Queen Galadriel
· 10 October 2006
· Chapter 5: A Dangerous Game
A pine cone! *tries not to laugh* Oh, poor Boromir. I really do feel very sorry for him and his poor head, but...who ever would have thought to use a pine cone but sensible Sam! LOL!
I really love Frodo's method of attack. How clever! Merry did very well too, but I think the reluctance is strongest, at this point, in Pippin. Poor lad. But we all know what he'll achieve in the end.
This was delightful and the end was hilarious! LOL!
God bless,
Galadriel
Author's reply
I can just imagine Sam passing up a rock in favor of the pine cone, thinking there was no way a litte pine cone could do much damage. hehehe Boromir is never going to live this down. :P
Frodo is quite clever. He figured out the best place to hide, in more ways than one. It should be clear that he is capable of taking care of himself. Merry will have to work on keeping a better grip on his sword. And Pippin just doesn't have the confidence right now to take on someone so much bigger than him, even if it is just a game. He'll prove himself a hundred times over before the end, just as the others.
Thanks for reading!
Pearl Took
· 10 October 2006
· Chapter 3: Foot Notes
Those sneaky, clever wee imps!! Even got Elrond involved . . .
Too, too hilarious!!!
Thank you, GF, for a great laugh :-)
Author's reply
I rather think Elrond (certainly Gandalf) was just humoring the hobbits. Still, it is amusing to think of Elrond sitting barefoot in the grass while four hobbits are leaning over inspecting his feet for flaws!
I'm so glad this made you laugh! Thanks for reading!
Dreamflower
· 9 October 2006
· Chapter 5: A Dangerous Game
ROTFL!! This was wonderful! Yes, yes indeed--hobbits are small and silent and quick and have excellent aim. Boromir learned a goodly number of lessons about them this time, and perhaps more than he really wanted to, LOL!
I especially liked his encounter with Frodo, and his assumption Frodo would use the Ring--it would have been the strategic thing to do, wouldn't it?
And Sam? Well, as Boromir said, Sam did exactly as he was told! *grin*
Oh, I *am* enjoying these lessons!
Author's reply
Boromir learned quite a lot about hobbits today. Now let's just hope he can remember it all! If he passes out one more time, he might not! ;)
Using the Ring would have been the obvious thing, at least to Boromir. To Frodo, not so much. After what happened the last time he wore it, he won't be so eager to wear it again. In fact, the next time he does, IIRC, is to hide from Boromir - for real. *sigh*
Poor Sam! Can you just picture his reaction when his supposedly harmless little pine cone knocked down and then knocked out the Man of Gondor?!?! hehehe He kept the hysterics at bay as long as he could, but he was bound to crumble as soon as Boromir said his name.
I'm glad you're enjoying these lessons so much, DF!
Larner
· 9 October 2006
· Chapter 5: A Dangerous Game
Well, he set the conditions and can't truly complain when they were met. Bested by a creature little better than half his size, and with a proper hand at throwing stones. Excellent!
Author's reply
Boromir will have to be more clear on the rules next time. He assumed the hobbits would use the defense they're most comfortable with - with their swords! Not their more rustic defenses they use in the Shire. So the real lesson here is never assume you know what a hobbit is going to do. ;)
And here's the rub - he watched the hobbits play dodge ball with the elves. He *knew* they had good aim already! hehehe
Thanks for reading!
shirebound
· 9 October 2006
· Chapter 5: A Dangerous Game
VERY clever! You fooled me completely. :D These are such fun.
Author's reply
I didn't want to give away that it was Boromir the hobbits were worried about. So I threw in some Frodo-angst from Sam. I'm glad the deception worked!
Poor Boromir is going to rue the day he ever agreed to teach these hobbits to fight. They're dangerous enough on their own! :D
Pipkin Sweetgrass
· 4 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
Oh, my Lord, I loved this! That was so very like the Pippin in my imagination, especially the part where he hooked the hapless elf into getting honey smeared on his face! I just adore this series and hope you keep writing them forever.
Author's reply
Thank you Pipkin! Pippin could talk just about anyone into anything, and he didn't even require Frodo's help this time. The prank was a win-win for Merry and Pippin - if Lindir had succeeded, then the elf would have done something that neither of them could ever do. They would have been shouting "he did it!" instead. :D
I don't think I'll be able to write this forever. They *do* eventually have to leave Rivendell after all, but I do have quite a few more ideas left to go.
Thanks for reading! I'm so glad you are enjoying this!
Larner
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
Hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe! Oh, the image of poor Lindir being roped into such tricks, and on Gandalf, who's known several generations of Tooks and probably has had long experience with just these tricks....
And poor Elrond--and he thought one Hobbit entertaining!
