A/N: Has this taken me long enough or what? Well, hope everyone enjoys it.
Bilbo grumbled for a while about struggling through a field when there was a path all along and what are paths for if not to be walked across. Neither Pip nor I thought we should remind him that I had been the one against going across the field and that he'd been all for it. I did, however, see fit to pester Bilbo the 'adventurer' on his apparent lack of cross-country skills.
"So Bilbo," I said, "Did you complain this much when you were walking across Middle Earth? Because if you did, I'm quite surprised that the dwarves didn't dig a hole and throw you in it and leave you there." Bilbo appeared to think about it.
"At first, perhaps." Pippin then stormed up to us, he looked quite annoyed with the two of us.
"What are you two talking about?" He shouted at us, he seemed very frustrated. Bilbo looked at me with a small, slightly evil smile, inviting me to explain. I really didn't know where to start.
"We're talking about Bilbo's adventure." I said lamely. To my surprise Pippin's annoyance vanished from his face.
"The one where he killed that dragon?" He became rather excited, again. "Is it? Did you really Bilbo?" Bilbo looked a little embarrassed, very possibly a first.
"Well, I wouldn't say I killed the dragon." Pippin's face dropped perceptively, Bilbo continued quickly, anxious not to lose his audience. "But I did talk with him!" Pippin looked interested again. He picked up a stick and began swinging it like a sword.
"Did you wave your sword at him? Was he afraid of you?"
"I wouldn't say afraid was the right word. I, however, was terrified." Pippin paused and upon thought he seemed to reason that being scared of a dragon was quite a fair thing to be scared of. Better than being scared of worms anyway. "I have scars you know." I glanced at Bilbo, he was proud of his scars, even if they were collected while he was running away.
"Where?" Said Pippin, bouncing all around, "I don't see any!" Bilbo stopped walking and pulled up one of his trouser legs. He showed the back of his leg to Pippin. There was much less hair there and Pippin touched it tentatively. "Does it hurt?"
"Oh goodness no! It's been that way for years. Dragon burns they are." Pippin's eyes widened but Bilbo dropped his trouser leg down again, Pippin made no protest because we were able to start walking again.
"Do you have a sword?" asked Pippin, swinging his stick again.
"Oh yes, a very fine and well made one. Elven, glows blue when near orcs and goblins."
"Merry, do you think mummy would ever let me get a sword?" I suppressed a laugh.
"Yes Pippin, when trees walk." Pippin scowled at me and 'playfully' jabbed in the stomach with his stick, perhaps harder than he usually would. Pippin soon became bored of his stick and he threw it back into the bushes.
Then, for no visible reason, Pippin sprinted off. He stumbled here and there on the uneven ground and even slipped over but he didn't stop running, it was as though he was being chased. Bilbo and I looked at each other, I shrugged and rushed after Pippin. We were faster than he was but he got onto the road. I panicked, he was out of sight and could go anywhere. I burst forth onto the road and looked everywhere wildly, I couldn't see him anywhere. Bilbo and I stared uncertainly in the two directions of the road, neither of us had seen which way he had turned.
"Blast his Tookish side! He'll be nothing but trouble when he grows up!" said Bilbo, I cocked an eyebrow at him, he already was nothing but trouble! "Right, you go that way," he pointed towards the Smial "And I'll go this way." He turned down the other way and began yelling Pippin's name. I did the same but rather half-heartedly, if he didn't want to be found, yelling his name wouldn't help. I looked under all the bushes, checked all the long grass, looked up in the trees, and down deserted foxholes. But I reached the Smial before I found Pippin. I couldn't go in there without bringing Pippin back, what if Bilbo didn't find him either? I turned back around, panic rising in him again, how I hated Pippin at that moment in time.
I checked and rechecked everywhere I could conceive that it was possible for a four-year-old to hide, and there are a lot of places four-year-olds can hide. I was beginning to become frantic, searching, rushing all over the road, in the ditches, in the adjacent fields, everywhere.
"Pippin where are you?" I yelled into the night. I heard a quiet giggle coming from a little further down the road. I was now fuming and I stormed around the corner to find Bilbo striding towards me, his face as care-worn as mine, and Pippin sitting calmly on his shoulders. Pippin abruptly stopped giggling and I saw that he'd been crying. Bilbo has never told me off but it certainly seemed as though that was what had happened. We both began walking back to the Smial, my heart was yet to slow down and I found tears in my eyes that I wiped away.
"You two are very good hunters, you found me far quicker than Pearl or Mummy did." I looked up at Pippin in complete astonishment.
"Just make sure that you never do that to us again!" I reached up and grabbed his hand, the physical contact calmed me more, I hadn't gone mad with worry, he was actually next to me on Bilbo's shoulders.
"I promise I won't." and he looked down at me so solemnly that I had to believe him. I let go of a breath I didn't realise I'd been holding and a grin of relief broke through on my face. I glanced at Bilbo and saw that he'd done the same.
