At long last! Thank you so much for the reviews and alerts. It really warms my heart and makes me confident, especially on stressful days. I am most likely going to get my chapters done during the weekends because of college, so bear with me and then I shall return the favor for other fellow authors;) Just so you know, this story will have at least some extended edition scenes from the hobbit movies because they're fun (though I'm still not sure about BOTA, but we'll see).
Meet the dwarves! KHB123, at your service! *Bowing*
Chapter 5
Bilbo twitched his nose disdainfully, deciding that he didn't like the wizard, or rather his sort. Not with all that talk of adventures in the middle of the hobbit's peaceful life. It was absurd and unsettling. Out of the blue. Still, he couldn't help but recall a nearly faded memory. One of his earliest memories as a small child...
The night sky lit up in tremendous explosions of bright, colorful fireworks. Their loud BOOM sounds vibrated across The Hills and houses of the Shire, their dazzling beauty twinkling down like raining stars. The hobbits cheered happily as they watched, dancing and clapping with the musical fiddles that played up to its hearty beat. Little four year-old Bilbo giggled mirthfully, reaching his tiny hand up as if to catch one of those glittering stars, hopping on his hairy tiptoes eagerly.
He watched as the grown-ups celebrated through drinks and laughter, looming above him in clothes of cheery colors, wearing cuffs and ribbons that danced like the mini firecrackers that fluttered into the shape of butterflies. He even spotted his dark-haired mother, leaning fondly on the shoulder of his grandfather, the Old Took, and the only hobbit Bilbo ever saw with hairy sideburns that resembled a beard.
Bilbo had his wooden sword as he played with his Took cousins around the festivities, when he spotted a gray giant in the center of the firecrackers. He gaped in innocent wonder, and then smiled mischievously before raising his toy sword in the air, squeaking, "Sway the giant!" and charged forward, whacking it in the giant's backside. The giant turned and parried with little Bilbo's sword, and the baby hobbit squealed with glee as he felt the thrill of his match spin with fun.
Somewhere he heard his mother call out his name, but the toddler paid no mind. Finally, he stopped waving his sword and he felt the giant's hand ruffled his little, curly head affectionately, before Belladonna appeared in view to take his mini sword in one hand and his shoulders in the other. She made a move to scold him, but her face softened into a loving smile at her child's wide, twinkling eyes.
He was a Took, after all. Just like her...
"Morning, Bilbo!" Lori's voice replaced the memory of Belladonna Took, back in the present. The little human girl was standing in the hallway, still her pink pajamas, her long hair a bed-mess as she rubbed her sleepy eyes, her teddy bear dangling to the floor in her other hand. "Whatcha dong?"
"Nothing!" Bilbo stepped away from the window and forced a smile. "Just went outside to for a pipe of tobacco. To fetch these." He held up his letters before slapping them down absentmindedly on his desk. "I have breakfast on the table. Bacon, sausage, and eggs! I'll go heat them up for you." He strolled over into the kitchen, Lori following behind.
As Bilbo heated up their breakfast, firing the stove under the frying pan, Lori was seated at the table, lying her head down, using her bear as a pillow. She must have been up late again. They all must have been...again. Bilbo sighed, feeling his hunger return, hoping his second serving of breakfast-maybe a cake or two and a drink-would calm his earlier fright with the wizard. Adventures! He shivered from the dreadful thoughts that still lingered, and yet...was there not a spark of excitement or intrigue? It was there for only a moment, but then it was crushed by the reality of the topic.
He was a Baggins of Bag End. He had no interest in leaving his doorstep for no apparent reason, risking the preservation of his respectability (as it was already dangling by a thread while letting human younglings from an unknown land stay in his home, surrounded by hobbits with mixed opinions on this act of hospitality), to go with a wizard he hardly had any memory of except for his well-known, traveling business involving magic and fireworks and...
Magic! The thought gave him a start, making his hand jerk and accidentally touch the hot frying pan.
"YOUCH! OW!" yelped Bilbo, making Lori jump awake. "Bollocks! Confound it!" he cursed, rubbing his hand as he rushed it over to the nearby sink.
"Are you okay?" squeaked Lori, looking startled.
"Yes, yes, I'm alright," gritted Bilbo, running cold water over his small, white burn mark. "Nothing serious; it'll be better in a moment. Carry on!" Even though the pain was quickly fading, he still inwardly cursed himself, and it was not for burning himself.
He could not believe how thoughtless and stupid he had been! There had been a reason that he had invited the Dainson siblings into his home: to help them find a way back to theirs. Whether or not it was normal for them to stay up late at night, and as much all of them seem to enjoy their stay in Hobbiton, anyone would find it obvious that they still find their surrounding quite unfamiliar and that at least one of them had to feel homesick. Bilbo meant it the first time when he said that he believed they came from another world-even more so when Kyle and Maia showed him and then demonstrated their "electronics," they called them-and as fascinated and wary as he felt about their strangeness during the time of their stay, he rather enjoyed their company.
They weren't what his own people would have deemed to be proper, all three of them being completely outgoing and independent as well stubborn and feisty. As much as their actions and behavior sometimes appalled Bilbo, it also gave him some kind of secret pleasure, as though their stay had awoken something in him that had been buried for so long that he never realized it had gone and now he almost wished it wouldn't go away.
