Prologue: Dragons and Elves in the Shire

Belladonna Took was at her wits' end with her son, Bilbo Baggins. Being the son of the very respectable Bungo Baggins and raised in Hobbiton in an equally respectable Hobbit Hole, far from Tookland, Bilbo was expected to be a decent and content hobbit. But it seemed that his Took blood ran fast through his veins. That, or he was determined to raise the eyebrows of all the hobbits in Hobbiton with his antics. Belladonna had only stepped away for a moment to grab a bite to eat, but when she was gone, Bilbo had tried to fight the grey wizard in charge of the fireworks and filled his pockets with cheese and tarts. She had only managed to pull him away from the wizard and kneeled to gently scold her son about not hitting people with wooden swords when a sudden burst of fireworks rose from the wizard's stack.

Beautiful blue butterflies and bright red dragonflies chased little green birds and tiny yellow ponies through the air. Delighted little hobbits rushed about, chasing the little fireworks through the air and cheering when they caught one as it dissolved in little sparks of light.

Belladonna was pulled from this picture when she noticed that Bilbo was no longer in front of her, swept away by the rush of little ones.

"Probably off chasing butterflies," thought Belladonna as she stood up and dusted off her skirt, shaking her head.

Belladonna knew that Bilbo was in no danger in the center of Hobbiton; he would show up when the desserts were served, and then she could give him a good scolding and some chocolate cake.

The rush of brightly colored creatures distracted Bilbo from his mother, and the other children's enthusiasm infected him as he rushed after them. He would not let his cousins, the Sackville-Bagginses, catch more than he did.

Bilbo had just turned a butterfly into a shower of little, harmless sparks when a flash of deep orange distracted him. He had not seen that color before, and when he turned to see what it was, he saw a tiny creature he had only seen in drawings in books: a dragon. The little sparkler had escaped the rush of hobbits and was leaving the party.

Giggling, little Bilbo chased the tiny firework, determined to catch the little creature. With this single-minded focus, Bilbo did not notice that he had left the party behind and ventured into the woods nearby, which he had never explored alone and had never been to at night.

Suddenly, Bilbo fell face-first into the mossy ground. Sitting up, the little hobbit rubbed his shin and admonished the tree root for being rude before looking around for the little dragon he had been chasing.

But he could no longer see it; in the brief moment when he had greeted the earth, it had disappeared, and he was alone in the forest.

But Bilbo was not afraid; he was in the Shire and a Took; he did not fear a little bit of forest. Besides, he could guess the correct path. The only way such a bright light could disappear so fast was if it had gone over the lip of the hill on his left and down the other side.

With renewed vigor, the small hobbit jumped to his feet, forgetting about his shin, and ran up the hill, putting his foot out to begin his descent.

However, Bilbo had been fooled by how gentle and small the rise of the hill had been, disguising the steep slope covered in dewy grasses leading to a small creek winding through the woods.

"Ahh!" cried Bilbo as he tumbled uncontrollably down the hillside and towards the water.

Bilbo squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the shock of cold water as he hit the creek. Only it never came. Instead, he was abruptly jerked to a stop in the air above the chatter of the creek. Cracking his eyes open, Bilbo was greeted by a very large stranger's astonished and slightly amused face.

"I did not know that halflings took up flying as a hobby as well as hole-digging," the stranger said as she placed Bilbo safely on the solid ground again.

"If they have, then they might need some more practice," snorted another voice from behind Bilbo as another large figure appeared from seemingly nowhere and sat on the ground before him, her hands cupped as if holding something.

The one who had caught Bilbo was slightly shorter than the second, had blond hair, and was dressed in a green and brown tunic with light brown leather armor. The taller one was dressed in similar armor, although hers had metal rather than leather on the chest, shoulders, and legs, while the rest was leather armor similar to her friend's. Her colors were blue as well as green and brown. The taller one openly carried a long sword with an eight-pointed star on the pommel and a bow, while the shorter one carried a much smaller and thinner sword whose pommel resembled a bird's head and a short bow. Both of the women shared one feature in common: pointed ears.

"You are elves!" shouted Bilbo in excitement, his near dip in the river and search for the dragon sparkler forgotten in the excitement of meeting elves. Elves!

"We are?!" returned the shorter of the two, dramatically grabbing her ears. "Why did no one say?"

"Don't mind her, little one; you may have grown up, but Ilthilel will stop acting like a child," stated the dark-haired elf, holding her cupped hands. "Were you looking for this?"

Opening her hands a bit, Bilbo saw that the little dragon sparkler was resting on her hand.

"How has it not turned into sparks?" cried Bilbo in excitement.

"Well, when you know the wizard who does these tricks, then you know something about how they work. It was your chase, so it is your reward," replied the elf with a small smile as she gently transferred the dragon onto Bilbo's palm, where it turned into harmless sparks if he ran a finger across its back.

"Wow," muttered Bilbo before looking up at the two elves and abruptly remembering his manners. Scrambling to his feet, he bowed. "Bilbo Baggins, at your service."

"Elenath," returned the dark-haired elf, rising to her feet and giving Bilbo a much more refined and elegant bow.

"Ilthilel, most recently of the Greenwood and many other places," added the blond elf with a bow similar to her companion's. "We are simple travelers through your peaceful land, returning from a visit to the Grey Havens."

"I thought elves did not return from going there?" questioned Bilbo.

"You make it sound like a death sentence," laughed Ilthilel before continuing, "Some don't, but it is an elven city and a port as well as the home of many friends. And many memories."

While she had started smiling, Ilthilel became severe and almost sad at the end. Both she and Elenath looked sad for a moment, lost in grief that Bilbo knew nothing about nor how to help.

But if there was one thing Bilbo Baggins of the Shire knew helped with sadness, it was a good meal and a warm bed.

Glancing around, he saw that the elves had placed bedrolls on a ledge by the creek, leather packs serving as pillows, and dried meat for dinner.

Wrinkling his nose, Bilbo turned to the elves and squared his shoulders. These may be big folk, but they were in the Shire, and they had helped him, so he would be damned if he dishonored the names of Took, Baggins, or Hobbit by having them sleep on the ground.

"It is a pleasure to have made your acquaintance," stated Bilbo in the way he had heard grown-ups use, "You saved me from a rather nasty tumble there and have been most polite with my questions. You are visitors to the Shire and have done me a great service. In return for this, I would like to offer the hospitality of the Bagginses for the night. No one should have to sleep on the ground in the Shire."

Bilbo thought he had done a pretty good job of sounding like a grown-up hobbit, although both elves looked like they were trying not to laugh for some reason.

"We would not want to…" started Elenath before the other pushed her aside and exclaimed,

"What a wonderful offer; we would be so pleased to accept it, Mr. Baggins."