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Your Heart Will Be True  by Write Sisters 4 Review(s)
Lady SarumanReviewed Chapter: 28 on 5/14/2006
No, I most certainly am NOT patient! *snaps* However, I'm glad you didn't kill Faramir. If you did, don't be surprised at who ended your life. JK! But all this killing...me no like it...if you kill one more good guy I suppose I'll have to invite Imbecamiel to come with me and kill you both. *grins toothily* However, as you can see, I missed out on a chapter again. Why am I always so busy? Blame the TEACHERS! They suck. I mean, listen to this and you'll agree. Okay. A debate due in three days. Two projects for science, one due on May 22nd and one on June something. A music project, due June 8th. And finally, an English project that's sure to be due soon. I have to memorize a poem and recite it to the class! Mannnn! *Pouts* And very recently, only on Friday, I've finished our state testing, called CAT 6 (California Achievement Test, 6th edition). Okay, okay, I'll stop my complaints and I'll review.

Chapter 28 (EIGHT WHOPPING PAGES!)

Everything's all right now. Beregond the Sleepless...hahaaa I like that. But, it seems that Faramir's attack left him impaired with his speech if he says things tonelessly. Only a steward! Boy are they wrong! *Ahem, Denethor...you were a bad father...* And yes, likewise to "Queen" Mavranor.

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Ah, poor Duurben. He's not exactly old, is he, but old enough to not withstand being collided in his lower back. I'm surprised he didn't break a lot of bones within his body. Eldarion has a nice battle cry. "'YAHHH!'" Well I expect that's what protrudes from all little boys' mouthes. Anyways tell him that I complimented him, will you? Eldarion's a young boy, really, but he's quite alert. I love him for that. He knows that Tantur's stupid and thoughtless but he still doesn't know what the traitor did. Apparantly word never reached his ears. Until...Duurben tells him that he let down Arwen and her family. I also love Eldarion because of his special way of comforting his elders...and he's right, it certainly is good to let it out.

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There seems to be comfort in all three places--with Faramir, Bartho, Beregond, and Eldarion with Duurben, and now Arien and Arwen. People suffering from illness do tend to talk while sleeping...and reliving nightmares...I should know. And Arwen obviously hasn't known about the fancy Bartho and Arien have for each other. Well, she can't, since she's been unconsious most of the time. I'm glad a romance is building up (I think) and it'll better off for them two. Bartho is gruff, now is he? Oh and by the way this quote intrigues me:

"Estel tells me a woman was unkind to him."

Did that woman happen to be Lindamar?

I love the way Arien decides to share her letter with her lady. Reading it out loud may have been more relieving...in a way. Oh, I never knew that Arien and Bartho would know Dwarvish. Arien is right--she shouldn't translate it to Arwen, since Elves aren't too friendly with Dwarves. And besides, the Dwarvish language is quite crude, nothing like the beautiful and fluid Elvish. Also:

"I'm still trying to decide what I shall write back. I feel like a lass again. Here I am, grown woman, quaking in my skirts lest he turn me away. I assumed no man would ever make me feel this way. I certainly assumed any man who did would be… well… different, I suppose."

Arien should certainly write back and declare whatever she feels about him. If they love each other, then one of them will have to say it first, otherwise, it'd keep going on forever, no one admitting anything. Whatever Arien's feeling--well, probably it's something assosiated with love.

This was funny also, especially for someone like Arwen to think so:

"I had the same dilemma. Estel was wearing a tattered, mud-spattered coat and smelled of orc, for one thing, and for another he didn't have the right ears. At least… I believe that's what was troubling Adar at the time. I was having a hard time concentrating on his objections…"

Smelled of orc? Probably because he's been fighting them in his Ranger days and no bath for YEARS. Wrong ears? That's because he's human. And Arwen's partly right, though. Elrond objected partly because Estel wasn't an elf, and Elrond doesn't want his daughter to experience the bitterness of mortality.

And, finally:

Hurry home, Elessar. The Evenstar is waning fast…

This is so true, since the Lhandlas is not completely effective, and as said before, each dawn robbed the queen of a little more life...hurry home indeed.

Speaking of which, hurry home from Illinois to post a new chapter.

Hersheymania!!
-Lady Saruman





Author Reply: We've heard that homework is a nightmare, and it sounds like the reports weren't exaggerated! Good luck, and don't worry if you run out of time and can't review! School deadlines are more important than fanfic ones! *grins*

We'd have to agree on the Denethor statement. Whatever else he might possibly been good at, parenting was not his strong point.

