Reviews (161)

Author's reply

Welcome back! :) Yes, I may have pulled back a bit too much in reaction to Every. Single. Character. demanding a backstory before they will allow themselves to be written, LOL. Perhaps I’ll go back and put a bit of Denggold’s perspective in between when they leave the breakfast table and his little incident later.... I think Pippin had an inkling of the lack of innocent intentions here -- his gaze did linger suspiciously on that impatient Guardsman in the archway -- and I suspect that may explain both why he was growling and why Aragorn thought that he had better get to the Guardsman first. I am eager to get back to the Shire not only because the next chapter promises to be a bit easier to write, but because we start careening toward the end with the next chapter, and I’m a bit excited about it.

Author's reply

Diamond is pretty much playing along with Pippin's teasing, but she of course does have a little bit of a teasing side to herself as well...she is a hobbit, after all. Yes, different cultures have different rules, and you can unwittingly insult someone else if you don't know the rules of their culture. Pippin and Diamond truly do love each other. "All is well"...pretty much. For now. :) Of course, we still have to go back and resolve other things in the Shire. Thank you for the compliment(s).

Author's reply

<> No, probably not, completely.:) And that's exactly why this chapter, annoying as I knew it would be to some (OK, many. Most.) is necessary. There's been an internal arc of their getting to know each other better and admitting -- to both each other and themselves -- that they are in love since about Chap. 15, and things seem to have been progressing nicely and, for the most part, going along swimmingly in the actual relationship. Except that's not the way it works. There's always going to be an occasional hiccup in the road, and those tapes we play in our head of our parents or other influences are always going to make their presence known. Diamond can't escape from her past, or her personality, just as neither she nor Pippin -- as he reminds her -- can escape from their duties. Luckily, though, they do remember that they love each other. Interesting, isn't it, that both Pippin -- that forgiving hobbit of the previous chapter, which he is willing to apply to Diamond for both her actions and her reaction -- and Diamond seem to be much harder on themselves in these incidents than they are on their marriage partner. I'm sure Aragorn will deal appropriately with all involved in this situation (not that we'll see it, since we're going back to the Shire in the next chapter), but the Guardsman is actually *not* quite as innocent as he appears. Unfortunately, in getting this chapter to finally come out it didn't come through, but the backstory is: Denggold is 19 -- he's somehow related to Ingold the gatekeeper in ROTK -- at least an acquaintance, if not a friend, of Bergil. He is in the lower levels of the Guardsmen, sort of in training as it were, and it was through this acquaintanceship with Bergil that he got the assignment of guarding the hobbitesses and acting as their escort. Except he's an immature teenage boy who doesn't see this for the honor it is, and resents being forced to follow them around when all they do is shop all day. (That's why he didn't go in to Rachael and Argine's perfume and breakable doodads shop in the previous chapter. It was too girly for him, and he wants to be all soldierly and Manly.) It actually had been explained to him that he wasn't to touch Diamond, but he didn't feel that he had to pay attention to these instructions (Aragorn will be instituting cross-cultural communication training, I believe), since they didn't make sense to him. And he blatantly ignored them not only to catch Diamond so that she didn't fall onto the road, but to brush across the front of her dress in, as Estella demonstrates with her actions, a rather improper manner for anyone but her husband to touch her. So, long reply to a short review, LOL, and next chapter revisits the Shire and starts a new internal arc.

Author's reply

I'm glad you like Pippin and Faramir's conversation about Denethor. (It's also kind of about Paladin.) And, while I'm not writing about Merry and Eowyn in this story, I think you are right about their relationship. Pippin and Faramir can both have fun teasing each other about such things.

Author's reply

Thanks for the clarification. I was wondering because I have a hard time categorizing stories like this. (One reason I don’t want to post on fanfiction.net. By the time you’ve said it’s a drama/romance/angst/adventure (wait a couple of chapters;))/humor/etc. -- it becomes pretty meaningless.)Was hoping maybe you had more insight into the categorization than I did, LOL. I’m glad you like the way I tell stories. I think the hobbits help in that manner -- it’s just how I see them, and a lot of the chapters are written after I’ve been mulling them over in my head for a few days, “seeing and hearing” what’s happening, so the characters themselves have a lot of influence. As for not telling things in an overly sexual way....well, I did start out trying to write this PG-13, and Chap. 17 is the first and only sex scene I’ve written, so that may have a lot to do with that style, too.:) So sweet for you to say this pulls at your heartstrings.:)

Author's reply

Um, thank *you*! This is very flattering. Wondering what you meant by "the type of story" you really enjoy reading. (Not fishing, just curious!) I'm hoping to get the next chapter up either late this weekend or early next week. Thank you so much again!

