You-who! Anyway one still out there and interested in this chapter? Well if you are…
Dun, Dun, Dun! Finally here is chapter 30! I am *very* sorry about the wait. Thanks to all of you for your support and feedback – personal notes are at the bottom as usual. Major thank-you's for Sirithiliel for helping me step by step through this chapter. You rock.
Also Return of the King rocked though this chapter is book based and not movie based at all.
I know I usually welcome new reviewers personally but there were just to many of you this time! So I will just say welcome everyone!
I am home for the holidays and getting online is more difficult out here then it was in Toronto so please be patient with any delays. I sent this chapter to eLLe but that was over a week ago and she has yet to get it back to me, and she only left me one email telling me she would return it a week ago… I am assuming something has come up and she has been sidetracked (fair enough – it is a busy time of year) but the result is that this chapter has only been edited by me. Also I know a lot of you had high expectations for quality after this long wait but this chapter is rather weak – sorry about that but I do not know how to improve it so it will have to do.
I will make you wait no longer…
Chapter #30 ~ Approaching the White Gates
Merry was tired, yet he trudged forward nonetheless; his small strides but half of those of his companions, feeling frustrated beyond belief as he attempted to keep pace. In front of him strode Gimli, and the hobbit momentarily tried to comprehend how the dwarf managed to keep up with these humans so easily, or at least supported the appearance of such, for the dwarf was only really a head taller then Merry himself was.
Taking four steps in quick succession Merry caught up to his dwarf friend, now walking abreast of him. Looking sideways Merry was struck with how depressed and despondent Gimli appeared. His face was ashen and pale, with lines of grief marring the skin surrounding the dwarf's brow and mouth. The hobbit felt his heart lurch with sympathy, a sudden understanding hitting him that Gimli was still far from healing - his guilt still something that remained unmasked within the depths of his dark eyes.
The countryside around them provided little relief. It was barren and rocky once again, with speckled trees that seemed to shrivel under the dark, rumbling sky. It was grey and lifeless in many respects, with only the eery red haze that lingered beyond the mountains within the ever approaching shadow that was Mordor providing colour. The knowledge that somewhere in between the two, himself and the eye, two of his closest friends yet trudged on made Merry's own stomach churn in worry.
Merry sighed, shifting his gaze from the horizon to once again study the dwarf. He longed to say something that might provide Gimli with some relief, yet he doubted his own wisdom when addressing such matters, for he was only a very little hobbit in a vast and wide world. Yet the silence lay heavily upon Merry, whose personality required a degree of cheer to keep him motivated, and soon he was fidgeting even as he walked. Clearing his throat he struggled to say something.
"Fine day this; with a cool and crisp breeze that makes the pace we set bearable, don't you think?" Merry chirped up, studying the dwarf for a reaction. Gimli grunted something noncommital in reply. Merry frowned. "We certainly seem to be going quickly. What do you think the hurry is?"
Again Gimli seemed to not really process the hobbit's words, merely shifting his head slightly as if such a movement could provide an adequate reply. Merry sighed, his frustrating mounting, for surely he did not know how to deal with a moody dwarf.
"I said," he declared raising his voice in a hope of attracting Gimli's attention, "I wonder why we press forward with such haste!?"
"For war does not allow the luxury of an morning strolls pace," Faramir's voice suddenly pipped up. "Though such leisurely pleasures might make for stronger hearts, while giving peace of mind and soul. Would that our most pressing concern at present be but to critique the beauty of a sunrise."
"You speak my thoughts well," Merry said, his appreciation of Faramir's quiet disposition growing. The human had the heart of a poet, the gentleness of someone who would always see the best in people above the worst, and Merry imagined that in times of peace Faramir would have flourished, while philosophizing such virtues as he displayed to the breeze. Merry longed to possess such dignity.
"Yet such things are for another age," Faramir sad sadly.
"Yes," Merry agreed solemnly. "It is our job to see that they, the generations of tomorrow, have the time for such acts of recreation where we ourselves are denied."
Faramir laughed lightly, looking back at the hobbit. "You are stronger then you look, little one. Would that those who lose hope could look to you for an example."
