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| Eilian and the Lembas Maiden's Kiss by daw the minstrel | 20 Review(s) |
|---|---|
| mystarlight | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 7/1/2019 |
| Ithilien must be annoying for Eilian but he looks up his older brother. | |
| ponypetter | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 1/1/2007 |
| I have been away for a while and am trying to catch up. I'm so happy to see that you have a few more stories up since I was last here! Eilian is so wonderfully arrogant. You can't help but love him for it. As overly confident in himself as he is, I always get the feeling what he's really looking for is an affirmation of his worth. He has risen to this challenge because he feels like he can't back down (what would his friends think of him then), and because he needs to feel like he is someone an female would want to kiss. His real prize in this story is the kiss from someone who can truly appreciate him for who he is, not as a the persona he puts forward. Author Reply: What a good way to describe both Eilian's underlying need and the reward Celuwen gives him. I've lately come to realize that Eilian is probably the most complex character I've ever created, because he can be genuinely hurtful to others, but his underlying good qualities are still there. I'm so grateful to readers who see those good qualities and appreciate him like I do. :-) | |
| obsidianj | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 12/13/2006 |
| Eilian has a devious mind. But we knew that already. Luckily for him, Ithilden hasn't noticed Alfirin so far. Or Eilian wouldn't have got off so lightly. I loved the brother to brother talk. It seems there were few things that could threaten Eilian. I got the feeling that he feared his naneth knowing about his outing more than Thranduil knowing it. Author Reply: Eilian is outrageous and you can see why his father sometimes took stern measures. But yes, I'd say you're right. Eilian is used to being scolded by his father, but he hates to disappoint his mother. | |
| pipinheart | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/28/2006 |
Its so like eilian as he was younger, always a free spirit. He would get caught coming in, but a talk from brother seems to help hima bit.. Nice work Author Reply: Glad you liked it, pipinheart. Eilian was a handful, I think. His poor parents! | |
| Dot | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/25/2006 |
| Catching up… Eilian really walked back in with the air of someone who has done this plenty of times before. He was cocky enough to deserve to be caught by someone – but I’m glad it was Ithilden and not Thranduil! Even though Gelmir probably doesn’t see one as any better than the other… I really like how you get Eilian’s feelings across even as the reader suspects that Ithilden isn’t really about to rage at him. I thought it gave us a nice glimpse at how Eilian sees Ithilden – he clearly recognises him as some sort of authority figure and will do what he says but at the same time he sees him as a brother and can cheek him in a way that I imagine he wouldn’t be so quick to do with his parents. And Ithilden is waiting for his Naneth! No doubt he wants to know she’s safely back and everything went well but I bet he just wanted to see her too. Little moments like that always make me want to see more of just the two of them. When she’s not annoying him about having fun, of course. Well, whatever else you can say about Eilian, he’s an honest person. I was glad to see he didn’t hide what had happened. I laughed when Ithilden didn’t recognise Alfirin’s name! What really struck me was how Ithilden seems to want to help his little brother when he tells him what Lómilad said. He could quite easily have just snapped at him to sort himself out and focus when he’s at training. But then, perhaps he realises that it’s not quite that simple with Eilian. Lómilad was right to ask Ithilden to speak to Eilian as a brother – at Eilian’s age it’s not going to help if he feels the adults in his life are picking on him and perhaps it forced Ithilden to look at Eilian differently too and focus more on his strengths and the reasons for his problems with discipline. I wonder how many nights’ sleep Ithilden lost thinking about how to talk as a “brother”?! And oh! I loved the flashback! I wish Ithilden was my brother. Actually, I don’t because if he was I could probably be arrested for some of the thoughts I have about him… I’m annoyed with the silly interfering woman but I suppose Eilian was eventually going to learn that he has to put other people first. Ithilden handled it very well by saying he had to wait too. And Eilian would have loved being swung around in the air! I adore that moment between them. “Only sometimes, when things go badly, I do stupid things." That made me smile. Eilian has learned something from Celuwen and I imagine he impressed Ithilden too. I’m very glad the first of these kinds of discussions between the two of them has ended with them both smiling! That’s rare indeed. And this must be the time Ithilden didn’t tell on Eilian – the first and last successful argument he had with him according to Gelmir if I remember correctly! But Ithilden wouldn’t have done it lightly – Eilian has obviously learned something of himself in his dealings with Alfirin and Celuwen. He might even tease her about the kiss. Or maybe he would not. Maybe that was something that should stay between them, just for now. Could it really be that Eilian is having a moment of sense?! He might not yet see with the depth that Celuwen does but recognising that the kiss is something not to tease her about is certainly a start. This was a really lovely story, daw. I enjoyed it so much :-) Author Reply: You do such a nice analysis of how Eilian sees Ithilden. He'll mouth off, at home at least. I'll bet he had to learn not to do that in the warrior grounds. Somewhere I say Lomilad trained Ithilden too, so I think he might remember what things were like for Ithilden and also might be able to approach him as an old master whom Ithilden would listen to. So Ithilden tries. And of course, at the moment, Alfirin is just another maiden too young to be of interest to him. The flashback was fun to write. I think maybe when Eilian was little, Ithilden was more relaxed with him. Like Thranduil, he'd worry more as Eilian grow older. You're win the prize! You remember that comment about the only argument Eilian won. He responds to Celuwen before he knows what's happening. So it's her he senses first at the lembas field, her he sees as graceful, as having an expressive face, as his friend always. There never could have been anyone else for him. | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/23/2006 |
