Chapter 6 – Months in Hobbiton (part2)
The next day, I again, woke up quite late in Bag End. But I had a dreamless sleep that night, no voice invading my mind and… no images of my family.
I dragged my feet to the bathroom to wash up and dressed in the same dress that I wore yesterday before walking to the main Kitchen. There I saw Bilbo alone eating luncheon by himself, in between whistling a lilting tune.
"Ah! Good afternoon my dear. I believe your sleep has been peaceful?" Bilbo greeted merrily. I greeted back with a smile. "Yes I have… but where's Frodo?"
Bilbo chuckled as he finished his plate. "Oh that boy had left for Brandybuck to attend some business there. He apologizes for not showing you more of the Shire today."
"Oh I see…" I took a seat opposite Bilbo and he handed me a plate, asking me to tuck in to the food. I took some salad and some roasted meat and began to eat silently.
"So how's the preparation of your birthday party coming along Bilbo?" I asked, trying to strike a conversation. Bilbo refilled his cup with tea before sipping on it.
"It's going along fine. I am still doing on my guest list. I have confirmed a hundred guests attending, and I need another forty four names into the list, for it's the total sum of Frodo's and my age together. Isn't that ingenious? But, you will be attending the celebration are you not Jacqueline?"
I stared at Bilbo. "I… I don't know Bilbo…, but…won't it be awkward if a big folk is there?"
"Nonsense Child, it's my party and anyone is invited as long as he or she is a friend of Bilbo Baggins! Besides, Gandalf will be there too." Bilbo reasoned, looking towards me with reassurance that I can attend and enjoy the celebration. 'Well, I have always wanted to experience the celebration first hand… so why not?'
"Will there be a lot of food there?" I asked curiously. "Definitely! After all, we hobbits are big eaters. With this much guests around, food is certainly a must in my celebration, and in very large quantity it shall be!" Bilbo exclaimed, a wide grin plastered on his slightly wrinkled face. "Not only that, my dear, there shall be fireworks! Lots of them! I have already informed Gandalf to bring the finest fireworks that Middle Earth can have, so that the celebration shall be the biggest and joyous in the whole of Shire! The fireworks maybe much better than the food served on that day, don't you think?"
I laughed heartily at Bilbo's child-like behavior when he talked about the fireworks. It was amazing, for one so old to have a heart filled with vitality and joy, well that's Bilbo for you.
"Yes, they will be Bilbo…Then I shall accept your invitation to the celebration. Thank you."
Bilbo smiled warmly and continued to sip his tea, his eyes thoughtful, as though he was thinking about something. I continued to eat my lunch, excited about the upcoming party. Just then, I remembered something. How did Bilbo meet Gandalf in the first place? I remembered in the first movie, Frodo said to Gandalf, 'Before you came along, we Baggins have been well thought of, never done anything unexpected.' When Gandalf met Bilbo, that's how the book 'The Hobbit' was started, of his adventure with Gandalf and… and how he obtained the One Ring from Gollum.
"Say Bilbo, I heard from Frodo that you went on an adventure that has Dragons and Mirkwood! So what kind of an adventure did you have?" I asked, wanting to hear the first hand account of 'The Hobbit' from the main hobbit himself.
Bilbo grinned, as though pleased that I had asked him that question.
"Ah… hmm… where to begin my tale… oh yes! It all began on one fateful morning in the spring of 2941 in this age. I was not like the hobbit I was now, no I was quite like a usual hobbit, living peacefully and enjoying life uneventfully. I was already the master of Baggins and living in Bag End for many years. I was in my garden then when suddenly; Gandalf appeared in front of my house with a party of dwarves……"
By the time Bilbo had finished one tenth of his entire adventure, (I hated to say this, but this old man had a pretty good memory to remember so many names and details.), it was around 4 in the afternoon which I saw on the clock above the fireplace.
"Look at the time, sorry Jacqueline, but I have to continue my tale later, for I have to continue on the preparation." Bilbo excused himself with an apologetic smile and made his way out of the kitchen, while I nodded and began to clear the dishes.
"Oh yes, before I forget, it seems that we will be having guests over for dinner. You can help yourself with the bread and cheese for the 2nd and 3rd luncheon if you want."
