Grey Wonderer
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 48: Of Picnics and Party Games
Now I wasn't expecting that child to disappear! What a switch! Also I had to laugh when I read the word 'serviette' in this chapter. I did go back and change that in my story just the other day. ( Put a note on it at the beginning and let my napkins go British. ) It was a lovely picnic until the child disappeared. I wonder if she's roamed off or if the kidnappers have made a change in their plans.....
Author's reply
Ah, yes, I smiled when I wrote "serviette", myself. Wouldn't it be a grand joke if the person who told me about napkins and serviettes was joking?
But I have heard diapers called "nappies" so they could very well be "napkins".
Have just updated, so you can see what's happened, but sadly the chapter split itself in two so we have another cliffhanger.
And I've no time to type in more, or even do any reading and commenting tonight, and probably not tomorrow! Drat, and so many good stories have new updates...
Dreamflower
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 48: Of Picnics and Party Games
Talk about a surprise! Here I'm expecting some kind of attempt on Pip-lad or one of the other hobbit children, you go off to left field and the princess disappears! I'm thinking it's not those Men--they'd be too cowardly to tackle the King's daughter--unless she wandered off and encountered them...
Author's reply
We do likes our surprises, yes we does, Precious.
You were right in your guess. The men were not in the right (for them) place at the right time. But that won't keep them from scheming and hoping. Of course, they're not stupid enough to take the High King's daughter. Why, Elessar has a palantir he can use, perhaps, to find her! A hobbit, on the other hand...
Larner
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 11: Dawning Realisations
Still catching up, and loving it.
Larner
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 8: On the Wings of a Song
Excellently written and described.
Connie B.
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 48: Of Picnics and Party Games
Oh, dear, what a surprise. I didn't expect this. I hope she's safe. My guess is that she is.
I was also a little surprised that the men didn't try to take Pip-lad this time. I still think they are going to be shocked when they find out that he's not Pippin's son, just his namesake.
Please update soon.
Thanks.
Connie B.
Author's reply
Mmm, so many plot threads, and yet not much left to the story...
Thanks for the quick review!
Bodkin
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 47: Life and Death and Somewhere Between
‘I’ll hold him down while you examine him,’ Elladan said, ever helpful.
It's always good to have a helper around! Although I think Pippin's right - there isn't much that Aragorn can do for him at this point.
Poor Posey. Those wretched healers smile and appear calm, but she's picked up all the clues. Are they going to talk to her about their findings or is she just going to assume?
At least Elanor should recover! And without the help of healers.
Author's reply
The healer's dilemma. What do you say, and how much do you tell? If you tell a patient that they have a terminal disease and can be expected to live "so long", too often they fulfill the prophecy, and not because the prophecy was accurate but because it sets off something in their head.
It was a problem we ran into, getting hospice care. You have to have a doctor certify that a patient has six months to live. The doctor handling our loved one's case said, "But he could live another five years! Or die next week!" And so we were caught in the bind, unable to get respite or hospice aid or anything else, until it was obvious that the end was at hand.
I'm sure the healers will say something. Just not sure what.
Thanks for commenting.
Grey Wonderer
· 9 December 2004
· Chapter 47: Life and Death and Somewhere Between
Now this should be good. Holding Pippin down for an exam. That should strengthen his love of healers. LOL So sad when little Elenor realized what was meant by a cold carrying off the Thain. I am still wondering about Jack and company and the threat of kidnap and now if Strider will get the chance to find out what is troubling Pippin. So much more must be coming in this one. Also, I found myself wondering if Pip and Posey might just have a talk later about a 'short, merry, life.' Or maybe Hilly and Diamond?
Author's reply
Lots more coming, though not many chapters left in the draft. We'll see how they show up in revision.
Ooo, interesting idea, Pip and Posey or Hilly and Diamond... hadn't thought of that.
Thanks!
Larner
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 7: Into Darkness
I'm weeping on this one.
Dreamflower
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 47: Life and Death and Somewhere Between
Oh-ho Strider, you know Pippin all too well! Can the King possibly be as stubborn as the Thain? For that's what it will come down to...
Author's reply
Ooo, a "stubborn" contest! Sounds interesting. Thanks!
FantasyFan
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 47: Life and Death and Somewhere Between
Elladan comes in for a little teasing here, doesn't he? It's almost hobbity, and his final line sounds just like Merry to me. He's also the one who's figured out what the hobbits are thinking. Good thing Pippin's stubbornness is at least a match for his illness, for a long time.
