TITLE: "Brandywine"
AUTHOR: Mainframe
RATING: PG
PAIRING: None so far
Disclaimer: The Hobbits belong to J. R.R. Tolkien and are not of my creation and I make no money from this or other stories involving them, this is purely a non-profit fiction of my creation in honour of the book & movies. However this storyline is mine.
SUMMARY: It's been raining none stop for over a month in the shire and Bilbo is being driven mad by three young hobbits with too much energy to spend. But is his solution to the problem a wise one or could it led to disaster?
NOTES: Llinos I don't know how you do it! I'm working an eight-hour day and it's all manual labour, I have no idea how you manage to update so regularly. Thanks for the subtle hint at the end of your chapter by the way *blush*.
By the way, IloveSam...I'm glad you're enjoying my story, but I never said it was Merry's father responsible for the lad's plight. You'll all just have to wait and see!
STORY WATCH: Xenobia has updated "Cloudbursts" not once, not twice, not three times...BUT FOUR! Yeah!
Llinos has updated "Recaptured" twice, chapters 61 & 62 are now up and if you haven't read them yet...why not?
Willow wode at Nindaiwe has written a fab piece called "October Reckoning", a must read for all those Frodo & Sam fans.
JastaElf has written two brilliant fic's about Legolas (the younger years) and I think you will be truly, pleasantly shocked by their standard "Dark Leaf", go read it now!
Brandywine
1 Chapter 10: Curiosity
Daisy and May Gamgee stepped across the threshold of Bag-End for the very first time, their youngest brother was constantly in and out of the Smial due to his friendship with young Master Baggins, and his addiction to Master Bilbo's yarns, but they themselves had never been inside, until now.
They stood awestruck just inside the hallway, though Bag-End looked large from the outside nothing could have prepared the two girls for the huge warren that spread before them. The rich dark mahogany beams were all intricately carved and the floor was laid with thick, dark green slate, this combined with the white walls and wide-open corridors was breathtaking. And whilst it seemed a typical bachelor-pad to Daisy, full of clutter, papers piled high, books on every conceivable shelf, table or sill, it was still neat and presentable, though the furniture was sparse and it definitely lacked a woman's touch, it held a very comfortable atmosphere. It made Bagshot Row seem very small and overcrowded.
May broke the silence first. "Well this is an eye-opener, I wonder if the old yarns are true about this place, bein filled with dragon gold an all?"
May was a sweet natured girl at heart, but at the age of nineteen she tended to listen too much to local gossip, a habit that her father was slowly breaking her of, as he had deemed it unfit behaviour for one of his kin to gossip! However she still met with her circle of friends on a regular basis.
Daisy removed her shawl and took May's, casting her a disapproving stern look while she placed them on the hall pegs. She and May quickly discovered the Smial's layout and set about their work.
May brought in wood from the shed while Daisy cleared out the ash from the fireplace in the Dinning-room, the wood and pinecones were damp, but produced a sweet smell as the wood caught and the fire grew. Meanwhile May went from room to room and lit the various candles and lanterns. Once Bag-End was well lit, and the main fire was at a steady roar Daisy proceeded to the kitchen while May went towards Frodo's room, she stopped halfway and called over her shoulder.
"Daisy! I know Mr Bilbo didn' ask it, but with him bein in a hurry I figure maybe he forgot..."
"What is it May? I'm a little busy at the moment"
"...Well should I light the fire in Bilbo's room too?"
"Mister!"
"Ay?"
"Mr Bilbo! Mind yer manners." Came Daisy's sharp reply, then it softened as she poked her head round the archway "That sounds like a good idea, now don't you go touchin anything or da'l have your hide!"
May smiled sweetly and promised...not to touch anything in Mr Bilbo's room!
Daisy poked the fire in the stove, it eat at the new wood she'd just place in it hungrily, it was already throwing out a tremendous amount of heat. She felt parched, and wondered if her father would disapprove of her taking up Mr Bilbo's kind offer to help themselves. She eyed the jar of tealeaves on the counter consideringly for several long moments before reaching her decision.
"I'll get the kettle boilin and make us some tea shall I May?" She shouted in May's general direction.
"Thanks, I've finished the fire in Mr Bilbo's room, I'll be through soon."