"Guests? But who?" I questioned, only to find an empty spot where Bilbo used to stand. I sighed and started clearing and washing the plates (though Bilbo and Frodo protested of me doing some house chores in Bag End, saying, "You're a guest here. We can do the chores by ourselves." Of course I refused and told them I rather do the chores as payment to the wonderful accommodation they were providing me. After much persuasion, they agreed.).
After that, I decided to take a breather outside and see the whole of Shire from Bag End again. After all, I did not get to appreciate them fully with Gandalf when I first arrived here.
I walked outside Bag End and into its garden, feeling a cool, soothing breeze blowing towards my face. My hair played along with it, and I could not help by smiling warmly at the scene in front of me.
'The overview of Shire… I could never get bored of it. Man, I wish I have a sketchbook here, at least I can still improve my drawing skills with it and draw the Shire! I want to draw the hobbits, Hobbiton, Bag End, Bilbo, Sam and Frodo! Hmm… I dunnoe whether Bilbo has any blank books to let me use… Perhaps I should ask him…'
"Ms Jacqueline?" A voice came from beside me and I yelped. I turned to my right to see Sam looking at me with amusement. His cream-coloured shirt was caked slightly with soil and in his hands, he held a shovel and a watering can. His face was covered in a layer of perspiration, perhaps from the gardening and the warm weather.
"Sam, you should have told me you are there!" I exclaimed, trying to stop my racing heart. Sam smiled sheepishly and his face reddened. One thing about Sam, he could be pretty shy around strangers, especially me, why I swore he had blushed like I did not know how much.
"Sorry Ms Jacqueline, but I did try calling you a few times and you were lost in thoughts! Is there anything a matter?" Sam asked worriedly, his eyes showing concern. I shook my head slightly and gave another sigh.
"It's nothing Sam… it's nothing. Say, can you tell me more about gardening? I have nothing much to do anyway besides eat and sleep." I asked, eager to learn some skills from the gardener. 'At least I won't be bored in Bag End that easily.'
Sam gave a brilliant smile and nodded enthusiastically. "That is no problem Ms Jacqueline, so far, you are the only big folk that I met so far, besides Gandalf, who is interested in gardening! I shall tell you everything I know!"
And with a deep breath, Sam began his long lecture on flowers and plants.
After around like an hour, Sam had introduced to me all the flowers in Bag End that were grown, including how they should be grown and what medical benefits they have. He was quite knowledgeable and his words were short, understandable and straight to the point. (After all, if a lecture is boring, I would have fallen asleep right at the spot!) If he could come to my world, he could be a great teacher and write a series with the information he was telling me. Sam in a business suit… that's quite nice actually.
I was squatting beside him, fingering the soft velvet petals of a rose from a rose bush as Sam continued talking about ways for roses to grow well. My mind was trying to absorb all the new information he was telling me when I heard a light chuckle from behind.
"Why Samwise Gamgee, seems like you have found a disciple to pass your gardening knowledge!" A lilting voice said while I again heard another deeper chuckle from a different person. Sam twisted his body to the source of the sound and widened his eyes in surprise.
"Master Peregrin and Master Merry! What brings you two to Bag End?"
I widened my eyes and too turned to see, only to find two hobbits standing behind us. One had a small, rounded nose and shining jade-green eyes. His thin lips formed a smirk and his hand was folded. His curly locks were of earthy brown, and he was dressed in the same style as Sam, but his breeches were of dark blue.
The other too had a round nose, but it was somewhat more prominent than the latter. His narrowed black eyes danced with amusement as his carrot-coloured hair swayed with the coming breeze. He too dressed the same, but he had on a white shirt with a yellow wide collared vest.
"Why can't we be here?" the hobbit questioned, before laughing.
But when the two noticed me, they stared at me curiously. "Why, isn't she the lady that Frodo had been telling us Merry?" The green eyed hobbit said in an accent that sounded foreign to me, but it was lilting and filled with untold mischief and surprises. Merry's eyes widened at me and nodded furiously. "She is! A rather large big folk with short ebony hair and eyes, that's what he said!"
