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| The Ranger and the Man In Yellow Boots by Cairistiona | 16 Review(s) |
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| PSW | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/14/2015 |
| Another great story! Tom's songs were fun, and sounded just right! And then the shift to Aragorn's worries about his impending Chieftain-hood. His concerns seem quite realistic for a young man of his experience, agreed. I like the path you took with it -- in fact, I would love to see your version of this time during his life. I haven't run across one that seemed quite right to me so far, but this conversation seemed to walk a very good line between anxiety and how things have been and how they will likely be. I enjoyed both 'parts' of this story, thanks so much for writing! :-) Author Reply: Okay, I'm mortified that I'm thanking you for this SEVEN YEARS after you left it, but... thank you!! I've been out of the Tolkien fandom, at least in terms of actively writing, for quite some time and checking reviews didn't seem like something I needed to do, but now that I know this website's notifications are borked, I'll have to check in a little more often. I'm glad you liked my take on this period of Aragorn's life. It really is hard to fill in those blanks with the right measure of bravery, innocence--or maybe naivete is a better word--hopefulness and nervousness. It seems like stories either make him too dejected or too optimistic when I feel the most human emotions would put him somewhere in between, with some days better than others, but most days optimistic. | |
| TheDreamer | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 10/2/2012 |
| I have to thank you for writing this! Tom Bombadill is my favorite character from my childhood, and I can never find *any* fanfic about him ;) Also loved the part when the twins talked about Halbarad: ‘How tall is he now? When will he join us? Is he good with a bow? Can he hunt a wild stag? Will he be a good warrior? Does he know farming and husbandry and how to keep a village fed and warm through a hard winter?' Well, you know the rest... :) Author Reply: Thank you, Dreamer! So glad you enjoyed this. You're very right in that there's little fanfic out there for Tom Bombadil, probably because he's a hard character to get a good grasp on! Or at least he was for me. The twins and Halbarad are far more in my wheelhouse. I figure as much time as the Sons of Elrond spent with the Dunedain, they probably knew Halbarad well and likely had to put up with all his eager questions about Aragorn! Thanks for the review! | |
| layne | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/10/2011 |
| I love the bantering and the teasing between them and yet the twins' protectiveness ( especially Elladan's ) of Estel shone bright and true. And oh, Estel, you needn't have worried, your people *would* accept you, and more! Btw, that bit about Estel being Halbarad's love interest had me grinning like a loon lol. Author Reply: Thank you, layne! So glad you enjoyed this, and especially the bantering... I love writing brotherly teasing between these three. :) | |
| Estelcontar | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/5/2011 |
| A perfect ending to a most delightful tale. I'm so glad you expanded it. I like your Elladan, and can so understand him. His use of "litlest" as an endearment was just the right touch and a very subtle way of showing the special relationship which, I imagine, existed between the twins and Aragorn. Besides you did a great job of showing between the lines how both of them felt in relation to the Dúnedain of Arnor, and that is something rare to see in fan fiction. To my mind your young Aragorn is spot on. He feels as insecure as a young man suddenly burdened by the load of responsability thrust upon him must have felt, but, on the other hand, we also glimpse the humility, wiseness, and strength of mind that were so conspicuously present in the Aragorn we came to to know and love. Great story! Author Reply: Thank you, Estelcontar--so glad you liked the entire tale and the "expansion" parts. :) I love to think about the relationship between the twins and Aragorn... like you say, I'm sure it had to have been a special one, and very deep. And I do like writing the twins and their relationship with the Dunedain--there's such a special bond there and I agree completely that it gets overlooked in most fanfiction. Here's to filling that gap! :) | |
| Raksha The Demon | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/4/2011 |
| A lovely way to end this story, with Aragorn's meeting with Tom as sort of an odd but necessary precursor to his upcoming return to his own people. The future king having been helped and hosted by so ancient and powerful a spirit seems a fitting part of Aragorn's hero's journey. Aragorn is very realistically written here, bold, strong, but still very young and untested, and smart enough to be aware of that, and concerned as to how his people will react to him. Author Reply: Thank you, Raksha! So glad you liked the way the story wrapped up. I hadn't really thought about Aragorn's visit with Tom being a part of his "hero's journey" but in looking at it in light of your comment, I think I have to agree. It's really fascinating to think about what sorts of moments he had, what encounters and with whom, during his life that Tolkien never gives us the barest hint about. But he had to have been helped along his way by many folk, and it's fun to explore those possibilities. | |
