked.
He tilted his head. The figure curled up. It was obviously scared of him. Origo looked around, the coldness was starting to get to him.
"Who are you?" he barked again.
A few snow flakes started to fall around them. The wind picked up speed and strength. Origo needed to get moving. He looked beck at shadowy figure.
But it had gone.
Origo now had no reason of being in the bush. So, he walked out again. His mind was now back on which way to go.
Pippin had stopped the cart. His tiredness had got the better of him. He walked around to the cart and looked in. Dolly was asleep under a large blanket. Pippin got in the cart and knelt down next to her.
"Dolly?" he asked.
He waited a few seconds.
"Dolly?" he asked, now shaking her to wake her up.
The hobbit slowly woke up. She opened her eyes to see Pippin in front of her.
"Pippin? What's wrong?" she asked.
Pippin looked down to the end of the cart.
"Nothing, I just need a rest. It's your turn to drive" he answered.
Dolly had sat up, she yawned.
"Oh right" she said, sounding like she had forgotten.
The blanket was taken off of her. She felt cold having lost most of the heat she had built up from the blanket. Her hand grabbed the basket and she looked inside. Dolly took out a loaf of bread and ripped a bit off. She held it out for Pippin.
Pippin smiled.
"Thank you" he said.
His voice had a hint of cheeriness about it. Dolly smiled and ripped a bit off for herself. The two hobbits started to eat.
"We may be able to get Lembas bread from the journey back"
Dolly looked confused.
"What's Lembas bread?" she asked.
Pippin smiled. He could remember the taste of Lembas bread, even now.
"It's a type of Elven bread. One bit would fill a man's stomach, or so Legolas said. But I think he wasn't telling the truth"
In fact, Legolas had been telling the truth. Pippin's appetite had been so good that he managed to eat four bits of it.
"It was a gift from the elves, after…"
Pippin paused. Memories of what had happened at Durin's Bridge. Dolly noticed that he had failed to finish the sentence.
"Well, I'm sure that it will help us get back" she said.
Pippin was taken out of his short day dream. He turned his head and looked at Dolly. The two hobbits ate their bread in silence.
After a few more minutes, Dolly had finished.
"Right, I'll be driving if you need me" she said.
She moved and got out of the cart. Her dress was dirty. Dolly hated the fact that everything was muddy and needed a wash.
The drivers seat was above a small ladder. Dolly climbed it. A small lantern was swinging from a hook that it sat upon. Dolly looked at it. She wondered if she could light it.
"Pippin?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.
Pippin was already laying down. He slowly sat up.
"Yes?" he asked.
"Do we have anything to light this lantern?" she asked.
Pippin looked at the lantern.
"No, no we don't" he answered.
Dolly took a deep breath. She knew that it was going to be a long night.
"Well, there's nothing for it" she told herself.
The cart started to roll again. The day had been long for both hobbits. But it was not over yet. The hobbits would have to go though the night to get to Rivendell.
Origo was now walking again. But he had left the road that he was meant to be on. He was walking past a small barn. The puppy saw large creatures in the field.
This caught his attention. There was a small gap under the horse fence. The fence had for planks of wet wood running horizontally and a post every few meters.
Origo stuck his head under the gap. He could see figures running around.
But what was on them?
Men were riding them. Origo saw one run right past him. A small bit of mud hit him on the head. The pup shook his head, then continued to watch.
The light level was getting lower and lower. Origo came out from under the fence. He shook himself. The pup yawned and then looked around again. The stable was like a massive black box to Origo. He could see the lowering light around it.
"I have to find my Diamond" thought to himself.
So, the pup started to walk again. His fur was starting to look dirty again.
He had no idea that he was going the wrong way.
Merry was still walking. He knew that if he stayed on the path, he would soon reach the road. The coldness haunted him. He tried to get more warmth, but it was hard to.
The hobbit looked up at the sky. He knew that another batch of snow was on the way. He also knew that he would get tired before it came.
The forests were still on either side of the path. Large, leafless oak trees. Some of the trees had large holes on them. Merry thought that they must have once been branches growing there. But they had fallen off and been removed or rotted away.
There was one considerably large tree a few hundred meters down. Its roots dove deep into the moist soil. It was an old tree, a few hundred years. It, like the one Origo had stayed in, was hollow.
The inside was black, charcoal covered the walls. Ruminates of what had happened to it. There was a hole, large enough for a hobbit to get though. Men, on the other hand, could not fit in the gap.
Merry ducked down and squeezed in. A bit of the dead bark snapped off and fell on the floor. The hobbit looked around.
"Well, at least its better then out there" he said.
The hobbit then took off his pack and placed it out of the way. He stood there for a couple more seconds, then sat down.
Merry sat of a hard bed of rotting leaves. Small creatures that could survive the coldness of winter scuttled away in fear. Merry looked down, he could feel spiders and other creatures crawling there.
Merry missed home more then ever. His bed was waiting for him, but the hobbit wouldn't be able to get to it. Merry looked back, the ground was drier then outside. The hobbit laid back. There was enough room to lay full on his back with his legs out.
But he had no plan on doing that. He curled up on one side.
Merry knew that it would be hard getting to sleep. The coldness seemed to stop him from doing so. His ears sensitive in the quietness. Every so often, he could hear a snow flake hit the leaves just outside. The noise started to increase as more and more snow flakes hit the leaves.
Some of the flakes managed to get blown into small space where Merry was. A flake landed on his face. The hobbit, who had had his eyes closed, opened them and raised his hand. He wiped the small wet dot off of his face and shuffled again.
Merry was thinking about him home again.
A nice warm bath, clean bed sheets and a hot cup of tea. That's what he would have been doing.
But no.
He was out in the wild, a hollow tree for shelter.
"It's going to be a long night" he told himself.
The hobbit then closed his eyes. He would not open then until light the next day.