Bear Me Away! by Armariel
Larner · 3 October 2005 · Chapter 6: The Door
How very sad it is. I do not think I could live with having my memory erased.
Author's reply
Doubt I could either...unless I had a vast store of memories and guilt too horrible for life to be bearable, in which case I suppose it could be the lesser evil. Well, maybe!
Bodkin · 2 October 2005 · Chapter 6: The Door
I don't know whether losing the bad would be worth losing your children. It's rather like various human ailments - I suppose once you have no memory it doesn't matter too much, but when you know that you are losing something, but you are not entirely sure what, it must be heart-rending. Poor Riannor. But at least Frodo is recovering. And the elfling - Lyrien - is sweet. And she seems to think that Galendur isn't too bad, so maybe he has good points. Even if, at the moment, it seems to be the provision of sweets for little ellyth. I wonder what she is planning on doing with Frodo's interestingly squiggly hair.
Author's reply
Glue it to her feet? ummmmm well maybe not...heheh Guess I've been thinking of Riannor somewhat in terms of a concentration-camp survivor, although not merely an innocent victim. I suppose she is faced with a choice between heaven and hell, the one necessitating entire forgetfulness, the other being the persistance of memory. Thanks for reviewing, once more! cheers Armariel~~~{~@
Farawyn · 30 September 2005 · Chapter 5: Poetic License
Armariel -- just to let you know, I won't be able to go online for a couple of weeks at the most, we're moving. I'm just about to disconnect our family computer right now, so see ya in about a week! xoxo Farawyn
Author's reply
Hellooooo!!! Been more than a week! How was the move? xoxx Armariel~~~{~@
Larner · 27 September 2005 · Chapter 5: Poetic License
Okayyyyyy--sounds like Prince Charming in Shrek 2. She could do MUCH better! Poor Frodo! Can understand the pottery being an outlet for Riannor's memories.
Author's reply
Horror!! he DOES!!! Could he be an ancestor? *heheh* Saw a strange-looking vase once that had several necks, and it had a rather disturbing effect somehow. There was something of The Uncanny about it. Funny how these things find their way into our stories, what?
Larner · 27 September 2005 · Chapter 4: Revelations
Telling forth can be a way of releasing it all. Hope the flowers help Riannor to heal as well. And am proud he will not give Sauron the victory over him.
Author's reply
Long ago I read on a message board where somebody was talking about a story she read, in which Sam came to the Blessed Realm only to find that Frodo didn't remember him because in order to heal him completely his memory had to be erased. I never saw the story, but the idea stuck in my head. I thought, well, no, I don't think so, but why not give him the choice of it, at least?
Bodkin · 26 September 2005 · Chapter 5: Poetic License
Tilwen's beau doesn't sound much of a catch. His self-love gleams - I doubt he has any room for love of Tilwen in his heart. I like the idea of writing a poem for a generic hero and inserting his name at the last moment. He'll never notice. Give me Ríannor any day. Much more complex character - tragic, not perfect at all, but deep and caring. And wearing colour. Very interesting.
