I saw a cute little fanart the other day, of Bilbo looking up at the snow while Thorin was smiling at him. The Shire is pretty mild, so they probably get about an inch of snow once every couple of years or so. After Erebor is reclaimed, it snows. A lot. There's a lot of snow and it snows while they're all sleeping.
Cue an excited Hobbit, an amused Wizard and several Dwarfs who are involved in the fun with Bilbo and the snow.
Not intended to be a part of Recreation, though you could see this as a part of it. Contains Bagginshield!
It was a lot chillier than usual in Erebor today, Bilbo thought as he wandered through the corridors to the kitchens. Normally, it was pleasantly warm, though not usually too much so. Rubbing his hands together to try and steal some warmth, he looked around for a member of the Company, to see if they, too, found today to be oddly cold. He found the Ur brothers, Bombur stirring a delicious-smelling porridge in a large pot on the stove and Bofur pouring hot water into comically giant mugs. The toymaker smiled as he spotted the Hobbit, put the kettle down and reached for another mug.
"Morning, lad!"
"Good morning, Bofur, Bombur."
"You look a tad shivery, if you don't mind my saying." Bofur went on.
"It is rather cold." Bilbo agreed.
"Look outside when you've had your breakfast. You'll see why then."
"But, why is it cold?" Bilbo asked.
Bofur grinned mischievously. "You'll find out soon enough."
Deciding it was too cold to be dealing with the mysteriousness and impishness of Dwarfs (particularly this one), Bilbo didn't ask any further and accepted the tea Bofur passed to him, gratefully absorbing the warmth the mug brought him.
He would find out later anyhow.
Snow. That's what it was. Beautiful, enchanting, crisp, unmarked, smooth gorgeous snow. He didn't have a very thick coat on, but this little fact flew out of his head as he took in the magical sight in front of him. There was just so much of it. It was incredible. They could have snowball fights all year if they chose to. And sledding and making snow forts and many other things that just had to be done when it snowed. he took a step forward, feeling the crunchy, yet soft substance sinking under his foot. Crouching down, he took a handful of snow, shaping it into the perfect sphere. He squinted into the entrance back to Erebor and spotted, to his delight, Kili heading his way. Ability to hit exactly what he was aiming for still intact, he threw his weapon and smiled as it hit its target with a soft thump, exploding into tiny, ice-cold pieces.
Kili looked surprised at the thing that attacked his shoulder. He shuddered at the icy slush that had slid down his neck and narrowed his eyes at the person who had committed this terrible crime. He grinned. If Bilbo wanted a snowball fight, then he would give him one.
Bilbo shrieked as the youngest Durin threw his own snowball at him. Raising his eyebrows, he darted down to pick up more ammuniton and hurled it at Kili, earning a surprised yelp from the dark-haired Dwarf. The archer hurled more of his own snow at him, gaining more retribution, until finally he decided to tackle the Hobbit to the snow-covered ground in hopes of getting the upper hand.
It didn't work. Bilbo had grown up with numerous cousins who liked to use this tactic and was, even now, an expert at fighting off people who decided to try and wrestle themselves to success. Kili was quite the match, however, and the whole thing seemed ridiculously hilarious and between trying to get Kili to cease his hold and giggling, Bilbo eventually gave up. Kili, realising the danger was over, got off of Bilbo and offered a hand to help him up.
"Do you Hobbits always attack innocent Dwarfs with snow?" Kili asked.
"We can't let the snow go to waste!" Bilbo pointed out. "Besides, snowball fights are brilliant!"
"I agree." Kili beamed. He hadn't had a snowball fight in what seemed like years and the white blanket surrounding Erebor was just right for one.
"Have you ever built snow forts?"
Kili nodded. "I have, yes. Have you ever made a snowman?"
"There was never enough snow," Bilbo said. "Only the littlest Fauntlings made snow forts because they were so small they didn't need much snow."
"Alright, we must make a snowman." Kili decided. "And you should put something warm on, Uncle will kill me if you get too cold."
"Why are you both covered in snow?" Ori asked as they made their way back to the chambers.
"We had a snowball fight." Kili explained.
"A snowball fight? At your ages?"
"Ori, you're never too old for a snowball fight!" Bilbo said, shocked. "They're one of the best joys in life. In fact, do you want to join in?"
Ori considered. "Well, I'm not doing anything today. And it does look nice."
"It'll be fun." Kili promised.
"We're making snowmen."
Ori's eyes lit up. "I haven't made a snowman in years."
"So, you'll come?" Bilbo asked.
Nodding eagerly, Ori agreed and skipped off, looking quite delighted at the thought of building a snowman.
By the time Bilbo was donned in winter clothes Kili thought Thorin might deem acceptable, Ori was knocking on the door, wearing a multi-coloured, woollen bobble hat, and soft, purple mittens. His scarf, as always, was wrapped around his neck and he asked Kili if Fili would be joining.
"If we see him, he might. I think he's spending the day with Uncle, though."
The trio headed back to the kitchens to borrow the carrots that Kili and Ori said they needed.
"Where are you three going?" Nori asked, over the cup of mead he was drinking.
