Chapter Text
“Gandalf, you never told us where we were going.”
The wizard just smiled down at Thorin, and for some reason, it irritated him further.
They had been travelling for what felt like weeks, on foot, all the while being led by the gray wizard. He had said he knew of someone to join their quest to reclaim their home. Someone mysterious person that Gandalf only called “the Burglar”. He didn’t tell him much after that. Only that he was seemingly very elusive and hard to find. It had impressed the company enough to comply, but it was starting to become so ridiculous that many had wished that they would just go on with their quest without him.
Kíli, one of the few who didn’t seem bothered with this, moved to walk next to him, his brother not far behind.
“Cheer up, Uncle.” He said. “I’m sure we don’t have to go much longer!”
“Kíli-…” Thorin started, only for Gandalf to cut him off.
“Your nephew is correct, Thorin Oakenshield.” He said. “In fact, here we are.”
Thorin’s heart jumped, then promptly plummeted when the woods cleared, revealing an empty patch of grass.
There were complaints throughout the group, of exhaustion and hunger. Even Kíli looked downtrodden.
“What is this?” Dwalin demanded. “What games are you playing with us?”
“Give it some time.” Gandalf insisted. “We’re a little early, but he should be here any moment now.”
“Enough!” Thorin snapped. “Gandalf, we have trusted you this far, and we have forgiven the secrets you kept, but we can’t do this no longer! You will tell us what we’re doing here, or I’ll-!”
He stopped, cut off by a rather harsh breeze that cut through the clearing. A sound called through the forest then, a grating, almost metal-like sound. His company cried out their confusion, drawing their weapons, and Thorin made sure that his nephews were close by.
All the while Gandalf merely held onto his had, smiling.
“What is this!?” Thorin heard Dori cry. “What is this sorcery!?”
“A beast is approaching!”
“No! No, look! Over there!”
They looked, and Thorin froze, eyes widening. In the middle of a clearing, something was flickering to life, as if being born out of thin air. It wavered in and out of sight, growing stronger and more visible each time. Eventually, it settled, and Thorin blinked several times, as if the structure in front of him was an illusion.
It was a house. A rather small one, more like a hut, if anything. But the walls were made of smooth stone painted with bright colors, the roof covered in a layer of lush green grass. Almost as green as the round door it had.
Said door opened, and they tensed, hearing movement inside.
“Where are we now?” A voice asked form inside. “I don’t believe this is nineteen-sixty-…”
A head popped through then, and Thorin blinked some more. It was a head belonging to a small being, a gentleman, with curly hair, pointed ears, and a smooth face. He blinked his round, green eyes at them before slowly stepping out, and he became even more peculiar. He was dressed in fine trousers and jacket, with a waistcoat glinting with brass buttons. The strangest of all about the man’s appearance, was his lack of shoes on his large, hairy feet.
“Gandalf?” The man asked. “Gandalf, what are you doing here? And oh, who are they?”
“Burglar,” Gandalf greeted. “It’s good to see you again, old friend.”
“That,” Thorin stated blandly, causing the Burglar to look at him. “Is our burglar?”
“Ah-No. No I don’t belong to someone. I’m the Burglar.” The man replied, shutting his door and approaching. “And who might you be?”
“Burglar, may I introduce you to the company. There are Dwalin, Balin, Oin, Gloin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori, Ori, Fíli, Kíli, and the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield.” Gandalf answered, and Thorin watched as the Burglar took all their names in with surprised eyes.
“Well, then. That is a lengthy list.” The Burglar replied. “Such a large group, too. Wherever are you lot off to?”
“Didn’t Gandalf tell you?” Thorin asked, causing the Burglar to frown.
“I haven’t seen Gandalf since we slayed that jabberwocky. And that was… oh, that was a while back for you, wasn’t it?” The Burglar explained, and Gandalf’s smile broadened.
“Indeed.” He answered. “But now, Burglar, I’ve come here to ask a favor of you.”
“Oh, dear…” The Burglar groused, but there was a smile on his face. “What is it this time?”
“This isn’t really a place to talk about such things.” Dwalin cut in, and the Burglar blinked.
