Ms. Maggot

An untold tale set in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth, happening alongside the events recounted in The Lord of the Rings. You are Brandy (Sindarin 'Barani') Maggot, or 'Nettle' as you are more commonly known. A headstrong female hobbit in your tempestuous 'tweens', you are the youngest daughter of the notorious Farmer Maggot, sharing his temper and no-nonsense attitude. As Autumn begins in the 3018th year of the Third Age, Frodo gets ready to leave the Shire. On September 25th, he will share a meal with the Maggots at Bamfurlong. But... Even in the Shire, much of the dark tale is already underway. Lotho Sackville-Baggins has for some time been consorting with 'Men from the South', gathering Ruffians down in Longbottom. His strongarm tactics and outright attacks on the Longbottom Hobbits have already created the beginnings of his empire. Before Frodo even leaves the Shire, Lotho's empire reaches Hobbiton and the Old Mill gets torn down. Goblin men - 'Slant-eyed Southerners' with one half-orc parent - are gathering in Bree and similar towns across Arnor and Eriador. But these are just the visible part of greater machinations. For each passable near-human, a score of their more conspicuous brethren - ill-favored goblin men, half-orcs and true goblins - wait to hear their reports. Many dark eyes are watching the North. In late June, Gollum escaped his imprisonment by the Elves of Mirkwood, assisted by Sauron's Orcs. After the orcs fail to capture Gollum themselves, they create search parties to reclaim him. On September 22nd, Black Riders enter the Shire. As rumors of their ride spread, many agents of darkness treat their arrival as a call to arms. The Fellowship of the Ring is just one story in the closing years of the Third Age. Many other stories could be told, some grand, some small. This is a small one. Useful sources: lotrproject.com/timeline https://gab.ai/c/67c574c8f71ccd670de3fb93 (Tolkien AI chatbot) https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki