I do not own any of these characters or places or things. I am simply borrowing them from Tolkien, as many others here are. THEY ARE NOT MINE.
Please also do not make me, myself, & I , mad by suing us for any reason. We are innocent precious... Once again, for all of you conspirating lawyers out there, ME, MYSELF, & I DO NOT OWN ANY OF MASTER TOLKIEN'S CHARACTERS, PLACES, SETTINGS, PLOT, OR WORK. They ARE NOT mine.
Now, please read& review. : )
Authors note: In this Pippin is 11 which is equal to the human age of 6, and Merry is 19. They are riding to Bag End.
"Frodo!!" He cried out. Everything was shaking, his body, he couldn't move it. Nothing. "Cousin Frodo!! It's me!! Frodo, you've got to remember me!! It's me, Pippin! You can't have forgotten me. Not now!!" All he could do was try to reach Frodo, he had to stop him. He couldn't go up that horrible mountain. Pippin had assured Elrond that he would need to be bound in a sack to be stopped, but now as Frodo left him, he couldn't move. It was a mountain. A horrible one. Everything around him was blazing like hell's fire.
Then Pippin noticed something about Frodo. He wasn't alone. There were two figures beside him. One turned back and looked at him. It was Sam. Samwise. Samwise Gamgee.
"Sam!! You've got to stop him. He's going to leave me behind. Me and Merry are going to get left behind. But we can't. We're his family." Pippin reached out his hand, if only he could touch them, stop them. But as Pippin looked, for the first time, he saw Sam. For Sam. In this horrid place. Sam was dirty, but the old Sam he knew wasn't dirty, possibly Sam had been the most hygenic hobbit in the Shire. But Sam was dirty. Both of them were. There clothes were ragged, and ripped. Speckled with the natural white that should be showing through. Sam would keep Frodo clean. He had to. Pippin had always thought it was Sam's self-acclaimed duty. There were cuts on the two hobbits. Cuts and bruises dotted their legs and arms.
Frodo took a limping step forward.
Sam's face was dirty. But Pippin, with his childlike perception, saw something deeper than that. Sam's face held fear. Despair. Anguish. Fear. Sam was never afraid. Sam always was hopeful.
"Sam! You've got to stop him!!" Pippin felt his body shaking again, as if by some unseen force. And something slid across Sam's face. A flicker of a smile. Sam stood there, staring at Pippin's face, and he shook his head. Sam started up the ridge, following Frodo carefully and protectively.
"Sam!! You can't leave!! You can't let Frodo go!" Pippin yelled, and as he did the third figure turned to face him. Its pale purple body glinted in the moonlight and it examined Pippin, it had eyes. Bigger than any Peregrin had ever seen. Humongous eyes. And then, it's face contorted into a smile. It slowly glided down the ridge, staying flat against the ground as if to hide from him. He couldn't move. He felt his body go ridged. A distant voice yelled, but he could barely hear it, his body had stopped shaking, and his eyes widened.
"What is this precious?" It coughed to itself, "Another hobbitses to join us?" It's voice was sickly sweet, but with a large breath it's face changed to an evil glare, "We can't have more hobbitses. No. The fat one already suspects us. We can't have more sneaky, suspicious hobbits. The precious is ours. If more hobbitses come, then master will never trust us."
Something seemed familiar about the creature, something nagged at the back of his brain, some unknown source, then it came to him. Still rigid in fear he muttered it, "Gollum." He breathed. "You're Gollum from Bilbo Baggins's stories." A child like amazement engulfed him, but it quickly faded.
"Bagginses? Gollum? It knows of us precious. It's another of those sneaky thieves!" And as if it's desicion was made it made a mad run at him. Leaping from a high ledge with it's teeth beared, Gollum seemed to fall at him, as if in slow motion.
He felt it's hands grab ahold of him, and struggled against them.
"Get away from me!!! Get away!!!!" He cried out. The hands stopped moving, as if in shock, but quickly became gentle.
"Pippin. It's okay. Pippin. It's me. You're awake." A familiar voice whispered above him. He slowly blinked open his eyes to find Merry standing above him.
"Merry?" He asked, almost in disbelief.
"Yes Pippin. It's me." Pippin let out a half sob and threw himself at Merry, he stood on the tossled sheets of his bed, and hugged Merry's neck.
"Merry it was horrible!! Cousin Frodo was on a mountain, and it was so hot, and he wouldn't listen to me, and Sam was there, and Sam was sad, and then Gollum-" He choked out, unable to continue, he cried against Meriadoc's shoulder.
"It's okay Pip. It was all a dream, I'm here now. Tell you what, we'll go down to Bag End tomorrow."Merry coo'd to Pippin. He pet Peregrin's hair in comfort, his arms still wrapped around the small child, "If it's okay with your mum of course." Merry added. Pippin slowly opened his eyes and looked in the rest of the room. Vinca, Nel, Pearl, his mother, and Saradoc all stood, watching worriedly.
"Of course it's okay. I'll send notice to Uncle Bilbo right away."
"Aunt Eggy, 'tis okay. Frodo himself said we could come any time unannounced, and I'm sure Bilbo will be fine. Besides, it's the middle of the night."
"He is right Eglantine." Paladin cut in, speaking in his booming voice, "Speaking of which, I know a certain three girls who should be getting to bed now."
"But Da-" Vinca whined, but as if on key Nel let out a long yawn, which was followed by Pearl's.
"Now, now, young Peregrin is fine so it is time we all went back to sleep." Eglantine continued. She carefully dislodged Pippin's arms from Merry's neck and tucked him into bed. "It was only a bad dream sweetie. Now get some sleep." Pippin turned to Merry pleadingly but watched as Paladin slowly guided Merry away. Eglantine had already ushered the three girls out.
Merry felt a slight tug on his sleeve and turned to see Pippin back on top of his bed, grabbing ahold of his sleeve.
"Merry, please don't leave. I want to tell you everything." He half sobbed. Merry looked over at Paladin who nodded thoughtfully.
"Yes Merry-lad, stay. I think this crazy son of mine may need you." He reached over and ruffled his sons hair, "Sleep well Peregrin. And you too Meriadoc." He stepped out into the hall and closed the door behind him.
"Merry." Pippin muttered sleepily as Meriadoc delicately unlaced his grasp.
"I'm right here Pippin, I'm just getting a chair."
The next morning Eglantine Banks crept into her only son's room. She gasped and stepped back.
"Paladin. Paladin. Come here quickly." Upon his wife's worried words, he came charging down the hall, and skidded to a stop. Looking cautiously into his only son's room.
"Isn't it sweet? Just like two little angels."
In the room, Pippin lay sleeping soundly on his bed, with his hand stretched out, where it held Merry's limply. Merry was silently snoring against the thick padding of the chair with his hand delicately holding Pippin's. Both were fast and long asleep.
"He stayed with our dear Peregrin the entire night."
"Egg, my dearest, I do believe Pippin has found us another son." Paladin whispered quietly into his wife's ear. He wrapped his arm around her and gazed fondly at the two sleeping lads.
"Then we must treat him as one." Came her muttered reply.