The feeling was hard to describe, but it involved mirth. Pride. Curiosity. Awe. Fondness. It was a good feeling. A little too good, as though it were something shameful, but he was too addicted to be rid of it. It had only been a little more than a week and, even though there was still so much more to know about young Maia, Kyle, and Lori Dainson, he almost felt like he knew them their whole lives. Or at least liked the idea of wanting to.
Now he felt ashamed of himself for losing track of the real purpose behind their stay. The hobbit had been so absorbed in his morning pleasures, and the past ten days of playing a good host to these three wonderful children, that he had completely forgotten that he was supposed to help them seek out all the possibilities of finding their way back home. Even through magic.
A wizard was just on his doorstep, practically throwing open offers in Bilbo's face like that of a traveling salesman. A person who was full of wisdom and powerful magic. A person who probably had a better chance of helping the Dainsons than Bilbo, and now he was gone because the hobbit had given it no thought at the time. He had just let an opportunity for the youngsters slip out of reach because he had been afraid for himself.
Inexcusable, and embarrassing. He inwardly groaned. Now, reluctantly, he had to hope that Gandalf hadn't gone and left Hobbiton just yet.
As he served breakfast, Maia had entered and joined them. Unsurprisingly, Kyle was still in bed, trying to "deal with his growth spurt." While Maia and Lori ate their servings, Bilbo had pulled out two mini crumb cakes and poured himself some coffee. The way the hobbit was eating the cakes without hesitating, the sisters could both sense something off about him. Not that there wasn't always something sensitive about him for as long as they known him, but this was more than usual.
They shared a look before looking at Bilbo. "Something wrong?" Maia asked.
"Hm?" Bilbo looked up. Seeing their concern, he forced a chuckle and shook his head. "No, no! There's nothing wrong at all! I was...just thinking..." He certainly was not going to mention to them his recent encounter with a wizard and how he had just practically retreated from the man without even mentioning the Dainsons and their current predictability...not until he fixed it. All the same, even if he did relocate Gandalf, he was worried about what would happen after they did.
"I was just thinking that we head over to the market place today," said Bilbo. It was true; he had been planning a fancy dinner for the evening and was off to pick it up for the four of them. "It's another beautiful day out, and we have been cooped up in this hole all day yesterday. I should suggest that for Kyle, especially. I still cannot understand what is so appealing about that...Gameboy, was it?"
"You're telling me," nodded Maia. Though she had to admit there had been a time when she too had been addicted to games like Kyle, she had then turned sixteen and moved on. "It's always been the same problem. Once Kyle starts playing his DS, or playstation, he caves himself and it's almost impossible to pull him out until he passes out." Maia didn't mention that it has been like that since their dad had left, since it had usually been him who usually had the power to get Kyle to play outside. And when Kyle played outside, the boy always got creative and had a way of involving his sisters in the best of times.
"Yeah, Kyle's no fun anymore," complained Lori. "He said he would teach me how to climb trees, but he never did!"
"You shouldn't be climbing trees anyway," Maia nudged her. "You never know if there are snakes nesting there."
"Snakes?" echoed Bilbo.
"Yeah, we have snakes that hide in trees sometimes," Maia explained. "It usually happens in our state, if nowhere else."
"Maia's terrified of snakes," Lori added, and her big sister shot her a glare. "So are you," Maia pointed out. "You screamed loud enough to wake the cows when spotting one ten feet away!"
"Did not!"
"Too!"
"Nuh-huh!"
"Uh-huh!"
"So are we agreed?" interrupted Bilbo, forcing the girls' attention. "I feel that we should go right away. Like ten minutes from now."
"Really? Kyle's still asleep and we're not even dressed!"
"Well, wake him up and just throw something on. It's just the market, after all, and there should be some hobbit children running about around this time." He glanced meaningfully at Lori, who smiled. The little girl had made quite a few little friends these past ten days. "So, what do you say? Should we go wake up your brother?"
Kyle was feeling very cranky, still feeling the sleep trying to wear away as they walked down the path ten minutes later. Maia and Lori were on either side of him while Bilbo led the way. "I hate you both," he muttered, still thinking back on when they tried to wake him up, and when they failed, they pounced on him in bed.
Maia and Lori giggled. "We know you mean love!" sang Maia, hip bumping him. He bumped her back. They were wearing their Shire dresses while Kyle wore his trousers and blue overcoat, but this time, he wore his black T-shirt underneath. All were carrying baskets for groceries, determined to continue helping the hobbit carry back extra loads for his pantry. He still did not understand why Bilbo has just suddenly forced them to get dress and rush them outside to the market as if they were late for the school bus (not that the Shire, or anywhere here, had a bus).
Bilbo was also dressed in a blue overcoat, but the hobbit was walking stiffly, looking around frantically as they passed by many hobbit holes. Kyle walked up beside him. "What's up?" he asked. "You look a little jumpy. Am I missing something?"
"No, no," assured Bilbo, giving a tight smile, though his eyes kept darting. "I...am just...looking...for that!" He quickly said when pointing over to the booth full of silver fish. They had already entered the market that took place near the Green Dragon's Inn and the bridge across the water. Bilbo started heading over to the fish stand, but not before calling over to the siblings, "Be sure to pick up some lemons and red wine!"
Mr. Baggins had given Kyle some money in a pouch while Maia had the grocery list. As they started heading over to the fruit stand, Lori got caught up with some hobbit children that were playing near the toy stand and went over to join them.
