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Guide to The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit/Chapter 18
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The Return Journey is the eighteenth chapter of J.R.R Tolkien's Guide to The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit.
Synopsis
Bilbo awakes and is brought before a dying Thorin, who repents his words at the front gate and departs in friendship with him. Later, Bilbo is told of what happened while he was unconscious, about Beorn’s arrival and fight with the Bolg, and the deaths of Fili and Kili. Thorin is buried with the Arkenstone and his sword Orcrist, and Bilbo soon heads home with two small chests of treasure. Bilbo, Gandalf and Beorn travel to the border of Mirkwood with Thranduil and the remainder of his host; from there Gandalf, and Bilbo go with Beorn around Mirkwood to Beorn's house. They stay with Beorn for a while, but soon head off, over the Misty Mountains.
Plot
When Bilbo awakens, he is still lying with a bad headache on the side of the mountain, but is otherwise unharmed. From the camps below, he sees that his side has won the battle against the goblins and Wargs. A man comes searching for Bilbo, but cannot find him until the Hobbit takes off the ring. Bilbo is carried back to the camp where Gandalf waits and is delighted to see he is alive. However, there is sad business to attend to: Bilbo must say farewell to Thorin, who was mortally wounded. Thorin asks Bilbo’s forgiveness for the harsh words spoken earlier.
Fili and Kili have also been killed, but the remaining Dwarves survived and take up residence in the Lonely Mountain, where Dain is crowned the new King under the Mountain. Gandalf describes the end of the battle for Bilbo: the Eagles, watching the movements of the goblins, came just in time and turned the tide of battle. Yet things still might have gone badly were it not for the sudden appearance of Beorn in the shape of a bear, massive and enraged. This sent the rest of the goblins scattering, and now they are all either dead or in hiding.
After a few days, Bilbo decides it is time to begin his return journey home. Dain gives Bilbo two chests of treasure (one with silver and one with gold) for his service to the Company, and Bilbo departs with Gandalf, Beorn and the Elves. They head to the eastern edge of Mirkwood, where they bid farewell to the Elves, and travel around the forest to the north and eventually reach Beorn's house. Bilbo and Gandalf rest there for a couple of weeks before heading toward the Misty Mountains. They take the same trail where they were previously captured by the goblins, but it is much more peaceful now. Bilbo takes one last look towards the east, where he can see the top of the Lonely Mountain in the distance, before continuing his journey home.
Characters
Dramatis personae
Bilbo Baggins
Thorin Oakenshield
Gandalf
Bard the Bowman
Elvenking
Other characters
Dáin II Ironfoot
Beorn
Fíli and Kíli
Balin
Dwalin
Óin
Glóin
Bifur
Bofur
Bombur
Ori
Nori
Dori
Species and creatures
Hobbits
Dwarves
Men
Elves
Goblins
Eagles
Locations
Lonely Mountain
Dale
Mirkwood
Forest River
Misty Mountains
Events
Death of Thorin Oakenshield
Deaths of Fíli and Kíli
Dain II becomes King under the Mountain.
Objects and artifacts
Arkenstone
Orcrist
Translations around the world
Foreign LanguageTranslated nameAfrikaansDie Terugkeer ReisAlbanianUdhëtimi i kthimitAmharicዳግመኛ መምጣት ጉዞArabicعودة رحلةArmenianՎերադարձ ճամփորդությունըAzerbaijaniQayıtmaq SəfərBelarusian CyrillicЗваротны шляхBengaliফিরতি যাত্রাBosnianPovratak putovanjeBulgarian CyrillicПътуването на връщанеBurmeseအဆိုပါသို့ပြန်သွားသည်ခရီးCambodianត្រឡប់មកវិញធ្វើដំណើរCatalanEl Viatge de TornadaChinese (Taiwan)回程旅程Chinese (Mainland)返乡之路CroatianPovratak PutovanjeCzechZpáteční cestuDanishHjemrejsenDutchDe TerugreisEsperantoLa Reveno VojaĝoEstonianTagasisõiduksFijianNa ilakolako lesu maiFilipinoAng Pagbabalik PaglalakbaysFinnishPaluumatkaFrenchLe Voyage de RetourGermanDie RückreiseGreekΤο ταξίδι της επιστροφήςGujaratiવળતો પ્રવાસHebrewבדרך חזרהHindiवापसी यात्राHungarianAz oda-vissza útIcelandicAfrakstur FerðIndonesianPerjalanan pulang ?Irish GaelicAn Turas TuairisceánItalianIl Viaggio di RitornoJapaneseリターン・ジャーニーJavaneseLelampahan BaliKazakh Cyrillicқайтару саяхатKannadaರಿಟರ್ನ್ ಜರ್ನಿKorean귀국 여정Kyrgyz Cyrillicкайра жолLaotianການເດີນທາງກັບຄືນLatvianAtpakaļceļamLuxembourgishD'Heemrees PerjalananMalagasyNanao ny Diany MiverinaMalayPerjalanan pergi balikMalteseIl-vjaġġ tar-ritornMarathiपरत प्रवासMongolian Cyrillicбуцах АялалNepaleseफिर्ती यात्राNorwegianHjemreisenPashtoد بیرته ستنیدو سفرPersianسفر بازگشتPolishPodróż powrotnaPortugueseA Viagem de RegressoPunjabiਵਾਪਸੀ ਜਰਨੀRussianОбратный путьSerbianповратак путовање (Cyrillic) Povratak Putovanje (Latin)Scottish GaelicAn Turas-tillidhSamoanO le Malaga Toe FoiSesothoEa Khutla LeetoSindhiهن واپسيء جي سفرSinhaleseනැවත පැමිණෙන මගීන්SlovakSpiatočnú cestuSlovenianPovratna VožnjaSomalianSafarka ku NoqoshadaSpanishEl Viaje de VueltaSudanesePerjalanan MulangSwahiliSafari ya kurudiSwedishÅterresanTajik CyrillicДар сафар БозгаштиTeluguరిటర్న్ జర్నీThaiเดินทางกลับTurkishDönüş yolculuğuUrduاس سفر سے واپسیUzbekҚайтиш Саёҳат (Cyrillic) Qaytish Sayohat (Latin)VietnameseHành trình trở vềWelshY Daith DychwelydYiddishדער צוריקקער נסיעהYucatec MayaLe náachil paache'