"Check yourself Master Merry," Sam said as he frowned slightly towards Merry who grinned sheepishly.
"Sorry Sam, but that's what Frodo described of her! A tall large human, but with a gentle and compassionate heart is what he told us, isn't that right Pippin?" Merry explained, looking towards the other hobbit who grinned widely. "That is true Sam, word for word."
I looked at three said hobbits and could not help but be amazed on that fact that I was here, on Middle Earth, with the four main hobbits that shall change its fate. Speaking which, where was Frodo? Just then, I heard panting from behind Pippin and Merry and all heads turned to see a flushed Frodo glaring.
"Peregrin Took and Meriadoc BrandyBuck! To think you two actually ran off without me!" He scowled between each gasp of breath.
"Of course Frodo! Why, we are utmost curious of the lady you spoke so much of and besides, I am starving for the third luncheon!" Pippin piped as he grinned mischievously at Frodo, who redden slightly. I chuckled lightly on the scene in front of me, enjoying the atmosphere for a moment. Frodo heard my chuckle and looked towards me with surprise.
"Jacqueline! What are you doing outside Bag End?" He asked
"Sam here is teaching me all about gardening, and he is a good and patient teacher." I grinned, nudging towards Sam, who smiled brightly.
"Milady, its best if you don't compliment him too much, for it will go over his head!" Merry jested and grinned to me merrily. I was quite shocked in my mind in fact, for these two hobbits unlike those I have met so far, had been quite accepting of my presence, and not jumping out of fear or caution. But I was glad though.
Sam rebuked, "At least there's someone who appreciates the art of gardening and wishes to learn, unlike someone."
"There now both of you, there's a lady in our presence. Let's put this aside and we shall eat our third luncheon and later dinner, how about that?" Frodo interrupted gently, but was further interrupted by a loud growling sound. We all turned to the source, and stared at Pippin, who laughed nervously, "Sorry, I am really starving. I can eat three whole chicken at one go if I can. So… shall we eat? I can't wait much longer." He said hopefully, emphasizing his state of hunger.
Frodo, Sam and Merry laughed heartily, shaking their heads, the previous talk forgotten.
Frodo opened the door and let Merry and a hungry Pippin in to ransack his kitchen.
"Sam, join us!"
"Alright Mister Frodo, but I need to inform old Gaffer. I shall be back soon." Then, Sam ran down the stairs and disappeared at a turn, leaving me and Frodo alone.
"So how was your day?" Frodo asked, his blue eyes looking to mine. My heart thumped slightly faster, but I waved it off with a slight grin. "It is ok. Woke up late, eat lunch with Bilbo, listen to Bilbo's adventure and you just heard from Sam, I am learning more about gardening."
"Bilbo is a great storyteller, isn't he?" He said softly, looking towards the Shire. "…He is the one hobbit that will be known in the entire Shire for generations to come for his tales…"
"He will be… " I nodded, my eyes straying to Frodo, studying his face a little more. Come to think of it, his face had somewhat a tinge of feminine features , unlike most male hobbits I had come across, his most striking features was his wide blue eyes that spoke volumes of his emotions. And… his pure soul… was soon to be tainted by the One Ring……
Suddenly, Frodo turned his face towards me, looking at me amusedly. "What's wrong, you are staring at me."
I blushed and looked down. "Haha, well… I was wondering, do you have any girl that you like yet Frodo, in Shire?"
"Why do you ask suddenly Jacqueline?" He asked back, his voice curious. Suddenly I felt his hand reached my face and lifting it up to face his. I blushed further at the intense gaze he was giving at me. I mentally hit myself, ruffled my short hair and grinned. "Just feel like asking. Besides, a handsome hobbit like you should be quite popular in the Shire… and besides, I am planning to ask Sam later. So?"
Frodo broke the gaze and laughed, his laughter was in fact quite musical, that I did not make up.
"So you find me handsome, my lady? I am thankful of your praise." He said, bowing to me like a gentleman.
"Don't let this get over your head, hobbit. To me, all men are handsome and all ladies are beautiful in their own ways. Besides, there are better looking men and er… hobbits out there that I have yet to see." I said sternly, but only receiving more laughter from Frodo.
