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Testaments of the Past by Dreamflower	10 Review(s)
Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/23/2006
Elanor is a little poppet - sweetness and light. It's not just Frodo to whom she brought happiness. I love the very feminine way of setting up the taffy pull, too! Make them feel they're getting away with something, when you planned it all along.

GamgeeFest	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/23/2006
snickers Poor Pip will have to walk around with hacked up foot hair for a couple of months. Rose and Estella came up with the perfect idea for cheering up their husbands and Pippin, and I love that they were able to arrange it that the lads didn't know it was their idea. No better to avoid the clean up, if you ask me! I'll be interested to see what Sam and Merry are going to tell their wives about the chain, if at all. And I feel sorry for Strider when Merry and Pippin get to him, but really, he should have known better than to give that chain back to Frodo. He never would have known that it survived Mt. Doom if Strider hadn't done so.

PIppinfan1988	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/22/2006
Why is it every time you write in a meal or making sweets I get a craving for food?? LOL During my "bad dental days" I kept wondering if I had missed the next update to this most wonderful tale. I've been feeling better this past week and thought to go cruising in your library to investigate that matter. I was so happy to see this update--and sad, too--knowing it would be the final one. Everything about this tale was beautifully written, and I eagerly awaited the next chapter. As you well know, and I like to remind you every now and then, of how much I love your world of hobbits--and this tale in particular. Each chapter was an adventure into the lives of our favourite hobbits, in both a casual nature and how they coped with the aftermath of Frodo's leaving Middle-earth. I think finding the strong box helped our lads to put closure to that dreadful chapter in their lives and move on to more pleasant pastures. Thank you--to you and Gryffinjack for writing such a magnificent and delightful tale! Pippinfan Author Reply: Hobbits will do that, yes they will! grin Actually, there is one more chapter to go, as Merry, Pippin, Estella and the babies get ready to leave Bag End. "Closure" was exactly what this tale was about. Jackie and I wanted to create a situation in which the three together could have a chance to sort through their own feelings--as well as the items in the box--and have some peace, finally about Frodo's departure. They will never cease to miss him, but now they can truly realize that he's going to find healing and hope. And Merry and Pippin have had a chance to perhaps make Sam finally understand how much they care about him, and not only for Frodo's sake, but for his own. We wanted to show the final breaking down of the social barriers between them. At any rate, we are so glad you've been enjoying this!

cookiefleck	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/21/2006
I enjoyed this chapter, especially the Green Dragon. I like the mix of melancholy and love of family/friends in this story. I also have enjoyed all of your authors' notes although I don't know if I have left comments there. Thanks for all the hard and good work. Author Reply: We're so glad that you are enjoying the story! For me, a story is always stronger when it has a mix like that--pure angst or pure humor can only be sustained for a short while. The biggest strength of JRRT's work is that he knew that, that he knew that joy and sorrow had to be mingled together, and so that is one of the things I try also to emulate. And we're glad that you're enjoying the Authors' Notes, for they were intended from the start to be an integral part of the story.

Baggins Babe	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/21/2006
Aha! I've been waiting for this - was only wondering what had happened to it a couple of days ago. Poor Pip - taffy in his foot hair! Hope the Gaffer's black soap does the trick. They really needed that afternoon at the Green Dragon and it did them good. Interesting to think that hobbits would make any throwing and aiming games more difficult - hadn't thought of that before but it makes sense. This has been an incredibly well-thought out story and you've both gone to so much trouble with all the things. That chain! shudder Give yourselve a pat on the back and a good helping of 1420 for all your efforts. BTW, did you get the chance to look at the latest chapter of 'Old Scores'? I know your computer was playing up when I posted it. Technology! Author Reply: Yes, between RL and computer woes, this chapter took a good deal longer to get up than we wanted it to! Well, I'm quite sure that if it was up to tree sap, it could also work on taffy, LOL! They did need to get away, the three of them, and decompress a bit after all the emotional ups and downs of going through the box, and most especially their last grisly discovery. I've often thought about that bit in "The Hobbit" where it talks about how good hobbits are at games of the throwing and aiming sort, and also in LotR when they talk of the excellent hobbit archers who fought for the last king, that for such games to be of any kind of challenge, the targets would have to be harder than what humans would consider normal! Originally, we were only going to include legal documents and letters. But then we started talking about what else might be in there, and all of a sudden we were making stuff and drawing pictures--it was heaps of fun! I especially enjoyed doing the calligraphy and the needlework! And thanks for the nudge on your fic--I did miss the update!