May leaned against thick, heavy door to Frodo's room, it creaked open and she slipped through. The room was smaller than Bilbo's, a lot smaller then May had expected for it was only the size of one of the guest bedrooms.
There was a soft double bed to the right, as she placed her hand on it's edge and pushed down several times she discovered it was as soft as it looked and was feather filled, it had a plain solid frame, the room was immaculately kept. At the head of the bed on both sides stood two identical dark wooden bookshelves, some of the books had many paper markers sticking out in all directions and were well warn. A small box of white candles sat on the top shelf, half full.
A single wardrobe stood behind the door and upon opening it May discovered that Frodo had very few cloths and he seemed to favour blue, brown, and green, there was only one rack of neatly hung garments. As she felt the various fabrics she realised that they were of excellent quality and well tailored, sporting gold buttons and material ranging from faded blue cotton shirts, to silk, to velvet weskits. Strange how someone who had such finery chose to run around in ordinary, boring, plain clothes most of the time. Strange lad.
His desk was covered with half-open books, papers, several inkwells and many other oddments. May felt a twinge and envy as her small delicate fingers traced the elegant flow of Frodo's hand, she was illiterate, it had never bothered her before now. Suddenly she understood why her brother was so determined to learn how to create these beautiful marks. Her hand knocked a small pile of papers to the floor and she hurried to pick them up, when she turned the rough paper over it was covered with nothing but the same symbol, over and over again. Sam. Her little brother's old practise papers...but Sam had progressed past this stage several years ago. A small frown creased her forehead, why would Frodo keep such terrible work?
Had May been able to read she would have discovered that the small, leather- bound, black book, that lay open on the centre of the table was Frodo's diary. In recent weeks before Merry and Sam came to stay, Frodo had found himself caught up in a melancholy mood that he could not break, and had started to read one of his old diaries. Sam's early writing attempts he had lovingly rescued from the bin, it had seemed like such a pity to him that something that was so monumental to his young friend should be discarded in such a manner.
May continued her tour moving over to the window seat, (opposite the door) and looked out. She discovered that Frodo had the best view of the back garden that could be gained and still be indoors. Beautiful flowers of all description and colour grew just in front of his window, yet there were none at any of the other windows at the back of the smial she discovered with a quick peek into the darkness, pressing her face to the glass for the best view. Strange.
As she knelt on the soft cushioned seat she felt something solid, upon moving the various cushion-come-pillows aside she found a small wooden box pushed into the corner. It looked old and had no markings on it, yet was obviously very important, well important enough to hide at any rate. She hesitated feeling extremely guilty, like a thief, looking round a room was one thing, but this was obviously something that the Young Master wanted for himself only. But her curiosity got the better of her and she opened the lid.
She sat down and placed it's content on her lap, there was a bundle of letters, very old by the look of their yellowing corners, a beautiful pearl string necklace, an old broken clay pipe, and a palm size gold and silver pendant. She ran the pearl necklace through her fingers amazed at how smooth they felt, and then moved onto the pendent. Finding and pressing the tiny latch mechanism at its edge, it popped open to reveal two images set into the intricately worked frame; one image was a painting whilst the other appeared to be a quick, skilfully coloured sketch. On the one side she saw a man and woman from the neck up smiling sweetly at each other, the woman was startlingly beautiful. The quality of the painting was such that she knew instantly who this couple were, they had to be Drogo and Primula Baggins.
May could understand now where Frodo got his unique looks from; he favoured his mother in the face. Her eye's larger then was average and their green depths sparkled with life, her skin was pale and smooth and was set with a small nose and delicate lips. Just like Frodo. Drogo had smaller dark brown eye's, almost black from the looks of the picture. His hair was raven black, unusual for a hobbit as the norm was brown, his jaw line was very defined and altogether masculine, she could see from the thickness of his neck that he had probably been quite muscular, she remembered her father was the same, only hard work of some kind could do that. Despite his strong features he wore a soft loving smile.
May gasped and covered her mouth as she moved onto the opposite image, it showed Drogo and Primula hugging and leaning into each other...and nestled in between the pair sat a small, smiling, blue-eyed child.
