Title: War of Wills

Author: Anso the Hobbit

Beta: Marigold

Characters: Merry and Pippin

Timeline: Whitwell, SR 1398 so Pippin is 8 and Merry is 16

Summary: Who gets to decide what`s best for Pippin?

Note: Because I got tired of too many people always making Merry give in to all of Pippin`s whims and wishes.

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“Yes!”

“No Pippin…” Merry said in his most reasonable voice.

“Merry, please!” Eyelashes fluttered over shining, green eyes, eyes that could usually get Merry to walk to the ends of Middle-earth and back if Pippin desired it.

“No. Listen…” Merry brought his father`s stern ‘son of the Master`s’voice into his head and tried to sound just as forbidding.

“Please!” Pippin was stomping his feet now, and tears had gathered in his eyes. In a minute he will start pulling his curls, Merry thought and folded his arms over his chest, trying to look imposing.

“No. That is my final word. You can`t.”

“You are so very mean!” Pippin started to pull his curls in frustration.

“You might think that now, Pippin dear. But I am not. I`m only trying to do what`s best for you.” Merry grabbed Pippin`s hands and sat the youngster down on his bed.

“I know you want to go outside, Pip. And I know you are very tired of being sick and cooped up inside, but please, please listen to me. I love you very much, and I do not want any harm to come to you. You aren`t well enough to go outside yet.”

“But…” Pippin said.

“No, Pippin, listen to me. You feel all right now, don`t you?” Pippin nodded. “That is good. And you want to stay well too?” Another nod. “Good. Now, outside there is snow in the air, and a chill wind that creeps into every nook and cranny.” Merry tickled Pippin beneath the collar of his shirt to emphasis his point. “And that wind will creep into your coat and under your shirt if you go outside.”

“But why can you go outside without getting sick?” The child questioned. He had overheard some of the other lads asking Merry if he wanted to come outside with them and play, and to Pippin it had sounded like Merry very much wanted to, but then Merry had seen him and cheerfully turned the invitation down.

“No, I usually don`t get sick, that is true, but I would be very cold and so would you. Since you have just been ill, your body can`t take a chill as well as mine can, Pippin, and I am very sorry about that. I know that it doesn’t snow very often, and I wish that you could go outside and play with the other children, but you can`t do that just now.”

“That is unfair! The snow might be gone tomorrow!” Pippin had started to cry now in earnest, and looked pleadingly at his beloved, wiser, older cousin who was being most contrary.

Merry`s heart twisted in pity, and he almost gave in, but remembering how very ill Pippin had been just the last week, he just couldn`t let him go outside.

“I am sorry, Pippin, but crying won’t help. You just can`t, and that is that. I wish I could wrap you up snug and take you outside but I can`t do that. Your mum would be awfully angry at me and send me home to Buckland with a stern letter to my father, and we wouldn’t see each other for a very long time. I am not willing to take that risk.”

“But you don`t have to come out with me. I can sneak myself out.” Pippin said. He had heard too many times that he couldn`t do things because of his frequent illnesses, and he longed to prove that he too could do what the other lads did. It wasn`t fair that he got sick when going outside and Merry didn`t. In fact, Pippin didn`t think he could remember seeing Merry sick even once, but he had heard several times the exciting tale about the year of the dreadful flooding in Buckland and how Merry had bravely ridden to alert the people in Standelf.* Merry had been very sick after that, but that was years and years ago and Pippin had no memory of Merry having so much as the sniffles.

”I don`t think that is a very good idea Pippin. If anyone finds you, not only you, but I too would be punished for it. And you would probably be kept in bed for another week. You don`t want that, do you?”

“Nobody would find me, I`d be very clever, and you wouldn`t tell on me, would you Merry-mine?” Pippin thought this was a splendid idea and bounced on the bed in his eagerness. He was sure he had finally won Merry around.

“I can`t let you do that Pippin, and if you snuck out without me knowing, I would have to come and find you and we would be in trouble nonetheless.” Merry sat his bouncing cousin down again and looked seriously at him. “I am sorry, Pippin. Really, I am.”

Pippin finally accepted defeat, nodded and sat down to pout a little. “Merry? Why do you never get sick?” Pippin said after thinking for a few minutes.

“I don‘t know, Pippin. But you know that your mum was ill when you were born and that you came earlier than you were meant to?”

Pippin nodded. He had heard before about how he always got sick because he had come too early.

“Well, that made your body a little less sturdy than what is normal for babies who are born when their mothers have carried them for as long as they should, like Mum did with me.”

“But your mum was sick when you were born too. That is why you don`t have any brothers and sisters, isn`t it?”

“Yes, that is true.” Merry said, thinking a little himself. He wasn`t completely sure what had been wrong with his mother when he was born, he had only overheard that she had been very tired and weak for some time when he was very new, and wasn’t it a shame that there would be no more babies.

“Your mum was sick when you were born, but you don`t get sick. My mum was sick when I was born but I do get sick.” Pippin stated, a little proud of his reasoning, though he still didn’t understand clearly why this affected himself and apparently not Merry.

“Yes. But our mums did not get sick in the same way, and Mum carried me all the nine months first. Auntie Eglantine carried you for just seven months.”  Merry remembered Pippin`s birth very well, and was once again reminded of how grateful he was that Pippin had survived his first years. He had known since even before Pippin was born that they would share something very special and that he would always treasure Pippin. At the same time he was grateful for his own health. Since he almost never was sick, he could take care of Pippin instead.

They both sat thinking for a while, then Pippin crawled over to where Merry sat by the headboard of his bed, climbed into his lap and began stroking Merry`s cheek as if Merry needed to be comforted. He leaned into the warm safety that was his Merry and Merry wrapped his arms around him and kissed his cinnamon-coloured curls.

“Merry?” Pippin said after a little while, his voice sounding drowsy.

“Yes, Pippin?”

“I suppose I don`t feel so well after all, and I am glad you didn`t let me go outside. If I had done, I probably would have been really sick again, and I don`t want that. I can`t stand to see you as sad as you get when I am sick, Merry.”

“Oh, Pippin. I am sorry I yelled at you, but I am glad that you saw for yourself that you aren`t well enough yet. Do you want a nap then?” Merry put his hand to Pippin`s brow. “You are a little warm I think.”

“All right.” Pippin snuggled down deeper into Merry`s embrace. “Would you mind awfully staying here with me?”

“I`ll stay.” Merry said and slid down on the bed, drawing a blanket up to cover them both, all the time holding Pippin in his arms.

“Mm… Love you Mer. You`re the best cousin ever.”

“I love you too Pippin. Sleep now, and we`ll see about finding a special treat for tea.

Merry closed his eyes too, and within a breath Pippin was asleep, head on Merry’s chest, and Merry followed suit not long after, more tired than he`d realised after sitting by Pippin`s bedside for a week. Outside the door to Pippin’s room, Eglantine, who had overheard Pippin admit that Merry had been right not to let him go out to play, gave silent thanks for both lads; her own precious son, and the nephew whom she loved as a child of her own, who would always do his best to keep Pippin safe. Then she went to the kitchen to make her lads a very special tea indeed. 

END

*Heir to Buckland