"But, so far……" He trailed, looking towards me seriously. I returned the stare and waited for this big juicy news to be revealed.
…
…
…
"So far?" I raised my eyebrows, wondering when he was going to tell me.
"… … I think I better not tell. It's best to keep it secret. Women can be great gossipers." Frodo grinned widely before turning towards the door. I nearly fell from that answer.
"Why you little……, then you should have just said that earlier!" I cried, glaring at the hobbit.
Frodo turned around and gave a cheeky smile. "Why my lady, it's more fun to see your reaction that way." He teased and entered the smial, with me behind glaring, only to find two smirking hobbits at the door way.
"Merry! Pippin!" Frodo exclaimed in surprise, "I thought you two will be eating at the kitchen!"
"We can't eat first without the host can we now Pippin, no matter how hungry we are, for we have good manners." Merry said, looking towards Pippin who nodded furiously.
"But Frodo," Pippin said, his bright green eyes looking at Frodo and me seriously, "I did not expect you and the lady to be a couple. And a weird couple it is."
I stared ridiculously at Pippin. Frodo blushed and protested, "We are not a couple, Pippin, we are just friends. Stop this nonsense."
"Frodo has been very kind and polite as a host to me during my stay. He is becoming more like a brother to me, Master Pippin and Master Merry. Nothing else." I defended honestly, and I ruffled Frodo's hair affectionately, feeling his soft curls for the first time. Frodo laughed and did not protest my action. Merry and Pippin stared at the two of us and looked unconvinced. "If Milady said so… but we believed that there's something more behind this. For the Brandybuck and the Took are good in finding the truth." Merry said finally, smiling.
"Oh yes! How forgetful are we, we did not introduce ourselves to the lady." Pippin said in alarm. I was about to say it was alright, (after all, I had already knew them from my world and I also heard their names from Sam and Frodo.) when Pippin took my hand and gave a light shake.
"As you heard, I am Peregrin Took, son of Paladin. But I rather you call me Pippin." He said in a bright accent with a lopsided grin. "Hello Pippin, please to meet you." I grinned, returning the shake.
"And Meriadoc Brandybuck is my name, or you can call me Merry Milady," Merry said with a charming smile and bowed.
"Nice to meet you too Merry. I am Jacqueline." I said, my eyes looking at the two.
"And I am Bilbo Baggins. Please, what's with all the ruckus, I can barely concentrate on my work!" Bilbo suddenly appeared behind Merry and Pippin, his expression grim. I gaped.
"Bilbo, since when did you come?" I asked astounded.
"Just. You all just did not see me coming." Bilbo replied with a satisfied grin, as though he was pleased to know that he could sneak on to us easily.
"Good day Master Bilbo!" Merry and Pippin greeted while Frodo apologized for the noise made. Bilbo waved off the apology and shuffled all of us to the Kitchen, saying that besides, he was in the mood of eating anyway.
By the time Bilbo and Frodo prepared finish the food, Sam arrived and we all tucked in. It was a lively affair, where Pippin and Merry told us jokes and interesting events occurring in their lands, me telling two very curious and awed hobbits about my world, Sam talking about Old Gaffer and Bilbo and Frodo, discussing on their upcoming birthday celebration. Laughter and jovial conversations rang the air, which made me felt right at home with my new family. I wonder… how Gandalf was now…
The next four months in Hobbiton were quite eventful. Frodo had by then given me a through tour of the Shire, bringing me on trips to places where Bilbo had some business there for the celebration. Sam, Pippin and Merry too joined along for the fun of it, pestering me during the trips about my world. It's quite funny to see the hobbits' reactions when I told them that there are no hobbits in my world. Their jaws almost reached the ground! I remembered Pippin crying in dismay, "Why, a world without hobbits! That's such a sad world you lived in."
Within a short time, I had become quite close to the four hobbits, always hanging around and telling stories and jokes. I could not remember how many times I laughed during my stay. As I get to know the four of them better, I noticed more qualities in them that the movies or books did not display. Like Frodo's mischievous side (especially that one time when he poured water on me to wake me up for breakfast, for which I had yet to pay back), Merry's love for eggs (I heard from Pippin he could eat at least 10 eggs a week!), Sam's dislike for peas ( it's kinda weird from him) and Pippin's love for songs and poetry (he knew like what hundreds of songs and poetry and even sang for us one song live! He had a really astounding voice that could make all females in my world swoon.).
