A/N: I'm baaaaack! Sorry it took me forever, although from the looks of it this story wasn't missed much. I have yet to receive a review on it. Oh well. There are only a few chapters left and I already have the ending planned. Anyway, thanks for reading and I'm sorry for the delay on everything! Enjoy.

As the unofficial odd hobbit of the Shire, Bilbo Baggins was expected to do odd things. Such as throwing a large birthday party for himself in the field near Bag End. The season was fall, the air was crisp, and everyone was wondering if the strange wizard, Gandalf, would appear in their parts again to provide fireworks or dazzle the hobbit children with his magical tricks. Down at the Green Dragon a group of hobbits was conversing about this strange party.

"If that Gandalf shows up, it's bad news. Mark my words." That was a Sandyman, down from the mill.

One of the Gamgees, called the Gaffer, offered his two cents. "Now, I've been working for Mr. Baggins and he's a good hobbit. If he thinks highly of Gandalf, then I see no problem with him in the Shire." He nodded his head firmly, as if to make the statement concrete.

Sandyman frowned and said, "But it was the wizard that carried off Baggins in the first place, on one of those nasty adventures. What if carries off one of us next? Influencin' our children and all, with his tricks and whatnot." He narrowed his eyes. "I don't trust him."

And so the conversations went on. Poor Bilbo, who might've been bothered by such comments before, just went right along with the plans for his party. He invited all he trusted (which was a small number), his relatives (except the Sackville-Bagginses), and, of course, Ruby. The little hobbit anticipated the party with the excitement that only a child can produce. Screecher got a little tired of her bouncing up and down at every wagon coming down the road. 'Why, it's Gandalf!' However, no sightings of the wizard had yet been reported.

"Mr. Bilbo," she asked on the day before the party. "How old are you going to be?" She had never asked him this because she thought it wasn't polite. But they were friends, after all.

Bilbo smiled. "Oh, my dear, I'm going to be 71." His hand was in his pocket, fiddling with something, as was common in hobbits, especially when giving speeches.

Ruby's eyes widened. 71? That was nearly as old as the Ancient! But Bilbo didn't look a day over 50! "Mr. Bilbo, that's old!" she exclaimed before she could help herself. He was 71!

The Baggins laughed, telling her that it wasn't that old. Why, the Old Took was 130 when he died. Ruby pointed out that he looked very well-preserved. Bilbo just laughed again and continued to finger whatever was in his pocket.

Just like clouds ready to burst, Ruby nearly exploded the afternoon before the party. There were going to be drinks, and cakes, and food, and bread, and mushrooms, and… well, Ruby didn't know what else. She also couldn't wait to see what Bilbo was going to give out. It was hobbit tradition to give out gifts to guests on birthdays, rather than the other way around. Would they be extravagant? Would Bilbo use some of that money he'd brought back from his adventures? Or was it all stored up in a secret room in Bag End?

While hopping from one foot to the other, Ruby begged the Screecher to let her go early. She would help Mr. Baggins get ready. Or make some tea for him. Oh, she would do anything! Well, almost anything.

"You be careful now, Ruby," screeched her caretaker. "It looks like it might storm tonight. Don't want you sick, now do we?" However, much more pleading finally wore down the Screecher and Ruby was off, straightening her party dress and skipping through the fields of the Shire. She wondered how Rivendell looked today. Were the Elves singing in the valley right this instant? 'Tra-la-la-lally, down in the valley…' She giggled. Bilbo's singing of their songs was something she found simply laughable, for his voice matched that of his handwriting – kind of thin but extremely enthusiastic.

"Tra-la-la-lally…."

Humming on a bright sunny day while walking towards Bag End makes one think that travel wouldn't be so bad. However, this is the idea that travel wouldn't be so bad, as long as the weather stayed this nice all the time. Bilbo would have been quick to point out that trudging through rain and mud with no fire or dinner to look forward to is quite miserable. Ruby looked up at the sky and wondered how anything could be miserable on a day like that one. Big puffy clouds threatened rain but she was confident that they would hold back long enough for Bilbo's party. Maybe that was Gandalf's doing, if he had indeed arrived, although she had checked daily and there hadn't been any sign of him.

"He'll come," she told herself, bending to pick up a flower. Bilbo's flowers were just starting to feel the effects of autumn and soon things would start to bend toward winter. But that flower that she held in her hand, a lovely little daffodil, was as perky as Ruby herself. She tucked the golden flower into her hair, thinking how they'd look in fireworks form, \ and continued on, singing to herself.

"Tra-la-la-lally, down in the valley…"

"My dear, Ruby! Come in, come in! You're here early!" Bilbo quickly opened the round green door Ruby had become so acquainted with over the past few months. The older hobbit motioned her inside and ran to make some tea.

"Would you like some eggs? Or some cheese! I have a lovely year from the vineyard that I could open but…oh, that's right. You're but a child." Bilbo laughed as he scurried about the kitchen. "I forget these things you know. Such wise and playful eyes, I mistake them for someone older than yourself. Did you say you wanted some eggs?"