Frodo was shirtless as was his father and sat on his father's knee. Upon further inspection May realised that the backdrop was the Brandywine in Buckland on what looked to be a hot day, they had obviously been swimming. Hot tears burned down her cheeks as she stared unblinking at the tiny, happy, hobbit-child so content in the sketch, so alive. She realised then just why Frodo kept his past so close, and would never react when the other lads and lasses his age would try to tease him into telling them about his mother and father. She had always thought him odd, not just because he was a Bucklander but because he always seemed so old, too old for his age, even when he did let go and have fun it was usually only with a select few friends and his cousins, and even then he seemed to pull back.
Her hand was trembling now for she knew that she had stepped over the line. This was unforgivable. All those times that her friends had spoken about Frodo being a 'Baggins' in name only, his almost feminine features and quiet demeanour, and all the various conflicting rumours surrounding his parents deaths, not to mention the fact that she had taken part in these discussions and enjoyed the attention it brought her.
*I should put this back and never... * Her train of thoughts were shattered just then and what took place next seemed to be in slow motion.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Screamed Daisy. She had poked her head round the door to see what was the cause of her sisters delay, and had been horrified to discover her going through a small box of Mr Frodo's possessions.
May was so shocked that she fumbled with the precious pendant, it slipped from her grasp. She watched in horror as it hit the floor and the glass shattered in dramatic fashion, throwing glass all over the floor. Both Daisy and May stared at the pendant in horrified silence for a moment before Daisy's accusing eye's locked with May's frightened ones.
Daisy watched as her sisters tearstained face drained of all it's colour, her eye's had become impossible round and owlish and her small hands were clamped over her mouth. Small sounds escaped her as her eye's darted back to the pendant again. Daisy's outraged anger fizzled out to be replaced with acute concern for her sisters well being, it had been an accident, she had never seen her sister so distressed...even when she'd broken her arm years back.
Carefully Daisy made her way to her sisters side and pulled her into a hug, May went rigid before relaxing into the comforting embrace and began to sob.
"I d-didn't mean it...it was an a-a-accident, honest" She sobbed.
"I know it was, I know"
Daisy continued to comfort May until she had stopped crying. Then she carefully picked her way across the floor careful of the glass and retrieved the pendent. She turned it over to reveal the images, the glass was almost completely gone but thankfully the pictures were undamaged, it would be easy enough to replace the glass...but very expensive. Daisy looked at the pictures then and her breath hitched, she looked to May's guilt ridden face and handed the pendant back to her.
Silently the sisters fell into a rhythm and cleaned the mess away without trace, only when all was done and dusted did Daisy looked at May again.
"Where did you get these?" She questioned as she examined the bits and pieces sat on the cushions.
"I found them" May replied in a small voice.
"Where?"
May pointed to the box. "Under the cushions"
"Do you have any money saved?"
"Yes, a little" May then caught on to what her sister was saying, "Do ya...do ya think I could replace it before anyone finds out?" She asked hopefully.
"Well I can't says I'm happy about this, but if you can afford to replace what ya broke then no one'l hear nought from me...good enough?"
May breathed a shuddering sigh of relief, Daisy was very much like her father in attitude...she knew how much that gesture that cost her.
"Thank you"
"Don't you be thankin me, jus make sure it's done or we'll both be in for it!" She gave May a small smile then before walking back towards the kitchen.
"We'll not speak of this again" Was her last words on the subject.
Without further delay May slipped the precious item into her skirt pocket and replaced everything where she found it before lighting the fire. She wiped the sweat from her forehead as she entered the kitchen and sat opposite Daisy, sipping the tea that was now lukewarm.
"Do you think their alright?" Daisy asked at last desperate to lighten the atmosphere, "They've been gone an awful long time...like Da says it's not like Sam ta miss a meal"
"True but Mr Frodo and Mr Merry are...well." She did not want to insult Frodo after what she had just done, "...well their a bit different. Maybe they got carried away an forgot the time"
Daisy smiled into her cup, she knew what May had meant and agreed with her, a Brandybuck and a Baggins, a potent combination for trouble. Lads would be lads.
"Yeah but it's dark out now"
"Well maybe they got caught in the rain earlier and decided to wait it out...it's quite a walk back"
Daisy felt a little easier in herself, yes that sounded grand. That was probably what had happened.
"That sounds rig...."
But Daisy never got the chance to finish her sentence as the front door flew open and Bilbo, her father, closely followed by her brother Hamson hurried in, her father, brother and Mr Bilbo each carried a bundled up hobbit apiece.
