Frodo Baggins (theseabell) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2013-08-09 13:24:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, frodo baggins, wall-e |
Who: Frodo and Wally
When: Sunday morning, August 4, 11am
Where: Driving Around
What: Body Swap!Car Accident, Frodo doesn't have a licence
Rating/Warning: Low, but there is a minor car accidnet, also drug references
Status: Complete
really</i> shouldn’t have been taking a drive that Sunday morning. He still didn’t have more than his learner’s permit. What he was doing was very illegal, without a licensed adult in the car with him. But since Merrill had the baby, she hadn’t been able to help; and his butler was extra busy as well. Frodo seemed like he was the only one with extra time out his hands, and he didn’t like falling out of practice.
He also felt silly looking for a licensed adult when he was nearly fifty-six himself...
Wally was simply driving along the street, trying not to think about Tiffany, and all that stuff. He was much happier listening to the music and trying not to think. He didn’t always drive fast, actually he was a fairly cautious driver. So he wasn’t driving above the speed limit as he was moving along the residential street...
It was the corner that got Frodo. He wasn’t very good at dividing his attention. The turn he made was too wide. If Merrill had been in the car, she would have said something and probably prevented the horrible scraping sound he heard instead as the two cars locked together. He was startled, but not hurt.
Wally was startled, too. He should have seen this coming. His car jolted, squealed, and the two cars stopped in their tracks. His heart was definitely pumping now. And fast as he climbed out of the car.
“You all right?” He called out to the other driver. Wally’s knees were a little shakey, but he was more concerned for others.
Frodo’s door was no longer operable. He’d have to climb over to the other side, but first, he made sure everything on his body worked the way it was supposed to, testing his neck and knees and elbows. Last of all, he checked his pulse, which was fast, but didn’t appear to be skipping beats.
He waved to the other man through his window and gave him a thumbs-up. Then he started making his way, clumsily, to the passenger side.
Wally wandered around the cars. It seemed like the damage was mostly on the outside--mostly superficial. He thought he could probably repair his own car on his own, but... he gave a low whistle. A Bentley. Wow. He stopped and waited while Frodo climbed over the seat.
Frodo was older, but he was small. Climbing to the other seat wasn’t an insurmountable task. Soon, he was outside, surveying the damage. The thing about being superfluously wealthy meant nothing was so bad that it couldn’t be fixed or replaced. The Bentley had some emotional value, but not as much as his other cars. Frodo had over twenty of them.
He slipped his hands into his pockets and sighed. “You’re okay, right?”
“Yes.” Wally said, giving the other man a nod. He was a little older, but nowhere near old. He looked like a distinguished, dignified man. A little shorter than Wally, for sure, but Wally wasn’t that tall, either. “You?”
Frodo patted his chest for good measure. "Yes, I believe so." He'd never been in a car accident before, but... Oh dear. A license. He didn't have a license! "Er... I'm pretty sure it was all my fault. What do you think the damage is, to your vehicle?" He suddenly wanted to get the master sorted out as quickly as possible.
“Oh, well, shouldn’t we... exchange insurance?” Wally had never been in an accident before. Sure, he’d hit a post or two, bumped into a parked car once or twice. But he had no idea about a traffic collision. Were they supposed to call the police? File a report?
Personally, Frodo hated the idea of circumventing the law. But he’d never been in a situation where he’d needed to actually consider it before. What was the penalty for driving without a license? A fine was easy enough to pay, but would they take his car? Would they try to put him in jail? But more than any of those things, Frodo feared making the newspapers and other information outlets. He was a wealthy, well-known man, a celebrity in some circles--and this was a sensational story.
He did have insurance, of course. And the other man, though he seemed nice enough, wasn’t someone he knew he could trust. Frodo realized he was also in a position to be sued. Oh, there were too many things to think about. He rubbed his forehead. He had such a headache all of a sudden.