Merry blushed, the meaning behind the human's words not being lost on him. He glanced at the dwarf to see if Gimli had heard any of the conversation and to his joy he saw the dwarf was looking at him, appearing more alert then he had since their last conversation.
Merry smiled slightly, and the dwarf after a moment of simply looking, tilted his head slightly in appreciation. "Thank-you young hobbit."
"Don't mention it, Gimli. We all need to lean on each other for strength in these times. No shame in it. Simply part of surviving out here," Merry stated. The hobbit felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, and a definite bounce developed in his step. He wanted to sing suddenly, and humming the familiar notes of a hobbit-song under his breath he let the words come to life and fill the air around the company. The human men looked at him with rather bemused but benign expressions upon their faces. They obviously knew not how to understand the smallest member of their company.
As the lyrics unfolded, bringing to life the trials of an unfortunate farmer who accidentally sold his house for a carrot while under the influence of too much brew - a only slightly dramatized version of something Bredford Proudfoot had actually done - the company was soon laughing lightly, their hearts lightened by the trivial, quaint story. For the first time in many days Merry felt as if it were possible for them to achieve something, to triumph over the darkness. As his mood lightened, the first rays of hope dissipated the encroaching darkness and Merry smiled a genuine smile.
~*~
The road before them stretched long and far, and weary days multiplied. The company trudged forward, grim for the most part, for they carried the air of knowledge that soon the darkness they were fleeing would come to their homeland. It was a sobering realization: that with the rolling turbulent clouds, came war.
Merry grew in this period of time. His eyes were opened to the plight of these people and he suddenly desired to aid them in their cause, noble as it was. The pain of his separation from Pippin also seemed to heal - though not vanish completely. Once away from the evil whisperings of the ring, hope once again became possible. It was a second chance that Merry embraced with enthusiasm, for in the hobbit's mind he still had much to atone for.
Gimli seemed to settle into his role in the company as well with an air of contentment. The dwarf still felt as though he had failed in his part of the fellowship, but with Mordor closing in around them it left him little time to dwell on such negative thoughts. Better yet to look to the future and leave the past for a better time to contemplate.
Day six into their wanderings dawned bitter and cold upon the world, masked in shady hues of grey and amber. Merry stretched as he awoke, loosening stiff muscles and yawning, so that his jaw extended beyond what was physically comfortable. The hobbit pulled himself to a sitting position, his eyes and ears taking in the smoky screen of morning fog that had settled over the company. It was utterly silent. The horses had their ears laid flat back, shuffling their feet on slightly soggy ground so that even this slight movement was dulled of life. The majority of the company still lay asleep.
Yet not all were so agreeably engaged, Merry noted. Faramir stood next to a man, Calien, and the pair was whispering quietly, but, straining, Merry could make out their words.
"There is an ill feel to the air this morning," Calien said, his voice tinged with apprehension. "The world has gone still and that is never a good sign."
"No," Faramir agreed. "There is a foul scent upon the breeze and this mist has risen sharply and does not feel all that natural." He shifted position slightly, crossing his arms over his chest. As Merry watched he could perceive the deep folds of the skin surrounding both the gentlemen's mouths, frowns. They were nervous, with their hands grasping the hilts of their swords seemingly unconscious of the action.
"Should I go out and scout?" Calien volunteered after a moments hesitation. He was a grounded individual, his years revealing themselves in the grey hairs that speckled his otherwise dark head, his face weathered by the trials of a demanding life; a soldiers life.
"I should fear losing you in this infernal fog." Faramir paused here, his body tense as he shifted his weight from the balls of his feet to his toes. It struck Merry as an odd movement, one that radiated the tension that was all too evident in Faramir's voice. "No," he continued, "Something is coming."
Merry could not help but agree. The more he awoke, the more alert the hobbit became to the tangible sense of danger that lurked in the air. Faramir was right, something was coming and Merry had no desire to be here when it arrived.
"Your orders?" Calien asked then, looking grateful at not having to leave the main group.
"Wake the men. Quietly. We set out at double pace. We will out-run this unseen evil."
Yet the command proved unnecessary. The silence was breached with a sudden raking noise that made the men awake with jerks of alarm. The screech lingered on the thick air, making Merry's hair stand on end.
Nazgul!
