LotR CH3 Fellowship
THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING
Chapter 3
BILBO’S FAREWELL
Finally the day arrives! Hobbits from all over the Shire come to the party pavilion. Even Hobbits who were not invited! There is food and drink, music and fun! And then more food and drink. Hobbits love a good meal and good beer. As night comes, the fireworks begin.
Gandalf designed the fireworks. There are bright rockets that make beautiful music. There are green columns of dark smoke that look like trees and a forest. There are fountains of bright yellow and blue butterflies. There is also one last surprise, especially for Bilbo. And it scares the Hobbits terribly.
The lights in the field go out. There is a large column of smoke, shaped like a mountain. The top of the mountain begins to glow red. Out of the mountain flies a giant gold-red dragon! It is not real size, but it looks very real! Fire comes from the dragon’s mouth, and it flies over the heads of the terrified Hobbits.
There is a very loud noise, like a roar of an express train, and then the dragon explodes in a bright flash of light and sound. “That is the signal for dinner!” yells Bilbo. And all the scared Hobbits raise their heads and smile! The danger is gone, and the food is ready!
As the night passes, the Hobbits eat and drink, then drink and eat. The Hobbits are in a good mood. That is good, because it is now time for Bilbo to give his speech. Bilbo stands up and walks over to a chair under the large tree. He stands on the chair so all the Hobbits can see him. Bilbo raises one hand to ask for their attention.
The other hand is in his pocket. His fingers are touching the ring. The Hobbits become silent. “My dear Hobbits,” Bilbo begins. “I hope you are all enjoying yourselves as much as I am!” The crowd of Hobbits cheers happily.
“I have invited you all here for a purpose.” The Hobbits are very curious now. “In fact, three purposes,” continues Bilbo. “I wanted to tell you all how much I care for you. Eleventy-one years is not long enough to live in your company.” The Hobbits clap loudly with approval.
“I do not know half of you half as well as I should know you; and I like less than half of you half as much as you deserve to be liked.” The Hobbits do not know how to react to this. They are a little confused, in fact.
“The second reason I invited you all here was to celebrate my birthday.” The Hobbits cheer and clap again. “Actually, to celebrate OUR birthday. Today is also my nephew and heir, Frodo’s birthday. Together we are celebrating one hundred and forty-four years!” The Hobbits are becoming a bit annoyed now.
“The third reason I invited you all here is because I want to make an announcement.” Now the Hobbits are curious again. What will Bilbo say? “As I said, eleventy-one years is not enough time to spend with all of you. But this is the end. I am leaving. NOW. GOOD-BYE!
There is a loud explosion and a bright flash of light. All the Hobbits close their eyes. When they open their eyes, Bilbo is gone. The Hobbits begin to complain loudly. “Where is Bilbo?” they ask. “This is all nonsense,” they say! “I told you he was crazy!” other Hobbits say.
Frodo is the only one there who does not say anything. He is not surprised. He thinks the joke was a bad one, but he laughs because the guests are all very confused. And the guests are all angry, too. But the party continues without Bilbo. The Hobbits find more food to eat and wine and beer to drink.
Bilbo, still invisible, walks home quickly. He gets out of his party clothes. He puts on his travel clothes. He puts on an old leather belt. And on the belt he puts a short sword in a black leather scabbard.
Bilbo gets an envelope and puts his ring into it. The ring is on a thin gold chain. He closes the envelope and writes Frodo’s name on it. Then he puts the envelope on a shelf over the fireplace. Suddenly, he picks up the envelope and puts it in his pocket.
At that moment, Gandalf comes quickly into the house. “Hello, Gandalf,” says Bilbo. “I was expecting you.” “I am glad that you are visible,” says the wizard. “I wanted to speak with you before you left.”
“That flash of light and explosion were from you, weren’t they?” asks Bilbo. “They ruined my little joke.” Gandalf looks irritated. “You have kept your ring a secret for many years. I needed to distract them with something else. A distraction from your ring. The whole Shire will be talking about your disappearance for a generation!”
