A/N: Before I continue with this story (this is the last chapter by the
way) I would like to say thank you to all who reviewed. But Jessica, I
couldn't possibly do more slash because I'm absolutely terrible at it,
therefore this is slash free, plus it would be extremely embarrassing if
Dad decided to read any of my stories. Anyway, I thank you all once more.
Dealing in Death
Pippin's eyes blinked open, his vision was blurry and his limbs were heavy. He managed to focus upon a figure standing over him. That would be Merry. A hand was held out to him and he found some strength from somewhere and took it, it was strangely warm. It pulled him up and he stood, swaying slightly. Once he gained his balance he shook himself out and loosened himself up, it's surprising how being dead can really make your joints freeze up.
"You certainly took your time didn't you?" said Merry jovially. "Hoy Frodo! He's up!" he yelled into the bushes. Pippin looked around, the last thing he remembered was being on the open road, he'd obviously been moved. He was now in a dense copse and, he now realised, covered in leaves. His mind was moving strangely slow.
"At last!" said Frodo emerging silently from the bushes to one side. "Sam and I decided to get you a welcome dinner, you must be hungry." Pippin was certainly something, he wasn't sure he'd describe it as hungry, but he craved something. A screaming came from behind Frodo and Merry raised his eyebrow at him. "Yes, she's rather lively, we had to have a little taste to subdue her."
Sam burst into the small clearing, dragging with him a hobbitlass familiar to Pippin.
"Get your filthy hands off me demon!" She screamed into the night air. Sam rolled his eyes, he'd heard people scream that him far too much for it to have any affect on him at all, not that it ever really did. Pippin realised who she was.
"Diamond! What are you doing down here? You know it's dangerous to be out in the dark, especially around these parts." Diamond stopped and looked at Pippin in complete disbelief.
"They've got you, you're one of them." She was no longer struggling but just staring at Pippin, who, for his part, looked very confused. Merry nudged him.
"Check your teeth." Pippin did so and found them to be sharper than he last remembered them being. The memory suddenly hit him, he remembered what had happened that night and how he had come to be 'one of them'. He shrugged it off.
"Never mind that Diamond, what are you doing here?" Merry rolled his eyes; Pippin was going to have a conversation with his food.
"I came to see you actually, but not like this." Pippin nearly said 'like what', but he remembered just in time. His mind was moving very slowly, probably another side affect of having been dead for, by the look of the stars, about five hours. Pippin smiled, the kindness lost amongst the pointy teeth and reddening eyes, but the intention was there. Pippin offered his hand to Diamond, who took it, as it seemed more comfortable that Sam's hard grip on her arms, she also thought she had more chance of getting away from Pippin. She had more chance of spouting wings and flying than making it out of that clearing alive.
The moment Pippin touched Diamond's strong yet delicate wrist, his craving flamed up inside him. His vision became covered in a film of red, he could almost see through Diamond's skin to the blood pumping beneath it, his canine teeth grew longer so quickly they pierced his bottom lip.
"Ow!" he shouted, one hand coming up to feel his teeth, while the other was still fixed firmly around Diamond's wrist.
"You've got a good long set of fangs there." Observed Merry.
"I haff?" said Pippin, his speech inhibited by his teeth, "Oh good! Now how do I get them thmaller?"
"That comes with much practice, you may not be able to rid yourself of your fangs for days!" teased Frodo, Pippin smiled at him sarcastically.
"Thank you for tha' Frodo, you're tho helpful." Amid all the danger and frightening demons, Diamond found the situation absurd enough to laugh at it. It was her undoing. The laugh drew Pippin's attention to her face, but after only a small time his eyes were dragged away from hers to the pulsing vein he could see so clearly at her neck. Suddenly he knew what to do.
He pulled her to him and sank his teeth into her skin with the tenderness of a feral dog. Then he drank as though he hadn't had a single glass of water since the day he was born. Diamond was screaming in his ear, but he was in his own world and in his twisted world he heard her urging him on, begging him to take it all, and he was only too happy to oblige.
Frodo watched as Diamond's screams turned to yells, then to feeble shouts and finally to the murmuring of one that's not quite awake. Soon she was beyond that, to the familiar short gasps, hanging limp in Pippin's arms. Finally Pippin dropped her, looking slightly disappointed that there wasn't any more and breathing deep, pointless breaths.
Pippin looked down upon the body, searching for some remorse inside himself. He found nothing. To his surprise, he didn't mind at all. In fact, he quite liked the idea of never mourning ever again.
"So what now? Anything else to eat?" said Pippin excitedly, he felt as though he were eight years old again and the world was a new and exciting place full of butterflies and daisies. Except now he'd rather squash them than wonder at their beauty. Frodo laughed,
"You're far more eager than my esteemed gardener," he smiled at the term that he had refused to give up, though Sam hadn't gardened for a good many years. "And indeed even more so than your own cousin. Though that may have been the circumstances under which he awoke."
