'I could quite happily spend the rest of my days here,' sighed Bilbo as he stretched his short legs out before him.
Gandalf smiled and puffed another smoke ring as the sun dipped below the edges of the valley. Below them Rivendell gleamed softly in the dusk as the elves hung glowing lanterns in every building, preparing to ward off the shadows.
'It's no surprise to me, Bilbo, that you feel so comfortable in the House of Elrond,' Gandalf said. Bilbo looked up at him.
'I can't imagine anyone feeling any other way, Gandalf. Soft beds, good dinners – '
'That is not what I am referring to, Mr Baggins.'
'Well, I can't imagine- '
'You do not mean to tell me that you never paid heed to the tales your mother told you of your family?'
'Which ones? If this is about that ridiculous tale of Bandobras Took and the goblin's head –'
'Save me!' Gandalf muttered. He rose from his seat to stand under the archway that lead to Elrond's private gardens and turned to face Bilbo, frowning.
'I am referring, Bilbo, to the story whispered among your relatives about a certain marriage one of your Took ancestors made a very long time ago.'
Bilbo's eyes widened.
'The one who took a fairy wife? I always thought that was a romantic embellishment.'
'Hobbits!' growled Gandalf. 'Some never give things their proper names!'
Bilbo rose and stepped over to the wizard's side.
'But, Gandalf, how could it be true? I mean, look at me! There's nothing of the elves in my appearance and there was – well, is – none in any of the Tooks! Surely if it were true, at least one of us would resemble, well...'
Bilbo gestured across the gap in the walkways to where Elrond stood talking in low tones with two other elves, both as dark as him.
'You do not need to look like something to be it, Bilbo,' Gandalf murmured, seeing the brief flash of something (disappointment?) in Bilbo's eyes. 'Besides, there is something different about you. I saw it in your mother too.'
'What's so different about me?' Bilbo said in a small voice.
Gandalf smiled.
'Your eyes are not the eyes of a Baggins, Bilbo,' he said. 'They are your mother's. Belladonna Took did not have the eyes of your usual hobbit-maid. There was something else about her.'
Gandalf brought the pipe back to his lips, inhaling the beloved tobacco thoughtfully.
'Yes,' he murmured, half to himself. 'Something else indeed.'
Bilbo smiled.
'My father always said my mother had an 'otherness' to her,' he said. 'When they told me stories of their courting days he always said that he knew she was the one for him when they danced in the Midsummer celebrations.'
What he didn't tell Gandalf was that his mother had captivated his father – and scandalized the Baggins relations – by refusing to wait amongst the other hobbit-maids while the menfolk chose their partners for the dance. Instead, as his father loved to recall, while the hobbit-lads dithered and shifted their feet and blushed, being watched by the giggling yet impatient girls, Belladonna rose from her seat, uttered a word unbecoming to a hobbit-maid and leapt over the bench to land right in front of Bungo, who was closest to the group.
Bungo blushed right up to his sandy hair (according to Belladonna, who always interjected at this point) and mumbled something about propriety but she reached out a pale hand and laid a finger on his lips. Her dark hair, wreathed with roses, curled about her face as she smiled at him.
'It was then, my boy,' Bungo would say, his hand resting on his wife's, 'that I knew I would marry her.'
They had remained partners for the whole night, dancing beneath Gandalf's fireworks as the Baggins relatives watched, faces slowly turning puce.
'If your mother hadn't married your father, I sincerely believe she may have decided to do what you have done,' Gandalf said, watching Bilbo out of the corner of his eye.
'I do remember her mentioning that story, about the fairy – elvish wife,' Bilbo corrected, seeing Gandalf's look, 'but she never gave details. I doubt anyone knew anything more than what she told me. There may have been something in the Great Smials' library, but I was never interested in going in there as a lad.'
'You were more interested in disappearing into the woods to search of them yourself, and now you have found them,' Gandalf chuckled. Bilbo turned away from Gandalf to look back at Elrond, now accompanied by a lovely elf-maiden clad in blue.
'Yet no closer to knowing the truth,' he whispered. Gandalf looked at him.
'You are in the House of Elrond, Bilbo. He may be able to shed some light on this matter, if you are so keen to know the truth about your kin.'
'Do you think so, Gandalf?' Bilbo looked up hopefully.
'In matters relating to Elvish bloodlines, Elrond has no equal on this side of the Misty Mountains. We will ask him tomorrow for his assistance.'
'Really? Oh, thank you Gandalf!' Bilbo grinned, and in that moment, Gandalf saw Belladonna looking at him once again.
'It is late, Bilbo. I suggest you get some rest.'
Bilbo nodded and turned back into the recesses of the hall. Gandalf watched him make his way towards his bedroom before turning back towards the moon, a thoughtful expression in his eyes.
