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| A Matter of Honor by meckinock | 322 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| liz | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/10/2006 |
| No words. Again. These two stories are my absolute favorite of the LOTR fandom, and among the best I've read for any fandom. You have the uncanny ability to write descriptively, yet not all goopy and cheesily. Usually people try too hard at that and it ends up making me laugh... not really a good thing. But you can also write in-character dialogue like no one else... it's a double-dip in writing talent that is rare in these here parts. So with mechanics and style that are *that* good, you could write a story about what grows along the side of the greenway and I'd probably still love it. But Halbarad! And Gandalf! And Elrond! And My Husband.. uh, Aragorn! All of my favorite characters -- guys who usually don't end up in the same fanfic, let alone go on such adventures as these. Plus amazing OCs like Dudo. I can't thank you enough for taking the time to pound these out. Yeah, it's taken years, but completely worth every minute. I hope you continue to write LOTR. Oh, screw hope. I beg of you :) Author Reply: No words on my end, either, Liz! You give me too much credit, but I'm blushing (and glowing) to hear that you'd put these two stories at the top of your list. And My Husband.. uh, Aragorn! LOL. I really enjoyed putting all my favorite guys together, too. You do me great honor by saying it was worth your time and mine (There were times that I wondered.) Thank you so much for letting me know. I really appreciate it. Oh, screw hope. I beg of you :) Your making my head swell now! But thank you from the bottom of my heart. I would not want to let you down. I think I'll at least manage to spit out a one-shot from time to time. | |
| Linda Hoyland | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/10/2006 |
| A very moving ending to a great story.I always thought Sauraman was behind it all !Thanks for a great read.I hope you will write more LOTR stories. Author Reply: Yup. Saruman is such a tragic character - it's sad how he was consumed by his jealousy of Gandalf. I'm glad you enjoyed the story, Linda. I need a little break at the moment, but I'm sure I'll manage to post something now and again. | |
| The Karenator | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| The foppish floor flapper continued to flog the floor when Lily Leap-Frog leapt onto the foul floor flowered with filings. "Hey," she called. "Break the broom and bustle on over to your burrow. You got boarders bucking to buzz." The dinky dirt dabber sighed. "I got to tidy the trap, peg the pin, and dump the dust." He directed the dirt around her Dr. Scholl's and whipped it to the wind. Lilly clamped her club on a chubby cheek. "Don't keep this company on cool," she said. "I'll bump the bristles for you." She shooed him off the porch. "Traipse your tootsies toward your tumbledown." Dudo, the dodgy dust dumper, dotesy-doed down to the drab door of his domicile. When he got a load of the visitors' rides, he two-wheeled a retreat, but his flatulent familial folk, Fredagar, flagged him down. "Come in, Doodoo." "It's Dudo," the wee williker said waspishly. The mini mite of a midget recognized the Fool of a Took immediately, but he was more than shook to see Olorin, the science guy, had turn into Mr. Clean. The earring, in the tiny-trouser tyke's opinion, was just inviting the aim of amorous amoebas. The science guy motioned to the itsy-bitsy bumpkin. "Come give me a hug, you runty wreck of a whelp." Dudo felt like a doo-doo, but he did as the dumb dork desired. "I brought you something," the scintillating science shifter said. From his pasty pocket he produced a package. It was the same sheath, the same sawed-off Saturday Night Special the sickly shrimp slurper had slid between the ribs of a salivating wolf to save Strider's hide. "Ain't mine," the bonsaied barnacle brusher boasted. "It belongs to the PI." A sad look slapped the science slupper. "He ain't gonna need it in The Field of Dreams." "Well," the short sallow sprig said, "it you build it, they will come." The wizened wizard whizzed his head in a complete whirl. "He ain't coming back." Tears welled in the microscopic miniature mutt's eyes. "You mean the PI is pushing up pansies in pastoral pastures past the plowed provinces of the princely procurement?" "Yeah," the wily wizard said. "He got gonged in Gondor." The white wizard whapped his whaz with a withered finger. "But you gotta admit, the Lilliputians lit into the lightweights like lightning and licked them good." The pee-wee pantry punk nodded. "True. But tell me, ole winsome wizard, did the PI get to see Six Flags?" The white wizard, formerly know as the Gray Geezer, nodded. Tears brimmed on his lower lids. "He got to ride the Tilt-a-Whirl one last time." He patted the knee-high knave on the noggin'. "There was never no better ranger, no better PI, no better dandy of danger than the man known as Johnny Halbarad. He will be missed." Human reviewer: I can't say much because I'm crying too hard. I'll miss the adventures of Halbarad and Aragorn. This story has been worth the wait. You took a minor character and turned him into flesh and blood. I loved Halbarad's personality, his wit, and his devotion to Aragorn and his people. I loved Eirien, Hurin, Alagos, Brandol, and I especially loved the dice-throwing old ladies. The world of the Dúnedain came alive. Aragorn's struggles were real. He was real. Everything about the story was great. Just great. Thanks for hanging in there when things were tough and finishing it. Author Reply: Oh, lord, I had forgotten how well you do Dudo alliterations. same sawed-off Saturday Night Special the sickly shrimp slurper had slid between the ribs of a salivating wolf to save Strider's hide. *falls down and prostrates self in homage* I love these characters, too. It's amazing how that happens. This time around I'm not quite as sad about leaving them, because a) I am absolutely spent and b) there's a world of one-shots still to be written. But it's sad to say farewell, anyhow. Thank you for hanging in there when things were tough for both of us. I have Ray's Dog to thank for more than just a laugh - he introduced me to the sister I never had. | |
| Ellie | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| Great touch at the end there with the dagger. Nicely ended and nicely done. Author Reply: Thank you very much, Ellie. I liked the dagger as a recurring thread from the beginning of this epic and the end. I'm very glad you enjoyed it. | |
