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Elf Academy Part Deux by Fiondil	16 Review(s)
Laikwalâsse	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/1/2013
the secret not a secret anymore! Hopefully Alex is worth the trust, yet he has taken the revelation quite calm. I would have freaked out to be in one room with so many ancient and dangerous people and yet how I wish to change place with Alex. I´m eager to read on how Alex will handle his new knowledge. I´m not so sure though if Glorfindel would let Alex go when he would tell all world their secret? Wonderful chapter and good to hear their real names. Lai Author Reply: Hi Lai. We'll see how ALex handles this new knowledge in the next chapter. Right now he's a bit stunned and probably can't process anything coherently. Thanks for reviewing. It's very much appreciated.

Kitty	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 4/5/2012
Really, Amroth could have at least reassured poor Alex that he didn't hurt anyone, instead of letting him freak out. Have the Elves still not learnt to give a straight answer? But you know, the fact that Alex was so worried that he could have hurt someone again says a lot about him. He may be a trained killer, but he's still got a good heart. Hm, that answers my question if everyone sees the images when Daeron is singing, or if it was only Alex. So most people do. Still, Alex's reaction to the Lay of Leithian seems to have been even more intense. It's hard to understand how he could talk in a language he doesn't even really understand yet, or at least in a dialect not existing any longer. Racial memory? Makes sense, I suppose, though it's still strange. Ron seems to think along the same line as me, wondering if he could be a descendant of the Dúnedain, or even the Elves by way of Arwen. Btw, I was glad to know that the Elves could save at least some of the people there by taking the people of Arnor and Dol Amroth with them. What happened to the Gondorians and Rohirrim, I wonder? So the cat is finally out of the bag ... While I didn't like the thought that he wanted to deal with them this way, considering his background I guess it's only normal that he did. He's trained to deal with dangerous terrorist groups, after all. Luckily, he gave them the chance to at least explain. When you put it like that, I mean what Alex is thinking of his interactions with Amroth, saying Amroth was once a king sounds even more weird grin Oh. When Alex brought up that Daeron had betrayed Luthien, I had to go and look it up. While I have read that part of the Silmarillion, I had completely forgotten who it was. Glad the twins don't hold it against him, we all know what these grudges lead to, after all. When you said Serindë was born at the beginning of this age, I always thought she was around 2000 years old. Seems I was mistaken and have to add a few millennia. Not that it makes much of a difference ... Author Reply: Hi Kitty. Well, Elves are Elves and there's not much you can do to change them. And Alex is responding as a typical agent in a threatening (to him) situation, but he's decent enough to give the Elves a hearing without rushing to judgment. A lot of people have forgotten about Daeron and his role in the lives of Lúthien and Beren, so you're not alone. And as Elrohir says, it was ages ago and the Twins weren't even alive at the time, so why should they hold a grudge. In one respect, if it hadn't been for Daeron, the Twins might never have been born. And I count the Seventh Age from the founding of the first Sumerian cities about 6,000 to 7,000 years ago. So Serindë is about as old as Elrond is when we meet him in the Lord of the Rings, just to give you some perspective. grin Thanks for commenting. It's much appreciated.

AleiTheLeaf	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 4/3/2012
I've been horribly remiss with not leaving reviews, and it's high time that I did. This chapter was fantastic! I like the intricacies of how you wove Gordon's different aspects of his personality into his reactions- it was very believable. Additionally, I loved the "And you didn't kill him?" line paired with Daeron's reaction. It was a great way to change the tone of the conversation and was funny due to its delivery. Continually lurking, ~AleiTheLeaf Author Reply: Hi Alei. That's okay. I'm glad you liked the chapter and found it fantastic. I appreciate you taking the time to let me know. Thanks.

someone	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/31/2012
Finally, the secret is out! "Racial memory"? Well, no matter the reason, that was the oddest reaction from Alex so far. You scared me for a minute with "And it was Artemus Gordon Meriwether who won out.", because I really thought that I had understood Alex' character wrong. Luckily, the Alex part of him took over in the end. It would have actually been disappointing, if he had believed and joined their conspirancy immediately, this was more realistic reaction from an agent. It must have been a shock to realize that his former teacher was actually a king. "He glanced at the Twins again. "And you let him live?" he asked in all seriousness. Daeron paled even more--" That was actually funny. It really seems odd that Daeron and the twins are friends, but is Daeron actually afraid of them?! Good thing that the twins don't have a problem with the less... nice characters from their family history. But when you start thinking about it, without Daeron's meddling Luthien and Beren might not have had to fetch the Silmaril, Eärendil would never have had it and no one could have reached Valinor without it, so perhaps Daeron can be forgiven. Author Reply: Hi someone. Yes, the secret is finally out. And the 'racial memory' angle will play an important role in the story as you will shortly see. It's easy to forget that 'Alex' isn't real, that he is just a facade for 'Artemus' who is very much real and very dangerous. And I agree that it would've been unrealistic for him to put aside all his doubts and instantly join the Elves, and I try to strive for reality where my characters are concerned as to how they would react to any given situation. I don't think Daeron is afraid of the Twins, but certainly Alex's question, rude on one level, must've taken him by surprise, thus his reaction. And, as you point out, even Daeron's 'meddling' served a greater purpose. Thanks for taking the time to read and review. I appreciate it very much.

