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I have been chomping at the bit to read this since you first posted it a week ago, but, alas, crashing websites and an imminent holiday (rife with preparations) have bested me! But I was not disappointed. I'm so eager to see where you go with this. Since you don't post at the Pit of Voles, then I'll give you your first bona fide Pit-of-Volesesque review:

omg plz rite mrre!11!1!! ;)

It's great to be back with Samaril, like meeting up with an old friend. And as usual, your vision of Middle-earth is original and intriguing.

Dinner is being set on the table, so I have to keep this short, but I look forward to more!

Squee! OMG! TYVM! :D 

Re: Pit o' Voles.  Heh.  It's just as well that I don't post there since my sufferance-of-fools threshold is appallingly low, and I'd likely go Bushwell (*WEG*) on the chittering critters.  That wouldn't be pretty and would likely result in my getting kicked off the site.  Better to keep me chained up in here where I can't hurt anyone. :^D

I just couldn't let Sámaril go.  I have 5 more chapters in various stages of wordsmithing and currently am wrestling with chapter 7 so stay tuned!  And yes, my Arda-askew vision is contained therein. :^)

Another great chapter. I love the way you build your characters and your story, but especially I love the creative use of canon. Like following the slow revelation, for those of us who remember them, of the old Sámaril hidden within the current one. The rescue of the child and the suppressed emotions that it brings up are well handled. I also very much like the interaction of Sámaril and Glorfindel. It is an interesting backstory that you have given Glorfindel. It fits well within the canon. Nice cursing too: “Manwë’s holy rod!” I also appreciate a good curse in real life and so it is a struggle for me, but absolutely necessary, to invent them for my stories that fit with tone and vocabulary I am using.

I like Thorno as a character. I am very familiar with his ability to look back on truly awful things and laugh. (I’ve probably mentioned that this something that is always done in my family. Even my sainted mother can tell me truly tragic updates on my family and make me laugh until I cry. I think it is the only way to deal with life.)

Am I missing something (or did I forget something?)…need to read the upcoming chapters. Did you tell us why Elrond really kept him back? Was he really that needed in Imladris? Or did Elrond/Gil-galad have other reasons from preventing him from going? I can think of lots of good reasons why that would not be good for him to participate in the move against Sauron. Not the least of which would be the level to which he clearly personalizes it and the dangers of that subjectivity. (I know. My mind is a little vague today.)

Thanks a million for the detailed review and for the kind words!

Re: cursing -   I recently read a fascinating *science-based* article about cursing and how cross-cultural it is, i.e., part of human behavior.  I'll leave the details of that to Doc Bushwell's blog. Anyway, as you know, my vision of the Firstborn sees them as "human plus" so they will have behavioral traits - including aggression to which swearing is linked - in common with their mortal brethren.

Thorno's growing on me, too, so much that I may bring him into another under-the-radar fic.  He's a very intelligent fellow, almost as talented as Sámaril, but more even tempered and with a brighter outlook.  Glad you liked Glorfindel and Sámaril's interactions, too.  There are many wonderful portrayals of Glorfindel out there (he may be a minor character in the LotR, but we Silm people know he's one major dude) so I can only hope to do the guy justice, even if he's a minor but recurring character in The Elendilmir.

Nope, you're not missing anything.  Elrond didn't elaborate on why he ordered Sámaril to remain. Glorfindel made the comment they (the Noldo) can't afford to lose Sámaril's extensive knowledge and inherent skills. The ability to use the "deep arts" is a rare one, and Sámaril is very capable with these; Sauron even acknowledges this in Ch. 11 of The Apprentice.  So, Elrond and Gil-galad don't want to run the risk of him being killed in the coming war (there's something coming up that will elaborate on this risk).  And you're exactly right - the personal betrayal by Aulendil might very well cause Sámaril to do something rash. Glorfindel would likely be well aware of that, having witnessed Sámaril's foolish - and potentially fatal - attempt to retrieve his works from the House of the Mírdain even after Sauron had invaded the city and made his way to the smithies and treasury (Ch. 12 in The Apprentice).

Thanks and thanks again! :^) 

What is not to love about this chapter? You give the reader vintage/classic Sámaril and throw in a bit of a thumb of the nose at the Laws and Customs among the Eldar and just a touch of Valar bashing and you have my love forever. I remember you telling me it had a little of my canon in it. I love the way you use it to make your point. (And the chapter name: “The Matter of Song,” nice title. I am still thinking of these by numbers, I’ll have to pay attention to the names you are giving them.) I am particularly smitten with Sámaril’s old friend, Mélamírë. She is just so likeable and strong, believably drawn and I love the touch of depicting the picture of a woman immersed in a man’s world (without doing the fanfic thing of giving her a sword). The perfect kind of person to be briefing Sámaril about those neglected areas of his education. I have still been following those darned MEFA debriefings and revisions of categories (oh, my!). So, in light of that, this tale could be categorized as multi-age, first-age, and second-age. Nice work. Take the best of canon and use it ALL.

Thanks a million for reading this and following Sármaril's story, oshun!  To reiterate, if I can entertain even one reader, then I figure that's an accomplishment!

