A/N: Thank you to Dreamflower for the beta!

Shelter From the Storm

The Company sat huddled together as the wind howled menacingly from the mountaintop. All around them the snow swirled, settling into high, impassable drifts. They were waiting out the storm, hoping it would slow down enough to allow them to continue on their way, but with every passing moment it seemed less and less likely that cruel Caradhras would grant them such a privilege.

Boromir glanced around at the cold and miserable faces of his companions. Legolas bore the chill best but the others clearly suffered from the frigid air, the hobbits most of all. Nearby Frodo and Sam huddled beside Aragorn while Boromir likewise sported a hobbit on either side as Merry and Pippin burrowed close to him, seeking his warmth. Gimli sat near Gandalf, and both of their beards were covered in snow.

With their hoods pulled low over their eyes Boromir could not see Merry and Pippin’s faces, but he could feel them trembling from the cold. Beside him Pippin shifted, and Boromir caught a glimpse of one bare foot caked in snow and ice.

In Rivendell Boromir had thought the hobbits’ feet a marvel, with their thick soles and warm curly fur, but now he wondered if these strange qualities would offer any protection from such foul weather. Having trained extensively in the cold, snowy mountains near his home, Boromir knew well the dangers of frostbite and he did not wish to see the hobbits suffering from it.

“Perhaps you should have accepted Lord Elrond’s offer,” he said, gesturing to Pippin’s foot. “A pair of boots would have kept your feet warm and dry.”

“Boots! Never!” Pippin protested. “We hobbits can’t keep our feet cooped up inside shoes or boots. Or even socks!”

“Bilbo used to tell us about the boots Lord Elrond gave him when he set out from Rivendell,” Frodo said, his teeth chattering as he smiled at the memory. “He said they made his feet pinch dreadfully, and he lost them at the first opportunity.”

“Sometimes a new pair of boots may be uncomfortable, especially when one is unaccustomed to wearing them,” Aragorn said. “But Boromir is right, something must be done to protect your feet from this storm.”

“Though there is no hope of finding boots for you now, perhaps Aragorn and I can be of some assistance. Your feet are far too exposed to the wind and cold, bare as they are,” Boromir said. He lifted the edges of his great fur-lined cloak and turned to Merry and Pippin. “Come, place your feet on my lap and cover your legs with my cloak. That will help shield you from the weather.”

“But won’t you be dreadfully cold, Boromir?” Pippin asked, concern evident in his voice even as his eyes betrayed his eagerness to find some warmth at last. His feet had been frigid for so long that he could scarcely wiggle his toes.

“Not at all,” Boromir quickly assured him. Such a small discomfort he would eagerly bear to help ease the hobbits’ plight. “I would not wish to see you little ones suffer from frostbite. It would be remiss of me to allow you to endure the cold when I can offer some help.” He smiled briefly. “We must do what we can to help one another.”

Pippin needed no further convincing. With stiff, cold fingers he brushed the snow from his feet and dropped them onto Boromir’s lap.

“Goodness!” he cried in delight. “You’re as toasty as a blanket, Boromir. My toes haven’t been this warm since we left Rivendell.”

Once Merry’s feet were in his lap, Boromir draped the edge of his cloak over the hobbits’ legs to ward off the chill. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Aragorn tending to Frodo and Sam’s feet in the same fashion. Unnoticed by either man, Gandalf watched them both from beneath the wide brim of his hat, his eyes twinkling with approval.

“You seem to know a good deal about the cold, Boromir,” Merry observed. “I never imagined that it snowed in the South. It hardly ever snows in the Shire.”

“And it never snows like this,” added Pippin, shivering a little.

Boromir rested an arm around both hobbits’ shoulders, trying to shield them from the cold. “Snow rarely makes an appearance in my city. I can remember only a few snowfalls when I was a young boy, and even the worst of those did not amount to more than a mere dusting. But Minas Tirith is bordered by the White Mountains, and I have seen a fair amount of snow there.” The rumble of rocks falling nearby startled them, and Boromir peered up at the sky with a frown. “Though never have I seen a storm like this one, with stones falling alongside the snow.”

Pippin grinned at that. “I’ve heard of it raining cats and dogs but never of it snowing rocks and stones,” he said. He glanced upwards as if to check for another onslaught of rocks and, finding no immediate threat, turned back to his friend. “Why have you spent so much time in the mountains, Boromir? And what do you do there, anyway? Must you camp outdoors, or are houses built there? And what about-”

“Let poor Boromir answer one question at a time, Pip!” Merry exclaimed, shaking his head with a fond smile. Pippin smiled apologetically but nonetheless fixed Boromir with a curious gaze.

“There are a few permanent shelters in the mountains, but usually we slept outdoors in tents,” Boromir explained. “Every soldier of Gondor must learn how to survive in both the coldest and warmest conditions. I have often led a company of men high into the mountains for their training.”

The hobbits considered this, trying to imagine a soldier’s life and finding it difficult. After a moment Pippin asked hesitantly, “Were you ever afraid that a terrible storm would trap you on the mountain? A storm like this one?”

Boromir chose his answer carefully, wanting to ease his young friend’s fears. “It cannot snow forever,” he said. “Though it seems difficult to imagine now, this storm will cease and the sun will return. We will then continue on our way or we will climb back down and travel along a different road. Do not worry, Pippin. We will not be trapped on this mountain.”

Pippin smiled brightly. He had not yet lost hope but had begun to feel quite frightened by the ferocity of the storm. Boromir’s confidence helped raise the spirits of the other members of the Fellowship, though they wondered how true his words would prove to be.

But Boromir had not made Pippin an empty promise. He would do everything in his power to see the rest of the Company, especially the hobbits, safely through the storm.