Chapter Six:
The next morning came, Bella waking up bright and early. Sitting up, she saw looked at the floor to her right to see Feydra sleeping on the mattress she had made for the warg. She smiled and slipped out of bed to the opposite side.
Slipping her arms into her robe, she tied it close to herself and turned to her mirror, intending to brush the sleep out of her rats nest she called hair. It took a bit to brush her curly hair out, but when she could finally run her brush through without it snagging on any tangles, she was satisfied.
Stepping out of her room, she walked down the hall to the kitchen and made herself a cup of tea before starting her day.
Stepping up to the threshold of the hallway for the guest rooms, she could hear that everyone was still asleep. Bella decided to let them sleep, knowing they probably don't get much chance to sleep in.
Bella walked into the living room and saw that Gandalf was wide awake, smoking his pipe and reading one of her books sitting on the sofa. It was one of the few seats in the smial that the Istari could sit on comfortably.
"Good morning Gandalf." Bella said to the wizard. He looked up and smiled knowingly, remembering the other day. "Oh, don't start, you old wind bag." She said laughing, taking seat in her mother's chair.
"Good morning, my dear." He replied, laughing as well. "Now, I assume your plans for today are to get your affairs in order?" He inquired, raising an eyebrow.
She nodded, taking another sip of her tea. "Yes, I need to make sure that Hamfast will continue to care for my garden when I am not here as well as show him how to maintain the flower garden. He's hoping to learn about flowers to make a garden for his wife. What a lovely gesture. And then I must ask my cousin Drogo to take care of the house while I am gone. I will not have Lobelia Sackville-Baggins come in and take anything. Her and that dreadful husband of hers will try anything an everything to get Bag End."
"Ah yes, I believe I remember the two of you as children constantly getting into arguments. I believe at one point it escalated to the point where you were siting on her and she was face down in mud." Gandalf once again raised an eyebrow. Bella blushed at this story.
"She was an awful person who said I was not really my father's daughter. Said her mother called me a wild child who did not act like a proper hobbit should." She muttered angrily, finishing her tea. "Well, this wild child will now start breakfast. I assume same portions as last night and lots of bacon and sausages?" She didn't wait for an answer before she walked into the kitchen and got to work.
As she walked into the kitchen, Feydra walked into the living room yawning, Gandalf chuckled once again. She huffed and climbed up onto the couch, huffing and falling back to sleep.
Bella got to work, frying up plates full of bacon, platters covered in sausages, mixing and frying some potatoes, scrambling eggs and making fried eggs, as well as slicing fruit for a large bowl. The large table was once again set with 15 plates and place settings, as well as empty goblets for water and juice. She even had two fresh pots, one for tea and one for coffee. She even managed to cook up a large heap of bacon, mutton, and venison for Feydra; adding in some blueberries and apples as well to spoil her a little.
Bella set the large bowl of food on the living room floor along with a large bowl of water. Feydra as still asleep, but her ears perked up and her nose started to twitch. Opening one eye, she saw the bowl and hopped to her feet off the couch. And as if she were a regular puppy dog, her tail wagged something fierce enough to start a breeze and her tongue lolled out of her mouth. Panting and yipping like a dog, she dug into the food with much fervor, enjoying every last bite.
By the time she had finished preparing breakfast, footsteps, grumbling, and shuffling could be heard throughout the smial. Gandalf walked in and took his usual seat, obviously being the only one with a larger chair to fit a human. One by one, each of the dwarves stepped into the dining room and took their seat.
"Good morning Belladonna." Each and every one of them said.
All except Fili, Kili and Ori who all said "Morning Miss Belladonna!" This caused her to smile, it reminded her of her young nieces and nephews. Just the same as last night, everyone was enjoying Bella's food and talking amongst themselves. Now and then there was some rowdy laughter, but it made Bella smile at the display. Knowing that despite it only being one night, they were all comfortable in her home and it was thanks to her.
Thorin was the last one to enter the dining room, once again and took his seat at the head of the table, right next to where Bella was sitting. She smiled brightly when she saw him enter and he returned it with a bow of his head.
"It shouldn't take me too long to get my all of my affairs in order. I just have to visit my gardener and my cousin. After that, I shall stop by the market place to get some supplies. Some food for the road, I need to purchase a new cloak as well. Everything else, I have as well. You and the others should take the time to replenish your supplies as well." Bella advised to Thorin and everyone else.
"Duly noted. I know Oin needs some more medical supplies and we should also replenish more supplies for cooking." Thorin told her as he was fixing up his own plate of breakfast. "Although, I do not know how we will survive without your home cooking." Everyone else at the table had agreed with her statement, Bombur agreeing the loudest.
