"Easy now, easy! Put your weapons down. This is our companion, Bombur, Dwalin, forks and spoons are not swords and axes. Bofur, you'd best put down that flute, it poses no threat to his armor..."
Gandalf calmed them one by one, coaxing the dwarves like anxious children to lower their guard.
"Is this the formidable ally you mentioned?"
The calmest among them had to be Thorin. This dwarf, who carried himself with the bearing of a king, hadn't made any sudden movements from the start, his eyes simply remained fixed on Garrett, never leaving for even half a second.
That scent, he recognized it.
Orc blood.
"Indeed, he will be invaluable on our quest. I stake my reputation on it."
After first greeting Bilbo warmly, Garrett turned to address Thorin, who had been studying him intently.
"Well met."
"I feel as though we've encountered each other before." Thorin searched his memory for that face.
"Aye, I once journeyed to the Blue Mountains. We met briefly in one of the workshop halls."
"Wait, were you the Man who stayed at the inn by the gates a few months past?" one of the dwarves inquired.
Garrett nodded and smiled at the assembled company in greeting.
Suddenly, another dwarf spoke up, "I believe I heard tell that a few months ago, a human traveler drank the best ale-drinker in that entire region clean under the table."
"For real?"
The dwarves looked skeptical.
"A Man? Out-drinking a dwarf? You must be jesting!"
"Impossible—"
"But it seems to be true enough. Plenty of folk were there to witness it."
Someone confirmed this, and the dwarves immediately fell silent.
"I won't believe it unless he drinks with me!"
The dwarves began to grow boisterous.
"Now, now, this isn't the time for such things."
Seeing the situation starting to spiral in a different direction, Gandalf quickly stepped in to restore order.
"You smell strongly of blood. Did you encounter trouble on the road?"
Garrett nodded. "I wouldn't call it trouble, exactly, but I did run into a few reckless wargs and orcs."
"Strange, they actually attacked you?" Gandalf raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"What wouldn't those foul beasts attack?" said one dwarf who didn't know the full tale.
The Vales of Anduin were far from the Blue Mountains, and word of recent events hadn't traveled that distance yet. But what Garrett had accomplished would eventually spread throughout all of Middle-earth, becoming the stuff of legend.
"I found it strange too. This band was different from those I'd encountered before, well-equipped, organized, and clearly had strong leadership behind them. That gave them a lot more courage. But I dealt with them all. Even though their wargs ran fast and scattered in different directions, my horse was faster."
Gandalf nodded, long accustomed to Garrett's matter-of-fact tone when reporting such encounters.
The dwarves glanced at each other, murmuring among themselves. Some thought this warrior did indeed seem formidable, but goodness, he certainly had confidence in his own abilities.
Bilbo, meanwhile, was completely bewildered, he had no notion what Garrett was speaking of.
Orcs? Wargs?
He had never heard of such creatures. But from the conversation, he was able to piece together one thing:
"Oh, so you two know each other. Well, that makes sense, I suppose."
He blinked and took a steadying breath.
He decided to find an opportunity to quietly warn Garrett: be cautious about the company you keep.
After that brief commotion, he fetched a stool for Garrett so he could sit at the table and join their council.
Now the table was completely full, not an inch of space remaining.
At least Garrett had a proper seat; poor Bilbo had to stand on his tiptoes behind Thorin just to see over the gathered company.
"We must seize this opportunity to reclaim Erebor," Thorin declared after laying out the situation.
"But the front gate is sealed," said Balin, always the most level-headed among the dwarves. "There's no way into the Mountain."
"My dear Balin, that's not quite true."
Gandalf bent down and withdrew a key and a map from within his grey robes, placing them before Thorin.
"These were entrusted to me by your father, Thráin. I was merely... keeping them safe. Now, they belong to you."
Thorin took the key and gripped it tightly.
"If there's a key, there must be a door... There's another way into the Mountain!"
The dwarves saw hope at last.
"Even if we gain entry, locating the Arkenstone will still be dangerous," Gandalf said carefully. "But with stealth and cunning, it can be done."