The sound was unmistakable to anyone who had been cursed enough to have heard the winged-beasts cries before. The noise had haunted Merry since he had first heard it, waking him the middle of the night in a cold sweat. Yet this was no dream. It was real.
The humans jumped up, pulling their gear together quickly. The company was moving within minutes of the first cry, pulling together and mounting their horses with cold, precise movements. Merry himself had no time to protest as Faramir reached down and hauled him up, settling the hobbit in front of him protectively. Merry looked quickly about, assuring himself that Gimli too had been helped onto a mount and was only satisfied when he saw the dwarf clinging to Calien's waist.
Then they were galloping, riding swiftly, the dense air rising up to press against their faces as though trying to smoother them, or hold them back in an attempt to impede their escape. It was ominous, the dense fog through which the sounds of ragged wings beating could be heard.
From the white obscurity of the fog one of the hideous winged mounts swooped, its wings creating a breeze and flattened Merry's hair back. Large talon-like claws snapped shut viciously, as the creatures jaw snarled, baring pearl teeth and a forked tongue. The answering scream made the companies hearts freeze with horror, as one of the Gondor soldiers was ripped from their mount, blood splattering as death claimed him, before the beast loomed up once again to swoop around over head.
The soldier's mount reeled, screeching its fear and terror into the morning air and sending the rest of the horses into a panic. As the Nazgul came around for its second strike, all chaos broke loose.
Merry felt the horse beneath him tense, feeling the muscles along its back and side seizing up as it prepared to rear, and Faramir must have felt it too for suddenly his arms gripped tighter to the halfling, both their knees clinging on desperately. Then gravity was pulling at him, trying to make him tumble backwards and all Merry could do was blindly hold onto the hair and neck of the horse with all the strength he possessed. It was over as quickly as it had begun. The horse once again settled onto four legs and Faramir seemed to resume control.
"Stay together. Ride hard for Gondor. The white gates are near. Do not look behind you!" his voice carried powerfully, confidence and courage radiating from his voice. Merry felt himself breathing once again.
Then they were surging forwards, the horses needing little encouragement as they raced for their lives, their hooves thundering across the dusty plains. Merry could still hear the beating wings behind them, the screeching cries of the Nazgul sending shivers of fear through him, but he clung to the horse, forcing himself to think of nothing else.
The horse swerved sideways then, and the hobbit was only vaguely aware of the near miss of talons. Near his ear he could hear Faramir's breathing hitch as they narrowly avoided the same fate as their dead comrade. Yet someone was not so lucky, and their mount barely avoided tripping over the tumbling body that hit the ground roughly. Then the steward's arms were gone, and the twain of an arrow being released from a bowstring imprinted itself upon Merry's consciousness.
Their horse slowed before them, but Merry reached down and grabbed the slackening reigns. "Run, you damn beast!" he screamed into the frightened animals twitching ear. The horse seemed disoriented but with a sharp slap of the reigns the beast pushed forwards once again, his rib cage expanding in wheezing breathes. In the distance the sound of a horn rose, its pure notes of music sounding an unmistakable alarm, and breaking from the fog as though it had never existed Merry suddenly realized they rode on a plain and in the distance the white city breached the ground to rise into the air, its long towers dancing with the clouds.
Pushing aside such distracting thoughts, Merry risked glancing back over his shoulder, watching as Faramir unwaveringly notched another arrow, his eyes scanning the air around them and as the giant black beast swooped he aimed, his hands steady and fired. The man was skilled with a bow and Merry was briefly reminded of Legolas... wishing that the elf's aim was here to help them now, for although the arrow hit, it seemed to impact little upon the Nazgul.
Faramir seemed to lose his balance at that precarious moment, twisting in the saddle slightly, his arms flailing unceremoniously. His arms shot forward unconsciously, seeking an anchor so that the bow he still clutched slammed roughly into Merry's gut. Yet the hobbit, realizing the rangers need ignored the dull ache of the blow and held tight to the reigns, attempting to keep both himself and the man on.
"My thanks," Faramir said, his breathing erratic, into Merry's ear. Merry tried to get his throat to loosen up enough to make some sort of reply, yet he could not unclench his teeth through his fright and so the statement was left unaddressed.
