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| Budgeford |
There once lived a young hobbit lad named Alfred Bolger. He led a quiet, peaceful life with his family in the small farming village of Budgeford. He helped his father, Odovacar Bolger, on the family farm, and was content and happy. Every once in a while, when he had a few extra coins in his pocket, he would even sneak out of the house when his parents weren't looking and visit the tavern to enjoy a good beer or two.
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| Enjoying a good beer! |
As he grew older, his knowledge of the world outside the Shire grew also. Every day, even when he was working busily planting crops or feeding the chickens, he caught hints of vague rumors concerning the lands beyond the Shire. There was tell of wargs and goblins and worse inhabiting the wild regions of Middle-Earth. Some hobbits told tales of animals that had gone missing and never returned. Even worse, there were reports of one or two hobbits that had entirely disappeared from the face of Middle-Earth. One day, when he was still at the very young age of twenty-seven, he decided to join the Bounders and do something to fix what was wrong with the world.
There evidently was trouble brewing because the Bounder Captain did not even check to see if he was old enough to join before swearing him in. He was given a wooden club studded with a red stone and an iron shield, probably dusty old relics from the Mathom House. Alfred was stationed at the village of Stock, which was thankfully near Budgeford. His father was furious when he found out about his son's decision, but in the end relented, because he too had been hearing dark and shadowy rumors.
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| Talking to the Bounder Captain |
Alfred's first real action occurred when he was patrolling to shore of the Brandywine River. A swarm of black-blue craban from the other side of the river, with harsh croaking and cawing, flew high in the air above Alfred. Annoyed by their terrible racket, he looked up. All he saw was a huge, black cloud descended swiftly upon him. Yelling, he ducked and swung wildly with his club. He managed to deal out a few hefty thwacks, but, overwhelmed by the crows, he turned and fled back to Stock. Thankfully, a bounder with a bow was guarding the village, and a few well-aimed arrows drove the fierce birds away.
Alfred escaped unscathed except for a few bumps and bruises. The only real harm he received was to his poor nerves. Shaken to the point of gibbering, he was laid up in bed for several days. However, he recovered quickly and was soon out of bed, none the worse for his troubles.
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| All alone in the Old Forest |
In fact, he became quite renown for his feats. He protested, saying he did nothing but run away and it was the other Bounder who deserved all the credit. The archer, who indeed was a kindly and humble hobbit, just smiled and congratulated Alfred for his courage and quick thinking to raise to alarm before the craban started doing real mischief. Alfred received a special reward from the mayor of Michel Delving himself, and a feast was given in his honor. However, the merry-making could not last, and he was soon sent out again on a mission to the Bucklanders guarding the gate of the Old Forest.
They were mysterious and strangely silent. He was tole told nothing except that there was a certain mission he needed to perform within the dark and gloomy forest. A scrap of parchment was given to him and he was instructed to deliver it to a certain 'Tom Bombadil.' Alfred was shown to the tunnel leading into the Old Forest, and, as soon as he had passed through, they closed the gate, leaving him all alone.
A Return to Reality
As you have probably already guessed, I play a little on Lord of the Rings Online. My hobbit's name is actually Hobyltan, a play on the Rohirric word for hobbit, 'hobytlan.' I do not mean to brag, but he is a level twenty-one minstrel, an expert tailor, and among his many titles are The Undying (survive to level twenty without being defeated), and Honorary Shirriff (complete seventy-five Shire quests). He is clothed, as you can see, in gold and green, two favorite colors among hobbits.
Head: Bounder Shirriff's Cap
Chest: Scaled Hauberk
Cloak: Linen Cloak
Well, I guess I will wrap up this long post now. I just thought I would add a little gaming to this blog to give it some variety. If I get good feedback, I will continue this series with even longer and more exciting posts about the adventures of Alfred Bolger, so please comment!