“I imagine you know what’s best,” says Bilbo. “Yes, I do,” says Gandalf. “When I know anything. Are you ready to go?” “Yes, I am. It is time. I have made all the preparations. I do not think I will return. I am getting very old, Gandalf. I know I do not look old. But I feel old. I feel stretched… thin. Like butter that is spread over too much bread. I need a change.”
“I want to see mountains again,” continues Bilbo. “Mountains! And then I want to find someplace where I can rest. Rest and finish my book. I have thought of a good ending to my book: ‘and he lived happily ever after until the end of his days’.”
Gandalf laughs. Bilbo becomes serious. “I am leaving everything to Frodo. He will be comfortable here. He still loves the Shire. I invited him to come, but he is not ready to come yet. It’s time for him to become his own master now. You will keep an eye on him while I am gone, won’t you?” “Two eyes, when I can,” answers Gandalf.
“You are leaving EVERYTHING, yes? The ring as well? You agreed to leave the ring here, remember?” Bilbo’s face changes. He becomes irritated. “Well, er… yes. I did say I was going to leave everything,” says Bilbo.
“Where is the ring, Bilbo?” asks Gandalf. “It is in an envelope, over there,” says Bilbo impatiently. “It’s on the shelf over the fireplace. Oh, wait a moment. That’s strange. Here it is, in my pocket. Well, yes. Why don’t I take it with me? It is mine after all.”
Gandalf looks at Bilbo very severely. “I think you should leave it here, Bilbo. Don’t you want to leave it here?” “Well, yes and no,” answers Bilbo. “In fact, I do not want to leave it here at all.” Bilbo’s voice changes again. It becomes suspicious. “Why do you keep asking me about my ring, Gandalf? You are always bothering me about it.”
“It is a magical ring. I was very curious about it. I have always been professionally interested in your ring. I wanted to know where the ring was, if you decided to travel again. Anyway, I think you have had it for long enough. You do not need it anymore.”
Bilbo looks angry now. “What I do with my ring does not concern you, Gandalf! The ring is mine. It came to me. I found it. It is mine.” “Yes, I understand,” says Gandalf. “But you do not need to get angry.”
“If I am angry, it is your fault,” says Bilbo. “It is mine, I tell you. My own. My precious. Yes, my Precious.” Gandalf’s face becomes very serious. “It has been called that before,” he says. “But not by you.” “I do not care if Gollum said the same thing once. It is not his now. It is mine. And I will keep it, I say!”
“Now, now, my dear Hobbit!” says Gandalf. “We have been friends for many years. You owe me something now. Please, do what you promised to do: leave the ring here!” “Well, if you want the ring so badly, why don’t you take it?” Bilbo says angrily. “But I will not let you! I will not give you my Precious!” Bilbo puts his hand on his sword. “If you call it that again, I will become very angry, and you will see who Gandalf really is!” Gandalf suddenly appears to grow tall.
Biblo moves away in fear. “I am not a thief!” says Bilbo in fear. “I did not call you a thief,” says Gandalf, calmer and friendlier now. “And I am not trying to steal the ring from you. I am trying to help you. You must trust me.” Bilbo is shaking now. “I am sorry,” says Bilbo. “I feel so strange. The ring is all I think about now. All I want to do is put the ring on and disappear.”
“Then trust me,” says Gandalf. “Go away, and leave the ring to Frodo. I will take care of him.” Bilbo does not want to listen. But suddenly, “All right,” he says. “I will do what you ask. It is not an easy decision. But that is why I prepared the party and my little disappearing trick. I will leave the ring to Frodo.” Bilbo takes a deep breath.
“And now I must leave. If I don’t leave now, someone will catch me!” Bilbo picks up his bag and walks to the door. “You still have the ring in your pocket,” says the wizard. “Oh, well, yes, I do!” cries Bilbo. “And all my other documents, too. Here, take it and give it to Frodo for me.” “No, do not give the ring to me,” says Gandalf. “Put it on the table near the fire. It will be safe there. I will wait for Frodo.”