“Oh!” He said, motioning to his hut. “Well, why don’t you come in? I can see you’re all hungry. We can eat and talk business at the same time, though it is dreadful manners.”
Dwalin blinked at the man, motioning towards his small home. “How?”
Thorin watched as the Burglar merely smirked before snapping his fingers, and the company jumped when the door to his small home opened. “Why don’t you go and see for yourself?”
They hesitated, and Thorin was inclined to tell Gandalf “no thank you, we don’t want any”, and walking away. Instead, Kíli took charge and rushed towards the smial.
“Kíli!” He heard Fíli cry after his brother. “Kíli, be careful!”
They paused, waiting for Kíli to say something, and they panicked when they heard him finally let out a loud cry.
“Kíli, hold on!” Fíli cried, rushing towards the smial before Thorin could stop him, only to pause when his youngest nephew emerged, eyes almost wider than his smile.
“Unbelievable!” He shouted, and they watched as he made a quick round on the small home, touching all the walls, before ducking his head back inside.
“It’s amazing!” he continued, laughing as he turned back to the company. “It’s bigger on the inside!”
There was a murmur amongst them, and Thorin was concerned that something inside caused Kíli to hallucinate. He didn’t try to stop Fíli this time as he moved to stand next to his brother, taking a look inside himself.
This time, Fíli’s eyes were wide. “It’s true!” He spoke, as if in awe. “It really is bigger!”
Thorin frowned, for clearly his nephews had lost their minds, and this time, he marched towards the smial, the rest of the company following.
Instead of looking in, he pushed the door open, only to feel his eyes go wide themselves. For, despite the obvious size of the smial, the space inside was enormous.
The walls were rounded, made of wood and lined with bright glowing lights and shelves lined with books. He could see the beginnings of winding halls, and saw windows that weren’t even on the outside. In the middle of it all was a winding staircase leading to a bizarre contraption on top, filled with lights, bits of metal, and odd mechanisms that Thorin couldn’t even fathom.
He stepped inside, hearing the others gasp and whisper as his nephews jumped ahead of him, Kíli, jostling Fíli’s arm as he continued to gawk at the unreal surroundings.
Thorin turned to see the wizard at the door, who was still smiling, and the Burglar inside with them.
“Go on.” The Burglar said, motioning. “I know you want to.”
With that, Thorin dashed out, taking in the entirety of the size of the home, touching the sides and walking around. Trying to make sense of it all. Once he made a full circuit, he peered in briefly before looking out again.
“Bigger on the inside…” He finally concluded before barking a short laugh and rubbing his brow. “I really have gone mad.”
“Nonsense!” The Burglar cried, and Thorin allowed him to lead him back inside, seeing his company branch out and examine their new surroundings. “You don’t look at all mad. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with going at least a little mad. If we didn’t, life wouldn’t be exciting, now would it?”
The Burglar winked, he actually had the audacity to wink, before looking up at Gandalf. “So, what’s this business you need to talk to me about?”
“In due time, old friend, in due time.” The wizard replied, hanging his hat and cloak up as if it wasn’t his first time inside the strange place. “But first, I believe you promised food?”
“Oh, yes! Where are my manners!” The Burglar cried before clapping his hands to get everyone’s attention. “Gentleman, ladies, and whoever is in between, the baths are down this hall. Wash up, and then meet back in the dining hall, which is down that way! You will have plenty of food and drink there!”
Thorin watched as his company followed the Burglar’s instructions, all the while taking in their surroundings with awe on their face. He didn’t even think Dwalin’s mouth could be so wide as Balin had to tug him along.
“So,” The Burglar spoke quietly, and Thorin turned towards them. “What will this entail?”
Gandalf grinned, all mischief. “It will probably entail an adventure.”
“Oo, an adventure.” The Burglar whispered, and Thorin watched as his face light up with glee. “I can always go for another one of those!”
Kíli, still grinning and a little breathless, diverted to join them. “This place is amazing!” He repeated, and Thorin watched the Burglar smile at him.
“I’m glad, Mister Kíli.” He replied, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “You know, there aren’t many people who are as excited as you are when they see it.”
“I don’t know why! I mean, look at it!”
As Kíli yammered on, the Burglar turned to Thorin, and really, he needed to stop winking.
“Welcome to Bag End.”