Outcast
Disclaimer: J.R.R. Tolkien created all those wonderful characters ... or maybe they
were always there ...
A/N: ACK! Sorry for the confusion: Pippin's father's called Paladin of course! You can
look it up in "The Two Towers".
Chapter 4
Pippin was laying on his bed, feeling small and useless. His back hurt as well as his wrist and
shoulder.
Ivy hadn't come yet. The young hobbit whimpered. It hurt. It hurt so much. Why did this
happen to him? He was a bad son and friend, he guessed.
Not even Merry liked him. Merry ... his dear Merry ... he had let him down, too.
Pippin wrapped Merry's shirt closer around his little body.
Then the door opened and Ivy entered.
"My poor little Pippin.", she said, as always.
Then she bandaged his wrist and shoulder and once again left him alone in the darkness.
Pippin cried himself into sleep; alone, lost and broken.
Merry was walking through Brandy Hall, thinking about everything that had happened. He
had really believed in Pippin and in some way he still did. But Paladin Took was a popular
and rich hobbit. People liked him and supported him and so Merry was afraid to face him.
Maybe he **had** done something to Pippin, but Merry wasn't sure.
He needed evidence ... a witness ... anything. Then he could take Pippin back to Brandy Hall
... he sighed.
Poor Pippin! The young hobbit was probably afraid and hurt. What had he done?!
"I'm a fool of a Brandybuck!", Merry murmured to himself.
"What?!", his father, Saradoc Brandybuck exclaimed.
Merry startled and tried to look as innocent as possible, but his father was curious as most
hobbits are.
"What did you do? Is it about Pippin?", Saradoc asked and looked at his son with wide
**very** curious eyes.
"Ummm ... yes ...", Merry answered, reluctantly.
"What is it, Meriadoc?", Saradoc asked, seriously now.
Saradoc knew that something was going wrong in the house of the Tooks, but he didn't know
what it was.
"I ... I ... Pippin told me something and I believed in him, but then Uncle Paladin said that it
wasn't true and then ... then I believed in Paladin and I ... let down Pippin."
Saradoc sighed and lead his son into his favorite room, the library.
"I was always suspicious when it came to Paladin, especially after Pippin's birth. You won't
remember since you were only nine years old back then, but we would visit the Tooks more
often before that. And ... it was too early."
"What are you trying to tell me, father?", Merry asked.
"It's so hard ... well, I always knew that Paladin was a violent hobbit. He beat up Pippin's
mother that night ... and then ... well then she gave birth to Pippin. Way too early ... They senz
people to Brandy Hall because they needed more mid-wives. Daisy never told you, but she
was there, too. And Pippin ... he was such a fragile baby ... and he was always sick and ...
bruised."
Merry was shocked. His father was in tears and that had never happened before. The young
Brandybuck felt fury arise in himself.
"So why didn't you stop it?!"
Saradoc shook his head, sadly and looked up to his son.
"I had no evidence and you shouldn't accuse a Took of beating up his heir without at least one
witness."
"But he's **bruised**!", Merry exclaimed, angrily.
"You believed in the old Took as well! He can be very nice and convincing if he wants to!"
"Then Pip is lost."
"He was born in hell and he'll survive, my lad. You musn't do more or else I'll have to send
you away for a while.", Saradoc Brandybuck said and started looking out of the window.
Pippin got up early.
Three weeks had passed since he had run away and he felt better. His father had been too busy
to take care of him recently and so his wounds healed.
He would never be the same though. He was a different young Peregrin Took now.
He walked out of his room and stepped into the kitchen. His mother waited there already.
"Good morning.", she said, softly.
Pippin smiled and hugged her. He felt a lot better when he was with his mother and so he sat
down on her lap and snuggled up to her.
"My sweet little Pippin." She laughed and started to sing old songs to him.
Pippin had always liked that and he really appreciated it now. He felt so good there. Warm
and safe.
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?!", Paladin yelled on top of his voice as he saw his wife
with his son in her arms.
Pippin winced in fear as did his mother. Paladin grabbed a strand of Pippin's soft hair and
pulled him away from his mother.
"NOOOOOO!!!", she cried.