Tbc~
AUTHOR: Mainframe
RATING: PG
PAIRING: None so far
Disclaimer: The Hobbits belong to J. R.R. Tolkien and are not of my creation and I make no money from this or other stories involving them, this is purely a non-profit fiction of my creation in honour of the book & movies. However this storyline is mine.
SUMMARY: It's been raining none stop for over a month in the shire and Bilbo is being driven mad by three young hobbits with too much energy to spend. But is his solution to the problem a wise one or could it led to disaster?
NOTES: Llinos I don't know how you do it! I'm working an eight-hour day and it's all manual labour, I have no idea how you manage to update so regularly. Thanks for the subtle hint at the end of your chapter by the way *blush*.
By the way, IloveSam...I'm glad you're enjoying my story, but I never said it was Merry's father responsible for the lad's plight. You'll all just have to wait and see!
STORY WATCH: Xenobia has updated "Cloudbursts" not once, not twice, not three times...BUT FOUR! Yeah!
Llinos has updated "Recaptured" twice, chapters 61 & 62 are now up and if you haven't read them yet...why not?
Willow wode at Nindaiwe has written a fab piece called "October Reckoning", a must read for all those Frodo & Sam fans.
JastaElf has written two brilliant fic's about Legolas (the younger years) and I think you will be truly, pleasantly shocked by their standard "Dark Leaf", go read it now!
Brandywine
1 Chapter 10: Curiosity
Daisy and May Gamgee stepped across the threshold of Bag-End for the very first time, their youngest brother was constantly in and out of the Smial due to his friendship with young Master Baggins, and his addiction to Master Bilbo's yarns, but they themselves had never been inside, until now.
They stood awestruck just inside the hallway, though Bag-End looked large from the outside nothing could have prepared the two girls for the huge warren that spread before them. The rich dark mahogany beams were all intricately carved and the floor was laid with thick, dark green slate, this combined with the white walls and wide-open corridors was breathtaking. And whilst it seemed a typical bachelor-pad to Daisy, full of clutter, papers piled high, books on every conceivable shelf, table or sill, it was still neat and presentable, though the furniture was sparse and it definitely lacked a woman's touch, it held a very comfortable atmosphere. It made Bagshot Row seem very small and overcrowded.
May broke the silence first. "Well this is an eye-opener, I wonder if the old yarns are true about this place, bein filled with dragon gold an all?"
May was a sweet natured girl at heart, but at the age of nineteen she tended to listen too much to local gossip, a habit that her father was slowly breaking her of, as he had deemed it unfit behaviour for one of his kin to gossip! However she still met with her circle of friends on a regular basis.
Daisy removed her shawl and took May's, casting her a disapproving stern look while she placed them on the hall pegs. She and May quickly discovered the Smial's layout and set about their work.
May brought in wood from the shed while Daisy cleared out the ash from the fireplace in the Dinning-room, the wood and pinecones were damp, but produced a sweet smell as the wood caught and the fire grew. Meanwhile May went from room to room and lit the various candles and lanterns. Once Bag-End was well lit, and the main fire was at a steady roar Daisy proceeded to the kitchen while May went towards Frodo's room, she stopped halfway and called over her shoulder.
"Daisy! I know Mr Bilbo didn' ask it, but with him bein in a hurry I figure maybe he forgot..."
"What is it May? I'm a little busy at the moment"
"...Well should I light the fire in Bilbo's room too?"
"Mister!"
"Ay?"
"Mr Bilbo! Mind yer manners." Came Daisy's sharp reply, then it softened as she poked her head round the archway "That sounds like a good idea, now don't you go touchin anything or da'l have your hide!"
May smiled sweetly and promised...not to touch anything in Mr Bilbo's room!
Daisy poked the fire in the stove, it eat at the new wood she'd just place in it hungrily, it was already throwing out a tremendous amount of heat. She felt parched, and wondered if her father would disapprove of her taking up Mr Bilbo's kind offer to help themselves. She eyed the jar of tealeaves on the counter consideringly for several long moments before reaching her decision.
"I'll get the kettle boilin and make us some tea shall I May?" She shouted in May's general direction.
"Thanks, I've finished the fire in Mr Bilbo's room, I'll be through soon."
