She dreams of Golden Hope

Sonnet of Implacable Sweetness

"If each day, each hour, you feel that you are destined for me with implacable sweetness, if each day a flower climbs up to your lips to seek me, ah my love, ah my own, in me all that fire is repeated, in me nothing is extinguished or forgotten, my love feeds on your love, beloved, and as long as you live it will be in your arms without leaving mine"- If you forget me Pablo Neruda

In the inky blackness of the night, he moved toward the familiar, sturdy silhouettes of Fili and Kili, who were stood impassively staring at something in the distance. He moved toward them and proceeded to hand them the bowls of stew, which they did not take and them taking note of his arrival said in a low voice: "We were supposed to look after the ponies, but we have encountered a problem. We were supposed to look after sixteen ponies, but we encounter now only fourteen. Daisy and Bungo have gone missing."

He walked after them, as the two brothers strode through the clearing that the company had chosen for their horses to rest in, no doubt wanting recount the present animals, in hopes that they had only made a mistake. But as Bilbo watched the somber faces of the two young dwarves, which did not lighten in relief, as he had hoped he said: "Oh dear. It would be best if we tell Thorin." And he immediately bristled against the idea, as he imagined the indignation of the intimidating elder dwarf. Bilbo would never admit this, because he was quite wary of Thorin and he knew that he would most likely never earn the respect and friendship of this bitter dwarf, who seemed to resent his presence every time Thorin looked at him. He knew that Thorin would most likely admonish the Hobbit more severely than his nephews thankful for a reason to dispel his unveiled contempt at the smaller man.

"No, no. It would not be wise to worry uncle with these inconsequential matters." Fili said, waving his right hand in a dismissive gesture and Bilbo knew that Fili was also fearful of his uncle's reaction to their incompetence. Before Bilbo could question the two dwarves on their proceeding, he was interrupted by the sound of heavy, sonorous footfalls, which shattered the almost idyllically quiet nature of the evening. He felt the forest floor tremble beneath him, as if in warning of an approaching menace. The next thing he saw was a titanic, lumpy shape moving through the night and Bilbo scrambled in order to conceal itself from this intruder, which he was not familiar with. Yet he saw that the brothers, concealed by the greenery of the forest had made to move after the monster and Bilbo not wishing to be left alone, lest he cross path with monsters of the similar capacity that he had just seen, went after them, his grips on the bowls he had clutched having tightened greatly.

Soon, he could see that the inky darkness of the forest was dispelled by a fire in the distance and he saw the great, stocky individual, who he could now discern more closely and how it almost seemed to be made of Stone, due to the ashen and amour-like quality of its skin. He crouched down beside the brothers, who hid from sight behind a fallen log and they whispered to him: "Mountain Trolls." Bilbo supposed that he had read about them before in his books, for the name was not foreign to him. He could now recall that the book had spoken of their uncouthness and their putrid scent and that it had mentioned something, a detail about sunlight, but he did not pay any mind to that, as he heard Fili say: "You have to rescue the ponies. The trolls are stupid, slow and sluggish. And you are so small, you could most definitely pass undetected." Fili took the bowl from his hand and his brother soon did the same, agreeing with Fili's plan. He felt alarm and fear rise in him, as the brother's proceeded to push him toward the troll's camp assuring him that they would be right behind him if anything were to happen to him and to hoot twice like a brown owl and once like a barn owl, if he needed their assistance.

Bilbo did not even have enough time to ponder the fact that he had no idea what distinguished the sound of a barn owl from that of a brown owl, when he was quite literally thrust into this task. He remembered the size of the troll he had seen and the apparent power and strength when he had simply walked normally and Bilbo knew that his fragile body would not be able to withstand the pressure if a troll were to sit upon him or step on him. He was prepared to decline the brothers' demands, when he turned around to find himself quite abandoned by the dwarves, as they had already left.