What Peace Brings
AN: So, I actually had an incredibly hard time forcing myself to begin and write this chapter. I am going to warn you now, it's a little boring. But necessarily so. Also, I have begun another hobbit fanfic, for those of you interested. It's called A Most Unusual Specimen and is more fun and light hearted than this one has been. I encourage you to check that out. :D It's hard to believe that WPB is actually close to ending…. Two or three more chapters left…Well, enjoy :)
Chapter 11
"Bilbo."
Bilbo turned at the call of his name to see Gandalf sitting in a large armchair in a room off the hallway, wizened face creasing in a small smile. It was not often that Bilbo had seen the old wizard without his hat atop his head and his staff clutched in hand, but Gandalf was able to relax completely here in Elrond's house. As it was, he sat slumped in the large leather chair, his hand holding a pipe lazily to his lips and a cup of steaming tea on a nearby table.
Bilbo entered the room and noticed another familiar figure in the chair across from Gandalf. Lord Elrond sat very elegantly in his deep violet evening robes, looking unseeingly into the fire. At the soft pads of Bilbo's nimble feet, he looked up and smiled.
"Ah, my dear hobbit, join us, if you please," Gandalf entreated, motioning to the grand maroon chaise to his right.
"I would be delighted," Bilbo agreed easily, rather grateful to sit down for a bit of rest. As he was now approximately eight months along, walking the winding and curving paths of Rivendell was significantly more taxing for Bilbo's body. To his great embarrassment, he now had a sort of waddling gate that he knew to be normal for most pregnancies but found himself rather mortified nonetheless. The others had assured him that he did not look ridiculous; some even contended that it was a rather adorable sight, but Bilbo found that little comfort to his often-flaming cheeks.
He reached the chaise with little difficulty, but hefting himself up on the chaise was another task entirely. As it was not designed for pregnant hobbit residents, the chaise, while not being as high off the ground as some of the furniture in Rivendell, still required a little jump from a hobbit who was not eight months pregnant. As it was, Bilbo allowed Lord Elrond to give him a hand up, though his cheeks were bright red with his embarrassment. Bilbo knew it was not a thing to concern himself with, but the fact that he needed near constant help just to sit on furniture was very damaging to his pride.
"Where is you shadow, dear Bilbo?" Gandalf chuckled, watching the hobbit give a small exasperated sigh at this and sharing an amused look with Lord Elrond as he retook his seat by the fire.
Thorin Oakenshield, bless his dwarf heart, had taken to following Bilbo around even more than ever before. He walked him to all of his meals, carried everything the hobbit could possibly need or want in a bag or on his belt, and ensured that Bilbo did not over exert himself even a little. Of course, to Thorin, Bilbo could not lift a tea tray or carry a couple books without 'over-exerting' himself. Thorin had even taken to nearly carrying the hobbit up and down stairs, despite Bilbo's loud and numerous protestations. I mean, really, he was pregnant, not fatally wounded! Though, by the end of the day, Bilbo was usually compliant, even thankful, for Thorin's overprotectiveness, as he was thoroughly drained of energy by then.
Still, Thorin's behavior was driving Bilbo near madness. It had gotten to the point that the hobbit would sneak away when the dwarf king was distracted so that he could have just a few moments to himself. The company often helped him with this. Balin and Dwalin would pull him into deep discussions about Erebor, Fili and Kili would pester him about training and spending time with them. Ori still couldn't look Thorin in the face and actually talk to him, but he tried to help in small ways, like spilling his tea on 'accident' all over the dwarf king's robes or pointing him in the wrong direction for Bilbo's whereabouts. Bilbo did feel a little guilty about this because he knew that Thorin acted out of care, but he needed some space! He was a mature adult hobbit and could look after himself.
"Thorin is discussing recent reports from Erebor on trade imports with the city of Dale with Balin back in their quarters," Bilbo replied, leaning back against the chaise and propping up his feet contentedly.
"And does he know that you are no longer there?" Gandalf asked with an amused quirk of one bushy white eyebrow.
"Well, it was a very consuming discussion, and I certainly had no opinion on the matter, so I wasn't precisely needed—" Bilbo stuttered but stopped at the knowing looks on both the wizard and the elf lord's faces. "I don't need a keeper, for goodness' sakes!" He huffed, turning away from his companions with a small pout on his face.
