Reviews (46)

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I'd imagine the silver horn would cut through the joyful noise in the room quite as effectively as it would sound above the tumult of battle! I'm glad you liked Faramir's present, and that painfully awkward hug, poor lad... I'm sure he'll improve with practice. LOL! Thanks so much for reading and pausing to share your thoughts and impressions!

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I love it when people point out some of the parts that jumped out at them; it helps me see the chapter with a fresh perspective! Thanks so much for reading and pausing to share your thoughts. :)

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I'm so glad you enjoyed the story! And thank you for your vote! (And many thanks for your encouragement. I really appreciate it.)

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You're very welcome! Thank you for reading, and for your wonderful comments.

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Thank you for your input! It's very helpful. I'm also glad for your encouraging words today.

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Woohoo! I'm glad you loved the mathoms! Two of the not-so-wee hobbits have given me artwork in years past, treasure, indeed. Thanks!

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LOL, Sandy is very professional and discreet! He understands how difficult it is for people in such positions to find private moments. They're surrounded by servants not because they seek to be served or because they inherited wealth but because servants free up their time to deal with all the demands they face in trying to watch over a multitude of others and do what's best for everyone. Therefore, he fiercely guards their privacy, in part because he loves them like family and in part because he knows they're giving their all for the good of Shire-folk. It's always fun to catch a glimpse into these playful moments. (grin) I usually aim to write such scenes on two levels simultaneously so that readers can take away what they wish. A straight reading should yield a "G" or "PG" experience, while those who wish can use their imagination to approach an "R" rating. I hit on this stylistic technique when I was teaching writing classes for children and teens, some of whom were aware of my fanfiction. As Anne of Green Gables might have said, kindred spirits! I can't tell you how many nights I started out with a chapter at bedtime and ended up reading to the end of the story. Author Reply: p.s. At this point in his life, Ferdi has interacted with the worst of Men: Lotho's (and then Sharkey's) ruffians, and then later, the rogue Men who entered the Shire in defiance of the King's edict, trying to steal the Thain's gold. Ferdi's view of Men is an ongoing joke amongst his cousins. When the topic of Men comes up, he says under his breath, "Ruffians, all." Then a cousin teases him, saying, "All Men are ruffians, eh, Ferdi?" And insulted, he replies, "I never said that!" Which is true, strictly speaking. Not in so many words, anyhow. In contrast, among the Tooks, his cousin Hildibold comes to appreciate Elessar, and his cousin Tolibold actually has friends who are Men (as told in "One Who Sticks Closer Than a Brother"), and Reginard sees Men in black-and-white terms: Kingsmen are good and all other Men are evil until proved otherwise. And, of course, Pippin counts certain Men among his friends, which is inexplicable to Ferdi, at least before he travels to Gondor with one of Elessar's kinsmen. Even later in his life, he becomes fast friends with a former ruffian, upending his world. After he gets to know Elessar better, the stubborn hobbit still won't admit the Man isn't a ruffian but insists he hasn't made up his mind yet, even when he's grown comfortable in Elessar's company.

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Oh, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed what is there. I've been working away at the beta notes for the last part of the story since you first mentioned you were reading it, and now that I've finished publishing two of the WIPs I've been posting, there's room to start posting the rest of the edited chapters of that one. Thanks for reminding me!

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Woohoo! Party time! Where's the confetti? O there it is... The drinks are poured, the teapots are costed for those who prefer tea, and the platters are absolutely groaning with hobbit-approved food. Final chapter is posted. Let's celebrate! (((hugs))) Author Reply: "costed" should be "cosied"! Silly autocorrect! Author Reply: (Well, for technical reasons, I broke up the last chapter into two pieces, but the last bit of the story is posted anyhow.)

