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 Posted: Fri Feb 07, 2014 7:35 am
"Could if I wanted any." Kili retorted walking back to the food piles. He was still intrigued by their new visitor but it would be a lot easier to ask questions once he was actually awake. Filling his stomach to the brim with sweet and tart, apple goodness seemed to be the more promising endeavor at the moment anyway.
Kili was taking a bite out of a large red apple, the last of three that he was in the process of inhaling, when motion caught his eye. Kili turned his full attention to the waking stranger with a pleased grin. "Morning!" He called pleasantly, his mouth still full of apple.
Frerin's new friend awoke just minutes after he Kili returned. Well so much for the apple deterrent. He couldn't imagine his brother would stay quiet for long without the most basic of manners to interfere with him. Sure enough Kili answered right away not even bothering to swallow his food first. If his brother ever died it would almost certainly be through the result of his own stupidity.
"Good morning." Fili replied watching their little visitor closely. "They are. They were just sent up this morning, freshly picked straight from the orchards." He said supplying the little fellow with all the information he could think of. If he was a friend of Frerin's that made him a guest in their household and he was to be treated well. Fili realized, belatedly, that at least some portion of this food was probably meant for their guest and Fili wondered if it had been Frerin who had sent for it at all.
"I'm Fili. This is my brother, Kili." He said giving his head a polite bow.
Kili, recognizing the introductions, quickly swallowed his food and bowed his head along with his brother. "At your service." He concluded alone before straightening with a smile. "And you're Frerin's friend! What do we call you?" Kili's smile was practically as bright as the sun at this point.
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Posted: Sat Feb 08, 2014 8:49 pm
"Bilbo Baggins, at yours," said Bilbo, politely responding to the greeting before letting himself fixate back on the apples. He really wasn't much use before he had a good breakfast or two in his belly.
"You have an entire orchard here?" he asked, pretending like he was being conversational. His opinion on this group was rising greatly at this bit of information. Not just anyone could tend an orchard. You had to be settled for years, take care of the trees, know how to do a bit of gardening. He was going to be polite to his neighbors either way, but now he had an ulterior motive for it as well.
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Posted: Sun Feb 09, 2014 9:00 am
Bilbo Boggins was what Kili had heard. It was a rather strange name but perhaps he had been born near a bog. He made no comment on it. "Mmm. Mum says it was here when they got here. Now the workers and their squirrels and raccoons look over it." Kili nodded his head vaguely in the direction of their own apple trees. "We have some of our own up here too, but they don't usually have fruit until late." Kili loved having apple trees around. It meant that eventually a tasty snack would be easy to find at any time of the day.
While Kili kept Bilbo entertained Fili focused on his breakfast. Kili seemed to be completely comfortable with Bilbo's presence now that he knew his name but Fili wasn't feeling quite as certain now that he was up and about. They way he asked about their orchard was bothering Fili. The question itself wasn't unusual but they way he had asked it felt like he was probing for information. The young heir didn't like that at all.
Frerin had spent the morning trying to convince Thorin that it wasn't a good idea to send Frerin on all of these errands. He had even tried following Thorin into a meeting that would last the majority of the day to get out of it. Thorin had physically blocked his path until Frerin had turned around and left. Thorin was nothing if not stubborn and it was clear he was absolutely determined to make Frerin do exactly what he had ordered him to last night. The grump.
Frerin slunk his way back home to fetch Bilbo for the day's grueling chores only to find him sharing a pleasant meal with the lads. It wouldn't have bothered him if they were just grazing but where did all of that good food come from?! Apples, hay, clover, none of that had been there when he'd left this morning. Frerin's stomach growled. He'd have a quick bite of food first and then he'd take Bilbo down to get a permit. Maybe he'd bring Fili or Kili along just in case Thorin had ordered the officials to not let Frerin cut the line. He would put it past the grumpy old goat.
"Good morning, Bilbo! Did you sleep well? Nice here isn't it!" Frerin said pleasantly as he trotted over. "I see you've met the lads, did they send for all this food?" He glanced at Fili and Kili, it seemed like something they might do with no one around to tell them no.
