Stories of Arda - Lord of the Rings Fan-Fiction Archive


	About Us News Resources Login Become a member Help Search

Paths of Memory by daw the minstrel	74 Review(s)
Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/21/2004
PS On rereading - there are some great Eilian comments 'it can be hard to stop him' - can't it just. I don't think Thranduil would disagree. 'children had to make noise sometimes, and this one especially' Thranduil seems more tolerant of it in the elfling Eilian. (It's great to see some Thranduil / Eilian moments that are clearly full of love rather than disapproval.) '“Nana says you worry,” the child confided, “and I should not scare you.' Prophetic. And Ithilden - “When Nana is here, I am too big, but when she is gone, I need it,” I wonder what he needed to comfort him when Nana had gone somewhere she wouldn't return from. Author Reply: "It's great to see some Thranduil / Eilian moments that are clearly full of love rather than disapproval." That's exactly what my beta said. :-) And I did it was funny that Eilian thinks that what would scare his father is riding the sled, when really it's Eilian himself who scares the wits out of him. It's hard to see who Ithilden turned to when Nana died. Even Eilian had Maltanaur. Although I guess Ithilden wound up with Maltanaur for a sort time too. But I don't think either one of them was comforted completely until they married.

Antigone Q	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/21/2004
Oh, my goodness! This was so sweet and amusing. I loved Eilian trying to bring the bucket of mud inside the house (I agree with him that otters are great fun to watch), and the glimpse of the little Ithilden missing his "bankie." I could see in this story how well Thranduil and Lorellin balanced each other as parents. Author Reply: Thank you, Antigone. I was afraid it was a little too "sweet" so I'm glad it was amusing too. I had a good time imaging Ithilden in particular being little enough to need a bankie. And I could just see Eilian wanting to join the otters.

Bodkin	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
I'm glad to see that, even in early childhood, Eilian knew that rules are there to be bent. Just collar the guard from the door and then you are not going to the river alone! Thranduil was still at the point of having an inner elfling here - before later tragedy soured him on light-hearted risk-taking. It casts an interesting light on the Thranduil / Oropher relationship - perhaps there is more of Thranduil in Eilian than often appears. And little Ithilden is adorable - before the weight of responsibility crushed much of his simple enjoyment of life out of him. He is such a typical first-born: hard-working, responsible, anxious to please - old before his time. And come to that, Eilian has all the problems of a middle child - never good enough, responsible enough, hard-working enough to be Ithilden, but too old to be the baby, and needing to be a good example and nothing he does ever quite matches up. And Legolas is the baby - amiable, good-natured, but nobody ever lets him grow up. The series of pictures of Thranduil, Lorellin and the elflings are lovely. Legolas and his Nana like autumn leaves is such a wonderful vision of carefree childhood in a beautiful setting - and will, I'm sure, in future years be one that Thranduil likes to get out. The little Ithilden moment is one to treasure. Yet even here there is an echo of the grown up troop commander who likes everything to be just so. All the elfling recollections are of a world where Ada can set things to rights and Nana provides love and security. Very happy . . . except the beginning, with the dead warrior and the wounded, and the end with the Eilian who has been drinking. And people only tend to wallow in happy memories to bolster them up against nasty things in the present. I dread to think. A lovely tale. Look forward to part 2 - and to whatever comes next. Author Reply: You are so right! I was surprised myself to realize that there might be something of Thranduil in Eilian. He seems so much his mother's child usually. And I keep reminding myself that Eilian was a child of the Peace. That must have made some difference in how people around him acted. I was interested in your analysis of the sons' personalities and family placement. I didn't do that consciously but it sure seems to match up. I thought about Legolas dancing like a leaf last week when my husband and I were out to dinner at a restaurant that is upstairs. We were seated next to a window and I could see in the window of a dance studio across the street where little girls where hopping around. They were so cute! I amused myself by giving Ithilden a security blanket. Wouldn't the troops just love to know that!

Rose Sared	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
Oh you are the master of family relationships. Lovely vignettes of the very young elves, but what is going on with Elian this time? too much wine does not sound good. 'nuther great tale Rose Author Reply: Thank you, Rose. I enjoyed writing them right up until the point where suddenly the cuteness got overwhelming. :-) There's another chapter coming where all will eventually be revealed.

Manderly	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
What a touching chapter! I believe this is the first glimpse we have of Ithilden as an elfling (kind of hard to imagine, actually, that he did not emerge from Lorellin's womb a full grown warrior/commander) and what a 'sweetling' he is. 'Bankie'? Ithilden? For a while I thought you were writing about Legolas, right up until the part where Thranduil bends down to kiss the 'dark' hair. And then I started grinning like an idiot. Eilian I recognized right away, and he had me laughing too. It was so easy for Thranduil to laugh and find joy in this second son's antics when he was an elfling. What changed along the way? Legolas as an elfling we have seen enough in your stories, but he is no less sweet here, and it is so nice to see him with Lorellin. They really didn't have much time together, did they? One last thing, I really like the way the elflings were demanding and commanding their ada. Kids do that a lot and they tend to get away with it, even if the one they are commanding and demanding from is the king. Author Reply: I am so glad I fooled you about Ithilden! I was hoping that would happen. It was hard for me to picture Ithilden with a bankie too. But it was fun to try and see him as a little one. I'm also glad you recognized Eilian. I was trying to make the adult visible in the child, particularly in that case. I think that Thranduil's and Eilian's relationship was easier when he was little. I'm guessing that as he got older, Thranduil's worry outweighed his amusemenet, and then adolescence must have been very tough on them. Poor Legolas had very little time with Nana. And she doted on all three of them. And you are so right about kids being commanding. Maybe they're just imitating the way they're spoken too or maybe they don't have the language skills to speak otherwise, but they sure do seem to order one around. Freud speaks of "his majesty, the baby" enthroned on his mother's lap, and I think you still see a little of that here.

