Title: Looking After You

Author: Pathvain_Aelien

E-mail: Pathvain_Aelien@yahoo.com

Disclaimer: Both Tolkien and PJ are all-mighty.  I own nothing.  Certain lines are taken (with love) from Return of the King. 

AN: Written for Marigold's story challenge #2.  Thanks to her for this opportunity!

"Merry!  Merry!  It's me.  It's Pippin!"

"I knew you'd find me."

"Yes."

"Are you going to leave me?"

"No, Merry.  I'm going to look after you."

-Pippin and Merry in Return of the King

Part 1-The Bonding of Merry and Pippin

            "Peregrin Took!  Pippin?  Now where's he got to I wonder…Pippin?"  Meriadoc Brandybuck's voice held just a touch of urgency.  He had been charged with his young cousin Peregrin Took for the day.  This usually happened when Pippin's family came to Brandy Hall for visits, and Merry loathed each time.  Pippin was an overly curious seven year old Hobbit, and he seemed to adore Merry; toddling after him wherever he went.  Although Merry had no idea why, this usually landed him into trouble instead of Pippin.  This was why he had tried to avoid Pippin this visit.  Merry also thought himself "too old" to befriend Pippin (although he was only eight years older, and acted much the same as Pippin to their older cousin Frodo) and so had devised a game of Hide and Seek to purposely get rid of the meddlesome lad for awhile.'

            After a rather pleasant (and quiet) Pip-free afternoon, another cousin staying with them reminded Merry of his daily task.  Then, and only then, did he realize the reason for the silence.  No Pippin!  Where was he?

Merry shook his toffee colored curls out of his eyes as he looked at his cousin Frodo Baggins.  Frodo looked back at him calmly, lips only twitching slightly into a smile.

"I thought it was too quiet," Merry remarked as he started looking around the smial for his small cousin.  The smial was home to more than a hundred Brandybuck relations and therefore was full of many-too many-secret places for troublesome hobbits to hide.  And Merry knew only too well that it didn't take Pippin long enough to find trouble.  It was like a magnet.  'And he had been "hiding" since'…Merry racked his brains 'since just after breakfast!  And they were readying the kitchens for tea!'

Pippin had missed a meal.  It was this knowledge that led him into a near frenzy.  Pippin never missed meals!  Frodo, Merry's older cousin by more than ten years, walked companionably beside Merry as they accosted a servant lass.

"I wonder what dear Paladin and Eglantine will say then they hear you have lost their only son?" Frodo asked wryly, wiping the smile from his face when Merry shot him a black look.

"I didn't lose him," Merry mumbled, "only misplaced him a bit."

The servant lass, a pretty hobbit with curly dark hair and bright eyes, smiled knowingly when Merry casually asked, "Have you seen Pippin around?"

"I think, Master Merry, that I saw him hiding in your room."  She winked at him as she went back to her work.  The rumbling of Merry's stomach reminded him of tea time, but he still smirked.  In his room?  Pippin hadn't even thought up a clever hiding spot!

Frodo led the way into Merry's room.  He was quite tired of this "game" and wanted to have his tea.  He peered around.  Looked under the bed.  Behind the bed.  Merry and Frodo looked at each other, shrugged, and then Frodo grinned.  He knelt down and peered into the inky darkness of the desk.

"Aha!   We got…" his voice faded when the search rendered nothing but dust-bunnies and a broken quill.  He stood up and straightened his weskit, trying to look dignified again.

"I suppose he went to get a snack when you didn't come find him," Frodo said, as the two slowly walked into the kitchens.  The long table had been set for tea, which had not officially been served.  Merry saw that this had not been enough to assuage someone's stomach: tarts were missing, little hobbit fingers had been into the cake.  In short, the table was a mess.  The servant lass they had spoken to earlier was there, silently cleaning and removing the plates that had been sampled.  Merry's stomach rumbled, and he reached for a forgotten tart.  She slapped his hand away gently.

"Young Master Peregrin will be coming back for that, I expect," she teased, "but you will have to wait for tea like everyone else."  Merry glowered but admitted defeat.  The cousins wandered into the sitting room.

"Honestly!  We have to wait for our tea, in our own smial, and a Took gets to eat before us!"  The "in our own smial" statement was debatable, as Frodo was a Baggins by birth and lived in Bag-End up in Hobbiton.  Merry reasoned that there was enough Brandybuck in Frodo's blood to warrant him a tart before Pippin, at least.  Pippin, who had been the darling of both Brandy Hall and the Great Smials since he was born!

Merry was the only hobbit who was completely unaffected by Pippin's charm.  He thought this was because he was the only one with good hobbit sense.  He honestly couldn't understand the way elder hobbits doted on his littlest cousin, giving him whatever he desired, simply because he had an adorable face and big green eyes.  This charm unfailingly turned even the sternest of hobbits into acting like children.  All hobbits, except for Merry, looked after little Pippin and spoiled him terribly.

Frodo, seeing that Merry was working himself into a fury, decided to step in.

"Cousin, I think you are a trifle jealous of Pippin.  He really is a sweet little lad, after all, and he looks up to you so," he said gently.

This only made Merry sigh.  "He's too young to be following me around.  He's always trying to play with me and Fredegar, or wanting to ride ponies with us, and everything else that a baby lad can't do!  He just gets in the way."  Merry, of course, left out the fact that he sometimes enjoyed the shining adoration Pippin bestowed on him, and the way Pippin would hang on Merry's every word.