Merry and Pippin even brought me to Bucklebury and Tuckborough, their homeland and introduced me to their family, who did not accept me well at first, but gradually they tolerated my presence and even gave me a brief history of the two oldest families in the Shire. From there then I remembered that Frodo was a cousin of Pippin, since his mother was a Took. Frodo joined us a little later at dinner and we even stayed for the night! (I slept on the floor that night, for the guest bed was well… small.)
Pippin was the youngest, and Sam the oldest. ( Sam kind of reminding me of a elder brother, who always watch out for the younger siblings…) Pippin usually complained a lot of wanting to reach adulthood, after all, being an adult could do a lot of things that a 'child' could not do, that's what he said.
Oh yeah! I even been to Green Dragon and met Mrs. Cotton's daughter, Rosie. She was quite pretty and kind, with a demure and welcoming smile and dimples to match. Sam kept on stealing glances at her from his seat, his affection and crush for her obvious to the rest of us, who just grinned at our lovesick friend. Somehow, Rosie and I became friends, despite warnings from the other hobbits about the 'Big Folks' and we chatted for a while during her breaks, knowing more about each other and also asking about Mrs. Cotton. It was great though, at least I knew I could count on her when my monthly periods arrived.
Bilbo on the other hand, gradually became busy as the months past, locking away in his study during the preparation and occasionally came out to make important trips and eating meals. Dwarfs and hobbit chefs came to our door to discuss with him, and Bilbo certainly knew what he wanted for the party. But he did set aside some time to have long conversations with me, asking me how was my stay in the Shire, had I been eating well and what I was doing, like how a father would ask. Sometimes, he would continue his tale, and Frodo would always come and sit beside me and be enraptured by his adventure, even if he had listen to his tales countless of times.
When there were no trips made, Frodo would usually bring me to Bilbo's library, where there were countless of old books and maps for me to read and explore. Luckily, I could read the writings (Westron and it was just like English, just that the writings had more dots and curves.) and the library had become my favourite hangout in Bag End.
I had gotten my dresses already from Mrs. Cotton and they fitted perfectly with the skirt and dress reaching just above my ankles, making me feel like a princess already. Bilbo promised that there were more dresses to come and said it was alright to spend a little on a dear friend despite my protests. I thanked him for his kindness. Also, he even gave me a blank, maroon hard covered book and a feathered pen with an ink bottle, knowing from Frodo about my love for drawing. That book, became my precious treasure on Middle Earth and I never failed to update the pages with sketches of Bag End, Shire, my four hobbit friends and Bilbo. It was also a journal, of my stay in ME and as evidence that it was not a dream.
To repay back everything Bilbo had done for me, I cleaned Bag End with everything I had, leaving out the studies and the bedrooms (after all it's best not to enter these rooms without permission. Hey... I should clean Frodo's room, perhaps I could find something to blackmail him with... hehehe...).
Frodo helped me out too, although I wanted to do this by myself. "Friends should help each other out." That's what he said each time he joined in my sweeping. Merry, Sam and Pippin too would joined in whenever they dropped by to Bag End, but we always ended up laughing and joking away, never getting any chores done.
But, I could see the Ring had began to take toll on Bilbo now, his hands always wandered to his vest pockets, where It was, keeping sure of its presence beside him. I saddened at the fate of the kind and generous hobbit changing for the worse before my very eyes, for Bilbo was a dear friend, a mentor and advisor to whom I could turn to and a father.
Bilbo kept me and Frodo occupied with duties as the days moved closer to the party, preparing gifts and invitations to the one hundred and forty four guests on that day, though Frodo said those without invitations would still go anyway.
Then days passed to weeks and weeks passed to months and finally the month of September, or Halimath, as what Frodo told me, came as quickly as a breeze.
Soon, the celebration that Bilbo had planned for a long time, shall begin in its grandest…