Author: Athea (athea@netexpress.net)
Fandom: Lord of the Rings
Title: Beneath it all, part five
Pairing: Legolas/Gimli and Merry/Pip
Summary: One of the Ringbearers wakes up.
Date: 2 March 2002
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Merry
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I was sitting by Frodo, telling him about breakfast when it happened.

He opened his eyes, looked at me and saw me. I mean, really saw me. His mouth shaped my name but no sound came out.

"Frodo! Thank goodness. Let me get Gandalf." I told him and realized that he thought I was crazy. "He's alive. Really alive. Just like you." Hopping down from the bed, I ran for the hall. Gandalf was just coming in and he almost stepped on me. "Frodo's awake."

He strode for the side of the bed and touched his poor wounded hand. "My dear Frodo, how very kind of you to finally wake up."

"Gandalf." The cracked tones were so unlike Frodo's normal voice that I winced. He was crying again but at least this time he was awake and probably knew where he was.

"You and Sam will be just fine, Frodo. You succeeded in your dire task and the world has been remade." Gandalf stroked the limp hair and let him cry.

"Not me, Gandalf, I didn't succeed in anything." The cracked voice sounded so hopeless that I felt like crying myself.

And it all came out of him like poison from a wound. How they struggled all the way to Mount Doom. How they got inside and at the last moment Frodo put on the Ring to claim it. How Gollum of all creatures saved them both by biting off his poor finger before falling with the Ring into the abyss.

"I would have failed long before without Sam, my faithful friend who treated me better than I deserved." The hopeless note rang in the room and I saw Sam stir before settling back in to sleep.

"He loves you very much, Frodo. I expect that he doesn't consider anything too high a sacrifice for you." Gandalf soothed him but the older hobbit shook his head.

"I failed but Gollum succeeded. Treat Sam as a hero for he is more heroic than you can ever know. But not me, never say that about me." He closed those dull blue eyes and fell back asleep between one breath and the next.

Gandalf kept on stroking his hair gently and I sighed, bringing his eyes to me. "He can be extremely stubborn, Mr. Frodo Baggins can."

He chuckled. "Indeed, the Hobbits can be an extremely stubborn people. But I think that Sam will win this battle, none the less. Gardeners are very good at waiting, biding their time and helping growth along. At the moment, I'm just glad that Frodo has finally awakened. I'll sit with them awhile, Merry. I saw Pippin heading next door with a very heavy basket."

"Lunch!" I said with satisfaction and jumped from the bed again to head next door. I could hardly wait to tell him the news. Closing the door behind me, I locked it the moment that I saw him half-undressed.

Then beginning to undress myself, I told him. "Pip, Frodo woke up for a moment. Gandalf is sitting with them."

"Well, thank goodness." Pip's eyes lit up. "How is he?"

I threw my clothes in a heap at the foot of our big bed. "Depressed and wounded right in the heart." I joined him at the small table and helped him divide our food up while I gave him a recitation of his sad story.

He sighed and shook his head at the grim tale but his optimism returned in a heartbeat. "We will see that he understands his true heroism. I couldn't have done half as well with that horrid ring."

Smiling at him, I shook my head. "No one could. He just can't see it yet. Time heals and if I know Samwise, he'll have something to do with helping him understand."

Pip swallowed a mouthful of beans and grinned. "I wonder if Sam told Frodo how much he loves him? Do you think they've made love like we have?"

"I don't know if they understand that they can." It had taken me a while but thank goodness I'd realized how important Pip was to me. "But that's all right. If they don't, we can show them."

He blushed and almost choked on his muffin. "Merry! I wouldn't be able to do anything in front of someone else."

"Really?" I eyed him and thought about that for a long moment while I finished my delicious sausage. "You wouldn't enjoy getting all naked, like we are now? Maybe stroke each other slowly, showing them all those places that make us tingle? And how about kissing each other really deep, when our tongues slide together all slick and tasty?"

His eyes were so big that he looked like a little owl in daylight. "Merry, that's very wicked."