Frodo debated whether to remind Merry of the similar troublesome lad he had been-and still was!  Merry was exactly like Pippin in the way that he loved Frodo and followed him around, especially when Frodo lived at Brandy Hall.  Merry, like Pippin, followed the older cousin without knowing he had been considered a pest.

Merry's sad look at Pippin's usurpment of Brandy Hall quieted Frodo's debate.  He simply listened to Merry further berate Pippin, understanding that Merry didn't really mean most of what he said.

Pippin, a tiny lad, had entered the room unseen, and couldn't hear Merry and Frodo's true thoughts, but he could hear what dear Merry said about him!  He, Pippin, just got in the way?  His small mouth trembled as he received this crushing blow.  Merry, his older cousin and hero, didn't even like him!  He now saw the fun game Merry had suggested for what it was-the means to get rid of him!  And it had worked.

'Perhaps Merry would like me better if I leave him alone,' Pippin thought.  He certainly didn't want to be a pest.  But who would be his playmate if not Merry?  He wandered through the Hall, thinking.

Pippin was quite the social Hobbit, and didn't yet realize his gift of charm, so to him finding a willing playmate would be a hard task.  He brightened when he heard familiar voices, one especially that was so much like his own with its Tookish brogue.  It was his Uncle Saradoc's study, where all four Hobbits had retreated earlier that morning to talk about business, crops, and other boring things.  Pippin figured they needed someone to brighten the party.

The four Hobbits: Saradoc and Esmeralda Brandybuck, and Paladin and Eglantine Took, looked down at the tiny lad as he shyly entered the room.  Paladin immediately swept him into a hug.

"Hullo, my little lad!" His voice boomed as he swung Pippin around into the air.  Pippin squealed with delight and protested when he was sat down (quite unsteadily) onto his feet.

"Hullo, Pip," Uncle 'Doc said, "having a good visit?"  Pippin nodded his head, wild auburn curls bobbing in every which way as he made himself comfortable on Aunt Esme's lap.  Esmeralda acquiesced by wrapping an arm around his little waist.  The four older Hobbits looked on as Pippin chattered about this and that, and waves his arms around in excitement.  He was so sure that his plan of ignoring Merry would work that Merry's cruel remark didn't completely dampen his day.

A pained expression crossed Saradoc's face when Pippin's custard-smeared fingers started trying to root through papers on the mahogany desk.  Saradoc was the Master of Buckland and thus had very important papers.  Paladin, fortunately, noticed and captured Pippin's tiny hands in his.                                                                                                                                                       "Pippin, dearest," Eglantine began in her normally sweet voice, "we do appreciate your company, of course, but business matters cannot be much fun for a little lad such as yourself."  Pippin sighed unhappily.  This somehow reminded him of Merry.  Did nobody want to play with him?

"Why aren't you playing with Merry?" Paladin asked.  Esme, who thought she knew the answer to that, began to frown.  This frown deepened considerably when Pippin's long eyelashes drooped and he tried to bury his head into her arms.

"I'm making Merry like me, Da, by not being a pest and leaving him alone."  He said this in a quiet un-Pippin like voice.  Now Saradoc's frown matched his wife's.

"Lad, whoever told you that Cousin Merry thinks you are a pest?"  He was dreading the answer.  He wanted both hobbits to be close friends, partly for Shire-business, as Pippin's da was the Thain, but mostly because the two prominent families were close and spent a lot of time with each other.  Esmeralda was Paladin's sister, after all, and Merry and Pippin would naturally have to spend time together.  He would rather they both enjoyed it.

"Cousin Merry did," Pippin said glumly as he noticed the custard on his hands.  He absently tried to wipe his fingers clean on Aunt Esme's dress.  She didn't notice, because she was watching Saradoc's normally jovial face contort into a glower.

"He did, did he?"  Pippin evidently heard the grimness of his uncle's tone, for he looked up and said hesitantly, "Well, not to me, but to Cousin Frodo."  This made Esme smile, because his pronunciation made it sound quite a bit more like "Fwodo."

Saradoc scooped up Pippin, who linked an arm companionably around his shoulder.  The small Took looked up at him earnestly and crinkled his nose.  "Can you tell me how to make Mewwy like me?  I just want him to like me."  Pippin looked downcast, and the adult Hobbits felt their hearts catch at the sincerity of it.  Pippin, of course, was oblivious to the fact that he was putting his beloved cousin into trouble.

                   "Peregrin," Eglantine said, "go find Merry and Frodo and stay with them a minute, dear."  Pippin obediently let himself be set down by Saradoc as he ran from the room.  He thought the adult Hobbits were going to help him get Merry to like him, and this cheered him considerably.

                   Esmeralda saw, with some mirth, that the entire room somehow had tiny hobbit-custard prints-where Pippin had leafed through papers, touched walls, and, apparently, used her own dress as a napkin.  She wisely decided not to comment on this fact as she stood and straightened her light yellow skirts.

                   "Now, Saradoc, don't be too hard on Merry," Paladin said carefully, noticing the angry look on his face.  "You can't force him to like Pippin."  Eglantine and Esme shared a Look, and as one quietly took their leave.  Best leave the lads to this mess.

                   "Merry's just fifteen, after all," Paladin continued as they strode from the room, now and then seeing a trace of custard from Pippin's wayward hands.  "He's not even a 'tween yet, and has his own friends.  Pippin will just have to look after himself until he has playmates his own age."  Paladin's voice was heavy.  That was the trouble.  There was no one Pippin's age.  Paladin was schooling him, and so his only other companionship were his three older sisters-all sweet lasses who doted after Pippin, but they weren't exactly what could be called friends.

