Author notes:
This was written for Slightly Tookish. Special thanks to Shirebound for betaing.

~*~*~

A Little Distraction

"Fwo!" Frodo rolled his eyes and decided to ignore his cousin. He needed to finish this letter he had promised to write two weeks earlier and put off for far too long. It should have reached Saradoc three days ago, in fact.

"Fwo!" The high voice grew more insistent and was accompanied by the patting of small hands on his thigh but Frodo kept ignoring the lad. Instead, he dipped the quill once more and wrote another couple of words.

"Play, Fwo!" A small stuffed animal nuzzled his stomach, and Frodo could barely stifle the laughter that threatened to claim him - from both, amusement and ticklishness.

"Fwo-o! No wite, Fwo! Play wif Pip!"

Frodo still did not heed him, knowing that Pippin, though insistent as he was, would soon give up and he really needed to get this finished. Beside him, Pippin grumbled and his glare, as Frodo noted from the corner of his eyes, was quite intent. Stuffed pony clutched to his chest, Pippin's eyes turned to the desk to glower even more at the papers piled up there. Frodo already congratulated himself, knowing well that pouting and angry looks were usually Pippin's last weapon before he gave up to bother somebody else... or return a couple of minutes later for another round. By then, so Frodo hoped, he would be finished with the letter.

Unexpectedly, Pippin's face brightened. "Pip help!" the child declared, and before Frodo could prevent him, his cousin had crawled onto his lap from under his arm so that now a dark, black blot adorned the half-finished line.

"Pippin!" Frodo grumbled, more annoyed with himself than with the lad. He should have sent him away after all.

"Pip help," the child repeated and looked up to him, auburn hair hanging wildly into his green eyes and lips a-quirk with delight. "What to do?" But as Frodo made no reply, those creamy-coloured brows knitted into a frown. "Fwo? Pip help, pease? Play later?"

Frodo's annoyance melted into warm affection. His stern glance turned into a loving smile and, laying the quill aside, he lifted Pippin up and got him his own chair to sit at the writing desk. "All right, Pip, you can help. Why don't you draw a picture for your Uncle Saradoc so I can send it along with this letter? I'm sure he will be delighted to hear from you as well."

Pippin clapped his hands, bounced up and down in his chair, and reached for one of the empty papers while Frodo collected the crayons. "Pip dwaw fo Mewy as well?"

"Why not?" Frodo replied as he sat down again and watched his cousin set to work immediately. Pippin was a clever lad, and Frodo wished he had come up with this idea sooner - though the thought of Saradoc receiving a business letter from Bag End complete with a child's drawing had him chuckle just a bit. He gave his cousin's curls a fond ruffle before picking up the quill once more.

~THE END~