LotR CH2 Fellowship
THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING
Chapter 2
A LONG-EXPECTED PARTY
Bilbo Baggins is a Hobbit. He is not an ordinary Hobbit. In fact, he is a very famous Hobbit. Bilbo is famous because he went on an adventure! And no respectable Hobbit ever goes on an adventure. But what is more surprising about Bilbo is that he returned from his adventure! He not only returned alive, but he returned a very, very rich Hobbit.
Bilbo was also very popular. He was popular because he was very generous with his money. He shared his money with all the other Hobbits in the Shire. The other Hobbits in the Shire liked to talk about Bilbo’s money. “Where did he get it?” they asked. “How much money does he really have?” “Where does he keep all his gold and jewels?” “Did he bury his money in his home at Bag End?”
You see, Hobbits are normally very quiet and peaceful folk. But they are naturally very curious. When Bilbo returned from his journey, everyone in the Shire wanted to know all the details about his adventure. Many Hobbits did not believe the stories. Wizards? Dwarves? Goblins? Dragons!?! Who could believe all that nonsense?
But what the people of the Shire did not know is that Bilbo returned from his journey with more than dragon gold and Dwarf jewels. He returned with a secret: a ring. A beautiful ring made of gold. A powerful ring. When Bilbo put the ring on his finger, he disappeared! He became invisible!
Bilbo found the ring inside the goblin caves in the Misty Mountains. He was lost and separated from his Dwarf friends. He was scared. He couldn’t see in the dark, and he didn’t know how to get out. He walked carefully through the darkness. He was nervous and unsure.
As he walked, he tripped and fell. When he put his hand on the cold, wet ground, his fingers touched something small, cold, and round. It was a shiny ring made of gold. He did not know what it was, but he picked it up and he put it in his pocket. He thought it might be useful later.
Soon after, Bilbo met a strange and scary creature named Gollum. Gollum lived in the cave. They talked and played a game of riddles. Bilbo didn’t know that the ring he found was very important to Gollum.
When Gollum realized his ring was missing, he became angry and dangerous. To escape from Gollum, Bilbo put the ring on his finger and, to his surprise, he disappeared! The ring made him invisible.
Using the ring’s magic, Bilbo was able to escape the Misty Mountains. “Thief! Curse it and crush it! we hates it forever!!”
Later he managed to find his Dwarf friends, but he made an enemy with the creature Gollum. Bilbo told Gandalf about the ring. Galdalf was the leader of his adventure. But Gandalf did not believe the story Bilbo told him about the ring.
Bilbo said Gollum gave it to him as a reward for winning the riddle challenge. But Gandalf doubted that version of the story. He was worried that Bilbo lied about it. After all, Bilbo was a very honest Hobbit.
After he returned from his adventure, people in the Shire saw that Bilbo did not look older. Many years passed, but Bilbo looked exactly the same! People noticed, and they talked about it. And many Hobbits were jealous! For many years after Bilbo returned from his journey, he lived alone in his comfortable home in Bag End, in the Shire.
Bilbo did not have any children. He decided he needed someone to take care of his home and his money when he died. So, almost fifty years after his journey, when he was almost ninety-nine years old, he decided it was time to choose an heir.
He chose his favorite nephew, Frodo Baggins, to be his heir. Bilbo officially adopted Frodo as his heir, and Frodo moved into Bag End and lived with Bilbo.
By coincidence, Bilbo and Frodo had the same birthday: September 22nd. After Frodo moved in with Bilbo, they celebrated their birthdays together. Their birthday party was always an important event in Hobbiton.
This year is a special year for Bilbo and Frodo. Frodo is turning thirty-three years old. Thirty-three is when a young Hobbit becomes an adult. And Bilbo is turning one hundred and eleven, a very significant age!
Everyone in the Shire is excited about their birthday party. Hobbits from all over the region receive invitations to the party. They begin to gossip about Bilbo. But Bilbo has a very important defender: Flam Gamgee! Flam Gamgee, also known as the Gaffer, is the most famous gardener in all of Hobbiton.
He and his son, Samwise Gamgee, take care of Bilbo’s garden at Bag End. And they defend Bilbo’s character. “Mr. Bilbo is a very kind and gentlehobbit, he is!” the Gaffer says. “There is no Hobbit better than Mr. Bilbo in all of the Shire.” But the Gaffer cannot always convince his listeners.
As the day of the celebration comes closer, there are strange folk who come into the Shire. They are driving wagons full of things for the party. Dwarves with long beards drive the wagons. One of the carts is full of fireworks!
One of the strangers who is delivering the fireworks is a tall man. He is very old with a long silver beard. He is the man who makes the fireworks. The man is Gandalf the Wizard! Finally, the Dwarves leave with the empty carts, and Gandalf goes inside Bilbo’s home. Most Hobbits only know Gandalf because of his fireworks. But Gandalf and Bilbo are old friends.
“So, Bilbo,” says Gandalf. He and Bilbo are sitting next to a large window. They are looking out into Bilbo’s beautiful garden. “You are going to follow your plan?” “Yes,” answers Bilbo. “I really do love the Shire, but I think I need a holiday. I decided many months ago. After my birthday party, I will leave.”
“Good,” says Gandalf. “Then there is nothing else to say. Follow your plan - your whole plan - and everything should be fine.”
As the days pass, more and more wagons arrive with more and more things for the party. And soon, in the large field in front of Bilbo’s home, workers erect a large party tent. Then they put up a very large pavilion that covers the big tree in the middle of the field. The party is going to be a memorable one.