                   "All the same," Saradoc said as he slowed to a stop, "he needs to learn to accept Pippin and respect him."  With that, they entered the room Pippin had gone in.  He was sitting with Pippin, and was, for once, without Frodo.  Pippin was looking down at his now clean hands, apparently too afraid of "pestering" Merry to actually look at him.  Merry cheerfully greeted both father and uncle, completely oblivious to his own troubles.

                   "Pip, I believe I feel up for a game of 'Hide and Seek', what do you say?" Paladin asked.  When both older Hobbits looked pointedly at Merry, realization dawned and he looked down at his lap, both abashed and angry.

                   "Oi!  You countin' first, da?" Pippin asked as he wriggled out of his seat.  He nearly tripped over his large feet in his eagerness for the game.  "I'm good at hidin'!  Merry never finds me!"

                   Merry winced as he mentally thanked Pip for that new comment.  Paladin only sighed.  "No, Peregrin, I believe I shall hide first, and you can count."  Both Merry and Saradoc listened to the fading voices, and even Merry smiled a little at the thought of the Thain hiding under a desk or bed in Brandy Hall from his tiny son (who counted one through five perfectly fine, skipped six, and only haltingly said, "seven")

                   "Meriadoc," Saradoc said sternly, "I think you know what you have done wrong."  Merry chewed his lip.  "Yes, da.  I don't like Pippin much," he said honestly.

                   "Have you even given him a chance?  He's just a little lad, just as you were-and are- and there is no one in the world he loves more than you."  Merry's round cheeks were tinged with pink, and he said nothing.

                   "Try to imagine being in his place.  The other lads are much older than him.  He just wants to find a friend, someone to look after him."  Saradoc paused, then as he observed Merry's flush of embarrassment, added more gently, "the same way Frodo looked out for you when you were Pip's age."

                   Merry looked a little indignant.  "I was never half as troublesome as that lad!"  He said this without thinking.  His father raised an eyebrow, amused.  "You weren't, hmm?  Then which son of mine (and you know better than anyone that I only have one) followed a certain Baggins into the Old Forest?  Did you think Frodo wanted you to come while he explored?"  Saradoc stood, and thus ended the discussion.

                   "Lad, just remember that everyone needs a friend, no matter who they are or how young they are.  No one but the Valar knows when you will need a true one."  He lovingly ruffled Merry's curls.  "Oh, and son, do not forget to clean my study, and wherever else that 'troublesome Took' touched!"  He pointed to certain smears on the wall, clearly visible.  Merry groaned inwardly.  No wonder Pippin stayed so small!  None of the food he touched actually made it into his mouth!

                                                                    *

                    After Merry finished cleaning, he and Fredegar went outside near the Brandywine River to play.  His cleaning had taken so long that he had missed tea, and he had been unable to pilfer any snack.  His stomach rumbled loudly as he waited in anticipation for dinner.  The shade of the trees near the Brandywine was a favorite spot to relax, and many older hobbits wandered over to either play or lay out on the soft grass to enjoy the bright sun.

                    Fredegar Bolger (not yet plump enough to deserve the nickname he would have later in life) leaned closer to Merry and whispered, "is that your cousin Frodo comin' just up the hill?"  It was.  What perfect timing!  The older hobbits were discussing who had kissed lasses, and how many lasses had been kissed, and so on.  Merry outwardly agreed with everything said but privately thought only Frodo might have really kissed a lass.  Merry sure didn't want to.  He preferred playing outside or reading books to thinking about silly lasses.

                    He smiled cheerfully at Frodo, who had someone with him.  A small someone.  He squinted his eyes against the bright-too bright!- sun, knowing that Pippin was with Frodo but still hoping his squinted eyes might spy a different hobbit.

                    Frodo sat down next to Merry, turning his face away from the sun to talk to him.  Pippin sat down on the other side of Frodo, waving cheerily at the older hobbits.  "Hullo, Merry," Frodo greeted.  He looked at Pippin, whose green eyes were locked on Merry's blue ones.

                    "Lo, Mewwy," Pippin said hesitantly.  Well-remembering his father's words (and the implied words, too) Merry smiled at Pippin and reached around Frodo to ruffle his wayward curls.

                    "Hullo, Frodo and Pip!" Pippin's smile grew wider as he perceived that somehow, he had made Merry like him a little more.  Dear Merry!  Pippin abandoned his spot and chose to squeeze in between Frodo and Merry.  He was beginning to feel more comfortable.  Frodo heaved a sigh.  "Sure could use an apple or two…or maybe some crumpets!"  His dark blue eyes twinkled.

                    Hobbits, as a rule, eat six meals a day, but are constantly "filling up the corners," and that was just what Frodo had in mind.  "It's a shame the kitchens are off-limits now," he added with a sigh.  And they were, at least until dinner.  Anyone who tried to get in only received a slap on the hand for their pains.

                    Pippin brightened, a smile playing on his small mouth.  The smile was infectious, and both Merry and Frodo grinned back.  He hopped up.  "I could go!  I could get something!"  Puppy-dog eyes pleaded with his cousin's for a chance.  Frodo stifled his smile.

                    "All right, Pip, if you think you can get in," he said.  "I can!  Someone will let me in."  Merry thought this was probably true.

                    "Go, then.  Just be sure to bring back enough for all of us!" He laughed, looking around at the lingering Hobbits, who appeared quite interested in having a snack.  Merry scratched his arm absently as they watched Pippin run as fast as his little legs could carry him.

