CHAPTER II: ROAST MUTTON

Bilbo wakes to a wrecked kitchen and believes the dwarves have left him, until Gandalf arrives with a note demanding he meet them by eleven. In a fluster, Bilbo rushes out without essentials, reaches the Green Dragon just in time, and departs on a pony, cloaked and hooded with Dwalin’s spares. Gandalf later catches up, bringing handkerchiefs and Bilbo’s pipe, and the company rides east, spirits high.

The lands grow lonelier and the weather worsens. In cold rain the party struggles into a river valley at dusk, only to realize Gandalf is missing. A bolting pony dumps vital food into the flooded river, leaving them wet and hungry. Spotting a red light on a wooded hill, they send Bilbo, as “burglar,” to investigate.

Bilbo discovers three trolls—William, Bert, and Tom—roasting mutton. Wanting to prove himself, he tries to pick William’s pocket; the talking purse betrays him, and the trolls seize him. As the dwarves approach singly, the trolls ambush and sack them one by one, until Thorin arrives fighting but is finally captured. Bilbo, bruised and hidden in a bush, watches as the trolls debate how to cook their prisoners.

Unseen, Gandalf returns and mimics the trolls’ voices, stoking their quarrels and delaying any decision. As the argument peaks, dawn breaks; the sunlight turns William, Bert, and Tom to stone. Gandalf frees Bilbo and the suffocating dwarves, who angrily debrief what happened.

Following stony boot-tracks, they find the trolls’ cave but cannot open it until Bilbo produces a dropped key. Inside, they recover provisions, coins, and fine blades—Gandalf and Thorin take jeweled swords, and Bilbo arms himself with a short sword. After breakfasting and resting, they bury pots of gold near the river under spells and resume their eastward path. Gandalf explains he scouted ahead, learned of the trolls from Elrond’s folk, and returned when he saw their fire; he urges greater caution as they press toward Rivendell.