Meanwhile, a hobbit called Chubb wrapped up four packages of fish while Bilbo kept looking around for the wizard. So far, he saw a woman selling bread with a smile, a gentleman smooth out boards of wood, four little girl hobbits (with Lori, he saw to amusement) playing Ring-around-the-Rosie while the boys played chase, and many hobbit parents playing with their babes as the colors of the marketplace moved around them. There was also some cattle, hogs, goats, and enormous pumpkins in view. Everyone was happy today, or relaxed, completely content and unaffected by any worry in the world, other than a few folk growing grumpy and wary at the sight of the Dainsons. It was few, thankfully; everyone just seemed to except them as though they were part of the family.
Bilbo spotted Maia and Kyle at the wine stand, but while they were loading the bottles in crates, a young hobbit lad whom he recognized as his second cousin, Drogo Baggins, met up with the two to greet them with a cheerful smile. Drogo was a good lad, having just come of age recently and had started working in Buckland through his interest in boats and rivers (which was odd, since most hobbits should be afraid of falling in the river). He was also close to the Brandybucks, the most respectable family of the Bucklanders. There was also some gossip spreading about the young lad's real reason for starting his boating business: that he might have his eye on Gorbadoc Brandybuck's young daughter, Primula, who still a child, being twelve years Drogo's junior, but she was old enough to gain some womanly features that appear to be attractive. The rumors were amusing and Drogo was one of the few Baggins' who didn't mind any self-importance or even questioned Bilbo's half-Took side, which made him decidedly more likable.
Drogo was also at the Green Dragon's Inn the night Maia got drunk, Bilbo remembered in all the commotion, being one of the young audience members that begged her to sing more. It was funny that Drogo and Maia looked the same age, but sometimes Bilbo forgot that Maia was eighteen in human years, which seemed extremely young, but he kept reminding himself continuously that it was thirty-three in hobbit years.
Keeping track of aging differences is exhausting, he thought. When Chubbs finally handed him the four fishes, Bilbo thanked and departed, but then ended up running into Mr. Worrywort, an older hobbit with a straw hat and a huge bulbous now, who greeted him with a knowing smile while pushing his gardening cart. "Hello, Mr. Bilbo! Here!" He picked up one of his freshly grown plants and displayed in Bilbo's face. "Have a feel of me tubers! Nice and firm, they are!" he announced with pride in his voice. "Just come in from West Valley!"
Bilbo nodded politely as the gardener put down his plant. "Very impressive, Mr. Worrywort! Now, uh," he said quickly, "I-I don't suppose you've seen...a wizard lurking around these parts?" He looked around as he asked.
Worrywort put a finger in his chin as he looked at the blue sky thoughtfully. "Tall fellow," he echoed. As he kept thinking, Bilbo felt a shock up his spine when he spotted the tip of what looked like the tip of a wizard's hat behind a laundry line. Feeling his old panic return, he found himself stepping out of sight behind old Worrywort.
"Long, gray beard...pointy hat...Can't say I have!" The gardener started to stay something else, but when he turned, he saw Mr. Baggins ducking in cover as he scrambled to the edge of the bridge. When Bilbo turned around, he saw that the "tip of the hat" was only a triangular folding of piled laundry. Bilbo straightened up and groaned to himself for his paranoia, before walking back to the gardener.
Paranoia wasn't something he could afford now; even when he felt the strong urge to hide from the wizard, if he should show up at all, Bilbo had to restrain himself and focus, even if he were to be questioned about adventures again. All he had to do, he told himself, was simply say, "NO THANK YOU!" and then just hope that Gandalf would be generous enough to offer help for the children.
"Say, speaking of strange folk," Worrywort continued, when Bilbo came back. The old hobbit then crossed his arms and was eyeing across the crowd where Maia, Kyle, and Lori were enjoying themselves. "These Big Folk younglings have been around here for a quite a while now!"
"Hm, I suppose they have..." Bilbo kept glancing around for the wizard without luck.
"How much longer do you suppose they'll be staying around here?"
"What?" Bilbo looked at Worrywort, who looked serious and with some slight suspicion on his face. Apparently he was one of the hobbits who was wary around the race of Men, an irony since that his work in farming shipments usually travel back and forth from nearby Men's farm settlements by mule and cart.
"Since they've been staying in your home for more than a week now, I would've figured you'd have grown tired of their company by now!"
"They're not so bad!" Bilbo said lightly, trying not to seem so defensive. "They are actually quite enjoyable and very decent, once you get to know them. Some people around here seem to agree with that."
"Aye, but not all. No offense to you, Mr. Bilbo, what you're doing is undeniably generous, but it's still questionable to some regarding your reputation. There is still some talk going about them. Big Folk mingling in hobbit society for too long can bring on some complaints at your front door, eventually. If you know what I mean!" He tipped his straw hat and sniffed.
Bilbo sighed in frustration. "I know, I know," he said reluctantly. "I'm working on it, I really am, but I can't just send them on their way! They have nowhere else to go at this time!"
"Well, hate to be the one to rush you," Worrywort said, as he heaved up his wheel cart, "but best you hear from me than others. Tis also strange that they should appear on the Hill in those strange attire, not knowing a clue about our lovely Shire!"
Bilbo started to agree, but then stopped and stared at Worrywort. He wouldn't have known about the kids "appearing" on the Hill, unless...he also remembered them mentioning that the first hobbit they asked before entering the village... "Wait, that was you?" he asked Worrywort, surprised.
