It had now been two months since Bilbo had arrived in the past, and he had been busy. He had been training with his simple sword every morning, gardening, riding, or hunting in the afternoon and practicing his 'spell work' in the evening. A few weeks after his arrival, Bilbo found his mother's old bow hidden at the bottom of her glory box. It needed to be restrung, and the arrows needed new fletching, but other than that, the bow was in beautiful condition, and Bilbo quickly added it to his morning training regimen.
Despite the addition of his mother's bow, the evenings remained his favorite time of day. Bilbo quickly found that he could heal superficial injuries at the price of his stamina; he found a bunny with an injured foot, poor dear, and decided to try healing it. A few minutes later, the bunny was happily hopping away, and Bilbo decided to take a small rest before returning to Bag End. He even practiced maintaining his 'Sanctuary' when a few hungry wolves decided he looked like a good target. The golden light had forced the wolves back, giving Bilbo a moment to recover his bearings and launch a counter-attack. However, this spell quickly depleted his energy, and after the fight, Bilbo had to lean against a nearby tree for a few minutes to recover.
His third spell, 'Holy Song,' was quickly becoming his favorite, and he would find time to sing whenever he was alone in his smial. There was even a tiny group of twittering birds that had started to show up every morning and sing with him while he made breakfast.
All three of his spells worked similarly; the more energy he put into a spell, the more effective it was. So one of the essential things Bilbo had been trying to build was his stamina. Bilbo wanted to be able to keep all of the company safe, and if that meant using his powers until he couldn't stand anymore, then that was fine.
Bilbo smiled as he sat at his kitchen table with dinner and a nice cup of tea. Things were going just splendidly, and Bilbo wasn't about to let that change.
It was at the four-month mark that Bilbo started to get antsy.
He had bought his traveling supplies, organized his will, and had a quite vigorous training regimen, but he still felt that he wasn't as prepared as he could be. Bilbo sighed as he set the table for breakfast before turning around to see a group of four swallows looking at him expectantly from their perch on his windowsill.
"Alright, fine." Bilbo smiled, "Have you ever heard of the song, 'The Road Goes Ever On and On?'
Bilbo had been carefully counting down the days until Gandalf 'invited' him on the quest. He was currently seven days away.
Seven.
SEVEN!
Oh, Bilbo wasn't sure he could do this anymore. The idea of seeing his dwarves all happy and alive still brought tears to Bilbo's eyes, and he was getting sick of fighting off panic attacks every few days.
Suddenly, Bilbo pulled himself up from his armchair, "Alright, Mister Bilbo Baggins, That is quite enough moping around! You have a dinner to plan. A feast for dwarves, mind you, so it has to be spectacular. So, enough of this misery stuff; it is time to shop!"
And with that, Bilbo smartly adjusted his waistcoat and headed out the door towards the market.
After all, food was far more important than brooding.
Today was the day.
And Bilbo could not calm down. He had cleaned and tidied the guest rooms multiple times, checked and rechecked his favorite recipes, and may or may not have had a slight breakdown over the whole situation.
But now he was outside sitting on his garden bench, smoking his pipe and waiting for that damn wizard to get here already. As though he could read Bilbo's mind, Gandalf came walking down the road before finally stopping outside Bag End, and more specifically, Bilbo.
This time Bilbo made sure to remember his manners as he spoke with a smile, "Good morning, Gandalf."
Bilbo couldn't contain his grin as Gandalf's bushy eyebrows rose before the wizard proceeded to lean against his staff and smile, "So, the son of Belladonna Baggins does remember this old wizard."
Bilbo laughed, "How could I forget! You did make such lovely fireworks!"
As the wizard's shoulders drooped, Bilbo had to hold back from laughing at his old friend. Suddenly, the wizard straightened and let out a small 'harumph,' "Well, I'm glad you remember something of me, even if it's only my fireworks. However, I'm afraid I am not just here for a visit. I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it's very difficult to find anyone."
"And you expect that someone to be me, I suppose?"
"That was the plan, yes."
Bilbo took a long draw from his pipe, pretending to be in thought. He looked up at Gandalf, "Tell me more about this adventure."
Gandalf's smile widened.
Bilbo quickly shut the door to Bag End before collapsing into a nearby armchair. He had done it. The adventure was on.
Bilbo slumped into his chair, fighting the urge to cry, laugh, or both.
He did it. His dwarves were coming.
Bilbo's smile suddenly froze.
His dwarves were coming!
And he had nothing on the stove!
Bilbo practically catapulted out of the chair and ran towards the kitchen. He had thirteen hungry dwarves and one wizard to feed, after all.