"Miss Belladonna, I must trade recipes with you while on the road. That roast quail you made and the andouille pudding was just wonderful." Bombur said to her.
"I will definitely hold you to that, Master Bombur. However, some family recipes I must keep quiet about. Lest my families follow us on our journey and scold us enough to scare an orc." Bella joked and he agreed with a large smile.
Breakfast continued with conversation and light banter between family and friends. Everyone in the company was comfortable enough with Bella that they all agreed to drop the 'Master' bit, since she said it was okay for them to call her Belladonna, she should also speak their names. They are after all gonna be going on a quest that will last months.
Once breakfast was finished, the table was cleared off and dishes were washed and put away, this time without any juggling, tossing, singing, or dancing. They were all very respectful with her dish ware this time. Thank the Green Mother. After cleaning with the company's help, Bella went off to get ready for the day, leaving Feydra in the living room to continue to lick the last remnants of food out of her bowl and her jowls. A nice long bath and some time to wash and tame her hair, she would be all ready.
Bella's outfit for the day consisted of a dark blue skirt, a white tunic shirt with sleeves that went down to elbows, with a brown corset overtop it with black trim. Her hair this time was placed in a bun at the back of her head, held together with a hair stick that had a butterfly carving in the end. After deeming herself ready for the day, she grabbed her dark brown coat and walked out of her room to where Feydra was licking her paws.
"Come on, Feydra! We have a lot of work to do." Feydra huffed and stood up, shaking her pelt a bit before following her mistress.
Bella passed by the study. One look to her right saw Dori in the sitting in a rocking chair before the fireplace, working on mending a large pile of the company's clothing. A look to the left saw Ori pouring over her books and maps on the table, writing in his journal furiously, one pencil stuck between his teeth and another on his ear. The youngest dwarf had been dancing in his seat when Bella had accepted his request to scour her library. He marveled at her collection, seeing some books on knowledge he did not know. Yes, Bella thought with a smile, he would make a fine scribe and scholar one day.
Before stepping out the door, Bella walked up to his side. Hearing footsteps, Ori looked up and removed the pencil from his teeth.
"Don't stay at the books too long, Ori. You should stop by the market to replenish your writing and drawing supplies. And I suggest you get another journal or two. Who knows how much information you will be writing down on the journey?" She told him, placing a hand on his shoulder.
He blushed lightly and nodded his head. "Yes Miss Belladonna. Forgive me, your library is wonderful. Knowing my brother Dori, he will keep an hourglass ready to alert of us of our turn at the market."
She smiled and pat the top of her head, "Then he is a good brother to look after you."
"I should hope so, I've had to drag him out of the library in the Blue Mountains just to make sure he's bathed and fed." Dori chimed in, causing Ori to blush darker and Bella to laugh endearingly.
She then bid him and Dori a goodbye for the day and set off. Sitting on her front porch on the bench was Dwalin, polishing his war hammer and sharpening his knuckle dusters. Sitting on the ground a foot away from him was Fili, sharpening all of his swords and daggers, and a great many of them he had. Next to him, was Kili, carving and fletching more arrows for his quiver. He had a pouch of arrows heads ready, laid before him on a leather skin.
"I will be back, gentlemen, I must stop by the market and visit my cousin and gardener. If any of you need to visit the market, it's just a straight path down Merrywind Road to the right." She told them.
"Aye Belladonna, do be careful." Dwalin said and bowed his head to her.
"I will, I have Feydra with me. And, I can take care of myself very well." She winked at them.
"Bye Miss Belladonna!" Kili waved eagerly. As she opened the gate and stepped into the street, she heard running footsteps coming her way.
"Miss Belladonna!" She turned to see Bombur running her way. "Miss Belladonna." He stopped before her. "May I join you on your trip to the market? I must purchase some herbs and ingredients for the journey."
"Me too! I ran out of my smoking tobacco." Bofur appeared behind his brother. Bofur had appeared as well, speaking in Khuzdul as well as signing.
"If it's not too much, may I ask well, lass? Medical supplies are running low." Oin requested, his hearing horn pointed to her response.
"Of course! The more the merrier! Here, follow me to grab my wagon. Come on Feydra." The three walked to the shed to the left of Bella's smial outside the gate. Opening the door, there was a medium sized wooden wagon with what looked like a harness.
Without a command from Bella, Feydra walked to the spot where the harness was and sat on her haunches. Bella got to work buckling the harness up for Feydra making sure it fit her comfortably and not too tight. Once this was done, Feydra stood up and pulled the wagon out of the shed.
