~ A Potential Alliance, A Long Lasting Friendship

Chapter 5

Many hobbits knew their king was the gentle, kind, and generous type. With a calming presence and had great patience whenever dealing with his subjects. Bilbo knew how to treat the citizens of his kingdom and how to get them under control, he had years of training how to deal with his kin.

These were not his kin.

"Catch!" Bofur threw the red apple straight at his cousin Bifur.

"Heads up!" Kili warned as he also threw a peice of fruit at someone in the company.

"Hey! Watch it." Dori whined, rubbing the spot where his head was hit by the flying fruit.

"Throw faster, we're starving here!" Dwalin called from the back.

If anyone would glance at their company burglar -secretly a king-, they would see his face twitching due to the great annoyance he was withholding back. Trevor watched with childlike curiosity at the food being thrown about and the yells growing louder.

Gandalf chuckled as he checked on their hobbit. Bilbo tried as best as he could to not be the king of the Shire for once and let the disorder go unchecked. This was ludicrous for him, who would handle perfectly good food so carelessly? It seems trying to stand these dwarves was going to be easier said than done.

Thinking positively, he had months to get to know them better. Months of seeing this scene play out everyday. Maybe he could teach them the art of table manners and gain their trust. Though he had to admit, the former might come harder than the latter.

As he pondered in his thoughts, the rest of the company were currently eating what they considerd lunch, not wanting to stop until nightfall. Bilbo hoped they could accept more than three meals a day for him. He wondered how other races could go with only three meals per day, the utter horror hobbit folk would look whenever that fact was said.

Behind him, a certain blond dwarrow was eyeing his back. Finally his younger sibling grew distracted and stopped their earlier conversation, now Fili could plan a way to start another conversation with their pretty thief. Hobbits certainly took him by surprise. When his uncle first told them the story about hobbit aiding them during the attack of Smaug, he always wondered what they were like.

There was no real source of information about them. Only the fact that hobbits were a secretive race who hid themselves from larger folk. Which would explain the lack of knowledge of their kind. Now they had one amongst them, so his unanswered questions would surely be satisfied now.

From his observation, hobbits were simple. Even from just meeting one he saw the simplicity of their ways. They were also a seemingly kind race but wary of outsiders. Not in a suspicious way but a rather shy, and polite manner. When he and Kili asked a couple of halflings for directions in Hobbiton, they withdrew a little and grew uncomfortable but gave them their needed route to get to this 'Bagshot Row' where he had met and possibly fallen for the owner of Bag End.

As a bonus, they did offer them pie. Which his brother wasn't hesitant to take a slice of. They must have guessed how drained they were from their travel. Then the wargons came. He saw them first while telling Kili to chew before he ate, he noticed them outside the window. A group of hobbits wearing foreign armor rode in two straight columns, heads covered with strange feathered hats and their wargons silently treading through the roads.

It was a jaw-dropping sight to behold. He tried to get his sibling to stop stuffing his face but it was in vain, the pie was delicious and Fili almost regretted it when he finished it all. Then he realized he had more questions than ever to ask.

Oh, but he felt his fingers drum on his lap nervously at the thought of approaching the adorable halfling. What would he say first? Should he play it cool with a joke or go formal and greet him afternoon. The wrong choice could lead to a bad start. This was a first, he actually had nothing to say first. He had loads of dwarrowdams fancying him back at home, naturally as he was prince and a dashing looking fellow. Then again, Bilbo wasn't a dwarrowdam, or even a dwarf.

"Mr. Baggins!" Bofur called, alerting Fili but not so the deeply pondering hobbit. "Lunch is served!" He threw another apple, it headed straight for the still oblivious burglar.

Out of instinct, Fili threw out his arm and caught the fruit. It was an inch away from hitting the unsuspecting hobbit's head. He sighed in relief when he made it in time. Though, he had his pony to thank in moving so swiftly.

Then he noticed two pairs of the brightest, clearest emerald green irises staring at him. The apple in his hand almost fell as the giddy feeling grew in his chest. This was not planned.

The possibility of having an awkward start was demolished when a bright smile spread across the face of the hobbit. Bilbo let out a laugh resembling strings of a harp being strung. The nervousness faded away into a mushy feeling.

