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Good Neighbors by daw the minstrel	33 Review(s)
Eirinn Leigh	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 7/20/2016
I wonder what the archery master was thinking when he saw Legolas' empty quiver? This might be my favorite of the young legolas' stories so far. Thank you for writing it and sharing! Author Reply: The archery master must have wondered what was up! He'd surely know that Legolas wouldn't just fluff this assignment off. But I think he's a good teacher, so he knows not to pry too much, especially with both big brothers watching! Thanks for telling me you liked this story. It was fun to write. daw

endorearwen	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 8/14/2013
Once again, you've written an excellent story, Daw! I love the increasing complexity you are building into Legolas' world with each story! I love the caring gestures the three boys made when the Mannish child was ill after so many days without food. Legolas' generosity in everything he does is most endearing. My favourite lines come from Eilian: "Hiding a stray boy was such a Legolas thing to do. Their father must have had kittens when he heard about it." I have two favourite images from this story - the three brothers at the edge of the training field in the last chapter and Thranduil comforting Rodda in the cottage when they first meet. The sons of Elrond are always a bit of mystery, and not necessarily a pleasant one as this story shows. I like the growth of Eilian's character as he informs them of his opinion of their behaviour. I do believe you'll make a man of him yet! ;-) Well, on to the next one... Author Reply: Writing the sons of Elrond is tricky. At least, I found it so. There's a whole lot of fanon about them and not much canon. Although actually, that's true about Thranduil too. But I didn't want to show them as pranksters or as killing machines either. I wanted them with thousands of years of learning and dignity, but off kilter for very good reasons. I wanted both those things to come through at once, so that was hard. It's also tricky to show Thranduil's feelings about other races. At the end of The Hobbit, Tolkien says there was friendship between elves and men and dwarves in that part of ME, but I decided Thranduil had to work his way to get there. And I do believe that elves would never let a child suffer if they could help it. The other part of this story that I found hard to write was the magic. I'm a very practical person. Writing magic always makes me gibber. Thanks for the kind words, endorearwen. I think you're reading Visitors maybe? You'll get lots of Ithilden in that one. :-)

erunyauve	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 6/18/2006
Ooop! I hit return by accident there. You know, I think I love your stories for entirely narcissistic reasons - you agree with me on nearly everything. One of my WIPs has a scene in which Thranduil's reaction to the twins is very similar to the way you've pictured it. I also really liked the scene in which Mithrandir mentions that he wishes to spend time with Legolas. No doubt, he must have foreseen that Legolas had a great destiny. The explanation for the Enchanted River is wonderful. And I laughed out loud at Elrohir's observation that "Thranduil may find that fostering a Mannish boy is a demanding task." You point out the differences in the twins' understanding of men in comparison with the Woodland Elves - I especially liked the little detail about the Rangers having more skill as trackers than the men of Esgaroth. Author Reply: Erunyauve! I haven't seen you in an age! Bringing the twins into the Woodland Realm and trying to guess how everyone would react to one another was a lot of fun. I'd guess that Thranduil would react differently to the twins depending on where we were in the Third Age and what was happening. At this period in the twins' life though, they looked like trouble to me and it sound like to you too. I always hesitate to write magic because I'm kind of practical myself, which is probably why this is a little understated. It was fun though. Glad you enjoyed it.

Dot	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 10/3/2005
I was just doing some bedtime reading and the scene with Thranduil putting the enchantment on the river sent such a thrill through me. I read the whole story and had to come back again to this bit. I love it. There’s such a wonderful air of expectancy beforehand and the magic itself seems so natural and yet deep and powerful. The bond between Thranduil and his forest is beautiful and Thranduil himself seems to possess a strength and majesty in that moment that’s just breathtaking. I can’t really express it. It’s amazing. It’s magic. Sorry, but I had to tell you, even though I know I must have said it before. I won’t bother mentioning how much I love Ithilden here ;-) Anyway, it was a perfect last scene to read before heading bedwards…! Author Reply: I was thinking about this story just the other day. I like the little boy in it and the way Legolas reacts to him, knowing that he's afraid for instance. And I like Amdir the troublemaker in it. If the book I'm trying to sell right now never flies, I wonder if this story would make a better basis for an original fic. I'd have to think about it. Anyway, thanks for the kind words, Dot. I always hesitate before showing magic, so I'm glad this came across well.

