A/N: Today is update day!!! All stories are being updated since I have been
to busy to do it since classes have been murder..not literally, of course
(looks around self consciously). I've changed the sentence structure so you
can see who is talking. I've learned that is the "correct" thing to do. So
much for style and interpretation...
Promises
Merry stepped in quickly. Pippin shut the door behind him.
"What are you talking about?"
"Gerbald Humdum. He didn't come home with the children he was playing with."
Pippin shrugged. "Maybe he's playing a joke." Merry frowned.
"That's what you said about the last one."
The "last one" who hadn't come home was Posey Bumbswort. Everyone had dismissed it as a simple childish prank after the other deaths, until the child was missing for a couple of days.
"Something is wrong here Pippin, I don't know what it is, but-"
There was a knock at the door and Pippin rushed to answer it. Merry wasn't too surprised by Pippin's actions. He never wanted to talk about it. Neither did anyone else for that matter.
Sam walked into the room, followed by Pippin. Sam looked about him, visibly nervous.
"Master Frodo sent me down here," he said after a moment, "He wants to meet with us."
Pippin had went into the kitchen but asked, "What about?" to signal that he'd heard the statement.
"About what's been going on..with the murders of the children."
"Murders?" Pippin came out of the kitchen, carefully carrying cups and a hot kettle, "There haven't been
any murders." Sam and Merry gapped at him. "What do you call the bloody remains we've been finding?"
Pippin then went to into a speech on dangers and wolves and how irresponsibly children were being reared.
"So are you going to come or not?" Merry asked, feeling that if he didn't cut in with the question, Pippin might have gone on forever. "Of course, of course, though it's kind of pointless if you ask me."
Sam, who took just a sip of his tea rose to go. "Well then, I have to return as soon as possible to let him know. Mr. Frodo said to do so." Pippin and Merry said goodbye to Sam. At the shutting of the door things felt too silent, especially so between Pippin and Merry. They had always had so much to talk about before this series of "incidents" began occurring a few weeks before. Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, Merry looked up at Pippin, who it seemed was now watching him.
"You think that there may be.a murder or something out there."
"Well, yes Pippin. Wolves couldn't do something like that." Pippin sniffed indignantly.
"Of course they could? Worse than that even."
"No, no that's not what I meant." Merry now felt the need to whisper, which would seem rather ridiculous since the two of them were alone in the room at the moment.
"I meant that, there was something strange in the way the bodies were left. I mean wolves feed of course, but then, why don't we hear them? Why hasn't anyone seen them? There haven't been any howls, or tracks. Wild animals would leave footprints by the bodies, but there haven't been any, not a single one."
Merry paused and could see clearly from the look on Pippin's face that he was somewhere between fearful and on the verge of explaining it away.
"There's something else there, too," Merry said, before Pippin could think of an explanation, "for some reason, all of this.it feels sort of familiar."
"Familiar?" asked Pippin, laughing a little. "Why would any of this be familiar? It's not like it's happened before."
"I don't know," said Merry, "I mean I don't really remember. Do you think Frodo would remember?"
"If we don't remember, I doubt he would, and even if he did, what good would he do us." It wasn't like he could jog their memories.
********************************
That evening, the four of them sat, Merry, Pippin, Sam and Frodo, around the table in the kitchen. The room was dimly lit, but hardly for effect. For some reason, it added a feeling of secrecy as well as privacy, both of which were very much needed.
"As you all know," Frodo began, "I arranged for this meeting to talk about what has been happening, something that was promised a long time ago."
"What promise?" asked Merry, "I don't remember any promises."
"Me either," Pippin agreed, shaking his head in confusion.
Sam hadn't remembered either, but said nothing, having silent faith that Frodo would give a reason that would then bring the event to mind.
"I didn't believe any of you would remember, simply because I didn't remember myself."
The others regarded Frodo curiously, but waited for him to continue.
"The thing is, when I was out with the others, looking for young Posey the other day, I walked past the well beyond Mrs. Hornbrower's garden. At the mentioning of the well, an almost involuntary shudder enveloped Pippin. Why, he didn't know. It was a sort of shudder that comes for no reason or need, and when it was gone, left behind a feeling of embarrassment. "Are you alright?" Merry asked, placing a hand of concern on Pippin's shoulder.
"Yes, I'm just a bit cold is all," Pippin lied.
"Are they still out looking for the Humdum's boy," Sam inquired, neither leaving nor remaining on the subject.
"Not yet, I don't think," replied Frodo. Something in his tone said he didn't expect the boy to be found alive. "About the well," Frodo continued, "it was almost like a nudge. I promised, I promised if any of this happened again, I'd try to do something, and you all promised too."
The others were nodding now, but even though memories of words spoken were there, they could not trace them, and so they remained silent, still waiting.
"None of you remember what happened do you?" Frodo said in amazement. "How could such a thing be?"
When still no one answered, Frodo said, "Perhaps, if we were to back through what I remember, and what each of you remember, we can get somewhere."
Pippin started to disagree, but didn't to sound childishly unreasonable.
"Alright," said Sam, finally, "So who should we start with?" Merry smiled slightly. "Well since you asked, why don't you start?"
