Book 3, Chapter 11 Summary

Those who rode to Isengard ride toward Dunharrow, taking Pippin and Merry along with them. After a long day's journey, they make camp for the evening. Ever the curious one, Pippin is anxious to look into the stone from Orthanc. Therefore, while Gandalf sleeps, Pippin takes the stone from under Gandalf's arm and replaces it with another stone. Then, once he has the stone to himself, Pippin looks into it and yells in pain.

Hearing the cry, Gandalf wakes and asks Pippin what happened. Pippin responds that he saw Sauron and it was horrible for him. However, realizing that they may still be safe, Gandalf says that Sauron probably thought that Saruman forced Pippin to look into the stone as a form of torture.

However, Gandalf is happy to learn that the stone is a palantír -- a magical stone...