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The Acceptable Sacrifice by Larner	14 Review(s)
Armariel	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 1/14/2006
ohhh, at last I can escape them...they're demons, DEMONS, I tell you...but I've figured out how to hide from them for a time at least, heheh! Yes, sometimes I can whip the stuffings out of them, but other times they can soundly return the favor, which is how it should be; it would be boring if they were too easy to beat, what? But then my musical muse has had me by the hair of my head as well, thanks to the new toy Santa brought me--a MIDI keyboard, and I've been on something of a composing frenzy. Written 4 complete pieces so far, and the beginnings of 2 more, and there's yet another that needs completion...ah well! There's no hiding from HER! But maybe I'll catch up on my reading sooner or later! Even sneak in a little writing if possible....... So, A & A had--ahem--a nice, er, prelude to their wedding night, hmm? I should think so! stifles naughty thoughts You make it fatally easy to empathize with Frodo, however. Glad that his hand has been mostly healed. Wonderfully evocative writing, as always. ~~~{~@ Author Reply: Well, I do think they deserved it, don't you? After all--FORTY years! I ask you--is that right to put anyone through? And so glad you feel I make it easy to empathise with Frodo.... As for my Christmas--my niece found me the Kings of Gondor figure set, which sits now on one of the bookcases. The one of Aragorn is fine, that of Theoden excellent, and the one of Isildur sets me giggling, for it's plain awful! And I got the Yulia Townsend "Into the West" CD. They had to order it from Australia, but it got there on time! Heh! It's loaded on the laptop now. Love her interpretation of "Into the West," and her "Scarborough Fair is gorgeous, too.

Baggins Babe	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/26/2005
Once again the amount of beautiful detail in your stories makes me feel as though I'm there with them, Larner. Aragorn's vision of his two long-lost brothers was perfect and moving - now he knows even more clearly what he must lose. Good for Aragorn and Arwen to sneak off for a while - they deserve it! I liked hearing that Pippin was keeping everyone away, to allow the newlyweds some privacy. Hooray for Pippin! It was touching to see Frodo dance at last, but very bittersweet because he will never do this again. He must feel as though he has lost even more of himself. But perhaps he is beginning to realise how others feel about him, and he is surrounded by love. Seasonal greetings, and thanks you for your wonderful stories. Author Reply: The imaginary brothers with a focus in Middle Earth right now, and how he has already found himself honoring them and now doing so more strongly! The last dance, perhaps, of Frodo Baggins in Middle Earth, knowing how much he has lost already. He appreciates how much he is loved, but still, I fear, feels undeserving of much of that love. And the glory of the Solstice and all of the many celebrations of that event from all civilizations and traditions, particularly from me for Christmas and Chanukah, to you and all; and may 2006 treat us all better than has 2005.

Antane	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/25/2005
Oh, the joy to see him dancing and happy again! And to see the Light in him and Sam. But then too soon, to realize that joy is so fleeting. This isn't going to be pleasant to watch this slow decline in one so dear. I'm going to celebrate each moment of joy though. Namarie, God bless, Antane :) Author Reply: Yes, one last time has he danced and known the release of that expression. At least he still has his writing and the relative secrecy of his artistry to use, and it will be enough, I hope, to see him through the coming two years plus. And hannon le, Antane.

grumpy	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/24/2005
What a wonderful wedding and party afterwards. Glad that Frodo got to dance to bad that he most likely will not be able to do so again. I like the gift Frodi brought. Ment to tell you awhile back that, I loved your discription of the glasssman and his shop. There are the twins calling Aragorn " little" and then Galadriel calling the twins elflings. What is age? Author Reply: Glad that you liked it, Grumpy! And as for age or size--it's all relative, anyway, right? Heh! Have a lovely holiday!

Andrea	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/24/2005
Once again I find that everything I wanted to say has been said already, by Dreamflower. There must be some sort of connection :) I loved it that Frodo performed the Husbandmen’s Dance. It made him happy as long as the dance lasted. But the feeling of exhaustion afterwards and the realization, that he would never be able to dance like this again, must have been heart-breaking. No wonder, that the dream of Sea Longing occurs that night. He knows that he has little time left, I think. Yet, he does not know what will be offered him. I'm looking forward to reading the plot bunny story! Merry Christmas to you and your family! Author Reply: Dreamflower seems to do that at times--to say well what we all would say. And Frodo starts to feel halfway normal, only to be hit with the realization he is not what he was. As for what will be offered him--he doesn't know as yet, but even then must think on it. And the plot bunny story is posted. Hope you enjoy it. A joyful Christmas, a blessed Chanukah, a bright Yule, and a renewing Solstice celebration.

