Chapter Text
As gandalf finished reading the last words of the dusty book in his hands he suddenly heard a noise and turned around.
His blood turned ice cold as he watched the corpse of a once living dwarf slip down into the well with loud bangs echoing as it hit the narrow walls.
Beside the well stood the youngest of the four hobbits with a mortified expression, his fingers retreating as he’d just touched the body mere moments ago.
Realization hit Gandalf and his mind turned white hot with rage. This could be the end of them all, waking up the enemy sleeping in the dark. They would be outnumbered and most likely meeting a similar fate as Balin and his dwarfs.
The wizard put the book aside and cast an angered glare at Pippin, getting ready to lecture him when an abrupt shout came from Legolas
“Look out!”
A moment after, the chain that’d been tied to the bucket going down along the corpse, had accidentally been tangled around Pippin’s ankle and as the chain strained, it suddenly pulled him backwards hard, he tumbled over the edge of the well and fell down into the void.
The event happened so fast not even Pippin had any chance to react.
The three remaining hobbits were quick on their feet, rushing to the well and yelling for their friend
The wizard stared at the empty space where the hobbit had been standing. Then he heard a distant sound of drums, echoing somewhere deep in the darkness.
No…
Gandalf closed his eyes. He had to make the hardest decision yet on this journey, and that would be to leave young master Peregrin to his fate. For the sake of the fellowship.
With a heavy heart he met the others wild expressions.
“Do something! Get him out of there!” Merry yelled with panic in his eyes. He ran up to the wizard and grabbed his cloak
“He’ll drown! He can’t swim, please hurry!”
The wizard felt at loss, he knew the cousins were inseparable. Merry would not accept what needed to be done for the greater good, and it broke the wizard’s heart. Nevertheless, the whole of Middle-Earth’s future depended on the fellowship now.
The sudden holler of distant creatures broke out
Frodo’s sword was glowing blue now, lighting up their faces. Legolas turned his head towards the big gate
“Orcs!”
Boromir headed towards the entrance and was narrowly hit by two thick arrows. He began to close the doors as Aragorn ordered them to back off.
“What about Pippin!?” Frodo yelled.
Gandalf shook his head. “There’s no time!”
They have a cave troll!” Boromir snapped as he and Aragorn closed the gates, Legolas helped them barricade the doors with weapons.
Orcs was already trying to get through the hard wood and the fellowship prepared for battle, clenching their weapons ready for when the enemy would breakthrough.
Only Merry protested wildly, still being held back by Gandalf.
As the battle began, staying alive and slaying orcs was the only thing on their minds. Even the hobbits got distracted, avoiding blows and fighting back.
Frodo getting stabbed only made them fight harder. If they were to lose then at least the fellowship would give them hell. Grief turned in to white hot anger.
To everyone’s surprise, Frodo had been given the Mithril, which protected him from the spear which seemingly impaled him. He was unharmed, the wizard noted with great relief. They had to move on as more orcs gathered and they started sprinting.
Boromir had to drag poor Merry along as he yelled and shouted for them to return and save his cousin.
“We must return! We can’t leave him! Please!”
The sorrow and anger in the halfling’s voice made the man’s heart ache, but Merry was slowing them down severely and Boromir had to pick up the hobbit like a child and hold him tight as he tried to break loose. The hobbit even bit him several times.
Suddenly the enemy closed in on them and the group found themselves surrounded. However the orcs scattered away abruptly by a distant glow in the giant halls, something bigger, a being beyond any mans comprehension had awoken from the depths of the mines.
Gandalf ordered them to run. they had no chance against this ancient enemy. But soon it was upon them.
They faced the Balrog, and Gandalf the grey fell protecting the fellowship from it
.
Pippin’s world had plunged into darkness. Not a sound could be heard and he wondered if he’d died, when a small ray of light appeared right above his head.
He shuffled closer and put his eye closer to the hole from which the light came. He looked out into a starless sky, and passing lights blinking continuously.
Pippin could hear sounds now, coming from above. It was an indescribable noise unlike anything the halfling had ever heard. Loud and aggressive, like roaring beasts but with a metal sound to it.
It scared him and he wondered what creatures roamed above his head.
He was still in the mines of Moria, he thought. The loud noise he’d caused by toppling over the corpse into the well, and being pulled along with it had surely awoken something horrible in the dark.
A pang of worry for his friends came over him and he braced himself to go out there and do his part protecting his friends.
Pushing upwards, he found the roof above him to be a lid of some sort, and he lifted it with all his might.
It was heavy, but he managed to shove it aside and peaked up to take a quick note of his surroundings.
What he saw shocked him.
The ground was flat around him, and metallic shapes with strongly glowing eyes passed him in a speed he didn’t think was possible. He crawled out from the well and onto the hard cold ground. Confusion and fear overtook him again.
“Frodo? Gandalf?!” He yelled as he looked around.
He was in the middle of a crowded street, in a big city called London, but of course he did not know this.
An ancient portal had been opened the moment Pippin hit the water deep down in the well. This portal took him to another world, of which not even the wisest of Middle-Earth knew about.
