Grey Wonderer
· 28 June 2004
· Chapter 51: Regrouping
Now this could be interesting. Legolas visiting Opal and then maybe Rose if they allow her to. Looks like everyone is trying to help Opal. I'm so glad. I love Merry and Pippin talk about Merry's need to defend the family. Very good chapter.
Author's reply
I'm hoping to show that difficult and tragic as it may be, this particular tragedy may turn out very much for the best for Opal and her sisters.
Merry does indeed have a need to defend those he loves; and those he defends recognize this.
Bodkin
· 27 June 2004
· Chapter 51: Regrouping
Estella is not happy! Merry has a lot to do to redeem himself there!
Poor Opal - I'm glad her sisters are sticking by her. Amythest has a good point - with Hyacinth as a mother, they would hardly have been the most popular lasses at Great Smials. I'm glad Legolas has gone to see Opal - and that Rosie wants to visit her.
I think hobbits could probably talk for ever - so the assembly might go on rather. Frodo could expire from boredom before the end.
Author's reply
Yes, Merry will soon find out she is not happy. It will probably make a great deal more of an impression than his father's lecture.
Opal and her sisters have really never had anyone else. Their mother only saw them as something she could use, and their father, unfortunately only saw them as extensions of their mother. He's learning better, now. Opal is going to have a great deal of company.
The assembly is going to go on for a while. I have too many loose ends to tie up, and I can't have it end too soon, or I'll have to round everyone up again. 8-)
I don't think he will quite *expire* of it, but he is definitely finding it tedious.
Lyta Padfoot
· 25 June 2004
· Chapter 50: The Convocation Convenes
A fitting punishment for the Banks. Will we get to see Hyacinth actually evicted for her disloyalty? Wishing the heir to the landhold dead is pretty serious in a pre-industrial society. Poor Reggie and Opal, its going to be a tough road. I giggled at the decision to use the weregild to rebuild the inns, the hobbits have their priorities straight.
Author's reply
Yes, I thought it was fitting. I think the Shire tends to banish people from it, without much thinking about the fact that they have merely sent the troublemakers elsewhere to be someone else's problem.
I don't know that I will actually show Primrose and Peridot dragging her out and showing her the door, but they will definitely get her out of there. You are right, it is indeed pretty serious, more than it seems on the surface. And my take is that her disloyalty never abated. She probably had her fingers crossed every time Pippin was ill. I'm sure Eglantine is wondering what might have happened if she had ever needed to entrust Pippin to her care over the years. And don't you know she was dancing with glee when he was presumed dead during the Quest.
The inns may seem like a strange priority, but when you consider Shire society, there really is no other equivalent for gathering, sharing news, and exchanging viewpoints, quite aside from the hobbit obsession with food and drink. Not to mention the difficulty it must have made for travel. It was definitely one of Lotho's more sinister moves. A modern day equivalent would be like shutting down the newspapers, etc.
GamgeeFest
· 25 June 2004
· Chapter 50: The Convocation Convenes
That wasn't very proper of Sam to rub it in Merry and Pippin's faces. hehe. That was funny though. Sam won! And of course they should have listened to Frodo. Who knows Sam better than him? Except Rosie of course.
Poor Reggie. He must be exhausted by now, from lack of sleep and feeling guilty and frustrated about everything that happened. He and Opal both have long roads ahead of them. Hopefully it will bring them together and not tear them apart. I'll keep my fingers crossed.
"By teatime, the only two things that had so far been agreed to." - might want to reword that, to "there were only two things..." or something like that. It looks like you started out with one sentence and ended with another. I do that all the time. :)
Author's reply
No, it wasn't was it? Sam may still be fond of the word, but let's face it, post-Quest Sam is really *no longer* quite so proper as he would like to believe. Merry and Pippin can't resist a challenge; and maybe they were goaded,just a little bit, by a mischievous Elf?
Yes, Reggie and Opal do have a long way to go, but with Hyacinth out of the way, they might actually get somewhere.
Yes, I do like that wording a little better. To tell the truth I had a *lot* of interruptions while I was working on that chapter, so no telling what I had originally intended to say. I've been looking over some of the previous chapters, too. I will probably do a bit of tweaking and editing down the line.
My updates on Reckoning may slow a bit, as I also have a story due for Marigold's Challenge next week, and it's only half finished.
songspinner
· 25 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
I like how this story is going.
“You know, Merry, a lot of bad things happened to us on our journey--scary things, horrible things, painful things. But in a different kind of way, this hurts worse than any of that."