Ruby fingered the pendant around her neck, wondering how Bilbo managed to survive one adventure, let alone a whole year of them. He bustled about the kitchen, careful not to burn his hands on the kettle, selective with the teacups, nearly forgetting about the eggs that Ruby hadn't even agreed to eat. How could such a scatterbrained creature contain such cleverness?

"I do hope I put enough salt on those eggs. I've been so busy these days that I've been finding myself messing up the littlest things, like salt on eggs and butter on bread…" Bilbo fingered that item in his pocket again, his gaze seeming to stare off into space, his voice trailing off. "I wonder why that is…" he said quietly, fiddling with his possession. What was it?

Ruby could hardly contain her curiosity but managed to keep herself composed while she sipped her tea, eyeing his pocket. Her friend pulled himself out of it soon enough and continued chatting on about an encounter with some rock-throwing giants in the Misty Mountains, right before they were captured by goblins. This story, told before to Ruby, didn't hold her attention as much as it might have before. She noticed the clouds gathering outside.

"Mr. Bilbo, you don't think it'll rain, do you?" she asked suddenly, staring out the round window.

"Wha…oh, rain? Yes, it was raining something fierce and thunder and lightening, you wouldn't believe that neither Fili nor Kili could get a fire started in that torrent and…"

"No, Mr. Bilbo, I mean do you think it will rain today?" Her pointing finger finally captured her companion's attention and he glanced outside at the gloom. He patted her hand and shook his head, reassuring her that the clouds would hold off in time for them to have their party. Besides, they could always have it inside! Like a tea party, except larger and with many more guests and even more food after that.

"Don't worry, my dear. A little water never hurt anyone."

Water was something Ruby wasn't so sure about.

Drip. Drop. Drip. Drop.

The incessant dripping that was outside would have been highly annoying if not for the even more annoying snoring of Bilbo Baggins. Their confidence in the rain clouds being gracious to them was now shattered as it started to come down harder. A glance out the window would only provide a view of runny streaks of precipitation filling up the whole of the round piece of glass. Ruby had gone home after tea to retrieve a present she had made for Bilbo, only to reach Bag End right before it started to pour and now she not only didn't get to see Gandalf, but she couldn't attend the party under that lovely tree of Bilbo's. The guests weren't scheduled to arrive for another few hours although it was doubtful now that they would show up at all. Some September 22nd this was turning out to be.

Her little chubby hand snaked toward her neck, wishing to finger her necklace. Its smooth stones and rich feel gave Ruby a sense of importance, like she was more acquainted with the world and would one day influence it somehow. However, she couldn't find it. The necklace seemed to have vanished from her neck but she was positive she hadn't taken it off! Oh, where could it be?

Ruby glanced outside again and realized that it probably fell off on her second trip to Bag End, which meant that it was now getting wet! She didn't want the beautiful rubies to get covered in mud! With a side-long look at the sleeping form of Bilbo on the couch with a map on his chest, Ruby grabbed her coat and slipped out the door. Her pendant couldn't be far and besides, a little water never hurt anyone…

"I think I'm in the mood for a nice seed cake, don't you agree, Ruby…" Bilbo's yawn and stretch were interrupted when he noticed that it wasn't Ruby sitting across from him, but a very old friend. "Gandalf?"

"My dear, Bilbo," his friend replied with a smile, bushy eyebrows sticking out from above his twinkling eyes. He looked about thoughtfully. Yes, a seedcake did sound good but he most definitely wasn't Ruby. Surely Bilbo wasn't referring to the exquisite ruby necklace Gandalf had found on his way into Bag End, was he? He also wondered why Bilbo had left the door open a crack, as it had been letting in a little trickle of water, which couldn't be good for the lovely brick floor that was in the front hall…

Bilbo yelped and jumped up, rushing to the door. "Gandalf! That necklace belongs to a dear friend of mine and I'm afraid she's caught out in this storm!" He tugged on his tall friend's sleeve in alarm, begging for his help. After Gandalf asked for Bilbo to explain, the poor hobbit sat himself down on the floor with his head in his hands. He was supposed to look after her and now she's out in the rain!

"Bilbo, my friend, I will help you find this Ruby although I do not know what in Middle Earth you're talking about," said Gandalf, who had grabbed his hat and cloak. Whoever, she was, this hobbit girl was bound to be drenched by the time they found her.

Ruby knew she was dreaming when she saw a tall man in a grey cloak with the bushiest eyebrows she'd ever seen. Now she was imaging she was being rescued by Gandalf! Surely the wizard wouldn't come to look for her hunched under the big Party Tree, would he? But there he was, beard and all, scooping her into his arms and carrying her up the hill toward Bag End. She sniffled and coughed and pulled her coat closer, noticing that everything was getting fuzzy, as if her head had been stuffed full of cotton. Where was her necklace? Why was she all wet?

She put her head on the shoulder of the person carrying her. "A little water never hurt anyone," she mumbled.

A/N: Well, there's this chapter. I'm not sure how much like Tolkien's style of writing this is anymore but I'm trying really hard to make it more formal that my normal style. Hopefully it's working. Let me know if this went too fast. I was trying to get to this ending little tidbit in this chapter but if I rushed things, someone let me know. Constructive criticism is always welcome. Thanks for reading.