Imagine cooking a meal with Bilbo for the rest of the company.
Thanks to @littlepsychokitten for this idea/inspiration! Gif credit to the original creator.
Fili strode out from the woods where you were starting to make camp along with the rest of the company. Kili was in tow, bouncing along right behind his brother. “Well, you can all thank me for our meal tonight!” FIli announced, holding out a few limp geese by their feet, “I tracked and caught a few of the waterfowl we saw earlier!”
“Hey! I gave you quite a bit of help!” Kili chimed in. Bombur’s eyes just about turned heart-shaped as he looked over at the fresh game, smiling from ear to ear. It had been a long time since he was able to prepare such a fresh meal.
You hopped up from where you were sitting and bounded over to where the brothers were. “I’ll take that!” you said, reaching up for the birds. Fili held them up a bit higher, just past the height your hobbit arms could reach to. “Fili!” You groaned, annoyed. He loved to tease you about your height.
“And what makes you think Bombur is going to let you anywhere near the fire in order to cook?” Fili smiled mischievously as he spoke.
“How do we know you wouldn’t burn them to a crisp, (Y/N)?” Kili smirked, you could tell he was holding back his laughter.
“(Y/N), what are you up to?” Bilbo asked as he walked up beside you.
“Well,” you paused, taking a small hop, trying to swipe the birds from Fili’s grip, but they were still held up to high.
“I just thought...” Pausing again to take another jump upwards, with no luck.
“Maybe I wanted to do something nice for the company. Take a turn making a meal! But I guess Fili is having no part of my niceties!” You crossed your arms and turn away from Fili with a “hmpf!” giving a wink to your brother Bilbo as you turned away.
“Quit with your mischief and someone cook the damn birds already or we will all starve to death!” Thorin’s voice boomed from across the camp.
Fili and Kili both looked at each other, wide eyed. They knew their uncle meant business, and they knew he was not fond of their jokes and tomfoolery- especially when it involved delaying his meal.
“I guess we could let you try...” Kili slowly said.
“Just this once!” Fili quickly added, unsure of your cooking skills.
“But, maybe Bilbo should help?” Kili suggested. Both Fili and Kili looked over to Bombur, perhaps for some guidance if this was a good idea. Bombur just shrugged his shoulders, looking a bit worried for the fresh geese.
“I-I don’t know,” Bilbo began making excuses, “I haven’t cooked this particular type of bird in-”
“No! If that is what it takes, that’s what we will do! That’s that! We are cooking these birds, Bilbo!” You told him, finally reaching up and getting your hands on the birds and thrusting them at Bilbo’s chest, “and you can get them ready for cooking! I’ll start the fire.”
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
After what seemed like hours, you finally had gotten the birds over the fire and they were steadily roasting away as you turned the spit over the warm flames. Of course, it did not actually take hours, and perhaps it seemed as if time was passing slower because of the constant stare of Bombur who was sat just off to the side of the fire, looking on to make sure you prepare everything just right. You were almost positive you saw him opening his mouth a few times to give advice on how you and your brother should be preparing things, but he thought better of it and shut his mouth before speaking, pursing his lips and watching attentively.
Ever since you could remember, Bilbo always seemed to be the more nervous sibling. And when he was nervous, he was not a patient person.
“Are the birds too close to the flames (Y/N)? They seem to be browning quite quickly. Shouldn’t we get the vegetables cooking?” He seemed to have endless questions.
“Bilbo!” You blurted, trying to stop his stream of thoughts, “You have roasted a bird at home a million times. Would you like to take over?” You couldn’t stop yourself from rolling your eyes as you spoke. You could tell that your brother didn’t like cooking for such a large group, and he was getting nervous that the food wouldn’t taste as good as Bombur’s food has. He shook his head, but still stood by the fire, shifting back and forth as he watched you.
“Bilbo, you have to calm down!” you told your older brother, who was fluttering around the pot like a nervous hummingbird. Between his nerves and Bombur’s silent judgement of your technique, it was all a bit much to handle. “Why don’t you start on the honey cake, all right? Just like Beorn showed us how to make?”
“Well, I don’t know if I remember the recipe! What if I forget something?” He asked, nervously wringing his hands. It was clear he wanted to impress the company and show them how much the two of you appreciate how they had welcomed you. Granted, your joining the journey with your brother was not a smooth start at the beginning of the trip, but as things went on, your brother and yourself felt as though you belonged and had an important place in the company.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Finally, everything had come together. Yes, the birds might have been roasted a bit too long, and the vegetables might have gone a bit mushy, and the honey cake might have just a touch too much honey in it...
You smiled over at your brother as you plated servings for each member of the company. Of course, Fili and Kili had to tease the both of you for not doing things the way Bombur would, but no one thought anything bad of the food. At least, they didn’t dare say it if they did, because they could all tell your brother was proud of everything the two of you had done. He was almost beaming while telling Bombur about all the spices and herbs he used when he got the birds ready for roasting, though Bombur looked a bit worried - probably wondering if there was enough spices left for the rest of the journey.
To tell the truth, you were a bit proud as well. You hummed with contentment as you took a large bite of warm honey cake and closed your eyes as you chewed. And it wasn’t even burned! More than you could say for most of the things you helped to bake.
Balin walked over to you after he had finished his plate. “Thank you, lass. That was quite the meal. Very kind of you and your brother.”
“I’m glad you liked it Balin. Bilbo and I were happy to do something for all of you.”
Bofur chimed in, his mouth still full of food, “Now we just need to know who will wash the dishes!”
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A/N: Thank you for reading my work! Let me know what you think and if you have any requests/ideas leave them in my ask box!