So now there are two hobbits believing themselves to be living under a death sentence. We've seen Pippin's attitude all along: to be Merry while life lasts, and to do as much as he can while he can for those he will leave behind. He never shirks his duty, and his love for them all is fierce in its intensity. Posey's attitude seems a little more gentle, but no less loving and with a calm acceptance that is enviable. Not a trace of self-pity between them.
Certainly three is a grace given to these hobbits, that they can live in the somewhere between with this degree of serenity.
Author's reply
True, I hadn't thought of it that way: Pippin's stubbornness *is* a match for his illness, for a long time! Reminds me of what an oncology doctor said about a loved one: he could live another five years or more, or he could decide to give up the fight and die in days...
I think of Pippin's reaction when he believed he was dying under the troll, and Frodo's calmness "at the end of all things" (and Sam's). Little things like that are the basis for the hobbity serenity in the face of eternity, as I write it.
Thanks!
Connie B.
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 47: Life and Death and Somewhere Between
Now Ellie's sick. What an interesting little chapter. Ellie has a cold, Posey knows there's something serious wrong with her, but not what it is, and the King knows there is more to Pippin's situation than his old injuries.
I still don't know what's wrong with Posey. At first I thought it might be a tumor of some sort, now I'm not sure. Could it be a blood disorder? Things that make you go "hmm".
I wish Pippin would let Aragorn help him, but he's as stubborn as they come, and he's not going to "waste the king's time" on a lost cause. For that's what I think even he believes it is.
Thanks.
Connie B.
Author's reply
FantasyFan has suggested cervical cancer and I am leaning in that direction.
Yes, even Pippin believes his health is a lost cause. And it is... until the Ent draught.
Thanks!
Larner
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 5: Midnight Arrival
Cliffhanger! Gaaccckkkk!
Author's reply
O those cliffhangers! They get me every time... but at least they keep me writing, to get to the resolution...
Thanks!
Larner
· 8 December 2004
· Chapter 4: Truth and Consequences
I've just started on this one, and I find the image of the doomed boy is haunting me, also.
Very evocative.
Hai Took
· 7 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
Oh, dear that doesn't sound so good for Hilly and Posey. Maybe something can be done still though? I'm trying to remember if they ever had little ones in any of your other stories...but I can't recall any.
Oh my! Is the hermit in the boat the Pilgrim? I'm pretty sure it is, that is so neat the way you can tie so many of your stories together!
Looking forward to more, thank you!
Author's reply
I can't recall any Hilly and Posey having any little ones, either, but if anyone else recalls such, I certainly hope they'll let me know! That's the bother of having written so much; sometimes I lose track, or I lose my notes, or both!
You are very close in your guess; the hermit in the boat is not the Pilgrim, but Ulrich (or Reinadan). He's alone, now that his cousin has drowned, and is shadowed by the past: his part in tormenting the hobbits in the Lockholes. Since the birth of Elessar's son is some years in the future, Ulrich has a quite a few years of solitude ahead of him, yet.
Do you want to hear something funny? I actually went back to read the last chapter of "As the Gentle Rain" today, just to remind myself of his happy ending.
Read and commented on your Marigold's Challenge 11 piece, and wanted to let you know just in case you hadn't checked for comments today.
Thanks!
Anso the Hobbit
· 7 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
Oh, merrymaking indeed! What a leisurely time they`re all having. I loved all the conversations, ans expecially Aragorn and Merry`s. It`s not often we see them reall talk I think. I love how all Big and Little mingle together and have such a good time. sigh, I wish I could have been there :)
Author's reply
*hugs* Sounds peaceful, doesn't it, in a boat on a misty lake just before dawn? I can still hear the creak of the oars, smell the coffee being poured from the thermos, feel the chill of the air and remember the tendency for my eyes to close, still sleepy, as I wonder why I left my warm, soft bed in the first place... but it's all worth it!
Glad you stopped by and left a note.
Connie B.
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
What a sweet chapter, but the ending was very sad. What's wrong with Posey? I have a few ideas, but no real clear notion.
Was the hermit(sp) the crazy guy from the story you wrote a few months back? For some reason my mind will not call up the title.
Thanks.
Connie B.
Author's reply
What are your ideas about Posey? I must admit I'm still working that plot point out.