*******************
Sorry if that took forever, but hopefully things are starting to get established. There will be flashing back in the next chapter, just to warn you ahead of time.
Promises
Merry stepped in quickly. Pippin shut the door behind him.
"What are you talking about?"
"Gerbald Humdum. He didn't come home with the children he was playing with."
Pippin shrugged. "Maybe he's playing a joke." Merry frowned.
"That's what you said about the last one."
The "last one" who hadn't come home was Posey Bumbswort. Everyone had dismissed it as a simple childish prank after the other deaths, until the child was missing for a couple of days.
"Something is wrong here Pippin, I don't know what it is, but-"
There was a knock at the door and Pippin rushed to answer it. Merry wasn't too surprised by Pippin's actions. He never wanted to talk about it. Neither did anyone else for that matter.
Sam walked into the room, followed by Pippin. Sam looked about him, visibly nervous.
"Master Frodo sent me down here," he said after a moment, "He wants to meet with us."
Pippin had went into the kitchen but asked, "What about?" to signal that he'd heard the statement.
"About what's been going on..with the murders of the children."
"Murders?" Pippin came out of the kitchen, carefully carrying cups and a hot kettle, "There haven't been
any murders." Sam and Merry gapped at him. "What do you call the bloody remains we've been finding?"
Pippin then went to into a speech on dangers and wolves and how irresponsibly children were being reared.
"So are you going to come or not?" Merry asked, feeling that if he didn't cut in with the question, Pippin might have gone on forever. "Of course, of course, though it's kind of pointless if you ask me."
Sam, who took just a sip of his tea rose to go. "Well then, I have to return as soon as possible to let him know. Mr. Frodo said to do so." Pippin and Merry said goodbye to Sam. At the shutting of the door things felt too silent, especially so between Pippin and Merry. They had always had so much to talk about before this series of "incidents" began occurring a few weeks before. Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, Merry looked up at Pippin, who it seemed was now watching him.
"You think that there may be.a murder or something out there."
"Well, yes Pippin. Wolves couldn't do something like that." Pippin sniffed indignantly.
"Of course they could? Worse than that even."
"No, no that's not what I meant." Merry now felt the need to whisper, which would seem rather ridiculous since the two of them were alone in the room at the moment.
"I meant that, there was something strange in the way the bodies were left. I mean wolves feed of course, but then, why don't we hear them? Why hasn't anyone seen them? There haven't been any howls, or tracks. Wild animals would leave footprints by the bodies, but there haven't been any, not a single one."
Merry paused and could see clearly from the look on Pippin's face that he was somewhere between fearful and on the verge of explaining it away.
"There's something else there, too," Merry said, before Pippin could think of an explanation, "for some reason, all of this.it feels sort of familiar."
"Familiar?" asked Pippin, laughing a little. "Why would any of this be familiar? It's not like it's happened before."
"I don't know," said Merry, "I mean I don't really remember. Do you think Frodo would remember?"
"If we don't remember, I doubt he would, and even if he did, what good would he do us." It wasn't like he could jog their memories.
********************************
That evening, the four of them sat, Merry, Pippin, Sam and Frodo, around the table in the kitchen. The room was dimly lit, but hardly for effect. For some reason, it added a feeling of secrecy as well as privacy, both of which were very much needed.
"As you all know," Frodo began, "I arranged for this meeting to talk about what has been happening, something that was promised a long time ago."
"What promise?" asked Merry, "I don't remember any promises."
"Me either," Pippin agreed, shaking his head in confusion.
Sam hadn't remembered either, but said nothing, having silent faith that Frodo would give a reason that would then bring the event to mind.
"I didn't believe any of you would remember, simply because I didn't remember myself."
The others regarded Frodo curiously, but waited for him to continue.
"The thing is, when I was out with the others, looking for young Posey the other day, I walked past the well beyond Mrs. Hornbrower's garden. At the mentioning of the well, an almost involuntary shudder enveloped Pippin. Why, he didn't know. It was a sort of shudder that comes for no reason or need, and when it was gone, left behind a feeling of embarrassment. "Are you alright?" Merry asked, placing a hand of concern on Pippin's shoulder.
"Yes, I'm just a bit cold is all," Pippin lied.
"Are they still out looking for the Humdum's boy," Sam inquired, neither leaving nor remaining on the subject.
"Not yet, I don't think," replied Frodo. Something in his tone said he didn't expect the boy to be found alive. "About the well," Frodo continued, "it was almost like a nudge. I promised, I promised if any of this happened again, I'd try to do something, and you all promised too."
The others were nodding now, but even though memories of words spoken were there, they could not trace them, and so they remained silent, still waiting.
"None of you remember what happened do you?" Frodo said in amazement. "How could such a thing be?"
When still no one answered, Frodo said, "Perhaps, if we were to back through what I remember, and what each of you remember, we can get somewhere."
Pippin started to disagree, but didn't to sound childishly unreasonable.
"Alright," said Sam, finally, "So who should we start with?" Merry smiled slightly. "Well since you asked, why don't you start?"
*******************
Sorry if that took forever, but hopefully things are starting to get established. There will be flashing back in the next chapter, just to warn you ahead of time.