LOTR: Shire Dragons - Pippin Took FF

Chapter 8

Mallyra listened at first, but then shushed Pippin straight away.

"Yeah.. about that. I didn't mean to, I'm sorry.. just friends, I know," She smiled. But it soon faded, when she watched Pippins smile drop and he looked down at the floor.  

"What’s up?" she asked, putting her hand on his shoulder. Pippin flinched a little, thought for a moment, then looked up at her again and smiled.

"Friends.. yeah!’ Pippin laughed, hiding the slight feeling of his stomach dropping. Mallyra breathed a sigh of relief, before offering him a drink. Pippin accepted gladly, but turned when he felt another hand on his shoulder. It was the man Mallyra had asked directions from earlier,

"Ahhhh son! What a fine party this is!" He exclaimed, his cheeks glowing, and his speech a little slurred, "Come find a partner, it’s nearly time to dance!" he cheered at Pippin, his beer falling out of his mug as he waved his arms around. Pippin’s farther then noticed Mallyra, who was trying to avoid eye contact.

"by jeez! Hello again lass! I didn’t recognise you in that stunning dress. I see you know my Pippin, come, dance with him and celebrate Baggins’s birthday!" he grabbed them both by the hand and dragged them into the centre of the room. There were other couples there, who were spinning around, smiling and prancing about.

"but I can’t dance!" Mallyra protested, looking around hopelessly. Pippins farther ignored her complaining and flung her, and Pippin against each other before correcting their stance. Mallyra's hand on Pippins shoulder, and Pippin's arm around Mallyra's waist. Pippin and Mallyra then watched in amazement, as Pippin's father just left them, and began another conversation somewhere else. Pippin turned to look at Mallyra, and cast a nervous glance down at her. She was looking around at the other dancers, her blue eyes sparkling a little.

"well..." he coughed, trying to get her attention. Mallyra quickly faced him again. "this is urm... awkward..." he laughed, as he went to remove his hand from Mallyra’s waist, but she stopped him immediately and smiled up at him.

"come on... just one dance for a laugh?" she pleaded, growing slightly nervous as the words fell off her lips. Pippin face lit up quickly, as they began to twirl around on the dance floor, his heart beating faster as he held her in his arms. Mallyra was equally nervous, and at first, didn't look up at Pippin. But after a while, she found the confidence to look him in the eyes again. He was already smiling down at her, cheeks glowing in the light of the room. 

"I guess it's better that we're friends," he lied, blushing. Mallyra smiled up at him again, brushing a piece of wavy hair from her face. 

"Yeah... I think you're right," she admitted, nodding a little. Pippin felt his stomach knot as he looked into her blue eyes. How could he lie about what he felt. "I just don't know what happened," Mallyra said, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly. She then looked up, to see her mother standing in the crowd. Mallyra smiled widely across at her, causing Pippin to turn and look as well. Mallyra’s mother wore a pink gown with a gold trim, her black hair was tightly curled and her rosy cheeks shone.

"Mum!  Over here!" she waved at her, letting go of Pippin. Her mum smiled back at her, moving her hand so that Mallyra knew she wanted them to come over. Mallyra grabbed Pippin's hand, and lead him over to where her mother was stood. Pippin immediately felt himself blushing, and glanced down at their intertwined fingers.

"Hello dear," her mother greeted her. Mallyra hugged her, a huge grin on her face. Her mother stepped back after their embrace, and looked Pippin up and down. "Who’s this strapping young fellow," her mum winked. Mallyra scowled at her mother, and blushed hard, when she realized she was still holding Pippin’s hand. She quickly let go, glancing up at a blushing Pippin, before introducing him.

"Er, mum, this is.. Pippin Took" she said as Pippin shook her mum’s hand. He was blushing wildly at her last comment, and lifted his gaze from the floor. He then saw the necklace that hung around her neck. It looked almost exactly like the diamonds he'd found on his adventure with Mallyra.

"what a lovely necklace," Pippin complimented, casting a nervous glance at Mallyra. Mallyra’s mum thanked him quickly, before reaching for the diamond teardrop that was hanging around her neck. Pippin then invited Mallyra and her mother to sit at a spare table, which was surprisingly empty. Mallyra's mother fiddled with the necklace for a while, as she sat with Mallyra and Pippin, talking about how Mallyra had found it, leaving out the minor detail of the incident with the creature.

"so you didn’t stop at a friend’s house?" her mum scolded. Mallyra twiddled her thumbs under the table, looking down at them every so often.

"I just didn't want to worry" Mallyra sighed, smiling nervously up at her mother. Her mother frowned even more, and made a sharp noise,

"Merullyra Flintwater!" she snapped. Pippin frowned a little, and looked down at Mallyra, looking slightly confused.

"I thought your name was Mallyra?" He asked, tilting his head to one side. Mallyra quickly turned her attention to Pippin, and then realised what he was on about.

"It was- I mean, it is!" She stuttered, a nervous blush painting her cheeks. "Merullyra is my full name, like Peregrin is yours... So when you call me Mallyra, it's like when people call you Pippin. If you follow me.." Mallyra said, completely throwing Pippin. He sat in silence for a moment, pulling a face as he sat hard in thought. After another moment, he slowly nodded his head, and Mallyra turned to her mother again.

"I trusted you Mallrya! I thought you were safe, and now you tell me you were so far away with a lad who's practically a stranger!" Her mother continued, folding her arms across her chest. Mallyra went to speak again, but her mother held up her hand.

"Look, I know you think you can come up with every excuse under the sun, but you can't. If you get in trouble, I won't be there to save you. Don't come crying to me!" She began to shout, leaning forward and grabbing Mallyra's hand. Mallyra flinched in pain, and then looked into her mothers eyes. She saw a spark, but it wasn’t of anger. It was black.

"M-mum... are you okay?" she stammered, concern filling her voice. Her mother glared back at her, the spark of black filling her eyes. They were quickly filled with darkness, no life in them at all. Pippin turned to look back at her, and his mouth fell open.

"A-Are you okay Mrs Flintwater?" Pippin asked, as he stood up and put his hand on her shoulder. Mallyra’s mother yanked Pippin's hand from her shoulder, making a loud snarling noise. Then, her head shot upwards, her mouth open wide. Other people began to notice the disturbance, and stepped cautiously away. Mallyra glanced nervously across at Pippin, who's face was equally filled with worry.

"What's wrong?" Mallyra asked, desperately shaking her mother, but she continued to stare up at the ceiling. Her mother then let out a piercing shriek, causing everyone to cover their ears, before something happened. Something Mallyra would never forget for the rest of her days.