                    "Dear cousin, I do think you were trying to rid us of him.  Were you?"  Merry inquired.  Frodo looked injured.  "No.  I'm only a Hobbit, after all, and hungry!"  They both laughed, and then Merry remembered something else his da had said.

                    "Frodo, when I was Pippin's age, was I a pest to you?"  His tone was jovial but his eyes and the set of his jaw were serious.  Frodo put a companionable arm around his shoulders.  "Dear Merry," Frodo said affectionately.  There was a long pause.  "Don't you remember the games of 'hide and seek' we used to play?"

                    Frodo laughed gaily when Merry's head drooped.  He did remember.  "You left me in a closet for four hours!" he cried in indignation.  Frodo shrugged one shoulder.  "Pippin only waited two before giving up.  You actually stayed there until someone came and dragged you out!"

                    Merry scowled harder when Frodo teased, "I think, dearest cousin, that our Pippin may be smarter than you were!"  Merry's lips twitched minutely.  "Am I still such a pest?"  Frodo shook his head and looked at Merry fondly.

                    "Cousin, you are the best friend I could imagine having, except for maybe Sam Gamgee from Hobbiton.  And Pip will grow up, and become the best friend you have ever imagined."

                    "He does have some uses," Merry allowed as Pippin and his three sisters came up the hill and into view, all carrying a variety of snack foods and jugs of cider.  Pippin grandly presented Merry and Frodo with their snacks, saying, "they seemed glad to help with our picnic!"  Merry smiled at him, and Pippin beamed back.  Too late, he realized that he was already under the spell of the charming Took.

                    "You know, Pip," Merry said around a mouthful of cake, "I think you might just be old enough to learn to ride a pony."  Pippin looked delighted.  "Mewwy!  Today, Mewwy?  Can we do it today?"  Merry laughed, and laughed even harder when Frodo said warningly, "don't you even try to use his charm on Farmer Maggot.  Old Maggot won't be as susceptible as the rest of us!"

                    Merry and Pippin only grinned mischievously at Frodo, who groaned.  The bonding of Brandybuck and Took had only brought two troublemakers together!  He told them this much, and Pippin said seriously, "That's why we have you, cousin Fwodo.  To get us out of trouble."

                    Frodo looked on as his young cousins laughed, sealing their friendship over tarts and cakes.  It was the first time that looking after Pippin hadn't seemed like such a chore, and it certainly wouldn't be the last.  Frodo had looked after Merry, and the same would be true for Merry and Pippin.  It wouldn't always be such an easy job, looking after a Took, but when Pippin turned on the charm, Merry was completely wrapped around Pippin's little finger.

                    And if looking after Pippin meant getting into trouble (the idea of Farmer Maggot's crops was certainly tempting) Pippin was right.  Frodo would always be there to look after both of them.

                    Content at last, Merry settled back onto the grass and listened to his two cousins talk.

Part 2-The Tables Have Turned

                    Hobbits are a fiercely loyal race; very connected with families and each other, which is why there are so many hobbits and yet so few families.  They were (or are) perhaps the most peaceful of all the races on Middle-Earth.  Why, then, would any Hobbit set out from their beloved home, on a quest of inevitable danger?  Meriadoc Brandybuck thought he knew the answer to that one.

                     Family.  Friends.  Home.  Merry had wondered at Bilbo's adventures, thinking that he would never venture very far out of the Shire.  He knew differently know. 'Perhaps Frodo,' Merry mused to himself as he struggled to stay awake, 'had simply come because it seemed like the right choice, the only choice, available to him.'

                     Merry glanced up at the moon, bloated and white, and perceived the time had come to awaken Pippin for the next watch.  Even if he still had another hour or so to go, he needed Pippin's unquenchable cheerfulness to assuage his own worries.  He leaned over his young cousin, smiling at him fondly, and with more than a touch of sadness.

                     Pippin was only a tweenager-just then twenty-eight, and he had absolutely refused to be parted from his fellow hobbits.  It was Pippin who had said (wish such a lack of cheer that Merry had wanted to cry) "Frodo needs us, Merry.  Elves and wizards may know what's right for Middle-Earth, but only friends know what's right for Frodo."

                     Merry had poked him, right in the ticklish spot under his ribs.  "Frodo hates feeling like he isn't looking after us," he pointed out, "are you saying that he is going to need us more than he will need anyone else in the world?"  Merry asked this semi-jestingly.  They were in Rivendell, and the Fellowship had not yet been decided.  Merry, Pippin, and Sam were still trying to cope with the terrible thing that had happened at Weathertop.

                     Pippin swatted Merry's hand away.  "Watch it, cousin," he warned, (and oh, how Merry's heart was gladdened to finally see a bit of Pippin's old spirit return!) "you may be bigger than me, but I daresay I could wrestle you to the ground!"

                     The idea of two Hobbits, wrestling and fighting right in the middle of Elrond's homely house, got Merry giggling.  It was the first laughter in a long time, and it felt good.  When Pippin's higher, sweet laughter blended harmoniously into his own, it didn't push away the terrible burden of worry he felt…but it lessened it.

                     Pip's eyes twinkled as he looked fondly up at his older cousin, caught up in his own mirth.  "Can you see it?" he asked Merry cheerfully, "us bickering, while Lord Elrond, Strider, and a whole houseful of Elves look on?"  Merry thought of Lord Elrond, of an unknown age (at least to him) scowling down at them.  He snorted.  Wrestling Hobbits.  No, it wasn't very Elvish at all.