Author's reply
If Lindir wanted to know more about mortal ways, he got a tasteful - literally. Merry and Pippin have probably both had that prank backfire on them and it would have been too much to pass up once Lindir showed a possibility of being talked into it. At least the other prank worked! Elrond's never had to deal with young hobbits before. It's clear now why he was always so keen on sending Merry and Pippin home!
I'm so glad you are enjoying this story! And that it gave you a good laugh. :D
Elemmírë
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
ROTFL!!!!
The hobbits are absolutely right! Rivendell never will be the same again!
I enjoyed this chapter just as much as the others. :D
Author's reply
That would be Gandalf and yes, he is right. Rivendell won't be settling down until the hobbits leave for their Quest. Notice that in LOTR, there's never any discussion of Merry and Pippin *staying* in Rivendell, only how soon and in what direction can they leave! I think we now know why. LOL :D
Larner
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 3: Foot Notes
And Frodo is the absolute best at getting results, the sly dog! Oh, this is the most hilarious chapter yet! This IS a keeper if there ever was one!
Kudos!
Author's reply
Frodo really could be a criminal mastermind if he wanted to be. lol We often forget that Merry learned everything he knows from Frodo. It's not wise to underestimate that Baggins. :D
Thank you so much for your review! I'm so happy you are enjoying this so much! :D
cookiefleck
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
Lots of fun stuff here and well-written! I think I liked the hand size discussion best, plus how Sam neatly side-stepped having to guess Boromir's age.
Author's reply
Thanks Cookie! The hand-size discussion was bound to come up again. Pippin's talk with his mother would only make him feel better for so long. He needs an objective party's reassurance and who better than Bilbo and a couple of elves. ;) Sam is a pro at side-stepping the whims and traps of his friends. His common hobbit sense never fails him.
Larner
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 2: Tea With Hobbits
Boromir and Gimli DID ask for it, after all! Hilarious! Thank you for this lovely chapter.
Author's reply
And Gimli was even *warned* against it! He has no excuses, but Boromir is rather flying blind here. You think this would be enough to make Boromir stop asking questions, but in that sense, he and Pippin share something in common - they just *have* to know. :D
Larner
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 1: An Unusual Introduction
What an introduction to Hobbit behavior! Love it. In much the same vein as Baylor's "The Care and Feeding of Hobbits," which was one of my introductions to fanfiction. Do keep it up!
Author's reply
Poor Boromir never suspected, when he saw the older hobbits at the Council, that he would soon have his world turned upside down by the younger ones. lol Granted, there could have been a better time to meet them than right before dinner! ;)
Baggins Babe
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
I don't know which bit made me laugh the most - curious Pippin, baffled Boromir, Merry's convictions about Dwarven rum cake, Gandalf outwitting an Elf *and* smothering him with honey! or Elves cleaning cream off the walls. Bwahahahahahaha!!!!!!! I nearly fell off my chair. Thank you so much for this tale, and I look forward to more.
Author's reply
Curious!Pippin is always a delight and he is learning just as much as Boromir, who might be getting to know the hobbits better but he still has a lot to learn. Merry might be holding a minor grudge against the dwarves, but don't think he'll pass up more rum cake if they ever make it again! He *will* make sure that Pippin is nowhere around to have any though. :) Gandalf knew the hobbits were up to *something*. After generations of Tooks, he knows the warning signs. You think someone would have given Elrond a head's up though. :P At least the whipped cream prank worked, even if the honey prank backfired! Lindir is one for one, not too shabby for a beginner. :D
harrowcat
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
OOOOOh I love the lesson in ages... and the pranks... and above all the title!
But I must go to bed, really I must! *Yawwwwwn*
Author's reply
This is a working title actually survived to see the finished story. All the other titles I've changed, but the pun works well for this one. Tweens and pranks go hand and hand and the elves aren't even immune from infectious hobbit energy. :D Hopefully, Boromir will be better able to guess hobbit ages after this. ~_^
vampfan30
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
I have to admit that I think you have these guys stewed down to a fine poison. I look forward to next additions! ^__^
Author's reply
Thanks Vamp! I was hesitant to write the elves and dwarves (one reason I decided Legolas should escort the scouts through Mirkwood) but I am getting a handle on them.
Grey Wonderer
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
Oh, I learned something this time! I didn't know how to figure the age of the Elves in comparison to humans and Hobbits. That was news to me. Very interesting and it makes them seem more like the others if you think of their ages in that fashion. I adored Boromir in this one. Every time I read a story with him in it I want to rewrite his death scene and have him pull through. LOL
Author's reply
Elves are more approachable somehow when you can think of them as 40 or 20 rather than 6000 or 3000. :) Still, when you think of the fact that they probably 'come of age' a quarter of the way through their first year, it's still rather mind boggling. Their 20 is *very* different from that of men and hobbits - but they can still be talked into pranks! LOL
It is hard writing these stories and knowing that Boromir is going to be dead in just a few months. If Tolkien was still alive, I could see some deranged fan pulling a 'Misery' on him and forcing him to let Boromir live. :D
Andrea
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
ROTFL!!!
