They rode to the far end of the dell, until they came to the caravan--a huge waggon with a sort of wooden house on top, surrounded by covered carts, tents, and other makeshift shelters in a clearing. There were a number of people about, Big Folk, dwarves, and a few other hobbits, all dressed in odd and colorful clothing. One was practicing his juggling with brightly painted hoops. Another was working with some small dogs that were remarkably able to stand up on their hind legs. The lady whom Frodo and Sam had seen the night before was sitting and talking with some of the others, but in a short skirt and tunic, with her long ashen hair braided back, she looked more like an ordinary Big woman than a glowing ghost or Elf. They all turned at the sound of the ponies approaching.
Seated on the steps leading up into the caravan-house, smoking a pipe, sat Noddy's little Man. At the sight of Dorryk bringing strangers into their company, he leapt down from his perch and stomped forward.
"Have you brought us guests, Dory?" he asked in a sarcastic tone. "You know that's not allowed. You were meant to be keeping people out, lad, not bringing them in."
"I couldn't help it, Mr. Grimmold," Dorryk answered, and sounded more sheepish now that he was faced with his employer. "They snuck up and pounced right on me... and, besides, they know about Nob. This gent here has asked to see him." He nodded to indicate Frodo.
"Have you now?" Mr. Grimmold studied his unwanted visitors from under bushy, lowered brows with a fierce and suspicious glare. He might be smaller than a hobbit, but he was a far more imposing person than most Men two or three times his size. "Who are you young fellows? What is it you think you know?"
"My name is Frodo Baggins," Frodo introduced himself, "and these are my friends. We've been engaged by Noddy Ferndingle. I've come to have the curse taken off his farm. Noddy is determined not to leave, so you might as well be reasonable and stop this nonsense."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Mr. Baggins," Mr. Grimmold replied. "We are simply humble travelers in your land, stopping in our journey for a few days' rest in privacy- Here, my lad. I'll take that."
Pippin had been carrying the iron lantern since Dorryk had handed it to him at the rock and, overcome by curiosity, had begun to examine it by opening the other apertures. The one he had open at that moment revealed another piece of oddly shaped and colored glass; Frodo only saw it for an instant--it looked as if a fierce face with red eyes had been painted on the glass--before Mr. Grimmold snatched the lantern away.
"Never you mind that!" he scolded. "We can't have you prying into all our tricks. That'd spoil the mystery, and our Dorryk's probably given away more than enough to you already."
"He hasn't," said Frodo, "but I've seen enough to know that you're more than simple travelers. I know what you're doing here. Now, where is Noddy's brother? Surely, he's behind all this." He looked at the other hobbits around the clearing, and noted that Sam apparently did not recognize any of them.
"Here," said a voice, and another hobbit popped his head out from between the leathery flaps of one of the tents. He wore a blanket around his shoulders. When he saw who the visitors were, he said, "If it isn't Sam Gamgee! I might've guessed. It's all right, Mr. Grimmold. Sam here is an old friend. I'll explain things to him."
"You know your own mind, Nob," Mr. Grimmold relented grudgingly. "It was your idea in the first place. Go on about your business, the rest of you."
The troupe dispersed as Nob emerged from the tent; out in the cool air, he began to cough and wrapped his blanket more tightly around himself. Dorryk took his arm and helped him over to sit on a log by the nearest campfire. As Dorryk went to fetch a mug of hot soup for his friend, Sam introduced his own companions.
"You've come up in the world, Sam," said Nob, "with such fine friends." The long-missing Ferndingle son invited his visitors to have a seat and make themselves comfortable, as if their meeting in the woods was nothing unusual. Frodo sat down, with Sam beside him, on the opposite side of the fire. Merry remained standing. Pippin wandered off to meet some of the circus people; he was more interested in their tricks than Nobold's explanation.
Once they had settled, Sam got straight to the point. "What're you doing out here, Nob? What happened to you since you ran off, to come back with this lot?"