Further up the fleeing band Gimli clung to Calien's waist for dear life as the soldier sped his horse along, swerving occasionally. Calien was a scout and his horse reflected that personality trait. It was sleek and strong, built not for war but for speed, it's tanned neck stretched out, its hooves pounding the earth with confidence and, out of all the horses, it seemed the least prone to panic. Gimli felt himself impressed with the blasted thing, for all he was terrified and personally would have preferred to have attempted to outrun the Nazgul on foot.
Yet for this skillmanship the duo found themselves ahead of the main body of the group and Gimli felt twinges of fear for Merry. "Should we not wait for the rest?" he demanded.
"Nay. We must get to the city and warn them of this approaching threat. We must rally the men to the city walls," Calien declared. He obviously knew his task in this and the dwarf realized somewhat unhappily that nothing he might say would convince the human to turn about and search for a hobbit.
"Open the gate! Open!" Calien called, his voice emerging powerful, deep and commanding. He did not slow his horse and after a moments pause, in which Gimli was sure they would run head first into the main gate of the city, the command was obeyed, the doors opening slowly leaving just enough room for the single horse to squeeze through.
The clattering sounds of hooves on cobbled stone felt reassuring for some reason to Gimli. The dwarf found himself engulfed in a sea of concerned expressions of men who came forward to hear what news was being brought.
"Get archers to the walls! Faramir returns and will require aid!" Calien bellowed without pausing to catch his breath. Seeing the moments confusion keep most people firmly in place he glared. "The city will soon be under attack. Give your people cover while they retreat! To the walls!"
The second entreaty resulted in action. Soon people were racing chaotically for bows and arrows, suiting up in armour and running to the parapets along the wall. Gimli slung himself from the horse's back and raced after the archers, determined to watch what happened as events unfolded. Pushing his stout legs to their maximum stride, Gimli charged heedless of the looks he was receiving to the upper wall, straining upon his toes to see over the high stone wall. Cursing at this new height obstacle Gimli had to transfer his attentions to gauging the reactions of his comrades.
To soon he saw the looks of horror, the gasps of shock and dread. The men seemed to freeze as they stared out, and the cry of a Nazgul proved that they were close now. Too close. Yet what of the company?! Gimli once again strained upon the tips of his toes in an attempt to see when Calien once again came up beside him.
"What is happening?" Gimli demanded at once. "Do they still come?"
"There are fewer horses riding now then originally set out but yes, they still come." His grey eyes scanned hard, his knuckles white as they gripped the stone in front of him in a vice like grip. The human look scared, and Gimli longed to see for himself the predicament of the company that still came searching for shelter. "There is my lord!" he shouted suddenly. "Faramir comes last and fires arrows at the beast. Ah! If only I could possessed such courage. He let's his men arrive to safety first!" The admiration in Calien's voice did not go unnoticed by Gimli. Boromir's younger brother seemed to attract loyalty, confidence and faith.
"What of the hobbit? Where is Merry?" Gimli pressed, his concern for his remaining companion mounting. He had known that Faramir had taken the hobbit upon his horse when the flight had begun. If the son of Gondor came last of the ranks then so too did Gimli's friend.
"Watch out!" Calien shouted, though Gimli doubted that whoever the warning was meant for could hear it. The shriek of a Nazgul announced another victory for the foul beast - the death of another human.
"Archers ready!" A new voice called out a distance away. Gimli's head snapped in the person's general direction but he was unable to pick out the commander of the wall.
"What happens now, Calien?" Gimli pressed again, desperately. "What now?"
"They approach, yet only fifteen men remain seated. The horses look near collapse and are skittish. The men are having to fight to keep them in check," Calien reported. "Faramir fires at the beast once again! He missed but the thing nearly knocked him from his horse. Ah! Please do not fall!" Calien was nearly hanging out over the wall at this point. "Open the gates so that they might get in! Open the gates!" he barked, and the command was passed along the wall. Gimli could here the creaking of the wooden gates as they were hulled open slowly.
"The first of them are reaching us! Come on my lord Faramir! He must make it here!" Calien pleaded. Gimli closed his eyes, softly beseeching whatever goodness yet remained in the world to help Merry reach safety. The dwarf could not bare the thought of losing someone else. Merry was giving him a purpose at the moment and Gimli was of the disposition that needed to have a function. Without one he would be lost.