I can understand that, for Pip - it's very much in character for him, I think.
And I loved Sam's winning of the bet - I had to explain my giggles to my husband. :)
Author's reply
Thank you. It turned a lot more serious somewhere along the line than I had originally had in mind, but it just seemed right.
Yes, Pippin is one who always will give the benefit of a doubt; he wants to like people, and he always believes that they will like him unless he gives them reason not to. Most of the time this is a good philosophy, but every once in a while there is someone that this just will not work with.
Well, once his Mr. Frodo told him to do it, he would do it or burst. Merry and Pippin should have known how stubborn he could be, but they can't resist a challenge.
Lindelea
· 25 June 2004
· Chapter 50: The Convocation Convenes
Fascinating, and obviously well-thought-out.
I sneaked a peek at the latest chapter without reading anything that came before, for this story has fascinated me for some time now, and here I have been with too little "spare" time for the longest time.
I look forward to starting at the beginning and reading it through properly. Keep up the good work.
Author's reply
Thank you. Coming from you that is a great compliment! I hope you do enjoy it when you are able to take the time for it.
Anonymous
· 24 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
What a lovely story! I stayed up last night to 1:30 reading it through. I particularly like all the mini-climaxes that you build. And Chapter 29 was brilliant!
Author's reply
Thank you very much! I'm glad you liked it enough for that, and hope that you got enough rest and didn't have to be anywhere too early in the morning.8-)
I had to go check and see what I did in Ch.29--that's the one where word of the assembly was going around. I was not sure if it would work, but I'm glad it did. Thanks again for the great review!
Kitty
· 24 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
Poor Rippin, this was a hard blow for him. To know how nasty his own relatives are is not so easy. I'm relieved he is not alone and Merry will look after him, as did his mother for Bergil.
Frodo seems to take it not so bad - maybe this will help him a little bit not to see everything as his own fault, and not with the head only, but with the heart as well, which is an entirely other thing.
I'm curious what the men will do with the Bankses. Somehow I don't think they will take them to Gondor, they would frightening to death on the way.
The end made me smiling. Indeed, the week without saying the word is done. Will Sam use 'proper' now a bit more careful, or is still everything "not proper"? I think he should learn not to use it so often, if he will become Mayor of the Shire ;-)
Author's reply
Yes, as I have said, it's one thing to have enemies that are supposed to be enemies. It's quite another to have a "viper in the nest". But Pippin will never be alone as long as Merry's around. And I'm glad you liked the bit with Esmerelda and Bergil.
Unfortunately, we know that Frodo can't totally shake his emotional malaise. A result, I think, both of his trials with the Ring and Saruman's curse. But this is still during his first year home, and he is still able to have a few good times.
The Men will come up with a good solution for the Bankses, don't worry about that.
I'm glad it made you smile. It made me smile too. I think he will be a bit more careful with the word from here on out. Frodo's experiment was just meant to make him think a bit. And it may indeed help when he becomes Mayor.
Pervinca
· 24 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
It must have been so horrible for Pippin to hear that someone wished him dead. I'm so glad that you've given him Merry to look after him! I am also gald with the way you have decided to deal with the Banks brothers and Hyacinth. I suppose it was satisfying for you to decide their fates :P
- Pervinca
Author's reply
It was hard for Pippin. As I've pointed out, he tends to like everyone unless they give him reason not to. Finding out someone has hated him and wished he was dead ever since he was born has to be a bit of a blow. And Merry will always look after his Pip.
Once Hyacinth and the Bankses are done, I will very gladly dust my hands off! I had no idea my villains were going to turn out *quite* so villainous when I started them. Amazing how characters can do that!
Grey Wonderer
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
Poor Opal. She has a long road ahead of her. I was happy for Frodo and for dear Sam though. I think it's very *proper* that Sam got the last word in this chapter. It made me smile.
Author's reply
Yes, Opal does have a long road, and a rough one, but she may be surprised to find how many are willing to help her along it.
I wanted to end the chapter with a smile. I was getting tired of the misery, and ready for the day to be *over* with.
Bodkin
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
That's it, Sam. You say proper about 1,000,000 times today, just to show them - and then abandon the word for ever.
Sweet little Pippin - all that he has been through, with orcs and evil wizards and Dark Lords, and he can still lose sleep because his cousins are nasty - which he knew already. Shows some of his innocence survived intact.
I think the older hobbits need to have a word with Merry about discretion - not so much what he did or why, as when and where.