Worrywort shrugged and just bowed his head, "Good morning, Mr. Bilbo!" before rolling the cart away, Bilbo standing there with his mouth dropped. He was not sure whether to laugh or to groan. He liked Worrywort well enough, but sometimes that gardener could be a little self-indulgent and absent minded.
When they had finished up grocery shopping, Maia ended up having to be the only one helping Bilbo carry the loads because Kyle and Lori were invited by their new friends to go play. It turned out the Drogo took an interest in Kyle and invited him to play Conkers, but then Kyle made a better suggestion of teaching the hobbit lads how to play a game called baseball. Lori and her little friends scampered after them to watch, the little children bouncing up and down in the hilly grass as they cheered the game on.
Kyle had ordered the hobbit guys in position, and was pleased to learn that most of them had a mean swing, especially when throwing rocks. They found a few thick sticks to make up for baseball bats and then used the biggest chestnuts Kyle and Lori had ever seen (which turned out to be originally used for Conkers) for baseballs. Drogo was the pitcher and a Brandybuck named Saradas was the receiver, using Kyle's blue coat to make up for a baseball glove.
"Just scoot a little more backward...Perfect!" Kyle said, as Saradas got a position behind him. "Don't want to the bat to hit you by accident! Alright, everyone in position!" he called out to the teams. They had laid out their overcoats for bases. "Drogo, stay centered! Only if the batter misses a swing, that a strike! There's three strikes, and if there's three balls, the batter gets to walk to first base for free! Hitting the balls too far to the side means foul, and two of those means you're out! The three of you guarding the bases need to be prepared to catch the ball...or chestnut, and then tag the base before the batter reaches it. The same for out field and in field. Y'all got the gist, or do I have repeat the whole thing?"
When everything was set, there was soon a mini baseball game happening. There were even some young hobbit girls that joined to watch. Kyle grinned when hearing his baby sister leading the cheers in the background. "Go, Sparky, go!" Lori cheered. Sparky was another nickname his sisters called him, a nickname to his other nickname: Spitfire.
Throughout the game, Kyle had scored three home-runs and was clearly the fastest runner, being taller and more athletic than the hobbits, but all while doing it barefoot, after a few of the players complained about the boy's footwear giving his extra speed. Everyone enjoyed playing and watching on the grassy hills just outside of the village. As Drogo went for the bat, Kyle noticed that he winked at one of the young hobbit girls in the crowd, one with curly golden hair and blue eyes, who in returned blushed and smiled at him. She looked around Kyle's age, but it was obvious that she had a crush on Drogo.
"Looks like the blond girl's got a thing for Drogo already," complimented Kyle, who was standing next to Saradas near the third base.
Saradas frowned. "Who? Primula?"
"Yeah, I think so," nodded Kyle, smirking while watching Drogo. "Guy's on a roll!"
Saradas quirked an eyebrow and then huffed. "Well, you can wish him the best of luck," he said stiffly. "That blond girl is my little sister!"
At that moment, Drogo had hit a home-run, everyone started cheering, and Kyle was standing with a frozen smirk on his face. "Awkward!" he muttered between his teeth. He had a feeling that he just started something between the two friends that day.
After a whole fun-filled day of outdoor baseball and freeze tag, Kyle and Lori were eventually relocated by Maia and Bilbo, who spent another hour enjoying the fun until the sun was setting and everyone went back into their hobbit holes, or spent their nighttime enjoyment at the Green Dragon's Inn, where their laughter and chattering could be heard across the water.
By the time it was dark outside, the only lights in the darkness coming from indoor windows and the twinkling stars above, the old nightwatchman passed by Bag End with a huge wine flask in hand. Meanwhile, Bilbo was pan frying four gourmet fish, the scales sizzling on the pan. He was in his nightgown, covered by his favorite checkered robe. On the other side of the house, Maia was taking a bath in his mother's tub, taking Lori with her to share, while Kyle borrowed the guest room's bathroom tub. They all had a surprisingly active day, from the grocery shopping to the baseball game (Bilbo had a feeling the children from all around are going to start playing this new game nonstop).
Despite his failure in finding the wizard, Bilbo couldn't help but feel a little relieved. Seeing the Dainson siblings off seemed like a sad thought now that he wanted to forget about for tonight. Now he just wanted a relaxing night, when it was peaceful and quiet, and eat his freshly bought fish with chopped fruit, rice, biscuits, honey, tea, and wine. Water and milk for the children.
Once he laid out the plates of fish on the kitchen table, he called out, "Alright, lad and lasses, supper is on the table!" He felt a little ridiculous, his tone matching the tone of a mother toward her children, but his words seemed to reach them as the three came into the kitchen, one by one. All with wet hair and in their pajamas. Lori scrambled in the lead, hearing her pink PJs and her long brunette hair all wet from the bath, as she hopped in her seat. Kyle was wearing the T-shirt he wore today and his blue PJ pants, his black hair soaked and sticking out like a ruffled mop. Maia was wearing gray sweatpants that labeled PINK on the side and a purple tank top (Bilbo reluctantly agreed to Maia's condition of wearing tank tops only inside the house; after all, there was nobody else there to see), her long golden-brown hair wet and ruffled to make it wavier. They all looked fresh, clean, and hungry.
When they sat down, Bilbo tucking a napkin in, Lori was a scared look on her face when she stared down at her fish. "It's dead," she whimpered.