Wally took a slow lap around the cars, frowning a bit. It looked like he’d only need to replace two panels on the side of his car. Wasn’t that bad. And then paint. It was likely he couldn’t just bang out the dents--they would probably need to be replaced. Which was unfortunate. But not something he couldn’t do on his own. Wally was handy with tools and machines. Or he could take it into a shop...
Getting the cars apart might be a problem. Wally could try putting his in reverse and pulling back and away, that might make them come apart, but it could do more damage, too.
Frodo massaged his forehead. “Ugh, why did I do this?” he muttered. “Why didn’t I just stay home?” This wasn’t a private street. Someone would see them soon and call the police, or the police would spot them on their own. There was no way out of this were he wasn’t in tomorrow’s tabloids.
“It’s okay.” Wally said, moving back over to the guy. “We’ll just... take care of it.” He could tell that the older man was freaking out a bit, and though he wasn’t sure why, he came back over to try and reassure him. “Doesn’t look like that much damage. I can fix my car on my own, just need the parts.”
Of course, that was when a police car pulled up beside them. On cue. Frodo felt his heart sink, along with his head, as he cursed under his breath. He didn’t often swear.
It was a sigh that Wally didn’t remember breathing. And, suddenly, he was staring at the ground. When had he been staring at the ground? He lifted his head, and looked around--only to see himself standing between himself and a police car. ...what? A confused and slightly terrified expression crossed the features on his face--features that were not his own.
Frodo, meanwhile, had stumbling against his car. Suddenly, the horizon had pitched downward. He felt very lightheaded and he broke into a cold sweat. The police had gotten out of their car and they were asking if everyone was okay. Frodo pulled himself together well enough to offer Wally a hand up... and that was when he hit the ground, too.
The policeman came out of his car and rushed over to check on the two men. He was already calling for an ambulance, and back-up, and whatever else it was that policemen do. Wally thought that it was all a bit much. Really, he just wanted to go home. Something really, really crazy had just happened. He didn’t feel himself. He pulled up to his feet, finding that he was much shorter. That was crazy. How was he much shorter than seconds ago? He lifted his hands to inspect them, and frowned. These were not his hands.
Yes, there was one pair of hands that was missing a finger, and those hands were no longer the ones Frodo had any control over. They were not attached to him. They were... no wait, they were attached to him. They...
Frodo reached out at took the other man by the face. His own face! His head was on the other man’s body! “What is going on?”
Wally blinked. It was a trip to see himself grabbing at his own face. His own voice talking to him. There was a look of panic on Wally’s face, that was likely mirrored on the face he was wearing--whatever face that was. “How do you look like me?” He asked, then took a step back to free himself from his own grasp. (Gosh, this was getting confusing.) “What’s happened to my finger?”
“Alright, fellas,” said one of the police officers, sounding none-too-impressed. “Get up. On your feet.”
Frodo looked at his new hands, which were younger and fully intact. He flipped from palms to the back of his hands, he bent his fingers. His eyes were wide as golf balls.
Wally stood up to his full height--which wasn’t as impressive as it was in his own body. That was the only thing he could think of. He must have swapped. They must have swapped. Him and the man he crashed into.
“You’re me!” He said, turning to point at himself. “And I must be you!”
“You are me!” Frodo exclaimed. He reached up to feel his new face. Suddenly, he had a chiseled jaw and cheekbones, real cheekbones. Not his moonish, hobbit face.
Meanwhile, the cops were exchanging disgruntled looks with one another. “I say they’re both under the influence of something. Give me a break.”
“Alright, you two, we’ve gotta search the vehicles. Hands against the car.”
The only thing Wally really knew about the police was to do what they asked you to. So he put his hands against the car and waited for further instructions.
Wally’s hands against the car, he turned to look at himself. "... what happened to your finger?"
While one of the officers began to pat them both down, Frodo looked over at himself and his hand. “I don’t know, actually. I sort of woke up... after an attack... they said it might have been bitten off.” And of course, there were the dreams to confirm that, but one revelation at a time. Also, the officer working on them barked orders to shut up.
