Chapter 366: Choosing to Leave
Frodo, too, carried a double inheritance. His mother came from the adventurous, pioneering Brandybuck family, and his father from the Bagginses.
From childhood, he had shown traits unlike most Hobbits: the same kindness, simplicity, and love of a comfortable life, but also a quiet resilience and a ready courage.
So when Bilbo adopted Frodo, he immediately drew Gandalf's eye, and the wizard had been watching over him ever since.
Gandalf had never hidden any of this from Kael.
Back in Bag End, while Kael, Bilbo, and Frodo were talking, the fire in the hearth flared green once more.
"I'm not late, am I?" Gandalf asked cheerfully as he bent and stepped out of the flames.
"Gandalf! What brings you here?" Bilbo exclaimed in delight.
Frodo, too, was surprised and pleased to see him.
"It is your eleventy‑first, my dear Bilbo. How could I possibly miss it?" Gandalf said, giving him a wink before turning to Frodo. "Ah, Frodo, it has been some time. You've shot up again since I last saw you. A fine young hobbit, if ever there was one, haha!"
Then, as if remembering something, he handed Frodo a small pouch and smiled at Bilbo.
"I cannot compete with Kael and his craft, but I have made up a set of fireworks for your birthday. Let Frodo and the others set them off later. It will add a bit more sparkle to the feast."
The pouch sat easily in Frodo's palm, but when he peered inside, he saw enough fireworks to fill a cart, more than enough to last the whole night.
He could already imagine Merry and Pippin's faces when they saw them. The two had been his companions since childhood—one the son of his uncle, the other of his aunt. They were forever together, lively, reckless, and always in trouble, as close as twin brothers.
They had, of course, come to Bilbo's party, and were almost certainly making mischief on the Party Field at that very moment.
The arrival of Kael, Gandalf, and the others filled Bilbo with happiness. Now that all his dearest guests were here, he was ready to lead them down to the feast.
They were just laughing together and opening the front door when they found a young Hobbit about to knock.
He was a little plump, with an honest, good‑natured face and plain clothes. The sight of a room full of such imposing guests left him momentarily speechless.
"Sam, what brings you up here?" Frodo asked.
Samwise shifted awkwardly under so many unfamiliar gazes and answered, "The party's nearly ready, sir. Everyone's waiting for Mr Bilbo, so they sent me up to fetch you."
Elthir and Elroth both studied the shy gardener with open curiosity.
Gandalf and Kael, too, watched him with interest.
"And this is?" Kael asked, though he already guessed who the young Hobbit must be.
Bilbo introduced him casually, "This is Samwise Gamgee, Bag End's gardener. He keeps the flowers and beds in order."
"Sam, these are my honoured guests: Gandalf, Kael, and his children Elthir and Elroth. Go ahead and see if they have seats beside mine."
"Yes, Mr Bilbo, at once!" Sam said quickly and hurried off down the hill.
"Wait for me, Sam!" Frodo called, then turned to Bilbo. "Uncle, I'll go and help."
"Go on then," Bilbo nodded. "But take Elthir and Elroth with you. They're a few years older than you and still young enough to enjoy a good party. You should get along well."
Frodo checked his step and looked properly at the twins, who were much his height but looked only eleven or twelve. Even knowing they were older than he was, it was still strange to see them so.
"Would you like to come along?" he asked them.
Elthir and Elroth glanced at Kael.
He smiled and nodded. "Go on with Frodo if you wish. We shall follow at our own pace."
Given leave, the twins went gladly with Frodo.
They had spent most of their lives at Hogwarts, and the rest between Rivendell and Lothlórien, with the occasional wander down to Hogsmeade. For all their thirty‑eight years, by Elven reckoning, they were still children.
They had already finished their schooling at Hogwarts, but their hearts were not yet fully grown, and the simple life of Hobbits fascinated them.
With Elthir and Elroth following Frodo and Sam down the hill, only Bilbo, Kael, and Gandalf were left walking slowly behind.
Watching the young ones go, Bilbo smiled with quiet satisfaction, then drew a long breath. His expression grew serious.
"Kael, Gandalf," he said softly, "once this birthday is over, I mean to leave Bag End and my wealth to Frodo."
Both wizard and lord looked at him in surprise.
"Bilbo, will you tell me why you have made this choice?" Gandalf asked, coming to a halt.
Kael, too, turned to him with a questioning look.
Bilbo seemed to have thought it through long ago. He gazed around at Hobbiton under the moonlight, and in his eyes there were memories and reluctance, but his voice was firm.
"I have lived in Hobbiton all my life. If not for the Elixir Kael gave me, I'd be in the ground by now, not trotting about like a lad half my age.
"So I have decided that, once I have passed Bag End to Frodo, I will leave the Shire and take up my travels again."
He gave a small, rueful chuckle. "Besides, this unchanging face of mine has already drawn too much notice. If I stay much longer, there'll just be more questions and more trouble, and I'll never have any peace to write."
Kael and Gandalf both understood at once.
Bilbo no longer belonged in the Shire.
Thanks to the Elixir, his body and looks had stayed as they were in his fifties, while his friends and neighbours had either grown bent and grey or gone to their rest.
The longer he remained, the more he stood apart from those around him. The more years he lived, the more stares he would draw.
In time, word of his long life might even bring darker folk sniffing after the secret.
Leaving the Shire was the wisest path.
"Where will you go, once you set out?" Kael asked.
"Lord Elrond has invited me more than once to dwell in Rivendell," Bilbo said with a smile. "It is a fair place, and would do nicely for an old hobbit's retirement.
"Of course, your Hogwarts is lovely as well. If I wished to stay with you for a while, would I be welcome there?"
"You would be more than welcome," Kael answered with great seriousness.
"Hogwarts has always had a room set aside for you. You may stay there as long as you like. And if it pleases you, you could even serve as one of the school's caretakers, as Gandalf and the others do."