"That's why we require a burglar."
One dwarf voiced what they were all thinking. Every eye in the room turned toward Bilbo.
But Bilbo had never stolen a thing in his life, and he definitely wasn't going to accept this role. Very soon, the dwarves began expressing their doubts, and then came the noise and arguing.
"Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is!"
Gandalf rose to his full height and released an overwhelming pressure. The dwarves instantly fell silent, as if invisible hands had seized their throats, none questioned the wizard further.
The only ones unaffected by this display were Garrett and Thorin.
Thorin, being a king among his people, naturally wouldn't be so easily cowed by such a demonstration.
As for Garrett, he simply found the special effects rather impressive.
"Give him the contract."
Bilbo began to carefully examine the lengthy document.
"One fifteenth share... that seems quite fair..."
Thud.
However, after reading through the contract and being deliberately frightened by a few graphic descriptions from the dwarves, the hobbit, accustomed to his quiet and comfortable existence, fainted clean away.
It was simply too much excitement for one evening.
A short while later, Gandalf was offering Bilbo some gentle encouragement in the sitting room.
"I cannot promise you'll return, but if you do, you'll never be the same."
Bilbo pondered the wizard's words, and remembered all those incredible adventure tales Garrett would share during his visits to Bag End.
He hesitated.
"No, I still cannot sign it."
He firmly refused.
Meanwhile, the dwarves had gathered near the doorway, speaking in low voices.
"That Garrett fellow seems dependable enough, but this burglar..."
Someone shook his head doubtfully.
"Nothing's going according to plan."
"When all's said and done, we're not exactly mighty warriors ourselves, we're mostly toy-makers and tinkers..."
Thorin overheard this and disagreed strongly.
He began to speak, delivering an inspiring speech to rally their spirits.
"I would take each and every one of these dwarves over an army from the Iron Hills. For when I called upon them, they answered. Loyalty, honor, these are worth more than all the gold in Erebor."
Gandalf, listening to the dwarves' conversation, glanced meaningfully at Garrett.
"You believe you could face that dragon, don't you?" he asked quietly.
Garrett met his gaze and replied just as softly, "I don't know. I've never seen that dragon before. But if necessary, I can give it a try."
Gandalf said nothing for a moment. Then he turned to Balin and instructed, "Leave the contract here at Bag End."
---
Early the next morning, a figure could be seen sprinting through the lanes of Hobbiton.
In the woods beyond, Garrett was holding his horse back, trying to keep pace with the rest of the company.
There was no help for it, the dwarves were mounted on ponies with modest speed, and couldn't possibly match his well-bred steed at full gallop.
"Is that... is that diamond on your horse?"
After they'd been traveling for some time, someone couldn't resist asking. Truth be told, the dwarves had been staring at Garrett's horse's protective gear for the entire journey, unable to look away.
"Yes, it is. Very durable, quite useful in battle."
"Can I touch it?"
"Of course, go ahead."
"By my beard, it's so magnificent. How long would one have to mine to gather enough gems for barding of this quality...?"
Just as this dwarf was marveling aloud, a voice suddenly called from behind, "Wait, wait for me!"
It was Bilbo, contract clutched in his hand, running to catch up with the company.
Seeing this, most of the party groaned aloud. A few whistled.
"Welcome to Thorin Oakenshield's company, Master Baggins!"
---
Not long after, Bilbo found himself astride a small pony, riding alongside Garrett and Gandalf, chatting as they traveled.
"The others placed wagers on whether you'd come. Most bet you wouldn't. A few said you would."
"And what about you?"
Clink.
Gandalf raised his hand and caught a small pouch of silver coins, grinning as he tucked it into his robes.
"My dear fellow, I never doubted you for a moment."
Bilbo turned to his other companion.
Another small bag of coins was tossed to Garrett, who caught it deftly.
"I'd be delighted to include a hobbit named Bilbo in my next tale of adventure."
"To be part of a story, what a strange and wonderful thought!"