| What a wonderful Ithilden! First - his fretting because Naneth isn't safely tucked up in the Stronghold where she's supposed to be! Then his ... less confrontational approach to his younger brother's dereliction. (Poor Gelmir. He's very brave to continue his friendship with Eilian, when you consider how many times his friend has brought him to the critical eye of the troop commander and the king!) I love the flashback to the honey-cakes and the sanctimonious matron, who clearly has no idea that being a little kid is being a little kid, regardless of whether your father is king or not! It establishes a gorgeous bit of brotherly solidarity, though - and I love seeing Ithilden and Eilian as brothers over and above their other, more scratchy relationships. I wonder if there are any other stories where the three brothers can ignore the calls of state and war simply to spend quality time together - them against the world. Probably not until they all eventually meet up in the west. Unfortunately. And Ithilden's words of wisdom! Eilian so needs approval and trust - and he makes it so difficult for anyone in authority over him to offer either. But I'll bet this way of approaching him works far better than anything else. (Mind you, Eilian is still a rather self-assured youngster.) And the brothers keep this incident between themselves - Gelmir will be limp with relief! Gorgeous story. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Any chance of another tale to celebrate Christmas? It's only a month away!) Author Reply: I was a little worried Ithilden was out of character here, but I thought he might have been more relaxed with Eilian when he was small, especially since that was during the Watchful Peace. Your story suggested that to me too. Eilian so needs approval and trust - and he makes it so difficult for anyone in authority over him to offer either. That's a good way to put it. It captures the problem of dealing with Eilian exactly. This bit of the story grew out of a moment in "When Shadow Touches Home," when Gelmir says that Eilian once won an argument with Ithilden when they'd stayed out all night and the Eilian had talked Ithilden into not telling Thranduil. I like tying up loose ends. :-) | |
| Idhreniel | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/22/2006 |
| "Maybe that was something that should stay between them, just for now." I love this phrase!!! I guess Eilian and Celuwen were really just friends at the time. Heheh I misjudged her, sorry!!! Great talk between brothers. Showed us their personalities and how the relation betwen captain and troop commander started, concerning the trust issue. As always it was a pleasure to read from you again! Hugs, Author Reply: Thank you, Idhreniel. I think Eilian and Celuwen were firmly lodged in one another's hearts. They're at the age when their friendship can begin to ripen into mature love, but it will take a while yet, because Eilian is so restless and needs to try things out. But he comes back to her because she's the one for him and has been since they were toddlers. | |
| Nilmandra | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/22/2006 |
| I like this encounter between the two brothers. It is nice to see Eilian and Ithilden acting as brothers, not adversaries with Ithilden in a position of authority over Eilian. The flashback to the young childhood memory was very nice.. a good reminder of 'brothers'. Author Reply: That scene between the brothers was unusual for me, and I wasn't sure if it fit with Ithilden's character. But it seemed to me he must have been just a brother sometimes, especially when Eilian was younger. Thank you for all your help on this. | |
| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/22/2006 |
| Ithilden was so wonderful here. Such a good brother. It was very nice to see them have such a good talk. I particularly liked the little flashback to the moment with the cakes. Ithilden is a supportive brother, even if Eilian doesn't always understand/appreciate his support. But the part I liked the most were Eilian two closing reflections: I sometimes do stupid things, but in the long run, Ithilden, you can trust me. and Maybe that was something that should stay between them, just for now. There's hope for him, yet. ;-) This was a great story. Thanks so much, daw! Author Reply: I'm so glad you liked it, Elliska. My beta pointed out that I seldom show loving moments between Ithilden and Eilian, so it was interesting to do it here. Eilian blossoms under support as he doesn't under reprimands, and yet he needs the reprimands too, as Alfirin demonstrated. A very belated happy birthday to someone whose stories have given me much pleasure. | |
| Yanic | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 11/21/2006 |
| Oh that was such an awesome moment between Ithilden and Eilian. He's always seemed more removed from Eilian and Legolas, probably because he's so much older, but I loved the flashback. Very cute, loved the little ficlet! Author Reply: They did well, didn't they? You see here the Ithilden who'll be a good father to Sinnarn. Thanks for the kind words, Yanic. | |