"They have made it!" Calien shouted, turning quickly to run down and greet them.
"FIRE!" the commander of the wall bellowed, and in reply the twain's of multiple arrows being released sung into the air. The Nazgul screeched its fury as it quickly circled round trying to avoid the heaviest flurry. The black beast's shadow danced across Gimli as it glided overhead, circling over the city before climbing higher into the air. Slowly the giant beast soared away, screeching its promise of retribution, until it was but a black spot on the horizon, passing beyond sight.
It was over.
Gimli tore back down to the main courtyard, needing to see with his own eyes that Merry was safe. Leaping recklessly down the steps Gimli breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Faramir reach up and pull the hobbit, who looked white and shaky, from the horse.
"Merry!" Gimli tore over to the young ones side. "Are you alright there?" his concern coating each of the words.
Merry gulped, his legs looking wobbly beneath him so that Gimli felt inclined to lead him to the side of the courtyard, urging the hobbit to sit, least his feet give out beneath him. "I..." Merry began, his eyes large in his face. "I... don't think I care for horses much," he managed to stammer out.
Gimli looked at the hobbit for a long moment of disbelief before laughing. "Don't like horses much me'self," he said clapping Merry on the back in relief, for if the hobbit's most pressing concern was that he did not like horses then he was well enough.
"How about you?" Merry asked, starting to look and sound more like himself.
"Fine, lad. I am well. Look," the dwarf then urged, his head tipping up to the white pearl towers of Minas Tirith. "See where you are."
Merry forced himself to follow Gimli's instructions, his gaze twisting upwards as he looked upon the might of Aragorn's birthright. The city was massive, its construction awing. Their was such pride and beauty within in it that Merry suddenly understood why Boromir would have done anything to protect it - as he would have done anything to save the Shire. There was a history here, whispering in the billowing banners. This was the home of many.
"It is beautiful. Most impressive," he owned. "It reminds me of Boromir," the hobbit added almost without thought, regretting voicing the comment as soon as it was said.
Gimli looked sadly upon the sight for a long moment as well. "Ay. It reminds me of him as well," came the dwarf's quiet reply.
"Master Brandybuck," Faramir's voice suddenly chimed in. "Are you going to recover? You look very pale."
"No more so than you, sir," Merry said feeling slightly guilty that people were able to see his fear so clearly.
Faramir laughed humourlessly. "Then I would be whiter then you. That was too close. The Nazgul grow so bold that they threaten our very gates. We have not much time." His voice was quiet and regretful. It held the quality of one knowing that time would grant no more leeway. "I must go to my father. He needs to receive my report and... word of my brother's fate." Unconsciously Faramir's hand strayed to the horn of Gondor that hung at his hip, his brother's legacy. "Would you accompany me for my father might have questions to ask of you."
"We owe you no less," Gimli stated simply. Reaching down the dwarf hulled Merry to his feet, pausing to make certain the hobbit could walk, despite his earlier bold words. Satisfied that Merry would not collapse, the trio turned and began to climb their way to the main keep, their shoulders stooped with weariness under the weight of knowledge that they were the bringers of bad news.
Soon a father would have news of a son's death.
I would like to say sorry to everyone… I know it isn't all that good but it happened in the books and that was what I was going on. This chapter was also sort of a filler chapter because the real interesting parts will happen with Faramir and his father. Anyway – next chapter will be better I promise!
Also I am sorry if I have not reviewed you recently when I normally do. I have not been able to get online for a week now basically (stupid life) and have not found the time yet… I have not abandoned any of you though and I promise I will do it as soon as I find the time!
Reviewer Replies:
Sparrow Greenleaf: LOL. Yeah I do get evil with my cliffhangers. I enjoy making your squirm. Poor Pippin and Legolas is right – but at least I did not kill any of them! I hope you are still interested in the story and continue to enjoy.
TrinityTheSheDevil: Poor elf is right. I am evil to him. Sooner or later he is going to up and run away from me. Personally I am surprised he had not done so yet. I hope you had fun entertaining Aragorn while awaiting this chapter! ^_~
Roper: I find with this story that it is getting better and better as it progresses. I find my writing is improving as I go and that in turn makes the story better. I am glad you liked the last chapter so much and I am so sorry about making you wait for this one.
