Raising The Shire

Posted By a Hobbit on January 8, 2012

It was very early in the morning on the first Tuesday of January, when one of Elrond’s assistants checked in on Tearose Underhill in one of the guest rooms of the Last Homely House. Tearose, though gravely injured, had begun to heal, proving yet again that hobbits were indeed made of strong stuff.

In fact, the Elves expected her to fully heal, so it was a shock when Tearose was found passed away in her sleep. The Elves mourned her passing and arrangements were made to bring her small body back to the Shire.

One of her escorts was none other than Laerchel of Lorien, who met up with the funeral procession outside of Ost Guruth. Laerchel was deeply saddened by the news of Tearose’s death, for they had become great friends, and had spent many a short break from battles at Tearose’s humble hobbit hole in the Shire.

News of Tearose’s passing reached her family, and the Underhills of Breeland set forth to the Southfarthing, and with the help of Basil Goodbody, they prepared a celebration of her life. Every hobbit in Tearose’s neighbourhood attended, as well as the Elves who had brought her home, and some of the dwarves and men who had fought alongside her in battle.

“Who will tell us the stories that Tearose used to, now?” asked a young neighbour. Laerchel looked kindly at the young hobbit, and replied softly, “Another adventurous hobbit warrior, or maybe a few hobbits will have a tale or two to tell, and they will create a collection of stories to pass down from generation to generation. Hobbits of the Shire will always have a special place in the history of Middle Earth.”

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Posted By a Hobbit on December 28, 2011

Something significant must have happened for Tearose Underhill to venture back to Moria. Moria had almost bested her once.

Yet once again, Tearose found herself at the mercy of the creatures in Moria, for she had fallen and lay motionless on the dank cavern floor just outside the Dolven-view.

This time Tearose knew that she had broken something. The pain was unbearable – she fainted, and felt no more for several hours, until some dwarven miners found her.

“What is a hobbit doing lying in the middle of our mines, pray tell?” One of the dwarves asked his companions. They all shook their heads and stared at Tearose. “We must carry her to the Dolven-view and get her medicine, lads. She looks to be in bad shape, poor little thing.” Said the first dwarf, who by now appeared to be the leader of the gang of miners.

So they carried Tearose ever so gently and slowly up the Doven-view, and there she was tended by the healer, who had much skill with fixing broken bones. He sighed when he looked at Tearose. And his face was grave as he spoke, “This little one is very seriously hurt. I’m not so sure I can get her back quite right without a miracle. She has broken too many bones: her left arm, her right ankle, her left collarbone, and she has some nasty bruises on her back, but I don’t think her back is broken, thank goodness!”

And so it was that Tearose Underhill spent nearly a full month recovering in Moria, before Elrond of Rivendell deamed her strong enough to be moved, and arranged for her to be brought to the Last Homely House. The Elves of Rivendell had a special love for hobbits, and they knew of Tearose’s brave deeds.

Tearose had the best of care. Yet, even the Elves could only do so much to help her heal. Physically, Tearose eventually got better. But she was distant and far too quiet, and often just sad. And the Elves were concerned.

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Posted By a Hobbit on November 22, 2011

The hobbits in the Shire were enjoying the harvest. They all were rejoicing because this year was especially bountiful and so there was even more reason to feast and to party.

Most of the hobbits who gathered at the Party tree on the Hill in Hobbiton had no idea that they were in any immediate danger. There were, of course, rumors about Frodo Baggins and his crazy “uncle” Bilbo, and the Gaffer had been asked to recount the details of the visit from the Black Rider over and over again.

But most hobbits dismissed the story as the ramblings of an old man or one who had too much to drink. Even though Tearose Underhill, a hobbit warrior who had earned the respect of her peers, warned her friends and neighbors of the possibility of much trouble coming to Shire, they still did nothing, thinking that Tearose had become as crazy as Bilbo.

But there were strange incidences that could not be explained or ignored, such as the disappearance of a considerable amount of pipeweed from Old Odo’s farm in the Green Hill Country. Some of the locals reported seeing bands of brigands in the area, but when they went to investigate, the place was deserted, and Old Odo was nowhere to be found. But since Old Odo liked to travel to Tuckborough quite often to visit relatives, it was assumed that’s where he was.

There were also reports that goblins had been spotted in Overhill and the Greenfields, but again, most hobbits simply laughed and teased those who reported such incidents, calling them silly drunks who frequented the Plough and Stars in Brockenborings too much.

But what wasn’t ignored was the aggressive nature of some of the beasts who had invaded some of the local farms: wolves and boars who were wild and dangerous, and who attacked other farm animals and even some travelers. The hobbits were puzzled by their behavior and they began to hunt these wild beasts, hoping to considerably reduce their numbers, and thus save their farms.

No one could have predicted that a member of the White Council and a colleague of Gandalf the Grey, had betrayed everyone, and had his sights set on the Shire. Or that these occurrences where his doing. Gandalf didn’t have the time to warn the hobbits as he had a bigger mission in another part of Middle Earth. But even Gandalf didn’t really know what Saruman had planned for the Shire.

Hobbits, for the most part, didn’t trust outsiders, and there were some hobbits who thought that Gandalf himself brought trouble to the Shire and it was because of him that Bilbo Baggins became “strange”. So even if Gandalf did manage to warn the hobbits, many of them still wouldn’t listen to him because they didn’t trust him.

So for the moment, life in the Shire carried on normally for the most part, and stories from the outside were circulated and discussed, but rarely believed. Tearose Underhill was still away on some secret mission in the Blue Mountains and it had been weeks since anyone heard from her. She even missed the fall festival, which was very strange, but her friends and family knew not to worry, for she had been through far worse than anything she would encounter in the Western part of Middle Earth. So they waited for her return and toasted to her good health at every family gathering.

Hobbits! They needed no excuse to party and that is why the enemy wanted to ruin their happiness. That, however, would prove to be no simple task.

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