Oh my, I can't remember a time when I laughed that hard!
Here are some examples:
“There’s something about a lad’s hand size that tells a lass how good of a husband he’ll be..."
“Seventeen?” said Frodo. His expression and tone were such that his thoughts on being considered a mere child could not be determined by any of them, except perhaps Bilbo.
“Seventy?” Boromir asked at length with measured voice. “I look seventy to you?”
“10,000,” he [Lindir] mumbled to himself, so softly only Erestor could hear. “No elf is that old. Arda isn't even that old. 10,000.”
And the pranks at the end were the best!
So, you are now as old as Pippin is in this story? Don't worry about it. When I turned 33 (that was last year) I thought, oh dear, now I'm considered an adult even in the eyes of hobbits ;-)
Still, I feel like a Tween. And only that matters :)
Happy belated birthday to you!
Author's reply
So much room for misjudgment of age among the different races! Good thing Gimli or Gloin weren't there or it might have come to fisticuffs - especially once Pip mentioned that rum cake again!
The hand size issue would have to come up again. I have a feeling that's going to be bothering Pippin until he goes into Fangorn and has his growth spurt. ;)
Thanks Andrea! I'm not worried about my age and I'm going to stay a tween as long as I can!
Queen Galadriel
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
*howls with laughter* Oh my goodness! That's great! I can't believe Lindir let himself be led into that! LOL! But I guess young people will be young people, whatever their race! LOL! And I wonder if Boromir will ever understand the concept of tween years? This was hilarious!
God bless,
Galadriel
Author's reply
I'm sure the elves have their own form of 'tween' hijinks, but I don't think they include targeting the Lord of Rivendell and the Grey Wizard! Lindir will later claim that he was only attempting to understand the mortals better. :)
Boromir understands tweens well enough. It's the same as the pre-teen years among his people. He just doesn't understand the *length* of time that hobbits get to goof off. Hobbits have many more years to be irresponsible and cause mischief though. One other reason why it's better to be a hobbit. :)
shirebound
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
“Pippin,” Merry interjected, his tone trying. He was sick of hearing about that blasted rum cake. If he never heard of rum cake again it would be far too soon, and he was beginning to dislike the dwarves for ever having made it. Whatever had begun the long strife between dwarves and elves all those ages ago, he was certain that rum cake had something to do with it.
“Twenty-five? So I’m older than you,” Pippin beamed at Lindir. “We can be tweens together. Since I’m older, I’ll have to show you the ropes of the business. There’s all sorts of things we can do. We can hang streamers in the dining hall, that will be delightful and very pretty. Or we could whipped cream in water skins and hide them under the cushions of Elrond’s seat so when he sits down the cream flies all over the place.
This story just continues to be an utter delight, GamgeeFest! I love every chapter.
Author's reply
Pippin is going overboard on the whole rum cake thing, isn't he? Good thing the dwarves only made it the one time, or Pippin could have been the first person ever to be addicted to rum cake! And if anyone can make playing pranks on Elrond and Gandalf sound appealing, it's Pip!
Thank you Shirebound! I'm so happy you are enjoying this!
Dreamflower
· 2 September 2006
· Chapter 4: Be Tween You and Me
*ROTFL!!*wipes eyes!*
GF! Have you been taking lessons in pranking from GW? I knew the prank would backfire on Lindir--but I loved that Gandalf was in on it, LOL!
Poor Boromir--such a terrible guesser of ages! *sheesh!* And I did love Erestor and Lindir's reactions to Pippin's barrage of questions.
But what I enjoyed most was Pippin's quiet study of Bilbo, trying to remember him from when he was little. That was so sweet and adorable! Just the perfect touch!
Author's reply
hehe It's fun to think of what these classic pranks would be like in ME times. Not very different from our own! I wouldn't say Gandalf was in on it. He's just long familiar with hobbits, and Tooks in particular. He knew to be on his guard and it helps that he sleeps with his eyes open! Hmm... maybe that's *why* he sleeps with his eyes open. :D But the hobbits were betting on Gandalf not being duped and they weren't disappointed. Either way, they would have gotten what they wanted!
I think Boromir deserves *some* credit for his guesses. At least he tried to guess by their behavior rather than their appearance only. Still, he should have just kept his mouth shut. It would have spared him Merry's cheeky remarks, if nothing else. :D I figured it was time for the elves to get a taste of inquisitive!Pippin. Boromir's had more than his share. ;)
I thought you would enjoy that little moment between Pippin and Bilbo. I don't mind fics that have Pippin automatically remember Bilbo as well as the others do, but having been through the experience of meeting adults - even relatives - that I haven't seen since I was little and not remembering them, I do think that Pippin would have the same experience. He was the equivalent of seven when Bilbo left and I think his memory would tend to be on the fuzzy side by the time he meets Bilbo again in Rivendell.
