aelfgifu: Thanks for putting my story in your recs! And I would never
kill Merry! I need him to just. . .I dunno, be Merry I suppose. :)
HMP: Wow. . .that's a lot of reviews. So much to reply to. . .brain overloading. . .GAH! x_x Naw, I'm glad you liked the last three or four chapters so much. And btw, as it turns out, it wasn't Dom. It was Tom Felton. But hey, that's gotta be worth somethin'. Just makes me wonder how my friend could mistake Dom for Felton??
Samwise the Strong: Yay! A new face! Umm. . .I actually have no idea when this takes place. It's just a random little fic. Place it wherever you like. Though it *could* work as AU (they see Sam and Frodo in the Old Forest at one point). But hey, whatever your imagination decides to do. . .
A/N: Yay! I'm finally updating! This chapter will probably be short, as I'm a bit tired. But I'll try my best to make it worth the wait. *sweatdrop*
Disclaimer: Don't own LotR. How many times must I tell you people?!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pippin and Merry had now been traveling through the Old Forest for two days. According to the older hobbit, it would take a couple more before they reached the Shire again, but Pippin was less worried about getting home than he used to be. Will and Byrn would bother them no more. He knew Fidell and Iris would see to that. The only thing that concerned Pip now was Merry.
His cousin had picked up two new habits. One of them was talking to himself. Pippin often found Merry muttering quietly as they walked through the forest. He had learned long ago not to bother Merry while he did this. It only irritated him. Though Pip did tend to wonder what Merry could possibly be talking about with himself. Pippin even tried it himself at one point, and found it a terrible bore. There was nothing to tell himself that he didn't already know.
The other odd habit Merry had acquired was fiddling with Fidell's fake knife. He often took it out of his pocket, retracting the blade into the handle and back out again. He would stoop down and pick up sticks off of the trail, witling them down to matchsticks and then into nothing. Pippin watched this process curiously. Had his cousin possibly gone mad?
That couldn't be the case. He didn't seem mad. When he spoke to Pippin, he spoke as he had always spoken. There was nothing new there. But talking to yourself and fidgeting with weapons weren't exactly normal actions, Pip knew.
"Merry?" he said tentatively. His cousin's quiet ramblings ceased. Pip continued, "Maybe we should stop to rest? The sun's going down. It'll be dark soon."
Merry nodded. "You're right." He pocketed the fake knife and walked off the path to a tall tree. Pippin followed, sitting down against the trunk. He looked over at Merry. He was witling again. Pippin sighed.
"Merry?"
"Hm?"
"Why don't you put that knife away? You're always fidgeting with it."
"So? You always wear that scarf, but I never ask you to leave it at home, now do I?"
Pippin hesitated. "Well, no. . .but you never talk to me anymore. You're always talking to yourself or cutting sticks down to nothing."
"I'm talking to you right now, Pip. And I don't always talk to myself. Just. . .when I need to let my thoughts out."
"Why not tell me your thoughts? You did before."
"Before. . .it was different before. We've been through a lot, Pippin. I don't doubt it's changed us both."
Pippin snorted. "It hasn't changed me one bit!"
"Hasn't it?"
"No."
Merry shrugged, letting the matter drop. There was silence for a long moment. Pippin shifted uneasily, then let out a frustrated groan.
"Come on, Merry! Tell me what you're thinking!"
"No, Pip, you'll only be hurt by it."
"I will not! I promise."
Merry sighed. "All right, then. But don't say I didn't warn you. I was just thinking. . .I mean I've been thinking. . .why did Will and Byrn choose to kill me instead of you?"
Pippin was quite taken aback, but stayed under control. "Would you have preferred it if they had chosen me?"
"No! Of course not, Pip! I didn't mean it like that. I was just. . .wondering. Did they think you seemed like a more convincing criminal? It just. . .makes me wonder."
"Me? A criminal? I should say not! Well. . .Farmer Maggot might have a different opinion. But I would never kill someone!"
"Neither would I."
"I don't think Will or Byrn realized that."
"Perhaps not."
"They didn't think their plan all the way through."
"No they didn't."
"I should say that we could come up with a better one."
"You reckon so?"
"I do."
"Alright then." And silence filled the air again. Pippin didn't mind as much this time, however. At least he had gotten Merry to talk to him for once. He sighed rather contentedly, and lay down, shutting his eyes.
He had no idea how long he slept for. It could have been a minute, or perhaps an hour. At any rate, he was awoken by a voice. . .no, two voices. He opened his eyes and saw Merry standing in the Road, kneeling beside another figure that was laying down. Merry was trying to calm the other figure, who was muttering incoherently. Pippin stood and wandered curiously over to them. His breath caught in his throat. Lying on the Road, bloodied and bruised, was Fidell.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: So I guess the adventure isn't over. Muah haha. . .I am an evil person. Now, off you go, off to review, if you please. Danche!
