Not a Grocer {Thilbo Bagginshield Fanfic}

The Robbery of a Hobbit

Bilbo woke up groggily to the sound of silence. He lifted his head, wondering if last night had simple been a dream. He opened his eyes to see dishes piled high and food on the floor. The hobbit sighed. Last night had most definitely not been a dream. Instantly, his mind wandered to Thorin Oakenshield, wondering where the dwarf had gone. Lost in thought, he cleaned the mess and cooked his breakfast. He was surprised at his feeling of emptiness as he smelled the ale of last night. As he ate, the sun shone through the window, making Bilbo nearly forget the adventure of the previous night when in walked a familiar face.

"Where have you been? The dwarves are waiting!" Gandalf snapped at Bilbo.

Poor Bilbo couldn't have been more confused when Gandalf walked to the fireplace and took a piece of paper off the mantle. He handed the befuddled hobbit a note. Mr. Baggins took the folded paper and opened it.

"Thorin and Company greet Bilbo the Burglar! Thank you for your hospitality and acceptance of our offer. You will receive up to 1/14 of the total profits, guaranteed travel and funeral expenses, if the occasion is so.

We did not wish to disturb your slumber, so we have already left to make preparations. We will meet you at the Green Dragon in at 11 AM sharp. Please be on time.

Respectfully,

Thorin & Co."

The hobbit was nearly ecstatic, and terribly frightened at the same time. He looked forward to seeing Thorin.... wait no... TRAVELING... and seeing the world; it must have been the Took in him. However, he was no burglar, which made him nervous. Would Thorin... no... Bilbo what are you thinking....THE COMPANY order him to leave?

Gandalf pushed him out the door, making the poor hobbit yelp in surprise. "It is 10:45! You have fifteen minutes. You must run."

Bilbo tried to protest, "Wait, but-"

Gandalf nudged him forward with his staff saying, "You must hurry!" The hobbit listened and ran all the way there, feeling absolutely wonderful and slightly ashamed of feeling so.

By the time Mr. Baggins had arrived, it had just struck 11 and he was extremely out of breath. The dwarves welcomed him with open arms, but Thorin simply nodded. This simple gesture made Bilbo feel let down, although he didn't know why. He pushed away this feeling and in its place grew a longing to begin the adventure. Bilbo looked and saw the ponies the dwarves were riding. He chuckled to himself, wouldn't dwarves be riding something more impressive? He chuckled as his eyes followed the line of ponies until he saw his, which made him stop laughing. The pony belonging to Bilbo the Burglar was the smallest of all, looking rather puny compared to the others.

Bilbo saw Thorin looking at him, shaking his head. Bilbo immediately apologized to the company. "I'm very sorry for arriving at the last minute. I saw your note at 10:45 and was not able to pack for the journey." Thorin ordered one of the dwarves to give Bilbo an extra cloak for he had no other clothes except the ones on his back.

Gandalf entered on a marvelous white steed and said, "Now that we are all here, let us begin on our long road."

The first day passed quite quickly, at least for the hobbit. The dwarves had sung songs and told tales of past adventures. Bilbo hadn't payed much attention to the songs and stories rather than the wait for meals, which slightly annoyed Bilbo Baggins. However, he didn't notice his hunger when a song was sung or a tale was told by Thorin Oakenshield. Bilbo found himself hanging on every word as if his life depended on it. He would rest his head on his hand while listening to the leader speak, and more than one time, he nearly fell off his pony because he was so enthralled. This was going to be a long journey.