                     Pippin, satisfied to see Merry unshoulder some of his burden, sobered once more.  He had a point to make, and he intended to make it.  "Whatever they decide," he had said slowly, "we must go with Frodo, wherever that may be.  He will need us."

                     Merry had wanted to protest at this, because Pippin was young.  So young.  The fact that Merry was not so much older had slipped his mind.  And the idea of war went against the very nature of Hobbits!

                     But this was about Frodo.  Skilled fighters, wizards, and elves might be able to protect Frodo, but he would need the love of friends and family to actually succeed.  This realization was almost a shock to Merry.  Frodo's face filled Merry's mind: Frodo teaching him to fish, teaching him his letters, and looking out for him if the older lads picked on him.  The tables had turned.  Now it was he, Merry, who (along with others) would be needed to look after Frodo.

                     "You are correct as usual, Master Took," Merry had said, this time succumbing to his desire to tickle Pippin unmercifully (all the while looking out for Lord Elrond or Strider, just to be careful).  "I think we will be of some help after all."

                     That had not been so very long ago, they had only just left Rivendell, and Merry now doubted his own words.  Had it been the right thing?  Sam, perhaps, was needed, but Merry felt like he and Pippin were really more of a burden.  They weren't doing a very good job of helping Frodo, at least.  Even charismatic Pippin was unable to bring a smile to Frodo's wan face lately.

                     He sighed as he shook Pippin.  He was very nearly hit in the face, not intentionally, but by Pippin accidentally rolling over and swinging an arm over his face.  One eye opened and blinked owlishly at him.  "Your watch, Pip," Merry whispered.  Pippin sat up immediately and yawned hugely, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.  Actually, it was Frodo's watch, but the other Hobbits let him sleep and divided it up amongst themselves.  They were almost unconsciously trying to help Frodo rest as much as possible. 'He needs every opportunity,' Pippin thought unhappily, 'because of that silly ring.'  Frodo hated to admit it, but even he knew that he needed a little help every now and then.

                     Pippin woke himself up enough to perceive Merry's grim features. 'Poor Merry!' Pippin thought, 'worrying himself over everyone in the Fellowship!'

                     "I know what you are thinking," he said to Merry as he scooted closer to him.  He looked around, making sure everyone was asleep.  He didn't want to make them mad by keeping them up again!

                     "Oh, indeed?  And what am I thinking?"  Pippin rested his head on Merry's shoulder.  "You are wondering why we came, of course," Pippin said carelessly, and this of course was true.

                     Merry sighed as he leaned his head to rest on top of Pippin's.  "I just don't know of what use I am," he said.  His voice was calm, but Pippin sensed the real distress behind it.  "Use?" He asked, turning his head slightly to look at Merry.  Merry's face was drawn into a frown.

                     "Why, cousin, you are the most useful member of this Fellowship!"  His eyes began to gleam, and Merry smiled in spite of himself.  "Oh, yes?  How so?"  Pippin absently toyed with Merry's curls, much the same as Merry normally did when comforting him.

                     "Well, you are needed in tempting Frodo to eat.  And myself, of course," he added.  Merry laughed at him.  "Force?  You mean, 'force you into giving Frodo his fair share!" 

                     Pippin waved his hand dismissively.  "Who knows better how to cheer up Frodo and Sam?"  Merry grinned.  "We cheer up Frodo, and Sam is cheered when Frodo is happy," he countered.

                     Pippin's lips turned down into a slight frown.  "Oi!  Honestly, Merry!" He cried in exasperation.  He jerked playfully away, causing Merry to nearly fall over.  Merry smiled so wide that, for the moment, it drove the shadows away from his normally happy features.  Pippin was silent as the inwardly thought of his cousin's other uses.

                     "You aren't too bad with a sword," he offered finally, resting his heart-shaped face on his knees.

                     "Thanks for that kind compliment," Merry said dryly, "but I'm sure the rest of the Fellowship is better suited for fighting."  This irritated Pippin, already an impatient Hobbit by nature.  He didn't quite snap at Merry, but it was close.

                     "You're quite good at being my Merry, Merry," he said decisively.  His tone was final.  He did break into a radiant smile when Merry have his forehead a loud smacking of a kiss.

                     "And you," Merry said, his tone considerably lighter, "are very good at being my meddlesome Took."  It was true.  Who else but Pippin could, with just a quick smile and a few words, so constantly cheer him? 'Well,' Merry amended to himself, 'seeing Frodo cheered would certainly improve everyone's spirits, mine not the least.'

                     They sat contentedly side by side, until a dry, amused voice broke in, "and you both take the prize for keeping your doddering old cousin awake."  Pippin gave a startled noise, half-squeak and half-shout, before turning around to look at Frodo.  Frodo lay where he had been, but his blue eyes were open and amused.  They hoped.

                     Merry smiled sheepishly.  Pippin, hardly cowering beside him, smiled brightly at his newly awakened cousin.  "Hullo, Frodo," he piped, "I would hardly call you doddering,  as that would take another…oh…two or three years," he finished in a gleeful tone.  Frodo surprised them (and himself, by sound of it) by chuckling.  A split-second later, something dark flew through the air and hit Pippin's head with a soft "whoosh!"  Pippin squawked out of surprise as he picked up his assailant.  It was Frodo's jacket, which he had been using as a makeshift pillow.