"I think it's growling at us," teased Kyle, and Lori squeaked and pushed away her fish while Maia swatted at her brother, which he dodged while laughing.
Bilbo realized with sudden guilt that raw fish was probably not the best serving for a little child. Thinking fast, he passed her the fruit and biscuits, which she took gratefully. Then as the hobbit picked up a slice of lemon and started squeezing it over his fish for flavor, the doorbell rang and they froze. Bilbo's eyes flicked up with a confused frown.
"Were we expecting somebody?" asked Maia, mirroring his confusion.
Could it be Gandalf? Bilbo thought suddenly with a twinge of both fear and hope. At this possibility, he put down his napkin and stood up. "Wait here," he told them, before rushing over to the front door. Lori smiled suddenly and hopped up to follow Bilbo, always liking it when answering the door.
When Bilbo opened the door, ready to expect Gandalf, he was surprised to find the person standing on his mat was a dwarf. A large, muscular dwarf with a scruffy dark beard, a bald head lined with tattoos, scarred ears pierced with silver earrings, and bushy eyebrows that shaped the steely scowl in his features.
"Dwalin," said the dwarf in a low, thickly accented greeting. He bowed slightly, but his hard-edged eyes never moved. "At your service."
A small sound escaped Bilbo when blinking back to reality, and then hastily tied his robe together to hide his nightgown. "Bilbo Baggins," he forced out with a final tie of the robe, while straightening up politely, "at yours." Lori had caught up to Bilbo and was watching the whole scene-the dwarf, in particular-with her eyes and mouth as wide as the moon.
The dwarf didn't wait to be invited when he stepped inside past Bilbo, who practically squeaked, "Do we-do we know each other?"
The dwarf named Dwalin gave him a strange look. "No," he said, as one who answered a stupid question. Then he noticed Lori, who was still staring up at him. "Ah," he grunted, as he loomed above her. "Didn't realize you had a bairn."
"W-what?" Bilbo looked at Lori and then at the dwarf with wide eyes, the assumption quickly settling in. "No-No! She's not-I mean, she's not even a-" He kept stammering.
He's huge! That was only thought in the little girl's mind. Her head was literally at the level of his leather belt and muscular arms, where she noticed were patterned with strange-looking tattoos along the fingers, buried beneath lethal iron knuckle-dusters strapped to his wrists. His hands were huge! When she glanced up, his shoulders were collared with animal fur and, based on the strapped harnesses across his chest, there were two axe handles sheathed crisscrossed at his back. He's huge everywhere!
Lori hugged her teddy bear tighter, feeling very afraid as the big dwarf observed her.
It was until Maia and Kyle entered the scene that Bilbo finally pointed out, "She's with them! They're my guests!"
Maia was staring at the dwarf, speechless, while Kyle had managed to mouth in his own shock, "What in the world...?"
Dwalin seemed to figure it all out with one sweeping glance on the three strangely dressed humans in the hobbit hole and then bowed at all three of them at once. "Dwalin, at your service."
"Uh..." Maia's mouth felt dry, feeling slightly afraid of this scary-looking dwarf, but she managed to nod her head in reply, "M-Maia Dainson...at yours," she added in whisper. Kyle just gave a little wave and said, "Kyle," while the youngest sibling squeaked, "Lori!"
"Pleasure," Dwalin replied with a slight twitch of his lips. Then he unclipped his cloak. "Which way, laddie?" His tone seemed to direct back at Bilbo, while Maia quickly stepped out of the way to let the dwarf pass her. "Is it down here?"
"I-I-Is what down where?" echoed Bilbo, baffled.
"Supper!" Dwalin tossed the cloak at Kyle, who almost stumbled back from the force. "He said there'd be food, and lots of it!"
"H-H-He said?" Bilbo frowned, looking puzzled. "Who said?"
The answer never came, but apparently as the four of them followed the dwarf back into the kitchen, Maia leaned over and whispered to Bilbo in the hallway, "How do you know this guy?"
"I have never seen this dwarf in my life!" the hobbit hissed back, almost frantically as he watched Dwalin sit down and started digging into their food. "In fact, I have never even met a dwarf at all in my life!"
"Okay, um," Maia bit her lip nervously, watching at Kyle and Lori sat the table, staring at the dwarf with both awe and fascination as he started gobbling into Bilbo's fish. "You're-you're okay with this? Letting a stranger in, eating our food, who by the way might want to hurt us?" Her last words came out breathless, thinking of the axes and dusters the dwarf wore. He may be shorter than her by a couple inches, but his presence alone made her the smaller person.
"Look, I suggest we just play along," whispered Bilbo. "He's still a guest, and I would very much not like to upset him, especially when he's armed! Come on!" He took her arm and lead her into the kitchen, though neither one would sit at the table, and instead sat on two spare chairs instead. Maia wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly feeling exposed in her PJs, but made no move to leave.
Dwalin was already finishing the last fish that Lori eagerly pushed towards him. They all blanched when he munched off the entire fish head with a loud crunch. Lori's jaw dropped, but Kyle was the only one who smiled at that, clearly thinking it was cool.
He nodded, pleased. "Very good, this! Any more?"
Bilbo perked up from his own thoughts. "What? Oh, yes!" He quickly picked up the nearby basket full of freshly baked biscuits. Maia watched with a smirk as he quickly snagged the top biscuit, before placing the basket out on the table. "Help yourself!" And Dwalin did just that by scooping a biscuit in his mouth as though he were dying of starvation.