"Morning, Frerin." Fili greeted not minding that their younger uncle hadn't bothered to wish either of his nephews a good morning. He lifted an eyebrow at Frerin's question. So it hadn't been him. Had it really been Thorin after all?
"It wasn't us." Kili said quickly understanding the implications Frerin was making. "It was here when we woke up."
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Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2014 2:03 pm
An orchard tended by raccoons? There was something that Bilbo couldn't fathom. Raccoons were treated as pests where he came from, always stealing scraps of food left unguarded. It was very rare to find a hobbit with a raccoon familiar and they were often treated with mistrust for it. Bilbo was about to comment on this when Frerin returned. It felt like a little breakfast party with all of them gathered about.
"Good morning to you too," said Bilbo. "We were just discussing your orchards here. Very impressive, I do say." He couldn't help but steal another look at the apples, hoping that someone might invite him to take a bite.
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Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2014 2:21 pm
Frerin laughed carelessly. "I don't think Thorin would let them be anything but impressive." He said taking an apple. The lads denied sending for the food which really only left one person it could be with Dis having no interest in spoiling anyone. Frerin eyed Bilbo thoughtfully as he took a bite. Thorin had much better manners than Frerin. He never would have considered treating Bilbo like a guest proper. That was when he noticed, Bilbo wasn't eating.
"What's the matter, Bilbo? Do you not like apples or hay and clover? Aren't you hungry?" Frerin had never seen someone refuse to eat like this where there was food available. "Are you sick? Should I send Vestri down for a healer?" Vestri was their messenger rabbit and he was as fast as the west wind. If Bilbo was in a sorry state he could have a healer back quicker than a hammer could strike.
Fili quirked an eyebrow at his uncle's string of questions. "He doesn't look sick." Fili commented casually. Bilbo looked to be the picture of health. There wasn't a thing about him that could be construed as sickly behavior. "You can eat what you want, you know. We won't be able to eat all of it." It was a polite lie. If the three of them really put their heads to it they could certainly eat all of the food provided. They would just end up lying around with belly aches after so feasting in such a way was hardly in their best interest.
Kili nodded his head enthusiastically, his cheeks swollen slightly with bits of apple. "It's all good!" He added gesturing especially to the apples that Bilbo seemed to have such an interest in.
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Posted: Mon Feb 10, 2014 6:46 pm
"Not sick at all!" said Bilbo, delight lighting up his face as he finally was able to take part in the meal. "Quite the opposite, actually." He didn't wait any longer, taking a bite of apple immediately and shutting his eyes with satisfaction. The other food was similarly good, almost as good as they grew in some of the older groves in the Shire.
With his stomach rapidly filling, Bilbo found himself taking a very generous perspective on this misadventure. Frerin had obviously meant well, and now Bilbo was being treated like a guest. It had started out rough but was suddenly exceedingly pleasant. "Those are some good apples," he said, giving an appreciative nod to his benefactors.
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Posted: Tue Feb 11, 2014 1:43 pm
Frerin smiled brightly at Bilbo but the look faded quickly. With breakfast coming to its conclusion that meant it was time to do as his brother bid. Wonderful. "Well then, Bilbo, it's about time we went to get you your living permit." Frerin declared. He didn't mention that there might be a very long wait involved if Thorin had been feeling particularly spiteful.
"Living permit?" Fili asked. Those permits were usually granted to new families starting off or merchants looking to settle in the more unusual places their lands had to offer. He'd heard of one or two outsiders getting one under special circumstances but Fili had assumed that Frerin's friend had come to stay. It certainly would have explained what he was doing on the royal estates to begin with.
"You mean you aren't staying here, Mister Boggins?" Kili added looking crushed by the news. They rarely got visitors that weren't officials or nobles looking for Thorin and those people, while polite and respectful, weren't exactly the most entertaining of folk. Bilbo was nice and was actually willing to talk to them like a normal person, almost like he considered them to be equals. It was refreshing.
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2014 6:06 pm
"My name is Baggins, not Boggins," said Bilbo, correcting the mispronunciation. "Bilbo Baggins." He was well-known enough in his homeland that he had never encountered a mangling of his name in quite that manner, and he was finding that he didn't enjoy it.
