Reviews (47)

PSW · 10 February 2025 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Dear Sam! 😂 Well, that was all way too complicated! :-P Everyone needs to just decide not to be trying to spare each others’ feelings…. I enjoyed this very much - thx for sharing!

PSW · 10 February 2025 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

🤦🏻‍♀️ This story is going so well….

PSW · 10 February 2025 · Chapter 2: A Conspiracy Unmasked

‘All’s well that ends well’ is probably *not* a helpful addition at this point, Gimli! :-D And Frodo… just stay quiet for a minute…

PSW · 10 February 2025 · Chapter 1: ...Or Following You Like Hounds

Well, he’s not making it that easy for them to tell him - between scolding them and not letting anyone get a word in edgewise…. At least wait until you hear the story before you start in on them! :-D

PSW · 10 February 2025 · Chapter 0: No Laughing-Matter

‘Fell into a mattress stuffed with sweetmeats…’ 😂 Poor Sam, so distracted by the new height difference. I mean, I get it - I’m sure I would be too - but he just keeps coming back to it! It’s probably good that there will be others around to distract Frodo while he’s hearing about things like, oh, stabbing Witch-Kings and falling under trolls…

Bodkin · 28 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Very wise, Sam. Let's get back to the more fun parts of what happened! The darker side needs to be known - but, at the moment, the power of Ent-draught seems a lot more the kind of thing they should be pondering over round the fire.

hobbitelf · 23 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

That was Awsome! I laughed, And I cried(sort of).Great story.^_^ or:-)

TopazTook · 23 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Thanks for a story that gives satisfaction for some of that unfinished business that got left out of the books. (Is that reference to Merry almost letting a childhood Pippin drown from one of your other stories? I don't recall it.)

Pearl Took · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

"Legolas laughed. ‘Look at you! Elves, having all the time in the world, are more straightforward in their discussion than you all are proving to be!" Well done!! How often it really is better to simply say a thing outright than to try to hide it away. Well done, Lin!

harrowcat · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Well at least that much is cleared up if not exactly absorbed! No wonder Frodo is going to wake up in the middle of the night! A group effort that has got the general picture put together even if the details like Ent draughts are still a little hazy! :)

Larner · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

None was as he was before; all were scarred. And the enormity of it will indeed hit Frodo eventually, poor lad. Beautiful to bring it back full circle to Sam again. Poor Sam--forget the rest of it for the moment, and wonder once more about the growth! Heh!

Larner · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

Trying not to let disturbing details out is more than they can manage, I fear; but I note Legolas has a good idea of what happened between Frodo and Boromir in spite of Frodo's own attempt to spare others. Poor Frodo--all muddled; and Sam is catching the small details that at the moment evade his Master. Love him, I do.

shirebound · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Finally Frodo guesses part of the truth, and learns most of the rest. And what fun that Sam is so single-minded in his wonderment about Ents and the height of his companions that, to him, it's the only mystery that really needs solving! Yes, he was shocked that a troll had fallen on Pippin, but no, he really hadn’t had time to absorb the information. Later on that night the realisation would waken him from a sound sleep, and he’d sit bolt upright, exclaiming, “Pippin!” and would have to be soothed back to sleep by a startled Aragorn. Awwww. :D

Dreamflower · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

What a delight to find this finished! There is so much to love about this: Frodo in deductive mode; tipsy Sam; Merry and Pippin, still valiantly trying to "protect" Frodo, even though it's clearly a lost cause; Gimli's ham-fisted attempts to help; Legolas' amusement at the efforts; Gandalf's *seeming* detachment. I think the moment Frodo realizes just what must have happened--that Merry nearly "lost* Pippin, and vice-versa--simply by the looks on their faces, was beautifully done. Except for one another, *no one* reads these two like Frodo, and he knows now *exactly* what happened--even if not all the details. Gimli's description of Pippin-- He was buried until I hauled the troll off him, and squashed flatter than a spider after a lass has finished screaming and taken action...’ shows that hobbits are not the only creatures who try to hide their feelings behind light words--I am quite sure he must have been reliving that horrible moment when *he* was convinced they had "lost" Pippin as well. And Legolas and Gandalf between them brought the most touching moment, the one which finally broke down Merry's defenses--I so dearly loved seeing Frodo taking his cousin in his arms to comfort him! I really liked your little interpolations of his dreams later in the night, and how it is then that he has finally processed the information, to be soothed to sleep again by Aragorn. This has been a delightful story, beginning to end, Lin! Thanks for sharing it with us!

Elemmírë · 21 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

Merry and Pippin certainly underestimated their cousin's deductive reasoning when they decided to spare him the details of their adventures. And Legolas and Gimli prodding them along! I love how Sam brings a bit of levity to the conversation. I think once they realize that Frodo is suffering nightmares due to the details and horrors of their own adventures, Merry and Pippin are going to regret in some way sharing with him the danger they were both in. They know that Frodo left the Fellowhip in part because he wanted them all to be safe, but especially the hobbits. Are you going to continue this with a sequel at all, perhaps showing how the cousins learn to deal with what they've been through or Frodo deciding to piece everyone's part together and write it down? Just wondering? Of course, this is a nice bunny to consider elaborating upon also: Just as that day, so long ago, when he was pleading with us to take him fishing, and I had a cold and wanted to curl up with a book, and so I left him in your charge. You took your eyes off him, and... :D