Author's reply
Mmm maybe not.......then again, could it be that maybe, just maybe there might turn out to be more to him than just his washboard abs and steel-blue orbs and oliphaunt-sized ego? Ya never know *g* We'll see! Thanks for reviewing! cheers Armariel~~~{~@
Farawyn · 25 September 2005 · Chapter 5: Poetic License
That was ... stunning. Fabulous, gorgeous, exquisite, divine, wonderful, lovely, beautiful, resplendent. I can get my thesarous (sp?) if you want more.... : ) I love the little touch of the golden rose. And Tilwen's numb-nuts nitwit, oh sorry, I meant fiance. : ) I'm short on time right now, else I would go on. I think this story is coming alond marvelously and it is one of the best set in this time period that I have read. It is serious, but then before you're totally *sick* of the seriousness there is a hint of humor, then more so/so, then humor, etc. I love it! As if I wouldn't love anything you wrote. Re: Praises of Moi: Yes, I suppose I am a bit ditzy. : ) Wyn
Author's reply
Oh my my...such praises! Gal, you know how to make an old author preen herself...hehehe I originally meant this part of the story to be a little, separate, humorous short-story, to be entitled "Sing, O Bards" or something like that, but decided it wouldn't work out of context since you'd have to be familiar with the rest of the story to "get it." I wanted the whole thing to be light on the whole--maybe I said that already, or maybe it was to someone else I said it, but it doesn't work that way...so I just end up with a streak of light and a streak of dark and then light and then dark and so on. Bouncing from the sublime to the ridiculous and back again like a tennis ball. Yes, I get sick of constant seriousness after a while too...and lightness can wear out its welcome after a while also. So, there you have it! Yeah, I like the oafish fiancé too...such characters are sooo fun to create LOLOL Thanks as always for reviewing! hugs Armariel~~~{~@
Farawyn · 21 September 2005 · Chapter 3: Ríannor
Gosh, poor Frodo. Really, that must have brought up bad memories as well as his lunch. I love the teasing about the Elf-Maidens! That is so ... I hate to use the words but there's no other, cute. The 'trials' that Fro had to go through were simply wonderful. Well, not wonderful, horrid, but you know what I mean. : ) Are you really going to put a 'Praises of Moi' section on your site??? I was just kidding, you know, you don't have to just to make me feel good. But if you like the idea, it's fine with me!!! As usual, I love this story and have fallen completely in love with it. The insight to Riannor's past is perfectly fitting with "Anemone" and I still have yet to puzzle out why Gandalf actually fell in love with this Mystery Maiden. : ) But time will tell, I guess. But Frodo had to realize that though Riannor suffered torture at the hands of Sauron himself, he still suffered greater. I'm not by any means degrading Riannor's suffering, but Frodo suffered more, by *far* in my unprofessional opinion. Update soon! How many chapters do you think this will be??? Farawyn a/k/a "Winnie"
Author's reply
Well, there you are!! Wondered where the heck you'd been keeping yourself! Praises of moi section? Bless you, gal, I was kidding too--I'm vain but I'm not THAT vain LOLOL The whole story kind of grew out of an outtake from "Anemone"...it had to do with the death of Bilbo and I decided not to put it in because I thought it would obstruct the flow or that story. But I still wanted to do something with it, like make a separate short piece of it, or maybe do a series of short pieces under the general heading of "Frodo in Paradise" or something like that (at least I didn't use THAT title--sheesh)....WEll, anyway, this story is what ended up with it...and yeah, wanted to do a little something with Riannor, flesh her out a bit more. Also wanted a lot more of Bilbo! He's one of my favorite characters and I wanted to give him a lot more space and give the story some more emotional depth, and not be there just as comic relief. Yeah, too bad awful memories can't be as easily purged as bad food...but, we'll see. As for who suffered more...well, we'll see about that too! Thanks for reviewing and delighted to see you back! xoxx Armariel~~~{~@ Author Reply: p.s. Re how many chapters: Don't really know, at this point. Less than 10, hopefully.....but, you never know!
Bodkin · 21 September 2005 · Chapter 3: Ríannor
Bilbo and the dried grapes - great fun. But poor Riannor! I'm not surprised that Frodo empathises with her. Might do him a great deal of good to meet someone he can equate with rather than endless streams of wonderful elves.
Author's reply
Yes, that could get old fast, I'm sure! All that sweetness and light, need a touch of darkness in there somewhere, what? There will be more about her very soon, I'm sure. Thanks for reviewing!:D cheers Armariel~~~{~@
Larner · 18 September 2005 · Chapter 3: Ríannor
Yes, that idea would indeed bring back all the horrors and the feelings of illness.