Tapetum Lucidum	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 1/13/2005
Poor Rodda! That is a terrible story, he must feel so guilty for running away. Legolas has a huge heart for a young elf. The gift of clothing was easy enough but to give away the arrows that he worked hard to fletch and contained the special feathers from his brother, that was hard. Rodda picked the right friend to share his story with. Thranduils snorting about the guard with the merchant made me laugh out loud. The pair is probably in more danger in the throne room than in the forest. I am glad Eilian was so pleased about working with men. It was a new experience for him and it went spectacularly well. I think everyone is relieved that his time with the twins will leave him calmer and more mature, rather than re-awakening his rage and pain. Thranduil should be pleased. (Poor Cudry - I am looking forward to this!) Legolas' little chat with Mithrandir was cute. I could tell he was chafing at the interruption to his little plan. I believe he was quite transparent to Mithrandir. Ha! Ha! Ha! Poor Cudry! I knew he was doomed! I would not piss off Thranduil for all of the wine in his cellar! Ithiden's support was amusing. Your punishment certainly fit the crime. Legolas' timing could have been better but I am glad to see him come clean. Your Parent Thranduil is as wise as your King Thranduil. He handled both his own son and the scared human with a lot of skill. He must not have been surprised that the kid was hiding near Turgon. It was to be expected. I was glad Thranduil acknowledge his youngest's generous spirit. Favorite line "The kitchen had apparently decided that satisfying Legolas's appetite was a serious task." ROTFLOL! AHHH, the enchanted river - I hadn't thought of that... it was a pleasant surprise and an excellent explanation for the source of the spell. No wonder Gandalf warned those crazy dwarves about it ... The conversation in the garden was very well written. I was glad the twins had paid attention to Eilian's little speech. Having Rodda run into the guard and relieve everyone's concerns about punishment was a good way to resolve it. Sending him back to Esgaroth was the right thing to do. Very sweet ending, it was, indeed, Legolas' day to shine! Author Reply: I originally put the arrow fletching in this story just to give them all something to do while they talked to one another, but then the arrows grew into a plot element on their own, and the idea for the ending made me very happy. And I also enjoyed writing pissed-off Thranduil, stalking around the nasty bad man with Ithilden as his tag team mate. And then he goes and crouches next to the cot in the empty cottage and coaxes Rodda into taking his hand. Rodda doesn't know him as anything except Legolas's father, so it felt sort of like seeing Thranduil as a private person for a change. I've had in my notes for some time to write about how the Enchanted River got that way. This seemed like a good opportunity to describe some wood-elf magic. And yes, it was Legolas's day to shine. :-)

LKK	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/14/2004
What a wonderful story, daw! I read it last night, but my computer froze before I could leave you a review. When I came here this morning to review it, I found myself rereading half of it all over again. LOL There are so many things in here that I enjoyed. I loved the attention to detail you showed during the tracking trip. Anneal's wood elf nature really gave him a chance to shine. Too often, our quietest elfling is over-powered by his more rambunctious friends. The little tidbit about the female fox ... I didn't know that. I believe it because I know how you work hard to get the little details right. Is this the first time you've written about the twins? I think that it is. You did a wonderful job of mixing their grief turned to revenge. Their singlemindedness, almost a blindness, was clear. I'm glad that they may be coming to the end of the first stage of their grief. I liked your explanation for how the Enchanted River became enchanted. Were you the one who posed the question on the list? Your solution was inventive and plausible. And since canon doesn't provide a definite answer, it's a good solution to the problem. One thing that really came through for me is how the Legolas of the quest -- the elf who was so willing to help and become friends with members of other races -- came to be. The adult elf is an extension of the child. Thranduil's bemused wonderment about his youngest son being so willing to go so far for his friends. Elian's thought about how hiding a boy was "so Legolas". This child will definitely grow into Tolkien's elf. Like I said, a wonderful story. It's on my favorites list. :) Now, hurry up and finished your current story so that I can read that one too! ;) LKK Author Reply: Thank you, LKK. I was surprised about the tracking stuff too. I found a ton of stuff on line about various things you can learn from tracks and other things and it turned out you can tell male from female in some animals, depending on how they walk. Who knew??? I did love having Annael be so happy buzzing around the woodcraft teacher. He wasn't showing off. He was just like a duck taking a swim. I mentioned the twins briefly in "Question of Duty" but this was the first time I really tried to write about them and it was tricky because I wanted to communicate what they were usually like as well as what they were like at the moment. And I wanted to show them as 2500 year old sons of Elrond. It wasn't me who posed the question about the Enchanted River. It was Elliska and I was startled to see it because I had this magic scene planned already. I'm looking forward to seeing how she handles it too. One of the things about these pre-quest tales is that our knowledge of the characters' future is always there for us so everything that takes them there has an extra resonance, I think. I'm working on the next story, but between the end of the semester stuff and the holiday stuff and the EE of ROTK, I'm afraid I'm slower than usual.

