Chapter Six








I stood silently in the hall of the House of Justic, leaning against the wall with my arms folded and my brother next to me. We did not speak for a long while, and the guards shuffled off to go release Selma. When they escorted her from the halls she paused and gave Boromir a saddened glance, but he did not seem to see her, even as she vanished from sight. My brother must have felt like a fool now, because he was heavily quiet - heavily quiet is the only way I know how to describe the air when my brother goes silent. He does not enjoy speaking when he feels foolish, so he just sort of glares at objects that may be surrounding him.

I had to speak. I feared if I did not my brother would spontaneously combust. "Selma is released, Boromir, you do not have to turn yourself in."

"Nay, I do not have to, I want to." And now he was just being stubborn. Wonderful.

"There is no reason anymore, Boromir." My voice was now as harsh as his, which is very rare for myself…to some I have been known as the thinker rather than the one with the temper. Boromir was being stubborn...perhaps the Took had gotten to him as well, but Gondor's Steward could not go to jail! It was unheard of! I set my foot down firmly and looked my brother in the eye. "If you do not back down then I will turn myself in for this fire. I am the number one suspect, anyway."

"I will not allow that, little brother." he growled at me, eyes flashing.

"Would the King of Gondor serving a five year sentence for burning down his Steward's quarters be something to write about?" We both spun on our heels in surprise to see Aragorn, having left his guards in the hall, striding up to us with a look that could not be described as angry or amused.it was more confused than anything. "Boromir, if you turn yourself in then Faramir is going to turn himself in...and if Faramir does so, then I will turn myself in."

"Are you mad, Aragorn?" Boromir blurted, and I inwardly cringed. I will again mention that my brother's relationship with the King differs somewhat from mine, and I am not used to it as of yet. Then my brother buried his hands in his hair and exhaled sharply from his nose, shaking his head. "This should not be happening."

"No, it should not." I snapped, giving my brother a well deserved and much needed smack on his shoulder. "What in Gondor gave you the idea to turn yourself in?!" Boromir seemed a bit embarrassed to admit what he was to say next, but Aragorn and I leaned forward a bit in anticipation. "Well?"

"The Took. Silly ideas from a silly hobbit."

"Pippin, I knew it!" I grumbled, absently running a hand through my hair. "Since when does he play Gondor's Matchmaker?"

"Pippin?" Aragorn looked to the both of us in sheer curiosity. "He came to you, as well?"

I nodded. "He seems to be going from battle ground to battle ground…first he came to me and suggested I turn myself in to prove my love to Eowyn, and then I suppose he went to Boromir when I declined."

"He did."

Aragorn stroked his chin thoughtfully, making a 'hmm' noise and concentrating on the far wall. Finally he spoke, "Aye, he came to me as well.said something about Arwen being unhappy and, like he said to you, I should spend five years in a jail cell to prove I loved her. It would make a good love story, but I told him I would have to find other ways to please my Lady."

I wondered what Aragorn meant by the Queen being 'unhappy' but did not have the courage to ask. But Boromir did. "You think she is unhappy, Aragorn?"

Something in the King's eyes changed, and he averted his eyes to the side, and absently reached out to touch the bars of the empty cell. "It is hard to tell.she denies any unhappiness but I see it in her eyes. She is quiet more often than not, and worries me." he trailed off and broke into a very small smile. "I do not mean to bother you with these things.but I implore the both of you not to turn yourselves in."

The chief of the House of Justice entered, bowing to the King respectfully and tucking his chin as he spoke to the three of us. "My Lords, if I may speak?"

"You may, what is it?"

"I do not believe that either of you started the fire, and if you were to admit you did none in Gondor would believe you." the chief glanced behind him into the hall where Aragorn's guards watched the door, and then continued, "Why do we not just go by Captain Faramir's method and not arrest anyone that does not know how the fire was started?"

"Then.how did." Boromir began as if something just dawned on him, then he adressed the chief, "Did any.Halflings inquire as to how the fire was started?"

"Nay, no Halflings come by here, Lord."