Radbooks	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/22/2005
Big sigh here. So very nice and so very well done. I'm wondering how much stuff Arwen actually got unpacked though! :) I also liked the whole scene between Sam, Frodo, Elladan, and Galadriel about how young or small each of them saw the other... it's all in your perspective. The scene when Aragorn and Arwen finally emerged was... priceless I guess (not sure how else to say it!) Merry is right of course, but you don't say that even if everyone is thinking it. :) But I loved the fact that the hobbits bowed, we all sometimes forget that they are the hobbits king and queen too. The Shire is so distant and it doesn't really seem part of the realm at times and though we 'know' it is, it's good to be reminded of it at times. Then when Aragorn saw Elrond again and expressed his joy over the day and Elrond received him with a kiss and then saw Arwen's happiness and was glad for her in spite of his loss was moving. Then ending it with Elrond and Galadriel being able to give Frodo some sort of... well, complete healing for his finger was nice after the sorrow that he experienced with finding out that he won't be able to dance like he has in the past... that those things are gone for him. Very nicely done! Author Reply: Thanks so very much, for this was one of the chapters that took a lot to write. Aragorn and Arwen DO deserve to start on the physical aspects of their marriage as soon as possible, I think. That they've been kept from this for forty years is pretty extreme, in my view. And that the Hobbits got to greet the King and Queen after the consummation of their marriage first I felt THEY deserved, even if Merry should have kept his mouth shut. And Frodo would want them to feel the respect the four of them hold for their beloved King and his bride. It would ease Elrond, I think, to realize that his daughter is truly happy, and that his beloved foster son is equally so. Wanted to see to it that was addresed. And at least there is one good thing for Frodo to carry away from his own experience of the marriage, for the memory of dancing will now be dual in nature, glad he could do it and grieving he can't do what he once did; but at least the hand will no longer throb for him. As for how much got unpacked--at least the outfits for the wedding feast! Heh!

Dreamflower	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/22/2005
I have been trying to read and review this chapter all day, and have had one interruption after another. I finally had to start back at the beginning when I finally found myself alone for a while, so that I could recapture the wonderful mood you have created. The mood in the first half of the chapter was so lovely and joyous: the images of Light; the fun, feasting and frolics of the wedding reception (I particularly liked the game of hiding treats for the children in a haystack--very clever!); the observations of Lord Rustrovid--a very nice cameo; the gift from Frodo; and Frodo's dancing. But of course, after he finished, the mood changes once more, and I love how all are united in trying to ease him afterward, the party and the other guests nearly forgotten in their concern for the beloved Ringbearer. I find it interesting that you have attributed sea-longing to Frodo, caused by his reliance on lembas in the Black Land. That's a very interesting interpretation. I, too, have given Frodo the sea-longing, but I had it resulting from Arwen's gem, which eased his nightmarish memories by reminding him that he had a place he could go to be healed of them. I love it when different people come to similar conclusions from completely different causes! And I find your idea very interesting, that lembas would have this effect on mortals--you indicate that it even does so for Aragorn and Gimli. So this makes me wonder about Merry and Pippin, who also had to rely on it for a little while... And, perhaps because of the interruptions, I did not quite follow the bit at the end: were Galadriel and Elrond using the fading power of their Rings to heal Frodo's finger? That was what it seemed like to me, but I was not sure. Author Reply: Hiding things in straw or hay has been done for a very long time, and is the normal way in which Easter Egg hunts for blind children are carried out, for everyone is pretty much on an even playing floor when everyone's searching through the straw, and it limits the amount of ground the kids have to search to a nice, manageable amount. Glad you liked the cameo of Rustovrid--he gets his audience, which is very different from that the Umbarians got. Elves had some inherent powers of their own according to Tolkien, which would have been useful in this, but what I indicated worked at the end was a combination massage technique and physical manipulation--a little chiropractic move to relieve a pinched nerve and perhaps a bit of hypnotic technique and the pain is almost forgotten. The idea of the Lembas leading to sea longing was described in the quote at the top of the site the other day, for they did two, one in which they described WHY lembas wasn't ordinarily shared with mortals and one about how the grain involved was grown, tended, and harvested by hand by Elven maidens dedicated to Yavanna and then made into the lembas wafers. As for the sea longing for Merry and Pippin--you sparked a plot bunny which I'll post on Christmas Day. Heh!