LOL! Oh, GF, this is priceless, just *priceless*! I love it, I love it, I love it! LOL! Oh my, you have no idea how I needed that laugh! Thank you! I can just see it-proud man and Dwarf, graceful Elf, and one of the Estari himself down in the grass comparing feet! LOL! I can just imagine a discussion between Frodo and Gandalf and Elrond later in the West about all that to-do, and perhaps a great Elven-lord or somebody would overhear and be just a little curious...LOL! Oh drat, I've had myriads of questions, and unfortunately I don't possess Pip's ability to remember them all (which is a good thing for the other party LOL) or even one of them at the moment. Hey, it's past midnight, what can I say? :)
I love how you add the touches of realism, like Boromir losing his train of thought-I would too, even writing it! And very cool that Sam is left-handed! I'm an unashamed lefty, myself, and reading LOTR I often wondered, "Goodness gracious! Are they all right-handed?" But then, Tolkien never *said* that none of them were left-handed. And to make things a bit on the strange side, in spite of my silly screen name, "Sam" has somehow become my nickname with some of my friends, and one of them read this and e-mailed me right off! :)
Wow, you really did some serious research here, didn't you? About the swordplay, I mean. May I ask where you got your information?
I absolutely cannot wait to see where this goes, and this is really one of the best Rivendell fics I've ever had the delight of reading!
God bless,
Galadriel
P.S. Sorry for being a chatterbox!
Author's reply
And who would the curious elf be? Elrond's wife? Galadriel? Maybe Frodo could even persuade one of the Valar to bare his or her feet! (Assuming they have a bodily form) I wouldn't put it past him to try anyway. ;)
I *did* lose my train of thought while writing that part of the story! Hence, the reason why Borry can't remember what he was just saying. ;) Thank goodness for Merry, always there in a pinch. I figured one of the hobbits should be left handed, so I chose Sam. :) What a delightful coincidence that you too are left-handed!
Most of the sword stuff comes from Tancred, but I did get some helpful pointers at the sites Dreamflower found for me that I, um, did not bookmark. I will try to remember to look those up again and post them at the beginning of the next chapter, whenever I get around to writing that one.
I'm so glad you're enjoying this so much!! More chapters will be forthcoming, as soon as my other fic is finished. That should give you plenty of time to remember all those questions and jot them down. ;)
Frodo Baggins
· 22 August 2006
· Chapter 2: Tea With Hobbits
Oh my goodness! This was *hysterical*!! I'm so glad that Frodo is a late sleeper - that makes two of us. :) My mom has to drag me out of bed on school mornings, and even then it takes me about an hour or so truly wake up. :) But this was such a wonderful tale. Hannon le! I love the cousins's conversation. It reminds me so much of my cousins and how we tease like that. Namarie!
God Bless,
Frodo Baggins
Author's reply
Thanks, FB! My Frodo has always been notorious for sleeping in late, but he's not ashamed of it one bit! I suppose it helps that he doesn't exactly have to rush off to do anything first thing in the morning. ;)
No one can tease you quite like your family can. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not! But at least the hobbits enjoy the teasing, for the most part. :)
I absolutely loved this! Very sweet and funny, and the characterizations were just perfect. Poor Boromir never knew what hit him! I can't wait for more...
Author's reply
Hello Pipkin! Thanks for stopping by and reading this wacky little story I have going here. Boromir will quickly learn that though the hobbits may look like children and act innocent, they are far from being either! He's already starting to get an inkling just how devious these four particular hobbits can be. :)
julchen11
· 5 August 2006
· Chapter 1: An Unusual Introduction
gloryunderhill led me here and I'm glad she did! What a lovely and funny story, I'm jumping to part 2 right now.
Great work my dear! *huggles*
Author's reply
Hello Julchen! I'm so delighted that you're enjoying this silly little fic of mine. I hope it proves educational. ;)
Thanks for the review!
Antane
· 16 July 2006
· Chapter 3: Foot Notes
Poor Boromir, but I do admire his patience. He is certainly learning a lot! And I love standing in the background as it were watching and listening to all this. Don't have any questions, except why can't I take all four of them home with me, or at least Frodo and Sam? :)
Namarie, God bless, Antane
Author's reply
If he wasn't patient before, he would have soon learned how to be! Thankfully, he has patience enough for four hobbits. Well, three hobbits and he's learning how to deal with Pippin. ;)
I'll be glad to lend Merry and Pippin to you when I'm not using them, but Frodo and Sam will have to stay with me. :D
Thank you for reading!