"It was all those tales of yours, Sam," Nobold began between sips of the soup Dorryk had brought him. "When you used to come with your Dad to visit the farm--remember?--you'd tell me and Noddy about old Mr. Bilbo Baggins the Gaffer worked for, and how he had wondrous adventures far away over the mountains, visiting elves and stealing gold from dragons. I used to dream of having an adventure of my own, and when I couldn't bear another day of tending cows and pigs, I went off in search of it. You can understand that, can't you? I've heard what you've been up to. On our travels, we had news of the great war in the south and the evil that was overthrown, and the four 'halflings,' as they call us, who had a part in it." He looked from Sam to Frodo to Merry. "That was you, wasn't it?"
"It was," Frodo acknowledged modestly.
"I must say," exclaimed Dorryk with keen interest, "I'd love to hear your tales! If half the stories are to be believed, it must be incredible."
"And did you have adventures, Nob?" Sam asked.
"Nothing so grand as yours, Sam, but we've had some good fun--haven't we, Dory?" said Nobold. "When I left the Shire, I got as far as Bree on my own and took a job there at the Prancing Pony. I met up with the troupe when they came through, and I've been traveling with them since. I've learned how to juggle and tumble and do conjuring tricks. I've performed for audiences as far away as Dale. That's where most of our Bigs are from. I've seen the bones of the dragon in the bottom of the lake! I met Mr. Bilbo himself when we passed through the Elf city at Rivendell this summer, and told him about it. It's been marvelous, and I don't regret a minute of it."
The hobbits were sympathetic with Nobold's desire to see the world, for they'd all felt that same desire before they'd gone on their own adventures. They were even a little envious: in spite of all the wonderful and terrible things they'd seen on the quest, none of them had seen Bilbo's dragon.
"Then why do you want the farm now?" asked Frodo.
"I don't, exactly," said Nob, "but I wanted to come home. You've been away from the Shire yourselves--you must know how you miss it when you're away. It's a sweet, green little land, and there's nothing like it between here and Dale. When I took ill, I started to think fondly of the old farm. I wanted to see it again. The troupe said they'd see me home, and I said I'd find a place for them to settle this winter. It's rather expensive, lodging at an inn for weeks.
"When we got to the Green Hill country, I remembered this deep dell, where Noddy and I used to play as boys, and brought the troupe to camp here. It seemed best to keep out of the way--I didn't want to show up at the farm without giving my family proper warning. Dory and some of our other hobbits went to the Inn to ask for the news hereabouts for me. They found out that my dad had died and left the farm to Noddy. That's only right--I'd've been an awful farmer if I'd stayed. Noddy's none too bright, but he's sturdy and stubborn as they come. Once he sets himself to a task, he sees it through. But it was then I had the idea that the farm would make a good resting place. It's miles from anywhere and tucked between the wood and hills. We wouldn't be bothered by prying neighbors. I didn't want to make my claim and keep the farm for good, only have it for the winter. It was Mr. Grimmold who thought of haunting the woods and saying the farm was under a curse."
"He planned it all out," Dorryk agreed. "He's quite the conjurer, taught us everything we had to do. Some of it was from our regular show--like Griselma's vanishing lady--but other tricks Mr. Grimmold made up 'specially for the occasion."
"I didn't feeling up to going out on most haunting nights," said Nobold, "but the others told me about it when they came back. I'm sorry I wasn't there to see it! The magic-lantern shows must be splendid in the dark of the wood at night. But Noddy's even more stubborn than I thought, and won't be budged. I never expected he'd be bringing in other people to look into it!"
Neither of them sounded at all contrite; rather, they were pleased with the whole scheme and dismayed by Noddy's refusal to leave.
"It's a good thing for him he did. Twas a shabby trick to play on your poor brother, Nob," Sam said disapprovingly.
"I wouldn't harm him!" Nobold protested. "We only wanted him out of the way for a few weeks. The roads are safe these days, and Noddy could ride to Fornost and back with no trouble."
"Why send him to Fornost?" wondered Merry.
"Well, it's far enough from the Shire that he'd be away 'til the spring," said Nobold.
"Noddy'd like Fornost," added Dorryk. "It's an old city of Men, but plenty of hobbits have farms around it. Some of us have relatives up that way, and they'd see he got lodging and looking after while he waited for the beans to grow up."