Poor Viola - what a horrible experience for her, but she seems to be dealing with it well. Opal is definitely getting the sympathy vote from the hobbit population, which should help her a bit.
Poor Men, being landed with the problem of the Bankses. Still they're diplomats - they will be able to come up with a satisfactory solution, even if it keeps them up all night.
Author's reply
I don't know that he will abandon it forever, but he will, perhaps not be quite so automatic in his use of it in the future. He'll at least consider if it's the best word to use in a given situation, which is probably all Frodo was hoping for.
Orcs, evil wizards and Dark Lords are not *supposed* to care about you. Your kinfolk supposedly *are*. I don't know how much of it is innocence, and how much the fact that Pippin really does care unless there is a reason he shouldn't, and he finds it difficult to understand people who don't.
Well, as you can see, Frodo and Pippin already remonstrated with him, and it looks as though his father is planning to. Yet would it have been better if he had taken them off in a hidden corner and done it? Perhaps, but somehow I can't see him doing that, either. But he will be learning that there are consequences to his action.
Viola knows that if she wants to be a healer, she will have to learn to deal with things like that. But it doesn't make it easier, which it shouldn't. Opal is getting sympathy from everyone, which may come as a surprise to her--do you suppose anyone has ever sympathized with her before?
Targon and Eothain are very quickly learning diplomacy. I know the solution, even if they haven't thought of it yet.
Bodkin
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Being eaten by a passing troll is one thing - still seems quite a good plan, though it might not do much for the plot! But hobbits are nicer than Men and more balanced in their dealings with people - I can't see Paladin just saying Go! - without having something to do with 'where' in his head. - He (and even more Pippin) wouldn't be able to deal with her sleeping in ditches or starving. Plus the Shire is quite a male dominated society (politically rather than crushed and hard done by hobbit lasses) and I think that they would find it harder to banish Hyacinth than the Bankses and Bracegirdle. (Especially as her offences are the not really the sort of thing you can put down on a charge sheet - being horrible, not bringing up your children well, despising your husband, etc. About the only thing she actually did, was ill-wish Pippin - and, at nearly thirty years ago the Statute of Limitations has probably run out on that one.)
Still maybe the passing troll will come along and remove the problem.
Author's reply
Actually, Paladin knows very well what she will probably do. And though he and Eglantine do not want to deal with her, the problem will be delegated to someone who can. No, they would not leave her to starve in a ditch--after all, even though she is a poor example of one, she is a mother.
I think the revelation of the ill-wishing put some of her subsequent behaviours into a new light; in other words, when Pip was born that was just the start of it.
However, I will keep the passing troll in mind if I run out of other ideas.8-)
Lyta Padfoot
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
Sam was aborable! Pippin's reaction was understandable - hes been twice burned by relatives in the course of one evening. Viola was brave; I can't imagine the Shire has many amputations.
Author's reply
Yes, Sam's glad the "proper challenge" is over!
Pippin wants to like everyone, he's just naturally that way. Finding people in his own family who do not feel the same about him has to hurt.
No, I don't imagine that they come up very often, maybe the occasional farming accident. But without all the modern methods, it had to be a rough and grisly procedure.
GamgeeFest
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 49: The Morning After
LOL, didn't take Sam very long to start saying proper again, did it! It was a good try on Frodo's part, but that is one word that's never coming out of Sam's vocabulary.
Nice conversation between Sara and Frodo. Frodo at least is able to see that some things were out of his control (too bad he can't see that pretty much everything was out of his control, and therefore not his fault).
Great hearted is the perfect way to describe Pippin. I love the way you characterize him. Exactly how I think he would have been after the war and his return home. Still innocent (in always wanting to see the best in everyone) but wise from all his experiences.
Author's reply
Nope, not long at all. But maybe now he will think about it a little, and not just say it automatically. I did want to end on a lighter note. Things had been getting a little rough.
With Sara and Frodo, it's almost like a father/son talk; Sara knows him pretty well from before, but he's still getting used to the Frodo who returned from the Quest, wiser but sadder. I think that Frodo *does* see a lot of that with his *head*, it's convincing his *heart* that is the difficult thing.
Yes, I think Pippin grew a lot from his experiences, but one thing he did not grow out of was his great capacity to give and recieve love. He is always willing to give someone a chance to be a friend.
GamgeeFest
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Such drama! Great chapter, from Pippin calling his father "Thain" to Clodio fainting. Where will Hyacinth go if she's turned out of the smials? I'm sure she has family somewhere, but will they want her? I feel sorry for her. This is a very rude awakening for her.
