Something felt very wrong when I woke up the next morning. The first thing I noticed was that it was warm. Erica, even in the middle of winter, always kept her window cracked at night which resulted in a temperature of about 20 degrees. When I cracked my eyes open, the room around me was very nature-y. Last night, I fell asleep in a sleeping bag on the ground, but now I was in a small bed.
Whoa…Emphasis on the word "small". Everything around me seemed smaller. The desk, dresser, doors, and ceiling looked barely five feet tall. My mind whirled as I tried to figure out where I was… Panic began rising in my chest. What if I had been kidnapped?
I swung my legs out of bed, but froze when I saw my feet. They were huge! And hairy! And…gross. I stood up, ducking my head to avoid hitting the ceiling, but to my surprise, it didn't even come close. What kind of weird paradox was this?
Wait a minute… I remembered last night, we had joked about waking up in Middle Earth… I ran over to a mirror in the corner of the room, and my suspicions were confirmed. Returning my gaze from the mirror was a female hobbit, with blue eyes and light brown hair.
I wasn't quite sure what to make of this. I mean, hobbits were kinda… Well, I'll just say that I've never been much of an ourdoorsy person. I wondered when I'd wake up from all of this, and get back to my real life. Shrugging, I figured I'd make the best of the situation and go sightseeing or something.
There was a closet in the room, which I opened and flipped through. Brown, cotton dress. Brown, cotton dress. Beige, cotton dress. Brown, cotton dress. You know, I really never liked the color brown. But, I guess I'd have to for the day.
It wasn't until my stomach growled that I realized just how hungry I was. Still in my nightgown, I traipsed out to the kitchen and began rummaging through the cupboards. Did nothing come pre-prepared in Middle Earth? All I was able to find was some fresh fruit and vegetables, and some unidentifiable meats in the ice box.
Since I was far from a great cook, I grabbed an apple with a sigh and devoured it. That didn't do a thing to dent my hunger, though, so I ate another. And another. By the time I was finally feeling full, eleven apple cores sat piled in front of me. When they say hobbits like to eat, they weren't kidding! (Whoever "they" are).
I decided that I might as well see the sights while I was stuck in this parallel universe. Leaving the apple cores on a table, I walked over and hefted open the heavy, circular door. Even though I much prefer city life to the countryside, the sight that greeted me out my front door took my breath away. Lush, green fields met my eyes in all directions, and the landscaping around this place would've cost millions back home.
"Elanor?" the voice that sounded beside me caused me to jump in surprise. To my heart's delight, Frodo Baggins came strolling along the path that ran in front of my house.
"Elanor!" he cried again, with a smile on his face. He was looking in my direction, so I turned around to check if someone was behind me…Nope. Dumbfounded, I pointed to myself with a clueless gaze.
"Yes, you, silly!" Frodo laughed, walking up to my front door. Looking into those big, blue eyes always made my heart melt. "Elanor, why are you standing in your yard in your nightgown?"
Apparently I was Elanor, and knew Frodo. I glanced down, and low and behold, he was right. I was still in my nightgown! Aw geez… I'm pretty sure my face was red as a cherry by now, but Frodo didn't seem to mind.
"Are we still going on our picnic today, or are you not feeling well?" the blue eyed hobbit asked. Oh, there was no way I was missing this! A day alone with Frodo, in the beautiful Shire! I could get used to nature for this.
Well, maybe.
"Sure," I answered, "Let me just, go…change, or something." I ran back into the house and pulled out a brown dress from my closet. Getting this thing on would be another story, though. How the heck did people lace into these by themselves?
After forty minutes of tugging, I eventually gave up and threw my nightgown back on.
Frodo glanced up once I walked out into my yard, and laughed again. "I'm afraid your wardrobe malfunction has caused me to be late," he sighed, "I have to go set up Bilbo's party, our picnic will have to wait until another day. You'll be at the party, won't you?"
"Of course!" I answered quickly, despite the fact that I hadn't been invited and wasn't exactly sure where in Hobbiton the party was.
"Great!" Frodo smiled. "Perhaps you might want to change, though?" He laughed as he walked down the road, away from my hobbit hole, while I stood rooted in embarrassment. Time to trudge back in and wrestle with a dress, I suppose.