"I never implied you did, Bilbo," Gandalf appeased, a small smile at the corner of his lips. "However, I should think that there are better ways of finding some alone time than disappearing from under his nose. You nearly gave him quite a fright a couple days ago."
Bilbo grimaced at that. A couple days before, the company had been spending the day in the courtyard, enjoying the fresh air and the spring sun. Kili and Fili were practicing with their swords and occasionally wrestling each other, content to playfully fight amongst one another, much to Ori's relief. Dwalin, Balin, Thorin, and Bilbo had watched them with amusement, chatting amongst themselves and such, when the young princes had challenged their uncle to a practice match. Thorin had been reluctant, not wanting to leave his pregnant hobbit's side for even a moment, but Bilbo had encouraged this and sent him with a stern command to have fun with his nephews.
Everything had been going along swimmingly, until Thorin had looked back over at the courtyard's porch and had seen that Bilbo was no longer there. He had stopped playing with his nephews and begun a quick rather panicked search for Bilbo, who had just left to use the restroom and maybe find a book to read. After an hour of searching, Thorin had found the hobbit swaddled in blankets in a library chair, a book propped open on the large swell of his stomach and fast asleep with his head against the side of the chair.
"He's being ridiculous, " Bilbo argued, "I've tried to ask him for some time alone, but he always finds some way to change the conversation! And besides, I always let one of the other dwarfs know where I'm off to so they can point him in the right direction once he realizes…" He trailed off rather sheepishly, pulling a blanket from the chaise's back and fixing it over his curved form.
Gandalf and Lord Elrond both chuckled again. "So we should expect him to join us, in a little bit." Lord Elrond drawled humorously, raising a cup to his lips.
"I wouldn't be so sure, Lord Elrond," Gandalf smiled slyly. "Our hobbit is quite adept at vanishing without a trace."
"Hmph, well," Bilbo muttered at this, snuggling tighter into the arm of the chair and turning up his nose at the wizard in a superior fashion. "I did sneak past a dragon, did I not?"
"Yes, you certainly did," Gandalf murmured, his smile fading and his face becoming thoughtful.
Silence descended upon the room, not exactly companionable, but peaceful nonetheless. Bilbo's hand brushed lazily over his burgeoning bump, feeling the familiar excitement and anticipation at the thought of his soon-to-be-born child. He and Thorin had not discussed names yet, both believing that it would be better to meet their child first and then decide. Thorin believed that the babe was going to be a boy and though Bilbo might have wanted a little girl, he was inclined to agree. While the baby had been mostly calm for the past couple months, there were times when he seemed to be very excited and liked to kick Bilbo's bladder unfortunately quite often and with incredible accuracy. They discovered that this happened most often when he or Thorin laughed at something or another, and the thought warmed Bilbo's heart.
"Bilbo, my lad, there is something that I must speak to you about," Gandalf interrupted his thoughts, causing a little alarm to rise within him at the grim tone in his friend's voice. He sat up a little and looked at the wizard, whose grey eyes had become very serious indeed.
"I don't believe I ever told you the true reason why I was headed for the elvish libraries of Forlond when I left those long months ago."
At Gandalf's questioning look, Bilbo shook his head, wondering where this ominous sounding conversation was headed.
"There was something I needed to confirm, the identity of an item that awoke an awareness in the back of my mind that I could not ignore. I was not able to make it to the southern coast of Forlindon, but I have discussed this at great length with Lord Elrond, and we have come to an agreement." At this, Gandalf shared a dark look with the elf lord, who was looking into the fire.
"Bilbo…that ring you found, in the darkest caverns of the Blue Mountains…can we see it?"
Bilbo was startled at this and looked at Gandalf with surprise. He had not even thought of his ring since he had placed it in a cloth bag at the bottom of a dresser drawer in his apartments when he had first arrived in Rivendell. With all the excitement over the baby, then the arrival of the dwarrows, and then Thorin, the ring had quite escaped his mind, forgotten amongst his thoughts entirely. He wondered rather worriedly why Gandalf seemed so severe and anxious to see it and feared that he had picked up some cursed artifact that would kill him in his sleep one day.
