March 16, 3019

“Miriel! What a pleasant surprise! Didn’t I give you the day off?”

“You did, yes.”

“Then are you sick? You’d have to be to come here on a free day,” Girion teased. Miriel made a face and grinned at him.

“No, the Perian asked me to meet his cousin.”

“That Perian Rider of Rohan is his cousin?” asked Girion, clearly impressed. “They say he helped destroy the Captain of the Nazgul! When did you meet Mithrandir’s companion?”

“Last night, in the gardens.” Miriel decided not to tell Girion of Peregrin’s breakdown; she knew that if it was her, she wouldn’t want anyone to know about it. “Do you know where I could find him?”

“His cousin is in one of the rooms closest to the gardens, just down the hall,” Girion directed. “They’re preparing to ride out in a few days, so I suggest you make your visit soon.”

Miriel frowned. “They’re riding out? Where?”

“To the Black Gate. The talk is that they’re going to challenge the Dark Lord,” Girion said, shaking his head. “A fool’s errand, if you ask me. We don’t have nearly enough men.”

“The Pheriannath are riding out as well?”

“Why shouldn’t they? They’re part of the army.”

“I thought one of them was injured from helping kill the Witch-King!”

“They’re a hardy folk, it seems.”

Miriel pictured Pippin’s face in her mind and thought for a moment. “Do you know how old they are? I can’t tell. I thought the Perian was a little boy last night, though I didn’t tell him that. They don’t look old enough to fight in a war like this.” She thought of her own brother and what it would be like for him to go off to war and shivered.

“They must be old enough to be involved. Mithrandir holds them in very high esteem.”

“Miriel!” a joyful voice called from down the hall. Pippin’s head was poking out of a doorway with a wide grin. “You came!”

“I will see you tomorrow,” Miriel said to Girion as she walked down the hall. Girion nodded in farewell and went about his work.

“Hello, Pippin,” Miriel said as the Perian held the large wooden door open for her. Miriel entered and found herself in a standard room for the Houses of Healing: a bed, a few chairs, a fireplace, a small dresser, a table- everything needed to make a patient comfortable. There were a few modifications, however; footstools had been placed at the bed and near one of the chairs closest to the bed to make it easier to climb up on the furniture. Clothing was strewn about and two packs were open and half-full. A sweet, pungent smell she couldn’t identify emanated from a bowl of steaming water on the bedside table. She felt her head clear as she inhaled.

“Merry,” Pippin said as he closed the door, “this is the healer I was telling you about, the one I met in the gardens last night. This is Miriel.”

Miriel found herself being looked up and down by a sandy-haired Halfling on the bed, propped up by pillows. His sharp glance took in everything. Miriel felt instinctively that this Halfling was the older one, the protector. She knew she was being sized up by this blue-eyed Halfling, being judged whether or not she was a good person.

All of this happened in an instant. Merry smiled at her, and she nearly sighed in relief, feeling as though she had passed some test. “Nice to meet you, Miriel.”

“Nice to meet you, Merry. Your cousin has said glowing things about you.”

“He has said the same about you.” Miriel found herself wondering if Pippin had told his cousin about his breakdown last night. “Please forgive the mess- Pippin’s been packing. I’m not of much use yet, but I’ve been told I should be all right in a day or two. Have a seat,” he said as he gestured towards one of the chairs.

“You really are going to the Black Gate, then?” Miriel asked as she sat down. “That’s what I’ve heard, at least.”

“Nothing stays quiet in this city for long, does it?” Pippin commented to Merry as he picked up a piece of his Gondorian armor and began to polish it.

“Yes, we’re going. We have our own reasons.” Merry’s tone sounded a bit wistful, a feeling she wouldn’t have normally associated with this strong-willed Halfling. Miriel hesitated for a moment, then asked the question that had been bothering her ever since she had met Pippin the night before.

“Forgive me for being forward, but how old are you? You look no older than my little brother.”

“I thought you would ask that question. Everyone does. I’m thirty-six.”

“I’m twenty-nine,” Pippin said cheerfully. “How old are you?”

“Eighteen,” Miriel said, astonished by how old they were. “I had never expected you to be so much older than myself!”

