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The Acceptable Sacrifice by Larner	9 Review(s)
demeter d	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/3/2006
"did it have to do with losing your finger?" As Sam said about his conversation with Rosie when he came to tell her he'd come back, and she asked why did he leave Mr. Frodo, 'that took a week's answer or none'. They still just do not WANT to get it. The whole tale is like eomer's comment "legends rising out of the grass before me". And Paladin does not really believe in the Valar, yet Frodo has talked with one who has seen them face to face. I also especially like your comparisons of men. We are indeed a varied race, are we not? A very well written chapter. this story has joined the list of my "drugs of choice"! It has become very addictive! Author Reply: Oh, yes, the most valid comparison with the Master's own words I could imagine. A week's answer or none indeed! Paladin and Eglantine still wish their son was the lad they knew before the quest, and are being forced to see that he is not; certainly Frodo isn't. The legends are rising out of the grass--but where Eomer adjusted fairly quickly, these are having to be dragged, kicking and screaming, into the Fourth Age. But it is NEARLY at an end. So very glad you like the comparisons of men--certainly Frodo has seen more than his fair share of them in the past year; and I still think Aragorn himself would be sufficiently complicated for a roomful of Hobbits, don't you? And that you find the story addictive is a great honor. Thank you indeed.

Linda Hoyland	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
How frustrating that even the Thain doesn't believe what happened !Ferdi seems to "see" more than the sighted. Author Reply: None is as blind as he who will not see, goes the old adage. And it's a true one, after all. Paladin will change, but not before inflicting one more serious hurt....

Kitty	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
You know I love Paladin and Eglantine, but just now I want to slap them! It was their fault that Frodo felt obliged to try to help Pippin and had to go through this. Only a pity Paladin came not earlier to the bathing room – it would’ve served him right to see all the scars. It would’ve been a bit difficult to tell Frodo to let them vanish, wouldn’t it? As for their conversation during the meal, Frodo’s argument about Glorfindel and the Valar was intriguing. And obviously not even Paladin and Eglantine dared to doubt it. Another good argument was the sun being there although Ferdi can’t see her any longer. But the rest ... rolls eyes They were hopeless. How sad they distressed Frodo so much in his last time on Middle-earth! But I am truly impressed of Willigrim. The way he went straight to Pal and Lanti and told them what he thought - wow! I’d like to know what they thought of the dressing down they got from the healer. Loved the image of Pippin running around the garden to make up for standing guard for hours! It must’ve been a sore trial for him at times to remain so still for so long. Author Reply: I can tell you from my experience with my over-imaginative grandmother that dealing with someone intent on NOT seeing the truth is HIGHLY frustrating, particularly when they insist you change things to meet their desires for reassurance rather than accepting things as they are. So glad you like Frodo's arguments; but he still resists the arguments he knows should be guiding him more. Frodo is as very much afraid at this point as Paladin and Eglantine. Willigrim is, I think, a good healer indeed, and a good example for the colleague in the infirmary, whom I like to imagine is Lindelea's Woodruff. As for Pippin having to run a bit--I've seen it in enough of my students, the need to get up and move after having been immobile for quite some time. And Pippin is PHYSICALLY young, after all.

shirebound	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
Intriguing that Frodo's illness might be indirectly responsible for healing the rift between Pippin and his family. Author Reply: Yes, the weakness of Frodo begins the healing process as Paladin and Eglantine are brought up short as to precisely what effects their protestations have on him and must, by extension, be having on Pippin as well. But it does help.

