Chapter 369: Farewell
The birthday feast was in full swing. The Hobbits watched Kael and Gandalf with a mix of awkwardness and curiosity.
Kael drew the most attention. Countless supposedly discreet glances kept sneaking his way, heads craning to get a better look.
He and Gandalf, tall above the crowd, stood out like a pair of giants in a land of little folk.
Because Hogwarts' lands bordered the Shire, and trade had long since grown between the Shire, Bree and Hogsmeade, even Hobbits who had never left home had heard the name of the lord of Hogwarts.
Sixty years had passed since Kael first came to the Shire. Most of the Hobbits who had met him then were long in their graves.
More than that, everyone whispered that Bilbo's unchanging face was thanks to the power of this wizard‑lord.
No wonder they were all so eager to see him for themselves.
When the merriment was at its height, Bilbo rose to his feet.
The music cut off at once. All eyes turned to him, wondering what he would say.
Bilbo looked slowly around at his neighbours, drew a breath, and spoke out clearly. "My friends, there are far more of you than I have ever truly known, and I fear I care for fewer of you than you properly deserve.
"Today is my eleventy‑first birthday, and also my nephew Frodo's thirty‑third. On such a happy day, it saddens me to say this, but our time together ends here.
"I am leaving. I am going away from the Shire, and I am going now. As for Bag End and all that I own, I leave them to my nephew Frodo. I ask you all to stand as witnesses…"
"Goodbye, all of you!"
With that, Bilbo slipped a plain gold ring onto his finger and vanished.
Cries of shock burst from every table. Some were still trying to grasp his abrupt announcement. Others were reeling from the fact that he had simply disappeared before their eyes.
Only Kael and Gandalf smiled calmly, their gazes following Bilbo's unseen steps.
His invisibility could not fool either of them.
As the feast grew noisy and confused again, Kael, Elthir, Elroth and Gandalf got to their feet and left the party field together.
They did not turn invisible, but no one seemed to notice them go. It was as if every eye simply slid past them.
Only when they were well away did Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin suddenly realise they were gone. They searched for Kael and the others in vain and could not even remember when they had left.
On the path back to Bag End, Kael, Gandalf, Elthir and Elroth reached an oak tree and stopped.
Both wizard and lord looked towards its roots, faint smiles touching their faces.
"Waiting for us here, are you, Bilbo?" Gandalf asked, chuckling.
As soon as he spoke, Bilbo pulled off the ring and shimmered back into sight, looking a little resigned.
"I can never quite get away from your eyes, can I?"
Kael laughed. "I forged that ring, remember. It was never going to fool me. As for Gandalf, I doubt there is any trick of hiding that could long escape him."
The gold ring was one of Kael's gifts to Bilbo: an alchemical ring, born of spellcraft and fine ring‑lore.
Worn on the finger, it cloaked the bearer from sight and sharpened every natural Hobbit gift for moving unheard and unseen.
Only beings like Sauron, Galadriel, or Gandalf could hope to pierce its veil. To ordinary folk, its wearer might as well not exist.
It was Kael's replacement for the lost One Ring—a new means of escape should Bilbo ever need to run.
At Kael's praise, Gandalf only smiled and shook his head. "Oh, Kael, you flatter me. Your ring‑craft is such that even Lady Galadriel speaks well of it. I saw Bilbo only because you warned me to look. Without that nudge, it would not have been so easy to catch him."
Then the two turned the talk back to Bilbo.
"Why such a hurry to be off?" Kael asked. "Frodo seemed quite unprepared. Will you not stay a while longer?"
Bilbo shook his head. "No. I have spent almost a lifetime here. Once the choice is made, it must be acted on. If I linger, I may lose the courage to leave at all.
"Frodo has grown. I am content to leave Bag End in his hands."
Seeing that his mind was set, neither Kael nor Gandalf tried to change it.
"In that case," Kael said, "come to Hogwarts with us tonight. Stay there until you tire of it, and then move on to Rivendell if you wish. The school is holding a Four‑House Championship this year as well. It will be quite a spectacle. You must not miss it."
Bilbo's eyes brightened at once, and his last hesitation faded. "Then I shall be in your care for a time."
"What care?" Kael laughed. "We are friends. Your company is a pleasure to us."
With his road chosen, they went back to Bag End. Bilbo meant to pack a few things and then travel to Hogwarts by the fire.
He declined Kael's help and began sorting his belongings alone.
Just then, the front door burst open, and Frodo hurried in, slightly out of breath.
Seeing Bilbo with his half‑packed bags, Frodo's face was full of reluctance. "Uncle Bilbo, you really are going?"
Bilbo paused and looked at him, then patted his shoulder gently.
"Frodo, you're a grown hobbit now. I leave this home to you without fear. And I have one more part of my estate to put in your keeping. You must promise me not to speak of it to anyone, or it will draw greedy eyes and hands."
He brought out a shirt of mithril mail and a small enchanted pouch, and placed them in Frodo's hands.
When Frodo heard that the mithril shirt alone was worth more than all the land in the Shire, he sucked in a sharp breath.
Then he looked into the pouch and saw what lay within: a hoard like a little mountain of gold and jewels. His mind reeled.
He had always known Bilbo was rich, but not like this.
All the wealth of every Hobbit in the Shire together might not match what was in that bag.
Bilbo's smile turned positively smug. "This is my fourteenth share of the dragon's hoard, from the journey Kael, Gandalf, the Dwarves, and I made to the Lonely Mountain. What I have spent over these past years is barely a scratch on it."
"This… this is too much," Frodo stammered. "Uncle Bilbo, if you can take it with you, you should carry it. You will need money on the road."
He was shaken by the scale of the fortune, but there was no covetousness in his eyes.
Bilbo looked at him with deep satisfaction and shook his head, smiling. "Do not worry about me. I have taken all the coins I shall ever need. More would only be a burden.
"The rest is yours to do with as you please. Spend it, invest it, bury it in the garden if that is your fancy. You could squander it for several lifetimes and never see the bottom."
After uncle and nephew had talked for a while longer, Bilbo went back to his packing, and Frodo, heavy‑hearted, stayed to help.
Kael and Gandalf sat quietly nearby with the twins, saying nothing, letting the two have their farewell in peace.