The Hobbit: A Warmer Welcome (M, cold, mild 'Bagginshield')

[Mercury]

Inspired by the pic linked to in this thread, although there's no snow, this story just kept getting longer and longer. I d’know how I managed to write an ending, to be honest. Also, I think I made Thorin too much of a softie, so I’m sorry for the ooc-ness. Also, I like hobbit ears.

Also, this contains Spoilers for the book, up to and including chapter ten.

Enjoy!

A Warmer Welcome

Bilbo snuffled and shivered in front of the fire.

Although the bedrooms upstairs were all heated by the chimney’s presence, nothing could beat the warmth of sitting directly in front of the flames with a cup of tea clasped in one hand and a blanket pulled tightly around him with the other. Luckily his cold seemed to have settled in his head for now, but with the lack of buttons on his vest he had been unable to do up the clothing for the past few days and he feared that it was only a matter of time before it drifted towards his chest.

He had felt the cold settling in several days before while riding the barrels. His pointed ears had ached terribly, which was always the first clear sign that he was coming down with something. While desperately trying to stay afloat he had hoped that they were simply water-clogged, but by the time he was burglarizing there was no doubt in his mind that with a filling nose and rough lump in his throat he was in for a mighty cold.

His right ear gave a painful throb and he tipped his head and rubbed it against his shoulder, not wanting to free his hands from their warm positions. That matter, however, was taken out of control when his nose gave a pointed twitch and he hitched a shaky breath.

“Hih’itchhu! Uhh’Ttchhu!” He sneezed into the inner elbow of his jacket; short, soft bursts which were horribly wet and left a notably undignified patch. He groaned and rubbed at a nostril with a knuckle to try and appease the itch which had settled there.

He tucked his hands back into his blanket, leaving the tea sitting half-empty beside him.

Bilbo snuffled again.

He had never gotten to use the scrap of cloth, which had been thrown at him so long again, as a handkerchief. It had been utilized as a bandage and long since been destroyed or misplaced. Although the hobbit found the thought of using that particular piece of material distasteful, he gladly would have accepted anything that would have helped shift the congestion in his nose.

Reluctantly, he brought his hands out from the warmth of the blankets and rubbed them fiercely over his ears. They were sore, and itched inside and wouldn’t stop throbbing in time with his skull.

The noise behind him wasn’t helping the pain, or his mood.

“Wod’t you blease keeb it dowd?” he spat, not at all surprised at how close to a congested snarl it sounded.

The merry band of dwarves behind Bilbo, fortunately not their full company, quieted slightly, however, the overall noise of the room remained louder than the ill hobbit would have liked, although now it consisted mostly of laughter.

“Are you not feeling any better, Mister Baggins?” came the amused tones of Kili.

“Dow, I ab nod.”

“Our poor burglar.” Agreed Fili, not laughing like his brother but with a distinct smile in his voice. “Perhaps we should have been taking better care of him. The healers of this town probably haven’t seen a hobbit before; they can hardly be expected to doctor him properly.”

“Bofur” Interrupted Gloin, speaking with less glee than the two younger companions, “Give the wee lad your hat and scarf, he looks about ready to jump into the flames for warmth.”

“What? I can’t give him my hat! It was my grandmother’s and I promised her I’d always keep it safe on my head.”

“Dow, Dow, thad’s fide.” Bilbo tried to raise his voice, but it was too husky and congested to compete with the strong tones of the dwarves. Although, they surprised him by turning at the miniscule sound, attentive enough that they reacted as if the pronouncement had been at the Hobbit’s top volume. “You deedd’t bother. Ihih...”

He clasped a hand over his mouth, squeezing his moist nose in the curve between his thumb and , as he was acutely aware of the concerned, yet amused, eyes on his small and shaking form. His breath hitched, and he scrunched his nose at the overwhelming sensation.

“Hixctt! Isttkk! Hih’Tinkxtt! Ugghh.” Bilbo groaned. The suppressed outbursts had sent stabs of sharp pain through his ears that had made him dizzy and filled his filled his vision with spots.

A sigh was cut short as his breath hitched again, his swollen sinuses desperate for proper release.

Bilbo quickly made the decision that he couldn’t hold back another round, he was too achy and miserable to handle another bout of stifling. And, although, it would be most undignified to be sneezing under their critical gazes, he didn’t need to fuel their weak opinion of him by passing out in front of the company.

He brought a second hand to his face, cupping both around his mouth and nose to try and control the result if not the act itself.

“Itchhhuu! Eh’Tishhuu! Aettchhh! Huhh... Hut’Itchuu!”