Sirithiliel: This chapter would not have been written without your help. Thank-you and thank-you again. Sorry to have left you hanging with the end of the last chapter. It was a particularly evil spot to stop but what can I say? I am evil.
Lisette: I really hope the message I left in my author's note on my last post answered your questions concerning that was happening in chapter 29. If not I can try to explain it again for you or I suppose I could try and write in a few gap fillers. I am glad you liked the scene with Legolas. I was particularly proud of it myself as well. Thanks again for your review!
Gwyn: LOL. Yeppers. You were right on the mark. Sorry you had to follow Merry, Gimli and Faramir in this chapter instead of more elf angst but the next chapter will provide lots of elf misery, I promise. Personally I like the other group as well so you are not alone. Thanks for your patience in the meanwhile!
White Wolf1: I am glad you thought my dialogue was good. When I first started writing I was terrified of dialogue and tried to stick to movie script as much as possible but the more I write the more I like doing conversations. I really get into them and have trouble stopping. Glad you also liked the Legolas scene. I was proud of that scene. ^_^
Elfling: LOL. Sorry you got in trouble by the librarian, lol. I am glad you were enjoying it so much though. I was hoping it would be engaging and was a little worried that there was too much dialogue but everyone seemed to enjoy that aspect of the chapter so who am I to argue, lol. Excellent is a word I like to hear so don't feel the need to stop using it.
jambaby1963: I am so glad you are enjoying it and I am only sorry I made you wait so long for this chapter. I am normally pretty good about updates (or at least I think I am) but this one… nothing can excuse it. Hope you continue to enjoy.
iverson: I am glad you came out of lurking for my fic and I am sorry I abandoned you right afterwards! I always love it when someone who was to shy to review does and try to encourage them to keep reviewing afterwards. Your comments just give me such a boost and are such pleasant rewards for writing. LOL. My chapters for this fic do seem to keep getting longer and longer. I think my longest one so far was 14 pages at size ten font. That is just crazy. I am glad I did the battle scene well. I am not good at doing action and struggle with it so to know I succeeded is great! I hope you are still here and reading this!
Manders1953: LOL. I am glad you found the story and enjoyed it so much. I discovered fan fics in January and have been addicted to them since. As soon as I read my first one I knew that I would have to write one and here is the epic-length result, lol. LOL. I am very sorry for the evil cliff-hanger. I am evil with those and most of my chapter leave you thinking and cursing me as evil. No helping it. ^_^
Samus: Glad you liked my rather depressing/black premise and I hope you continue to enjoy. ^_^
Rosie: Glad you liked it and sorry to have left you wondering what was going to happen for so long. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Lady Lenna: Pain is always a good thing. Angst makes for an interesting read, lol. Or maybe I am just twisted and therefore think that. Will be… that is the point of it all. Good things come to those who wait they say and Legolas is just going to have to wait a bit longer. Sorry for the long update period. Next one will be quicker.
Legilmalith: LOL. Sorry I could not finish up as quickly as you wanted me to. *blush* Thank-you for all your kind words and I am so pleased you liked it. It means a lot to me to know people enjoy my writing and stories. I seriously start grinning like an idiot every time I read your review. I just get so smug, lol. Yeah – I know there are errors. I find it really difficult to catch them all, though I do make an attempt at editing them! If you do see errors (and don't worry about pointing that out to me as I do know they are there) please just draw my attention to them so I can correct them and become aware of the types of mistakes I am making – especially with punctuation as that will help me when I am writing up assignments for school as well. ROFL. That was a funny thing to try and visualize! Thanks for your review and I hope you continue to do so!
Niori: Well they haven't died yet. There is always a qualifier in there, lol, because I am evil and unpredictable. Don't apologize for not being quick. I can never again comment on tardiness as I am officially the queen of lateness, lol. You are never boring Niori and I hope New Brunswick isn't too cold… I will be home soon to be enjoying the Atlantic weather soon too! Thanks for being patient and yes, I got rid of the computer virus! Also I am very sorry I have not reviewed your most recent chapter either… I promise that I will do it but I have just been so busy recently that I have not had time to come online and review anyone's work… it is on my to do list though so I will be back to do it – I will not forget about it.
