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IT wasn't much time after Bilbo passed out from the knowledge of dragons and their incinerating breath, that he had woken up. The hobbit was now seated on one of his cozy little chairs with a blanket draped over his lap, his hands nursing a steaming cup of tea.
"I'll be alright," Bilbo said in response to Ygritte's question. "Let me just sit quietly for a moment."
Gandalf let out a breath. "You've been sitting quietly for far too long. Tell me; when did doilies and your mother's dishes become so important to you? I remember a young Hobbit who always was running off in search of elves and the woods, who'd stay out late, come home after dark, trailing mud and twigs and fireflies."
Ygritte glanced at her father, now understanding why he chose Bilbo Baggins over all the other Hobbits of the Shire; he knew him. Why he didn't tell her, she didn't know. It's not like it was a secret.
Gandalf continued. "A young Hobbit who would have liked nothing better than to find out what was beyond the borders of the Shire. The world is not in your books and maps; it's out there."
"I can't just go running off into the blue. I am a Baggins, of Bag End," Bilbo said.
"You are also a Took. Did you know that your greatgreatgreatgreatuncle, Bullroarer Took, was so large he could ride a real horse?"
Ygritte raised her eyebrows, shocked to hear a hobbit was the size of a man and could actually ride a horse. Usually, they have to stick to ponies, the same as dwarves.
"Yes."
"Well he could," Gandalf said. "In the Battle of Green Fields, he charged the goblin ranks. He swung his club so hard it knocked the Goblin King's head clean off, and it sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down a rabbit hole. And thus the battle was won, and the game of golf invented at the same time."
Ygritte stared at her father with amusement dancing in her eyes. "You are a terrible liar, Father."
Bilbo nodded in agreement. "I do believe you made that up."
"Well, all good stories deserve embellishment. You'll have a tale or two to tell of your own when you come back."
"Can you promise that I will come back?"
Gandalf frowned slightly. "No. And if you do, you will not be the same."
"But," Ygritte piped in. "I have already spoke these words to my father and Thorin, but I will be there to have your back Bilbo Baggins, to ensure your safety. As long as I am living, so will you."