"Nice reflexes master Fili."

Fili blinked once, then twice. Reality kicked in and he straightened up, an easy grin playing on his lips.

"It was nothing Master Baggins and I did say to add no 'Master' when being adressed. We are going to be on the road together for a long while."

Bilbo thought about it, then agreed. "I suppose so." He casually plucked the apple from his hold and started to bite. "Then call me Bilbo." He said after swallowing.

Here was his chance. "So, um, Bilbo." He tried out the name, letting it roll off his tongue. "I have been curious for a while...concerning hobbits."

He felt proud of himself when the hobbit's face brightened and stared at him with avid attention, "Concerning hobbits? That is...this is a surprise. I did not think anyone would care to be indulged with hobbit-lore."

"Well think again," Fili laughed. "Tell me everything you know."

So there Bilbo began his lecture, to the very beginning of the history of his race.

"If you must know," Bilbo cleared his throat, straightening himself. "hobbits are actually very ancient people."

Fili's eyebrows raised slightly, shocked with the piece of information.

"Indeed?"

Then they furrowed. That was not his voice.

Ori had unknowingly joined in. In his hands was an open book and a quill. His eyes glinting with interest, probably enthralled with their conversation.

"Yes indeed!" Bilbo seemed more pleased that someone else had come to listen to him. "Glad you could join us Master Ori."

The young dwarf smiled sheepishly and shied away a bit, he clutched the book closer to his chest. "If it won't be a bother."

Fili wanted to say it would be a bother but who could say that to Ori. He should have known the youngest Ri brother would be eager to learn about another race, especially a race so rarely mentioned. A scribe such as him, must be dying to write everything he was going to hear down to the letter.

"Of course not! Now where was I? Ah, yes. Now hobbits are ancient, far more numerous in the earlier days than this present time."

"You can't be serious!" Nori suddenly popped up. "There were tons of ya halflings running about the Shire and ye definitely weren't short of little ones."

Of course Nori would be here. If Ori's in the mix then no doubt either one or both of his siblings would come bounding after.

"Well you are right of not being short on fauntlings! My mother was the youngest of seven siblings." Bilbo laughed at their flabbergasted faces.

"I take it dwarves have it different?"

"Aye." Fili made sure to answer first, "The most a female dwarf had ever reproduced was four, and that is considered to be a blessing of Mahal."

"Dwarves had never been a numerous race." Gloin came in and joined.

"The most female hobbits could produce are twelve, but lately the numbers have been dwindling to five or three."

"That's still quite a number. Ya halflings are lucky."

"Thank you. Now back to the topic, we are actually distant relations of men. Our origins of coming into this world are vague at best. We never wrote down what happened during the days where hobbits had lived before the Shire. Some say we were created by Yavanna which contradicts our relation to men but that's our only theory as of now." He gazed down at his hands sadly. "How we came to be are now long lost and forgotten."

A minute of silence followed. Bilbo then took notice how the entire company was quiet. He looked up to see their concerned, and maybe some compassionate expressions sent his way. Though they were few, it came as a stunner. It seemed the dwarves were listening to his lecture after all.

Then someone clear their throat. They turned to see Gandalf, his white horse striding along Trevor, seemingly unfazed by the powerful predator currently distracted by a fluttering butterfly.

"It seems my knowledge of hobbit-lore has gotten quite faded out. I do wish to hear about what you do know of the olden days of hobbits." He smiled kindly at the hobbit. It somehow lifted the sad atmosphere as the others agreed.

"Yes, I would like to take part in learning that." Fili added.

"Same here!" Kili came into his vision, smiling a childish smile. "Its captured my attention."

The corners of the hobbit king's mouth curled into a smile.

The rest of the day was spent with Bilbo regaling them with tales and history of old. Behind him the grey wizard watched, satisfied. He turned to look at the very front of the traveling group. Thorin kept his eyes on the road ahead, but once in a while he would side-glance to take a peek at their burglar whenever he said anything fascinating.

Maybe things would turn out for the better after all.

But the road goes ever on. And many things can happen.