Bilbo takes the envelope with the ring out of his pocket. He walks over to the table. He is about to put the envelope on the table, but he drops the envelope onto the floor. Before he can pick up the envelope, the wizard moves quickly and picks it up, and puts it on the table. Bilbo becomes angry, then he relaxes and laughs. “Well, that’s that,” he says. “I will be leaving now!”
Biblo picks up his favorite walking stick and walks towards the door. He begins to whistle a song. The night is beautiful and clear. There are many bright stars in the sky. Biblo is excited to travel again. Another adventure for an old Hobbit.
“Good-bye, Gandalf!” yells Bilbo. “Good-bye for now, Bilbo," says the wizard. “Take care of yourself!” Bilbo turns and begins walking down the dark street, out of Hobbiton and into the east towards the Misty Mountains. He begins to sing, “The Road goes ever on and on, down from the door where it began…”
Gandalf watches for a short time as Bilbo walks away down the road. Then he goes back inside the house. Soon, Frodo comes in. He sees Gandalf sitting at the table. “Has Bilbo left?” Frodo asks. “Yes,” Gandalf says. “He has gone. He left something for you.” Gandalf points to an envelope on the table.
“Bilbo’s will is inside,” Gandalf says. “You are now the master of Bag End. And you will also find a gold ring.” “The ring!” says Frodo. “He gave me his ring? I wonder why. Maybe it will be useful for something.” “Maybe yes, maybe no,” says Gandalf. “I would not use it if I were you. Keep it secret, and keep it safe! Now, I am going to sleep.” Gandalf stands up. His head almost touches the ceiling. He walks to the back of the house and goes into a room.
Gandalf leaves early the next morning, before Frodo wakes up. All that day, many Hobbits from the area visit Frodo’s new home. They want to know what happened at the party. Frodo tells them that Bilbo has gone on a trip. He says Bilbo gave many things to many Hobbits: books, chairs, silverware, and more.
But Bilbo’s cousin, Lobelia Sackville-Baggins, wants Bag End. When she does not get it, she leaves very unhappy. For many days, Frodo answers questions from the other Hobbits. Then, one day, the house is quiet. Frodo is finally alone. Suddenly, there is a loud knock at the door. Frodo does not answer. The knock comes again, even louder. Still, Frodo does not open the door.
Then Gandalf’s face appears in the window. “If you don’t let me in, I will use magic and break your door into little pieces!” he says. “Oh! Gandalf!” Frodo cries. “One moment!” He runs to the door and opens it. “Come in! I thought it was Lobelia again.” “Then I forgive you,” Gandalf says. “I almost put on Bilbo’s ring to disappear and hide from her!” Frodo says.
“Do not do that!” Gandalf says in a serious voice. “You must be careful with that ring. That is one reason I came back. What do you know about it, Frodo?” “I only know what Bilbo told me,” Frodo says. “He told me how he found it and how he used it on his trip. He told me the full story.”
“Which story did he tell you?” Gandalf asks. “He told me the true story,” Frodo says. “He told you the same one, right?” “At first, he lied to me,” Gandalf says. “And that was strange. Bilbo was not like that. You must be very careful with the ring, Frodo.”
“I do not understand everything about the ring,” Gandalf continues. “But I want to learn more. Please, do not use it. Keep it secret, and keep it safe.” “You are being very mysterious,” says Frodo. “What are you afraid of?” “I do not know yet, so I will not say anything now,” Gandalf says. “I may have more answers when I return. But I must leave now. Good-bye for now.”
“You are leaving right now?” Frodo says, surprised. “Yes,” says Gandalf. “I will come back as soon as I can. But I may be gone for a long time. Expect me when you see me. I will come quietly. Some people in the Shire think I bring trouble now. Take care. Good-bye!”
Frodo walks with Gandalf to the door. He waves as Gandalf goes. Gandalf walks fast down the road. He looks very old, like he is carrying a very heavy weight. Frodo does not see him again for a long time.