It was easier than I expected to find Bilbo's party. All the roads in Hobbiton led past the Green Dragon, and from there, the long expected party was easily sighted. I had finally laced up into one of the brown dresses in the closet, but I still felt very self-conscious as I walked to the party.
Apparently, there was need to be. As I scanned the party-goers, looking for someone who might be my friend, Rosie walked up to me. She looked concerned, yet trying not to laugh at the same time.
"Elanor," she began, "Why are you wearing your dress backwards?"
I stomped angrily on the ground, similar to a two-year-old throwing a fit. "Because I can't figure out how to do these laces, dangit!"
Rosie smiled. "Well, it's certainly a unique style," she glanced over her shoulder. "Quick, we're missing the dance!" Grabbing my elbow, she pulled me into the throng of hobbits dancing to the band.
Yes! Dancing, I excelled at this! Erica had once made a comment on my dancing, what did she say? Something about a frog, or a fish… To be honest, I wasn't sure what she meant, but I'm sure it was a compliment. Not to brag or anything, but I knew how to throw out the dance moves onto the floor.
Weaving myself into the horde, I started busting my best moves: The twist, the scuba, hopping up and down, even that dance where you held the back of your head and held up one knee while twisting in a circle. I must've been doing well, because everyone around me left, leaving a large, empty circle on the dance floor. All the other hobbits stood on the sidelines watching me, but I was too in the groove to hear what they were saying.
I was only stopped by the sound of a large pop in the sky. Glancing up, I spied a dragon-shaped firework swooping down upon the hobbits. I ducked just in time to miss its fiery jaws. Whew. Okay, time for more dancing-
"Speech, Bilbo! Speech!" came the cries. Disappointed that dance time was over, I took a seat next to Rosie and listened to Bilbo struggle with grammar. After a while, he put on the ring and suddenly disappeared!
Several hobbits gasped in surprise, awed or frightened of the old hobbit's trick. Eventually, they dispersed back to their holes, and I followed suit. Or, I tried, that is. It's amazing how each hobbit could find their own home, when each and every one looked exactly the same! I hanged back, watching what houses the others entered before I attempted one that hadn't seemingly been occupied.
I tugged at the green, circular door, again and again. Yet the stubborn thing wouldn't budge an inch. Frustrated, I gave up, and sat down on the ground with a huff. I leaned back on the door with a sigh, and to my surprise, it swung right open. Wait…
I glanced up, and immediately smacked myself on the head. Why hadn't I looked at the large "Push" sign before pulling on the door for 15 minutes?
Entering the house, I definitely felt the heartache of homesickness. I didn't fit in in the Shire at all. Luckily, I knew I'd wake up soon and be situated right back in my sleeping bag on Erica's floor.
Right?
A/N: I realized that I uploaded these in the wrong order. The correct order is: Sydney, Erica, Hannah, Olivia. Since the stories eventually intertwine, it's definitely important to get that right. As a result, this is chronologically wrong. Frodo, in the chapter Erica 1, has already left Bree. But in Sydney 1 and 2, he's still in the Shire. I think I'm going to skip Sydney's second chapter, and go straight to the third, since it makes more sense in the timeline.
Ah, Sydney, Sydney, Sydney. Back when Hannah and I forced her to watch Lord of the Rings, she fell in love with Frodo and the Shirefolk. I'll admit, I don't like Hobbits myself, so this chapter was a little trickier to write. Sydney's also very much a city girl, and I mean that in the nicest way possible. She and nature just don't agree at all. And she's a big fan of popping colors, like electric blue, black, bright red, etc, I don't recall her EVER wearing brown (and I've known her for five years). I tried to portray the sense of feeling lost in her chapter, while still retaining some humor. Overall, I'm not very happy about it.
And just for the record, I told Sydney she dances like a fish out of water, which she didn't get wasn't exactly a compliment. She's not the brightest tool in the shed... In Freshman year, she asked me if Tibet was in the Gulf of Mexico. And just a month ago, she asked if Genghis Khan was a band...
Yet, we all still love her. Sad that she didn't want to write her own part, I think it's actually fun writing this!