obsidianj	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/31/2012
Oh, boy. That was quite a revelation. I think I need some help in understanding the history of Daeron. I read the story of Beren and Luthien, but I don't remember Daeron. Alex (I refuse to call him Gordon or even worse Artemus) is at a turning point. I hope he decides to work with the elves. His Artemus side can be of great help. If he decides to turn away from the elves, I don't know what they can do except for arranging an 'accident'. I think I have to draw up my own list of people and names. I can't get them all straight. Maybe it is because I read this in little installments and not in one sitting. Author Reply: Hi obsidianj. Quite a revelation, indeed. Daeron was in love with Lúthien and plays a minor but very important role in the story of Lúthien and Beren, essentially betraying them twice to Elu Thingol. Eventually, heart-broken when Lúthien chose to embrace mortality and cleave with Beren, he left Doriath, apparently never to be seen again, at least in Beleriand. Since his fate was never clearly stated by Tolkien, I decided he deserved to be 'resurrected' into the 21st century as the group's resident loremaster. Anyway, I know lots of people who make lists of names and geneologies to keep track of all the characters, so you aren't alone in not being able to keep them straight. Thanks for reading and reviewing. I appreciate it very much.

Siiw	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/30/2012
He got to hear Glorfindel's lullaby! I would love to hear Elven song once... I don't know what to write, this chapter was great. Author Reply: That's alright, Siiw. Just letting my know how much you enjoyed the chapter is music to my ears. Thanks for taking the time to let me know. I appreciate it. And I would love to hear an Elven song just once, too.

Soledad	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/30/2012
Wow! As revelations go, this is rather on the shocking side. Alex actually reacts better than most people would, I guess. But as this is only the beginning, I have the feeling that things can get a lot worse before they would start getting better. Beren, the one-handed dude. shakes head in amusement That would make a good title to a comical ballad. And poor Daeron... Author Reply: Hi Soledad. I think Alex was too far into shock to react otherwise and his training took over automatically. In his line of work, you learn to think fast when the situation goes pear-shaped in some way. We'll see how things go once the shock wears off. "Beren, the One-handed Dude" does sound like the start of a C&W song, doesn't it? grin Thanks for reading and reviewing. I appreciate it.

Lady Edlyn	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/30/2012
And we have the great Reveal! Oh, my goodness! I could cut the tension in this chapter with a knife! I was rather irritated with Amroth when he refused to answer Alex's "Ambrose, for the love of God, did I hurt anyone?". It wouldn't have taken more than a second or two to reassure Alex, whose worry was completely understandable since the last time he blacked out he thoroughly destroyed a room and caused a bunch of injuries. And the fact that that would be the first thing to come to Alex's mind bodes well for the type of person he is under all the years of training and being an agent. The way you wrote this was so well done, meldonya. I could feel what Alex was feeling through the whole chapter. I wasn't surprised that Artemus Gordon won out between the the two personalities. After all, he has had a lot more experience at having (figurative and literal) bombshells dropped on him. And this one was a doozy. For a short while I thought that something awful was going to happen but then Alex popped back up. This could have gone pear-shaped so badly, but the Elves' response to Artemus was un-threatening and reassured him that his personal freedom wasn't going to be abridged. All in all, I think Alex handled things far better than I would. And of course, Glorfindel used the tried and true anti-insomnia method he learned from Lord Namo to help Alex sleep. Too bad I can't call and ask him to sing to me when I'm suffering from insomnia! Brilliant work, meldonya! I'm looking forward to Monday's chapter very much. Hugs! Edlyn Author Reply: Hi Edlyn. I'm glad you found this chapter well written and very satisfying. And you're right that things could've gone badly if the Elves had responded to "Artemus' in a threatening manner. Luckily, they've had plenty of experience in dealing with Mortals who learn the truth about them. Thanks for taking the time to read and review. It's very much appreciated.

Lizbeth	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/30/2012
What a start to a chapter! I think I was almost as scared as Alex was that he had hauled off and attacked someone. I wonder why Amroth didn't reassure him sooner? "Revelation" is such a fitting name for this chapter, though perhaps it should have been plural, at least for me! grin Like Kaylee, I had forgotten about Daeron's betraying of Luthien. In reading your stories it's easy to sit back and just enjoy the characters and forget about the immense age of all the elves, and all the complications that come from living through history. Then you bring out a chapter like this, and I get mind-blown again. It's still enjoyable, of course, but all I can say is, "Wow." eyes wide Author Reply: And two years later, I actually get around to answering your review, Lizbeth. I have no idea how I managed to miss it. Sorry about that. It's easy to forget the minor but important characters like Daeron and the roles they played in Elvish history. And it's easy enough to forget just how immensely old these Elves are and what complications they've encountered in living through history as they have. Anyway, please forgive me for not responding to this review earlier, and I hope I didn't miss any subsequent ones. I only found this one today because I'm re-reading the Elf, Academy series from the beginning to make sure there are no continuity problems that may have cropped up between one book and the next as I finish up with Elf Academy 3 and start working on Elf Academy 4.

Lyana	Reviewed Chapter: 22 on 3/30/2012
Ahhhhhh - a very satisfying chapter! Lovely way to start a Friday. :-) Love the touch that Alex was reliving Beren's experience; seems fitting somehow - a young warrior, dogged by horror, wanders into an elven dream and is forever changed. Somehow, I think he'll do his ancestor proud. And love how he put the pieces together, learning about forgiveness and agelessness all at the same time. Very much looking forward to hearing Alex's internal dialogue on all that he's learned! Author Reply: Hi Lyana. I'm glad you found this a very satisfying chapter. Thanks for letting me know. I really appreciate it.

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