"You don't like it when I kiss you?" I pouted and made a bet with myself that he'd be in my lap before I could reach for my tea.

I love it when I win a bet. Pip cuddled to my chest with his lips on mine, sharing muffin flavored kisses. I feasted on his sweet mouth while my hands found the butter on the table. Making sure that my fingers were well coated with the slippery stuff, I slid my hands between his cheeks and felt him quiver at the new touch.

"Oh, Merry, please, please, please." He chanted, wiggling over my cock and trying to spread himself for me.

I'd been afraid that I would hurt him so we'd taken this new caress slowly. When I'd explained what Gimli and Legolas had said about further loving, he'd just looked at me with those big eyes of his and smiled so sweetly that my heart melted. He wanted me to go first so I'd begun by putting one finger in him. From the very first, he'd enjoyed it. In fact, he'd taken to tempting me by taking off his clothes whenever we were alone.

Sliding two fingers inside of him, I swallowed his moan while his arms slid around my neck. He wiggled over my cock until I was rock hard. Scattering kisses over my face, he squirmed until he was straddling me. With his legs sprawled far apart, I had easy access to his sweet hole. Coming out while he pouted, I got some more butter and stretched him a little more.

"Can you take me like this?" He pinched my nipples and I arched up, sliding through his crease.

"I don't know. Let's try it." I coated my cock and held it against his entrance while he almost stood up before lowering himself onto me.

"Oh Merry, oh Merry, oh, you're so big." He shook all over but he kept on sitting down until I could get no further in. His eyes opened and the look of wonder there made me feel five feet tall. "My goodness, Merry, it feels like he's going to come out of my stomach."

Chuckling, I petted his too flat tummy. "I don't think that's possible, Pip. Does it feel all right otherwise?"

He pushed himself up a little before sitting back down again. "So good, Merry, it's always good when you're inside of me."

"Only because it's you, my sweet Pip. I couldn't ever enjoy anyone else, not ever." I thrust up experimentally and listened to him moan.

We made love for a long time before I finally laid him on his back on the table and finished us both with hard strokes inside and out. He squirted between us and I could hardly wait to lick him clean. Making love with him was more fun than anything else I'd ever done. I planned to keep on for the rest of my life.

Finally I slipped from him and he winced a little. "Merry, I think I'm laying on a fork."

I lifted him immediately and carried him to our bed. "Well, that's what happens when that wondrous dish known as 'Pip the Took' is on the menu."

He began to giggle and I kissed him before going back to the table and the bowl of water we'd used earlier for washing our hands. I cleaned him up then joined him under the soft green blankets. He came into my arms immediately and kissed me hard. My hands pulled him as close as we could get while I sucked on his tongue. He's the best kisser I know and I loved the way he tasted.

Finally we had to breathe and our eyes met while we touched foreheads. "Merry, do you really think that we should show them how to make love?"

I thought about it for a long moment. "I think that we may need to, sweetling. Frodo doesn't think he's worthy of being loved and Sam needs a little confidence in telling his master what he feels. Maybe we'll just kiss each other in front of them. That would let them see the possibilities."

"Hm-m-m, you're right," he said dreamily while his hands brushed soft caresses over my nipples. "I think we should start with hugging, then kissing then maybe we could take off just a couple pieces of clothing. You're so beautiful that I like seeing your broad chest with these pretty nipples just begging for my lips."

"Exhibitionist Pip, I don't know if I want to share the sight of your sweet tummy. Although, if we were bathing together, I know that once they saw your perfect little cheeks," I cupped the ones I was speaking of and brushed my fingers through the downy crease. "Well, they'd want to see more."

He shivered all over and wiggled closer, his hand reaching down to coax me back to life. "Well, then they'd see this great ... big . . . cock and they'd be so jealous that they'd just fall into each other's arms to console each other."

I laughed out loud. "Then while they were doing that, I'd have to sit you on the side of the tub and suck that pretty cock of yours into my mouth so I could nurse on you."