The hermit is Ulrich, the ruffian-turned-mayor from "As the Gentle Rain". He wasn't fit for company for some time after he was freed of Saruman's influence and realised what he had done while working at the Lockholes. It took him years to come to terms with it, and finally he decided, as a sort of penance, to live alone and lonely the rest of his years... and then he had the ill fortune to save the life of the King's son, and was thrust into society once more.
Thanks!
Grey Wonderer
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
Interesting about the hermit. I loved that he suspected that Merry was Strider's son. I also love how Merry kept Pippin's secret and yet still answered the question. Enjoyed Sam in the garden with his sons and his moment of remembering Frodo too. Sad at the end and I wonder if anything can be done for her. I got the impression that the elves didn't think so. Also thought it fitting in light of what he knows that Pippin is the one that makes the toast about a short, merry life. Can't wait for more. Sorry if theis is all bunched up and rambling, but sinus headache has attacked tonight. I am lucky to be typing.
Author's reply
My goodness, even with a sinus headache you picked up on Pippin toasting the short but merry life! I thought that might be too subtle! (OTOH, sometimes I tromp too heavily and don't notice.)
Hope your headache gets better soon. Those things are miserable! And thanks for taking the time to comment even tho you're under the weather.
Beruthiel
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
What exactly is wrong with Posey? I'm afraid my brain isn't working today, I can't figure it out. Poor Hilly.
If Elladan and Elrohir can tell Posey is going to die, how come they don't seem to notice Pippin is also in worse shape than he lets on?
Nice to see the Ulrich cameo.
Author's reply
Still thinking on Posey, haven't had time to research. Some sort of chronic illness (perhaps what they used to call a "wasting illness"), likely, partly brought on by the stress of her little one's death. Happens. You can continue in relative good health and activate something that was always there, as if it was lying in wait, when you undergo extreme stress. Not consumption, I think, though it's possible. With such an infectious disease, I'd hesitate to inflict it upon the Shire. MS? Anemia? Weak kidneys? Ovarian or uterine cysts? Endometriosis--again, a painful illness and so I'm not wanting to inflict that on her and Hilly.
Who said Elladan and Elrohir haven't noticed?
Thanks!
Dreamflower
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
Well, I see that poor Hilly will be losing his Posey--maybe then he goes off to sea? How sad...and of course he was so hopeful bringing her to them.*sigh*
Author's reply
*sighing along with you* Sometimes it's not fun when art imitates life.
As far as I can tell, Hilly will go off to Sea something like ten years from the "now" of this story. Of course, if I find mention of him later on the timeline I'll be happy to adjust that! But, curiously enough, he's not in any of the "later" stories set after the events of "At the End of His Rope", so far as I can tell. Tolly, yes, and Ferdi, and even Mardi, but no Hilly. Isn't that odd how that worked out?
As it is, hobbits are stubborn, and I think Posey will be around longer than even the sons of Elrond suspect, and will take joy in every moment granted her.
Thanks!
FantasyFan
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
There is a rhythm in this chapter of life and loss, of healing and hurts unhealed, of birth and of death. Merry is healing most obviously, and Posey will not get what she hopes for. The king is easing his cares, and the littlest Gamgees are growing in the ways of the world. The hermit will not heal for a long time, but I think that some of the age-long grief of the Elves is soothed by the brightness of hobbit spirits. Sometimes though, that natural rhythm is painful, and not even the Elves can solve all the hurts of the heart. Bad news is every healer's pain, and I feel as sorry for Elladan as I do for the hobbits, who have the comfort of knowing that even though the worst may part them, they will meet again, somewhere, sometime. A sad comfort.
Author's reply
Sad comfort, yes, for there is so much living to get through, sometimes, before the anticipated reunion! And then, from what I read in JRRT's works, the joyful reunion is not necessarily what he had in mind. But I must write such endings in the way that brings me comfort, or I couldn't write them!
Thanks for taking the time to comment. Somehow knowing that people are reading and thinking about what they are reading makes it easier to write the hard parts.
Bodkin
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
No, not Posey! That's cruelty to hobbits! And poor Hilly - what will become of him?
And Ulrich!? Is he going to rescue Merry and think he's saved Aragorn's son - or is he going to hang round the lake for a few more years yet?
Exciting!
Author's reply
I'm sorry. It was a struggle, hammering out exactly what would happen with that sub-plot. But Hilly will go to Sea, and I cannot see him leaving wife and child(ren) to do so. Originally according to the outline the healers were supposed to help Posey regain enough health to conceive again, but... looking at the possibilities, I think it's less hard for him to lose her, eventually, than to lose her and a child in childbirth, or to lose her and a child later on.