| Minerva Organa | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/2/2011 |
| Well, this is the second time today you've left me with a huge silly grin on my face!!! I adored this last chapter especially...I love how realistically you've capture what Aragorn must have been feeling on the eve of his joining the Dunedain, as well as the interactions between him and the twins. And I loved the bit about Halbarad! A lovely ending to a lovely story :D. Author Reply: Thank you, Minerva! I do like leaving silly grins on people's faces. :) So glad you enjoyed the story. | |
| Linda Hoyland | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 6/1/2011 |
| I loved the way you incorporated Tolkien's own comments about Tom. I'm glad Aragorn had the twins to encourage him. A most enjoyable story. Author Reply: Thank you, Linda... so glad you enjoyed it! | |
| rs | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 5/31/2011 |
| Wonderful chapter. I love Aragorn's inquisitiveness on Tom Bombadil... so much childlike excitement. I think Tom brings that out in anybody that comes upon him. Love, love the relationship between Aragorn and the twins. The gestures of brotherly love (tapping Estel under the chin); the joking around of Aragorn's "union"; the endearment "littlest" makes their relationship so true to life and conjures up so many "brotherly" moments in my mind. **melts*** Letters to and from Halbarad?; visits from Halthir and Halbarad in Rivendell? Sounds like a "heads up" for a new story. If it is..can't wait!!! I chuckled at the image of the twins gnawing on the coney and trying to ignore the unpleasant taste of Estel's cooking. They were definitely hungry! Very enjoyable story. Author Reply: Thank you, RS! So glad you enjoyed this last chapter, and yay, made you melt! *g* I love writing brotherly moments, whether it's between actual brothers or friends-close-as-brothers. And yes, the visit from Halthir and Halbarad foreshadows another story--thought technically it doesn't foreshadow this story internally, since the visits take place when Estel is only ten. But it definitely refers to a story that I've been working on for quite a while, telling of Halbarad's coming of age. Thanks for reading this, and for reviewing! Until next time! | |
| Mirach | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 5/30/2011 |
| I really didn't expect the twins to show up here! Their care for their little brother was really touching, as well as amusing in places. When speaking among themselves, they were just amusing - as I would expect after a few hundreds years of being twins. With the joke about Halbarad, I almost thought Elrohir has overstepped the boundaries, as his love must be quite sensitive topic to Aragorn (daydreaming about Arwen and not paying attention to the way shows that), so I'm gklad he didn't continue in that line of conversation. There is a great range of moods that Aragorn goes through in this chapter - from enthusiastic and then anxious Estel (he really looked very young in the first part of the chapter), to the determined Aragorn. The first step on the long, long journey that awaits him yet, ending with yet another name - Elessar. Author Reply: Thank you, Mirach! I wondered if I'd surprise readers by jumping ahead to the rendezvous with the twins. :) But I felt I'd wrung all I could from Tom Bombadil, and it was time to nudge Aragorn closer to his destiny, even if it did cause him to panic a little. And no, Aragorn would *not* have let Elrohir continue on in that vein... I think he was quite serious in his threat to pound Elrohir into dust, and I think by that point in his life, he was strong enough to do just that. But it was only the sort of brotherly teasing that goes on among those who are very close. Glad you enjoyed the story! | |
| Inzilbeth | Reviewed Chapter: 3 on 5/30/2011 |
| This is has been a delightful story from start to finish though I do think this last chapter is my favourite. The easy relationship between Aragorn and his foster brothers is great fun and I love the last line especially. I feel you've captured perfectly the essence of a young man on the cusp of adulthood, determined to fulfil the expectations required of him yet understandably nervous at the scale of the responsibilities so unexpectedly laid upon him. A truly wonderful birthday gift. Thank you so much. Author Reply: Thank you, Inzilbeth! It was a great pleasure to write it for you! I don't know which is my own favorite chapter but I did like writing the twins and Aragorn together; there's always such scope there for meaty discussions and good banter, and I do like to think of them as always being there for Aragorn, looking after him and cheering him when needed. And calming his nerves! :) Thanks for the review! | |