"Dude!" exclaimed Kyle, his gray eyes wide. "You just ate, like, four whole fishes in five minute and you're still hungry?"
"Aye!" Dwalin grunted, his mouth full of biscuit. "Don't underestimate a Dwarf's appetite, laddie! Man'll be rolling over before one of my own are halfway finished!" He shoved in another biscuit with loud chewing that made Maia wince in disgust.
Bilbo shifted in discomfort at that fact. "Mm...it's just that, um...I wasn't expecting company," he explained honestly. He was about to continue when the door bell rang again, causing them all to look up toward the front door in surprise.
Dwalin eyed at Bilbo, expectantly. "That'll be the door," he practically growled.
Shaken to action, Bilbo rushed back to the door, Maia immediately in tow, seeing this as an excuse to gladly leave the kitchen. Kyle didn't seem too scared of that viking-of-a-dwarf, she convinced herself. Leave it to him to distract the guest while...Bilbo opened the door and she drew a soft some breath when peeking over his head.
There was another dwarf on the doorstep, but this one was much shorter, stouter, and older, wearing a fancy crimson long coat over designed clothing, leather gloves on, boots curled at the toe, and a black-and-red woven belt, where she could see the handle of a sword hidden there. He had a long, thick, snowy-white beard that curled at his chest.
The elder dwarf smiled at Bilbo. "Balin," he greeted cheerfully, and bowed low, "at your service!"
Balin? Seriously, she thought incredulously, thinking about how well it rhymed with the other guest's name. Are they related?
"Good evening," Bilbo managed, his tone not sharing the same cheer but was at least polite.
"Yes, yes it is," agreed Balin, glancing up at the night sky before stepping inside. "Though I think it might rain later. Am I late?" Then he noticed Maia and his smile grew wider. "Oh, pardon me, my lady! Balin, at your service!" He bowed again, though he did eye at her night clothes and wet hair, which made Maia blush fiercely.
"Maia Dainson," she greeted back stiffly, wrapping her arms around herself. "Nice to meet you, sir!"
"Late for what?" Bilbo stepped in, eying at Balin suspiciously, but the older dwarf had looked into the other room nearby and gave out a hearty exclamation, "Oh! Ha, ha!" Maia turned around to see Dwalin shaking the glass jar of cookies from the mantlepiece, Kyle standing behind him, looking unsure of what to do. When Dwalin glanced over, Balin started marching over with a wide, knowing grin. "Evening, brother!"
Brother! Ha! That makes a ton of sense! Maia thought.
Dwalin chuckled, his hard face lightening up as he put down the jar. "By my beard! You're shorter and wider than last we met!" he teased.
"Wider, not shorter!" corrected Balin, standing up close to his taller but younger brother. "Sharp enough for both of us!" He winked, and both laughed together. Then they clasped each other's shoulders, and Maia was wondering if they were going to hug-
CLUNK! The sound of the brothers' butting heads made everyone else in the room flinch, Kyle's giving a soft "Ah" at the sight. Hissing through her teeth, Maia's hand had unconsciously hovered over her own head as how painful that would seem, while also seeing Kyle trying to stifle his obvious amazement at the dwarves' hard skulls.
Bilbo was the first to break out of the spell. "Ah, excuse me?" he called over, waving at the laughing dwarves. "Sorry! Hate to interrupt, but the thing is..." He pointed at them and then his front door. "...I'm not entirely sure you're in the right house," he tried to explain, but after the brothers had a silent exchange, they both started walking toward the kitchen before Bilbo would finish.
In the kitchen, Lori was still seated there, watching the scene in the sitting room with a gaping mouth, but when Balin appeared from behind Dwalin, Lori gasped loudly. Then she shrieked happily, startling everyone in the room when she charged forward and slammed into a shocked Balin, trying to wrap her little arms unsuccessfully around his torso. "SANTA CLAUS!" she sang.
"Oh, good Lord!" Kyle pinched his face. "Cut it out, Lori!"
"It's alright, lad," assured Balin, recovering from his surprise with a breathless laugh as the child kept hugging him. "I don't know who this Santa Claus is, lassie, but my name is Balin, son of Fundin. At your service!"
"Oh," Lori looked up in slight embarrassment, but it was quickly replaced with a cheerful smile. "I'm Lori!" She was definitely less scared of Balin than of Dwalin.
"A pleasure, little one," returned Balin, patting her on the head. "You wouldn't happen to have some food around here, would you?"
"Uh-huh!" Lori nodded and then took his hand, pulling him in tow. "This way!" She led Balin, followed by Dwalin, to the pantry, the heart-or rather, the stomach-of Bag End.
Maia excused herself to go get her jacket ("Watch Lori," she told Kyle as she went), while Kyle and Bilbo went to the pantry's entrance to see the two dwarves pouring ale from the barrel while chatting among themselves.
Meanwhile, Bilbo was trying to explain the complicated situation, "I-It's not that I don't like visitors...I like visitors as much as the next hobbit-" He emphasized the word in meaning, "-but I do like to know them before they come visiting," he said tightly. "The thing is-"
Dwalin picked up the blue cheese and sniffed it. "What's this?"
"I don't know," said Balin. "I think it's cheese. It's gone blue."
"It's riddled with mold," grumbled Dwalin in disgust.
"It's blue cheese," Kyle jumped in. "It's supposed to be like that. It's still edible."