...at least he will not be losing her immediately. From what I can tell, his going to Sea is still perhaps ten years away. If I could find some mention of him in a story later than "Rope" (and even there, I'm not sure I mention him by name but rather by inference)... but I haven't, so I figure somewhere in the back of my head this was always the plan.
Makes me wonder if JRRT had stories for some of those hobbits in his genealogies. For one hobbit that went to Sea he has a death-date--did that hobbit return, then? For another, who "went on a journey and never returned", you have to wonder, what happened?
Ulrich was something of a cameo, just because I wanted to, and I knew he'd be there according to his back story in "Gentle Rain". He'll live as a hermit for some years before saving the King's son's life changes his life.
Arwen Baggins
· 6 December 2004
· Chapter 46: Making Merry
Uh-oh! I don't like the sound of this! What exactly do you have up your sleeve? You've got to post it soon.
Author's reply
Which part, exactly, don't you like the sound of? The last, I imagine. Or was it the fact that the hobbit children always have a guardsman guarding them, meaning that the Big Folk are not quite so trusting as the hobbits, and possibly for good reason?
More coming soon this week, I hope. Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Hai Took
· 30 November 2004
· Chapter 45: Something to Remember Him By
Wow! That flask certianly did have tale! All the way from when the Ring had been destroyed and it belonged to such a one as Elrond! That was amazing, and that no one knew that it was such a great treasure, not only the elixir but the mithril!
I'm glad that Arwen has something that was so close to her father to "remember him by". That made me nearly cry, Sam, Merry and Pippin's understanding. Very well done! I, personally, would like more details on the flask and it's history, maybe it is too obscure to get it's own tale but I can't help being curious about it.
Well looking forward to more, hope it is soon ;)
Author's reply
I wonder just how many covers that flask had, over the centuries, and who fashioned the latest, that grew old and battered by the time Jack got hold of it.
I did some speculating in the review below this one (the reply to Grey Wonderer, I think), as to some of the flask's adventures. It is interesting to contemplate all the people and travels and adventures it had! And the fact that it wasn't *quite* empty when it came to Jack, even after that long! (Perhaps it's a bit of a stretch, but I could see it being an heirloom, passed down for years, and never being opened.)
Thanks for taking the time to comment!
Grey Wonderer
· 29 November 2004
· Chapter 45: Something to Remember Him By
I am even more impressed with the medicine of the elves. Seems it has no experation date, or at least none that will matter. This was fabulous! I love Arwen's reaction at the end, Merry's entrance into the room, Pippin's badgering for the story, and the image of the flask being passed from hand to hand over the years. (That might be a story in itself? 'bunny') Waiting for more.
Author's reply
So glad you liked it! It boggles the mind to think of the flask passing from hand to hand over the centuries. Picked up by an Elf who meant to return the flask, who was perhaps slain by a not-yet-dead Orc, the Orc picked it up and cast it away because of the "Elf-stink", it fell into the open bag of a healer tending the wounded on the battlefield, he picked up the bag without noticing and marched all the way back to Minas Anor (I think, my 2nd age geography is a little shaky), unpacked his bag and found the flask, found the elixir within and remembered what it was for, resolved to send it to Imladris, a thief heard him talking about it in the surgery and stole it, etc.
Thanks for hitting the hightlights! I love hearing what stood out.
More will hopefully appear sometime next week, if the bronchitis doesn't lay me low. Think good thoughts!
Thanks.
Dreamflower
· 29 November 2004
· Chapter 45: Something to Remember Him By
Such a nice chapter. I loved the thoughtful arrangements Arwen made for the banquet, and the banter between the hobbits, something you do awfully well.
The explanation of the flask/healing draught was an excellent one, and not one that would have occurred to me.
And the moment at the end where they think of their loved ones across the Sundering Sea was so touching! Excellent, and looking forward to more (I haven't yet forgotten those other ruffians.)
Author's reply
When I read somewhere that mithril never tarnished, the grain of an idea began to grow in the back of my brain...
I wasn't sure how the elixir could keep its potency for an entire Age (but then I thought, perhaps it simply improved with age. It might have had truly miraculous power by the time Hilly took his sip, and the same for Ferdi!).
I'd be tempted to end the story on this high note, but the Muse hasn't forgotten those ruffians either.
Thanks!