"Certainly is! You try dealing with being a heartless killing demon when your last memory was of storming an abandoned smial to fight these very same things." Argued Merry.
"Still Mr. Merry," Sam said mockingly, "Being pounced on in the middle of the night while in your bed is hardly perfect."
"Come now you two, you both know mine was the worse-"Frodo was interrupted by Pippin swearing loudly.
"Pippin! Where did you learn that language? I'm quite sure you didn't know it last time you spoke with me." said Merry calmly. Pippin however, was not so calm. One hand was clutching his head and the other was occupied keeping him upright, holding onto a tree. The bark splintered beneath Pippin's grip and he sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth.
"Whatever is the matter my little Took?" said Frodo, watching Pippin with a mild interest.
"Headache." Pippin blurted out between groans of pain. His visage was flicking from normal to demonic faster than a blink and then back again.
"Headache? How odd, I've not had a headache since before Bilbo left." said Frodo.
"May be something to do with that drink, you said he was drunk when you found him." said Sam as he watched Pippin detachedly.
"Well whatever it is I hope it doesn't last too long, he took long enough to wake up." said Merry, eyeing Pippin with disdain, as though it was his fault he had a headache.
"At least he doesn't seem to mind being undead, unlike a pair of hobbits I know, who happen to be in this clearing with me."
"Alright Mr. Frodo, you've made your point, we were terrible to deal with when we woke. Sometimes I wonder why you bothered." All eyes were now averted from Pippin where he still stood dealing with this wave of pain that would have him retching on the floor had he anything in his stomach.
"Well, it would have been terribly boring if I hadn't have wouldn't it?"
"For us or you?" Frodo decided to let that question go unanswered and silence descended on the three, not counting the moans of pain still emitting from Pippin. Merry hit Frodo on the arm.
"Breathe will you?" he said. Frodo rolled his eyes and continued breathing. It was a habit he'd long since grown out of but Merry, being younger, still found it disconcerting when he couldn't hear the familiar sound of another beside him, breathing.
"I don't know why you insist on it so Merry,"
"Perhaps Pippin has won with the worst waking," said Sam, bringing the topic of conversation back to something they hadn't discussed quite so many times before. The other two agreed and watched as Pippin slowly came back to himself.
"Right," said Frodo, once Pippin's headache, or hangover, or whatever it was, had ended, albeit rather quickly, "Newly changed gets the choice, more food it is!" and no one could argue with that!
Dealing in Death
Pippin's eyes blinked open, his vision was blurry and his limbs were heavy. He managed to focus upon a figure standing over him. That would be Merry. A hand was held out to him and he found some strength from somewhere and took it, it was strangely warm. It pulled him up and he stood, swaying slightly. Once he gained his balance he shook himself out and loosened himself up, it's surprising how being dead can really make your joints freeze up.
"You certainly took your time didn't you?" said Merry jovially. "Hoy Frodo! He's up!" he yelled into the bushes. Pippin looked around, the last thing he remembered was being on the open road, he'd obviously been moved. He was now in a dense copse and, he now realised, covered in leaves. His mind was moving strangely slow.
"At last!" said Frodo emerging silently from the bushes to one side. "Sam and I decided to get you a welcome dinner, you must be hungry." Pippin was certainly something, he wasn't sure he'd describe it as hungry, but he craved something. A screaming came from behind Frodo and Merry raised his eyebrow at him. "Yes, she's rather lively, we had to have a little taste to subdue her."
Sam burst into the small clearing, dragging with him a hobbitlass familiar to Pippin.
"Get your filthy hands off me demon!" She screamed into the night air. Sam rolled his eyes, he'd heard people scream that him far too much for it to have any affect on him at all, not that it ever really did. Pippin realised who she was.
"Diamond! What are you doing down here? You know it's dangerous to be out in the dark, especially around these parts." Diamond stopped and looked at Pippin in complete disbelief.
"They've got you, you're one of them." She was no longer struggling but just staring at Pippin, who, for his part, looked very confused. Merry nudged him.
"Check your teeth." Pippin did so and found them to be sharper than he last remembered them being. The memory suddenly hit him, he remembered what had happened that night and how he had come to be 'one of them'. He shrugged it off.
"Never mind that Diamond, what are you doing here?" Merry rolled his eyes; Pippin was going to have a conversation with his food.
"I came to see you actually, but not like this." Pippin nearly said 'like what', but he remembered just in time. His mind was moving very slowly, probably another side affect of having been dead for, by the look of the stars, about five hours. Pippin smiled, the kindness lost amongst the pointy teeth and reddening eyes, but the intention was there. Pippin offered his hand to Diamond, who took it, as it seemed more comfortable that Sam's hard grip on her arms, she also thought she had more chance of getting away from Pippin. She had more chance of spouting wings and flying than making it out of that clearing alive.
