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No Man's Child by anoriath	3 Review(s)
Raksha The Demon	Reviewed Chapter: 65 on 2/15/2020
I'm not sure why Nienelen was chosen to be Aragorn's bride in the first place if she is a physical throwback to some distant Umbari ancestors - as blameless and worthy as Nienelen is, would not her dark skin and eyes be seen as potentially problematic if she should pass those traits along, particularly given Aragorn's hope to eventually reclaim the throne of Gondor? Wouldn't it have been better to choose another young woman and never put Nienelen through this ordeal? Prejudice does exist in Middle-earth as in our world. Now, with Nienelen's vow, there could be some hard times ahead for Gondor and Arnor due to Elenir's existence. I think if Nienelen is being short-sighted. If Aragorn divorces Nienelin, marries someone else and has fair-skinned kids; Elenir will still be a political liability. Either her father's descendants will kill hers; or the Umbari enemies of Gondor will seek out Elenir to capture and use as a royal pawn with which to claim sovereignty of Gondor. It would be best for Aragorn, if he becomes King of Gondor in this AU, to name Elenir his heir and marry her to a man of obvious Numenorean ancestry - a son of Dol Amroth or Ithilien. Or Aragorn could relinquish his claim on Gondor, rule the north as King of Arnor with Nienelen as his queen and Elenir as his successor. Arnor hasn't faced as many Haradrim incursions, its people would probably be more likely to accept Elenir as a future queen than would the people of Gondor. Is there any chance that Elrond and his sons could heal Nienelen so she could have another child, hopefully a gray-eyed son? This story looks like it's going to end very sadly. Author Reply: I think, Raksha, these are all fascinating points. Uhm, lets see. I'm not sure why Nienelen was chosen to be Aragorn's bride in the first place if she is a physical throwback to some distant Umbari ancestors I kinda complicated things in this universe for Aragorn. Arnor's not a given, anymore. He's got to think about how to keep them unified with what he's going to have to do to keep the Shire safe - which is what I implied when he and Nienelen were talking in their aborted sexual encounter before they left the Angle. would not her dark skin and eyes be seen as potentially problematic if she should pass those traits along, particularly given Aragorn's hope to eventually reclaim the throne of Gondor Yes, but given his life experience of seeing how it worked in Arnor, he had some hope of getting through that. That's different than her life experience, where she's seen what happens when things are under stress. I'm not sure what Aragorn would think if he had to live through the last year in the Angle - but, by that point, anyway, he had given up on his aspirations for Gondor. I think if Nienelen is being short-sighted. Yes, I agree. But, I think they're caught between a rock and a hard place, with no terribly good choices, and I just can't see how Nienelen as a character could put her daughter in jeopardy - not after what happened to her son. btw: I think the complications of two lines of descent are pretty fascinating and would make for some interesting stories. I just wouldn't want to live them. Or Aragorn could relinquish his claim on Gondor, rule the north as King of Arnor with Nienelen as his queen and Elenir as his successor. I wonder, do you think Arnor would have much of a chance if it didn't receive support from a reunited kingdom? Even if Gondor's finest younger sons and opportunists don't make their way north to increase the population there, the threat of a Gondorian army marching on whoever dared assault his people in the Arnor would be a huge benefit for their security. Thanks Raksha :)

Robnrun	Reviewed Chapter: 65 on 2/10/2020
I'd been wondering how you would make this work. I've always been both intrigued and made uneasy by works that take Tolkien's 'high, grand, and remote' mythology and fit it into a more realistic world view. This has been a very interesting read, I'm glad that you have stuck with it! Author Reply: Thanks Robnrun. I'm glad to hear that you found it interesting. :)

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 65 on 2/9/2020
Now, this turn of events I did not imagine. It is a grief for her, but even more so for him, to know she anticipates that their daughter will suffer mightily for it if he does not take a different wife on whom to beget a rightful heir. Author Reply: Yeah, what can I say. Given Gondor's history of the Kinstrife as written by Tolkien and the attitudes he has even some of their most self-reflective and wise leaders express, the risk is starkly real. And it's a question of what is okay to ask someone to risk.... how far until we've crossed into the boundary of immorality. Thanks Larner. I've enjoyed watching you binge-read. :)

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