                     "You mussed my hair, cousin," Pippin said haughtily.  He attempted to smooth his naturally mussed reddish curls.  Merry snorted at this but came to his defense.  He picked up something at random and chucked it hack in Frodo's general direction.  His normally good aim was thrown off by the lightness of the object he had picked (his own yellow vest) and fell short.  It settled down over Sam's face, covering up his head neatly.  Merry and Frodo held their breath, but Sam didn't stir.  Silence once more took the camp.

                     Pippin broke it with loud, hiccupy giggles as they all helplessly watched Sam snore gently around the vest.  They, too, began giggling.  This sound woke him at last.

                     "Wha…?" he mumbled around a mouthful of vest.  He sat up, a near-scowl on his face as he glared at Merry.  "Now, Mr. Merry, some of us are trying to get some sleep!"  Merry's laughter, when it rang through the camp, sounded exactly like Pippin's.  Only Sam could have that tone, two parts respect and one part anger!

                     "Lighten up, Sam," Frodo said.  He, too, sounded gleeful.  He shot a furtive glance at his cousins, and then he too, threw part of his bedding at Sam.  This war, however brief, was on.  Sam ducked under these harmless light missiles as they soared around him.  Clothing flew through the camp like weirdly deformed fireworks.  Sam laughed, glad to see what he thought of as the 'old' Mr. Frodo back.

                     "Really, some of us Hobbits need to keep up their strength for tomorrow!" Sam said, knowing the trouble the three cousins could-and did- get up to.

                     Merry said, "You're definitely right."

                     Frodo said, "Absolutely correct, Sam."

                     Pippin said, "Oh, of course."

                     And Sam said, "Oof!" or something close to that noise, because the wind was knocked neatly out of his lungs as he was tackled by three Hobbits.  Sam was flat on his back, Pippin sitting happily on his chest and Frodo hanging onto his arm.  Merry's feet kicked out as he went down with the rest of the Hobbits.  One hit something that felt, Merry thought, a little like a nose.  And a mouth.

                     All four stopped their giggling at once.  They also let go of any Hobbit limbs they might have been tussling with.  "MERIADOC BRANDYBUCK!" A voice boomed.  Merry looked up, an apologetic smile on his face.  It was a strained sort of smile, however, because the booming voice belonged to none other than-Merry winced as the figure stood up-Gandalf!

                     Pippin's own smile disappeared completely as he looked at Gandalf, who was glaring daggers at his beloved Merry.

                     "I am so…so sorry, Gandalf," Merry stammered.  Despite his fear of Gandalf's wrath, a burst of bubble-like giggles had to be smothered, because Gandalf's rather large nose was unmistakably cherry-red.  It also looked like it was going to swell.

                     Gandalf seemed somewhat at a loss as to what to say (or yell) as he just boomed again, "Meriadoc Brandybuck!"  Merry guesses this uncertainty was understandable, as Gandalf had almost certainly never been kicked in the face by large Hobbit-feet.

                     Pippin, green eyes already filling with tears of sympathy for Merry, squeaked, "No, I am sorry, Gandalf.  It was me."  His voice was only a faint whisper at the last word, but both Hobbits and Wizard heard him.

                     Sam's jaw dropped open in horror as he looked at young Mr. Pippin, and then at the Wizard, who felt of his nose and seemed to become even angrier.  Sam quickly tried to think of a way to preserve the peace. 'Mr. Merry and Pippin surely have done something wrong,' he thought, but then another thought flitted through his brain. 'They were only doing it for Mr. Frodo, after all.'

                     It had worked, too.  Frodo had been cheered.  This thought was the one that caused him to blurt out, "Actually it was me, Mr. Gandalf, sir.  I'm sorry."  Gandalf drew up his bushy eyebrows in surprise.  They nearly drew all the way off his head when Frodo's low voice calmly said, "don't be an ass, Sam."

                     Frodo untangled himself completely from his cousins and stood up.  He looked into Gandalf's eyes and continued, "that goes for you two, as well."  This was directed at an equally befuddled Merry and Pippin.

                     "It was my fault.  I got them all riled up."  Gandalf pursed his lips as he looked down at the ring-bearer.  Frodo merely looked placidly back at him.

                     "Right now, I don't care if Gandalf kicked himself in the face, as long as everyone goes back to sleep!" Aragorn said sharply, sounding completely awake.

                     That decided Gandalf.  He glared at the Hobbits, then lay back down muttering audibly, "…hobbits…turn you all into something unnatural…"  He looked at them sternly for a minute, then rolled over so only Aragorn could see the smile on his face.

                     Sam sighed in relief as Frodo, too, lay back down.  Merry and Pippin retrieved the clothing that had been flung about the camp.

                     "See, Merry, you're also good at annoying Wizards, too!" Pippin stated smugly as they trudged back to their beds.  Merry ignored him as he bid Sam and Frodo a good night.  An irritated Gimli yelled, "and all four of you are just wonderful at keeping the rest of us awake!"  There was general agreement from the rest of the Fellowship, who apparently were now all awake.

                     "Now, if you please, go to sleep!" Legolas commanded, not unkindly.  Merry and Pippin obediently lay back down.  Frodo thought he overheard Pippin reassure Merry, "what would we do without you?  You keep us all awake!"

                     "You both do that equally well, Pip," Frodo reminded in a whisper.  He closed his eyes, but that night he went to sleep easily for once.  The smile stayed on his lips.  Merry saw this and smiled at Pippin.  He ruffled Pippin's curls and, now peaceful, went to sleep and let Pippin have his turn to look out.

