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In the Bleak, Cold Winter by GamgeeFest	7 Review(s)
Grey Wonderer	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/10/2006
Merry certainly is helping out in a big way. I like the fact that it is creating a new friendship between him and Sam. They certainly are snowed in this time. I do hope Merry is careful on his way to get a healer or Frodo is likely to be taking care of two injured Hobbits. Author Reply: Merry's really showing his true colors here and it's making a vast impression on Sam. Up to this point, Sam still had a tendency to think of Merry as a prankster, so it does help to see him being resourceful, as well as acting naturally.

Periantari	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/22/2006
Something about stern!Frodo that i really love from this story. “You never let me get away with evading questions when I’m ill. I’m not about to let you tell me you’re fine when I know you aren’t. Now did the tea help or not?” Yep! let Frodo help you, Sam lad! =) And i really like the part about them playing board games and especially loved the fact that Frodo read a nonsense poem to Sam as he fell asleep... love the image. And the details you put in this chapter is very well-written as well. =) Nice job--::rushing to the other chapter fro i think the healer comes, right?:: =) Author Reply: Frodo needs to be stern every once in awhile, especially when it comes to stubborn!Sam. He knows how to get his point across too, which is very important. Sam couldn't possibly remain evasive after that argument. ;) Board games are always good for passing the time, and the nonsense poem was so very Sam, just like something he would enjoy. Since he wrote that troll poem that he recites in FOTR, I imagine that even if he does like the more lyrical tomes, that he is drawn more to the silly poems. They do suit his carefree nature. hugs

Dreamflower	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/16/2006
What a wonderful chapter! I love all the details of what they are doing, how they are doing it, and what they are using to do it with--you make everything sound very likely and plausible. You nearly had me in tears when Frodo was searching among Bilbo's clothes, and was thinking of Bilbo. And I just loved the description of Merry all bundled up like a faunt. The last couple of paragraphs, with Sam using his wiles on Frodo were really amusing, but I wonder now if Sam's not going to forget to stay in bed, once Frodo does go to take some rest? And I am a bit worried about Merry's little trip. While it might help to have a bit more in common, I don't think being laid up alongside Sam with a matching sprained ankle is the best way to go about it. I hope he is careful. Author Reply: Thank you for mentioning that little section about Bilbo! As the years pass and Frodo's wanderlust begins to grow, he would think more and more of Bilbo and wish that he had gone with him. And I'm glad you enjoyed Merry looking like a faunt, because I don't think Merry was very pleased about it! It was just what Frodo needed to shake off any lingering nostalgia for Bilbo though. Sam might be disappointed that he didn't get those crutches but he did still promise Frodo that he would only get up to use the chamber pot. Without any assistance, he won't be attempting that on his own. He'll behave himself, now that Frodo's agreed to take some rest. You can count on Merry to be careful. He does know how to use those shoes better than Frodo does and he'll be able to get up and down the hill without too much trouble.

harrowcat	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/16/2006
That he had never noticed before is quite a tribute to Sam. This foot does sound more than just sprained. And the idea that Merry may carry the healer to Bag End made me grin. Loved the conversation between Merry and Sam. Author Reply: Sam's usual 'manipulations' are much more subtle than that desperate pout. Frodo would hardly think twice about Sam commenting on the chill night air and wouldn't Frodo be more comfortable in a jacket or sweater set? Why, Frodo probably even thinks that he would have gone ahead and donned the jacket anyway even though he just walked right past it seconds earlier. ;) Sprains can be a very nasty business, even without further complications. The healer's arrival is bound to shake up the peaceful atmosphere of Bag End, even if Merry's dithering after her doesn't! ;) It was far past time for Merry and Sam to have a serious heart-to-heart. They needed to clear the air between them and start over fresh. This was the perfect opportunity for them to do that and they didn't waste it.

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/16/2006
Merry's doing well at making himself properly useful, and Sam is revealing just how well he's managed his Master for the last several years. Lovely writing, and excellent characterizations. Author Reply: When pushed to task, Merry can be very useful. ;) While he would ordinarly wait for Frodo to ask for assistance, or offer it only when he thought Frodo might need it, he's showing that he can be self-motivated when the situation calls for it. Sam really was aiming for those crutches, but he also knew that if Frodo didn't give in, his pouting would be a good way to get some peace and quiet, and encourage Frodo to take a much-needed rest. Frodo might not like the idea that Sam is able to control him so easily when he puts his mind to it, but he'll continue to overlook all the minor ways that Sam 'encourages' him into taking more care of himself than he would normally. :D

Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/16/2006
Merry is doing very well here. He's being himself - which is more likely to have Sam relax than the rather intensely conciliatory face he has been displaying recently. Thinks too much, does Merry. Needs to take a bit of a lesson from Pippin about being natural. And Sam is coping - just - with being waited on. Although it had better not go on for too long or he might have a breakdown ... caused by refusing to use the chamber pot. Merry is the right person to send for the healer (although carrying her back might be going a bit too far!) He doubtless has more recent experience of mud shoes and I imagine they take a bit of getting used to. Fingers crossed things continue to go smoothly - and that Merry and Sam keep building their understanding. Author Reply: So long as he doesn't become too natural! Pippin can be quite the handful at times and I don't think Sam would want another one of him running about the gardens, pestering him with questions and trying to 'help'. :D Merry has figured out though that he's been over-analyzing everything in regards to Sam. Now that they've both acknowledged that fact, Merry will find that Sam is not so on guard around him anymore and will be more responsive to Merry just 'being himself'. Let's face it, Merry as himself can be rather intense at times. ;) Sam isn't used to being waited on by anyone other than his sisters, and they don't smother him quite so much! Part of the problem is that he's never been injured or ill around gentlehobbits before and so he doesn't understand that when a child of gentlehobbits is ill, he's never left alone, whereas with the working-class hobbits, there's only so much time a mother or sibling can spare to sit with a sick child. They depend more on the child calling out for assistance when needed, something Sam is much more comfortable doing at home than he is with his master and Merry. This is a very new experience for him and it's going to take him awhile to get used to it. Merry's trek down to the healer's will be the next chapter, once I have it finished. The revision is taking longer than I thought it would and I might have to wind up cutting the chapter in half if it gets too much longer, but I hope to have it up before the weekend is over. :D

althea	Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 8/15/2006
This is a most satisfying chapter. First, there was so much Sam comfort. Next, it really looks as if Sam and Merry have broken the barrier between them and are headed toward true friendship. And finally there is the pouting Sam and Frodo's realization that Sam can maipulate him. This was so much fun to read. Author Reply: Thank you Althea! It's been a great deal of fun for me to write this story and see Sam, for once, smothered in the same care that he so often heaps upon everyone else. Merry and Sam are well on their way toward building a true friendship. Now that each of them knows where the other stands, things will be progressing much more smoothly from here on out. If anything, this accident has ensured that they will have to face each other and talk more openly they would have normally if Merry is to help take care of Sam. Likewise, Sam will be able to see that Merry is far from being a lazy guest but that he actually does help Frodo when he is visiting and carries his share of the household chores. I think I would have reacted the same way to a pouting Sam! lol I don't blame Frodo for getting out of there! If Sam had not decided to use his powers for evil winks it's likely that Frodo would have continued to be oblivious to Sam's subtle ways of 'manipulating' his master. Sam would hardly think of it as manipulation though. If you asked him, he would say he was just doing his job, looking after Frodo even while he's the one lying in bed hurt.

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