Desolation

Everything Goes Downhill

"Oof!"

"Ouch!"

"Ahhhh!"

"Get off!"

I bounce along the dirty slope, crashing into stumps, branches, and the other hobbits. We roll down, down, down, until suddenly the hill drops off and we land in a pile on the road. I groan and spit my hair out of my mouth as I try to wiggle my legs out from under the pile of bodies. 

"Momma is going to kill me!" I say, letting my head fall back on the dirt. 

Pippin laughs, pointing to a large pile of dung right in front of his head. "Not as much as my dad would've. That was close!"

Merry whimpers as Sam rolls off of his legs and goes to help Frodo up. "I think I've broken something!" I lift my head in concern only to watch him hold up a carrot, of all things, snapped almost in two. 

"Trust a Brandybuck and a Took," Sam mutters angrily, brushing himself off.

"And what about me?" I ask, upset at being left out.

"You should have known better, Bluehill," he says without looking at me.

"Well, it's just a detour!" Merry tells him, shaking off clouds of dirt. "A shortcut!"

"Shortcut to what?" Sam asks, still upset. 

"Mushrooms!" Pippin shouts, still lying flat on his stomach. He starts to get up but is shoved down again by Sam, who scrambles towards the clump of fungus growing up by tree roots. Merry is quick to run after, pushing Pippin down again in his haste. I offer him my hand, laughing at his expression. 

"Not my fault I ended up on the bottom," he grumbles, then joins in the mad digging of mushrooms. 

"You're welcome, I guess." I walk over just as Merry grabs the biggest mushroom out of Sam's hands. 

"That one's mine!" 

"Oh, bugger off. You wouldn't even know what to do with it," Sam replies, snatching it back and shoving it in his bag. "Besides, you can always get more from Farmer Maggot."

Merry and Pippin look at each other, then up at me. I shrug. "He's probably right, you know. You two wouldn't know what to do with a recipe book if it hit you on the nose." 

"So? Doesn't mean we can't enjoy eating good mushrooms!" Pippin complains, but helps fill Sam's sack anyways.

"I think we should get off the road," Frodo suddenly calls back to us, but I hardly take any notice of him. A cold breeze lifts my hair off my face. I shudder. "Get off the road! Quick!" Frodo shouts again, and this time all of us listen. We scurry across the road and hop under some overhanging roots, the five of us barely fitting in the small space.

Sam and Merry fight in whispers over who will get to keep the mushrooms, freezing suddenly at the sound of heavy hoofbeats.

A loud snort. Heavy breathing. 

My heart stops beating as the rider pauses right above us.

Frodo looks up through a gap in the branches, his face tight and pale. 

The earth shakes as two metal clad feet land on the ground.

I'm gripping Pippin's arm so tightly my fingers start to tingle.

A metal hand wraps around the root right above me. 

A sound-- almost like sniffing. I try not to breathe.

Worms wriggle at my feet and it takes everything in me not to flinch away from them.

The sniffing grows louder. The horse rears and neighs loudly. I bite my lip and try not to scream.