[doug*platypus]

Any ideas, suggestions, or corrections would be very welcome...


Bill Ferny

A man of Bree, of less than independent means. As the saying goes, "A man can use his back or use his brains." Bill was inclined to do neither. Most of his life, he had made his way through less than noble means. Around the Year 3018 of the Third Age, Ferny fell in with some very nasty characters, meaning he was in fine and fitting company indeed.

Agents of Saruman, or Sharkey, a lord of the southern lands, appeared in Bree a few years before 3018. Bill and one of his cobbers, Harry Goatleaf the gatekeeper, were taken on by one of Sharkey's top agents, the squint-eyed southerner. This mysterious and uncouth man came and went on the business of his master, travelling as he would between Bree, the Southfarthing, and the lands to the south. Bill and Harry were to report to him on all matters concerning Bree. It was believed that he also had spies among the Little Folk in the Shire.

Late one evening he arrived at Bill Ferny's house from one of his journeys to the south. He had the fear of death upon him, and could say nothing of what he had seen for quite some time. Bill had fetched him some stiff drink and leftovers from dinner, and left him to his own devices in his guest room. Bill and Harry had had a particularly rough night at the Pony, and he was in no mood to play nursemaid.

The following morning the southerner had recovered somewhat. He was all business now, but the business itself was strangely changed. It seemed more serious and deadly now, but also there was more thought of reward. He stayed at Bree for some time, and he and his two cronies kept a sharp lookout for one particular Hobbit. His name was Baggins.

Bill little thought how his ensuing encounter with this one little halfling, his three companions, and the Ranger, Strider, would change his world so dramatically. He was drawn into a drama that reached far beyond his mean and greedy dreams. Even his own part in it was larger than Bill would have imagined. His toughness was appreciated by Sharkey, and he was taken on as one of the Chief's Big Men in the Shire. Ferny was put in charge of the Brandywine Bridge, a lodge was built for him, and he received from the Chief deeds to various properties in the East Farthing.

Bill's fun in the Shire had just begun, when one night only a few months after settling in, he was roused from his slumber. Fearing nothing inside the Shire, he stormed out to the gate to deal with whatever trouble was afoot, when he saw an incredible sight. It was the four hobbits, returned like heroes out of errantry, armed, armoured and riding. Despite their size, the darkness and their boldness made them seem fearsome. Ferny had no choice but to flee the scene.

After his expulsion from the Shire, Ferny eventually made his way back to the Bree land. On the way he received a stern but not over the top scare courtesy of Gandalf and Bombadil, after straying onto the Barrow Downs. Their timely intervention most likely saved both his life, and (so Gandalf hoped) his soul. The mounds of Tyrn Gorthad were still a dangerous menace to the unwary.

The years after the War of the Ring (which had largely occurred way down south) were prosperous ones for the hobbits of the Shire. After the Battle of Bywater and the death of Sharkey, the Little Folk were content to rest on their laurels. All the progress and work that had been made during the Chief's rule was halted and destroyed with reckless abandon, including Bill Ferny's own lodge at the Brandywine Bridge. As if this was not bad enough, messages soon came through of a prohibition on Men in the Shire. The King apparently saw fit to rob Ferny of his newly acquired property and chattels in the East Farthing, and he was stuck in Bree, which did not in general share the good fortunes of the Shire.

Bill settled quietly at first back into life at Bree. But having had his first dirty taste of power, lording it over the Shirriffs and the Hobbits in general as one of the Chief's Big Men, Ferny was restless. He fell in with the leader of a band of robbers who preyed on travellers passing through the Chetwood. Bill began organising various nefarious schemes throughout the Bree land. Protection rackets, mainly. He eventually purchased some pipeleaf plantations of dubious quality, at South Linch. Bill smoked the stuff himself of course, but had a rough palate and could not appreciate how poor the weed was compared to that of the Shire. Neither, fortunately, could most of the men of Bree. Not that they would have dared to buy from a source other than Bill. In this way, Ferny started to be well off in his own way, not that you could tell so from his home or his appearance. Ferny could now employ ruffians and vagabonds to do most of his dirty work for him. He was starting to become a Chief himself.

And now, Bill's informants told him, the famous Frodo Baggins-Underhill was returning to the Shire. His three annoying companions had taken over the rule of the Shire - the Chief having mysteriously vanished. All of Bill's past hurts came back to roost. He wanted revenge. Not just his property, or money, or even power. It was revenge at all costs. Ferny had been corrupted well and truly, and would now stoop to any loathsome plan to interfere with the perfect lives of the little hobbit lordlings.