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“I don’t get it” Pippin complained as the Fellowship was packing up their bags to leave their latest campsite. “If the line of kings was indeed broken, how can you be the heir of Isilurr, Strider?”
“It’s Isildur” Frodo corrected him.
“Isildur then.”
Aragorn smiled and shook his head at the Hobbit. He had been trying to explain his heritage to Pippin, Merry and Sam while they were eating but Pippin seemed to have a lot of trouble making sense of it all.
“Pippin try to keep up” Legolas said. To him it was very easy. “Again, there were two kingdoms at first, Arnor and Gondor.”
“Arnor in the north, Gondor in the south” Sam inserted.
“And they were ruled by Elendil and his sons” Merry added.
“Good for them, but that’s not what I asked” Pippin said in a sulking tone.
Aragorn grinned at the Hobbit. They were nearly two weeks out of Rivendell and the natural curiosity of the Hobbits, especially Pippin and Merry, had led to many interesting discussions and stories. Frodo already knew some of the answers to the questions but the other three were more than eager to learn. Aragorn, Boromir and Legolas were often the teachers, while Gandalf puffed his pipe and inserted a detail here or there and Gimli took a nap.
Now Pippin shook his head in confusion while he rolled his sleeping blankets and wondered if he would be able to get Frodo or Merry to carry them for him.
“I know that Elendil and his sons died in the war” he said. “I’m not completely daft. It’s the rest that is confusing to me.”
“Isildur was the oldest of Elendil’s sons” Aragorn patiently repeated. “His son came to rule Arnor after the war while the son of Anarion, Isildur’s younger brother, ruled Gondor. Up until that point the two kingdoms had in most ways been as one, with Elendil acting as high king over both Arnor and Gondor.”
“I don’t see the point in letting someone else be king of your lands if you’re going to name yourself an even kinglier king over said lands” Pippin said and realised he would have to carry his own blankets as both Frodo and Merry knew what he had in mind and seemed far too busy to meet his eyes.
Sam and Frodo looked confused for a moment over the statement Pippin had just made, then Frodo shook his head to clear it and sort it all out.
“In most ways Isildur and Anarion ruled Gondor” he told Pippin. “It’s just that they ruled in Elendil’s stead.”
“I still don’t see what all of this has to do with Strider” Pippin said.
“The north and the south kingdoms had been as one up until this point” Aragorn explained. “But now Anarion’s son refused to acknowledge his cousin’s claim to both thrones as the heir of Elendil. The two kingdoms became separate.”
“And still I have no idea what this has to do with you” Pippin pointed out.
“Isildur’s heirs ruled Arnor until the three sons of the last king decided to split the land between them” Legolas informed Pippin. “My father was present when this was made official. He never quite did like the idea. The land ruled by the eldest son was eventually overtaken by the forces of Angmar and what was left of the people became the Dunedain rangers.”
“Like a certain ranger we know” Frodo said.
“I understood that. What I didn’t understand was how that makes Strider more than a ranger whose forefathers lived in the north kingdom.”
Aragorn chuckled.
“Thank you Peregrin for thinking so highly of me” he said. “The last king of that kingdom carried on as chieftain of the rangers. A role which then passed to his son, and his son, and so forth until one day the role was passed on from my father to me.”
“So you are the numerous great-great son of someone who was the numerous great-great son of someone who was once son of someone who was king?” Pippin summed it up.
Gandalf mumbled something less than flattering over by the rock where he was seated while waiting for the others to finish their unusually slow packing.
“In simpler terms he is the heir of Elendil” Sam said and obviously thought Pippin was making this much more difficult than it needed to be.
“Yes but the line of kings was broken” Pippin insisted. “I don’t get it! If the line of kings was broken, how can you be the rightful heir?”
“That’s enough!” Gimli roared. “I have listened to this three times now, and it’s like a circle, each time you get to the final explanation Pippin still doesn’t understand and the whole thing starts over again. I want to get moving and I don’t want to hear another word about lines of kings or rangers in the north!”
“Gimli is right” Gandalf declared. “We must make haste. Don’t trouble your mind with things you obviously cannot understand, Peregrin.”
Merry leaned closer to Pippin and lowered his voice to a whisper as he lifted his heavy backpack from the ground.
“The line of Gondorian kings was broken, but as the rightful heir to Isildur, son of Elendil, he can claim both Arnor and Gondor” he hissed to his cousin. “And don’t think that I will carry your blankets for you.”
“I don’t see why you have to make it so complicated” Aragorn said and lifted his own pack. “But Gandalf is right. If it’s too difficult for you then just leave it for now.”
“Yes, because we certainly don’t have oceans of time to talk, we are so busy walking” Pippin sarcastically remarked.
“Perhaps the simple minds of the Halflings cannot understand such things at an age as young as yours” Legolas said in an attempt to be diplomatic. “You will understand later on.”
“Don’t be too sure when it comes to Pippin” Frodo teased.
Aragorn laughed as Frodo trotted off, clearly pleased with himself for understanding Aragorn’s claim to the throne. Gandalf and Gimli had already begun to walk and it was clear from the look on Legolas’ face as he began to walk after them that he didn’t find Pippin to be the cleverest one in the bunch. The same judgment of Pippin’s intelligence could be read in Aragorn’s grinning face and Pippin found himself getting annoyed.
“Just because I don’t understand your impossible family relations…” he said. “I wouldn’t laugh like that Strider; you certainly think a lot of yourself if you believe you are able to figure anything out at once.”