It's safe to say that Duurben is indeed getting too old for such games of tackle. Happily, no broken bones this time! We shall pass your battle cry compliment onto Eldarion immediately, and while we're at it, we'll pass it on to our little brother David on whose mock-battles that particular yell was based. *laughs* Glad you approve of Eldarion's people-savvy! We felt it was natural that Aragorn and Arwen's son be fairly canny about such things. *cooes*

You're right, that woman was Lindamar! And yes indeed -- unbeknownst to himself, Bartho is falling rather hard for a certain lady-correspondent of his. And yes, Dwarvish would sound nothing like the beauty of Elvish. Bartho doesn't actually know the whole language -- the word he used was a derogatory adjective which Arien, whose father and brother were Dunedain, had heard before and knew the meaning of.

*grins* You're probably right -- someone really needs to speak up here, and Bartho sure is taking his time!

Illinois was great fun, but we're glad to be home, and in honor of that feeling: more is on the way! Hersheymania back atcha!

RSReviewed Chapter: 28 on 5/8/2006
"I'm only a Steward.."??? Curse that Denethor for making Faramir feel irrelevant!! Just like Bartho, I too laugh at those words. HAHAHA! And to Queen Mavranor? A bigger HAHAHAHAHAHAH!

What a lovely moment with Eldarion and Duurben. Not only does he share his parent's looks and agility.."with his elven mother's and Dunadan father's influence clear in the ease with which he balanced in that pose." (I love hearing about Aragorn's and Arwen's children and the traits that they share), he also has their compassion. That line says it all,"There were many things worth crying for, but not the least was the loss of his nephew and the relief of forgiveness." What a brutally honest and innocent conversation! The heart of a child has helped release such turmoil and grief in this strong, proud, soldier. What a beautiful image that last sentence made, "He felt an arm looped over his bowed shoulders and a hand patting him gently on the back." Fade and cut back to black.

Bartho's letter has got to be the most romantic letter ever written! I had this huge smile reading between the lines. Very sweet! As far as Estel smelling of orc?--he can smell like dried up fish and it wouldn't bother me! I mean....look at him!!! (Sorry)"...and for another he didn't have the right ears.." Very funny. No new trouble, no action, not much angst in this chapter, but very insightful. WE got a chance to peak into the depths of the characters. I love it!! I know you're just prepping the reader for the upcoming chapters. This is just a rest as I have a feeling I ain't seen nothing yet! And...hurry home Elessar!!!

Hope you had a grand time in Illinois!!

Author Reply: That is indeed one of the biggest bones we ever had to pick with Denethor! His horrible treatment of his youngest son! That, and the near ruin of Gondor. *grins* Nasty man! Laugh away, RS!

It's a constant amazement to us (as the oldest two of ten kids) how little kids will be simultaneously too blunt for words, and yet understand so much. It depends on the child, of course, but like you we enjoyed speculating on how Aragorn and Arwen's children would behave, and it seemed they couldn't help but be naturally gifted in that way.

Glad you enjoyed Bartho's letter! It was behaving very trickily until Bartho himself stepped in and took over -- at which point he rapped out some highly unusual dwarvish. There are advantages and hazards to such characters...

*laughs* Yes, it is hard to see why Elrond could possibly object! Of course, he was probably thinking 'mortalmortalmortalMORTALyoucrazygirl!' more than anything else.

Thank you so much for your wonderful review! It gave us abundant warm fuzzies, and made us want to post ASAP! *grins* Which we will now do!

Oh, and yes, thank you, we did indeed have a grand time in Illinois!

ImbecamielReviewed Chapter: 28 on 5/7/2006
Well, yet again you chose the perfect time for a delay in posting, as far as I’m concerned - time enough now for me to get back from vacation and review before the next chapter :-) Hope you have/had/whichever-the-case-may-be-when-you=see-this a wonderful time in Illinois!

“Beregond the Sleepless”… *giggles* And Bartho proves yet again that, during war at any rate, assuming the worst is often a very good idea. //few things in life had rational, harmless answers// LOL, well, not when you’re within a hundred miles of just about any canon LOTR character, at any rate…

Hey… I thought you said no one dies in this chapter! *raises eyebrow and looks pointedly at very-much-dead assassin* Hmm, still, I suppose since it *is* a Haradrim warrior, and not a hero, I can let it pass this time… *g*