The Karenator	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
For some reason I feel like crying after reading this. their trust in a world that seemed to him to have gone awry. The grief is palpable...or at least, I think it is. I've lost my confidence after my Eilian blunder. But I suppose that even when bad things happen, there are sweet memories of better times. Each of the snippets were so well done. The details were just lovely. The fall of autumn leaves, the lost bankie, and a bucket of mud were great memories for Thranduil to return to. The family bond was strong. You may tell the ranger that I saw where my name has been taken in vain. I learned my lesson the last time. Mum's the word. I'll behave. Wonderful, your minstrelship. Just wonderful. Karen Author Reply: Don't you feel that way about children sometimes? Like they're so hopeful and trusting and you wish they could stay that way? Sigh. You're probably right about whatever you're guessing. You were right the last time too -- eventually. :-) These are good memories. Thranduil can see a sweet, sort of idyllic time here. If you saw the Ranger's review, then I don't need to tattle to make trouble! I'm hoping she's writing too.

esamen	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
Now he paused at the top of the steps leading down from the doors and looked across the green at the brilliantly colored trees, flaming red, orange, and yellow. He inhaled the scent of wood smoke and fallen leaves. This whole chapter was a complete joy. I went over to the website hoping to find something good -- and this was posted! oh, it's gorgeous. Except how on earth can you leave us hanging, wondering why Eilian was drinking so heavily? Had Lorellin just died? Brilliant, just brilliant. I loved all the flashes of memory and the way I had to guess which son Thranduil was remembering. Beautiful details. But most of all, I loved the quote about the trees turning color and smelling the woodsmoke. Oh, that's autumn, and I am missing it so much. Enjoy it for me, northerner. Thanks for writing it in. Author Reply: I'm so glad you enjoyed guessing which son it was. I was hoping people would have fun with that. I deliberately started with Legolas so readers would think that blankie-boy was him too and then be surprised. :-) I love autumn. It's getting a little late in it here, as you probably remember, and things are getting wet and cold. But my drive to work was beautiful yesterday -- everything gold and orange and this sort of muted sunlight. I love the light at this time of year.

French Pony	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
Interesting. I like it. I like the sense of little flashes of memory and the general overarching sense that, as Miss Clavel might have said, Something Is Not Right. Thranduil is very disoriented tonight (and I'll bet it's not because he has a State Of Research Report on Stravinsky's Le sacre du printemps due next week, either), and Eilian has been drinking heavily. I'm going to take a wild guess and say that probably Legolas is not much older now than he is in the picture, and that something awful has recently happened to Nana. As much of each of those memories are about the children, they are also about Nana. She is the constant in each of those pictures (how Eilian and Legolas must have been so proud when they were finally old enough to have portraits drawn with Nana, too!). And the memories feature Lorellin as Thranduil loves to remember her -- lively and playful and completely understanding of children and of adas who can still connect with their inner children. Eilian should try to remember the indoor sledding when he is feeling cross with Thranduil, and Thranduil should occasionally remind himself that this elfling still needs to make noise occasionally. The dance of the twirling cloaks reminded me very much of one chapter of Bambi, the original novel -- have you read it? It puts Disney's bowdlerization to shame. There is one short chapter that consists entirely of two leaves in the autumn having a conversation about aging, death and the hereafter, just before the wind blows one down in mid-sentence. I refuse to believe that Lorellin's red cloak is a coincidence. It sounds as though Ithilden probably still needs his blankie. I'll bet that his blankie met the same fate as mine -- irretrievably lost before he could put it aside voluntarily. Author Reply: Thank you, French Pony. These memories do seem to be about what Thranduil sees as a golden time with his children and their mother. He seems at ease with them, even Eilian. And yes, they both need to remember that sometimes. I have read Bambi, although it's been a long time. There were sequels too as I recall about his children. His daughter learned to trust men too much when a hunter took her in as a fawn? I think that was it. As for your blankie's fate: that's what your parents told you happened to it! ;-)

elliska	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
Oh that was wonderful. I absolutely love the glimpses into Ithilden and Eilian's childhood. That is a rare treat. I was sompletely surprised it was Ithilden who was searching for the blanket and I can just see Thranduil and Eilian roaring down stone stairs on a sled inside the palace. Thranduil thought Cook would have stories to tell over a bucket of mud. Wait until he sees the king go flying down stairs on a sled! Priceless. Better even funnier is the image of Oropher doing it with Thranduil. I am very glad this had another chapter. You should do more things like this. I love to see the childhoods of the older sons with Thranduil. Author Reply: Thank you, Elliska. I've been searching for ways to write about the childhoods of the older sons but it usually means leaving Legolas out and I hate to do that because my OCs are out of control enough already! So I've had to make do with memories and flashbacks. And here I was pleased because I was even able to allude to Thranduil's childhood. I too was surprised that Ithilden had a bankie. Who knew?

Nilmandra	Reviewed Chapter: 1 on 10/20/2004
The beta can't say much, since she knows the end, but she is pleased. :-) Author Reply: I'm glad you liked it. I nearly needed an insulin shot while writing it, but then I felt better when you more or less gave me permission to let the angst out!

First Page | Previous Page | Next Page | Last Page

Return to Chapter List