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| A Matter of Heart by daw the minstrel | 26 Review(s) |
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| Elena Tiriel | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| Oh, dear. I was going to be ever so thankful to you for gifting us with a lovely new chapter before Christmas, and to wish you happy holidays and joy for the next year. Especially after giving Ithilden and Alfirin time to reflect about their quarrel, and the opportunity to be reunited under ever-so-slightly risqué conditions, with her (and her nipples) firmly ensconced in his arms and bouncing up and down while riding his horse (a stallion, what else?)... *Grumble* But you left Legolas in danger! Bad author, very very bad! That not-so-distant sound of thunder is coming from your angry readers... - Barbara (Happy holidays and joy for the next year, anyway...) Author Reply: LOL. Ithilden was looking forward to the horse ride too, but as usual, he's going to have to look out for Legolas first. I love writing about the sex lives of elves under the very restricted conditions of LACE. It makes every little thing so exciting for them! LOL. Happy holidays to you too, Barbara. Thank you for the review. | |
| Jay of Lasgalen | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| Thanks, Daw - a cliffhanger to leave us with over Christmas! :( I'm not surprised that Legolas finally snapped - Galelas certainly deserved it - but trouble is sure to follow. It seems Ithilden is able to learn from his mistakes, as he treats Legolas with much more care this time, and he is better with Alfirin too. But the cliffie - everyone knows trees and lightning are a bad combination! Jay Author Reply: Legolas enjoyed punching Galelas's lights out but now all the adults are going to want to know what he was thinking, and there's never a good answer to that one. Ithlden is doing better. I think Alfirin is as good for him as Celuwen is for Eilian. | |
| Dot | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| OMG!! A cliffhanger?? Oh well, I should have suspected you’d have something up your sleeve… I was thrilled to see this but I’m afraid that I’ll have to write a quick review or else you’ll be waiting for a few days. Let’s see… I was so glad that Ithilden decided to try to smooth things over with Legolas. Although, I suppose he could hardly scold him in front of Thranduil and he does have other things on his mind... And at least Thranduil is wise enough to know that even if he were ever to forbid Legolas to see Turgon, now is really not the time because Turgon can offer Legolas uncomplicated friendship and support when he needs it most. I thought Annael’s reaction to the news that his two friends went fishing was rather interesting. He must be really beginning to wonder about Legolas. And imagine what it must be like for him to silently support Legolas and then find that he drifts off with Turgon. I actually can’t blame Galelas too much for thinking that Legolas is basically doing what he wants. I mean, it does actually look that way. And I wasn’t surprised when Legolas finally cracked. That’s been building for a while now and that line about not being able to depend on Legolas must have really stung. It’s just *such* a pity that it was the archery class, which was probably the one thing that brought him any peace these days now that he knows he can use his bow without any problems. On another note, Galelas probably won't get a very warm reception at home. I bet if Tinar was ever sent home, it must have been the masters' faults...;-) Isn’t it a little awkward all round for the masters to have to let Thranduil know when they’d be training with knives? If it had been anyone else but Legolas the parents probably wouldn’t have had that privilege. Anyway, I really liked the way he reacted to the note. There was no trace of anger at all, just genuine concern. It must be so frustrating for him, especially as there are times when Legolas does seem to be healing and then out of the blue he does something like this. I love that Thranduil’s first instinct was to go and speak to his son, even though he’s actually supposed to be working. It was rather fascinating then once he discovered that Legolas was missing to watch him struggle with parental worry and reason it out for himself. All this stuff about flowers and leaves and the colour dyes that they make – is all that true?? I learn so much from your stories! I had to laugh at Alfirin so smitten by Ithilden that she can’t stop thinking about kissing him. Her anger didn’t last long. I just loved too that she wasn’t just thinking about managing the palace household or how she’ll fit in, it’s how she’ll make it “warmer and more comfortable for Ithilden and his family.” She’s so in love. When Legolas finds time to collect his thoughts and work through in his mind what happened, he always seems to be able to see things a little more clearly. It just seems to be that his initial reactions to the people around him have become far more unpredictable then they used to be. Yeah, it must have hurt that Galelas thinks he’s being favoured but Galelas has often had tormented him about his position as king’s son. That’s nothing new. I don’t know, maybe Galelas actually did him a favour by finally allowing the resentment and frustration building in Legolas to be released. It SO can’t have looked good to Legolas to see Ithilden appear yet again. I thought Ithilden actually handled it fairly well this time, though. “Neither is Eilian, nor am I, but I think you will find that Adar worries about us too.” What?? Never!! At least Legolas can definitely see the truth in that. A lot of his problem is that he feels singled out now by his family but Thranduil certainly would treat his other sons similarly if they were suffering. “You have rain dripping from your nose, so I do not think you are in a position to talk.” Ooh, lovely!! So well done. And as simply as that, the fight is over. LOL at Ithilden eyeing her up and Legolas looking on in amusement. “The world in front of him seemed to tilt crazily, and then he realized that what was really moving was the tree near which Legolas and the horses stood.” My jaw dropped at that. Where did that come from??? Luckily there’ll be other distractions over the next couple of days but don’t keep us waiting *too* long! Sorry this isn’t much of a review – it’s almost 9pm and Christmas Mass is at 10 and I haven’t even