"SHUT UP!"
He took his leather-belt and ripped off his son's shirt to beat him up as he always did.
Pippin cried out in pain as the belt hit his back again and again.
It tore open his already bruised skin and blood started to pour from his wounds.
Pippin murmured one single word before he passed out: "Merry ..."
Merry couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep, he couldn't concentrate on anything in fact. He was
worried and angry and sad. These feelings had mixed up in his heart and drove him insane. He
**had** to go to the Tooks.
He **had** to look after Pippin! No matter what his father said, someone had to do
something against the old Took or else he would kill Pippin sooner or later.
"I'm a fool of a Brandybuck ...", he muttered to himself once again.
He was stupid, so stupid and foolish. He had had the chance to end misery and what had he
done?! He had pushed the young Took back into his father's arms.
He hid his face in his hands to keep his face clean from the tears that started to flow.
Merry was sitting on his bed; the bed Pippin had been in ...
Then he felt a light touch and looked up.
"My dear Merry.", his mother started. "Don't be too harsh to yourself. I should have done
something, too. Anything ... but I can't. I'm too weak and your father won't help Pippin.
Nobody can help him. Just try to forget-"
"Forget WHAT?! Forget my BEST friend? My COUSIN?!!! No, mother. I won't do that. He
can't hold me back much longer. Pippin needs me and I won't let him down."
Mistress Brandybuck closed her eyes and shook her head.
"Merry. You're just a little boy. You can't help him. Try to forget. Sooner or later someone
will do something about it."
"First of all I'm 28, mother. I'm old enough! And I will **NOT** wait! Nobody has done
something so far and nobody will when everybody's like the brave Brandybucks!"
"Don't talk about things that you don't understand!", Merry's mother replied and slapped him
across the face.
She stormed out of the room, furiously. She loved Pippin, too, but she couldn't help him.
Nobody could ...
Pippin moaned in his sleep.
He had that nightmare again ... the one nightmare that might have explained his fear of
darkness.
But he could never remember much of it ...
He was in another cruel world now, but maybe not as cruel as reality ...
Disclaimer: J.R.R. Tolkien created all those wonderful characters ... or maybe they
were always there ...
A/N: ACK! Sorry for the confusion: Pippin's father's called Paladin of course! You can
look it up in "The Two Towers".
Chapter 4
Pippin was laying on his bed, feeling small and useless. His back hurt as well as his wrist and
shoulder.
Ivy hadn't come yet. The young hobbit whimpered. It hurt. It hurt so much. Why did this
happen to him? He was a bad son and friend, he guessed.
Not even Merry liked him. Merry ... his dear Merry ... he had let him down, too.
Pippin wrapped Merry's shirt closer around his little body.
Then the door opened and Ivy entered.
"My poor little Pippin.", she said, as always.
Then she bandaged his wrist and shoulder and once again left him alone in the darkness.
Pippin cried himself into sleep; alone, lost and broken.
Merry was walking through Brandy Hall, thinking about everything that had happened. He
had really believed in Pippin and in some way he still did. But Paladin Took was a popular
and rich hobbit. People liked him and supported him and so Merry was afraid to face him.
Maybe he **had** done something to Pippin, but Merry wasn't sure.
He needed evidence ... a witness ... anything. Then he could take Pippin back to Brandy Hall
... he sighed.
Poor Pippin! The young hobbit was probably afraid and hurt. What had he done?!
"I'm a fool of a Brandybuck!", Merry murmured to himself.
"What?!", his father, Saradoc Brandybuck exclaimed.
Merry startled and tried to look as innocent as possible, but his father was curious as most
hobbits are.
"What did you do? Is it about Pippin?", Saradoc asked and looked at his son with wide
**very** curious eyes.
"Ummm ... yes ...", Merry answered, reluctantly.
"What is it, Meriadoc?", Saradoc asked, seriously now.
Saradoc knew that something was going wrong in the house of the Tooks, but he didn't know
what it was.
"I ... I ... Pippin told me something and I believed in him, but then Uncle Paladin said that it
wasn't true and then ... then I believed in Paladin and I ... let down Pippin."