"Sure, Gandalf," Bilbo nodded and slid himself ungracefully off of his chaise and waddled out the door and to his room, which thankfully was not far from the study in which they had resided. He pulled the ring out of the dresser but left it in the bag, some strange instinct warning him against touching it with his bare hands. He returned to the study, now very tired and ready for bed, and held out the bag for Gandalf to take.
Much to his surprise, Gandalf grabbed the back and threw it quickly and without hesitation into the fire. Bilbo let out a small gasp but was otherwise ignored as the wizard and elf looked intensely into the fire. Lord Elrond reached for a fire poker and lifted the small gold ring from the flames and held it out to Bilbo once more.
"Take it. It will not burn you." The elf whispered quietly.
Bilbo gave him a dubious look, but Elrond had never hurt him before, intentionally or not, so he did as bid, and raised his hand. The ring dropped into his palm, and his two companions leaned over it with frightening severity.
For a few moments, nothing happened, and Gandalf and Elrond began to relax. But then, small script began to form on the gold band, deep red symbols flashing like flames in the dim light of the study. Gandalf reared back with a look of horror on his face and collapsed into his armchair, heaving a great sigh. Elrond did not have so violent a reaction. He simply straightened his back and closed his eyes, his jaw tightening fiercely and his handsome face becoming significantly paler.
"What? What is it?" Bilbo asked anxiously, looking between the two with wide hazel eyes, his previous exhaustion overcome by fear.
"That, dear Bilbo, is the One Ring."
After a long and weary conversation on the history of the Ring, Gandalf, Lord Elrond, and Bilbo Baggins discussed what must be done about the cursed thing. According to Lord Elrond, the One Ring could only be destroyed by the fires of Mount Doom, deep in the land of Mordor where it was created by Sauron in the Second Age. And though none of them wished to travel into the Dark Lord's Land, they all realized that it was infinitely necessary to do so now.
Both Gandalf and Lord Elrond believed that the Ring's presence marked a survival in Sauron's power and knew that they must destroy it now while the land was still in relative peace. The only thing left to decide was who would be the one to do so.
Though the Ring would have been safest if carried by a hobbit, as they were a race most untouched by power, greed, or war, Bilbo was certainly unable to do so, obviously, as he was eight months with child. Gandalf had subtly suggested sending for another of the Shire but had been glared down by both Bilbo and Elrond, who did not once the peaceful race to be involved with Mordor's evil.
They finally decided that, as the Ring was not yet awoken in true power, it would be safe for Gandalf to carry it on and with the help of the Great Eagles, it would be a simple task to fly there and back. The plan seemed almost too simple, but Gandalf readily agreed that it would be the best one. He would ride with an armed contingent of elves from Rivendell and would fly high in the clouds, masking themselves from any that might inhabit the lands below.
Gandalf wrapped the One Ring in many layers of cloth, still wary at the thought of it touching his skin, but the ring's power was still dormant and had little effect on him at all.
As their conversation ended, Thorin had finally arrived, which was not surprising as the dwarf had atrocious navigation skills, even after a month of living in Rivendell. Upon seeing Bilbo's exhaustion and drooping hazel eyes, Thorin lifted the sleepy hobbit into his arms and glared fiercely at Gandalf and Elrond for keeping his hobbit up when he was clearly tired and in need of rest. He left without saying much, just a terse greeting and a fond huff when he saw Bilbo nearly asleep, but he did look on a little curiously at the morose but determined expressions of the elf and wizard.
He knew Bilbo would probably tell him the next about it, so he tucked his hobbit into bed, smiling fondly at the small snores blowing from the small button nose, and returned to his own quarters.
Neither Gandalf nor Elrond found much sleep that night, one lost in the memories of the past, the other lost in the anticipation for the future.
Gandalf decided to leave the very next morning, much to the surprise of the dwarf company. He did not reveal much of what he was doing or where he was going, and neither did the elves who were to accompany him, as the young dwarf princes discovered. Bilbo and Lord Elrond agreed with the urgency but still felt remorseful that they were sending a friend, albeit a powerful wizard, on such a journey.
They stood once in the courtyard, as the entrance to Rivendell was perhaps too narrow for five very large eagles, and waited for said birds to arrive. Bilbo stood next to Thorin and pressed close into the dwarf's side, seeking some comfort from the troubling thoughts of the night before and the realization of the trouble ahead for the wizard.
