Because it’s my Birthday
A/N:
Well, it was my birthday on the 13th – I became a tweenager! – so I
decided I should give you all a present in the traditional hobbit manner.
Despite using a Sméagol quote for the title, this, of course, will be a Pippin
and Merry ficlet. I always try to stay close to the events in the books, so
let’s hope there won’t be any striking deviations.
* *
* * * *
Pippin
was glad to see Beregond waiting at the Houses of Healing. He was still
assigned, for now, to watching over the Steward, and making sure that he did
not yet hear news of the manner of his father’s death. The man smiled as he saw
Pippin approaching.
“Good
morning, Master Peregrin,” he said. “I had wondered if I would see you today.
Did you not spend the night with your friend?”
“I
did,” replied Pippin, “but I had something to do this morning, and I left
before he awoke. No doubt he’s woken now and will be complaining that I am not
there!”
“Indeed.”
“I…uh…have
something for you, Beregond.” Pippin suddenly felt very foolish. But he had
come this far, and there was no turning back on it now. He held up a loosely
wrapped parcel.
Beregond
took it and quickly unwrapped it to reveal a beautifully made pipe and a small
pouch.
“When
I saw that you did not smoke, I thought I should introduce you to it,” Pippin
explained. “In the Shire, most hobbits enjoy a good pipe once in a while. Even
Gandalf likes to! I found this lovely little carpenter in a quiet corner of the
city. He makes the most wonderful things! I shall have to talk to Strider about
having him made the Royal Carpenter or something.”
“It
is a wonderful make,” said Beregond, inspecting the pipe closely. “And what
of the pouch?”
“Oh,
that has a little pipeweed in it. Not much, I’m afraid. But if I ever return to
the Shire, I will have some sent to you!” Pippin smiled mischievously. “My
cousin, Merry, had more left than me, so I ‘borrowed’ a little of it. He shouldn’t
notice. The pouch was mine.”
Beregond
smiled. “I do not know how I can thank you for such a gift. But, may I ask, why
you have given it to me? Surely not only to introduce me to the fine pastime of
smoking?”
“Well,
no…” Pippin looked at his feet. “You may find this a little silly. You see,
it’s my birthday today. In the Shire, it is traditional to give out presents on
your birthday, to your family and friends. This is my present to you.”
“I
am truly honoured to be your friend, Peregrin.” Beregond bowed.
“Oh,
I almost forgot.” Pippin fished out another object. This one was not wrapped,
and Beregond could see that it was a small painted wooden horse. “I had the
carpenter make this as well, for Bergil. I thought I should give it to you,
since I do not know when I will see Bergil next. A little wooden Shadowfax; he
often asked me if he could see the real one.”
“Bergil
has loved horses since he was a very small boy. I am sure he will treasure this
for the rest of his life, especially since it was a gift from the Ernil i
Pheriannath.”
Pippin
cringed a little, but smiled. “You know I hate that name.”
Beregond
smiled back. “Which is precisely why I choose to use it.”
“Well,
if you will excuse me, I must see to my cousin. I have a gift for him also.”
“I
will hinder you no longer. Happy birthday, Master Peregrin.” Beregond bowed
again and stood aside so that Pippin may enter the Houses.
“There
you are!” Merry greeted him, rather grumpily. “Where have you been? I woke up
and you were nowhere to be found! Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?”
Pippin
rolled his eyes. “It can’t be half as worried as I’ve been about you. Sit back
down, Meriadoc. You aren’t well yet.”
“Am
too. The Warden says I may go out today. I was hoping to get an early start on
that, but then you decided to go exploring without me.”
“I
did not go exploring.”
“Then
where have you been?”
Pippin
sighed angrily. Trust Merry to forget it was his birthday. He shoved a box onto
Merry’s lap. “I went to get you this!”
Merry
looked at his cousin in confusion, then opened the box. Inside, he found two
hand-carved and painted hobbit figurines. Merry gasped. “Pippin, these are
beautiful.”
“They’re
supposed to be us. The ugly one is you.” Pippin grinned. “I had them made
especially for you.”
“But
why, it’s not your…” Merry trailed off. He worked out the date in his head. The
sixteenth of March – it was Pippin’s birthday. It was his best friend’s
birthday and he had forgotten. “Oh, Pip, I’m so sorry. I completely forgot.”
Pippin
laughed. “Of course you did. You always forget! But this year, I do
think you had quite a good excuse. I suppose stabbing that black rider probably
muddled up your brain. As if you weren’t stupid enough as it was!” He grinned.
“Well, now I’m going to have to remember to forget your birthday, then we’ll be
even.”
“Yes,
you shall. But you always seem to remember.”
Bergil
came a moment later carrying the hobbits’ breakfast. “Thank you, Peregrin, for
the gift! If the real Shadowfax is as beautiful as the wooden one, he must be
the most beautiful horse in the world!”
“That
he is,” Pippin replied. “And thank you, Bergil, for our breakfast.”
“The
Warden told me that you had organised it especially.”
“Well,
since it is my birthday, I thought I should have a bit of a party. Would
you like to join us, Bergil?”
“I
would love to, but I have many errands to run today. I wish you happiness on
your special day.” Bergil bowed and left as quickly as he arrived.
“He
is very fair-spoken for a lad,” Merry commented. “I cannot imagine any lad in
the Shire speaking like that. But now, let us eat!”
Pippin
was pleased to see that everything he had asked for had been supplied. When he
had gone to find Merry the previous day, he had spoken to the Warden. When
Pippin had explained the reason for the special breakfast, the Warden was more
than happy to help.
“Those
wooden figures are amazing,” Merry said, with his mouth half-full.
“I
know,” Pippin replied. “I’m going to have Strider appoint the carpenter to Royal
duties or something.”
“So,
you gave Bergil a little wooden Shadowfax? Did you give presents to anyone
else?”
“To
Beregond. I gave him a pipe, since he seemed very interested when I lit mine in
front of him.”
“Good
work, cousin. You have introduced someone to smoking, just as Frodo and I
introduced you.”
“I
suppose I should have found something for Gimli, Legolas, Gandalf and Strider
too. Do you think they will be upset?”
“I
am sure just seeing you will be present enough for them. It would have been for
me.”
“Don’t
think a complement like that is going to get you out of getting me a present,
Meriadoc. I still expect something.”
“Well,
I still have a month to worry about that.” Merry lay back against his bed and
smiled. “I always hoped that you would be born on my birthday.”
Pippin
snorted. “Even if you had been, you still would have forgotten.”
“Probably.”
Merry looked at the little figurines that Pippin had given him. He knew the
perfect place in Brandy Hall for them to go. But if Brandy Hall had a set, it
only seemed right for the Great Smials to have a set too. Merry smiled broadly.
Now he knew exactly what yo get Pippin.
* *
* * * *
A/N:
Here’s a little explanation of why I chose March 16 to be Pippin’s birthday.
Tolkien only really gave us the actual dates of birthdays for three characters
– Bilbo and Frodo Baggins on September 22 and Elanor Gamgee on March 25 (there
is also a mention in Appendix D that Sam’s is possibly April 6). Merry and
Pippin’s birth-dates are not given, but, when Pippin speaks to Bergil for the
first time, he says “I am nearly twenty-nine”, so I took that quite literally,
since this story is set only a few days after that conversation. Well, there,
that’s my reasoning. Hope you all liked the present and enjoyed the story!