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Tailings and Tales  by Canafinwe 13 Review(s)
KathReviewed Chapter: 4 on 2/17/2016
Another truly absorbing story! I try to ration myself to a bit at a time, but just had to finish it! No one writes about Aragorn like you do, such an honourable and principled hero. Can't wait to read more. Thank you so much for these stories.

obsidianjReviewed Chapter: 4 on 11/24/2015
What a lovely tale. I was hanging on every word just like Barliman. Did he ever realize that the storyteller was the same as all those years ago? You painted such a vivid picture of the inn and the atmosphere there that I could see it in my mind.

Author Reply: Thank you! No, Barliman hasn't worked it out yet... ;-)

RowanfairReviewed Chapter: 4 on 11/20/2015
As you may guess, I am truely caught in your enchantment by now. Another heart warming tale. Just can't stop reading... Poor Aragorn - will you ever leave him just whole and sound? I admit it took some time to realize the primary Barliman to be the senior. And I admire your skill to display well known characters in a refreshing new way through the eye of another. Theoden this time. Thank you for sharing all this!

Author Reply: Thank you! I'm glad you liked this offering, and the chance to explore a different perspective.

LarnerReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/19/2015
Ah, but definitely the perfect end to that story! Love Barliman here, proving himself to be anything but as niggardly as his father! But he's still ignoring his own recognition as well as the fact that Strider here was badly wounded. He's the beginnings of the Barliman we know and love!

Thanks for the tales, both the one involving Barliman and the tale within the tale as well!

curiouswombatReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
What an excellent story - I enjoyed the glimpse into the Butterbur family life, and Barliman's father, and especially I liked the way this fits so nicely with The Devilry of Edoras to tell us more of Aragorn's life as Thorongil.

Author Reply: Thank you so much! It was fun to write this little backstory for The Pony. I'm pleased you liked the tie-in with DoE: I couldn't leave Thorongil as a lowly soldier forever. ;-)

AromeneReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
Well, Aragorn may be a good storyteller, but you're even better! Wonderful story; I've thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

Author Reply: WOW! High praise indeed. Thank you: so glad you liked the story!

shireboundReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
*applauds* I enjoyed this story very much. Oh, how it will shock Barli's entire world to later learn that Strider has become King! A tale for another time, perhaps... :)

Author Reply: Thank you so much! I've got a post-War piece around that very idea in the works. Some day....

someoneReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
Great tale within the tale! I like how Butterbur gradually accepts that Strider just might know the right story. However, I pity the sergeant: at once thrown into a jail and then unable to tell what had happened. Is it possible that Thengel would have known who to blame and was testing the captain, or would he really have punished The Eagle for finding the prince? I was surprised that a soldier in Rohan can't tell the truth if it harms his captain, even in something like a court of justice. I'm glad that there were no repercussions for riding one of the maeras, but that may be because no one but Theoden knew.

Barliman is a good man, letting his dishwasher eat what he wants and even before doing the dishes. I can't agree with his way of disposing of the guests' washing water, though. It may be easier to chuck it out of the window, but really, now he has bloody snow in a very visible place in the courtyard. Better to choose a single place out of sight.

I wonder, did Aragorn expect to hear that the ranger who had nearly broken his word was himself? And I'm still smiling at the thought of Thorongil standing in front of Thengel with straw in his hair.

Thank you for this story!

Author Reply: Thank you! I'm sure it seemed a bit too much to hope for that this Strider might *actually* know the story...

Yes, poor sergeant! That code of silence would not be entrenched in law, but instead it is one of the unspoken rules of conduct in many such armies from our own history: questioning a superior officer did not become generally acceptable until well into the 20th century. So Thorongil risked the King's wrath, but ensured he would not be ostracized. And I do not doubt that things would have gone ill for the Captain had he not been honest: after all, saving the heir to the throne outweighs the act of disobedience. As for the transgression of riding the mare... if indeed Théoden had any clear recollection of it, the grave stakes would have justified it in Thengels' eyes. Delighted that you like that final image of disheveled Thorongil! Kind of adorable...

You're very right about the wash-water! But it's so VERY pre-modern to do it that way...

And no! Aragorn did not suspect that he might have been the almost-breaker of promises.

Cheers!

CelethReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
I feel pretty much like the way Barliman must have felt, sitting there before the unknown (to him) Ranger and hanging on each word, so engrossed with the story that it takes a while for him to realize that the storyteller has finished. And then feeling sad because it is over.

I keep thinking of that moment when he exclaimed about "Strider, him with the golden cup and all!" towards the end of LOTR when Gandalf and the hobbits bring him the news of Strider's coronation, and incidentally, when he admits that "those Rangers" were not so bad after all.

Thank you again for this lovely story. I love the way you portray Strider and Barli, and the way they interact, consistent with LOTR. Hoping for more stories...

Author Reply: Thank you so much! I"m glad you were able to enter into the story.

I love his exclamation about Strider's golden cup! It's such a wonderful, triumphant moment on all fronts! It's the chief reason I like Butterbur and feel compelled to write about him. Your kind feedback is so very much appreciated!

MattReviewed Chapter: 4 on 9/12/2015
Nicely done, and a great story to show how Aragorn's travels taught him to understand the lot of the weak and disadvantaged. Thanks loads for your hard work on this.

Author Reply: Thank you so much. It's a part of the ancient mythic concept of the Good King: that knowledge of the lot of the least of his subjects. I'm glad you enjoyed the story and took from it that important concept. Cheers!

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