storyfish · 20 August 2006 · Chapter 4: Someone As You Can Trust

*does a very very happy dance* Yaaaaaay, Lin! This couldn't have come at a better time! I should have gone to bed as soon as I finished the assignment that was due at midnight tonight, but instead I stayed up to read this--I consider it my reward for being a very diligent and steadily working hobbit...er, girl...all day. :-) A satisfying end, this was! And although I'd have loved for you to stretch this on and on, as is true with any good tale, and have Frodo freak out about the Orcs and Troll and Witch-King right there on the page, it was much more realistic this way. And a wonderful characterization of Frodo's wisdom. Like any good older-cousin, he had to get to the meat of the matter, and it's no good overreacting, because that'd just make them clam up faster. He's kind enough to save that for later, when they won't feel guilt or be hurt by his fear for them. And the hints you gave about how Frodo will process all this later were really powerful--very small descriptions that are some of the most hard-hitting in the story.... ‘Well I’m glad we’ve cleared all that up,’ Frodo said, dusting his hands of the matter. Yes, he was shocked that a troll had fallen on Pippin, but no, he really hadn’t had time to absorb the information. Later on that night the realisation would waken him from a sound sleep, and he’d sit bolt upright, exclaiming, “Pippin!” and would have to be soothed back to sleep by a startled Aragorn. <---*sniff!* My favorite part.... *hugs Frodo*

Elemmírë · 20 August 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

Eeek! I think I missed this chapter! Poor Merry and Pippin. They are trying so very hard not to dispell all the hardship they underwent when first separated from their cousin and Sam. It's strange how one can sometimes refrain from telling another the whole truth, thinking it for the sake and well-being of the the other ... when sometimes it is the entire truth that needs to be heard. And Gandalf's caught in the middle, of all things. It's good to see Frodo make the connection that Boromir redeemed himself by defending Merry and Pippin to his death, so they might be spared.

storyfish · 31 July 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

Oh my! I can't believe I didn't review the newest chapter of this fic! I just want to let you know i'm still eagerly awaiting the next chapter, even though it seems this fic is simmering on your backburner now. I'm very impressed with it so far, because it's just this sort of story that's the hardest for me to write--a lot of talking, not much action, lots of little details to tell and how to get each character to tell them in a way that maximizes angst and drama even when all they're doing is sitting around statically and parsing out things that happened already?? But so far you've managed to make the retelling of Merry and Pippin's story, a tale we're all very familiar with, both new and dramatic--almost nail-bitingly so!--because we're seeing it through the eyes of Frodo and Sam, who haven't heard it yet. So if you're feeling frustrated with the fic (okay, maybe I'm projecting here, because the fic I'm working on is currently stagnant in a similar "sitting around and talking through your angst" point) I just want to say I'm rooting for you and I can't can't can't can't wait to find out what's going to happen next! :-)

Bodkin · 23 June 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

Poor Frodo. Trying to untangle this version of the story will take every bit of his experience of his cousins! And he's not really in prime condition at the moment to work out all the nuances.

Pearl Took · 20 June 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

What a tangled web we weave . . . I hope they just tell Frodo and quit confusing the poor hobbit. Chances are good that if they leave things too his imagination, they will rapidly be worse than the truth of the matter. Hope you are able to write more soon :)

Dreamflower · 20 June 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

Lovely! Lovely! Lovely! I was about to give up on some new fic to read with my lunch, when this popped up! Lin, your timing is impeccable! Poor Merry! The more he tries to keep things from Frodo, the worse it gets! I do hope bedtime intervenes soon, or they *will* have to break their agreement about telling of their Orc captivity! I love the way that Pippin cuts straight to the point. Frodo would have done much better telling Merry to hush... And Sam is *very* observant, isn't he?

shirebound · 20 June 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

‘The Riders of Rohan attacked,’ Frodo repeated, seizing the strand and pulling with all his might, in the interest of untangling the tale. Pippin decided to go straight to the point. ‘Frodo only got up for the first time today,’ he said, turning his head to crane up at Gandalf. ‘Oughtn’t he to be going to bed, soon?’ Poor Frodo, trying to make sense of this garbled story! :D

harrowcat · 20 June 2006 · Chapter 3: Not Too Safe

I am glad that I know the story well Lindelea or I'd be getting more confused than Frodo. This is brilliant. and the reactions are absolutely great.

Frodo Baggins · 7 May 2006 · Chapter 0: No Laughing-Matter

Oh this was wonderful! I can't wait to see what Frodo's reaction will be. The characters are very well done and very book cannon. I love to think of how poor Frodo would take the news of his cousins'....hm, how do we say, misadventures? I bet he would feel horrid for even allowing them to come along. Goodness, though, you sound like me! Ideas springing to life in the most absurd of places! A doctor's office waiting room. Yes, and the car, moving truck, sibling attacks...the works. Hannon le for a wonderful story. God Bless! YOurs Truly, Frodo Baggins

Dreamflower · 7 May 2006 · Chapter 2: A Conspiracy Unmasked

This chapter is so funny, as Merry and Pippin are trying so hard to still keep Frodo in the dark--their attempts at distraction in the face of his Baggins persistence are like the little boy with his finger in the dyke--doomed to failure. ‘Why, no!’ Pippin said, in perfect honesty, all wide-eyed innocence. But Merry sighed, for Frodo knew that look as well as he knew the fur on the top of his feet. Yep. Frodo knows, and the jig is up, even before Pippin starts to spoil it all by nearly passing out. But in spite of his pain and general wooziness, he continues to try--with his diversion about the Ents very nearly working. But Frodo's not buying it. Gandalf knows, and it is *he* who has decided to "out" the Conspiracy: ‘Drink that now,’ Gandalf said with a nod to Frodo. ‘Your cousins ought to have known they couldn’t keep all their absurd exploits and ridiculous feats from you.’ Frodo thought back to his awakening at Rivendell, and Gandalf’s use of “absurd” at the time. ‘They’ve been doing all sorts of heroic things, I’d imagine,’ he said. And then, so funny at the end, where Pippin just assumes he's going to be the one to tell--only to have Frodo pin poor Merry down! I really look forward to his rendition!