May leaned against thick, heavy door to Frodo's room, it creaked open and she slipped through. The room was smaller than Bilbo's, a lot smaller then May had expected for it was only the size of one of the guest bedrooms.
There was a soft double bed to the right, as she placed her hand on it's edge and pushed down several times she discovered it was as soft as it looked and was feather filled, it had a plain solid frame, the room was immaculately kept. At the head of the bed on both sides stood two identical dark wooden bookshelves, some of the books had many paper markers sticking out in all directions and were well warn. A small box of white candles sat on the top shelf, half full.
A single wardrobe stood behind the door and upon opening it May discovered that Frodo had very few cloths and he seemed to favour blue, brown, and green, there was only one rack of neatly hung garments. As she felt the various fabrics she realised that they were of excellent quality and well tailored, sporting gold buttons and material ranging from faded blue cotton shirts, to silk, to velvet weskits. Strange how someone who had such finery chose to run around in ordinary, boring, plain clothes most of the time. Strange lad.
His desk was covered with half-open books, papers, several inkwells and many other oddments. May felt a twinge and envy as her small delicate fingers traced the elegant flow of Frodo's hand, she was illiterate, it had never bothered her before now. Suddenly she understood why her brother was so determined to learn how to create these beautiful marks. Her hand knocked a small pile of papers to the floor and she hurried to pick them up, when she turned the rough paper over it was covered with nothing but the same symbol, over and over again. Sam. Her little brother's old practise papers...but Sam had progressed past this stage several years ago. A small frown creased her forehead, why would Frodo keep such terrible work?
Had May been able to read she would have discovered that the small, leather- bound, black book, that lay open on the centre of the table was Frodo's diary. In recent weeks before Merry and Sam came to stay, Frodo had found himself caught up in a melancholy mood that he could not break, and had started to read one of his old diaries. Sam's early writing attempts he had lovingly rescued from the bin, it had seemed like such a pity to him that something that was so monumental to his young friend should be discarded in such a manner.
May continued her tour moving over to the window seat, (opposite the door) and looked out. She discovered that Frodo had the best view of the back garden that could be gained and still be indoors. Beautiful flowers of all description and colour grew just in front of his window, yet there were none at any of the other windows at the back of the smial she discovered with a quick peek into the darkness, pressing her face to the glass for the best view. Strange.
As she knelt on the soft cushioned seat she felt something solid, upon moving the various cushion-come-pillows aside she found a small wooden box pushed into the corner. It looked old and had no markings on it, yet was obviously very important, well important enough to hide at any rate. She hesitated feeling extremely guilty, like a thief, looking round a room was one thing, but this was obviously something that the Young Master wanted for himself only. But her curiosity got the better of her and she opened the lid.
She sat down and placed it's content on her lap, there was a bundle of letters, very old by the look of their yellowing corners, a beautiful pearl string necklace, an old broken clay pipe, and a palm size gold and silver pendant. She ran the pearl necklace through her fingers amazed at how smooth they felt, and then moved onto the pendent. Finding and pressing the tiny latch mechanism at its edge, it popped open to reveal two images set into the intricately worked frame; one image was a painting whilst the other appeared to be a quick, skilfully coloured sketch. On the one side she saw a man and woman from the neck up smiling sweetly at each other, the woman was startlingly beautiful. The quality of the painting was such that she knew instantly who this couple were, they had to be Drogo and Primula Baggins.
May could understand now where Frodo got his unique looks from; he favoured his mother in the face. Her eye's larger then was average and their green depths sparkled with life, her skin was pale and smooth and was set with a small nose and delicate lips. Just like Frodo. Drogo had smaller dark brown eye's, almost black from the looks of the picture. His hair was raven black, unusual for a hobbit as the norm was brown, his jaw line was very defined and altogether masculine, she could see from the thickness of his neck that he had probably been quite muscular, she remembered her father was the same, only hard work of some kind could do that. Despite his strong features he wore a soft loving smile.
May gasped and covered her mouth as she moved onto the opposite image, it showed Drogo and Primula hugging and leaning into each other...and nestled in between the pair sat a small, smiling, blue-eyed child.