Thorin did not know exactly what the wizard's mission was, but Bilbo had told him that he would be flying into Mordor, to Mount Doom. He wondered at this. As a dwarf and keen on the ways of the fires and forge, Thorin guessed that Gandalf was flying to destroy something, as crafting something would not make much sense for the wizard. He guessed it must be something powerful and dangerous to require such extremes, but he did not press Bilbo for information, noting the hobbit's already strained nerves and worries.
Gandalf turned from where he stood next to Lord Elrond and walked over to place a comforting hand on Bilbo's shoulder, smiling at the hobbit's worry for him.
"I will be fine, my dear hobbit," He assured him with a pat on his shoulder. "This will not be my first venture into Mordor, and I dare say it will not be my last. With the help of the eagles, however, this will be a very quick and relatively safe trip, I believe."
Bilbo sighed at this and tried for a smile. "I know that, but you know how I am. I worry; it's in my nature. Especially considering where you are headed…"
"Yes, indeed," Gandalf straightened. "But we will be safe so high up. I doubt even the Lady Arwen could pick us out of the clouds."
"Let us hope that to be true, Mithrandir" Arwen agreed from her place next to her father, smiling sweetly at the wizard. She had given him a couple bottles of healing solution and wrappings for wounds in the even that they are met with resistance. None of them believed they would encounter many enemies, if any at all, but all wanted to err on the side of caution rather than risk injury.
The great cry of an eagle could be heard then, screeching through the air like an alarm. Five giant birds, nearly the length of three men and at least two tall, could be seen flying over the Hidden Valley, circling in their descent.
"We should be pack in two days time," Gandalf proclaimed loudly enough for the company to hear over the flapping of enormous wings. "Look for our return as the sun sets that day."
"May your journey be successful, Mithrandir," Lord Elrond spoke loudly standing strong against the gusts of wind created by the eagles' landing. "It sometimes feels as though our entire relationship has been comprised of me greeting and you parting." He remarked with an amused smile.
"May I live to be greeted by you again, then,' Gandalf laughed, shifting his sword and staff more securely on his person.
Thorin moved to stand behind Bilbo, wrapping his arms around the hobbit's shoulders and preventing him from being blown over by the wind. The rest watched with some amusement as Kili and Fili both lost their footing and tumbled back along the grass, shouting and laughing loudly. Dwalin had planted his large hands on both his brother's and Ori's shoulders to prevent this from happening to them, smirking at the princes' antics.
Gandalf mounted one large eagle after whispering a quiet thanks in its ear. The elves accompanying him did the same, though they doubled up on the eagles' backs, two archers to a bird. The others on the ground moved to hand them their packs and say farewells. Bilbo watched on with a sad smile but started when Thorin moved out from behind him.
"Thorin?" He questioned, moving to follow but stopped as a gentle hand was placed on his shoulder. He looked back to see Balin there, nodding approvingly.
"Gandalf." He heard Thorin say quietly, and looked over to see the wizard leaning down to listen to the dwarf king. They talked for just a moment before Thorin withdrew something from his vestments. Bilbo recognized it as the same package that arrived with Gandalf a week or so ago. Thorin handed the package to Gandalf who seemed immensely surprised and pleased, giving the dwarf a secretive but approving smile.
Thorin nodded his thanks before moving back to Bilbo and standing behind him once more. Balin had removed his hand and stepped to Bilbo's left, watching as the eagles ascended once more, eager to get on with their journey. Gandalf gave a loud shout of excitement, bringing a reluctant laugh to those down below, and they watched the eagles soar off into the distance, headed for unfriendly lands and treacherous mountains.
Bilbo's hands reached up to grip Thorin's arms that had crossed over his shoulders and chest in support and wished fervently for the safe return of Gandalf and the elves.
AN: So, two or three chapters from the end of this story… perhaps that's why I found is so difficult to write this…. Some of you may scoff at how I've dealt with the Ring scenario, and that's fine. To be perfectly honest, the angst with the ring is not my concern or even my interest in this fic. It's all about Thilbo. There was a completely different event I wanted accomplished with Gandalf's journey, as I am sure you've gathered, and that's where my attention lies. Well, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter, even though it was a little boring. :P