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It's too true that these chapters were not as fluffy as the ones that came before, but they were necessary to ensure there were no plot holes in the story. At least, it seemed to be the right thing to include them. I can tell you that Faramir certainly straightened up after the previous incident, when he had his own "ripples in the pond" awakening. So it's quite likely that the young hobbits in that room will stick to minor mischief going forward, pranks and jokes and such (for the Professor did mention that hobbits are fond of such things). And Pippin has been learning to keep his temper and look before he leaps for some years now, so there's much hope for him, I should say. Let me offer the following list of titles that fit your question, all of which are in my list of stories on SoA. Some stories are long (having many chapters, but all the early stories have short chapters of about 1000-1500 words because our dial-up connection balked at files that were any larger), and some are short, so that you can plan any reading you might do based on the time you have available. (For my part, in those early days, and even now, I typically read a chapter or two, at most, per day per story I'm reading. That way, I avoid the temptation to stay up half the night reading a gripping tale. Basically, I either have much self-discipline, or none at all.) Some of the longer works in the list are complete, and some are in progress but due to be updated a chapter at a time to the end since I've been writing chapters for numerous stories every week (hoorah for a sudden wealth of free time!); in fact, some of my WIPs are already complete on my hard drive, but I'm only posting chapters to a few stories each week since I have to edit them before posting. Hopefully that's not TMI. I hope the list isn't daunting! It does give you a wide choice of reading matter, depending on what you're wanting in a quiet moment. Multi-chapter stories that center around the Troubles: Flames (A very early story about Ferdi during and after the Troubles; ends with Ferdi and Nell's wedding) The Rebel ("Fatty" Bolger and Lobelia Sackville-Baggins in the Lockholes) One Who Sticks Closer Than a Brother (a flashback storyline includes Tolibold's experiences in the Troubles) The Proposition (Ferdi asks his sister to take on a dangerous mission) The Rescue (Ferdi escorts Estella Bolger to safety in the free Tookland) The Farmer's Son (follows an alternate timeline where Paladin is not soured by becoming Thain) Honour (post-Quest, but focuses on the Battle of Bywater) Other multi-chapter stories where Ferdi and Nell's love is an influential plot point: While There's Breath... Where the Merlin Cries Truth A Comedy of Merrys On Solid Ground And short stories (found in the collection "This and That"): The 25th of March, S.R. 2019, The Woody End They Also Serve Sheepdog Trials March 25th, S.R. 2019, The Great Smials Something to Be Thankful For (Frodo and Sam during the Scouring of the Shire) And drabbles: (found in the collection "Drabbles"): March 25 SR 1419 (Rosie Cotton) The Battle of Bywater The Battle of Bywater, afterwords The Return ...and the sound of a battered heart, beating (set during the Scouring of the Shire) Gathering and Sharing Seeds of friendship sown (Ferdi tells Elanor Gamgee about his lost love) Eleni sílar antalyannar! (Ferdi is missing Nell while escorting Farry to Gondor) Remembering the Departed As Long as Hope Remains Author Reply: Two other multi-chapter stories just crossed my mind, including "A Matter of Appearances", which has quite a lot about Ferdi and Nell, as well as a very young Faramir coping with murderous ruffians. However, the story is more violent and disturbing than I usually write (because it was a birthday present and written on request, which gave the birthday person a certain amount of power in suggesting scenes to include). Still, I think it turned out to be a powerful exploration of choice and character, as well as courage, and the result is probably a better story than I ever could have imagined it would be. It definitely stretched me way beyond my comfort zone. The second story, which like "A Matter of Appearances" also has a disturbing ruffian, making it darker in tone than most of my writing, is "As the Gentle Rain". This story explores the themes of good and evil, as well as justice and mercy. It was interesting to take the "ruffian" stereotype and turn it on its head, in a manner of speaking. Anyhow, now you've got enough reading material to last you a long time, along with the other excellent fanfic that's out there. Author Reply: (Forgot to add, "As the Gentle Rain" also features Nell and Ferdi quite heavily. And now I will stop spamming you.)

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Very suspenseful! But hopefully it'll turn out to be more educational than traumatizing. It was so much fun to think up "tasks" that Pippin and Diamond would set for their son, at his young age, as part of the long and painstaking preparation process on his journey to adulthood! Thanks for reading and stopping to leave your encouragement. Only two chapters to go! (And I just posted the next chapter after this one, so technically there's only one chapter to go. I missed my goal of posting the entire story in February by just one day. But the final chapter is ALL fluff, so that counts for something. I think.)

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Update: The plethora of false reviews have been removed.

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I do know! I have enjoyed many similar moments in reading your stories, as well. I think the best part of h/c is absolutely the "c" part. If one can manage lots of "c" with hardly any "h" (or none at all), it's a bonus. I've been writing loads of fluff since Ollie left us, and it has helped somehow. Thank you, my friend, for your encouragement.

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Everything goes better with fresh strawberries, I should think. Even frozen strawberries, in a pinch, especially if they have been dipped in chocolate. (We have some of those in the freezer, actually.) I'm so glad the fluff is helping. In a nutshell (at least, my best attempt at a nutshell): Ferdibrand is on JRRT's genealogy as a direct descendant of The Old Took, making him gentry by blood. In my version of things, his father Ferdinand married the daughter (one of my OCs) of Odovacar Bolger, the head of one of the Great Families in the Shire. However, Ferdinand was a gifted pony trainer, making him one of the "working gentry" – sort of a hybrid status. Thus, Ferdi grew up mingling with both the gentry and working-class hobbits and learned to move in both social circles as someone belonging wherever he found himself. Ferdi and Pippin's sister Pimpernel (Nell) were childhood sweethearts. However, Ferdi's father lost everything in a fire, reducing him to living on the "Thain's charity". Ferdi eventually became a hunter. Later, his skills were valuable in keeping ruffians out of the Tookland during Lotho's time ("the Troubles") and made him a "hero of the Tookland". He suffered severe injuries at the Battle of Bywater and withdrew from society. Thain Paladin then arranged for Pimpernel to marry Odovacar Bolger's brother, Rudivacar (another of my OCs), who died shortly after Pippin became Thain, probably of appendicitis, leaving Pimpernel with five children and one on the way. Though second marriages were almost unheard-of in the Shire, Pippin and Odovacar were instrumental in bringing Ferdi and Nell together. When they married, Ferdi adopted Nell's Bolger children; however, the eldest, Rudi, had to remain a Bolger since he was the heir to the Bolger name and fortune. (Freddy ["Fatty" Bolger], Odo's son, who should have inherited, never completely recovered from the Lockholes and removed himself from the succession, making Rudivacar the Bolger heir before his death, and his son became the legal heir after the older "Rudi" died.) I hope that helps? (And hopefully, I didn't confuse you further with this "short" version!) Author Reply: p.s. I'm so glad to hear you're a fan of Ferdi! I'm quite fond of the hobbit, though between me and my editor-friend (since moved on to a different fandom) who used to proofread my chapters and occasionally suggested ways to insert more chaos and conflict, we have put him through an awful lot of, um, character-building experiences, to put it mildly. Author Reply: Oops, sorry, I mistyped something in the "nutshell" above. Ferdinand, Ferdibrand's father, married the SISTER of Odovacar Bolger, not his daughter.

