Chapter Two of It Takes Three! (New name will be in chapter three)
Credit to @nightyboop (Prev Chapter)
Under Thorin’s order and to Gandalfs displeasure, they set camp back up near the abandoned farmhouse.
Bilbo was firmly planted in the middle of their group with the new additions to their crew.
Cleaned up, fed until they fell asleep and re clothed with mostly oversized jackets and cloaks; the three children now slept soundly in Bilbos arms.
Three girls, he’s observed. Three beautiful little girls so full of life despite their current condition. It sickened Bilbo to see just how gaunt they were and to hear their hoarse cries.
He looked down at them sleeping so soundly in his arms. Little hands clutching him as if they were terrified he’d leave. It stirred something inside of him.
He wondered so many things. Who were they? How did they get here? Where are their family? What will happen now? Perhaps, maybe he could convince Gandalf to allow him to return to Hobbiton. This was a fair excuse and he had no idea what other option they had.
“We’re taking them to Rivendell.”
Bilbo tried not to jump at Thorin’s sudden appearance behind him. His tail flicked out instead and lightly whacked the Dwarf scoldingly.
“Rivendell? Why?” He asked, not taking his eyes off of the three in his arms.
“Tharkun is unfortunately right,” Thorin’s voice dripped with distain. “It’s on our route and it will be safer then hoping to find traveler’s to pass them onto.”
“Was that your plan?” Bilbo asked with concern. “Just dump these poor children on whoever we come across?”
“It was, until Balin and Dori verbally assaulted me,” he huffed, and to Bilbo’s surprise the Dwarf took a careful seat beside him.
“Good on them,” Bilbo mumbled back. The reality of this new information sent him for a whirl. He… he knew that he couldn’t bring these little darlings with them, he had no idea what dangers they’d be facing.
Then again the idea of unknown dangers also wasn’t exactly what he wanted to undergo either.
His heart couldn’t handle the idea of parting with these children. Though he’d only just met them and he didn’t even know a thing about them, there was something deep in his soul that couldn’t imagine even losing sight of them.
“They’re so… small.” Bilbo was once again thrown off by Thorin’s involvement. Perhaps the stand-offish Dwarf did have a heart.
“They are severely malnourished that’s for sure,” he responded quietly. They felt so fragile in his arms. “I have no idea how long they could have been in there for and it breaks my heart to think of it.”
Although he had a clue. In the cart where they were found, one of the boxes held some very rotten fruit. In that case it could have been a while.
“They’re alive. Infants wouldn’t last a few days without nutrients so it must have been recent.”
Bilbo knew that Thorin was trying to be reassuring. But it just brought up another question.
“Thorin… how much do you know about us? I mean Hobbits.”
He finally took his eyes from the children to the Dwarf and saw a look of pure confusion. He didn’t see an uptight dickhead. He saw a person. Concerned about the same thing as him.
Bilbo huffed and decided something. He knew that Rivendell was still a fair time away from where they were, and he was starting to trust Thorin a little more then he used to.
He carefully laid out the three faunts in his lap, he tucked his tail in and laid it gently over them for support.
“Here,” he scooped up the one with the scrunched up face. Having a nightmare or perhaps just uncomfortable he did not know.
Gently, he passed her over to Thorin who quickly scrambled to hold out his hands awkwardly.
Bilbo realised when he placed the little one in Thorin’s hands, just how big he was compared to her. No wonder he thought they were infants.
While Bilbo was struggling to hold them in his lap, Thorin could cradle just one comfortably in his hand.
He almost laughed. It was too cute of a sight.
“So first of all, these three aren’t babies,” he chuckled slightly. “Yes they are small to you but I would place them between three to six years old.”
“You’re kidding,” he gaped, eyebrows furrowing hilariously.
“Not at all, you see the leather on their feet have hardened and they’re growing slight hairs on the top.” He pointed out gently to the one in his large hands.
He looked at the way Thorin looked at the little girl in his hands.
And he looked at the Dwarf and saw the very same thing he’d been feeling.
He looked at the adoration he recognised, the strong and almost instant connection with the child he held.
Bilbo couldn’t help but smile once more at the adorable sight of the Dwarf falling in love with the little darlings just like he had.
“We call our little ones Faunts, what do you call them?”
“Uh… Pebbles.” Thorin whispered with his eyes fixated still. “Little Pebble,” he murmured once more, but not to Bilbo.
Bilbo looked down at the two in his arms again. Cuddled up so snug in his embrace.
They could very well be triplets. They seemed the same age and they looked incredibly similar.
They all had messy black curls or afro-textured hair, dark yet gaunt skin and the cutest little tails curled up dormant.
And yet they had one characteristic that stood out. When their eyes were open, Bilbo noticed they all had different coloured eyes. Hazel, green and blue.
“Pebbles is sweet,” Bilbo hummed finally. Picking carefully through the knots in the little ones’ hair.
They sat like that for a while. After Bilbo had combed through one of the girls’ hair they’d carefully swap with another and start again. And he’d watch as Thorin fell in love with each of the little faunts just as he had.
He didn’t do it to manipulate the Dwarf in any way. He did it to investigate exactly who Thorin was and if he was worth risking his life for. If he would be so willing to abandon these children with strangers without a second thought then Bilbo would excuse himself from the adventure and adopt the girls and go raise them in the comforts of bag end.
He wanted to find out what was really missing from his life. If it was really the love of exploration, life or love itself.
And he had a feeling that these gorgeous little girls were the key. The key to every lock in his heart.