dr_seuss_is_cool	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/8/2004
Hello Daw! I would like to apologize profusely. I'm sorry that i haven't reviewed since...well, a long time. I am just so sorry. I don't think that you'll probably even want to read another long apology from me so I'll go on to the short review that i was able to write quickly. I loved the part where Thranduil is with the water. To me it seemed very un-Thranduilish behavior but I loved it. I have to tell you that if I had to pick anyone in your stories that I love the most. It would be Eilian. I've fallen in love. I thoroughly enjoyed all the parts with Rodda. I loved how the twins were in this story. I've always wondered how you would portray them. Well, thank you so much! Again, I'm sorry for ignoring the leave review button for so long. Thank you and have a great day! Bye bye Author Reply: Hello, Dr. Seuss! How are you? I assume you're busy. It happens. Don't worry about it. I like writing magical Thranduil. Tolkien says that the wood-elves "magic was strong" and we know that the doors of Thranduil's cavern were sealed by magic. I think of his magic as coming from his connection to Arda, to his woods. So I thought enchanting the river would be right up his alley. And I will confess that I am very fond of Eilian myself. :-)

esamen	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/5/2004
His father and Mithrandir stood conferring in voices low enough that he could not quite catch what they were saying, but something about the atmosphere tingled with anticipation, as if everything around him waited for something to change. I really like these glimpses of the king's connection to his realm. I love that mysterious, organic, unknowable power. Nicely done . . . ******** “Who is this?” Elrohir asked, and Eilian remembered the twins’ presence. “Surely this must be the boy the Esgaroth soldiers were so worried about. Good evening, child. I am Elrohir, and this is my brother, Elladan.” Now THIS is the voice of the twins. Graceful, compassionate, perfectly understanding the company they are with. Old, yet ageless. Inspiring respect. Beautiful! ********* “Thranduil may find that fostering a Mannish boy is a demanding task,” Elrohir observed with a small smile. What a graceful nod towards Aragorn, even though he isn't born yet (I don't think so, anyway . . . I haven't checked my Appendix lately). Nice comment from the Elves' point of view. This sentence adds a whole new layer of depth to the story. Gorgeous. If I had to sum up this story in one word, that would be it: Gorgeous. Every scene! Thanks for writing! See you next time! Author Reply: Thranduil's magic is a little tricky to write, but I agree with you about its nature. And the trees got all excited when they knew what was going to happen. The twins are there underneath. All those years of being Elrond's sons aren't gone. They're just lost for a little while. And I thought they would be used to mannish children -- all those heirs of Isildur fostered in Imladris for years on end. Aragorn won't be born for several hundred years yet. Thank you, Esamen. You're making me feel good.

Jay of Lasgalen	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 12/3/2004
While I'm always sorry to see a story end, the conclusion is always satisfying. I liked this in so many ways. Thranduil had so many different roles - caring father, protective adult, mysterious Elvenking (I love it when he performs magic!) and powerful ruler. I liked the subtle hint to Rodda's guardian. The boy's plight has also penetrated the twins' self-absorption in their grief, and like Elrohir and Eilian, I was surprised to hear Elladan's words. They need to go home; to be with Elrond, Arwen and the rest of Imladris. Finally, Ithilden was right in what he said to Alfirin (and he didn't make a fool of himself!) - Legolas did shine. The three brothers walking together was lovely. Jay Author Reply: I hate having a story end! I don't know why I rush toward it so! Anyway, I'm glad you liked this, Jay. Thranduil really came through. I particularly liked writing about him with Rodda, who didn't know he was the king and just saw him as Legolas's ada. The twins do need to go home. They're so strong and noble underneath all that grief and rage. And they could see Rodda's need, so there's hope there, I think. I think Alfirin must have looked at Ithilden, who was looking at Legolas with love and pride, and known right then that the sometimes stiff troop commander was the right one for her. :-)

Firnsarnien	Reviewed Chapter: 10 on 11/30/2004
Ok, sniff, sniff I really wanted to comment more on this chappy, but what is forefront in my mind is Leggy's arrows! sob That was beautiful man, just beautiful! Leggy is so selfless and giving. sniffle I'm so glad his father didn't make mention of Leggy's gift to Rodda and I'm so glad Ithilden and Eilian went with Leggy to archery class to show their support of Leggy. His arrows would have beautiful for the class to see, but somehow, they looked even more beautiful in their quiver with Rodda! sob Beautiful... Ok, now that I've gotten that off my chest, I can't tell ya how please I was that Thranduil kept a calm head and didn't chew Leggy out. I'm glad things turned out all right for Rodda too. See, everything turns our right in the end, I don't know why I ever doubted you or worried. Hmmm, let's see, maybe I did cause of what happens to Turgon later on, right? ;( Ok, sniff I'm not going to dwell on that or I'll start crying again. sniff What a wonderful story! Loved it, every minute of it! So sad it's over though. Guess it's time for another, no? How 'bout one with the plot I've been dying for? No? Yes? Hmmmmm? grovel, grovel How 'bout giving this angst hound a fix, hmmmm? ;) LOL Well, whatever you write, I'm sure I'll be more than pleased! Just hurry though, k? ;) Author Reply: So you liked Legolas giving away the arrows? He is a sweetie, I have to admit. It seemed to me that once he had given them, he wouldn't take them back, even though he no longer feared that Rodda was going to try to cross the forest alone. His family is proud of him, I think. I still feel bad about Turgon. I wrote that story where he dies very early on. If I'd written more about him before I did it, I don't think I could have killed him. I don't know what I'll write about next. I'm just taking a little break here.

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