“How old is your brother? What’s he like?” Pippin asked.

Miriel smiled and began to describe him. They passed several hours like this, talking about family, home, and other such pleasantries. Miriel was especially intrigued by the complexity of their families, and listened to many humorous stories about the various exploits of their relations. Finally, Miriel looked out the window and saw how far the sun had set.

“I should be going.” Miriel stood up and headed to the door. Pippin followed her.

“Will you visit again?”

“I don’t know if I can. I have to work again tomorrow, and I don’t know when I will get another day off. I will try.”

“If not, we’ll visit you sometime,” said Pippin.

She knelt down and hugged Pippin, then went to Merry’s bedside and hugged him as well. The two hobbits had grown on her so much over the past few hours; she felt as though she’d known them all her life.

“I hope I’ll see you soon again,” she said, and then left, heading towards her quarters. She did not get a chance to see the hobbits again for nearly a month after that.

April 16, 3019

Peregrin Took awoke to the early morning sun pouring into his room and sighed, stretching. It was so nice to be in a real bed! He grinned to himself and decided to make a list of all the things that were nice about today. It was nice not to have to fight; it was nice that the sun was shining; it was nice to be back in the City; it was nice that he was alive, along with Merry, Frodo, and Sam; it was nice that the War was over! He turned his head, saw Merry in the bed next to him, and grinned again. He was still asleep.

Carefully, Pippin crept out of his bed and snuck to the dresser that had been provided for the two of them. He slid open the drawer, pulled a loose thread off of one of his shirts, and snuck to Merry’s bedside. He gently dangled the thread over Merry’s ear until it was barely brushing his skin. Merry grumbled and rolled over. Pippin bit back a laugh and tickled him again. Merry swiped at the air above his ear and snatched the thread from Pippin’s fingers.

“I’m not as asleep as you think I am, Pip,” came Merry’s muffled voice from the pillows. “That was a very juvenile trick, tickling me in the ear.”

“If you’re awake, then get up! It’s our day off!” Pippin pushed Merry good-naturedly. “We can have an early breakfast with Frodo and Sam if you’ll haul yourself out of bed.”

“Always thinking about food, aren’t you?” Merry teased as he pushed the blankets off and hopped out of bed.

“Not this time, Merry.”

Merry gave him a small smile as he pulled some clothes on. “I’m glad Frodo and Sam are awake too. So let’s go!”

“What are you doing today, Frodo?” Merry asked as he piled up the dishes on the tray by the door.

“Legolas and Gimli offered to give us a tour of the city. Would you like to come?” Frodo said from his position at the table. He still looked far too pale and thin in Merry’s opinion, and Sam was no better. In fact, Sam’s feet were still rather tender, having just healed from terrible burns and cuts. Both of them occasionally wore haunted looks and seemed startled by little things. They had not told them their stories yet, and Pippin and Merry hadn’t pestered them about it.

“I was thinking of talking to the Warden today. I haven’t had a chance yet. Besides, I’ve seen a lot of the city.”

“What about you, Pippin?”

Pippin frowned. On the one hand, he could go around the city on his day off with Frodo, Sam, Legolas, and Gimli; on the other, he could visit the Houses of Healing. The tour promised to be very entertaining if Legolas and Gimli were to be the guides, and it would be good to be with Frodo and Sam, but the going would probably be slow, as the two Ring-bearers (Pippin found it hard to think of them with that title) were not fully recovered. The Houses of Healing were calm and restful, but it would probably be boring for him. He thought about what there was to do, remembering his time there with Merry. The gardens had been nice, certainly, but he had been too worried about Merry to do very much of anything, although he had made friends with a healer. What was her name?

“Miriel!” he said aloud. Frodo and Sam looked at him, surprised, and Merry suddenly grinned.

“I remember her! I haven’t seen her since we left for the Black Gate. Have you?”

“No. I feel terrible about that I haven’t visited yet. I promised I would.”

“Who’s Miriel?” asked Frodo.

“She’s a healer we met. She’s really sweet- she’s a lot like Pervinca, actually. You know, friendly and laughs very easily. I like her. I’ll come with you, Merry, and visit her today.”