Dwalin wrinkled his nose and then just tossed it over his shoulder, where it landed on the floor with a splat at the boy's feet.
"Or not," muttered Kyle, staring down at the mess.
"The thing is," Bilbo said a little more loudly, "I-" He nodded toward Kyle and Lori, "We don't know either of you. Not in the slightest. I don't mean to be blunt," he added, holding up his hands, "but I had to speak my mind. I am sorry."
The dwarves stopped what they were doing and turned toward Bilbo at once. Kyle held his breath, Lori had stilled nervously, but Bilbo had dropped his hands and straightened up haughtily, clearing his throat. He seemed satisfied to finally get their attention, and their understanding, but prepared himself for an argument or an apology.
False. "Apology accepted," Balin nodded with a polite smile, one that only made Bilbo draw up slightly with indignation, but the brothers didn't seem to notice as they turned back to the ale.
Pressing his lips together to keep from smirking at the miscommunication, Kyle patted the befuddled hobbit sympathetically on the back. "S'alright, man," was all he could say.
Bilbo sighed helplessly when he looked up at Kyle, and was about to speak when interrupted by yet another ring of the door bell, causing both hobbit and human to turn slowly towards its sound.
"What now?" whimpered Bilbo, tossing his hands into the air before stomping back to the front door with a startled Kyle in tow. They both already knew what to expect, but Bilbo nonetheless gave out another whimper when he opened the door to two more dwarves.
Kyle blinked. These two were much younger. One was blond with deep blue eyes and the other was dark with chocolate brown eyes. It was hard to tell how old the blond was with the beard and braided mustache, but since the dark one only had a stubble on the more delicate features of the two, he had to be roughly Maia's age. Maybe a year or two older.
"Fili," the blond greeted.
"And Kili," the dark added. Then they bowed together. "At your service," they said in unison, which looked both comical and awesome, making Kyle believe that these two were fraternal twins, despite how different they looked from each other. When they straightened up, their smiles were bright and cheeky.
"You must be Mister Boggins," the brunette named Kili said with a wide grin, and then Kyle couldn't hold back a snort of laughter at the dwarf's mispronunciation.
"Nope! Sorry!" Bilbo didn't even bother to be polite. "You've come to the wrong house," he said and hastily attempted to slam the door.
The dark one caught the door with his arm and boot before shoving it back with ease as he looked at Bilbo in surprise, "What? Has it been cancelled?"
"No one told us," the blond added with a confused frown.
Bilbo squinted and stammered, trying and failing to put the puzzle pieces together. "No, nothing's been cancelled-"
"Well, that's relief," said Kili, his smile instantly returning before assertively pushing a startled Bilbo aside while entering, his brother following with an air of importance. At least, Kyle assumed it was his brother, names matching if not their appearances.
Kili was the first to notice the human boy standing in the background, dark eyes widening in surprise before they observed his blue PJ pants and black Punisher T-shirt. Then the young dwarf stepped closer, only an inch shorter compared to Kyle, but somehow like the older dwarves, he made Kyle feel like the shorter figure. "Hullo," he greeted with a nod. "I'm Kili. This is my brother, Fili."
"At your service," Fili said with a formal bow and a soft smile.
"Yeah, I know," said Kyle with a smirk, trying not to show how awkward he felt compared to these cool-looking and somewhat majestic dwarves. Instead of bowing, he held out a hand to shake. "Kyle Dainson."
Kili looked at the hand, but didn't shake. Instead, he tilted his head and pointed out directly, "You're not a halfling!"
Kyle blinked, not sure whether it was a spoken thought or an accusation. "Yeah...well...neither are you!" he shot back, trying to keep the annoyance out of his tone. If this dwarf was going to be a racist and a hypocrite like Lobelia Sackville-Baggins...
But the black-haired dwarf only smirked mischievously and then went to look around before Kyle realized with a start that he was being teased. He also noticed the bow and arrows holstered at the back when he turned.
Fili had unstrapped the twin swords strapped to his back and turned to Bilbo. "Careful with these," he warned, dumping them heavily in the hobbit's arms. "I just had them sharpened."
While Kyle watched with growing disbelief as Fili started pulling out more weapons like two mini throwing axes, a war hammer, and wickedly sharp knives to add to the pile-whether from the layers of his fur-collared, leather coat, his belt, his boots, and his back (Dude's a living porcupine! Kyle thought)-Kili wandered in circles while observing the home with a thoughtful, but pleased expression. "It's nice, this place!" he complimented, nodding appreciatively at the beautifully rounded architecture. "Did you do it yourself?" he asked Bilbo, who was continuously being handed weapons by Fili.
"No, no," grunted Bilbo under the weight of holstered blades. "It's been in the family for years...That's my mother's glory box," he called over sternly as Kili started scraping his muddy boots against a fancy-looking chest. "Can you please not do that?"
"So where did you guys come from?" Kyle asked, as soon as Fili placed down his final knife with satisfaction.
"Ered Luin," he responded. "From the Blue Mountains. There's a Dwarf colony settled there."
"Took a few days to get from there to here," said Kili, turning to the boy. Then he paused. "A little more than a week, really. It would have taken much longer if we had traveled by foot."
"Fili! Kili!" Dwalin boomed, making Kyle jump, as he strolled into the room and threw his large arm over Kili's shoulders. "Come on over and give us hand!"