His body pitched forward with each sneeze, rocking back and forth as his curls bounced around his head and fell onto his face. They left him gasping for breath, and he could feel the mess on the lower part of his face. It felt as if the thick produce had seeped out between his fingers and was running down the back of his hand but he remained very thankful for the shield of his hands.

He curled in on himself further, sniffling to try and reverse the mess.

“Such a big production for such a tiny bout of sneezes.”

“Delicate wee things.”

“Adorable, really.”

“Nothing like a Dwarf cold.”

Bilbo flushed red, trying to find a dry spot on the inside of his hands to wipe his nose clean before he emerged from their protection. He recruited a corner of the blanket to help, feeling guilty about dirtying the blanket that their new hosts had supplied. He wouldn’t allow their launderers to be exposed to his germs, and he resolved to wash it himself once his awful cold had run its course.

“No wonder he’s been sick for days, he’d hardly get any of that cold out with those miniscule sneezes.”

“The last cold I had, I had to use a bed-sheet for a handkerchief my nose created such a mess.”

“I had to use a tablecloth.”

“Aye? Well I had to have my wife sew our tablecloth to the bed sheets; there was no other way I assure you.”

Standing suddenly, Bilbo gathered the blanket in his arms. He had managed most of the sneeze-fallout, but could still feel his nose running from the for-now benign tickle deep within his sinus. He tried to sniff, but found he couldn’t make any more progress.

He wanted to get away from the dwarves, even if it meant leaving the warmth of the fire. Although their hostility about the barrels was slowly abating, they were still having fun making him feel like an outsider to their little group. Some form of payback, maybe, for their uncomfortable ride down the river.

But Bilbo felt miserable, and was fairly certain than it was not too much to ask for a little sympathy.

He didn’t feel that his sneezes were... undersized. They were making more mess than any cold he’d had previously, and he was ashamed at the ferociousness of his illness. The hobbit didn’t think that they were anything to be mocked, least of all for not being messy enough.

Bilbo felt that he needed to get away from the others. He felt horrible that his cold was creating such a disaster and fuss and desperately wanted to squelch his nose’s expulsions, but he knew the restraint would just lead to more ridicule by the company.

He was a Hobbit, and a Hobbit did not make a spectacle of being sick, no matter how much like an outsider it made him feel... How much more like an outsider, as it was.

He walked from the room, the immediate lack of heat causing him to shiver and he bit back a whimper, at least until he got out into the hall and away from prying ears.

Bilbo didn’t want to go back to the bedroom. Everything in it was too large, and it made him dream of home; of his wonderful hobbit hole that he hadn’t dreamt of in weeks and feared he had forgotten. It made it all the more painful when he woke feeling so terrible in a strange place where his size, and the men’s adulations of the dwarves, made him feel so inconsequential.

The cheerful songs from outside, celebration of the Dwarves quest and the riches that would arrive with their success, grated on Bilbo’s nerves. Although the singing was not loud enough to hurt his rather temperamental ears and head, it was much too happy to exist with his current mood and he did dare venture outside.

Instead he made his way to the kitchen, farthest from the noise. Although the men had provided them with copious amounts of food, the Dwarves had been left to their own devices about what they wanted to eat and how they wanted to eat it, so he knew it would be empty.

Except that it wasn’t.

“Burglar. Are you feeling much better?”

“Dot pardigularly.” He sniffled and threw the blanket around his shoulders as a great shiver ran through him.

“Come by the stove, you’ll feel warmer.” Thorin extended an arm out towards the Hobbit, who hesitated.

He did not think that their company leader would be as callous as his followers, or as blatantly obvious with his ridicule, but Bilbo didn’t like the prospect of appearing insignificant and ‘delicate’ in front of the dwarven king. He was also very aware that after pulling Thorin out of the barrel he had unnecessarily snapped at the Dwarf.

In Bilbo’s defence, he’d felt he had the easier time of the river-ride. Sure, he had managed to have a decent meal, but it was clear that the dwarves were safe and healthy while a cold raged through their rescuer. His mood when Thorin had emerged, complaining and barely able to move, had not been a commendable one.

Bilbo cleared his throat and brought a fistful of blanket up to itch at his blocked ear as he spoke. “Dow. Dow, thagk you. I just cabe id for adother cub of tea.”

“And you’re going to stand in the doorway until it’s ready.”

“Y-yes.” Bilbo spluttered.

Thorin stepped forward and placed a hand on Bilbo’s shoulder to guide him close to the stove. The flames were built high in the nook, rising above the metal grate of the stove and curling around a collection of pots that were settled on top. The largest one seemed to bubble and pour steam with a determined purpose.