The moment Pippin touched Diamond's strong yet delicate wrist, his craving flamed up inside him. His vision became covered in a film of red, he could almost see through Diamond's skin to the blood pumping beneath it, his canine teeth grew longer so quickly they pierced his bottom lip.
"Ow!" he shouted, one hand coming up to feel his teeth, while the other was still fixed firmly around Diamond's wrist.
"You've got a good long set of fangs there." Observed Merry.
"I haff?" said Pippin, his speech inhibited by his teeth, "Oh good! Now how do I get them thmaller?"
"That comes with much practice, you may not be able to rid yourself of your fangs for days!" teased Frodo, Pippin smiled at him sarcastically.
"Thank you for tha' Frodo, you're tho helpful." Amid all the danger and frightening demons, Diamond found the situation absurd enough to laugh at it. It was her undoing. The laugh drew Pippin's attention to her face, but after only a small time his eyes were dragged away from hers to the pulsing vein he could see so clearly at her neck. Suddenly he knew what to do.
He pulled her to him and sank his teeth into her skin with the tenderness of a feral dog. Then he drank as though he hadn't had a single glass of water since the day he was born. Diamond was screaming in his ear, but he was in his own world and in his twisted world he heard her urging him on, begging him to take it all, and he was only too happy to oblige.
Frodo watched as Diamond's screams turned to yells, then to feeble shouts and finally to the murmuring of one that's not quite awake. Soon she was beyond that, to the familiar short gasps, hanging limp in Pippin's arms. Finally Pippin dropped her, looking slightly disappointed that there wasn't any more and breathing deep, pointless breaths.
Pippin looked down upon the body, searching for some remorse inside himself. He found nothing. To his surprise, he didn't mind at all. In fact, he quite liked the idea of never mourning ever again.
"So what now? Anything else to eat?" said Pippin excitedly, he felt as though he were eight years old again and the world was a new and exciting place full of butterflies and daisies. Except now he'd rather squash them than wonder at their beauty. Frodo laughed,
"You're far more eager than my esteemed gardener," he smiled at the term that he had refused to give up, though Sam hadn't gardened for a good many years. "And indeed even more so than your own cousin. Though that may have been the circumstances under which he awoke."
"Certainly is! You try dealing with being a heartless killing demon when your last memory was of storming an abandoned smial to fight these very same things." Argued Merry.
"Still Mr. Merry," Sam said mockingly, "Being pounced on in the middle of the night while in your bed is hardly perfect."
"Come now you two, you both know mine was the worse-"Frodo was interrupted by Pippin swearing loudly.
"Pippin! Where did you learn that language? I'm quite sure you didn't know it last time you spoke with me." said Merry calmly. Pippin however, was not so calm. One hand was clutching his head and the other was occupied keeping him upright, holding onto a tree. The bark splintered beneath Pippin's grip and he sucked in a sharp breath through his teeth.
"Whatever is the matter my little Took?" said Frodo, watching Pippin with a mild interest.
"Headache." Pippin blurted out between groans of pain. His visage was flicking from normal to demonic faster than a blink and then back again.
"Headache? How odd, I've not had a headache since before Bilbo left." said Frodo.
"May be something to do with that drink, you said he was drunk when you found him." said Sam as he watched Pippin detachedly.
"Well whatever it is I hope it doesn't last too long, he took long enough to wake up." said Merry, eyeing Pippin with disdain, as though it was his fault he had a headache.
"At least he doesn't seem to mind being undead, unlike a pair of hobbits I know, who happen to be in this clearing with me."
"Alright Mr. Frodo, you've made your point, we were terrible to deal with when we woke. Sometimes I wonder why you bothered." All eyes were now averted from Pippin where he still stood dealing with this wave of pain that would have him retching on the floor had he anything in his stomach.
"Well, it would have been terribly boring if I hadn't have wouldn't it?"
"For us or you?" Frodo decided to let that question go unanswered and silence descended on the three, not counting the moans of pain still emitting from Pippin. Merry hit Frodo on the arm.
"Breathe will you?" he said. Frodo rolled his eyes and continued breathing. It was a habit he'd long since grown out of but Merry, being younger, still found it disconcerting when he couldn't hear the familiar sound of another beside him, breathing.
"I don't know why you insist on it so Merry,"
"Perhaps Pippin has won with the worst waking," said Sam, bringing the topic of conversation back to something they hadn't discussed quite so many times before. The other two agreed and watched as Pippin slowly came back to himself.
"Right," said Frodo, once Pippin's headache, or hangover, or whatever it was, had ended, albeit rather quickly, "Newly changed gets the choice, more food it is!" and no one could argue with that!