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I'd so glad you enjoyed this brief interruption to the main story! In part, this story was written in response to a reader's request to see how Rudi and Laurel came to be a couple. They were originally introduced as a married couple in my stories at a point on the timeline when Farry and Goldi are newlyweds and Rudi and Laurel have been married about a decade or so. Of course, this story is set about twenty years before that happens! (I hope this explanation makes sense; I have a cat circling my chair like a shark and periodically biting my leg to remind me that it's past feeding time.) It's difficult to resist a clowning head of escort, especially when someone seconds him! Thanks so much for reading and stopping to leave an encouraging thought! I hope the studies are going well. (((hugs)))

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I simply adore a happy ending! (This story partly came about because Dinossiel wanted to know how Rudi and Laurel met in the first place. I'm hoping it fits the role of a Valentine's story by featuring the early days of two future couples!)

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They have been a lot of fun to take tea with! (((hugs)))

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I'm sure he was immensely relieved! I know I would be... (((hugs)))

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Whew! And since this story is intended to offer more fluff than angst, the comfort is just beginning... Thanks for reading and stopping to share your thoughts!

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Oh my, tests and assignments. I remember how much effort and time investment is involved in studies. I'm glad if my stories can offer a respite of sorts. Best wishes for your studies! Your observation about the amount of work it takes to get in trouble is interesting to contemplate! I hadn't thought about it in just that way before, although I have sometimes thought that if criminals were to put the same amount of effort into doing something constructive as they put into committing crime, they might come out better. Your wondering about Goldi's reaction is interesting, too. I'm still thinking about that. You're right about Frodo's illness being psychological (or spiritual?) rather than physical, but as that idea never made sense to me, I wrote in several stories about his leaving being the result of physical symptoms. One of my first stories ("Jewels", not yet posted in full on SoA but it's on my to-do list) devotes only two or three chapters to the idea, but one of my longer stories, "A Small and Passing Thing", explores the time between releasing the prisoners from the Lock-holes and Frodo's sailing in detail. However, after finishing "Small and Passing Thing", I read one of JRRT's letters and realized that my story should properly be categorized as "AU" because Tolkien emphasizes that Frodo's malady is not physical. Ah, well. I don't feel any desire to rewrite that story to bring it in line with canon. It'll just have to stay as it is. One of my earlier stories (another long one, but at least the chapters are short) that sort of serves as the backbone of many of my Shire stories is "At the End of His Rope". Amazingly (to me, anyhow), the characters and plot devices and cultural characteristics introduced in that story (along with "Jewels" before it) have not required much adjustment as I've expanded my list of fanfics over the years. So I guess something in the back of my brain had a clear picture all through the process. I'm relieved to hear you enjoy my replies to reviews. Sometimes they seem long-winded to me, but they're a reflection of how much I enjoy contemplating this world and these characters that JRRT originated and shared with us.

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Adversity can build strong bonds... in a sense, they are standing back-to-back, though they might not see it that way until they are much older. (Alas, poor Farry, but Goldi is so stubborn, it's difficult to bring her around to sensible thinking any other way.)

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Oh! I need to read (or re-read) these stories! I have added them to my list for this week. (Hopefully life won't get in the way...) Author Reply: (p.s. What you say here sounds quite similar to what I think Pippin tried to explain to his son. (I guess I will have a better idea after I read the stories you mentioned.)

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Ask not an Elf for advice, as someone famously said... I always think of that when I hear "yes... and no" as an answer. Thanks! I appreciate your reading and taking the time to post a review.

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Such details are some of the things I delight in when I'm reading stories, too! I read cinematically, forming pictures in my brain as I go, and the details add life and color to my "mental movie". (((hugs))) Glad you're enjoying this story. Mostly fluff and relatively short, perfect for February.

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Very lucky! (Does he have the luck of the Tooks, I wonder?) Thanks!