Part 3-The Parting of Merry and Pippin

                     Merry had failed Pippin.  He had felt like he had failed Pippin, Frodo, and even Sam before, but this time he was sure of it.  Before, Pippin had been there to cheer him up and to remind him that he was a valuable asset to the Fellowship.  His task?  To look after his cousins and friends.  That was it.  And he had failed.  Pippin had looked into the Palantir.  Frodo and Sam had gone into Mordor.  He didn't even know if they were going to be all right.  And Pippin…he could have died, and Merry had been there, but had been unable to help him!  This baffled and saddened him.

                     Pippin was now sleeping uneasily under Gandalf's watch.  Legolas sat with Merry, and patted his back soothingly.  "You could not help it, Merry," he said softly, "but Pippin is going to need more than your love right now."

                     Legolas and Merry sat outside in Edoras, and the night's soft breeze blew Merry's curls away from his face and helped dry his tears.  "Gandalf will have to take him to Minas Tirith as soon as the sun rises," Legolas said gently.  Merry sniffled and let Legolas draw him into a hug.

                     "Gandalf will take care of Pip," Merry said in a brave voice, "but I feel as if I failed him, Legolas.  I am supposed to look after him."  Legolas shushed him.  "You did not fail him, Merry, or Frodo and Sam.  You tried very hard to do what you could, and you will continue to do your part.  That is not failing, for you have not yet given up," Legolas informed him.

                     The Elf's tone was soothing and kind, but Merry would not let himself be calmed.  His tears continued to fall as he berated what he thought were his weaknesses.  Aragorn and Gimli thought to come over and try to calm him, but Gimli put a hand on Aragorn's chest to stop him.  Legolas was singing softly to Merry, rocking him back and forth.

                     It was so relaxing and calming to listen to the Elf's voice that Merry felt himself slipping softly into sleep.  He tried to fight it, thinking, 'I can't sleep.  If I sleep, I will have to wake up…and as soon as I wake up, Pip will be gone.'

                     He slept.

                     Dawn broke over the hills of Rohan, and Legolas woke Merry up.  Merry was outraged both at Legolas and the sun for daring to rise and part him from Pippin.

                     "You let me sleep!" He cried.  Legolas smiled.  "You need your strength, Merry.  You, too, will have a busy day ahead of you." 

                     Merry's back ached from sleeping half-sitting up in Legolas' lap, but he stood up quickly anyway.  "Has he gone, Legolas?  Has he?" Merry didn't know what he would do if he didn't have the chance to at least say goodbye to Pippin.  When Legolas shook his head, Merry felt a bitter kind of happiness touch his heart.  The happiness grew when Legolas led him to Gandalf and Pippin.

                     Legolas bent down and placed a kiss on Pippin's forehead.

"Go well, young hobbit," he said kindly.  He, too, looked sad at this further breaking of the Fellowship.  He bid Gandalf goodbye, and then retreated to wait with Aragorn and Gimli.

                     Gandalf looked older and grimmer since yesterday as he led the way to the stables.  Merry followed him, letting Pippin trail behind.  It reminded him of years ago, when Merry used to try to get rid of him.  Pippin had always lagged behind.

                     "Of all the inquisitive hobbits, Peregrin Took, you are the worst!  Hurry!  Hurry!" Gandalf said.  Merry wondered if Pippin knew that Gandalf wasn't so much angry with him as relieved that he was still safe.  He doubted it, and some of his anger at Pippin slipped away.

                     "Where are we going?"  Pippin asked.  He looked tired and sad, and completely unaware at what was going on.  Merry stopped and turned around to face him.

                     "Why did you look?  Why do you always have to look?!" he snapped.  If Pippin hadn't looked, they wouldn't have to be separated!  Pippin's eyes filled with tears at the harsh tone in his cousin's voice.

                     "I don't know…I can't help it!"

                     "You never can," Merry pointed out.  He began to walk again.

                     "I'm sorry, all right?"  Merry stopped and faced him once more.  The look of seriousness on his face caused some of the tears in Pippin's eyes to overspill.  "I won't do it again," he whispered.  Merry walked closer to him, both angry at Pippin and angry with himself for hurting Pippin further.

                     "Don't you understand?  The enemy thinks you have the ring!" He was desperate to make Pippin understand this.  Pippin had to know that Merry had failed him.  "He's going to be looking for you, Pip.  They have to get you out of here."

                     Pippin frowned.  He asked hesitantly, "and y-your coming with me?"  The question broke Merry's heart, and he turned away.  He walked without looking back, because he didn't want Pippin to see his own tears.

                     "Merry?"  Pippin sounded panicked.  Merry walked faster.  "Come on!" He commanded, wiping his own tears away as he entered the stable.  Pippin followed him.  Gandalf lifted Pippin onto Shadowfax as Pippin asked him, "How far is Minas Tirith?"

                     "Three days as the Nazgul flies," Gandalf said seriously, and then almost harshly, "and we'd better hope we don't have one of those on our tail."  Gandalf looked at Merry, nodding his head to signal that it was all right to now say goodbye.

                     Merry stepped up to Pippin, who looked lost atop Shadowfax.  He was gentle now.  He handed Pippin a pouch.  "Here…something for the road…" he said quietly.  Pippin looked startled.  "The last of the Longbottom Leaf!"  He looked at Merry, who nodded.

                     "I know you've run out," Merry said, "you smoke to much, Pip," it was meant to be a joke, and he tried to smile at Pippin.  It didn't work, because Pippin began to look even more panicked.  He now understood that they were to be parted, and it might be a long time before they saw each other, if they ever did.