Least of all the young Peregrin Took.
He quickly lost balance as he tried to stand up and his knees hit the hard ground, making him cry out in pain. His feet were much smaller than he was used to, and it was impossible to keep balance.
Pippin made a few more attempts to stand up, but to no avail. He gave up and crawled to the sidewalk, fearing for his life as the metal beasts stopped in front of him and honked loudly.
As he no longer was in the busy street, he noticed that his clothes had shrunken astonishingly and he tore at them desperately, the small blue jacket and his undershirt now sitting so tight it became hard for him to breathe.
The hobbit had grown to a human’s size, but his clothes had not.
The noisy street and passing cars roared in his ears and he started crying, shouting his friend’s names in a desperate attempt at finding them in the chaos.
He laid there on the ground for a good while, people passing by avoiding him like the plague.
The young hobbit quickly grew cold in the January weather, the streets free from snow, but wet and chilly nonetheless.
A stranger then came up to him, a small girl. It startled Pippin and he jerked back, staring at her widely.
“Why are you crying?” she said and tilted her head curiously. “Why are you dressed like that?”
“Leave him alone Aggie!” A grown man shouted worriedly as he sprinted toward them.
“He might be dangerous, Back away!”
“Can’t you see he’s freezing? We have to help him!” She said before turning to Pippin again
“You can come home with us!”
“No he can’t!” The man said harshly.
He took the girl protectively in his arms and looked Pippin up and down suspiciously.
Pippin sat frozen in place and stared at the both of them. Who were these humans? What was this place? It couldn’t be in the mines of Moria, so where?
Never had he come across a human village that looked anything resembling to this.
“What happened?” The man asked after inspecting him.
“I… I think I’m lost” Pippin stammered. He looked at them nervously.
“You haven’t possibly seen a wizard anywhere close? Or a dwarf?” Pippin’s eyes suddenly glimmered with hope
“or an elf? Or three hobbits?”
.
Aggie’s father almost had a heart attack as he’d watched his young and only daughter heading towards the stranger having a meltdown at the sidewalk.
But after a closer look Aggie’s father, whose name was Robert had come to the conclusion that the man in front of him wearing too small clothes was probably very unstable and needed help. He looked young, possibly a teenager.
A flood of guilt washed over Robert as the memory of his brother hit him, who’d died young in alcohol poisoning at a party, alone outside in the garden he had fallen asleep and never woke up. Nobody had cared to check on him that night.
It haunted Robert still, and maybe because of it, he kneeled down next to the teen in front of him, against better judgement.
He’d been crying and was freezing cold, but he could still be unpredictable.
As the young man mentioned wizards and other fantasy creatures without any hint of irony, Robert’s heart sank. He might be on drugs.
“What’s your name? You’re with someone out here?” He pressed on, ignoring the strange question.
The teenager’s eyes narrowed slightly. “I don’t mean to be rude, but the last time I told a stranger the name of my friend, I put him in danger, how can I be certain you’re not with the enemy?” His voice now dripping with suspicion.
”What? What you talking about?”
”You’re not a spy for the evil eye?”
Robert’s jaw opened but was at a loss for words. Maybe the best thing to do was just play along.
”No I’m not, I promise”
The teen visibly relaxed. “My name is Peregrin Took but you can call me Pippin, everyone does”
At least they were getting somewhere now.
“Okay Pippin, where are your parents? Can I call someone to pick you up?” Robert asked.
“Don’t bother, my parents are far away from here, they wouldn’t hear you”
“You don’t have their number?” Robert kept insisting. At this the teen just looked confused and Robert dropped it.
”Where do you live? I could drive you home if you want?”
”Im from The Shire, but I’d rather not go back. We’re on a very important mission you see, so important in fact that the fate of Middle-Earth is in our hands”
Robert sighed inwardly.
He couldn’t leave him now. He wouldn’t forgive himself for leaving a teenager in this state in the middle of a sidewalk in London.
He realized he was about to take responsibility for someone else’s kid. It’s typical him really, wanting to save everyone, and then it becomes too much and he lets someone down.
As the conversation went nowhere, the teen kept giving strange answers he decided to get him out of there, he was freezing and he had to get inside, and real clothes.
“Let’s get you warm and dried up” Robert said and helped the teen on his feet.
He clung onto Robert for balance as his legs wobbled unsteadily.
“Is he going home with us daddy?” The girl asked excitedly as they headed towards their car.
“Only temporary, Aggie. Then we’ll help him get home to his own parents” Robert said as he helped the young man into the car. He seemed hesitant to enter the vehicle at first and Robert had to reassure him that it wasn’t a beast several times before the teen would enter.
”Why did you ask my dad if he’d seen wizards and elves? They’re real? Have you seen one?” Aggie asked with wonder in her eyes from the backseat. The teenager was in the front next to Robert, so he turned around
”Well of course they’re real! Why wouldn’t they be?”
The girl’s eyes widened
”did you hear that daddy?!”
Robert sighed. He was already regretting this.