"Oh, yes!" He smiled and wrapped his little hand around me. "And then, I'd have to return the favor." He gripped and began to slide up and down my quickly hardening shaft. "Then when you were all nicely hot and hard, I'd turn around and brace myself on the side of the tub while you slide inside of me."

He'd turned me on so badly that I was almost as hard as I'd been earlier. Pip grinned at me and pushed the blankets off of us before pulling away and getting up on all fours for me. I didn't need another invitation and I knelt behind him, spreading his cheeks with my thumbs and nudging my crown against the spasming muscle. He pushed back impatiently and groaned as I slid inside.

"Yes! More, Merry, give me more." He moved with me in counter point and this time our rhythm was hard and fast. But fast or slow, making love with Pip will always be my favorite thing to do.

Pip squeezed around me and my hand reached around his hip and began to stroke his cock. He gasped and began to squirt between my fingers, milking me of my own seed. I released inside of him and pulled us onto our sides so we could lie comfortably snuggled close. I kissed the back of his sweaty neck and licked my hand of his tasty seed. He giggled sleepily and we napped until I slipped from him naturally.

We needed a bath so we got up and dressed enough to walk through the public halls down to the lower level. Our favorite tub was empty and we climbed inside. Pip closed the outlet drain and I opened the pipe at the other end. The water gushed in and when the tub was a quarter full, I closed it so we wouldn't drown. Pip already had the soap and a gleam in his eye so I stood still while he lathered me from head to toe.

He knows all my hot spots now so I was starting to harden again. But liberating the soap from him, I did my own cleaning of his tempting body. Our laughter echoed through the steamy rooms and once we were clean, we rinsed off and emptied the tub. It was still early enough that the big tub in the back was empty. So we padded over there and helped each other climb in. The ledge where Gimli usually sat was a little higher than the other carven seats and that's the one place where it didn't feel like we were in danger of drowning.

The heat relaxed us both and we leaned against each other, shoulder to shoulder. "Pip, when we get home and build a house for just the two of us, let's make a tub just like this one."

Pip sat up straight and suddenly I had an armful of lover. "Oh, Merry, I was so afraid that you'd say that we'd have to be apart when we went home. Can we really live together, just the two of us?"

I was flabbergasted and it took me a moment to get back my voice. "Well, of course, we're going to live together. I love you and I'm never letting you out of my sight, Peregrin Took. The families will just have learn that we're a team that can't be broken up."

He burst into tears and slid his arms around my neck, holding on almost as tight as I was holding him. I caught little bits and pieces of disjointed sentences. Rocking him slowly, I hummed a lullaby from when I was a little hobbit. When he was down to sniffles, I sat him back just a little so we could see each other.

"I'm never letting you go if that's all right with you?" He nodded vigorously so I continued. "I'm thinking there is some Brandybuck land that juts up against some Took property over near Bags End. I am also thinking that two clever hobbits like ourselves could build a proper hobbit house with all the amenities. We'd be close to family and to Frodo and Sam. It's going to be hard to go back to the Shire for the Ringbearers and we'd be a good buffer for them."

"I think that you're the smartest Hobbit in the whole of Middle-earth." Pip said quietly but with the widest smile I'd ever seen on his dear face. "We could stay with Frodo at first while we are building then as soon as we're snug, move out to our own home. Oh, it will be wonderful to live with you."

"You won't miss Miss Petunia Took, your cousin?" I teased him and he dimpled up at me.

"What about Hildebarta Cabbagepatch?" He teased me right back.

I pretended to think a moment and he immediately began to tickle me. We were laughing uncontrollably when someone else slid in beside us. Gimli's deep voice asked us how we were and we told him about Frodo waking up. Legolas joined us then and I watched him sit down with a hiss. Gimli's attention quickly went to him and he soon had his arm around the beautiful Elf.

We soaked quietly after that and made plans to have dinner out at Aragorn's tent. The hot water made me sleepy and when I yawned for the second time Pip told the others farewell for now and helped me out. We dressed enough for the outer halls and hurried back to our room before going back to bed for a little nap.

Holding Pip close, I closed my eyes and dreamed of a snug Hobbit hole just big enough for two.

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The end for now