Catch a Falling Star by Isabeau
Summary: There are games, and then there are games, and some mean more than others.
Categories: FPS, FPS > Merry/Pippin, FPS > Pippin/Merry Characters: Merry, Pippin
Type: None
Warning: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Chapters: 1 Completed: Yes Word count: 711 Read: 1584 Published: January 26, 2009 Updated: January 26, 2009
Story Notes:
Notes: This is entirely and completely the fault of James Walkswithwind, who requested short happyfuzzy fics. And who has repeatedly encouraged me to write M/P, although I haven't quite gotten to the "smut" part of most of said encouragements.

Takes place before the start of Fellowship of the Ring.

1. Chapter 1 by Isabeau

Chapter 1 by Isabeau
There was a game that Shire children played: a playing field would be marked off, by string or by common agreement; one of their number was blindfolded, set with the task of capturing one of the others, who were doing their best to dart out of reach; and each round would be launched with much shrieking and laughter and mass confusion. A capture would mean the end of the round, and they would pause only long enough to transfer the blindfold to the loser, before the next round began, and so it would go until their mothers called them inside. Most children played to win; remaining uncaptured for the duration of an afternoon's play was a badge of honor.

There was a game that the older Shire youth played; the rules were similar, but the price of loss was a kiss, taken before the blindfold changed hands. Most tweens played to lose, creating a delicate balance as each tried to remain uncaptured as long as possible while still losing the round.

Under the right circumstances, Peregrin Took played to lose as quickly as possible.




The sun was low in the sky, heavy like a fruit ripe for picking, making the shadows long and Merry's hair gold. He was laughing, and Pippin watched his mouth avidly. He preferred Merry's eyes -- the way they laughed when he laughed and smiled when he didn't, the way they danced, the way the sun at certain angles shone like fire in them -- but the thick dark cloth of the blindfold that kept Merry from seeing, kept Pippin from seeing him; so he settled for the mouth.

Not that Merry's mouth was a bad thing to settle for.

"Come and get me!" Pippin shouted, not really caring that after a brief instinctive twitch in his direction, Merry seemed to ignore him. Everyone shouted comments that, for the most part, everyone else ignored. Pippin knew that Merry was listening, that he was paying attention, keeping track of where Pippin was.

With the ease of long practice, Pippin stumbled gracelessly, emitting an "oof" that could have been unintentional. He righted himself quickly enough, scrambling away from Merry's questing hands, but he had timed it carefully enough that Merry still managed to grab his ankle. Pippin gave a half-hearted struggle and then flopped to his back, arms flung out in dramatic defeat. "I am yours," he said, and then yelped as Merry slapped his thigh lightly.

"You owe me a kiss."

"Come get it."

"Lazy Took," Merry chided, but he wriggled up anyway. Still blindfolded, Merry planted a sloppy kiss in the vicinity of Pippin's chin, and Pippin laughed and licked his cheek and stripped the blindfold off. Merry looked down at him, eyes shining.

Quietly, so that the others couldn't hear, Pippin murmured, "I meant it."

"Hm?" Merry kissed him again, quickly, hands tugging at the knot of the blindfold.

"What I said. I'm yours."

"Oh, Pip," Merry said, and smiled. His eyes were the last thing Pippin saw as the blindfold descended; and he kept them in his memory as gentle fingers tied it snugly behind his head, as Merry's warm hand slipped into his own to tug him to his feet. "All right," Merry said, and Pippin could hear the laughter in his voice. "Catch me if you can."

"Catch any of us," another voice called out. Pippin lunged after that voice, knowing in advance that his hands would close on empty air, and not caring.




When it got too dark to see, that game ended, but another game began, as they straggled off in discreet twos. Pippin sauntered up to Merry, and casually said, "Catch me."

Merry glanced sideways at him, and then reached out. His fingers closed around Pippin's wrist. "You aren't running."

"I was never running."

"No." Merry tugged him closer, slipping an arm around him. "I've caught you."

"So now I owe you a kiss?"

"You owe me more than that." Merry laughed and kissed the tip of Pippin's nose; Pippin squirmed away, rubbing his nose, face twisted in comic disgust.

"You said that last time," he complained, not really meaning it.

"It's still true."

"Do I ever stop owing you?"

Promptly, Merry said, "No."

"Good," Pippin said, and meant it.
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