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Reconciliation by Larner	15 Review(s)
Antane	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 4/2/2006
The most interesting part of this is receiving lembas "hallowed them" for their journey. Love that thought. Namarie, God bless, Antane :) Author Reply: I thought the Dunedain might think along these lines, although the Hobbits are unlikely to appreciate the meaning of the phrase. That the Dunedain would see those taking part in this quest as needing to be under the protection of the Valar and Eru I felt to be in keeping with their higher-than-average (for Middle Earth, that is) awareness of the spiritual ramifications of the need to destroy the Ring.

Radbooks	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
Mac knows how to get the attention away from a conversation... makes you think he has done that before. :) I've of course known about the lembas and all, but didn't Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas eat it on the journey as well? If so, then Aragorn is going to have a hard time in the years ahead... though he will anyway with missing friends who have gone oversea or just be outliving them. It's so good for the hobbits to hear their son's deeds from the eyes of men. People who truly honor and respect them for their bravery and accomplishments, people that the hobbits can trust and believe. They need that and it will help the healing for them, I think. They need a different kind of healing than their sons... a healing of the loss of the young men that they had who have returned so different and they can't understand them. I don't know if that makes sense or not or if I'm just rambling on now. :) But they have lost their fairly carefree, innocent sons and that is something they have to deal with too. Well, I'll stop there because now I know I'm rambling! Very good chapter! :) Author Reply: Yes, Mac knows his fellow Hobbits and how to distract them. And I'm certain he's done it before. It ought to have been fairly easy to find a wedding or a new babe to get everyone toasting about, don't you think? Heh! As you noted, Aragorn is one of those who will never be able to assuage his Sea Longing; but he's already practiced at dealing with intense longing, after all, and he has Arwen to anchor him to Middle Earth. And indeed he's already outlived so many and will outlive many more before he's done. The Hobbits needed to hear all this from outside sources; now they realize indeed that what the four did out there had immense impact on many. And they have lost their sons as they were, and need now to learn to accept them as they are. As you note, this isn't an easy thing to do necessarily. So glad you appreciate it.

Baggins Babe	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
This must have been an eye-opener for the Tooks and Brandybucks, to hear Halladan speaking with such awe and admiration about their sons, cousin and Sam. Paladin must be feeling very ashamed of his behaviour, but I hope he does find forgiveness when Pippin returns. I loved Merimac's method of distraction - he's done that before! Looking forward to more - I can never get enough of your stories. Author Reply: Yes, Merimac has done it before. And indeed this is an eye-opener. And I KNOW he'll be forgiven, for it is Pippin, after all. Am always thrilled when I read comments such as yours--it's what keeps us writing, after all.

Andrea	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
So, finally Mac comes to know that his teaching was indeed helpful! Paladin and Eglantine were looking at one another thoughtfully. Lanti at last gave a sigh. “Well, it appears that we can’t consider Pippin just a lad any more, Pal.” The words of Halladan made quite an impression on both Paladin and his wife. Now they know that everything that was told to them is true. It took them a long time to accept it - and Frodo and Pippin a lot of distress. But now it's over, what a relief! Again, I'm fascinated with the idea that lembas invokes the Sea Longing and should be considered perilous for mortal folk. What will the effects of that Sea Longing be like on the remaining three hobbits and how will they deal with it, I wonder. Author Reply: Mac deserves appreciation as well as the others, and that his own contributions to Frodo's abilities have been recognized needed to be stated, I think. Yes, there has been distress to Pippin, Frodo, and to a lesser amount Merry for what the Thain and his wife wouldn't believe; but that is over. It's only too bad that Frodo didn't have the chance to linger long enough to see the reconciliation between his cousin and his parents. But at least he knew before he left it was coming. Tolkien himself in his letters indicated that the lembas had this capability when lembas was eaten by mortals; I just was repeating his own decision on the nature of the bread. Aragorn himself will have to live with the results of the lembas, but he's had a long time to learn to deal with longings which he can't indulge YET, after all. As for how they will affect Merry and Pippin--I used that as the basis of my short story "Longing" which is posted in "Moments in Time."