Dreamflower	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
I wanted to read and review this last night, but kept getting interrupted, darn it! This was a brilliant chapter, very long and full of great meat to chew on. You covered a lot of ground here within just a few scenes. Pippin truly has to be extremely distressed to even go to Frodo over this at this point in time, for he and Merry both realize how hard Frodo is finding it to cope right now, and normally he would not be burdening his cousin with his problems with his parents. Here, he's been stressed enough to regress to a bit of his pre-Quest behavior, to go running to his older cousin with this conflict. Once he's unburdened himself, however, he quickly starts to worry about Frodo again. Pippin never despaired--had always been the one to find the humor needed to bring others out of their moods. Frodo felt frightened to see Pippin in one of depression such as he now displayed. Frodo’s reaction to all this shows his natural tendency to worry more about others than about himself. This is something he has always had to a certain extent, but now, added to his native empathy and compassion is that layer of self-denial. He will not put forth any effort to justify himself on his own behalf, but he will say and do things extremely difficult and distressing on behalf of his dear companions, especially for Pippin, who, for all his new growth and maturity, remains in Frodo's heart his "baby cousin". I love the way you show how observant Paladin was on the ride to the Smials. Paladin’s observations as Frodo rode--how easily he tired, the care taken for him by the others are cluing him in in spite of himself to the true state of things. It is only his own stubborn will, and his denial of his own intelligence that is keeping him so intransigent. The voice telling him he should not have hidden his scars was a nice touch. Frodo was able to tell himself that it might have been a good idea--once there was too late to take the advice. You show later that he did not really listen again... Ferdi’s talk with Frodo: very well done. It is ironic that the one who actually cannot literally see is the most observant person. I like the matter of fact way that Ferdi dealt with Frodo here, and the advice and caution he gives him for dealing with Pippin's parents. The voice telling Frodo he would not be alone…very good touch! I love how subtly Frodo leads into the talk of Pippin, telling them the things that would make them proud of their son, how well he handles himself, how respected he is by the King and court, and how their raising was helpful to Pippin in gaining that respect. It was also good that he was blunt, about his appetite, about his health… Eglantine’s denial in the face of the evidence of Frodo’s health is almost ludicrous, and it is no wonder Pippin has become frustrated and stressed over her refusal to understand. Paladin’s denial, however, borders on the irrational. He is intelligent enough to draw the right conclusions from the evidence, but his pride won’t let him--he thinks he knows more of the world than he actually does, and the experiences his young kin have don’t jibe with what he thinks he knows. Talk about Took stubbornness! And of course, he still has some resentment over the fact that Frodo “let” Pippin and Merry go with him--I love the way Frodo turned the tables on him with that argument! For a moment the Took and the Baggins shared the knowledge that a determined Peregrin Took was not to be stopped by normal means. Paladin’s refusal to belief, I am beginning to think, was not so much a refusal to actually believe as it was a refusal to admit that underneath it all he did believe. But since he thinks such things could not possibly be true, then to admit he’s beginning to find it all too plausible, would mean to admit that perhaps he, himself, was “cracked” or “mad”. For just a moment Paladin Took forgot he wasn’t supposed to believe in the Ring and Its power. “You let Sam carry that thing?” And there of course we see it: he “forgot” he wasn’t “supposed” to believe. His disbelief is a mask and an act--one that is fooling only himself, and even there not terribly successful. Oh my, I do like your Willigrim (great name for a Took OC, by the way--well done!) I love the very matter of fact way that he got the information he needed to properly treat Frodo, and the way he listened carefully to what Frodo had to say. It was a crying shame that Frodo made him promise not to tell about the whip scars. But your Willigrim is wiley, and was very specific in his promise. (And we see, once more, how Frodo is again rejecting the “Voice’s” advice--he’d have done far better towards breaking down Paladin’s and Eglantine’s resistance if he had not done so.) And then to go and beard the Thain and his Lady in their own quarters, and lecture them soundly on Frodo’s and Pippin’s behalf--well, that was Tookish spirit and then some! Because he only promised not to tell of the whip-scars, he is free to tell them of the other things he observed. And by doing so, he is able to break through that wall to a certain extent. I sincerely hope that what he told them left them shaken and distraught--they need to be shaken up enough to wake up, and see what they are doing… I am so glad that you chose to show/tell this incident in even greater detail than in previous stories. This chapter was filled with emotional drive and impact, and you set the perfect tone for it! Author Reply: I've been having the time trying to respond to reviews--between phone calls and a Dalmatian intent on putting her nose repeatedly on the keyboard and causing all kinds of interesting effects, it's taking me forever today. Yes, Pippin's been very upset, and unburdens himself with Frodo, who wants to fix everything up, even though he knows he's dealing with other stubborn Tooks. And you are certainly right that Frodo will do far more for the good of others than he will for himself, which is most distressing. Paladin, I think, is a mixture of several things--he hates he feels helpless to have protected his son; he doesn't have the experiential base to understand what Pippin tells him and doesn't WANT to believe things were so much worse out there than in here; he wants to put the past behind them all and pretend all are as they were before Pippin disappeared after Frodo, and he wants to feel some measure of control over a world that suddenly showed itself to be totally unpredictable; and Frodo and Pippin become his focus for trying to exert that control. Eglantine wants to believe there was no real danger, so is willing to rewrite history to make it the way she wants rather than the way it was. Both are extraordinarily difficult individuals to deal with--speaking from experience. And as you note, Frodo is at times grabbing at excuses not to follow the advice offered him, from a Voice he KNOWS by now has his best interests at heart. He accepts the reassurance and the advice but doesn't always act on it. But that he hears it at all is even more important. Ferdi had all his preconceptions literally knocked out of him when he was kicked repeatedly in the head and was blinded. As a result he's a bit easier to talk to, and quicker to see things as they are rather than as he would prefer them to be; and he's listened before. And your perceptions about Paladin are so very accurate, and have added even to my own understanding. He doesn't want to believe, and so he clings to his desired scenarios against all argument, even when as you noted the mask slips and he demands to know why Sam was allowed to touch the awful thing he is trying to desperately not to believe in. Willigrim is perhaps one of the most competent and empathic healers I've written into the Shire, I think; so glad you like him, too. And then at the end of his dressing down he gives the proper healer's advice to Paladin and Eglantine as well--get the muscles relaxed and get some rest, and then stop trying to prod everyone into changing things just for emotional comfort or they'll drive the ones they love most away.