"Remarkable! I assume this is how you're able to make your market trips?" Bombur asked her, seeing how Feydra pulled the wagon.
"Only if I need to make a big trip. And that's usually when I have to cook for big family gatherings; birthdays, solstice parties, harvest festivals. But this might be a big trip seeing as it's the five of us. So this will make it easier to carry any and all of our purchases." Feydra closed the doors of the shed with Bifur's help. "Thank you, Bifur." He nodded his head, the tips of his ears going pink a little.
The five of them made their way to the market, many hobbits smiling and waving to Bella, and looking at the dwarves curiously. Once they entered the market, they all gather together to stop at each booth, every open store, and each sales person walking around. Bella and Bombur worked together to discuss what meals to prepare for the journey and what ingredients to purchase.
Bombur heard giggling and whispering and turned to see a small handful of hobbit ladies staring at him. He raised an eyebrow at the display and raised another when they all started to talk louder when they saw him looking at them, a couple of them waved flirtatiously.
"Miss Belladonna? Why are those ladies staring at me?" He pointed out to his new traveling companion. "Is there something on my face? Is my beard and braid unseemly?" He asked, self conscious.
"Oh no, Bombur, your braid and beard are lovely. They are, um, how do I say this?" She contemplated. "Here, notice how all of the hobbit men here are very healthy and are not skin and bone? That is because men take great pride in their portly forms, it makes them look not only desirable, but also rich. Rich enough to keep food on their table. So in their eyes, Master Bombur, you are far more attractive than the hobbit men here because of your lovely size." She explained to him.
Bombur eyes went wide at this, and he blushed profusely. Stammering and stuttering at her explanation, he started to fidget.
"Oh my. I never thought." He said. "What do I do? I'm a married man." He said.
"Oh you're married? How lovely! Who is the lucky dwarrowdam?" Bella asked, hoping to distract him from his newest group of fans who were all hoping to catch his attention.
"Ah, my beautiful Ophelia. She is my One, the dwarrowdam Mahal has blessed me with. She is the love of my life. No gem in the world could outshine her." He said, reminiscing. She smiled at his obvious joy. "She has given me joy and many pebbles."
"Pebbles?" Bella inquired.
"Ah, forgive me, we dwarves call out children pebbles." He said smiling. Their conversation continued as they shopped, Bombur's fans at the back of their minds but still trying to follow at a short distance hoping to capture Bombur's attention.
"Oh, how wonderful. How many children do you have?"
"My wife and I are blessed with fourteen children!" He declared proudly. And apparently his voice carried throughout the market place, because the group of ladies had all groaned in disappointment and scattered and other hobbits looked at him in awe.
"Fourteen? Why you have the beaten the Shire record of 12, Mister Bombur!" Bella commented jovially.
"Why thank you, lass. Everyone in the Blue Mountains consider Ophelia and I touched by Mahal and his lady wife."
"If you don't mind me asking, how so?"
"Children are very rare amongst us dwarves." Oin interjected, coming into the conversation after his shopping had finished. "You see, lass, it is very rare and difficult for most dwarrowdam to have children. Two pebbles are born every 10 years. When a couple have children, they are not only congratulated, but the children are worshipped and blessed. Amongst our people, for a dwarf to find their One and to have children is considered the highest blessing."
At this point, Bofur and Bifur had joined them in their conversation.
"Oh aye, lassie, when my nieces and nephews were born, we celebrated each pebbles birth for a whole week. Feats and parties of song, and food, and ale, and many gifts for the children."
"Oh my, that sounds like a treat." She said smiling.
They continued their shopping, and by the time they were done, the cart was full. The four dwarves accompanied Bella back to her home to drop off their purchases and to return the wagon to its shed. Once that was done, Bella and Feydra were about to set off to visit her cousin Drogo.
"Hella Bella." Thorin had walked to her and Feydra.
"Hello Thorin, what can I do for you?" She asked him.
"Nothing, just checking to see how you are fairing. I trust your trip to the market went well?" Thorin asked her, one hand looped onto the belt on his waist, the other resting on his sword at his hip.
"Yes, it went very well. Bombur, Bifur, Bofur and Oin were lovely market companions. Although, Bombur got loads of ladies hoping to notice them." Bella told him. "Hobbit women like a man with a nice healthy figure. And to them, Bombur is the most eligible." He laughed at this.
"I wonder how disappointed they were to find that he is married with children."
"Oh very, though there were also looks of envy. Master Bombur has beaten a Shire records of 12 children." She told him. He whistled lowly, impressed.