Frodo was shirtless as was his father and sat on his father's knee. Upon further inspection May realised that the backdrop was the Brandywine in Buckland on what looked to be a hot day, they had obviously been swimming. Hot tears burned down her cheeks as she stared unblinking at the tiny, happy, hobbit-child so content in the sketch, so alive. She realised then just why Frodo kept his past so close, and would never react when the other lads and lasses his age would try to tease him into telling them about his mother and father. She had always thought him odd, not just because he was a Bucklander but because he always seemed so old, too old for his age, even when he did let go and have fun it was usually only with a select few friends and his cousins, and even then he seemed to pull back.
Her hand was trembling now for she knew that she had stepped over the line. This was unforgivable. All those times that her friends had spoken about Frodo being a 'Baggins' in name only, his almost feminine features and quiet demeanour, and all the various conflicting rumours surrounding his parents deaths, not to mention the fact that she had taken part in these discussions and enjoyed the attention it brought her.
*I should put this back and never... * Her train of thoughts were shattered just then and what took place next seemed to be in slow motion.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Screamed Daisy. She had poked her head round the door to see what was the cause of her sisters delay, and had been horrified to discover her going through a small box of Mr Frodo's possessions.
May was so shocked that she fumbled with the precious pendant, it slipped from her grasp. She watched in horror as it hit the floor and the glass shattered in dramatic fashion, throwing glass all over the floor. Both Daisy and May stared at the pendant in horrified silence for a moment before Daisy's accusing eye's locked with May's frightened ones.
Daisy watched as her sisters tearstained face drained of all it's colour, her eye's had become impossible round and owlish and her small hands were clamped over her mouth. Small sounds escaped her as her eye's darted back to the pendant again. Daisy's outraged anger fizzled out to be replaced with acute concern for her sisters well being, it had been an accident, she had never seen her sister so distressed...even when she'd broken her arm years back.
Carefully Daisy made her way to her sisters side and pulled her into a hug, May went rigid before relaxing into the comforting embrace and began to sob.
"I d-didn't mean it...it was an a-a-accident, honest" She sobbed.
"I know it was, I know"
Daisy continued to comfort May until she had stopped crying. Then she carefully picked her way across the floor careful of the glass and retrieved the pendent. She turned it over to reveal the images, the glass was almost completely gone but thankfully the pictures were undamaged, it would be easy enough to replace the glass...but very expensive. Daisy looked at the pictures then and her breath hitched, she looked to May's guilt ridden face and handed the pendant back to her.
Silently the sisters fell into a rhythm and cleaned the mess away without trace, only when all was done and dusted did Daisy looked at May again.
"Where did you get these?" She questioned as she examined the bits and pieces sat on the cushions.
"I found them" May replied in a small voice.
"Where?"
May pointed to the box. "Under the cushions"
"Do you have any money saved?"
"Yes, a little" May then caught on to what her sister was saying, "Do ya...do ya think I could replace it before anyone finds out?" She asked hopefully.
"Well I can't says I'm happy about this, but if you can afford to replace what ya broke then no one'l hear nought from me...good enough?"
May breathed a shuddering sigh of relief, Daisy was very much like her father in attitude...she knew how much that gesture that cost her.
"Thank you"
"Don't you be thankin me, jus make sure it's done or we'll both be in for it!" She gave May a small smile then before walking back towards the kitchen.
"We'll not speak of this again" Was her last words on the subject.
Without further delay May slipped the precious item into her skirt pocket and replaced everything where she found it before lighting the fire. She wiped the sweat from her forehead as she entered the kitchen and sat opposite Daisy, sipping the tea that was now lukewarm.
"Do you think their alright?" Daisy asked at last desperate to lighten the atmosphere, "They've been gone an awful long time...like Da says it's not like Sam ta miss a meal"
"True but Mr Frodo and Mr Merry are...well." She did not want to insult Frodo after what she had just done, "...well their a bit different. Maybe they got carried away an forgot the time"
Daisy smiled into her cup, she knew what May had meant and agreed with her, a Brandybuck and a Baggins, a potent combination for trouble. Lads would be lads.
"Yeah but it's dark out now"
"Well maybe they got caught in the rain earlier and decided to wait it out...it's quite a walk back"
Daisy felt a little easier in herself, yes that sounded grand. That was probably what had happened.
"That sounds rig...."
But Daisy never got the chance to finish her sentence as the front door flew open and Bilbo, her father, closely followed by her brother Hamson hurried in, her father, brother and Mr Bilbo each carried a bundled up hobbit apiece.
Tbc~