harrowcat	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
A depressed Pippin is a sad sight to see. And Frodo continues to be so protective of his cousins even at the cost of his own health. But many parents find it hard to accept that their children are grown up and have experiences and opinions of their own especially if that growing up has been done while away from the family home. These two are extreme examples of it though! The reaction of wanting to wrap Merry in Cotton wool is typical too and very hard to bear with. Lovely writing as usual Larner. Mum is home but not very happy as the carers are all different and there is only one carer at a time when she really needs two to work the hoist. I have to admit I wish I was closer to give a hand. Author Reply: Oh, I agree about Pippin--although he'll have one more grave disappointment with his father before things get better. But Frodo wants to see the arguments stop and reconciliation begin, trying to keep things under control until the goading gets` Author Reply: Oh, I agree about Pippin--although he'll have one more grave disappointment with his father before things get better. But Frodo wants to see the arguments stop and reconciliation begin, trying to keep things under control until the goading gets too bad. So glad to hear about your mother and that she's home at last, but understand about the caregivers. Those hoists can be quite the thing to work--had a friend who was parapalegic due to polio as a child, and we had loads of fun working his. And at least you can drive to be with your mom fairly easily--when it was my mother I had to drive that far just to get to the airport to fly to be at her side, and had twice the drive on that side I had on this end of the journey.

Tigger	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 3/1/2006
Well it's about time someone laid into Paladin and Egalatine!! Long overdue and Willi did it exactly right. Sorry I haven't reviewed in quite awhile. Got really sick again after getting home from Ottawa and then the last two weeks I was busy following the Olympics. I've been reading every update though and my heart just aches for Frodo and Sam and Rosie and everyone that loves Frodo. This story has just been outstanding and I'm looking forward to the next chapter. :o) Author Reply: I'm just glad you are doing as well as you are now, Tigger. Life can be a real pain in the patoot, can't it? And it's about time Paladin and Eglantine are told plainly that their continual refusal to accept what they're told is harmful in the end.