Pearl Took	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/20/2006
Ah, a great relief!! Beer, munchies and good friends have been know to cure a lot of ills :) ;) "Sam did not know, even Frodo had never known, that Merry and Pippin were silent partners in the inn since they had returned from their journey." I very much liked this :) Well done, Dreamflower! Author Reply: Yes, our lads needed a bit of R & R after their emotional roller coaster ride. And "Beer, munchies and good friends" was just the ticket to help them decompress, so to speak. Glad you did! When I wrote "Silent Partners" I did not know if the two of them kept up their investment after the first six months, but when Pippin reached up to touch the sign on his way into the inn, I knew that they had! Thank you, on both mine and Jackie's behalf!

Andrea	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/20/2006
Great chapter, Dreamflower! I was wondering this whole chapter long what "taffy pulling" might be! (My dictionary was no help at all, I can assure you!) But now I think I can imagine very well the fun of making sweets that way :) Our three hobbits just needed some time away and on their own, it seems. After that they felt much better. And little Elanor's suggestion to come and see the kitties was wise indeed. As was the "taffy pulling conspiracy" of Sam's and Merry's wives ;-) I can imagine that somewhere on Tol Eressea, Frodo was watching them, with lots of doubts about letting them find the chain, but in the end laughing with them and admiring Sam's sweet little daughter! Author Reply: LOL! I don't think it dawned on either of us that some readers might not be familiar with taffy pulling! But it is a fun way to make candy. Yes, they did need a bit of time away from the task, to be together, and to put it in perspective, and then to come home and finish being comforted by their families. What a nice thought!

harrowcat	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/20/2006
Hmm... What a lovely and tasty way to get over some awful trauma. Now, since I am sure that virtual Taffy is both sugar AND calorie free how about asking the hobbits to share a few pieces with the rest of us!?! Author Reply: They say you are most certainly welcome to share! 8-)

shirebound	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/20/2006
"I don’t know about Sam, but making a mess in the kitchen always puts Merry and Pippin in a good mood!" What a wonderful chapter! The wives are so quietly clever and wise. And Pip and Merry taking such delight in the Green Dragon's recovery (and not taking any of the profits). And the hobbits' amusement at Men aiming for the center of a target (the very idea!). And... The two cousins caught one another’s eye, and gave equally mischievous grins. Each rapidly pocketed the letter he was holding. It was clear that they would be able to entertain themselves with this particular argument for weeks on end. Sam shook his head. They did love a good wrangle. Oh gosh, I just love it all. Author Reply: I'd say Rose and Estella are pretty clever lasses, yes indeed! I'm glad you liked all the bits at the Green Dragon. It was a lot of fun doing that part. It seemed to me that for hobbits, who are such naturals at the aiming and throwing sorts of games, their version would have to be harder, for it to be any fun at all. And Merry and Pippin do love a nice lively argument, as long as it's nothing serious--it's one way to relieve boredom, LOL!

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 7 on 10/20/2006
These are women who know their menfolk very well indeed! And now poor Pippin has candy in his hair! Poor Hobbit! Soak it long enough it MIGHT come out, of course. Author Reply: Yes, Rose and Estella do know their lads pretty well. giggle Poor Pippin! He's old enough now not to be blase about having his foot hair cut off. But Sam still has some of the Gaffer's black soap--and as it worked on sap, maybe it will work on taffy, LOL!

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