"And no, I sadly will not be lingering overly long." He really was sad to be leaving if they ate like this all the time. He definitely wouldn't be finding any apples growing around his hole. "I have a hole not too far from here." He paused after he spoke, remembering the long walk of the previous day. "Actually, it is a bit far."
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Posted: Mon Mar 10, 2014 7:30 pm
Frerin's ears twitched back with guilt as the stallion turned his heavy head away. It sounded like the little fellow might have been starting to build up a grudge on that little trick. Not good. Instead he would have to hope that Fili and Kili could distract him away from the topic.
Baggins? Kili wrinkled his nose slightly at the correction finding it even stranger in sound than Boggins. He didn't waste more than a second thinking over this, however, as there were far more pressing matters. Bilbo really wasn't staying. In fact, it didn't sound like he was going to spend a minute longer that he had to. "How far would you say far is?" Kili asked unable to decide if it would be worth visiting or even trying to visit. So far he'd taken a shine to Bilbo but he didn't really think it would be worth the effort to try and befriend him if he lived too far away.
Well so much for that. Trust Kili to do the exact opposite of what would be useful during times like this.
"More importantly..." Fili started turning to look at Frerin who seemed to be purposely ignoring the conversation. That couldn't last. "If he needs a living permit, you can only get those in one place right now, and it's bound to be busy. If you want to get in before night...shouldn't you two be going?"
Frerin flinched. "Well, I was thinking you two might want to take him. Since no one would stop you from skipping to the head of the line." Frerin's voice came out suspiciously innocent as he spoke.
Kili's dark, angular brows lifted upward as a grin spread across his face. There was only one reason why Frerin wouldn't also be able to cut in line and that reason was the King. "What did you do?" He asked, voice thick with laughter.
"It doesn't matter!" Frerin's voice cracked as he snapped at his nephew.
"We'll go." Fili said interrupting his uncle diplomatically. "If...Mr. Baggins wishes it." Fili turned to look at Bilbo wondering what it must feel like to bear witness to one of their odd family moments.
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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 3:19 pm
Bilbo blinked between the dwarves as they discussed him, his home, and his potential permit. He was surprised to hear that Frerin was going to be leaving him with the two younger stallions, and not immediately certain how he felt about it. Kili seemed somewhat easily distractable, though his brother was far less so. He didn't mind so much who ended up being his guide for the day, as long as he was able to carry out his needed business.
"I don't want to inconvenience anyone," he said. "But I would not mind spending some time in Fili and Kili's company." They seemed like they would be good sources of information on this territory, perhaps better than Frerin. He'd even bet that he could get some more information on their mysterious leader if he got Kili talking on the right train of thought. "It would be a pleasure, even," he said, giving them a smile.
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Posted: Sat Mar 22, 2014 4:02 pm
Kili beamed back at Bilbo, perhaps he was leaving but at least he was willing to spend the day with them. That would give Kili plenty of opportunities to get to know the little fellow better, and perhaps change his mind about going away.
Fili nodded his head slowly still appraising Bilbo. He had manners, Fili had to hand that to him and Thorin didn't seem to mind him much. Bilbo had, after all, been permitted to stay the night and there were many others that would not have been so lucky. He'd won Kili and Frerin over easily enough but Fili was reserving his judgement until he understood more about him. The day would be a good opportunity to come to an understanding.
"Right, then we should get going before the lines grow longer. Frerin?" Fili looked to their uncle silently asking his plans. He could guess that they would involve staying far away from Thorin but Fili wanted to be certain that he well and truly had no intentions of joining them on their little mission.
Frerin smiled at Bilbo. "Good, it's all sorted then!" Kili seemed happier than a mole in a tunnel at the news that they'd get to spend the day with Bilbo. Fili seemed less certain. Poor Fili. Frerin was technically the next in line for the throne but that hadn't stopped Thorin from taking it upon himself to make absolutely certain that Fili would be ready when his time came. Thorin and Frerin weren't so far apart in age for Frerin to be a safe bet as the next king. Oh well, he'd likely loosen up once he was away from Frerin and mostly alone with his brother. Kili had a way of bringing out the child that still lived in Fili somewhere.