started to get ready… Have a great Christmas and take a well-deserved break for a few days. Have a good one! :-) Author Reply: Your "quick" reviews are longer than most people's normal ones, Dot! I feel rather sorry for Annael, actually. He can see Legolas drifting into an alliance with Turgon just now. Not a good sign, probably. I guess in a three-way friendship there must inevitably be times like this. And Annael is growing up enough that he's sort of distancing himself from Turgon. He refuses to go on the spider hunt in "Prodigal Sons," for instance, while Legolas lets himself get talked into it. I feel sorry for Galelas. I think his parents probably gave him grief and he values his prowess in weapons classes. And really, how's he supposed to know that what he thinks is wrong? Of course, he could have kept his mouth shut anyway, on the grounds that it's none of his business, but it's hard to be wise about that kind of thing, even for adults. I looked up making dyes from flowers and found some recipes for drying and boiling various flowers or leaves to make dyes. So that part is true. But I got impatient trying to figure out which of the flowers named would be in bloom in a place like Mirkwood at this time of year, so I made up the names of the flowers. I'm not a gardener at all. I can't tell a weed from a flower. I have to ask my beta things like if a rose would be in bloom in August. I just don't know. Ithilden is doing better. I think Alfirin has helped him already. And now she and he are examining what rain-soaked clothes tell them, and Legolas is watching with interest! He's getting educated. :-) The falling tree came from my need to get these three alone in the forest for a while. We'll see what comes of it. Have a good Christmas, Dot. I'll celebrate at home tomorrow and then go to my son's house for two days, so the next chapter will be a while. | |
| Firnsarnien | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| Ai! The tree coming towards him? Eeek! Maybe we'll get even more wonderful Leggy angst! Heh, heh! Apparently, poor Leggy is not handling things as well as he thought he was. I think he really needs to talk about his feelings to someone. Perhaps Ithilden since Eilian is not home. Unless he talks about things, I don't think he's going to come to terms with what he did. It's eating him alive and he's going to snap just like he did today, but next time, it'll be even worse. I hope Ithilden can put aside his scolding older brother self and help Leggy the way he needs to be helped. Thranduil too, although he's been pretty understanding so far, more so than I would have expected him to be. So Alfirin is a little nipply huh? LOL I'm sure Ithilden didn't mind that one bit, no? LOLOLOLOLOL! Great chappy, can't wait for the next one as usual. :) And yes, I'll bet Mandos was quite eager to get rid of Turgon! LOL Author Reply: Legolas is talking to the healer (Alfirin's mother) but it would be a sign of progress if he could talk to his family, I think. He's showing some signs of progress. Until a week ago, for instance, he hadn't even been in an archery class, so I think he's getting better, but the progress is very gradual and he's going to have setbacks. Like punching Galelas's lights out. Alfirin is probably eyeing the rain-soaked Ithilden too. I'll bet his clothes are plastered to him too. ;-) | |
| Alison H | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| I was really looking forward to this chapter, Daw, and you didn't disappoint me.Good, Legolas finally laid into Galelas--about time, too! I really feel for Legolas in this story.His turmoil is worrying his family but it's really frustrating him because he thinks that he can handle it alone.He definitely needs help. I just loved the ending to this story where Itilden and Alfirin meet up again.Their obvious attraction to each other makes for some uncomfortable, but amusing, viewing from Legolas---and yay for the cliffy!!! I do love it when one of the brothers is in danger within sight of one of the others.I can't wait for your next update. Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year.Update soon! Author Reply: I always feel sorry for Galelas, but I did enjoy writing the fight scene. I don't think I've ever written a fist fight like that before. Legolas is in turmoil, true. But I also think he's inching his way toward being better. After all, it was only a week ago that he touched his bow for the first time and now he's comfortable with that. Ithilden is having very licentious thoughts about Alfirin (who is probably having them back), but they're both conscious that there's a nosy teenager watching them. Bad Legolas! Have a good holiday yourself, Alison. The high here today is +10 F so it's a bit chilly but the presents are all wrapped and good food is cooking. :-) | |
| meckinock | Reviewed Chapter: 5 on 12/24/2004 |
| Oh, dear! I hope that tree doesn't land on Legolas and break his leg or something! Wow, Nilmandra has Elrond on I really liked the scene with Alfirin scouting for plants. For some reason it seemed really pleasant and elfy. Personally, I think Galelas had the whooping coming, and I'm glad Legolas got his licks in. The little snot will be less likely to pick on Legolas in the future. Although it would look to an outsider that Legolas is getting preferential treatment, it's none of Galelas's business anyway. I don't know if it was Alfirin's scolding or Thranduil's, but Ithilden seems to be making a serious effort to deal with Legolas as a person. It was really sweet when he said that just because he and Eilian aren't elflings, either, doesn't mean Thranduil doesn't worry about them. This was a nice scene between the two brothers. Where have I seen a leaf with a complex vein system recently? That sounded somehow familiar.... Author Reply: YOu are bad, Meckinock! LOL I'm glad you liked the scene with Alfirin looking for plants. I was unsure about it because it's just her thoughts really. There's no dialogue or events or anything. But she does seem to be happy and at home in the woods, I guess. See, sap that I am, I felt sorry for Galelas, walking away by himself. His homecoming wouldn't have been too pleasant either. He did needle Legolas hard enough that he should have expected to get socked and I suppose he'll back off for a while so I guess that's good. Ithilden is arrogant but at least he has the sense to learn from Alfirin, and that's a good thing. Aren't those leaves pretty? | |