"We're going to build a snowman!" Kili said.
"Will you come?" Ori asked.
Nori hesitated, but looking into his younger brother's eyes, nodded. "Sure."
Kili looked overjoyed. "Having lots of people building the snowman is great! We could build one the size of Erebor itself!"
"I'm not sure about Erebor," Nori said, "but I'm sure we could build a big one. Are you going to go sledding?"
"Can we?" Ori asked. "I'm not sure Dori would like it."
"We've faced Orcs, what's the worst thing that could happen on a sled?"
"We could break our arms." Ori pointed out.
"That won't kill us." Nori said. "Go on outside, I'll hunt around for something sled-like."
Nori's idea of 'sled-like' turned out to be two huge shields covered in various jewels, shining golden in the burning sunlight. After assuring them that they would most certainly not get in trouble for using them (they were part of his share, they discovered), they decided to simply use them after they'd finished their snowman.
They gathered up as much snow as they could and started patting it down into a circle shape for his body. After the near-perfect circle was created, there was a discussion as to whether or not he should have a middle between his head and his body.
"Kili, you have a neck, you know what one looks like, why do you want the snowman to have a circular, round neck? He'll look a right prat." Nori said.
"No more than you do!" Kili snapped.
"Don't say that!" Ori protested. "My brother doesn't look like a prat."
"Not this one, anyway." Nori added.
Kili, despite his slight annoyance, grinned. "i just want him to be the biggest snowman in the world."
"As he stands now, he's as big as we are." Nori said, pointing at the half-finished creation. "By the time we put his head on, he'll probably be as big as Dwalin."
Kili seemed to like this. "That's not bad, I suppose."
"How are we going to get his head onto his body?" Bilbo asked.
"There's a good point actually."
The four stood and looked at the snow-made object.
"Should I try and find someone?" Bilbo asked.
Nori perked up. "Yes! Find someone tall, like Gloin, I bet his lad has built a few snowmen with him..."
He didn't find Gloin, but he did find Gandalf, wandering about a corridor. The Wizard smiled as he saw Bilbo with the little bits of snow in his hair and clothes, guessing what he'd been up to on this cold yet beautiful day.
"Can I help you, my boy?"
"We're building a snowman.."
"Oh? Sounds fun."
"We won't be able to get his head onto his body."
"Oh dear." Gandalf chuckled. "Let me see if I can help with this little problem."
Gandalf could and did help with their 'little' problem. He admired their handiwork with them and smiled through their thanks and stood back, puffing on his pipe, eyes twinkling as they started positioning the shield sleds.
"Let's make this interesting." Nori said, eyes glittering. "First one to the bottom gets to name the snowman."
"You're on." Kili agreed. Turning to Bilbo, he said loudly, "when we win, the snowman will be called Ice Star."
"Sounds more like the name of a snow Elf to me." Nori muttered. To Ori, equally loud as Kili, he said, "When we win, the snowman's going to be called Frostbite."
"Really bloody cheerful!" Kili hollered.
Ori gave Bilbo a nervous look, holding tightly onto Nori's middle. "I don't know if I like the sound of a race, Nori."
"Don't worry, little brother. I'll keep you safe." Nori said, patting Ori's hand.
"Three!" Gandalf called.
"Here goes." Nori said.
"Two!" Gandalf counted.
"No mercy." Kili whispered.
"One!" Gandalf continued.
Bilbo wrapped his arms around Kili's waist.
"GO!" The Wizard bellowed.
In all his life, Bilbo had never had such an exhilirating sled ride. Kili was really determined to win and they were gaining speed on Nori and Ori, both pushing at the snow to gain momentum as they zoomed down the hill. He could hear Gandalf's calls of encouragement to both teams and at one point, Kili screamed "FOR ICE STAR!" but the most of what he could hear consisted of the howling wind swirling around his ears.
Suddenly, Nori was calling "SLOW DOWN!"
And that was when they saw the snow wall that was approaching them. Or they were approaching it. Whatever was approaching what, they was undeniably a large wall of snow in their path. Nori and Ori were trying to slow down their sled and Kili cursed and began, with Bilbo's help, to change their direction to avoid hitting the two brothers.
Fortunately, the two sleds avoided crashing into each other.
Unfortunately, the two slammed into the wall of snow, depositing the four of them inside the cursed object. It was freezing, the cold burrowng into their skin it seemed, and stealing all warmth from them. Nori uttered a string of curses. Kili decided perhaps it would be best for them to conjoin the two names. He suggested 'Frost Star'. Nori suggested Kili take the name and shove it. Ori asked where. This was ignored and the four began to dig themselves out of the icy prison.
Once free, it was swiftly decided that no one, especially not Dori and Thorin, were to know of their tumble into the snow wall. And that the snowman's name was to be 'Ice Bite'.
Gandalf seemed to find the whole thing highly amusing. He nodded solemnly and promised not to tell anyone (except Galadriel, at a later date, he thought to himself. She would like to hear of this amusing escapade, he knew).
They should've known they wouldn't be able to keep the crash a secret.
*gasp* However will the others find out? What's going to happen I wonder? Hope you enjoyed!
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