You Don't Have to Know Everything

A/N: Originally written for a hobbit_ficathon challenge on LJ.

***

"You know, Merry."

Merry blinked once, twice, and a third time, and peered at Pippin over his tankard. "Know what, Pip?"

Pippin raised his eyebrows quizzically, and set his mug down with a thump. "What?"

Merry's brow furrowed. "What do you mean, what?" he demanded, hiccupping loudly on the last word, and Pippin grinned at the bird-like squawk.

"I believe I asked you first, Merry," he replied pleasantly, propping up his chin on his hand and eyeing his cousin.

"No, you said, 'you know,' which is not a question," Merry sniffed, punctuating each word with a tap on Pippin's chest. "And at any rate, I don't know."

Pippin's eyes intently followed Merry's finger as it poked his waistcoat. "Know what, Merry?"

"I don't know, you ridiculous Took!" Merry thundered, slamming down his tankard, although he wasn't all that angry

Pippin giggled loudly. "Of course you know me, you blockheaded Brandybuck!" he cried. His giggles turned to uproarious laughter, and soon the room started to spin and Pippin had to rest his head against the sticky wooden table as tears rolled down his face.

Merry was laughing too, but he was also terribly thirsty, and when he tried to take a drink mid-laugh, he choked.

His laughter scared away, Pippin sat up quickly and pounded Merry's back with his fist, a gesture that not only stopped his cousin's coughing but also knocked him off the bench and onto the ground.

Confused, Merry gazed around the room from where he sat in a heap at Pippin's feet before staring up at his cousin, who seemed far too tall. "What's happened?"

It took a few attempts for Pippin to haul Merry back onto the bench and rearrange his cousin's limp arms and legs. Merry slumped to the side, and nearly tipped over again, and when Pippin caught Merry he nearly fell over too. Finally they leaned on each other; each cousin tucked neatly against the other, and somehow managed to stay on the bench.

For a few long moments Pippin wracked his brain, trying to recall Merry's question from before, and a slow smile spread across his face as he remembered. "I don't know," he declared loudly, and nodded firmly for good measure.

Slowly, Merry lifted his head from Pippin's shoulder and gazed at his cousin questioningly. "Know what, Pip?"

Pippin frowned, thinking about it, before realizing that he had no answer. He turned to Merry, leaning close until his nose nearly touched his cousin's. "What?" he asked eagerly.

Blinking a few times, Merry tried to focus on something that wasn't moving, and chose Pippin's ear. "What do you mean, what?" he asked it.

Looking over his shoulder, Pippin tried to see who Merry was talking to. "I don't know," he repeated, shrugging, and rested his head against his cousin's shoulder. He yawned loudly, and rubbed tiredly at his eyes. "I just don't know," he repeated, quieter this time.

Merry wrapped his arm around Pippin's shoulders and leaned his head against his cousin's with a smile. "That's all right," he said. "You don't have to know everything."