"To have that many children. Bombur is indeed blessed among dwarves, but hearing that you hobbit folk can have that many children is remarkable."
"We thank the Green Mother for blessing us with having many children. The way she grows many trees and flowers on this good Earth, we grow many children to tend to it. We are the children of nature, and we give thanks to Yavanna by ensuring this earth is good and green." She told him proudly, smiling to herself as she looked around the Shire.
Seeing the sun high in the sky knowing it was a little past noon, she stood taller. "Oh, do forgive me, Thorin. I must go visit my cousin and talk to him about looking after my smial." She turned with Feydra, but paused and turned back to him. "Would you like to accompany me?" She asked him nervously.
He looked surprised at the offer, but nonetheless happy. "I would be delighted to accompany you." He held his arm out to her and she took it, blushing gently and began to lead the way to her cousins home in Hobbiton.
The walk doesn't usually take long, but Bella and Thorin took their time to talk and get to know each other a little bit. They would have so little time to themselves once the journey started, so they took advantage of the trip to Hobbiton.
"So tell me, how does the lady of Bag End come to become so adventurous?" Thorin asked her.
"My mother was of the Took Family. They are known to be a wild and adventurous bunch, my mother especially. Once she came of age, my grandfather gifted her with her own bow and arrow as well as supplies to travel. She would travel beyond the Shire to Rivendell, Ered Luin, past Bree and over mountains and rivers. When she would come back, she would tell stories to everyone in the family, even to Hobbits who could not resist their own curiosity no matter how respectable they were. And that was how she met my father."
"Is your father just as adventurous?" He inquired, but his question caused Bella to chuckle a little.
"Oh heavens, no. My father is a Baggins, a well respected and well mannered hobbit who got into no adventures or fights of any kind. But that didn't mean they were not perfect for each other. My mother was always the theatrical type when it came to telling her stories, she would stand, hop around, spin and twirl to get her story across. One small slip of the foot and she landed right into the arms of my father before she hit the ground. They locked eyes and they both knew, they had each found their Heart Song." She smiled at the story.
"That is quite a story. How did your grandfather take to your father?"
"Oh grandfather was very protective. My mother was his favorite daughter after all, no matter how much mother denied it. It took my father building Bag End from the ground up to win grandfathers approval."
"Your father built your home?" Thorin was surprised at this, one Hobbit building a smial as large and as exquisite as Bag End by himself.
"Yes he did. He loved my mother something fierce enough that he would bruise and blister his hands and put in hours of blood, sweat and tears into building a home for her, for them. Nevermind that the Bagginses didn't approve of mother, but they couldn't say anything. To try to tear apart a Heart Song is to deny the Great Mother more flowers in her garden. It is said that each hobbit born is another flower in her garden to be tended to by her hands. One cannot deny a gardener her greatest treasures."
"I can see that he loved her a great deal. Your parents were lucky to have one another. Did your mother ever continue her adventures?" He had to ask.
"Only a few times once they married. She stopped going on her adventures once they found out they were expecting me. Growing up they taught me everything I know; while father taught me to garden, mother taught me to forage. As father would teach me numbers and letters, mother would have me study maps and cultures. I learned a great deal from them and from my two families." She smiled.
"And your grandfather, does he favor you as much as he favors your mother?" He asked her.
"Oh I like to think so. I am his only granddaughter, all my cousins are boys. He does love his grandsons wives though, but I can tell he has a soft spot for me. During his important meetings, he would sit me on his lap and let me play with his hands and his walking stick."
"Meetings?" He rose an eyebrow. What would Hobbiton need meetings for.
"My grandfather and some of the elder hobbits of the Shire would gather together to discuss trade with other kingdoms, nations and merchants passing through. They would also discuss quarterly reports on harvest and agriculture. They all reported to my grandfather because he is the Thain."
"Is the Thain a high position in the Shire?"
"I think so. They all look to him to leadership." At this, Thorin stopped walking, causing Bella to look at him. "What is it? Are you alright, Thorin?"
"You said he is like a leader to them?" Thorin asked her slowly.
"Yes, he leads all of Hobbiton."
"So your grandfather is like a king?"
"Oh no he's not a king, he's more like a-" She stopped because she didn't know what to say. "Yes, he's like a king." She relented. "But we don't care for grand titles like that."
"Understandable, you are indeed a gentle and kindhearted folk. But you do realize this would make you a princess, correct?"
"What? Oh don't be silly. I am no princess." She waved him off and they continued to walk. Her blushing caused Thorin to laugh.