Both of Wally’s eyebrows... okay, Frodo’s eyebrows... raised at that. “Bitten?” He said, sounding surprised. Confused a little. “Wow, that’s...”
The police officer gave them a “Quiet!” as he patted them down. Thankfully, and not surprisingly, neither of them had anything but cell phones, keys and wallets in their pockets.
That did not, however, stop the officers from asking both of them what they were on--even though nothing illegal had been found in either car. “Nothing,” Frodo said. At least, he assumed Wally hadn’t taken any drugs that day. He glanced sideways at the man wearing his face.
“Nothing.” Wally said, shaking Frodo’s head. (Okay, that was a weird way of putting that.) He glanced over at the man inside his body and shrugged his shoulders before turning back to the policeman. “We just had a minor accident. No injuries. We’re both a bit rattled.”
“And is that why you were both sitting on the street, mystified with your hands?” the officer retorted with a snort. “How about we see some licences and registration?”Frodo Wally Frodo’s eye buldged, his head snapping in the direction of the other man, whom would find no licence in his wallet, and whom he could not fully prepare.
Wally reached into his pockets, figuring that was probably the easier way to go about this. Rather than try to connect with the other man first... he pulled out a wallet and started to rifle through it, looking for... anything, really. There wasn’t anything helpful in there that he could find.
Of course, Wally’s license was in his wallet, and the registration in his glovebox. Along with his insurance information.
The officers both looked pissed and their crosshairs had locked on Wally. Frodo gulped. There was nothing he could do. Not now. After the fact, he’d find a way to make it up to him. But right now, all he could do was watch. He felt faint.
“Uh... it’s not here.” Wally said, glancing at the other man as if desperate for some help. He wasn’t sure what to do. He turned back to the officers. “...I don’t have... on me...”
What was going to happen now? He honestly had no idea.
Frodo wanted to melt into a puddle and disappear. This was so unfair and so embarrassing. He tried to give Wally some kind of look that somehow explained everything, but communication was impossible at this point. He couldn’t make a licence appear out of thin air. He wasn’t Gandalf.
“Okay,” said one of the cops. “We’re going to impound the car and you’re going to come with us. Public intoxication--you too, buddy,” he said to Frodo. “Both of you. Both cars.”
“What? No, you don’t have to do that,” Wally said, shaking his head. But he wasn’t resisting. He folded the wallet back up and put it in his pocket. Oh, God. This was going to be interesting.
“Pretty fancy car to be driving without a licence, Mr. Baggins.”
Soon, both Frodo and Wally were in the back seat of the police vehicle. Through the window, it looked like the other officer was making of call. He assumed it was for someone to come and tow away the wreck. He turned to Wally. “You have no idea how sorry I am.”
Wally turned to stare at him. Now they were in the police car with some semblance of privacy, he could start asking questions. “...you don’t have a license??”
“Not exactly,” he replied in a harsh whisper. “Well, no. Not... No, I don’t. I only just started learning. But I promise you, I will make this up to you. Somehow. Once we’re switched back. Assuming we’re switched back.” Frodo gulped
“We’ll be switched back.” Living in the OC taught Wally that none of these strange things that happened were permanent. “Dunno how long it’ll last, but...” He sighed. This was a lot of words for the normally silent fellow.
“...What else do I need to know about being you?” He asked. What else was going to get him into trouble?
Frodo opened his mouth, ready to reply. The truth was, he was ridiculously wealthy, and Wally would be wise to watch every step he made. Once the story about the accident broke, there’d be plenty of tabloids hoping to expand on their misfortune.
But he didn’t get to speak. The policemen hopped back in the front of the car, glaring warnings over their shoulders and Frodo knew it was time to keep quiet. They were going to the police station. There was no avoiding that.
The week was off to a terrible start.