Author's reply

No, poor Pippin can't seem to stay out of trouble. He's had probably more than his share of illnesses and mishaps (and I have another plot bunny bugging me that's getting him into even more, although I'm trying to stave it off until I've finished this one.) I haven't actually used arnica...thankfully, I don't bruise myself too often, and when I do, I tend to just suffer stoically. This was part of the research that went into this story. When I post the last chapter, I am also going to put up the author's notes which will include a bibliography.

Author's reply

Glad you liked the games; they were fun to write about. That's what she's working toward, is to put Pippin "back into his fun-loving mood" -- but I think he's a bit in shock at the end of this chapter. :)

Author's reply

Nobody else apparently did either, LOL. She's got a good head on her shoulders, that Rosie.

Author's reply

Really? Ganelon bugs you? Hmm, I wonder why.... ;) Glad you liked the stitching pattern and that you'll enjoy Eglantine's description of Pip as a little lad.

Author's reply

Hi, Alayna! Glad to see you back.:) Glad you liked the Sam and Merry elements, too. Merry, especially, keeps popping up in this story...probably because it's nigh unto impossible to write a Pippin story without him. A Tookland egg can actually be made. I have, in fact, eaten one at my state fair. In RL, they're called "Scoth eggs", and here's the dictionary definition: A hard-boiled egg wrapped in sausage meat, coated with bread crumbs, and deep-fried.

Author's reply

Thank you very much! I'm rather fond of this chapter myself.:) Pippin missing Gandalf is a way for him and Faramir to acknowledge that loss, just as Merry and Aragorn do for Frodo earlier in the chapter. I think the substitute Grandda thing came out of my subconscious partly from looking at the family trees and noting "oh, Paladin's father died before Pippin or Pervinca were even born, so they couldn't have known him" and partly through the lingering subconscious effect's of Billy Boyd's DVD commentary on FOTR where he says Pippin thinks of Gandalf as a grandfather. It just kind of showed up in there, LOL, as did Pippin and Faramir's entire conversation. I think I was channeling when I wrote it.:)

Author's reply

Thank you so much. I think the forgiveness aspect of LOTR is a huge part of its theme and its impact. Glad you liked the Diamond and Estella scene, too. They are getting a bit overwhelmed at the greater world -- and learning not only about what the Traveller hobbits did, but also that Big people could have watched their loved ones suffer, too. Estella gets to feel empathy with Rachael in this chapter as she remembers Freddy after the Lockholes, instead of just fear of Big people masked with bravado. And you are so right about the reasoning behind the Pippin and Faramir scene: it grew from my asking myself, "Why does Pippin name his son Faramir?" and this helps to answer that in the context of this story. And then my Pippin and Faramir characters just sort of took over and wrote their scene themselves -- I was surprised to find out that Faramir's personality was so hobbity, LOL. But I think I'll let them take over if they want to do so again (as did Merry and Aragorn, to an extent, as well as the lasses), because I think this chapter is one of my favorites in this fic so far. And you will get your wish again: there is at least one more chapter in Gondor, because there was supposed to be other stuff that happened in this one, but the characters had other ideas about what happened and then it didn't fit in, LOL!

Author's reply

I'm glad you like that you don't know what hobbit it is at first. I tried to just make it clear through the bits of personality that kept showing through: the horses, the little bit of a fear of heights when he goes to get down from the fence, the practicality and the boots thing -- after all, Brandybucks sometimes wear them when the river's high. Thank you for your comments.

Author's reply

Thank you for your comments. I figured Pippin and Merry had better make up soon, or they wouldn't be very much best friends. And Aragorn is glad to see his old friends, especially since he knows that they will act like hobbits. :)

Author's reply

I'm so glad that you enjoyed it so much, and that it brightened your evening. It makes me happy to know that I have made you happy. I am working diligently on Chapter 19 now. :)

Author's reply

I am so glad you liked it. Thank you again for your help in correctly naming Oatbarton way back at the beginning of this story.:) While I don't think they let it interfere with their friendship, I do think Merry and Pippin can kid around with each other about their age difference -- in a previous chapter, Merry crossed out "older" and wrote "wiser" cousin instead in a letter he wrote to Pip. Pip's reactions are kind of like my little sister's, who delights in informing me of such things as, "When you're 80, I'll only be 76!" I'm glad you enjoyed the arrival in the White City, too...and I'm suuure it wasn't subconsciously influenced by my having recently watched the Pippin/Gandalf scenes in the EE of ROTK. Yeah. Absolutely sure. Mmm-hmm. [Cough.]

