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I'll grant that this does sound like a Hobbit bit of phraseology. Even so, Bilbo and Sam don't bother to mention the other previous instances that are being counted as a part of the third time; Gandalf does. It makes me think that something particular was in his mind. As for Tolkien's... well, perhaps he was thinking of Gwaihir as the Eagle King in TH? Heaven knows, it must have been tough to keep so many details perfectly straight in his own mind. Hmmm.... Maybe, if Gwaihir and the Eagle King are the same bird, then the instance in TH didn't count because it was a group rescue and not a personal favor for Gandalf alone...?
Still puzzling....
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Call me Ibrin (or Ibri) :)
Originality is the one thing that unoriginal minds cannot feel the use of. John Stewart Mill
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