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| Paths Taken by daw the minstrel | 33 Review(s) |
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| erunyauve | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Aw, Legolas was not so rotten, though I can understand Ithilden's frustration. I've done enough babysitting to know the horrors passing before his eyes. Of course, the snake was a bit much. After I finished screaming and running away in terror, I think I would cheerfully strangle the little elf. Still, Ithilden is just a bit bossy, so he deserves some of the blame. He could have handled the dagger more tactfully. Author Reply: Yeah, I kind of felt sorry for Legolas too. He is behaving badly, but I think I have had to tell Ithilden to shut up too if he kept after me like that. | |
| Antigone Q | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| P.S. Where the heck did Legolas get a dagger from, anyway? Turgon? Author Reply: I hadn't actually figured out where the dagger came from, but Turgon is a mighty good guess! | |
| Antigone Q | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Believe it or not, you are making me want to go camping with all your descriptions of cooking fish and trees and bird noises. And nude Elves. No, wait, we don't have any of those in the Pacific Northwest. Sigh. Too bad ;-) I hope Legolas has fun hunting the deer. I remember my first - and last - hunting trip. I was about 12, and I was so excited to be able to go with the adults, but when the deer got shot it didn't die right away, and I ended up by crying about the dead deer pretty much all three hours home. Ithilden isn't having an easy time with his little brother. No big surprises there - I remember the doubtful look Annael had when he said it would be "fun" for Legolas to go camping with Ithilden. They are certainly at cross purposes: Legolas wants to grow up and be a warrior and do all the things his brothers do, and Ithilden wants to keep him safe from that as long as possible. Legolas is certainly doing things that might be dangerous, and I can see why Ithilden gets annoyed. That being said, nobody, whether a child or not, likes to be ordered around in a severe tone or asked to do things without a polite "please" or "thank you," or even an explanation. Ithilden talks to Legolas as if he is commanding troops, and needs to remember that his little brother is not one of his warriors. And whether Legolas deserved a swat or not is beside the point, to my way of thinking: Thranduil has gone a long way out of his way to avoid punishing his son physically, and I'm not sure he would have given Ithilden license to do so. I hope Ithilden will calm down a little and think about adjusting his tactics: the ones he is using right now are not working very well, after all, and Ithilden does know something about strategy, if nothing else. Poor Ithilden and Legolas. I hope tomorrow will be better for them. Maybe a good night's rest will help. Then again, I've just looked at the summary of the story. Maybe a good night's rest will only lead to a much more interesting day. Author Reply: How do you know there are no nude Elves in the Pacific Northwest? Have you looked? ;-) Hunting does not sound like something I'd enjoy, frankly, but I think in Legolas's culture, it would be one of the things the adults do, not for fun, but to provide food. It would earn the hunter respect. And I think that's what he wants. You have put your finger exactly on what Ithilden is doing wrong: he treats Legolas BOTH like a little kid and like one of his warriors. Legolas needs to have someone explain things to him. When Ithilden explained why they couldn't scout from the trees at first, he then stayed on the ground and close to Ithilden. He was rude about it at first, but he did it. Ithilden should think about that! He also should think about his temper. | |
| Ms. Whatsit | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Oh, I'm totally on Legolas's side here. Ithilden's not very good at the whole "older sibling" thing, is he--older siblings wield authority by being *cooler* than parents, not by trying to *be* parents, and certainly not by getting all hot and bothered about a silly grass snake! It's not like the thing was *dangerous*, for heaven's sake. The correct response would have been to play a revenge prank on Legolas. I was laughing when Legolas told Ithilden to shut up. Ithilden doesn't get told that often enough, I bet. He needs an uppity younger sib to keep him humble. Author Reply: Oh these reviews are so interesting! Some folks sympathize with Ithilden and some with Legolas. I must have done something right in the chapter! :-0 The sibling you are describing is currently busy being the captain of the Southern Patrol. Ithilden desperately needs someone to tell him to stop trying to control everything and for pity's sake shut up! | |
| Lera | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| I'm kind of sad. The day started off so well and they had fun swimming. However they both contributed to the blow up at the end of the day. Ithilden was so happy that Legolas's mood had improved and he was promptly doing his chores, but all I could think was, Wow, Legolas is certainly reacting well to Ithilden ordering him around. There is such a thing as politeness. It would not hurt Ithilden to ask, even though he still has the right to expect Legolas to do it. Then, I bet Legolas wouldn't have strayed from his adar's side when they were hunting. And you think he would have seen that he'd scared Ithilden and a little apology from him would have helped the situation. The whole dagger thing...all Legolas wants is to be grown up. I admit it is dangerous, but if I'd been Ithilden I'd have let Thranduil handle it. But then that's not really in Ithilden's nature is it? The snake did not help things. I would probably be seeing Legolas's point of view more than Ithilden's right now, if I did not have a younger sister who exasperates me to no end. I would love to be friends all the time, but I've lived longer and am wiser so I feel she should just respect that and listen to me. I usually regret it afterwards. And I admit I've felt like slapping her. The farthest I've ever gone is shaking her though. I didn't think Legolas deserved a spanking. It probably was a bit of a shock considering that's not Thranduil's usual form of punishment. I think you've said that. What made you decide Elves didn't really use physical punishment? But anyway, Legolas has pulled enough stunts that I'm surprised Thranduil hasn't spanked him before, but it was definitly not Ithilden's place. You can kind of respect your parent's right to do it, but not your brother's. Then it's just embarrissing and definitly didn't help their relationship. Author Reply: I felt the same way, Lera. The two of them sometimes seemed so happy together and then things kept going way wrong. And Ithilden does order Legolas around as if he were one of his warriors. That's not what Legolas needs! He's just a kid (something Ithilden is quick enough to remind him of). I've often wondered how the big age differences between elves affected their sibling relationships. Ithilden can't help but feel a little paternal toward Legolas, but they both know he's not Legolas's father. I think I decided that elves were too wise to spank their kids, but Thranduil may be rethinking that! | |