Author's reply

Well, they'll be lingering for at least another chapter, so you'll get your wish.:) And there is, of course, plot waiting back in the Shire with Pervinca and Ganelon (and Paladin, and Honeysuckle...), but these hobbits keep surprising me with what else they throw in here. [Really, Estella, when did this become partly *your* story, too?] And, yes, Merry is more open to understanding about Pippin and Diamond. Probably partly because of his own experiences in choosing a wife (freely, for love, if that hasn't come across yet) and also partly because of his closeness with Pip...it is, of course, his protective instincts about his little cousin that have been most bothering him about this whole marriage, and now that he knows the Tooks are actually in love, he feels a lot better about the whole thing.

Author's reply

“Complex and simple at the same time” -- I think that pretty much sums up hobbits in general. :) I’m glad you liked the chapter, and you felt that it worked. Thank you for your kind comments. And I’m glad you liked the “foot fetish” and other quirks as well, and that it worked to remind you that hobbits aren’t humans. Yes, of course you can borrow the foot fetish thing for your story idea. I am often surprised that I haven’t seen certain elements elsewhere in the fandom already.

Author's reply

Glad you liked the part with the feet.:) I wanted to somehow bring back into the story the idea that the characters are hobbits, not people, with their own culture, etc. -- and the foot scene let me provide some more detail without making the chapter as a whole too graphic. :) That’s really interesting that the Merry dynamic is your favorite part, considering that I wasn’t really even planning it that much when I began writing this story. (The Pippin, Diamond, Paladin, Ganelon, Pimpernel/Everard, Pervinca, Diamond’s mum plots/subplots: all planned. Merry’s? Not so much.) I just knew that I couldn’t write a Pippin story without Merry, and then the Brandybuck just sort of took over his sections and created his own dynamic. That hobbit has a way of making his opinions known. I do plan to continue the story through their visit to Minas Tirith. At least part of it willl be in Chap. 18, which will also have some more Merry/Pip conversation. There are approximately seven to nine more chapters to go, depending on whether a couple of segments take up more than one chapter. I’m glad you find Diamond interesting as well, and thanks for your comments on the story!

Author's reply

Aww. Wow! Thank you so much for this very kind review! I’m so glad the chapter pleased you and met your expectations! Of course, while this may have been the climax of one plotline -- [yeah, that was hard to avoid;) ] -- there’s still a lot left to resolve here. I’m anticipating another seven to nine chapters, depending on whether a few things organize themselves into one chapter or two. I was thinking about how grown up he was as I finished writing this chapter, too...and then I realized I missed the wee, cute lad, LOL. Again, thank you so much for your kind words! [Blushes and hides face in hands in embarrassment, a la Diamond]

Author's reply

Thank you. I am glad you thought this chapter captured both the love and the fear, as that was one of its goals (as well as the awkwardness, LOL). I do portray Pippin as having a Scottish accent, as do many others in the fandom. In my case, it is todistinguish the Tooks as different from the rest of the Shire in homage to Billy Boyd’s portrayal of Pippin in the movies and acknowledgment of Peter Jackson’s commentary that they’re Scots...and a way to more easily distinguish which characters are speaking during dialogue. Yes, Pippin and Diamond both love each other and don’t want to leave each other, but if you remember Chap. 16, her brother and his sister have something else in mind. Thank you again.

Author's reply

Thank you; I am flattered and gratified that you chose to step out of your comfort zone a little and read this chapter, and am glad you liked it. I don't know about courage - I did just feel that I owed it to those who have been wanting to see this sort of detail (although I must admit I was pretty nervous about posting the first such scene I have ever written). I actually like reading about poor Pippin suffering if it is well-written -- I am a member of Pippin Healers, after all :) -- but I, too, don't think Tolkien would truly have made any of the Four suffer in an unhappy marriage. Part of the inspiration for this story is to give a bit of a different perspective on Diamond, and maybe offer some insight into *why* others might think her cold.

Author's reply

Oh, I'm glad we got that cleared up. 'Tis the season of good will and good tidings, and I'm glad not to be entering into something contrary to that. [hugs] Also glad you feel this "optional" chapter was a good solution and that it was in character...although, if you're in favor of het, married sex, doesn't that make you automatically *not* a raging perv? Or at least a wholesome perv? Or...something? [Must stop drinking wassail in celebration of completing Christmas cards. Hic.]

Author's reply

Glad you thought it was "tasteful and inventive and within character." I wasn't too sure whether it would be inventive, since this is the first sex scene I've written. The words "foot fetish" did occur to me while I was writing that segment, but I decided not to go *too* far down that path.:) The inspiration was that I wanted something in there that was a reminder that these characters are *not* just regular men and women of our own day and time; they are hobbits with their own culture and their own characteristics -- including an attraction to the type of foot-fur that, I have to say, I personally would not find appealing, LOL! I sort of thought of their playing "footsie" (an image which did occur to me as well) as the equivalent of "necking" among modern-day courting couples. And it did spur some additional images for me as well, which will probably in part be worked into Chapter 18.