Saradoc sighed and lead his son into his favorite room, the library.
"I was always suspicious when it came to Paladin, especially after Pippin's birth. You won't
remember since you were only nine years old back then, but we would visit the Tooks more
often before that. And ... it was too early."
"What are you trying to tell me, father?", Merry asked.
"It's so hard ... well, I always knew that Paladin was a violent hobbit. He beat up Pippin's
mother that night ... and then ... well then she gave birth to Pippin. Way too early ... They senz
people to Brandy Hall because they needed more mid-wives. Daisy never told you, but she
was there, too. And Pippin ... he was such a fragile baby ... and he was always sick and ...
bruised."
Merry was shocked. His father was in tears and that had never happened before. The young
Brandybuck felt fury arise in himself.
"So why didn't you stop it?!"
Saradoc shook his head, sadly and looked up to his son.
"I had no evidence and you shouldn't accuse a Took of beating up his heir without at least one
witness."
"But he's **bruised**!", Merry exclaimed, angrily.
"You believed in the old Took as well! He can be very nice and convincing if he wants to!"
"Then Pip is lost."
"He was born in hell and he'll survive, my lad. You musn't do more or else I'll have to send
you away for a while.", Saradoc Brandybuck said and started looking out of the window.
Pippin got up early.
Three weeks had passed since he had run away and he felt better. His father had been too busy
to take care of him recently and so his wounds healed.
He would never be the same though. He was a different young Peregrin Took now.
He walked out of his room and stepped into the kitchen. His mother waited there already.
"Good morning.", she said, softly.
Pippin smiled and hugged her. He felt a lot better when he was with his mother and so he sat
down on her lap and snuggled up to her.
"My sweet little Pippin." She laughed and started to sing old songs to him.
Pippin had always liked that and he really appreciated it now. He felt so good there. Warm
and safe.
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN HERE?!", Paladin yelled on top of his voice as he saw his wife
with his son in her arms.
Pippin winced in fear as did his mother. Paladin grabbed a strand of Pippin's soft hair and
pulled him away from his mother.
"NOOOOOO!!!", she cried.
"SHUT UP!"
He took his leather-belt and ripped off his son's shirt to beat him up as he always did.
Pippin cried out in pain as the belt hit his back again and again.
It tore open his already bruised skin and blood started to pour from his wounds.
Pippin murmured one single word before he passed out: "Merry ..."
Merry couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep, he couldn't concentrate on anything in fact. He was
worried and angry and sad. These feelings had mixed up in his heart and drove him insane. He
**had** to go to the Tooks.
He **had** to look after Pippin! No matter what his father said, someone had to do
something against the old Took or else he would kill Pippin sooner or later.
"I'm a fool of a Brandybuck ...", he muttered to himself once again.
He was stupid, so stupid and foolish. He had had the chance to end misery and what had he
done?! He had pushed the young Took back into his father's arms.
He hid his face in his hands to keep his face clean from the tears that started to flow.
Merry was sitting on his bed; the bed Pippin had been in ...
Then he felt a light touch and looked up.
"My dear Merry.", his mother started. "Don't be too harsh to yourself. I should have done
something, too. Anything ... but I can't. I'm too weak and your father won't help Pippin.
Nobody can help him. Just try to forget-"
"Forget WHAT?! Forget my BEST friend? My COUSIN?!!! No, mother. I won't do that. He
can't hold me back much longer. Pippin needs me and I won't let him down."
Mistress Brandybuck closed her eyes and shook her head.
"Merry. You're just a little boy. You can't help him. Try to forget. Sooner or later someone
will do something about it."
"First of all I'm 28, mother. I'm old enough! And I will **NOT** wait! Nobody has done
something so far and nobody will when everybody's like the brave Brandybucks!"
"Don't talk about things that you don't understand!", Merry's mother replied and slapped him
across the face.
She stormed out of the room, furiously. She loved Pippin, too, but she couldn't help him.
Nobody could ...
Pippin moaned in his sleep.
He had that nightmare again ... the one nightmare that might have explained his fear of
darkness.
But he could never remember much of it ...
He was in another cruel world now, but maybe not as cruel as reality ...