"What about these beans?" Sam asked.
"They call them 'butter-beans' around Dale. Farmers don't grow them in the Shire, so they're nothing Noddy ever saw before. We kept a couple of sacks in our stores, and when Mr. Grimmold first went to speak to Noddy, he took a handful with him. Mr. Grimmold's got a persuasive way--he'd make you believe anything. I thought that once he'd told Noddy about the curse and gave him the beans, Noddy'd be off. We'd look after the farm 'til the spring," concluded Nobold, "and be gone by the time Noddy came home."
"But why go to so much effort to send him away?" asked Frodo. "Why try to frighten the wits out of poor Noddy with these pranks? You might have asked him nicely."
"Noddy would never agree to it," Nobold replied. "He's like Father--thought farming ought to be enough for any respectable hobbit. If I came home sickly and asking for shelter, and with a lot of odd people as friends, he'd be glad to see us sitting out in the cold rather than let us stay. He'd say it served me right for running off."
"I think you judge Noddy too harshly," said Frodo. "He does miss you, and he wouldn't be sorry to see you again. He might be more forgiving than you expect." Nobold looked doubtful, and Frodo suggested, "As a matter of fact, I believe that if you go to your brother even now, tell him the truth and apologize to him for these pranks-"
"And no more mischief!" Sam interjected.
"And promise there'll be no more mischief," said Frodo, "I think you might be able to come to an agreeable arrangement with him. You do have a claim, whether you want to pursue it or not, and he can't turn you away. Your friends could offer to pay Noddy for their lodging--in proper gold, mind you. No magic beans."
"We couldn't do that, not after this!"
"What other choice do you have? Noddy won't leave his farm. You can only move on, or stay here in the woods for the rest of the winter. You must have spent a miserable night last night, with the rain and the cold."
Nobold nodded, and coughed again. "It's done me no good."
"There'll be worse nights in the weeks to come. We'll visit Noddy this afternoon and tell him who's behind all these odd goings-on," Frodo said, "but I'll give you the chance to tell him the truth yourself first. Will you?"
Nobold looked to Dorryk for his opinion. "You can go to your brother and go home to rest," said Dorryk. "It's what you wanted, Nob. Let's see what the others think of the rest of it. We'll do as the troupe agrees."
"Yes, all right."
Frodo, Sam, and Merry went to find Pippin, who had already made some new friends, and left the two hobbits to discuss the matter with Mr. Grimmold. "They seem like jolly people," Pippin said as he joined them at their ponies. "They must have lots of fun."
"Are you planning to run off and join them?" Merry teased.
"No... but if they're going to be staying near Tuckburough this winter, I'll have to visit. You'll come with me, won't you, Merry? Maybe, once Mr. Grimmold knows us better, he'll show me how that lantern of his works." Pippin smiled, already dreaming of the amazing pranks he could play with a few conjuring tricks at his command.
"They're rascals, every one of 'em," said Sam, "and Nob's no better'n the rest. You were much too easy on the lot of 'em, Frodo, after the trouble they caused poor Noddy."
"It's not my business to punish them," Frodo answered as they rode away from the camp. "If they remain on honest terms, that seems better to me than sending them off to cause more mischief elsewhere."
"D'you really think Noddy'll agree to have 'em?"
"I think he will, if it's put to him in the right way. You'll have to help me to do that, Sam."
"He'll be right angry when he hears the truth," Sam predicted.
"Yes, but I think he'll come around when he realizes that his brother wants to return. And if Nobold is really ill, it's right that he be allowed to come home."
"You're too soft-hearted, Frodo," Merry said with affection.
"I know what it's like to be ill... and to be thinking of home."
"He'll only go off again with his friends once he's well again," said Sam.
"I expect he will, but if he makes it up with Noddy, then perhaps he'll leave in a better light than he did the last time, and he'll know he can come back again whenever he likes and be welcome without resorting to trickery. Brothers ought to be on good terms. If I've done nothing else, I can do that for both Ferndingles."
"Well, you did remove the curse from the farm too," Merry reminded him.
"Yes, that's true. Noddy will be delighted to hear that."
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