I hope they'll be able to find Dago. He's gotten a bit of a head start with all the commotion going on.
Paladin can't let a few ill-minded hobbits get him down.
Author's reply
Thanks. I thought I'd better try and get through the rest of the night. I feel like I have been on this one day *forever*. Yes, Hyacinth has family. They *may* condescend to take her in. I don't know if she is actually awakened (in the sense that she learned something) but she knows that the blinders are off for several people, and she won't be getting her way with them anymoe.
I'm still deciding what to do with Dago.
Paladin is a little down right now; after all it's being betrayed by family and that's rough, plus he's been up now for almost 24 hours, so he has to be tired. But he'll bounce back once the unpleasantness is taken care of.
Bodkin
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Horrible as Horrible Hyacinth is - can Paladin really cut her off from her family and throw her out of the Smials with nowhere to go? Isn't that being equally mean? And isn't a large part of the reason she is so horrible that everyone has let her get away with her nasty ways for so long - so don't they share the responsibility for it? So she wanted Reggie to become Thain - it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that she could have become reconciled in time if she was dealt with intelligently at the time - ignoring her for the next twenty eight years is probably not going to have done much to improve her attitude.
Still - poor Opal. Such big consequences from such a small beginning.
And I suppose the nasty Bankses and Bracegirdles could think the same. A profitable business opportunity come back to bite them.
Author's reply
You mean you don't want her eaten by a passing troll anymore? 8-) I would not say that she has *nowhere* to go, just that Paladin (and Eglantine) do not want her under their roof anymore. Yes, she was allowed to get away with too much for too long, but she was horrible before that. Sometimes horrible people *are* allowed to get away with their behaviour, because of manners, and people around them wanting peace and quiet. It's possible that there might have been another way to deal with it, but imagine how Reggie felt to learn that was the *only* reason she married him, or that she wished his cousin's only son dead? He would have been too humiliated to confide in anyone, and without guidance, ignoring her was the best thing he managed to come up with. Over time, it turned into a miserable habit.
Big consequences do often come from small beginnings. Bilbo found a ring on the floor of a tunnel and put it in his pocket.
Yes, the Bankses, and Bracegirdle eventually, are definitely getting bitten in the backside by their own doings.
maya_ar
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Good heavens, things are certainly getting fraught! What a welcome back to the shire for our poor heroes.
I'm looking forward to seeing the happy ending - there will be one, I hope?
Author's reply
Oh definitely! I would not leave such a mess, trust me, I love those hobbits too much for that, and I am not that crazy about a lot of heavy angst, so things should lighten up soon, I hope. But sometimes the characters have their own ideas.
Lyta Padfoot
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
I just read this story through tonight and could not stop to review - I just HAD to read the next chapter until I exhausted all you've posted. Fantastic! The Banks' and Hyacinth are experiencing overdue justice. I feel sorry for Opal, though. My grandfather lost a leg below the knee to diabetes in his seventies and it was a rough road, even with the support of his wife and family. Opal will not have that stability as she will recover with radically altered family. Hopefully it is not too late for the Jewelery and Reggie will be able to teach them better. I do hope the Bracegirdle hobbit will get caught. Wasn't he planning on escaping via Sarn Ford? I seem to recall Rangers being stationed there...
Author's reply
I'm really glad you have enjoyed the story so far. It has taken me in some different directions than I had intended when I started, so sometimes it surprises me,too.
Opal will have a hard row to hoe, that is certain. But believe it or not, it may end up being the best thing for her. We shall see.
Dago Bracegirdle will eventually get what's coming to him, too. I'm not sure yet exactly where or when, but I have not forgotten the Rangers at Sarn Ford, eiher.
Kitty
· 23 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Oh Valar, what a chapter! I love the way Reggie told his wife in front of everyone about his reasons for not touching her for so long. It was well deserved. Now everyone knows about her! To want a baby death is horrible! And Hyacinth herself - her reaction about the fate of her daughter was beyond my understanding. Prospects only - she is a heartless bitch, really! (Sorry, but I don't know any other word for her!)
The Banks seems to be much worser than I had expected. So Lotho couldn't have done all that without Clodio and Dago? That's a surprise! It's a good decision to send them to the men - it will frightening them to death :-) And I hope very much Paladin will in the morning send someone to caught Dago and deliver him to the encampment, too!
I love Paladin more with each chapter - he is a great Thain. The way he and Eglantine dealt with this is impressing! No wonder Pippin is the valiant Hobbit he is - with such parents!
