The Hobbit & LoTR Imagines

Serendipitous Meetings - Pippin

The market was teeming with hobbits, which wasn't unusual, as fruits such as strawberries, peaches, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries had just become in season.

Many hobbits had their own gardens in which they grew a wide variety of fruits and vegetables to have food year round, but for those who either didn't have a green thumb or only grew specific crops, there was a market held in the centre of Hobbiton. In the early stages of each season, one could find farmers lined up down the centre of town with their wooden carts or wheelbarrows, piled to the brim with fresh fruits or vegetables. Some farmers had certain fruits, others had a variety. Occasionally, one could find a cart stacked with freshly baked bread or eggs, flowers, and sometimes even sweets.

The cacophonous voices of vendors and customers and  small children playing filled the streets of Hobbiton, the city square bustling with activity.

I sighed slightly, glancing at the large basket hanging from my arm and made a quick glance to the list mother had given me before I left. I had visited seven stalls and found many of the fruits she had asked for, however, one specific fruit had been elusive thus far. I still had well over forty carts to visit before I came to the end of the market.

I tucked mother's list into the bosom of my dress and trudged on, into the crowds. I pushed past a hobbit female quarrelling with a farmer over the price of her fruits and sidled up to the cart beside her, observing the fruits on display. The farmer behind the cart, an older hobbit, cleared his throat as he noticed my approach.

"I'll have you know these are some of the best berries and beets one can get this side of the Shire. Not many people know that though," he told me. From what I could see of the crops on display, his strawberries were plump and red, perfectly ripe. His blueberries were a beautiful dark indigo blue, and his beets were large, but not so big they lacked flavour. His other fruits were beautifully ripened as well, almost on the verge of going bad from how wonderfully plump they were, ready to be eaten. Mother would thoroughly enjoy making pies with these.

"I'll just have to see for myself then," I told the farmer with a smile, pulling my coin purse from out of the basket. I held out several pennies to him, and he took them gratefully.

"Pick out what you'd like. I'll throw in a melon for no extra charge."

I gathered the required strawberries and blueberries as well as a few beets, gently settling them in my basket. Sure enough, the farmer bent down behind the cart and lifted up a giant melon with a smile.

"Thank you," I told the farmer as he placed the melon in my arm. He nodded, and I headed off, back home. Mother would be glad that I had acquired a melon. She had been wanting one to cut up and eat, but they were hard to find. Melons were always snatched up when sold at the market.

I whistled a small tune as I followed the dusty lanes through Hobbiton.

After a few moments, the weight of the basket on my arm caused tingles to run down my arm and through to my fingers, and a slight pain in my shoulder started up. Knowing I wouldn't make it very far with a numb arm and a smarting shoulder, I stopped on the side of the dirt path for just a moment to adjust the basket. I placed the melon on the ground by my feet and switched the basket to my other arm. Instantly, the pain in my shoulder rescinded to a dull soreness, and the tingles faded. I sighed in appeasement.

I bent over slightly to finagle the melon into my grasp, using my hand to scoop it up and slowly rolling it up my arm until it settled in the crook. I tucked it into my side, using my arm to press it firmly against me so it wouldn't roll away. Glancing to the melon tucked in my grasp, I smiled softly, checking once more to ensure everything was secure. Once I was satisfied, I started back down the dirt road.