Chapter Four - Dangers Unaware

From the Mercantile booth, a small teen watched as the well-dressed boys exited the Thatch home and then ran towards the moor. “Hi!  Lads!” he called to them, “Stop!”

The only reply he got was when the older lad threw a dirty rag at him. “Get back to work, Degger!” Jarmon snarled.

“Merry, look!” Pippin shouted while holding his arms out. “I’m an eagle!” Pippin began running into the open moor towards a large rock.

“This is a strange place, Pip," Merry answered with the same tone. "There’s no trees or flowers," said Merry, the muttered to himself, "very queer."  He walked cautiously behind his cousin. Merry scanned the emptiness of the moor; all he saw were bramble bushes, tall grasses and a few rocks. In the far corner, he spied a graveyard, but nothing else.

Pippin paid no heed to his cousin’s words. “Come fly with me, Merry! We’ll both be eagles.” Pippin stood on top of the large rock in the middle of the field. “Catch me, Merry!” Pippin began flapping his arms up and down as if the eagle was soaring.

Not knowing how long his uncle would be, Merry decided to humor his young cousin, at least for a while. He started to run towards the rock, but suddenly stopped when he saw a large opening in the ground. He almost didn’t stop in time. He waved his arms trying to catch his balance, though some of the dirt and pebbles at his feet fell in. The echo of the falling debris told Merry the hole was quite deep.

“Stay where you are, Pippin,” Merry yelled as soon as he righted himself. “There’s a hole in the ground!” He didn’t know if there were any more, but he and Pippin weren’t going to stay and find out. Merry would take his cousin and leave the dangerous moor, as it was now very unsafe to play here. He carefully stepped over to where Pippin stood on the great rock. As he held out his hand for Pippin to grab it, Merry felt the ground beneath his feet slip and give way. He felt himself falling into the deep, dark cavern.

Young Pippin watched in dismay as his dearest cousin disappeared into a hole in the ground right before him. “Merry!” When the gravel and dry dirt stopped falling into the darkness below he yelled again, “Merry!”

No answer.

The young child was frozen in terror. He remembered Merry saying something about holes in the ground.  It would be perilous to try and sidestep the unseen holes, however, Pippin knew he couldn’t just sit here forever.  He had to go run for help--holes or not.

“Help!” Pippin yelled as he ran out of the moor and into the road, running fullspeed toward the market booths full of working children. “Help!”

It was the small teen, Degger, who first heard Pippin’s cries. A shiver ran down his spine.  Degger stopped cleaning as he made his way to the front of the Mercantile booth. He saw the same well-to-do little lad who had passed by earlier in the day---alone. The skin prickled on his arm.

“Help me, please!” Pippin shouted.  The seven-year-old was out of breath and in tears. “My cousin fell into a hole in the ground!”

Degger dropped his rag and slipped over the barrier between him and Pippin. He grabbed the lad's hand, jogging along side him, “Which hole?”

“I don’t know!” Pippin wept.  In his frantic search for assistance, Pippin became confused as which row-house his father was in. “Where does Mr. Thatch live?”

Degger stopped in his tracks. “Mr. Thatch?” The last thing Degger wanted was for his employer to see him not working...yet once again another child was in trouble.

All the local children knew to stay away from the moor because of the dangers that lurked there. A few hundred years ago, some hobbits tried to dig a holes into the ground vice into a hill and then abandoned their efforts when it proved unsuccessful. Over the span of time, the holes deteriorated, weakening at the ground-level and rendering the entire moor hazardouls for anyone to be in. Merry and Pippin, of course, were unaware of this.

Pippin explained to Degger, “That’s where my papa is--he’s inside Mr. Thatch’s house.”

“Degger!” Jarmon yelled from the booth, seeing the rag lying on the ground where Degger had been. “If ye take one more step, don’t bother comin’ back!”

“Please....Degger,” Pippin pleaded. “Merry’s like....he’s my brother.”

That was all the lad needed to hear. “Come along, then.” He took Pippin’s hand once again, running up to Thatch’s doorstep. Degger pounded furiously on the door. “Marla!” he yelled, “Marla! Open the door!”

Marla, the young door maid, opened the door then became concerned. “Degger! Get back t' work or Mr. Thatch will give ye the sack!”

“I can’t!” He replied, bringing Pippin in front of him. “This laddie's brother fell into one of the holes! We need help!”

At once, Marla opened the door.  “Come inside young sir, but you, Degger, have to stay outside.” Degger knew the chief of rules: no workers allowed inside during working hours; when work was done, they had to go round to the back. Degger stayed on the doorstep where he knew he’d be needed shortly.

“Papa!” Pippin shouted as he ran down the hallway, “Papa! Merry fell into a hole!”

Paladin was already standing, as he was taking his leave of Mr. Thatch. Paladin would not be delivering his produce to this hobbit, even if he was out-bidded earlier. There were few hobbits that he didn’t get along with, and even less that he disliked. Unfortunately, Paladin would count Mr. Thatch among the latter. The business hobbit saw the orphans as just that; a business, and in a circumstance that he could easily work out to his advantage. Paladin’s hair stood on end as he watched his son run towards him. “What are you talking about, Pippin? Where is Merry?”

“He fell into a hole, Papa!” Pippin was growing frantic again. “He fell into the ground!”

Paladin saw there was no mischief in the child's eyes. “Show me where!” He followed his young son though the front door.  Along with the mercantile lad, all three went towards the moor.

“Wait,” Degger yelled as they approached the edge. “Have a care! There are plenty o’ holes hidden here in this lot!” He kept a wary eye out in front of Pippin as the child led them to the hole Merry fell into.

“There!” Pippin pointed to the rock he stood upon not long ago.

Paladin carefully crawled up to the opening, “Merry?” No reply. “Merry!” he shouted again. Paladin turned to Degger, “I’m going to need help, lad. Can you stay here while I fetch it?” The lad nodded; after all, hadn’t he just been sacked?