"I'll see you all later. Once you get his permit come find me and we can get some food or something." Frerin said with a wide smile before turning and trotting away with a bit more haste than was strictly necessary. He didn't want to risk someone changing their mind about his involvement.
Fili watched as Frerin made his retreat. It seemed his goal was not just to avoid Thorin but the rest of them as well. Fili thought back to Kili's earlier question. What exactly had Frerin done that the heir to the line of Durin had to worry about so much? Was it possible that this really was all about Bilbo? That was certainly a story that Fili would have to get out of him later. "Well Kili, Bilbo, let's get moving, it's a long way down."
"At least it is all down." Kili pointed out. "Everything higher than us is just open space." It was space meant for expansion if it was needed. According to their mother, as neither of their uncles much wanted to talk about it, there had been a reasonable amount of talk about returning to Erebor when the dwarves had first settled. That had died off almost entirely after a while and instead they had begun pushing their boarders further out to make room for growth.
"It'll be fine though, Mr. Bog...Baggins. Just a short walk there and they should let us walk right in." Kili grinned as he lead the way out of their dwelling and down a long path cleared of trees, roots, and anything else that might block the way or trip them up. After several minutes they caught sight of a pair of stallions standing guard where the path met a larger one that clearly saw more traffic. The two were solidly built with thick hair, each wore heavy metal armor around their necks. Kili and Fili both nodded to them as they passed and while the two took some interest in Bilbo neither said anything or moved.
"That's the day guard." Kili said with a low, insistant voice to Bilbo as he led them toward another path. "They make sure no one sneaks up to kill us all in our sleep. there are actually four of them."
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Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 10:09 am
Bilbo was quickly learning to take what Kili said with a grain of salt. For all their guards, he had been visiting his vacation hole for years now and had never been bothered up until Frerin stopped by. He didn't consider it an exceptionally dangerous area and had somehow managed to survive all this time without fancy protection.
"How many of you live here?" asked Bilbo, deciding that now was as good a time as any to start on his line of questioning. "And I'm not even quite certain what to call 'you' either. Is there a name for this herd?" Was it even a herd? It seemed to be more similar in construction to a village than a herd, more like Hobbiton than the freeform soquili groups that were more common to these lands.
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Posted: Thu Mar 27, 2014 4:17 pm
The lack of reaction was a bit disheartening for Kili but he brushed it off. There would be more chances to tease their furry footed friend later in the day. "There's somewhere around 300...400? people registered that live in the area. Might be a bit off now, lots of births recently." There were likely more of them living away from the settlement and those that never made it to but all in all they were doing rather well.
"About that yeah." Fili said in agreement. "As for a name, we are the dwarves of Erebor." There were other, better, names for the group but they were private. Only dwarves were permitted to use the dwarvish words and no matter how much Frerin liked Bilbo he still was not one of them. Fili continued to lead the way down paths growing steadily larger and more full of people until they came into a large open area with a large flame bowl in the center. Dozens of dwaves moved about the area all short, bulky, and hairy coming in all patterns and hues some natural and others not. Many of them stopped to stare at the three but whether it was because part of the royal family had just strolled in or because of Bilbo, Fili couldn't be certain.
"Come on, we can sort your permit out over here." Fili said firmly as he steered Bilbo towards a long line of people standing before a trio of elderly stallions.
Kili grumbled to see the line. He didn't want to wait and he doubted Fili or Bilbo much cared for it either. Drawing himself up to his full height he marched right up to the end of the line and cleared his throat loudly. Then Kili watched entirely amused as the line turned one by one and scurried quickly out of the way for the three. "Thank you," Kili said very politely with a bow of his head as he moved right up to the old stallions. "Well Bilbo, tell them what you're here for."
Fili couldn't approve or disapprove of Kili's actions. He hadn't wanted to wait even if it were the polite thing to do. Keeping his face very calm he followed after his brother nodding to each of the people in line in thanks for their willingness to move. At least it wouldn't take them long to get Bilbo's situation taken care of and each of the waiting dwarves would have a story to tell their friends and family.
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