[Child of the 7th Age]

If any of the neighbors had cared to walk past Bagshot Row #1 anytime that evening, they would quickly have realized that things were not well with the Goodchild family. Cami stood stiffly before the hearth, her hands clasped behind her back, pretending to listen to her father's stern lecture which he was delivering at the top of his lungs. She desperately wished that she could shrink and melt into the floor. It was bad enough that she'd somehow managed to lose all of Bilbo's money, but her tears in the Inn and Bowman's rude words and gloating face made the whole incident that much worse. She felt so terribly, terribly foolish.

"Camelia Goodchild! Have you heard anything I've said to you?"

Cami hung her head and whispered, "Yes, sir, every word." In truth, she remembered very little.

"Then you will do what I say?"

Cami nodded meekly, wondering exactly what she was agreeing to do.

Her father continued with his explanation, and, for the first time, she began to get an inkling of what lay in store for her.

"You must learn responsibility. When you lose money that does not belong to you, you must find a way to pay that person back. It is the only respectable thing to do."

Her father fixed a steely eye on her. "Cami, we are not a rich family, but we value our reputation and our word. You will pay Bilbo back every penny you owe him, even if it takes the next ten years."

Cami wondered silently where she would ever find such a large sum. She occasionally earned pennies doing errands for the neighbors or at the Green Dragon, but it would take a huge stack of pennies to make up the value of even a single silver coin. Her father seemed to be saying that working for Bilbo himself would not do the trick, since the gentleman was so softhearted that he would let her off too easily.

Her father's voice kept droning on. "Therefore, you will set aside your studies for the next two weeks. You are fortunate I was able to secure a position for you. You may continue helping with Frodo's party in the morning, but every afternoon and evening you will engage in honest labor and pay back the money you lost."

Cami's ears perked up. At least her father was not completely forbidding her from going to Bag-end. And working in a "position" actually might be interesting. She'd done chores and errands but "position" sounded important and quite grown up. Maybe things would not turn out so badly.

"Therefore," her father continued, "I have taken the liberty of speaking with Mistress Sackville-Baggins. She needs someone to do hard labor around the farm, and she thinks you may fit the bill, as long as you are respectful to her, and mind your manners."

Cami's heart sank to the bottom of her toes. How perfectly dreadful....to go to work for that horrible woman and her pushy son. For an instant, Cami thought of arguing with her father, or telling him how she had found Lotho's button at the very sight where Belle had met her accident. Normally, he would have listened, but Cami realized that, right now, he was too angry to listen properly to anything. So she nodded her head in agreement and kept her comments to herself.

"Tomorrow afternoon, you will go to Bag-end. Master Bilbo has generously offered to accompany you and introduce you to Mistress
Lobelia. And, Cami, I know he will try to say that you needn't pay the money back, but I'll have none of it. None of it at all. You are to work for Miss Lobelia who has generously promised you five silver coins if you work very, very hard."

"And, oh yes, you'll be sleeping over there as well, so make sure and pack a few clothes."

With little choice in the manner, Cami gave her consent and dragged herself off to bed. The Sackville-Baggins family and Bowman Proudfoot....what a terrible combination! Still, she comforted herself with the thought that Sam would be there to help in the mornings with the party, and even Elanor whom she'd become increasingly fond of.

And, of course, there was her duty to Frodo and Bilbo. She would honor her word, no matter what, even if it meant she'd have to put up with some miserable hobbit folk. And in just a few weeks, there'd be a lovely party to enjoy. Cami rolled over, dwelling on these pleasant thoughts, and drifted off to sleep.

[ February 14, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]