HMP: Wow. . .that's a lot of reviews. So much to reply to. . .brain overloading. . .GAH! x_x Naw, I'm glad you liked the last three or four chapters so much. And btw, as it turns out, it wasn't Dom. It was Tom Felton. But hey, that's gotta be worth somethin'. Just makes me wonder how my friend could mistake Dom for Felton??
Samwise the Strong: Yay! A new face! Umm. . .I actually have no idea when this takes place. It's just a random little fic. Place it wherever you like. Though it *could* work as AU (they see Sam and Frodo in the Old Forest at one point). But hey, whatever your imagination decides to do. . .
A/N: Yay! I'm finally updating! This chapter will probably be short, as I'm a bit tired. But I'll try my best to make it worth the wait. *sweatdrop*
Disclaimer: Don't own LotR. How many times must I tell you people?!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Pippin and Merry had now been traveling through the Old Forest for two days. According to the older hobbit, it would take a couple more before they reached the Shire again, but Pippin was less worried about getting home than he used to be. Will and Byrn would bother them no more. He knew Fidell and Iris would see to that. The only thing that concerned Pip now was Merry.
His cousin had picked up two new habits. One of them was talking to himself. Pippin often found Merry muttering quietly as they walked through the forest. He had learned long ago not to bother Merry while he did this. It only irritated him. Though Pip did tend to wonder what Merry could possibly be talking about with himself. Pippin even tried it himself at one point, and found it a terrible bore. There was nothing to tell himself that he didn't already know.
The other odd habit Merry had acquired was fiddling with Fidell's fake knife. He often took it out of his pocket, retracting the blade into the handle and back out again. He would stoop down and pick up sticks off of the trail, witling them down to matchsticks and then into nothing. Pippin watched this process curiously. Had his cousin possibly gone mad?
That couldn't be the case. He didn't seem mad. When he spoke to Pippin, he spoke as he had always spoken. There was nothing new there. But talking to yourself and fidgeting with weapons weren't exactly normal actions, Pip knew.
"Merry?" he said tentatively. His cousin's quiet ramblings ceased. Pip continued, "Maybe we should stop to rest? The sun's going down. It'll be dark soon."
Merry nodded. "You're right." He pocketed the fake knife and walked off the path to a tall tree. Pippin followed, sitting down against the trunk. He looked over at Merry. He was witling again. Pippin sighed.
"Merry?"
"Hm?"
"Why don't you put that knife away? You're always fidgeting with it."
"So? You always wear that scarf, but I never ask you to leave it at home, now do I?"
Pippin hesitated. "Well, no. . .but you never talk to me anymore. You're always talking to yourself or cutting sticks down to nothing."
"I'm talking to you right now, Pip. And I don't always talk to myself. Just. . .when I need to let my thoughts out."
"Why not tell me your thoughts? You did before."
"Before. . .it was different before. We've been through a lot, Pippin. I don't doubt it's changed us both."
Pippin snorted. "It hasn't changed me one bit!"
"Hasn't it?"
"No."
Merry shrugged, letting the matter drop. There was silence for a long moment. Pippin shifted uneasily, then let out a frustrated groan.
"Come on, Merry! Tell me what you're thinking!"
"No, Pip, you'll only be hurt by it."
"I will not! I promise."
Merry sighed. "All right, then. But don't say I didn't warn you. I was just thinking. . .I mean I've been thinking. . .why did Will and Byrn choose to kill me instead of you?"
Pippin was quite taken aback, but stayed under control. "Would you have preferred it if they had chosen me?"
"No! Of course not, Pip! I didn't mean it like that. I was just. . .wondering. Did they think you seemed like a more convincing criminal? It just. . .makes me wonder."
"Me? A criminal? I should say not! Well. . .Farmer Maggot might have a different opinion. But I would never kill someone!"
"Neither would I."
"I don't think Will or Byrn realized that."
"Perhaps not."
"They didn't think their plan all the way through."
"No they didn't."
"I should say that we could come up with a better one."
"You reckon so?"
"I do."
"Alright then." And silence filled the air again. Pippin didn't mind as much this time, however. At least he had gotten Merry to talk to him for once. He sighed rather contentedly, and lay down, shutting his eyes.
He had no idea how long he slept for. It could have been a minute, or perhaps an hour. At any rate, he was awoken by a voice. . .no, two voices. He opened his eyes and saw Merry standing in the Road, kneeling beside another figure that was laying down. Merry was trying to calm the other figure, who was muttering incoherently. Pippin stood and wandered curiously over to them. His breath caught in his throat. Lying on the Road, bloodied and bruised, was Fidell.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: So I guess the adventure isn't over. Muah haha. . .I am an evil person. Now, off you go, off to review, if you please. Danche!
