Cold. That's all Phoenix could feel as she gripped to Boromir's armor. Now being a Hobbit, she wasn't equipped to handle the fierceness of the freezing snow of the mountain. Her blue cloak covered her head. She peeked out of the side, seeing Pippin huddled closer to Merry in Boromir's other arm. She could hear Legolas say something about the mountain. Suddenly an avalanche of snow fell from above them. She was separated from Boromir and covered deeply over her head. She tried to reach her hands up, pushing the snow away. She felt a large hand grab her shirt, pulling her to the surface.
"Pippin?" she called. She heard his weak voice reply something.
"We must go under the mountain!" Gimli suggested.
"No!" Gandalf replied.
"We cannot make it through," Legolas pointed out.
"Let the ring bearer decide," Gandalf finally said.
"We shall go through the mountain," Frodo said. Frodo didn't see it but Phoenix could see the disappointed look in Gandalf's eyes as he began walking back down the snow-covered hill.
* * *
Phoenix did her best to stay away from Pippin, playing hard-to-get as she like to put it. She stayed alongside of Bill the pony, helping Sam lead him.
Pippin walked next to Merry watching every move that Phoenix made. Merry glanced over at his friend gawking at Phoenix. He rolled his eyes and bumped into Pippin. "What?" Pippin asked.
"You keep looking at her,"
"She's nice to look at," Pippin defended with a smile on his face and glazed look in his eyes.
"You haven't even known her that long,"
"Two months is enough,"
Merry stopped Pippin in his tracks. "Pip…don't get all up in the clouds over a girl, a girl you hardly know. You are my cousin and I love you and I'm gonna keep my eye on you." Merry looked him sternly in the eye.
"Fine," Pippin falsely agreed. He pushed pass Merry and kept walking until he caught up with Phoenix. He gently tapped her shoulder.
"Hey," she said warmly. She let the pony and Sam walk on. Merry glared at Pippin as he passed the two.
"I haven't really spent time with you lately…"
"I know. Sorry…" her plan wasn't going as well as she thought. "About that kiss-" he cut her off by lightly kissing her. He pulled away. "I liked it." She finished.
* * *
"What of your family?" Pippin asked Phoenix as they walked. The Everlasting Walk. Phoenix thought bitterly.
"What about them?" she replied kicking a few stones.
"Why haven't you tried to contact them?"
"Because…" she said. "I don't really have that good of a relationship with my parents and my only brother died recently."
"Oh…I'm sorry…how did he die?"
"Car wreck,"
"Car?" he looked at her as if the very word 'car' baffled his Hobbit mind.
"Cart wreck," she lied. "It was a very bad cart wreck."
"Oh…" he didn't really know how to respond to that.
"What about your family?"
"The only family I care about or cares about me is Merry and Frodo. Everyone else thinks I'm a fool,"
"I don't think you're a fool,"
"Really?" he asked, not sure if he wanted to believe her.
"Really," she ruffled his unruly hair. She then grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him into a kiss.
A/N: okay this chapter is a bit corny, but I PROMISE that this will get better! Just stick with the story! IT WILL GET BETTER! TRUST ME! PS- Review!