Stories of Arda Home Page
About Us News Resources Login Become a member Help Search

In Empty Lands  by Larner 8 Review(s)
AndreaReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/15/2014
Great new chapter! I just love "Stern!Frodo mode", how Dreamflower calls it!

Boromir learned a lot here from and about Frodo and the other hobbits. In fact he sometimes even admires Frodo. And Frodo reminds him of his brother Faramir on many occasions.

Still, when Boromir found the lace for his favorite shirt breaking on him, he cast a suspicious glance at the oldest of the four Hobbits.

LOL!!! That broke the tension nicely.

Author Reply: I suspect that several people noted the similarities between Frodo and Faramir over the years, their shared gentleness, their shared competence and love of study, ability to use language, discernment, and so on.

And it was fun to imagine that just possibly Frodo might have one proper ding to aim at Boromir. Heh! Thanks so!

Garnet TookReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/13/2014
I finally got caught up reading this. Yay! Great story. Loved seeing the hobbits being their responsible and independant selves. What Boromir said was very thoughtless but it did give Frodo and the others the opportunity to demonstrate that they have skills that equal, or even surpass, the big people.

Thanks for updating and allowing me to see it on the front page so that I was drawn to it. Hope to see more of this in the near future.

Author Reply: I add to this as I can, but unfortunately the muse is not as dependable as it once was, I find. As for the Hobbits, I suspect that all too often the Big Folks along would start thinking small equals helpless and would need reminders such as this to remember that all four of the Hobbits were capable, each in his own right and manner.

And thank you so for commenting!

AntaneReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/13/2014
Nice to see another chapter of this! And Boromir has learned his lesson well about not ticking Frodo off. :)

Namarie, God bless, Antane :)

Author Reply: It was nice to find myself adding to this story again at last. Thank you so!

DreamflowerReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/12/2014
Oh what fun! Stern!Frodo on his dignity and competent hobbits are two of my favorite fanons!

Poor Boromir! A few thoughtless words managed to offend. And yet the extra efforts put forth because of Frodo's wish to show just how useful hobbits can be made things much more pleasant for the whole Fellowship.

I'm so glad they had a couple of pleasant days like this before the difficult ones ahead.

Author Reply: I suspect that Frodo had his share of stern!Frodo days along the way. And I'm glad this didn't lead to a break in communications between him and Boromir.

Hobbits have been competently managing the Shire now for over 1400 years, after all--they should never be discounted, no matter how silly they might appear to the Big Folk!

Sweetpea DeepdelverReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/12/2014
I'm glad to see that you've continued this story again! It's very good.

Author Reply: I wish it didn't seem to take so long between chapters, but, yes, this story is ongoing. Thank you so!

harrowcatReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/12/2014
This was well worth the wait Larner. I see that you are being influenced in your prayers by another author on this site! Cross fertilisation is great. Poor Boromir, chastised by everyone both verbally and by example.

Author Reply: We are always inspiring one another, which is why I, too, on occasion sport the Badge of the Evil Inspiration. Heh!

Yes, Boromir has managed to catch it from about everybody this time. But at least they have had some pleasure to help make up for three days full of misery.

TeresaReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/11/2014
Tsk, tsk........ Boromir put his foot into that time! Sighs. I'm not surprised that Frodo felt the best way to deal with that remark was by taking care of the clothing and other things. Between their work and the later situation with the bog Boromir did get a better idea of their personalities and skills. His talk with Frodo later also helped him to understand the hobbits better. And it is hard for a person to maintain their balance when they're uncomfortable! I'm glad that Boromir did make his peace with Frodo, and realized the similarities he shared with Faramir. But then Boromir did have a good heart, and if he had dreamt that his thoughtless remark might be overheard he would have either not said it or amended it in some way. Many thanks for posting this, and showing how the group settled during the journey. Chuckle, a very nice mix between showing hard work and a bit of mischievous payback via the laces! :)

Author Reply: Boromir is the one with the least previous exposure to Hobbits, and is the most likely to make such gaffes as this, after all. I'm certain that of all of the Hobbits since Gerontius, Frodo Baggins was best able to demonstrate forethought and competence and to draw those qualities out of others as well.

And, as you said, Boromir did have a good heart.

As for the broken lace, well, it MIGHT have been merely an accident--or not. Heh!

shireboundReviewed Chapter: 28 on 6/11/2014
What a wonderful chapter! I'm always appreciative of hobbits earning and getting the respect they deserve. I enjoyed every bit of this, especially the thoughtful details you include such as:

the houseplace in which they were camped had been swept clean of twigs, leaves, pebbles, and dirt, the sweepings contained in a corner from which they could be removed easily to lay over the area before they left to hide easy recognition that someone had camped here.

Author Reply: I would think that this would be something they'd practice from the start--doing their best to make it hard to tell from a simple look that someone had been camping in a specific site. And the Hobbits ought not to have needed to earn acceptance and respect, but I suspect they repeatedly had to do so anyway. Thank you so much!

Return to Chapter List