Author's reply
I think I meant for this story to be lighthearted on the whole, but I guess I should be used to the fact that such stories of mine have a way of taking a turn for the serious, and should just go with the flow! Thanks once more for reviewing! I greatly value your comments. xoxx ~~~{~@
Larner · 18 September 2005 · Chapter 2: A Strange Journey
Yes, quite a different vision than mine, but still fascinating.
Author's reply
Thank you! Even more different than I expected, actually, but I never quite know what ideas the Muse is going to dump into my head while I'm writing, and that's a big part of the fun of it! I think I got rather caught up in mythology, with the idea of the hero's purification by trials of water, fire, blood, the "Confrontation with Nothingness" and the Eternal Feminine, and the Shaman's journey to a higher plane and symbolic death and rebirth, water as a womb symbol, and so on and so forth. I think it's rather nice Tolkien says so little about life in the Undying lands, so we can just kind of invent our own version of it, although I'm aware of the challenge of writing about a place where all conflicts must be internal, since there can't be any bad guys.... But I do think I've soaked up quite a bit from you, both consciously and unconsciously! And from other authors as well but I'm thinking from you mostly........
Farawyn · 7 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
Tut, tut, Armariel! Silly you! I didn't mean the poem in the review, I meant the poem on your site that you posted! Sorry. : ) Just *had* to tell you.... *g* Farawyn Btw, is there a link to that poem on your site anywhere? I want to get to it without digging through the review for "Voices of Middle-Earth". Maybe you should put a "Praises of Moi" or the like section on your site. *grin*
Author's reply
Eek, somehow I missed this! Is this the poem you mean? http://delroz.bravepages.com/elves/others.html. 'Praises of Moi'? Sure, why not LOLOLOL hugs Armariel~~~{~@
Farawyn · 5 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
First of all, I just can't believe that *I* have a poem that *I* wrote posted on the *World Wide Web* where *millions* on people *all over the world* can see it if they chanced by. I'm in shock! And that little picture thing looks so cute! It doesn't look at all like me, though, but like I can expect that! Now down to business. : ) I love Frodo's child-like "Are we there yet?" in the first line. That made me smile right away. '"Sir," I said after severl minutes, looking up at him, "you *will* see her again, someday. I know it."' That was so sweet, made me cry. Happy tears. I also love his concern for Sam, and the picture that he actually left M-E to save him from the pain of having to watch him (Frodo) die. I never thought of it that way before, and that made me think. That's so unblieveably selfless -- to leave the one person you love best, though that will give them pain in itself, to spare them the worst. I can't get my mind around that! It's so... so... can you think of a word?!? I can't. Well, that's all, I think. : ) I'll leave another review if I think of anything else. Hugs & Kisses! Farawyn P.S. Is there any way that you can see how many hits my poem has revieved???
Author's reply
Hi again! Well, there's no uh...hit list...for the reviews, just for the chapters themselves (123 as of now) But if you start writing some poems for the site...ahem...you'll be able to see just how many you get! I love Frodo's child-like "Are we there yet?" in the first line. Actually he says "Are we almost there?" but originally, yes, I did have him say "Are we there yet?" I changed it because I thought it might just be too cutesy that way....lol And just had to comfort Elrond somehow! I'm not sure I'm the first one who ever put that spin on Frodo's leaving...some other fanfic authors had a somewhat similar interpretation, maybe not exactly that one, but close. It seems plausible in keeping with his character anyway, so it works for me! I'm totally delighted you like the story and the pictures! As for having poems posted on the WWW...well, yes, it's quite a feeling...even after you get used to it! So, start writing more--you'll see! xoxoxox Armariel~~~{~@
Farawyn · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
That was lovely, Armariel!! I always thought that Elwing would fly out to see her son. Short on time -- leave another review with all my thoughts later. Farawyn
Author's reply
Thank heaven for people's LJ's, what? They are a veritable shopping mall of ideas. Thanks much! Btw, here's that little thingy I promised--you can pick it up here--I don't know if you are able to use a sig tag with your email addy or not, but just in case you can, here's one! Looking forward to seeing what else you'll say. hugs Armariel~~~{~@
Larner · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
Loneliness and morbidity--a sad combination. I am glad, though, that he was able to see Elwing come to her son. A beautiful combination. There are compensations to being in the arms of the most beautiful among womankind for male hobbits, are there not? (Giggling)
Author's reply
Very sad. Can make for some beautiful writing in the right hands though! *g* I've a follow-up in mind in which Frodo finds himself quite surrounded by gorgeous women, all in the house of Elrond;););) Thanks once more! blessings&cheer Armariel~~~{~@
Mews1945 · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
I came via a rec from Shirebound, and am very glad that I did. This is lovely and very comforting. I love your characterizations of Elrond, Frodo and Bilbo.