Bilbo settled beside it, going up on his curly-haired toes to try and see over the rim of the massive bowl on the human-heighted benches.

Thorin climbed the small stepladder to tend to the pot.

Seeing the proud king fuss over his cooking, Bilbo almost smiled. “Whad are you cooki’g?”

The dwarf hesitated, stirring the concoction and frowning slightly. “It’s my mother’s stew,” was his eventual response, “When I was young, it was guaranteed to cure anything that ailed me. After the confines of the barrels I felt I needed its magic.”A wistful smile pulled at the corner of his lips, a move that would be almost invisible, even without the disguise of his scruff.

“Its smell,” he continued, “always puts me in good spirits.”

Bilbo flushed slightly at the information, and vulnerability, Thorin was volunteering. He tried to sample to smell, but it only earned a gurgled sound deep within his nose, and he tried not to pout. “I wish I could sbell id, but this dabded cold...”

“Do not fret, burglar. Once it is cooked, the stew will clear your nose and we shall share in its scent.”

Rubbing at his aforementioned nose, Bilbo nodded. He could feel another bout building in his sinus, and he turned from his leader’s gaze and covered his face with the blanket. His lungs heaved and his body shuddered.

“Exhhh-cuse be ahuhh... a bobedt, I hahhh-Ih'Ttchuu!” He doubled over, “Uhh'ktchhuu! Eitchhh! Hit'Itchhuu!” He snuffled and scrubbed his nose against the corner of the blanket; eyes squeezed closed against the frustrated tears that had accompanied the barrelling force through his nose.

“Urghhh.” He shivered, “I do beg your pardod.”

“Do you now?” Thorin responded over his heavy footfalls as he climbed down from the stove’s steps to place a hand on the small of Bilbo’s back. “You may have it, if you allow me this...”

Bilbo went to turn to the dwarf to ask what he meant, but the warm weight of a fur jacket curled him from behind and the clutches of two strong arms pressed the stunned Hobbit close to Thorin’s chest.

“Whad-”

“I am merely insuring the comfort of safety of our burglar.” Thorin said patently, “Nothing more.”

“Oh. Of course.”

“Do not sound so disappointed, Mister Baggins. I also care about you, and did not wish to shiver any longer.”

The hobbit looked to the floor, the fluff from the fur obscuring most of his view of the stones beneath his feet, which were now the coldest part of his body despite their fine layer of fuzz. He felt even more guilt about the lack of sympathy he had shown towards the near catatonic state that Thorin had been in when he’d emerged from the lake.

“I should apologize.” Thorin started, causing Bilbo to start slightly at the echo of his thoughts. “I have not been very congenial towards you since we arrived here, and you did us a great service in providing our escape from the elves.”

“You've already thagked be.”

“Not well enough, I fear. You deserve to be better cared for in your illness”

Bilbo frowned and gave a few harsh coughs. Perhaps there was something... odd in the steam of the stew that was producing this effect in Thorin, for it was very unlike him to talk so much and in such gentle tones.

Thorin ran a hand through Bilbo’s curls and the smaller being yawned as he turned his head to rest his cheek on Thorin’s chest. The steam from the pots and smoke from the stove were tickling his nose but he didn’t think he could move his arms out from where they were pinned within the blankets, dwarven arms and fur jacket.

He would not dare itch his nose against Thorin’s clothes, and sneezing would undoubtedly spray onto the fur collar that was circling him.

But Bilbo really did not want to stifle again; the pain was still too fresh, but he saw no other option.

Still, if her were too attempt to squelch his sneezes, he could just be embarrassing himself in front of the king with his body’s inability to stop the already weak, by dwarf standards at least, nasal expulsions.

“Iktchhh!!”

The first one surprised him. He hadn’t made a proper decision on what to do, and, before the next one took him, is eyes fluttered open to bear witness to the sprayed droplets. They had settled on the tan furs and, much to Bilbo’s utter horror, Thorin’s own coarse dark hair.

He nearly ran to break free of Thorin’s embrace before the others overtook him.

“Hih'Tishhuu!” He was still pulling away when his body convulsed, and he stumbled forward, nearly losing his footing. “Kitchhh!” His hands flew to his face, the blanket dropping to the floor, “Etchhhh! Hehh'Tkchhuu!” he sniffled at the mess, “Oh dear be.”

The fur coat was back around him before Bilbo had recovered from the dizziness. The blanket that had fallen now lay across and warmed his feet.

“I’b so sorry.”

“There is nothing to be sorry for, Burglar, it is a trifling thing.”

“Bud I’b...” He remembered the opinions of the other dwarves, “Right.” He sighed, “I subbose I seeb silly to you.”

“How so?”

