"Naah, Lidden, I took food with me and we have many friends on the road. You know, we are still in Shire" Bargo laughed. "Come on, I can't wait for exploring and finding new ways!"

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Emmielou was ticked.

A hobbit had never been so angry in their lives as she was at that very moment.

She hardly ever quarrelled, especially with her parents, but when she did, she never backed down.

They had insisted today that she marry scrawny little Obo "Elbow" Proudfoot. Or lose her inheritance. Elbow was the ugliest hobbit in the whole of the Shire, I mean who ever heard of a SCRAWNY hobbit! He also had buck teeth and no chin. But he did have money, at least more than what Emmie had, and three cows, rather a rarity among hobbit folk.

But who cared about some smelly big ole cows! Well Emmielou would show THEM! She was down and determined that She had been born a Took and she would NOT go to her grave with "Mrs. Odo Proudfoot" written on the stone.

She had packed her bags that minute and slipped out her window. (More like squeased out of the tiny round, blasted thing. )

Emmie stormily padded down the road to the cross fork. The multiple signs all read of dinky little Hobbit towns, until she came to one ominous board. "BREE," it read.

She didn't quite know where that was, but that's where she was going. She had no sooner turned in that direction that she litterally smacked into a wall of hobbit fluff. "Ouch!" she cried, and stumbled backward.

It was Lidden Leafoot, and her cousin Bargo (three times removed), And they were wearing traveling garb. This may be her chance!

"Now where in the name of the Shire are YOU going?" She asked.

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"I could ask you the same" Bargo looked at her suspiciously. "You are going somewhere? I see bags with you, I guess somewhere...far?"

He never was very close with this part of Took family but he knew that Emmielou has very strange idea...as almost every Took, including himself.

"And I would forgot. Big hello and good morning!"

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Lidden stood in half of the step. THe hobbit girl seemed familiar. Didn't she was from Bargo's family. Nevermind. But, she still was on their way and that meant that he has a little time to eat something fast as Bargo doesn't look. He pulled a big sandwich from the bag and started eating.

"Perfect day for a walk" he said to the woman with full mouth.

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Set by Nurr. Thank you!

"Well I don't know about you, but I fully intend to go as far from here as I possibly can!" She said emphatically, hitching her bag higher onto her shoulder.

"See that sign?" She pointed to the "Bree" board, "Thats where I'm going"

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"Well, we are going the same way. You can join us, the more the merrier!" said Bargo with a smile and looked at Lidden who was stuffing food to his mouth. "You really can't wait for a minute? We just left our houses!"

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Emmielou couldn't believe her luck! Here she was trying to run away, and she barely leaves her house when she runs into these two who take her away, and don't ask any questions!

She looked at Lidden's sandwich, and her stomach growled... she had missed luncheon... and elevensies... And it was long past time for afternoon tea..

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"Don't look at me like that, Bargo" said Lidden with full mouth. "I didn't eat breakfast and when I am hungry, I am eating, that is best solution."
He looked at hobbit girl.
"We, hobbits, have to stick together in topic of eating. Want a bun? I have plenty of this in my sack. We should do a picnic!"

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Set by Nurr. Thank you!

Bargo took the sandwich and patted Lidden's head with it.

"Picnic on the road?" he laughed. "Maybe on the bridge. We could go fishing while stuffing our stomaches! Remember for what we took food; to not be hungry when we will be outside of Hobbiton. At least until we visit Nefid Roofsnogger."

He turned to Emmielou.

"We will go now, if you wish to travel with us" he bowed to the cousin, as he always was a gentleman. "Haha, three is a company!"

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Emmie snatched the sandwich out of Bargo's grasp. "Never keep a hobbit from her food! Remember that!" She stuffed a bite into her mouth before it could get gone.

She swallowed, "Now, Next thing's Next, Who's this 'Neffid' Fellow? And what are you going to do once you get to Bree anyways?"

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"Nefid is my friend that lives on the road to Bree, also a hobbit" said Bargo. "We should visit him, just for great food that he always serves. And I want to see old man, I haven't for ages."

He looked at Emmie eating sandwich and became hungry but would never admit it in front of Lidden.

"I decided to make a map of Middle-Earth, that's not a mystery" he said with a proud smile.

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Emmielou furrowed her brow and took another bite. "So We're making a map of the world... And this friend of yours does tea?"

She sighed... "Men,

Please tell me he does something else that has to do with maps.."

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She had been walking for about twenty-two minutes and fourty seconds when she spied her query. "'Allo!" the figure lilted. "Oh Mrs Proudfooooooot!" The group was only a few paces ahead and she ran to catch up. "Well, fancy meeting you here!"

The hobbitess was fairly young with a head full of unruly waves that had been braided back so you could see her eyes. It was with those eyes that she sized up Emmielou and her travelling companions. She snickered quietly then quickly assumed an austere demeanor.

"On behalf of the Prrrrrroudfoot clan, your prrrresence is rrrrrrrrequested by one Mr Odo." Her voice had morphed into that of a pompous matron. "He insists that you attend immediately...." The girl broke off into a great fit of laughter. "Oh," she gasped for air, "oh my, my, my. You've really done it now, Em." The feathers in her braid bobbed as she gave the other girl a wink.

"Word travels fast around our area - a little too fast for my taste. I was half way through eating the most wonderful cheese tart this morning when I heard a ruckus in the front hall. According to a little birdy, one Ms Emmilou had described my cousin in the most colorful language, and had concluded that he could... how was it put? "He can marry his smelly old cows. Then it'll be how the good Lord meant it to be - kind with kind"? Ah, yes. That was the phrasing."

"I believe his shrew of a mother then began to shriek some ridiculous nonsense about the heat getting to your head... and some brilliant sod suggested that someone fetch you to come make an apology." For a moment, the hobit paused. "And here I am." She announced with a half curtsy/half bow.

"I heartily agree with the family you know. You do need to apologize. If it's kind with kind, he wouldn't be with one of those beastly cows... it'd be more along the lines of a walking stick bug."

Flashing a mischievous smile at the two men, the lass stuck out her hand, "Hello, I'm Koramin."

"Eh...hello?" Bargo was confused by this speach and scratched his head. "I am Bargo Took. What's to the sainty potatoes is going on? Cousin, I never knew you are going to get married. I assume you don't want to..."

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(You were right Lelia, I love it! It was worth the wait. Glad to be Rping with you again old friend. )

"No, you were right in the first place Bargo, I'm not. And the sooner we get out of here the better, in my opinion." She shoved the other half of a sandwich back at Lidden, she wasn't hungry all of a sudden.

With that, She hiked her pack higher up on her shoulder and padded off down the road in the Direction the "Bree" board pointed.

"And if none of you are coming with me, I'll go by myself!" She added angrilly.

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Koramin laughed at Em's preturbance, "You won't have to go alone." Her grin widdened. "Your little fit gave me an excuse for them to let me out of the house."

Odo's family had taken Kora as a ward about two years before. Her mother had grown weary of her eccentricities and sent her off to become a 'proper' Proudfoot... only to the dismay of the whole clan, she could never seem to get rid of her 'ailments'. Wanderlust was what the books called it. Whatever it was, her cousins would look at her with pity and mutter rumors of her being "more like one of those foolish Tooks than a model Proudfoot."

Holding up her traveling sack she ask, "I thought you might like some company as much as I'd like the adventure."