Queen Galadriel	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 2/28/2006
Yeah, Willi, let 'em have it! Maybe that isn't kind (okay, okay, I know that is unkind) but good grief! Paladen and Eglantine are being just plain silly! Make the story nice and safe so it looks like Pippin was never in danger; how am I supposed to believe that-it's ridiculous! For pity's sake! As if either would solve their problems. But it does make it realistic. The scene with Ferdi was interesting. He loves Frodo and means well, but "I'm sorry" almost never helps and I find usually makes it worse. And you know, I had to laugh a little in spite of the seriousness of the moment. He reminds me so much of a guy I used to go to school with! Rather talkative and not afraid to speak his mind, good sense of humour, and yet sensitive and caring beneath the surphace. And definitely not afraid to touch anything...shudders I must just be really squeemish, because I cannot stand to actually touch scars. I can read about them or whatever (usually, anyway) but when it comes to it, my younger brother can freak me out by forcibly showing me the little scars he gets playing rough with his friends...and of course he thinks it's funny! :) Poor Frodo, in so much pain! I wouldn't feel kindly at all towards the Thain and his lady in such a situation either. It's so sad to watch Frodo's health deteriorate like this! It seems that in every story I've ever heard (I've never really watched someone die like this-my grandpa did, but they didn't allow us children near him because they thought he had tb) there is a stage of realising what's coming, and then of a bitter struggle against it, and then a sort of submissive, almost (touchingly) saintly stage in which the individual accepts coming death and merely tries to do what he can in the time left. I can see that happening in all of your stories, most strikingly in TTOF, and I'm wondering which is most heartbreaking, the middle or the last stage. Just as a side note, I'm working on your Frodo-Aragorn story, but it's taken a couple of astonishing turns already and seems to insist on being three or four chapters long, so it may be a while longer. Between school and trying to make adjustments between a BLm20 and a new Pac-Mate (I wish it was summer!), and a Victor Reader Vibe that has suddenly proven to have a mind of its own and randomly has problems, I don't seem to have much time. Not to mention all the other hobbits have managed to get into the argument as well (on Frodo's side) and Frodo himself is being extremely difficult, even for me. This is going to be another one of those crazy plot lines like "A Promise and a Gift" (not the story, the intricacy of the plot) so is going to require some serious thought. Well, still have some studying to do tonight. Can't wait for the next one! God bless, Galadriel Author Reply: For those who returned from the death camps, all too often what they got from family and friends were demands not to trouble them with uncomfortable truths. They were told that "dwelling on the past" wasn't healthy; they were told to get on with their lives and "put it all behind them." They were told to look forward and not back. However, to put that reality behind them was impossible, and for many it wasn't until decades later they were finally allowed to tell what had happened to them, as a new generation who KNEW they themselves had never been threatened with the camps but easily could be so in the future if the past was suppressed, who didn't themselves feel guilty because they'd not faced what their relatives and friends had, finally allowed and encouraged them to tell their tales, let themselves listen, affirmed that what those who'd been in the camps was indeed worse than their worst images of Hell, and that they were heroes for having survived, that they couldn't be responsible for the lives that were lost, but for what they'd been able to do to help at least a few others along the way. It was a freeing experience that came to its peak in the late eighties and early nineties. I suppose that in my view of Middle Earth Eglantine and Paladin are those who wanted to try to pretend the horrors didn't happen after all. While things were bad they faced them; but when the bad times were over--well, then it was time to pretend it WAS all over and that their son had managed to come through unscathed. They don't have the experiential base to fully understand what happened out there; they feel guilty they couldn't protect Pippin, Merry, Frodo, and Sam; stories from fireside tales they are now told are real; and as long as they don't look too deeply they don't have to see--or touch--the scars on their son, their nephew, their beloved cousin, the gardener's lad--allowing them to continue the illusion that none of it happened. They hope to fence out that reality that is awful and that threatens be denying it. But doing so is as much a betrayal of their son as that given to Holocaust survivors in our real world. My husband didn't truly go through the "saintly" phase you mentioned, although I've known a few who did, including my late sister-in-law. But he did try so hard to make certain I'd continue to be protected and provided for once he was gone. As for hating to touch scars--how much is the idea it could happen to you if circumstances were different, the knowledge this is an insult to the body you can do nothing for, the feeling that this just isn't right and it's hard to accept that? Yet I certainly understand both your feelings as well as those of Eglantine and Paladin. We all have our overwhelming fears. In the case of the Thain and his wife, I do think it was the feeling of helplessness in not being able to protect the one they so loved from a worse reality than they can properly imagine.

Antane	Reviewed Chapter: 92 on 2/28/2006
I think the Thain and his wife are even more stubborn than the legendary Baggins in their refusal to belief and poor Frodo and poor Pippin nearly driven mad just trying to get them to believe. I don't blame them in a way, but I just want to shake them and yell "It happened! Deal with it!" Author Reply: Yes, a lot of the stubbornness in the last two Bagginses we know and love undoubtedly is enhanced by that of the Tooks. As for wanting to shake them and yell that--well, you never met my Grandmother, on whom the behavior of Paladin and moreso that of Eglantine is based. There were a couple times when I did yell precisely that at her--"This is the truth--deal with it!" She, however, unlike the Thain, never did understand what I or any other meant, or come around.

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