Kitty	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
Ah, finally :) This first meeting went quite well, and I can imagine the stir it caused in the Inn. It's a luck that the hobbits after their last day with Frodo are willing to listen and to believe - otherwise this wouldn't have turned out so pleasant, I suspect. The rangers explained about lembas, sea-longing and the repercussions of Valinor on mortals very well. In hindsight it is amazing Galadriel gave them lembas at all, but she obviously sensed they would need it. And the explanation about the changes the Ring wrought in Gollum is probably a little shock for everyone who doesn't already know. I mean, can you imagine to change yourself so terribly? To hear from these respectable rangers, among them the Steward of Arnor, what their sons and their companions have achieved should help them even further to believe everything and to make them proud. The high esteem in which the rangers hold the four Travellers is so obvious! And the comparison about the Rangers not able to face one of the Nazgul while Frodo faced all nine is quite impressing. I greatly enjoyed this chapter and look forward to the next! Oh, and I loved the image at the end, Aragorn introducing Halbarad and Frodo! Author Reply: Am so glad you appreciated this, Kitty. I wanted for the parents to have independent verification of what the four of the Travellers had done, and to appreciate its implications. That Gollum started out as a Stoor and became what he did in the end I found fascinating when I first read LOTR; how that information would affect the parents was fun to speculate on. If the Ring did that to Gollum, what might it have done to Bilbo or Frodo eventually? Certainly the photos taken from the Frodo-gone-Gollum sequence PJ had considered including in the movies are quite eerie to look at--that gorgeous Elijah Wood-Frodo Baggins become no different than Gollum in the end! Still makes me shudder. I've read so many comments on Frodo being a wimp and weak-willed and so on, particularly in discussions for the movies on TheOneRing.Net discussion board. Yet every time Tolkien describes the coming of the Nazgul and how folk react to them they are overwhelming. Maggot and the Gaffer both speak of feeling totally spooked, and Maggot's dogs turn tail. In Bree Merry's not aware he's being snuck up on, yet the Black Breath knocked him right out. Only Faramir's great will keeps the retreat from the outer walls from turning into a rout. Men quail and cover their ears when the Nazgul cry, and shudder when they just fly over them. Yet Frodo stands up to them twice when they aren't trying to be particularly ingratiating! I think that took a tremendous amount of courage, myself. And of course Aragorn in the next life is going to want to get all his "brothers" together and knowing one another--don't you agree? :-)

Endaewen	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
This is beautiful. Author Reply: Thank you, Endaewen.

demeter d	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
How wonderful that Mery's and Pippin's parents have now heard their son's stories from men who respect them. Wonderful chapter! Author Reply: Yes, they needed that. So glad you appreciated it and enjoyed the chapter, Demeter. Thanks!

harrowcat	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
Re-reading this at work Larner, something I promised myself not to do! I am finding myself getting worried for M&P - getting this close to the sea and not being able to go with Frodo! Author Reply: I know; but they are probably not fully aware of what it is they may be feeling; but they have lives yet to face and live in the Shire, and relationships to mend. I think they'll handle it well enough. In the proposed epilogue Sam is clearly experiencing Sea Longing, but is still suppressing it.

harrowcat	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/28/2006
It is great seeing all this from the Men/Rangers POV Larner. Most of all I loved the whole section about Lembas. So, in reality, Aragorn is no worse off than Pippin and Merry except that he, Legolas and Gimli relied on it as they ran across Rohan whereas M&P had nothing but orc draughts until they reached Fangorn forest. I have not seen the reason why elves go first to Tol Eressea spelt out so clearly before. This is brilliant. Of course I love the very Prof like references to Christian beliefs too. The 'Dream of Gerontious' comes to mind when I read this. Newman's idea is that Man cannot endure the full light of the face of God without preparation and cleansing. The last part of the poem has Gerontious being lowered into a lake, ( a metaphor for purgatory,) from where his Guardian Angel would wake him in the morning. Author Reply: I've never read "The Dream of Gerontius," but obviously Tolkien had, particularly as this is the name he gave the Old Took. I'll have to look it up and read it now. The idea of the lembas, as you know, is from Tolkien's own letters, as is the idea that mortals who tried to enter Aman would find the experience dangerous to their continuing life. I'll admit it's my own interpretation and interpolation of this that would lead to the reason why even those Elves sailing to Aman would enter through Tol Eressea. But wouldn't it take time for the newcomer to adjust, don't you think? Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli may have eaten some lembas on the river coming south, but as you noted it would have sustained them during the run westward. Aragorn will have to live with whatever Sea Longing he experiences, but has already practiced at deferring his great longings during his life, and will sustain it well enough, I think; and he does have Arwen to keep him tied to Middle Earth during his lifetime. For Merry and Pippin, however, not being used to such things and having no way of following such cravings--well, that's why I wrote "Longing."

French Pony	Reviewed Chapter: 2 on 3/27/2006
And welcome the exposition. Okay, now everyone's caught up on the backstory again. I like the descriptions of the reactions of the various Hobbits to seeing Men at the inn, possibly for the first time. Author Reply: So glad you like the way in which backstory was caught up; and the folk in the Inn must have been wondering what to expect of this group of Men, as the last encounter with their kind was certainly not the sort to build confidence. But the Rangers of Arnor are quite different from Lotho's folks, and are probably much taller.

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