| Nilmandra | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| There is something very right about you stepping far away from events, to Dudo some years later, and tying up this final thread. Saruman was a big player in both stories, though he renamed mostly nameless, and you just buttoned all this up. On the other hand, I wanted an epilogue showing the characters you had drawn close to at the end. Back in the angle..... But maybe we can pull those out of you at a later time. :D I reread most of the story last night. It's fantastic, Meckinock. Author Reply: On the other hand, I wanted an epilogue showing the characters you had drawn close to at the end. Back in the angle..... Oh, shoot me some plot bunnies and I'll do one up as a one-shot. I'll be in withdrawal within a few weeks anyhow. I knew I had to do this epilogue since I bonded Dudo and Halbarad in "Hands." Right now I'm on a work stoppage. But I'll be looking for a Ranger fix soon. Thanks so much for all your support throughout this ordeal, Nilmandra. And thanks again for this wonderful site. It is the best. | |
| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| We're so used to news being flashed at us 24 hours a day that it's hard to imagine how little people knew of what happened afar in a culture like this. Poor Dudo. I can see how he'd see events as a betrayal. I particularly liked this line: It is no failure to die fulfilling the duty of one’s heart It was powerful and poetic. Author Reply: It was interesting to work out what the Shirefolk would know about events and when they would know it. Fatty would be more plugged in than most people, I think, but I didn't think Frodo & Co. would necessarily unload a lot of detail even on their friends. The war was won, there was a King again (and I think Dudo knew by now that it was Aragorn,) the bad guys were gone, and everyone wanted to get on with living. Thanks for all the support, Daw. | |
| SurgicalSteel | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| *sniffles* Properly heart-wrenching. I liked that it came back to Dudo in the end, and can't help but think of poor Eirien... Author Reply: *passes a kleenex* Thanks. I liked having an object wend its way from the beginning of the saga to the end. And I can't help but think of Eirien, either. | |
| perelleth | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| A fitting ending. It was good to see Dudo again, and to learn that he fought so bravely in defence of The Shire. It is wonderful to see the growth in this character through both stories, a good paralell to the change the Quest brought to Merry and Pippin. The chronology is a great idea! I was thinking about it as I read past chapter. I liked it that Gandalf made clear to them that Rolly and the rest ruffians were working for Saruman. THe brewing of that war was a long road, and the heavy watch over The Shire and the silent struggle between Saruman's spies and the Dunedain had begun long before that April morning when Frodo knew that he kept the One Ring. Very well tied up. I must say that I have enjoyed both tales greatly, Meckinock, thanks to your great skill in story-telling but also to the deep consideration you have clearly devoted to the deeper issues that are prsented here, and that is something that shows. Congratulations. Author Reply: When I was writing the scene where Dudo gives Halbarad the dagger back, I was choking on the irony - they both thought Dudo was going to this idyllic, peaceful place that would never know violence. I think Dudo would have instantly joined (if not organized) the resistance to the ruffians, but then when things went south he'd be looking for some backup. Which didn't come from the place he thought it would. It makes me very happy to know you enjoyed the story, Perelleth - you're an immensely insightful reader and writer, so I must have gotten something right! | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| I'm glad to see that the story rounds back to Dudo. Who is feeling really let down and resentful of what he sees as his friends' broken promises. It is such a good thing that Gandalf has come to see him and let him know just what happened. Even if I don't want to think of Halbarad lying dead beneath the soil of the Pelennor. (I suppose it's not so bad thinking of Aragorn perched on that silly throne. At least he has wed his heart's desire and stands some chance of building himself a home where he feels he really belongs. Although I don't really see it being that Citadel.) I can't help but think of Eirien in her draughty home in the Angle - with Halbarad's sword and his dirty shirt and a Dunedain life-span to mourn him and all the others she has lost. Let's get back to Dudo. Happier thoughts. I think he should go to Minas Tirith. Aragorn needs a few hobbits at his side - and this is another hobbit to whom he owes his life and consequently all the jollies that go with being king. And Dudo would, I think, want to bid farewell to Halbarad. I'm glad Gandalf brought the blade back to him. Halbarad would have wanted that. I hope you feel inspired to write more about these characters - because I shall miss them. I'm sure they have more stories to tell. Author Reply: I knew I had to do this scene since Dudo bonded with Halbarad in "Hands." I always hated how Aragorn got up at the Council of Elrond and made this impassioned speech about how the Dunedain protect the quiet lands and the homes of simple men at night, and then as we know, when the rubber finally met the road in Eriador, they were AWOL (for good reason, but AWOL nonetheless). Now, of course, the average hobbit had no clue the Rangers had been there in the first place, but Dudo did. I felt terrible for him, thinking how betrayed he must feel. He needed Gandalf, and he needed to know Halbarad didn't abandon him. I try not to think about Eirien and her shirt too much. Thank you for saying you'll miss them. I know I will. | |
| Ainu Laire | Reviewed Chapter: Epilogue 2 on 10/8/2006 |
| *sniffs* Aww... poor Dudo. Poor Hslbarad. I never did like how Tolkien killed him off. Though I suppose the stone city would have never really suited him. But still, it really sucks :/ You ARE going to still be writing, right? You'll have another story for us? Please? You are one of my favorite authors; I do hope you have another story for us!! Maybe not immediately, but sometime! Don't make me beg ;P But yea. Wow. Totally awesome story. ^^ Author Reply: Yeah. It sucks. I'm make you a deal - I'll write if you will. It just might be shorter stuff from now on... Thanks, Suvi. You're awesome, too. | |