SpaceVixenX: Lol. You thought the last chapter was tardy… I wonder how you will qualify this one given that it has been four or five months since my last update. Well at least the whole pillow-in-the-grave scene would have been an appropriate one for Halloween… *sheepish grin*.
Kate Barancik: Hum… well if I am bad at updating at least I am in good company, lol. When are you going to update your fic?! No pressure though. I realize that sometimes real life doesn't give you a chance to write. Thanks for being so patient and understanding!
XMark: LOL. Well I hope you have made it this far! Thanks for your review and I am heavily influenced by the movies but I hope I have steered enough away from them to make this original as well. Pain and Legolas… yeah there will be a lot more of that before the story is done, lol.
wellduh…: Well like I said to another reviewer… Legolas is okay for now. Still a lot of battles for him to survive so don't get to comfortable, lol. I wanted to keep Tolkiens original relationship and in the book Eowyn was definitely attracted to Aragorn. I am trying to incorporate that but I will never make this a romance story so no worries and some thing in cannon are not meant to be changed… Arwen and Aragorn are sort of official in my books. Thanks for your review! I will be better about updates from now on – or at least I will try to be!
Symian: LOL. I am glad I was able to describe some scenes so vividly that you could see them in a movie. I think it would have made a great scene as well. ^_^
LOTRFaith: LOL. I am glad you re-discovered the link. I hate it when I know I have found something great and manage to loose track of it too so I am pleased you re-found mine! Sorry it took me so long to post and I hope you continue to enjoy.
Amelie: I am so glad you liked the story. I love people enjoying my writing. I hope you saw the author's note I left for you in both my bio and in the last chapter. I am sorry that it took me so long to update, but as I said I just needed a break from it for a bit because I was feeling flat on it and I didn't want to ruin it. I have a break now and am ready to go right back into the think of things, lol. I really hope you continue to review!
Artemisa: Okay and here I go back into the familiar song and dance of "the twins are going to appear in this story soon". You must be so sick of hearing that but it is true – I promise. Maybe next chapter.
Eldameldo: WOW. Thanks so much for just reviewing my pieces left, right and center. I am amazed that you have started digging into this piece as well and when you get this far (if you get this far) just know I appreciate your comments and words.
Maris: WOW. I am so glad you found my story so moving that it could bring tears to your eyes… that made me feel pretty darn good… not that you cried but that my story was captivating enough to get you so emotionally involved! Thanks so much for your lovely comments and I hope you liked this chapter as well.
Bookworm2000: You have been so wonderful about reviewing me! I was so excited when I saw you had come to read this story as well! Thanks so much for that by the way as I know you had to read a lot to get to this newest chapter. Pippin and Merry have sort of switched role's in this fic (in where they are placing their loyalties if nothing else) so I am glad you noticed that. Yes -let's hope that Merry and Pippin do get reunited eventually… it will make for a very happy scene. I love Frodo and Sam too (especially Sam ~ I always find Frodo a bit like a deer in headlights) but I was having troule keeping track of all my characters and making sure to mention them so I purposefully was trying to reduce my numbers. I don't have any plans at the moment to go back to Frodo and Sam but that might change… a lot about this story is still uncertain. So glad you are enjoying it and I hope you continue to do so.
Lembas Pot: I am so amazed that you like this story so much. I means a lot to me as the author to know my writing is that captivating. I seriously want to be a writer when I am older and this is sort of the way I am practicing my prose so feedback from readers means a lot to me at the moment because it is helping me improve so much as a writer. *hang's head in shame* I am sorry I did not get this up a few days ago as I promised. Here is your update! ^_^
Mellaithwen-ElvenMaiden: Wow… please let me have spelled that right, lol. What a lovely pen-name… I was trying to figure out how to pronounce the first part of it… does it have a special meaning? I am glad my last author's note cleared up your questions and hopefully the next chapter that goes back to them will clear it up more. Thanks for your review!
Luntetuurewen: LOL. You read this just in time for an update. I have been making most people wait months and lucky you get it right away, lol. I am glad you are enjoying this and hope this newest chapter does not disappoint to much!