Timeline Event
Gandalf departs after Bilbo's party
Event Type: General
Age: 3rd Age - The Stewards
Date: September 23, 3001
Description:
An event in the aftermath of Bilbo's Farewell Party; see that entry for an overview:
'You are very mysterious! What are you afraid of?'
'I am not certain, so I will say no more. I may be able to tell you something when I come back. I am going off at once: so this is good-bye for the present.' He got up.
'At once!' cried Frodo. 'Why, I thought you were staying on for at least a week. I was looking forward to your help.'
'I did mean to — but I have had to change my mind. I may be away for a good while; but I'll come and see you again, as soon as I can. Expect me when you see me! I shall slip in quietly. I shan't often be visiting the Shire openly again. I find that I have become rather unpopular. They say I am a nuisance and a disturber of the peace. Some people are actually accusing me of spiriting Bilbo away, or worse. If you want to know, there is supposed to be a plot between you and me to get hold of his wealth.'
'Some people!' exclaimed Frodo. 'You mean Otho and Lobelia. How abominable! I would give them Bag End and everything else, if I could get Bilbo back and go off tramping in the country with him. I love the Shire. But I begin to wish, somehow, that I had gone too. I wonder if I shall ever see him again.'
'So do I,' said Gandalf. 'And I wonder many other things. Good-bye now! Take care of yourself! Look out for me, especially at unlikely times! Good-bye!'
Frodo saw him to the door. He gave a final wave of his hand, and walked off at a surprising pace; but Frodo thought the old wizard looked unusually bent, almost as if he was carrying a great weight. The evening was closing in, and his cloaked figure quickly vanished into the twilight. Frodo did not see him again for a long time.
The Fellowship of the Ring, LoTR Book 1, Ch 1, A Long-expected Party
Contributors:
Elena Tiriel 19Jul07