Author's reply
Oh wow, one of my favorite authors...that makes my day! Thanks bunches and please thank her for me too! I'm soooo glad it was comforting and that the characterizations worked. I regretted having to edge Gandalf out as much as I did, but four characters getting equal time in a one-chapter story seemed a bit of a crowd to me! blessings&cheer, Armariel~~~{~@
Bodkin · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
Oh, I love Elrond's reunion with Elwing. It's such a beautiful moment. And Frodo's conviction that Elrond will see Arwen again - together with his confidence that the words came through him rather than from his own hope. Frodo's frailty and guilt come over beautifully - and I really liked Bilbo's reaction. It amused me how Frodo - erm - took advantage of the opportunity to be close to Galadriel. Maybe he's not quite as close to the edge as he thinks!
Author's reply
Thanks so much for the lovely review! Yes, I let Bilbo say exactly what I've felt like saying to him sometimes! Frodo seems to have a fatal attraction to Elf-women in the book; I've wondered why so few fanfic writers draw on it! And yes, I just had to do something for Elrond. I've been concerned about him recently...not really sure how that happened! And I've had it happen to me sometimes, that I found myself saying something to someone without thinking of it at all, it just came to me and it felt like someone else was speaking through me. And it always turned out to have been exactly the right thing to say! blessings & cheer Armariel~~~{~@
Julie · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
This is a lovely story and you wrote it beautifully. I simply love your Frodo/Bilbo interraction. Bilbo may be well over 100 years, but he still has his spunk. Are you going to write any more, ie a continutation of Frodo and Bilbo arriving?
Author's reply
Wow, thanks Julie! (hehe, that's my sister's name) Yeah, Bilbo is a cutie pie, the old rascal! I do have a sequel or continuation forming in my mind, but not sure when it will get written. It's quite a challenge to write about a paradise in which no serpent can intrude...but, I've seen that with a little imagination and patience it CAN be done! blessings & cheer Armariel~~~{~@
shirebound · 4 September 2005 · Chapter 1: Into the West
What a beautiful story! This is just full of wonderful insights and perceptions. I especially love this: "You accomplished far more than I did, Frodo. You are small, you are mortal, you are young, comparatively. All the odds were against you, and yet you surmounted them all. Yes, you had help, but you would not have had it if you had not earned it. Such devotion as Sam’s did not come from a vacuum. I have never seen anything quite like it before, and do not expect to see the like again. I have observed much of him, and I can tell you, he could never have cared so deeply about you if you had not done much to deserve it. You can lay any doubts to rest. You brought about a victory of which I could only dream.” Yes, even Elrond is still learning the wonders of certain hobbits. And oh! The arrival of Elwing! :D
Author's reply
The white bird thing WAS a lovely idea, wasn't it?;);) And would you believe, I just *accidentally* discovered that poem yesterday...I'd never seen it before! And I'm still learning the wonders of all the characters! Thanks for everything...now I need to read a bit more, I'm hopelessly behind....:D blessings & cheer Armariel~~~{~@