I still believe that must be Pippin climbing up the roots, but where is his elven cloak? And get a load of that hair! Much longer than I imagined. And the expression on his face is a little clearer on my copy, very grim. But the one that I think of as Merry, lying on his stomach with his arms flung up around his head, just breaks my heart. He looks so exhausted. But what are those items beside him? Perhaps one is their elven cloaks rolled up into a bundle? I don't know. One looks like a red hood, but I can't imagine that making the trip with the orcs. And Pippin appears to be carrying a sword...which I can't figure out either, after the orcs had them. Did he lift a sword from one of the dead orcs?
Mr. Tolkien has painted a confusing picture, I wish there was someone I could ask that might know!