[Mithadan]

Halfred was asleep in his chair with his feet on his desk when the door to his office opened with a bang. He sat up quickly and shook his head to clear it of the cobwebs as the Muddyfoots walked over. "Merimac, Priscilla," he said. "A good evening to you both..."

"Our Fosco's gone," cried Priscilla. "He's disappeared!"

"Fosco?" asked the Shirriff. "That's the lad who was throwing mud at passerbyes last week, isn't it?"

Priscilla turned red at the mention of the incident. "He's gone," she reiterated. "You must find him!"

"Easy now," answered Halfred. "When was he last seen and where?"

"At our hole," responded Merimac. "We had gone off for a bit and left him there with his sister and brother with a warning not to step outside. Little Prisca saw him running about in the garden chasing a grasshopper or some such over four hours ago. We've been looking for him for some time and haven't found him."

"Well," said the Shirriff. "He's just wandered off, no doubt. I'll have a few of my lads keep an eye out and I'm sure he'll turn up."

"'Keep an eye out'?" Priscilla erupted. "He's been gone for hours! You'd best do more than 'keep an eye out'!"

It was Halfred's turn to get red in the face. "Very well," he replied. The Shirriff summoned four of his deputies and sent them out to look for Fosco. He had no doubt that the lad would reappear shortly...

An hour later, Halfred sat in his office mopping at his sweating face with a handkerchief. Not only had the boy not been found, but also a Hobbit had stopped by to report an unsavory character, one of the Big Folk, that had been seen skulking about. Not long after that, a second had arrived to say that an ill-favored Man had been seen walking east with a bundle over his shoulder. When asked to describe the Man, he answered that he was big, ill-kempt, with dark hair and a whiskery face.

Soon, all of Hobbiton was abuzz with the rumour of another kidnapping. Bands of Hobbits bearing cudgels, staves, axes, shovels and any other implement which might conceivably serve as a weapon were raoming the countryside looking for Fosco and his presumed assailant. The search continued through the evening even after an overzealous lad ignited a haystack with his torch. But no sign of Fosco or the Man was found.