                     "B-but we'll see each other soon?" he asked in a fearful tone.  Merry and Gandalf glanced quickly at each other.  He didn't want to tell him the truth.  "Won't we?"  Pippin looked heartbroken then, because Merry's own eyes were full of tears.

                     Merry stepped backwards.  "I don't know," his voice broke, "I don't know what's going to happen…"  Pippin's eyes looked larger than ever as they locked onto Merry's.  And knew.  Merry, his beloved older and smarter cousin, truly didn't know when they would see each other again.  Or even if. 

                     "Merry!" he cried, wanting to plead with his cousin to come with them, at least.  They had never been parted for very long, they were inseparable.  Even Frodo got to have Sam come along so why couldn't Merry…

                     "Run, Shadowfax.  Show us the meaning of haste," Gandalf's commanding voice broke into Pippin's chaotic thoughts.

                     More than memories of war, more than the pain in his hand from the Witch-King, nothing would ever haunt Merry's dreams so much as the pleading "Merry!!!" yelled as Pippin was taken from him.

                     Then they were gone, in a blur of white.  It was too soon.  Merry hadn't been able to say all that needed to be said…without thinking, he began to run after them.  He raced to the Watch Tower, knocking into a guard.  He didn't apologize, only rushed up the stairs.  He didn't even realize that Aragorn was chasing him.  He dimly heard Aragorn call his name, but he was too consumed by watching Shadowfax bear away two people dearly loved by him.  As Aragorn put a comforting hand on his shoulder, Merry watched as Pippin grew smaller and smaller on the horizon, and then he was gone.

                     "Oh, look after him, Gandalf," Merry whispered, "I know he's only a Hobbit, and you have other things to do, but please, look after him."  His voice broke, and he sobbed into Aragorn's open arms.

Part 4- I'm going to look after you

                     Pippin had watched with awe as Strider-Aragorn- freed the King of the Dead, and then he began wandering the Pelennor Fields.  He could hardly believe that he was still alive, and yet he was.  He looked around at the carnage before him, sorrowfully mourning the fallen soldiers of Gondor and Rohan. 

                     He hoped that his friends were all well- certainly Legolas, Gandalf, Gimli, and Aragorn were well.  Faramir, too, had been saved, and would hopefully heal.  He prayed to the Valar that Merry had stayed in Edoras with Eowyn, and that Frodo and Sam were well and almost finished with their task.

                     Pippin's heart was sinking, and he didn't know why.  The feeling of despair was upon him, and he could hardly breathe around it.  His eyes caught sight of something, and then he realized he had been looking for it the whole time. 

                     Feet.  Big, hairy fee. Hobbit feet!  And the Hobbit they belonged to was not standing or sitting, but lying down, like the rest of the dead.  Pippin cried out and rushed past a creature so large that, under other circumstances, he would have gawked at it. 

                     A stinking, dead Orc was on top of his Merry.  The feet could only have belonged to him.  He hauled the Orc of his cousin and pushed it aside, disgusted and angry with it for falling on top of Merry.  He gently took Merry in his arms, seeing but not believing that the blood on Merry's handsome features could be his own.

                     "Merry!  Merry, it's me!"  Pippin sobbed, hoping and praying the Valar that Merry would open his eyes, and smile at him, and all would go back to the way it used to be.  Pippin's breath caught as Merry slowly opened his eyes.  Still alive!  He was still alive, and that meant he could be saved.  Pippin would save him. 

                     "It's Pippin," Pippin said, trying to not let the tears fall on Merry's upturned face.  Merry looked like he was at peace, not for being saved, but for seeing Pippin again.  It made his heart ache to see Merry attempt a smile.

                     "I knew you'd find me…" Merry said weakly.  "Yes," Pippin said, smiling, crying, and laughing all at the same time.  They were together again.  A shadow suddenly crossed Merry's face as a thought occurred to him.

                     "Are you going to leave me?" he asked softly, looking up into Pippin's eyes.  His expression told Pippin that this is exactly what he thought would happen.  Pippin shook his head emphatically.

                     "No, Merry," he said, "I'm going to look after you."  'For once,' he added to himself but did not say.  He thought it was high time he paid back the favor.  Merry wouldn't have to carry the burden anymore.

                     With that, he covered Merry with his cloak and stayed where they both knew he belonged-right by Merry's side.

Epilogue-Merry's Promise

                     Merry realized that Pippin was perfectly able to take care of himself.  He had realized it after being found, bloody and injured, on the fields of the Pelennor.  Far from being unhappy at this realization, Merry simply accepted it.  He knew, this time, that he was still needed.  He had always known that Pippin needed him, and he knew now that he needed Pippin just as much.

                     After the War of the Ring was over, and Frodo and Sam were returned to their friends and family, both Pippin and Merry tried to help them as much as they could.  They all needed each other, as friends naturally do, and likewise, they all knew that Frodo's return might only be temporary. 

                     Frodo once hinted at this when he whispered to Merry and Pippin, "Whatever happens, promise me you will look after Sam, and after each other." 

                     Knowing that his older cousin was planning his own leave hurt Merry's heart…but it did not break it.  He had wanted to help Frodo in whatever way he could, and he had.  Frodo would do what was best for him, and they would take care of Sam.

                     Frodo and Sam were best friends, and they were meant to look after each other.  Despite whatever parting the Hobbits  had on Middle-Earth, Merry and Pippin both understood that they would all see each other again.

                     Merry's promise was one he never broke.  He and Pippin looked after each other, happily, until the end of their days.