French Pony	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/22/2005
Some people do get overwhelmed at weddings, but what a glow at this one. Great party afterwards! And Frodo was able to dance a little at it. That makes me so happy for him. I loved the thought of all the Hobbits singing and playing instruments, and Thranduil finally getting to chat Gimli up. And having both Elrond and Galadriel available to help Frodo's hand, that was some sorely needed relief. I like the sense that things are slowly getting better, though they will never again be quite as they were. Author Reply: Yes, this wedding was WELL attended, and by some who weren't there physically, perhaps. The Husbandmen's Dance has appeared in my story "The Ties of Family," and Frodo's dancing of it is an important part of the story. But Frodo is now disheartened because he knows dancing isn't just an expression of joy any more, but an exercise for which he will pay in exhaustion. I, too, like the idea that Thranduil got to meet Gimli first in neutral territory and came to appreciate him for himself as a result. I know LOTR doesn't say he came, but neither does it say he didn't. So, I decided to include him, as he was undoubtedly familiar with both bride and groom, and as both were seen as Elrond's children. As the hand didn't appear to bother Frodo in the Shire, I wanted to see how the throbbing might have been dealt with, and this is what came out--a little bit of massage, some chiropractic manipulation and a bit of perhaps Elrond's own personal power or perhaps even a little hypnotic effect. As long as from now on Frodo doesn't have his hand ache all the time. It, at least, wasn't caused by magical means and ought to eventually heal.

shirebound	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/22/2005
I think this chapter is full of some of your most beautiful and thoughtful passages, Larner. So much grace and love and Light... Frodo and Sam remained, remained as they’d been born, two Hobbits, one of extraordinary beauty and determination, and one of extraordinary sense and responsibility he drew her to him with the fervency of one who knows that the current joy must be savored fully while it is yet possible. The White Tree rejoiced to hear about it clear voices singing Elven hymns, thrilling as it felt echoes from its ancestor so far away. And it offered what comfort it could to the small figure resting under it, letting the light of the stars fall on Frodo, Frodo’s own Light shining in response. How lovely that so many cherish Frodo, and are doing (and will do) all they can to ease him and show him honor. Author Reply: Thank you for indicating particularly what you appreciated so much. And I think all would want to do all they could for Frodo, for even if the Elves now are leaving Middle Earth, at least they know they aren't just abandoning it to Sauron and his folk. They can leave with dignity and know that because of Frodo and Sam and Smeagol's sacrifice the great power for evil has been overthrown, and due to Estel the world will do well at least for the next hundred years or so.

Kitty	Reviewed Chapter: 52 on 12/22/2005
Another wonderful chapter, Larner! The idea of these in Valinor watching through the eyes of Gandalf was so beautiful! And to see the light of being so clearly even in the hobbits, Aragorn seeing them for a moment as tall men - that was so nice! Loved the question of "small" or not! Of course it is very funny for the hobbits to hear someone call Aragorn "small", as he is twice their size. And Galadriel will insist the twins are still elflings. Well, as soon as she sails West, there will surely be some other elves who think of Galadriel as elfling :D In this chapter was a lot of gentle teasing and jests - very enjoyable! And Aragorn's question about the man of Dunland giggle Oh yes, I remember him from the other fic! And a nice glimpse of Rustovrid. Truly, I love all these connections to other fics! Thranduil is getting to know Gimli? Now, that would be interesting! I'd love to see a bit more of this! I'm glad Frodo was able to stand through this dance, even if he was exhausted in the end and disappointed as well. It would've been much worse if he had not been able to finish it. And his dream ... it's more as another vision, isn't it? It was good Elrond and Galadriel were able to ease him at least this much. I fear there are too many parts of this fic I loved to mention them all, otherwise this review will be much too long! You mentioned in a response to a review this will likely be the last chapter before Christmas. If that is so, then I wish you a very Happy Christmas and some wonderful days! And thank you so very much for all the great stories, for the frequent updates and so many hours of joy I had while reading them! hugs Author Reply: For a moment Aragorn sees a glimpse of what the two of them would be like had they been born to the Dunedain instead of the Shire, has a glimpse of his desired brothers. I like doing references to my other stories, as you know, and had to at least mention the guy from Dunland even if I didn't describe it in detail here. As for size and age--such things are always relative, of course. And it did get Sam and Frodo both laughing at the absurdity of the notion compared to themselves, of course. And you are write--we never outgrow being our parents' little children, no matter how old we get, or so it seems. Yes, the dream is another vision, one which he feels represents his own perception he can't properly heal, as well as foreshadowing where he will find healing. At least his hand no longer throbs, which is a blessing. And thank you for your Christmas greetings and the thanks you've written. Hope your holiday is a joyful one. Blessings to all as we enjoy our winter holidays.

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