Tipper didn't know what to say. He was wearing the armor and weapons of the great Frodo Baggins! All he could do was stare. "Well," asked Bilbo, "what do you think? Will these be sufficient to help you on your journey?"
"Th... they're perfect," Tipper managed to stammer.
"I am glad that I finally found the proper use for these great items," Bilbo said with a small smile. "Things like these don't belong on a shelf all wrapped up. They belong in battles and in the undertaking of great deeds."
Tipper sat down on Bilbo's stool to think. He had a map, Sting, the mithril coat, and the Phial of Galdriel. Now all he needed to do was begin. "That is always the hardest part, beginning, I mean," said Bilbo guessing his thoughts. "Mister Bilbo, the original of course, not yours truly, used to say so." Tipper assumed this must be true, but he had to start, difficult or not.
At last he made up his mind that he could not put off starting his journey any longer. He rose and gave old Bilbo a small hug and headed for the door. "Wait," cried Bilbo suddenly. "I have a few more things to say before you go. First of all, be careful. You are the only hope for Willow, if there is still any hope to be had," He added with a wistful sigh. "Secondly," he said with more confidence, "keep your eyes and ears open. You may learn details from where you least expect to hear them. It is also very important to be wary. The world has become a strange place again, only we are lulled into a false sense of security here."
"Is there any thing else I should know," asked Tipper.
"Only this. No matter how bleak things may seem there is always hope. Though you may find many enemies along the way, you may also find many friends. Master Frodo did. They may come from the strangest places or in the strangest forms, but they are out there. The world is never all bad! That is the one thing you must always remember!"
Tipper hugged Bilbo again and shouldered his pack. His adventure was finally starting. The search for Willow was on.
Tipper walked along at a fair pace, for a sickly little hobbit anyway. He smiled as he looked about him at the Shire lit with the light of a thousand stars and the moon. Her pale face seemed to be smiling back, as if to say, "Good for you Tipper Gamgee. You are finally doing something with yourself. You are finally growing up."
He wanted to think that this was just going to be an exciting adventure without any danger. He didn't want to think about the very real perils that existed in the world. He imagined himself as Frodo setting off with his best friends to dispose of a ring and ultimately save Middle Earth.
Suddenly a gust of wind blew up from over the stream and made him shiver. The icy bite of the wind also brought with it the sting of reality. He was a young hobbit, alone in the world for the first time, trying to find a lost friend that he had no idea where to look for. He had never been out of the Shire and now he would have to travel to Heaven knows where. Suddenly he felt very alone and frightened! He thought of turning back, but then he thought about Willow. She had been his only true friend. He couldn't forsake her out there, wherever she might be