| Manderly | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Ahh, kids, you've got to love them even though you would like to throttle them most of the time. Ithilden is finding out first hand what Thranduil had warned of earlier, that an elfling is more difficult to control than all the troops of Mirkwood put together. At least Ithilden can smack his little brother's behind for such insolence, something I doubt he ever had to do with his warriors. Legolas is being a brat, but so typical of a child his age, one minute an angel and the next, the child from Mordor. You've captured it brilliantly. Being a parent myself, my sympathy is with Ithilden here. Thankfully, my kids are now beyond that age, but sometimes I find myself thinking back to those days with some nostalgia. Childhood is really too short sometimes. Author Reply: Why is it that childhood seems to last forever while your kid is in a bad period, but when you look back, you can see it flew by? I wrote this chapter from Ithilden's point of view because I'm interested in figuring him out better, and Legolas does certainly look like a brat. But I could also see that if I told it from Legolas's point of view, Ithilden would come across looking like a jerk. The sad thing is they had these nice moments but couldn't sustain them. | |
| French Pony | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Yeah, I'm siding with Legolas here. Ithilden really is being too uptight about things. Whacking your little siblings is only done to establish proper dominance, never as punishment for stupidity. Simple mockery takes care of that well enough. Ithilden seems to be trying to be a parent here, but he does not now and never will have that parental je ne sais quois that will get Legolas to obey him. He's not ada, and it's no use him acting like it. He also needs to let his hair down and be a kid along with Legolas. Or maybe at six hundred years old, he's forgotten how. Nah, that's not it. Ithilden was born grown up. Still, fresh fish for breakfast! I know you don't like fish, but first thing in the morning when they were alive not half an hour before you eat them, they are delicious. My grandfather taught me to catch and clean fish, although we mostly got sunfish and perch from the pond we used. So when do the Elves start carrying boot daggers? Is that a coming-of-age thing? Do the girls pack heat, too? It's probably a good thing for Ithilden's blood pressure that switchblades haven't been invented yet, because Legolas would surely get his hands on one of those. Probably a begetting day present from Turgon. And once again, Ithilden handled the dagger issue wrong. Prime blackmail material, and he wasted it in scolding and confiscation. Someone needs to go back to Big Sibling Training. Author Reply: You are so funny about the older sib thing, FP! I'll pass your advice along to Ithilden. I figure the daggers are like a high school thing and Legolas is a little squirt middle-schooler. So that would be about 35. And in my world, no one enters the woods unarmed, although I would say that the girls probably carry knives attached to their belts (just like Legolas does even now). | |
| Duchess | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| I laughed at the snake in Ithilden's bag and was very surprised that he actually hit Legolas over it, the creature was harmless after all. Thranduil has had far more provocation and never hit the boy. I'm betting Legolas goes off on his own during the night or some other equally foolish thing. *sigh* WHY do kids all have to go through this rebellious stage? It's not fair to them or the parents...or the siblings. *giggle* Great part! Loved it a lot. *vbg* Author Reply: The whole day just added up for Ithilden, who tends to be a bit of a control freak, and he lost it. He was so sure he would be a "good influence"! I'd guess that Legolas has not yet learned his lesson (judging from the 'shut up') so you could be right. | |
| Nilmandra | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| I have been pondering the question of what it would take for me to tell Ithilden to shut up...and have decided Legolas is very brave or very stupid. Judging by age, I'm gonna go with stupid. Poor dumb elfling. Poor deluded Ithilden. I think they definitly ended the day on a 'down'. At home, Thranduil is sitting back with a nice glass of wine.....and laughing one minute and beseeching Elbereth to protect the brat the next. Author Reply: Thranduil was wise enough and experienced enough to see this coming. And busy as he is, he manages things at home so they don't get to this pass. I feel sorry for Legolas but I wouldn't want to be Ithilden. I'd rather be home with Ada and the wine! | |
| rikki | Reviewed Chapter: 4 on 5/9/2004 |
| Oh my, the pre-teen monster has awoken! Legolas has an attitude that Ithilden never even dreamed about. I don't think that Legolas deserves a spanking, but he certainly needs the fear of what could go wrong put on him. They are not near the palace and there are no guards if something goes wrong here. No wonder Thranduil was warning Ithilden about taking care of Legolas before they left. At least Ada recognizes the symptoms and after two other sons has some experience. It is funny in a way to have read about Legolas when he is older and his strong sense of duty and obedience, and read here about his rebellious tweens. Good portrayal of the older brother younger brother interaction. Author Reply: Thank you, Rikki. I have to admit that as I was writing this I was feeling sorry for Legolas too because I could absolutely see his point of view. Ithilden just keeps on him! But of course, Ithilden is right. Legolas is rushing headlong into danger. But then, Ithilden is just so determined to control things. Maybe another tack would work better. I can't work any worse! | |