“The others were baki’g fu-... talki’g aboud by sdeezi’g... They thigk ids delicate add idsigdificad.”... Like me

There was a moment of silence, so Bilbo took a moment to feel the rise and fall of Thorin’s chest and to rest his cheek once again against the soft material of Thorin’s clothes. He winced at a particularly sharp throb in his ear, and lamented that in its blocked state he could not hear the heart in the king’s chest.

He would have liked the comfort of its steady beat.

“It is true,” Thorin said carefully, “that compared to the colds of my people, yours is not as... violent. That does not mean that we think you weak for anguishing its symptoms.” He once again ran a hand through Bilbo’s hair, “Perhaps they were attempting to put you at ease, make you feel less self-conscious about making a mess and disturbing them with the noise. They have witnesses worse, I assure you.”

Bilbo sniffled. “Baybe.”

He brought a hand up to rub at his exposed ear. It didn’t throb as much as the other, but it itched just the same.

“What’s this?” Thorin ran a finger around the shell of Bilbo’s ear, making him shiver.

“They have ached sigce this cold started. It is dothi’g.”

“Does the pain run deep?”

“Dot too far idside... Add id Idches.” He demonstrated by rubbing it again.

Thorin hummed. “They have spent too much time in water these past few days.” He traced the edge again; seemingly unaware of the effect it had on Bilbo. “And are a worrying shade of red.”

Thorin placed a hand on the Hobbit’s forehead and made a disapproving sound.

“You should get to bed. I shall warm some rocks up in the stove and bring them up, wrapped in a cloth they should ease the pain in your ears, and some cool water for your fever.”

“Add sdew”

Thorin’s chest rumbled beneath Bilbo as he chuckled, a surprising and comforting act.

Then he shocked the hobbit further by placing a gentle kiss on the top of Bilbo’s curly hair.

“Yes,” he agreed, “and the stew.”

Edited February 3, 2013 by Mercury

[VividBubbles!]

Gadhvgkhfrrslkyfcs.

Bilbo.

And Thorin.

Nnnnnggggggg.

:wub:

bye.

[Salamander]

Awwww! This is wonderful! You have a lovely writing style, and I enjoy how Bilbo is just a little grumpy and proud and still has some fight in him. Thank you so much for sharing. I'm sure whatever the movie does with Bilbo's cold (if it does anything at all) it won't do this justice.

[FreeFluShots]

So cute!!

[Spoo]

Awwwwwwwwww! This was super adorable, Mercury. I really loved the dialogue amongst the dwarves (especially after Bilbo sneezed and they were offering a commentary, haha). Very well written and lovely!

[Tangerine]

Oh gosh, this was lovely! Fluffy Bagginshield warms me up just the right way. Thank you so much!

Edited February 4, 2013 by Tangerine

[Dusty15]

I'll add to all the 'AWWWW's for the lovely fluffiness <3 Thanks for sharing!

[*Dark_Side*]

I think you may have just killed me. There really needs to be more stuff like thid made.

[TheCakeIsAlive]

Love the dwarves' boasting. So very much in-character. Bilbo is so adorable all the time.

[Meala]

NYAAAAAAAAAAAW POOR BILBO BUT SUCH A SWEETHEART <3 love this

[Aria]

This is darling and beautiful. Wonderful characterization... Bilbo's annoyance at the dwarves was delightful. Excellent job!

[Kshu]

Darling, was this a one shot, or to be continued?

[charm-alarm]

I loved this. <3 Great work, very cute.

[Mercury]

Thank you everyone! I'm loving the Bagginshield love, and I'm especially glad that people liked the dwarf banter, because I wasn't sure about it (even though they almost ran away with the fic before Thorin could make an appearance).

Darling, was this a one shot, or to be continued?

Kshu, this is intended to be a oneshot. Historically, I'm not great at leaving stories alone, but given how many other projects I have going I really doubt that I'll find time to add another part, sorry.

[Kshu]

Totally fine, it's gorgeous regardless.

[Maus_17]

GAAAAH!!! So wonderful!!!!!

[uniquelyme]

This was absolutely fabulous!! So many adorable moments!! Everything was so beautifully written and in character!! Thank you so much!!

[Arty]

I just watched the hobbit for the first time today....

This could have happened!!! XD

ThorinxBilbo

My otp

[squealofapproval]

AGH JACKSON WHY

the book clearly states he had a cold after the barrels and gee...

HE DIDN'T HAVE A COLD AFTER THE BARRELS

Anyway, nice writing and oh I can picture his nose all red and drippy and caring Thorin and oh god oh god

Edited April 13, 2014 by Super Awko the nerd