Author's reply
That's the whole point about Hyacinth: she is heartless, self-sentered, and only concerned with the surface appearance of things. When I first thought of her, I was only thinking of her as funny: a silly snob. But somehow she took a darker turn. I guess that is because it's so un-hobbitlike. Your word for it is pretty apt. I only didn't use it because I don't think hobbits would.
Lotho had pretty big ambitions. I don't think he could have afforded to expand so much, and so rapidly outside the Shire without a good deal of money. And while it was obvious that a lot of it was provided by "Sharkey", he must have had extra money to get it going in the first place.
Not sure yet what I've got in mind for Dago.
I'm glad you like "my" Paladin and Eglantine. I think a hobbit as special as Pippin would have pretty special parents.
Hai Took
· 22 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
Reggie standing up to his wife and being concerned for his daughter was done very well! I like the way you wrote him with such feeling, makes you pity and respect him! Paladin throwing Hyacinth out of the Great Smials! I guess finding out that she wanted your only son dead when he was a baby might do that to you.
I guess the Banks' will be getting their come up's. Being dealt with by the Men could be quite frightening for them. How they were going to handly trying hobbits is beyond me!
Can't wait for more! You always leave off just the right way! Looking forward to it!
Author's reply
Reggie's finally found his backbone after all these years. And as Paladin said, he doesn't want a viper in his nest.
Just wait until the assembly!
Grey Wonderer
· 22 June 2004
· Chapter 48: Revelations
I love Paladin's decision in this case. What started out as a wonderful night for everyone has certainly turned out to be terrible. I keep hoping that someone will find a way to save Opal's leg. And poor Pippin! I dare say that he'll not get any sleep in light of what he has heard. Can't wait for more!
Author's reply
Yes, I was sorry to spoil the Ball, after I worked so hard to set it up, but at least everyone had a good time to begin with.
It's upset him, to say the least. To find out that a relative wished you were dead, just to gain a material advantage would be pretty devastating.
GamgeeFest
· 22 June 2004
· Chapter 47: Insult and Injury
Ha! Sam knew it was Merry without being told. But then who else would it be?
Poor Opal! That is far too great a payment for her silly act. I can see her becoming incredibly bitter over all this. And if Hyacinth wants to blame someone, she could try looking into a mirror.
Author's reply
Of course Sam knew, once he knew who the culprits were. He and Merry are never going to be as close as he and Frodo, but they are pretty close friends, and being so much alike, they know one another very well.
It's going to take some time to see how Opal adjusts to her ordeal. Hyacinth is getting ready to face some long needed retribution.
Pervinca
· 22 June 2004
· Chapter 47: Insult and Injury
Things certainly are becoming more serious. Loss of a limb! I often forget that healers in the Shire would not have access to the treatments we have today. She may have been a little brat, but poor Opal.
It will never cease to amaze me how much you can make happen during a time in the books where it seemed nothing really happened :P
- Pervinca
Author's reply
Yes, that's part of the reason I upped the rating. Yes, poor Opal. But this is going to result in some eye opening around the Great Smials.
I know. Post-Quest, JRRT only gave us this little bare outline of events to cover about 2 years. Gives a lot of scope to the imagination, doesn't it? "Reckoning" only covers the short period of time between that little quote in my prologue and Sam's wedding. Little over a month, actually.
Hai Took
· 21 June 2004
· Chapter 47: Insult and Injury
I like how Merry fulfiled his promise to the Banks brothers. Although his deeds seemed to have startled a few people, Estella being one of them! But I bet Merry felt better!
Opal being hurt and the way Hyacinth is actin! Not a very motherly attitude! Poor Reggie, realisizing everything he shoudl have done when his girls were young. Maybe this will be a chance for their family to pull together?
I hope this doesn't present any troubles for the Men in cooperating with the hobbits! Looking forward to more! Thank you!
Author's reply
Yes, keeping that promise definitely made Merry feel good. He doesn't realize yet, however, just how thoroughly he startled Estella.
No, Hyacinth is not a very motherly person, is she? But the blinders are off for Reggie.
With lesser Men, the brothers' scheme might have borne fruit. But Aragorn and Eomer chose these particular Men themselves. They would not have sent anyone who would be taken in by such an act.
Beruthiel
· 21 June 2004
· Chapter 47: Insult and Injury
Hmmm, what exactly has Clodio been up to? You've got me so curious I'll never get any peace until I find out. Update soon, please.
Author's reply
I will show you soon just what Clodio and Dago did, and why they are so desperate not to be found out.