"Mr. Dwalin!" Kili laughed, not the least bit afraid as he was pulled into the kitchen by the elder dwarf. Fili smiled briefly as Kyle with a twinkle in his blue eyes before he followed them into the dining room.
"Hey, need help with that?" Kyle said as he went over to Bilbo to collect a few knives. They looked so awesome and badass that he wanted an excuse to pick them up. He wondered if his dad-Kyle quickly dismissed the thought.
"Thank you, Kyle!" gasped Bilbo, as the boy carefully lightened the burden.
Meanwhile, in the other room, Lori was with Balin when she saw the two new, smiling dwarves enter and then happily scampered over to greet them with a cheeky smile. "Hi, I'm Lori!" she squeaked happily. She held up her bear. "This is Teddy!"
Kili laughed and then ruffled her hair. "Hello, Lori," he said warmly. "I'm Kili." He waited for Fili to introduce himself, but when he turned, his brother was staring wide-eyed at the child in shock. "Fili?"
"Sorry, I'm sorry," Fili said, shaking his head with a startled laugh. Kili frowned questionably. "It's just that, for a moment, I thought she was you, Kili, when you were a small child! You both have the same hair and eyes; it's hilarious! You two could be twins!"
"But I'm a girl!" protested Lori, pouting at him in a way that made Fili laugh again.
"Yeah, Fili, she's a girl," Kili echoed, faking his wounded pride as he shoved playfully at his brother. "Best not insult the little lass, or else you'd be saying I looked like a girl!"
Fili shrugged, still shaking with laughter. "Not my fault you lacked a beard back then! Even now, I'd have to squint."
"Oh, shut up!" Kili protested, and Lori giggled.
"Alright, that's enough, lads," Balin called over, and the brothers and Dwalin went to surround to table as if to adjust it. At that moment, Bilbo and Kyle appeared with the weapons in their arms. "Shove this in the hallway. Otherwise we'll never get everyone in."
"Everyone?" Bilbo squeaked in the background, and Kyle exclaimed, "How many more are there?"
"There's more?" Lori piped up, looking hopeful.
Answering her question on cue, the doorbell rang again.
"Oh, no!" Bilbo shook his head, as he turned toward the door. He looked both panicked and angry now as he started toward back toward the door. "No. No! THERE'S NOBODY HOME!" he hollered, while thrusting the weapons ceremoniously on the floor in the corner. He hastily untangled the sword strap around his shoulder like it was an insect. "GO AWAY AND BOTHER SOMEBODY ELSE! THERE FAR TOO MANY DWARVES IN MY DINING ROOM AS IT IS!" He gestured a thumb over his shoulder as he started marching angrily back to the front door.
Lori went up to Kyle, who stared after him. "Is Bilbo mad?" she asked, but he shook his head, not knowing what to say. How many dwarves were there? With that, he tossed the knives in the pile and hastily followed the hobbit.
"IF THIS IS SOME CLOT-HEAD'S IDEA OF JOKE..." Bilbo laughed humorlessly, as he reached for the doorknob and Kyle started towards him, "...I can only say, IT IS IN VERY POOR TASTE!"
The moment he yanked the door open, however, Kyle was standing right in front of the door when he was knocked heavily over with a yell by seven more dwarves that ended up falling over in a heap. He felt the breath knocked out him as they landed on top of him in a pile, feeling their heavy bodies struggling with muffled grunting and yelping, "Ow!", "Get off!", and "Hands off, you big lump!" He felt elbows and knees jabbing his legs and ribs, when finally the front dwarf on top of him managed to sit up a little, though still trapped under the tangled pileup.
The dwarf looked down at him, forcing a cheerful smile. He had a long black goatee, two braids from his hair, and a large, floppy hat. "Evening, lad!" he exclaimed, despite the strain of trying to sit up. "Bofur...at your service...when I'm able to, anyway!" He grunted under the weight.
Kyle grimaced and just flicked his hand with a two-fingered wave. "Kyle," he choked. "Ditto! Ow!"
As he tried to at least prop himself on his elbows while the dwarves struggled in their pile on top of him, he noticed that Bilbo was staring wide-eyed at them, and then when he looked up toward the doorway, his surprise faded into a resigned sigh. Kyle followed Bilbo's gaze and felt his breath catch.
No way! The boy stared as a tall man dressed in gray clothing and bearing a wooden staff ducked under the doorway, glancing around briefly with twinkling gray eyes before looking up with a clever smile. He had a long gray beard and a pointy hat.
There's no way he's a wizard! Yet Kyle could not stop staring at the old man. There was something about his presence had sent a powerful tingling along his skin, giving shivers up his spine and a boost of small adrenaline that can't be explained. Was this...magic?
Bilbo sighed at the wizard with an accusing look. He appeared to know the wizard, Kyle noticed with shock.
"Gandalf."
This was always one of my favorite parts, being first introduced to the dwarves!:) Pardon moi for taking a while, but I think you should expect most of these chapters to be done on weekends, when I have time to finish them. This definitely felt like my longest chapter by far!
Just so you know, about Sandras Brandybuck, I'm actually not sure whether this character is a boy or a girl, so I just made a decision here because he was the only character in the family tree that was the same age as Drogo, and since Drogo gets close to the Brandybucks, it should make sense that they're friends (or something). I wanted to dwell on the background of Frodo's parents falling in love, and played with the fact that Kyle helped a little by setting up the baseball game for hobbits.
Anyway, I'll try to update as soon as possible! Thanks for the love:)