Bilbo grumbled for a while about struggling through a field when there was a path all along and what are paths for if not to be walked across. Neither Pip nor I thought we should remind him that I had been the one against going across the field and that he'd been all for it. I did, however, see fit to pester Bilbo the 'adventurer' on his apparent lack of cross-country skills.
"So Bilbo," I said, "Did you complain this much when you were walking across Middle Earth? Because if you did, I'm quite surprised that the dwarves didn't dig a hole and throw you in it and leave you there." Bilbo appeared to think about it.
"At first, perhaps." Pippin then stormed up to us, he looked quite annoyed with the two of us.
"What are you two talking about?" He shouted at us, he seemed very frustrated. Bilbo looked at me with a small, slightly evil smile, inviting me to explain. I really didn't know where to start.
"We're talking about Bilbo's adventure." I said lamely. To my surprise Pippin's annoyance vanished from his face.
"The one where he killed that dragon?" He became rather excited, again. "Is it? Did you really Bilbo?" Bilbo looked a little embarrassed, very possibly a first.
"Well, I wouldn't say I killed the dragon." Pippin's face dropped perceptively, Bilbo continued quickly, anxious not to lose his audience. "But I did talk with him!" Pippin looked interested again. He picked up a stick and began swinging it like a sword.
"Did you wave your sword at him? Was he afraid of you?"
"I wouldn't say afraid was the right word. I, however, was terrified." Pippin paused and upon thought he seemed to reason that being scared of a dragon was quite a fair thing to be scared of. Better than being scared of worms anyway. "I have scars you know." I glanced at Bilbo, he was proud of his scars, even if they were collected while he was running away.
"Where?" Said Pippin, bouncing all around, "I don't see any!" Bilbo stopped walking and pulled up one of his trouser legs. He showed the back of his leg to Pippin. There was much less hair there and Pippin touched it tentatively. "Does it hurt?"
"Oh goodness no! It's been that way for years. Dragon burns they are." Pippin's eyes widened but Bilbo dropped his trouser leg down again, Pippin made no protest because we were able to start walking again.
"Do you have a sword?" asked Pippin, swinging his stick again.
"Oh yes, a very fine and well made one. Elven, glows blue when near orcs and goblins."
"Merry, do you think mummy would ever let me get a sword?" I suppressed a laugh.
"Yes Pippin, when trees walk." Pippin scowled at me and 'playfully' jabbed in the stomach with his stick, perhaps harder than he usually would. Pippin soon became bored of his stick and he threw it back into the bushes.
Then, for no visible reason, Pippin sprinted off. He stumbled here and there on the uneven ground and even slipped over but he didn't stop running, it was as though he was being chased. Bilbo and I looked at each other, I shrugged and rushed after Pippin. We were faster than he was but he got onto the road. I panicked, he was out of sight and could go anywhere. I burst forth onto the road and looked everywhere wildly, I couldn't see him anywhere. Bilbo and I stared uncertainly in the two directions of the road, neither of us had seen which way he had turned.
"Blast his Tookish side! He'll be nothing but trouble when he grows up!" said Bilbo, I cocked an eyebrow at him, he already was nothing but trouble! "Right, you go that way," he pointed towards the Smial "And I'll go this way." He turned down the other way and began yelling Pippin's name. I did the same but rather half-heartedly, if he didn't want to be found, yelling his name wouldn't help. I looked under all the bushes, checked all the long grass, looked up in the trees, and down deserted foxholes. But I reached the Smial before I found Pippin. I couldn't go in there without bringing Pippin back, what if Bilbo didn't find him either? I turned back around, panic rising in him again, how I hated Pippin at that moment in time.
I checked and rechecked everywhere I could conceive that it was possible for a four-year-old to hide, and there are a lot of places four-year-olds can hide. I was beginning to become frantic, searching, rushing all over the road, in the ditches, in the adjacent fields, everywhere.
"Pippin where are you?" I yelled into the night. I heard a quiet giggle coming from a little further down the road. I was now fuming and I stormed around the corner to find Bilbo striding towards me, his face as care-worn as mine, and Pippin sitting calmly on his shoulders. Pippin abruptly stopped giggling and I saw that he'd been crying. Bilbo has never told me off but it certainly seemed as though that was what had happened. We both began walking back to the Smial, my heart was yet to slow down and I found tears in my eyes that I wiped away.
"You two are very good hunters, you found me far quicker than Pearl or Mummy did." I looked up at Pippin in complete astonishment.
"Just make sure that you never do that to us again!" I reached up and grabbed his hand, the physical contact calmed me more, I hadn't gone mad with worry, he was actually next to me on Bilbo's shoulders.
"I promise I won't." and he looked down at me so solemnly that I had to believe him. I let go of a breath I didn't realise I'd been holding and a grin of relief broke through on my face. I glanced at Bilbo and saw that he'd done the same.