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| An Unexpected Guest by Dreamflower | 32 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/16/2005 |
| I'm glad Tom Bombadil proved useful. Eradan needed a hand at that point - and the Old Forest behaves itself in the presence of the substitute Ent. 'Just then, he looked up to see his guest, standing in the door of the room he was using, looking alert and dangerous.' Polite and dangerous, too! I like hobbits seeing Rangers at their finest - even if it is already in front of the converted. The sub-text of the dangers of banishment and thrusting the Shire's problems out on the rest of the world - and the suffering of the wives and families of said problems is interesting. Have you managed to come up with adaptions to the Shire's legal and judicial system? And Mellor and Eradan have permissions to return to the Shire? I hope they do! Good story. Author Reply: Yes, old Tom is useful in more ways than one, LOL! I had planned his intervention from the start, and only regret that I could not seem to get his appearance in the story to more than a cameo. Of course, Eradan at that point was not *quite* in the Old Forest yet, but he was ready to brave it for his partner's sake. Of course, Mellor would be ready to defend his host if needed. And I think that Rangers are all pretty much at their finest all the time anyway! This sub-text, or theme, is one I have been sneaking up on. For as long as they can recall, the Shire has put its worst malefactors out, on the old idea of "out of sight, out of mind"; but now they are part of the Two Kingdoms again, and as I noted the first time in "A New Reckoning", it's hardly fair to put troublemakers over the Border to continue making trouble elsewhere. And I am sure that given the choice, some hobbit wives have chosen to accompany their husbands into exile. Although it probably does not really occur all that often, and is confined to those who chronically break the law and do not seem to learn a lesson, or whose single offences are severe (eg, violence--though that I would guess is an even greater rarity, but one that the Banks brothers engaged in; and if their reckless dare to Pippin had resulted in Pippin's death, they would probably have been banished for causing a wrongful death, even though it would not have been deliberate murder). In my Shire, justice is meted out at the local level by the family heads. One might (like Hyacinth) be banished from the family without being banished from the Shire. It takes the Thain to banish from the Shire, or in cases where his impartiality might be in question, the Master and/or Mayor. Legal action is private, initiated by the offended party or victim, but carried out by the appropriate authority, whether Thain, Master or Mayor. (I have Saradoc, for example, threaten Otho with an action-at-law for Lotho's bullying of Merry) Most of the time punishment consists of reparations to the victims and then some sort of personal punishment appropriate to the situation meted out by the family head (for example, Chico Chubb punishes Gil Chubb's slander by going to the root of the problem, and forbidding any family members to buy him drink anymore). Since the family heads basically are acting as fathers to their clans they have a lot of leeway in what they can do. And since they are actng for the good of the family, a lot of offences that we might not consider a crime, they might. But it's clear now that they will have to make some changes. Well, as far as *Esmeralda* is concerned, they do, LOL! I am sure the permissions were originally issued just to cover the situation at hand, but if she wants to take that as a blanket permission, I don't suppose her husband and brother will gainsay her, and if they don't, I can't see Will Whitfoot doing it either, LOL! | |
| Baggins Babe | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/15/2005 |
| I'm glad nothing terrible happened to Eradan, and how well you did, fitting Tom into the tale. The idea of those banished hobbits and their families being killed gives one food for thought. How sad that they still wanted to look at the land they could no longer enter, and what a horrible death for them and their wives and children. I shall be interested to see how the problem of 'wrong-doing' hobbits is resolved - in a future tale perhaps. A very thought-provoking chapter and a lovely story. Thank you. Author Reply: I knew from the start that Tom would appear--I would have liked to actually include him, but I had a bit of trouble getting his voice down this time. I do intend to see the problem solved eventually. I've been creeping up on it slowly with various hints ever since "A New Reckoning". | |
| Kitty | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/15/2005 |