Boromir folded his arms and frowned, looking at me and the King. "Peregrin knew how the fire started.down the last detail. I was foolish not to have realized it before."

"Are you saying.Pippin started the fire?" Aragorn seemed just as taken aback as I was, and Boromir nodded. Aragorn, for the first time in a long time, looked utterly baffled. "But why would...Pippin want to burn down your apartment, Boromir? You and he are the best of friends."

Then it all hit me. "Oh.good lord.no." I looked my King square in the eye. "Diamond of Long Cleeve."

Aragorn frowned and for some reason or another glanced behind him, then back at me, jabbing a thumb in the general direction of the Guest House four miles or so away. "You mean that little lass he brought with me?"

"Aye."

This time Boromir asked me, "What of her? What does she have to do with the fire?"

I covered my eyes with one of my hands and groaned at the memories of that night. A few moments passed, and I finally spoke up, "You know of the night at the banquet…how Eowyn was angry with me because I did not stay the entire time.well I had left early to look at the stars and I swear I was minding my own business when out of nowhere came Diamond of Long Cleeve." I paused for dramatic emphasis…not intentionally, just because I was trying to gather my thoughts. "She, umm, sort of forced a kiss on me."

"You were over powered...?" My brother asked in hestitant disbelief, brow raised and mouth threatening to give way to one of those stupid smirks he has. "By a halfling?"

"Let him finish, Boromir, if I remember you've been overpowered by the Took and the Brandybuck on more than one occasion." Aragorn reminded my brother with a smirk much like Boromir's, yet something I do not usually see on the face of my King. However, ignoring my brother's muttered response, he asked me to continue.

"Yes, well I had been drinking a bit that night." I told my brother with mock anger in my defense, then said, "She was sad.I assume she and Pippin got into a bit of an argument. She must have kissed me to get back at him and then told him the story of how 'she fell in love with a soldier'."

"And he somehow knows that the soldier is you?" Boromir asked skeptically, folding his arms and regarding me with his brow raised even higher than before. "Then…why did he burn down my quarters?"

"He must have been misinformed…when I told him that your apartment had been burned to the ground he double checked that it was yours." I shrugged my shoulders and shoved my hands into my pockets, feeling very foolish even though I had just mapped out the entire crime. "And then he tried to get the three of us to admit to it. Everything points to him."

"Aye. Poor Pippin." Aragorn gave a low whistle, and a few of his guards sharply turned their heads to see if he was just whistling or if someone had just shoved a sword in his gullet and caused a whistling sensation. Seeing he was alright they turned back to their posts. "I confess, I do not wish to arrest him. He may have done wrong, but he is a dear friend of mine."

"Mine as well." I said, and my brother agreed. "We should allow him to confess in time."

"Peregrin Took has made fools of us." Boromir said with a wry grin, turning to Aragorn and myself. "Let us trap him in a confession.we could have you turn yourself in, Aragorn, and only the four of us: the guard, you, Faramir and myself would know of it. Pippin would be so strung out with guilt he would confess immediately."

Aragorn smiled but shook his head at my brother. "It is a brilliant plan, but you forget that I have Gondor to rule."

"It would not be for long.a day at the very most." I put in to help my brother, who was looking very selfsatisfied at the moment, leaning against the wall with his hands behind his head as if the world had just dropped at his feet with praise. "And we would not let all of Gondor know! Just those close to us. Pippin would not wait more than an hour to come to your aid."

"It is tempting." Aragorn admitted, this time a devious smile forming on his lips. "Very tempting…very well, let it be done. If anything it will teach the Took that he can trust us even if he is angry at us." The King turned to the chief, who seemed surprised himself that the King was acting on the little plan. Aragorn spoke quietly to him for a moment or two, and my brother excused himself. I had an idea of where he was going, but I had a destination of my own. A nice refreshing bath in the springs of what remained of Minas Tirith's wilderness. All right, it is not wilderness at all, just a place that is not always inhabited by other people. I seeked a chance to truly ponder my brother's plan.


to be continued…