//"No, in all honesty. I'm only a Steward, Bartho. Hardly the proudest and strongest of men." Faramir's tone was wry.
"You're only— oh, never mind." Bartho scowled blackly, muttering, "The lie's entrenched; why waste time?” // Poor Faramir! So used to thinking of himself as insignificant, so convinced that at most he’s only a very poor second-best… Only a Steward! Only the one man whose loss, next to Aragorn, would likely be most devastating to the free people of Middle Earth, especially at this moment! Only one of the most honorable, sweet, noble, kind… Only the man whose mere presence in Minas Tirith was enough to raise the spirits and bring back the courage of the soldiers under the oppression of the ringwraiths’ shadow! Only the man who was able to resist the call of the Ring, where his brother failed! Only a man who can remain friends with his brother, despite their father’s favoritism! Only a man who can balance a gentle and generous spirit with the determination and resolve of a soldier! Only a man who can win the admiration, trust, and loyalty of every soldier of Gondor - not to mention the love of Eowyn! Only a man whose injury is enough to keep every soldier in camp from sleeping, for worrying about him! Oh yes… *nods seriously* Hardly someone worth bothering over. I can see why he’d be surprised that Mavranor would even consider it worth her while to try taking him out. After all, it’s not like he’s even that great a leader, it’s not as if the army would have any trouble at finding an equally good replacement for him… *snorts* //"Here's to Lord Denethor: may he be writhing in humiliation over the worst misjudgment of his life. And here's to Queen Mavranor: likewise.”// Amen!

LOL! Oh, you really threw me for a loop for a second with Duurben “being stalked”. I was thinking, “What, *more* assassination attempts?!” Glad to hear it’s Eldarion’s way of cheering himself up, not yet another traitor - I don’t think he could have taken that just yet. Oh, what awful timing, though! Just for one split second he loses his concentration, and gets buried in grief and sorrow, and at that precise moment he gets tackled. Poor guy.

I just loved the conversation between Eldarion and Duurben! Oh, I couldn’t even tell you a favorite line - the whole thing’s just so… wonderful. Poor Duurben, hurting so much, and left alone by his closest friends, who might have normally been able to talk him out of blaming himself. And Eldarion, so sweet, trying to be brave despite all that’s happened, so young, but saying things and dealing with the situation for the most part in a way that's wise beyond his years… You can definitely see the influence of both his father and his mother :-) Such a great conversation, and I think in the end it comforted *both* of them. *gets warm fuzzies*

Yay, we get to see Arien again! Hehe, and I just love that little glimpse into the royal family’s life. //'Naneth, I drowned. But not really.'// Ha! Just like a little boy - and such a perfect, gentle way to break the news to her… *g* A wonderful, funny break, but so bittersweet, considering the circumstances!

Oh yes, Arwen’s found out about Arien and Bartho! Good, now we’ve got friends giving good counsel to *both* of them :-) Hehe, oh I love his letter to her! He‘s so sweet… He just deserves a happy ending with someone like her, after all this time! Oh… for shame, though, Bartho, such language - and to a lady! *attempts to hide silly grin under reproving look*

Lovely chapter, as always - and very much looking forward to more!

- Cami


P.S. YES you freaked me out with the attack on Faramir! I was surprised at it myself, when I suddenly realized in the middle of the fight that I knew perfectly well that he wasn’t going to die… so why on earth was I holding my breath?! LOL, definitely a sign of a good writer, when you can get that wrapped up in the action, and forget entirely that of *course* you do actually know how it‘s going to turn out.

P.P.S. Oh, it’s nearly *impossible* to find SP books at the library, isn’t it? They’ve only got a few at our library and, even worse, when they’re abridged, there’s nothing I can find in the book that tells you so! Heh, I found that out when I finally read the *full* version of Eldorado, and realized that not only had they cut out some wonderful parts, they’d taken out entire CHAPTERS - including the one where Percy actually gets captured! LOL, no wonder I always thought that part was a bit abrupt… :-P But at any rate, if you’d like to be able to read the full, unabridged versions of every SP book written, you can go to www.blakeneymanor.com. They’ve not only got all the SP books typed up online, they’ve also got some other very good ones by the Baroness. I’d definitely recommend “Beau Brocade” for one - reminds me a bit of Robin Hood, Zorro, and the SP all wrapped up in one :-)

P.P.P.S. If you’ve seen the Anthony Andrews SP, you’ve seen the best movie of it I’ve been able to find - and I’ve searched the internet and watched every one I could get my hands on. If you have not seen the A&E version, count yourself lucky! Do not - I repeat, do NOT, see that movie! Ack, that is the absolutely worst version of it possible. They’ve massacred plotlines, mashing together several different books and throwing in weird things haphazardly, they’ve turned wonderful, honorable characters into disgusting, crude, womanizing jerks, many of the changes they put in were just plain stupid and impractical, Percy had NO idea of the meaning of the word “disguise”, Percy is neither funny nor smart, their idea of a brilliant rescue is "let's just run in and shoot all the guards!", and they KILLED Tony for crying out loud! And what was Percy’s response to that? “He knew the risks.”, and that’s the end of the matter. Honestly, the movie gets so crude sometimes that it’s not even worth watching for a good laugh at how little they understand the books. The only single redeeming feature I could find was that I liked the actor they chose for Andrew. Other than that… Well, I’ve seen online lists of dozens of reasons why they were totally out of keeping with both the books and historical facts, and I definitely agree. One of the worst cases of ruining a book I’ve seen. Ahem, yes, end of rant. Just don’t see it :-P LOL, it’s the most modern version, so it scared me so badly when you said you were “a big fan“ of the more recent version… *wipes forehead in relief*