| Oh, this wasn’t so bad as I had feared. No attack on an already injured Mellor and no more problems for Eradan. I am glad of this. You have made it quite clear with this fic the Hobbits can’t simply banish their criminals from the Shire any longer. I think the Rangers have backed up Merry and Pippin quite clearly in this. Hopefully you will tell us later in another story how they solve this problem! Thank you for sharing! Author Reply: No, Mellor's fine, and Eradan is glad to have found him. I did not want to drag this out too long, as it is just a little sidebar to "Road to Edoras". I will be giving some thought to the solution. This is an area I have been sneaking up on ever since "A New Reckoning"; it is not a problem that will be quickly solved, but a solution will be found. | |
| Mysterious Jedi | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/15/2005 |
| Lovely story. The only good think about it being over is that you can focus more attention on "A New Reckoning." <>< Saved from sin through Christ, mj Author Reply: Thank you very much!! | |
| Pearl Took | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/15/2005 |
| Wonderful!! I'm so glad I'm reading this. I love your mention of little plates, cups and utensils; and your own finish to a Tom Bombadil rhyme :) Yes, I'm sure bannishment seemed a good answer to the hobbits of the Shire, and I'm sure they never would have thought of the possibity of such horrible results. Well done all round!! Author Reply: It has to be just as awkward on the Men in the Shire, as for hobbits in the rest of the world! Hobbits had been using banishment for a long time; they simply never thought of the consequences: they were basically shoving their problems off for others to deal with, and were going by the old saying "out of sight, out of mind". But of course, that would not be the end of it, would it? | |
| Elentariel | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/15/2005 |
| Please do continue this story, it's very good. Your plotlines are always so intricate and link together with such ease. Author Reply: Well, this particular story is at an end, but I am sure that sooner or later we will see more of Mellor and Eradan! | |
| Ariel | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/14/2005 |
| Very nice little tale - and thank you for bringing Dody out to play! One of these years I have to get him written into something else myself. Author Reply: I like Dody very much. I have one more story I want to use him in, that is so far no more than a very tiny baby bunny in my head, and it will use just a tiny bit of some of the things you put in his story. But I would very much love to see a story from *you*, with *your* Dody, talking to Frodo after the Quest, and possibly realizing what it has cost him, and realizing that what he learned as a small child in his illness was what gave him the determination to succeed on his mission. How did Dody feel about Frodo when he lost his parents, and when Frodo vanished from the Shire? I guess you can tell you created a wonderful OC when someone wants to know as much about them as they do a canon character! LOL! | |
| Tigger | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 6/14/2005 |
| Thank Goodness Erador found Tom and Tom led him to Mellor. You were right, there is *some* good in the Old Forest. I'd forgotten about good old Tom. (Been almost a year and a bit since I last read Fellowship, so..) Love Esme's good bye to Mellor. So hobbity and sweet. I'm guessing this isn't the end of the story and looking forward to more. Author Reply: Well, it *is* the end of *this* story, but of course there is Road to Edoras, and I am quite sure we have not seen the last of Mellor and Eradan. I figured Esme would be feeling a bit motherly towards her guest. | |
| Ariel | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/14/2005 |
| Ah! Found it here! I know you have a new chapter out, but I read off of SoA a lot more often than anywhere else and I am more likely to read it here than anywhere else. Thank you for this very engaging tale! I am finding it enjoyable reading (as I have all your works!) Author Reply: Yes, they all show up here eventually. Really, here and LJ are the only places I really post very much, and *everything* winds up on SoA, even if it's on LJ first. The very few other archives get it later. I hope you've liked my use of Cousin Dody! | |
| Tigger | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/14/2005 |
| And the plot thickens. Glad to see our Ranger's up and about and even though it's only flashes, at least he's remembering *something*. Had to laugh at the little ones wanting a story. Wish I could have seen the look on the faces of the twins and Halbarad when Aragorn came strolling into camp w/that bear on his shoulders. *snicker* Merry's right BTW. I've had bear and when it's prepared properly, it is delicious!! Looks like Eradan's about to get into trouble though. No good can come from The Old Forest after all. Looking forward to the next installment of this story. Author Reply: I figured he'd be fair game for stories once he was out of his room. I was remembering that scene in the film where Aragorn comes into the camp before Weathertop with the deer on his shoulders. I've never had bear myself, but a friend of mine swears it's delicious, and tastes a bit like pork. *No* good? We'll see. *grin* | |