“Master Pippin I am sure he can give an answer to anything you might ask him” Sam assured, a bit upset with Pippin questioning the ranger Sam had begun to really look up to.
“I am not out to offend you, Master Peregrin” Aragorn assured, still with a grinning face. “But I have to agree with Sam that I think I can understand or find an answer to most anything you ask me.”
“Is that so now?” Pippin said and with a cocky twitch of the neck threw his pack over his right shoulder. “How does a king open a door?”
Aragorn chuckled, then realised that Pippin was serious. He opened his mouth to reply but realised he didn’t know the answer. It was a riddle, but it was new to him. He glanced over at Boromir who just shook his head with a grin. Pippin raised an eyebrow in a mixture between triumph and cockiness and strode off to catch up with the rest before Merry had to yell at him for a third time to make haste. Aragorn and Boromir formed the tail of the company as they left the camping site.
“You don’t know the answer to the riddle, do you?” Boromir asked with a grin.
“As long as I can figure it out before we make our next stop” Aragorn said. “Do you know the answer?”
“No” Boromir said and adjusted his shield on his shoulder. “But he didn’t ask me.”
“He just turns the knob” Aragorn yelled to Pippin, wondering if the answer was really that simple.
“The door is locked!” Pippin yelled back.
“Pippin!” the two men heard Merry scold. “Keep your voice down! We’re supposed to be going unnoticed.”
“He started it” Pippin was heard objecting.
Boromir chuckled and shook his head.
“Good luck with that Aragorn” he said.
*
A few hours later, when the collective whining of four Hobbits finally caused Gandalf to order halt and food, Aragorn had gotten no further to solving the riddle. He wondered for a minute if Pippin would even remember that he had asked it, but a raised eyebrow from the youngest Hobbit made it clear that he was expecting an answer.
“Aragorn, oh heir of Elendil and for some reason king over lands who don’t have a king, do you have an answer for me?” Pippin asked and sat down to rest while the meal was being prepared.
“Stop pestering Aragorn” Gimli gruffed. “Make yourself useful instead.”
“I am making myself useful” Pippin insisted. “Keeping out of the way is usually the best way for me to help with supper.”
“It’s true” Frodo sighed and started looking through Sam’s pack in search of a frying pan.
“Strider said he could find an answer to anything I asked him” Pippin said. “Well can you, Strider”
“As exciting as the finally to this event promises to be, I’m not sure I want to hear the rest of this discussion” Boromir commented and then turned to Legolas to discuss whether or not they should go out and hunt.
“Master Peregrin I believe you have got me stumped” Aragorn admitted and sat down next to Pippin with a grin. “So how does a king open a door?”
“Boy is Gondor in trouble” Pippin said. “You’re going to be king, well that is if anybody buys into your long fairy tale of origin, and you don’t even know how to open a door.”
“That’s enough” Gandalf said and lit his pipe.
“I already gave you a big hint” Pippin told Aragorn. “I told you the door was locked. Why don’t you mull it over while I go help Sam with Bill.”
He got up and went over to Sam, leaving an even more puzzled Aragorn behind. Aragorn looked up at Merry with a look like he wasn’t sure whether he should be indifferent to Pippin’s riddle or be taking it seriously.
“Don’t look at me” Merry said. “It’s just a riddle, Strider.”
“I may not have figured out the answer,” Aragorn said with a sigh, “but I have learned never to tease Pippin again. Does he always do this?”
Merry shrugged a shoulder and used his backpack to nudge Gimli, who had begun to snore. Aragorn looked over at Gandalf who was sucking his pipe and chuckling good-naturedly.
“Seems like Master Peregrin has put you in your place” he chuckled.
Aragorn ignored the wizard and lay down next to Gimli to get some rest. He was tired, but his mind wouldn’t leave the stupid riddle alone. He could hear the voices of the Hobbits as they unpacked Bill and waited to see if Boromir and Legolas would come back with something to eat. They spoke in hushed tones, but even if they had been silent he would have been able to tell which one was which just by how they walked. Funny how he knew them so well that he could tell them apart by looking at their shadows, but he had never in a million years guessed that he would be stumped by Pippin.
After a while Legolas and Boromir returned with a couple of hares, which were quickly prepared and cooked, much to the Hobbits’ delight. Aragorn nudged Gimli awake and they joined the others for some food and conversation.
“Alright Pippin” Aragorn said between bites. “I retract my previous statement and admit that there are things you know that I have no answer for.”
“Even if it is just the answer to a silly riddle” Sam muttered under his breath.
“Just tell us what the answer is already” Gimli demanded. “I can’t figure it out either, but on the other hand I’ve never been much for riddles.”
“Yes Pippin, how does a king open a door?” Boromir asked.
“He uses monarchy” Pippin said light-heartedly.
“Monar-key” Sam emphasised in response to Gimli’s nonplussed look.
Merry moaned and threw a rock at Pippin.
“Poor Gondor you say? Poor Tuckburough to be left in the hands of the likes of you. That’s the worst riddle I’ve ever heard. Strider may have a confusing family tree, but at least he doesn’t have to have you in it.”
Pippin shot Merry a hurt look but Aragorn just laughed and put his hands on Pippin’s shoulder.
“Maybe I’ll abdicate and go live with Strider to be his court jester” Pippin joked.
“Oh heavens, spare us” Gandalf sighed, causing the others to laugh.
Pippin jokingly shot Aragorn a triumphant look before throwing a rock back at his cousin. Then he turned to Aragorn again with a frown.
“But really…” he said. “I don’t get it. How can you be Isildur’s heir?”
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