Author Reply: We had a very good time in Illinois! Thanks for asking. It was busy, and we returned from our vacation in need of a vacation (I’m sure you’re familiar with the phenomena), but for all that we had fun! I hope your trip was equally good!

*laughs* Yes, you’re right! Bartho’s paranoia is more than justified considering present company. The real wonder is how few other people within the story seem to catch on to that disastrous propensity!

*blinks, mildly taken aback* Erm… Yes, I guess I wasn’t counting the dead Southron when I said that. *grins* It doesn’t look like Nulla was much mourned, though.

*applauds* Amen indeed! You have summed it up excellently, I think. Funny how, though we are everlastingly frustrated by Faramir’s self-effacement, we love him for it as well. Talk about a paradox. The inability to think of himself as anything important is simultaneously what makes him such a good leader and such a constant concern -- men like that are difficult to preserve! They’re all too likely to step in front of a bus for the sake of someone else.

Wow, we really had you going? *bounces happily* Thank you! And yes, poor Duurben, this just ain’t his day… week… really, it’s not his month either. *rueful look* We are incredibly happy that you enjoyed Duurben and Eldarion’s scene!! We do love to give warm fuzzies. And you’ll be happy to hear that Duurben’s misery is beginning to plateau! From here, things start to look up… *grin* For him, at least.

Bartho’s letter was a harder one to write than we expected, so your praise is pleasant indeed! I realized (a little belatedly) that much of his personality is communicated through his actions rather than his words, and a letter is nothing *but* words! The first couple drafts were just too well-written, oddly enough, and just when I was getting *really* frustrated, Bartho took over. The sudden insertion of colorful dwarvish seemed a small price to pay for deliverance from character-block!

Thanks for the SP link! I shall have to check that out now that I’m home! I haven’t even checked the library yet, but I’m sure you’re right. Our library is a small one, and they have a tendency to sell old books to make way for the new. A travesty that results in such gaps as a Dorothy Sayers section containing only one poor collection of short stories! Meh.

Sorry to scare you! *laughs* Thank you so much for the warning! I wasn’t terribly likely to rent the A&E version, as I’m so fond of the Anthony Andrews one, but it’s good to know all the same. --“They’ve massacred plotlines, mashing together several different books and throwing in weird things haphazardly, they’ve turned wonderful, honorable characters into disgusting, crude, womanizing jerks, many of the changes they put in were just plain stupid and impractical, Percy had NO idea of the meaning of the word “disguise”, Percy is neither funny nor smart, their idea of a brilliant rescue is "let's just run in and shoot all the guards!", and they KILLED Tony for crying out loud! And what was Percy’s response to that? “He knew the risks.”, and that’s the end of the matter. Honestly, the movie gets so crude sometimes that it’s not even worth watching for a good laugh at how little they understand the books.”-- It was worth the warning just for the sake of that sentence! *applauds* Your rants are so fun. *grin*

Thank you for the wonderful review! More is on the way!

BeriathwenReviewed Chapter: 28 on 5/4/2006
Hope you have fun in Illinois! I recently finished Darkest Night. I loved it! I think it might be my favorite although I really liked Thorongil too!
I'm glad Faramir and Beregond and Erynbenn are ok! I'm a little worried about Aragorn and Legolas though. They haven't had very many close brushes with death yet. And that's a little unusual. Although, its possible that i have been reading too many stories lately and I need to reread the current one so I don't get storie lines mixed up. As I was reading Thorongil I found myself accidently thinking of Mavranor as an "old" woman a couple of times! I love the interaction of the characters in this chapter. Eldarion is so sweet! And Arien's letter from Bartho was cute! Definitely a fun chapter!

Author Reply: We had a lot of fun in Illinois, thank you!

We're so glad you liked Darkest Night! It's funny you should say it's your favorite, because it happens to have been our favorite as well! I'm not altogether sure why, but there it is.

*ponders* You're right! Aragorn and Legolas *haven't* brushed death very often thus far! Huh. Must find a way to fix that...

*laughs* That's funny you should experience such a mix-up, because it took us a while to get used to Mavranor looking decrepit when we started writing this story!

Thank you so much for the review; we're glad you enjoyed that chapter! More en route...

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