I'm glad that you not only like Sámaril, but also Mélamírë.  I realize I tread a risky path with any OC, but an OFC in particular seems to draw fangs - well, at least at other web sites.  The SWG is a far more accepting place (THANK YOU, Dawn!).  Elements of her personallity have come from three (female) friends: an astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian observatory, the director of computational chemistry at my former employer, and a young woman who is an attorney for Boeing. Mélamírë will pop up retrospectively here and there to keep Sámaril thinking.

"Take the best of canon and use it ALL."

My interpretation of what constitutes canon is extremely broad - not only includes HoME but also Tolkien's Letters!   I have an idea for a forthcoming chapter which most certainly spans the ages, and one of my first thoughts was "Oh, this will entertain oshun!"

I'm loving this one! That Narsil allowed a link through space/time sent shivers down my spine... And yes, I want to see more of Mélamírë. She is so brilliantly irreverant about tradition.

Sámaril has quite a temper there doesn't he? I can't help but feel sorry for his poor apprentice!

The paragraphs decribing the music (and it's effect on Sam) I really like. Nice relocation from Ost-in-Edhil to The House of Elrond.

Thanks so much!  Samaril's kind of temperamental "artist"/primadonna.  In the pandemoniverse, there's a cultural expectation for the vaunted Noldor to be "in control" and "serene"  which combined with their inherent argumentative temperament (according to JRRT) makes for a stew of conflict.  :^D  Mélamírë will continue pop up here and there.  As the lone woman of the Mirdain who is a senior engineer smith (and resident skeptic), she has a predilection for tweaking the status quo. :^)

What a brilliant read, this chapter you showed the inner struggle of Sámaril so well: he tries to keep lil' Val at bay. But as Isilmë noticed: the young lad decided that Sálamaril needs some fixing, whether that hapens unknowingly or not. I loved the small touches on the War in the East when Valandil asks Sámaril to fix the toys:

“Yes, I can fix this for you, but it will take me a day or so. Will that do?”

He nodded. “Yes, my soldiers can wait for it.”

“Ah! So you need it to carry your soldiers?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, carved figure that he placed in my hand. “Yes. Here is one. But he is getting old. Maybe he is tired of war.”

This bit to me is a beautiful allusion to what happens at the front line and at the same time shows the child's perceptiveness. Isilmë is drawn beautifully, despite her bitterness that most Dúnedain women live in the shadows of their man, she at the same time shows her fine quality and as to why she is strengthening her husband. And yay, birds of prey! :)

I think that if you ever want to add a by-line to this chapter, I would say: Athrabeth Sámaril ah Isilmë. The reason why I immediately thought of this was because Finrod and Andreth nearly debate, compare and their questions about their iown kindreds and background. Death, loyalty, differences between kindreds, death that sunders them.. all come back in this chapter, both being wise in their own way.

The beautiful background of the peregrine's was such a treat and felt naturally here (for those not familair with GA's stories, I surely love that concept). If you have time, I am curious as to the why here the spaniels have replaced the hounds of Valinor (or was that Celegorm insisting that I'd asked... hmm).

Again, this was a beautiful chapter, word for word, scene by scene and chapter by chapter, Sámaril's defenses are peeled away and a bit of me is afraid what will happen when he truly comes undone when he is faced with the event of loosing one of those mortals he holds so dear. Yes, I really love your Sámaril: within this story you explore him so immensely well. Great writing! 

Thank you so much for the comments here and for Ch. 4.  They came at an opportune time since for some reason, I recently dipped into a creative slump.  I guess that happens to everyone.

I'm immensely flattered by your connection of Isilmë and Sámaril's conversation to the dialogue of Andreth and Finrod.  In my 'verse, the Firstborn are decidedly human, but immortality (indefinite longevity) represents the Great Divide between Elves and Men.  So Sámaril is taking a risk, and a big one, with his involvement with mortals.  Still, there's a connection there he can't shake.  I'm really glad you like him.  And Isilmë?  That woman is already causing a gazillion amorphous plot bunnies to spawn!  These OCs can be dicey. 

Re: the spaniels.  They haven't replaced the imposing hounds of Valinor.  The spaniels are the "bird dogs" of Imladris' hunters in my 'verse.  I imagine them to be very much like Irish water spaniels and used for hunting duck and grouse on the high moor.  I see the "hounds of Valinor" as a breed like the Irish wolfhound - big and majestic - and used as hunters of stag, boar and werewolves.  Please tell your always luscious and insistent Celegorm that he and his hounds get a little nod in an upcoming chapter of The Elendilmir and that a couple of descendants of Huan (already have their names - "Huan" and "Thû" - heh) might just make an appearance in another novella, rough chunks of which are lazing around in iBook Angband. :^)   

Thanks again for the comments and complements - they are very much appreciated!

I am so very behind on commenting on these chapters! I'm going back. But want to post just a quickie here. Either tiny edits made this chapter much stronger or I am simply more receptive than usual today. It is just packed full of interesting interactions and really poignant psychological reflection. I have to say again, this is an excellent, outstanding addition to this period of Tolkien's history. I love the women, of course, and am still completely smitten with your strong, but fragile, complex, not-quite-hero.

Love the falcons and reference to their predecessors--throwing in a nice bit of magic into a story to manage to make feel very realistic. The line about him having lived so many years and not having touched one was fascinating to me. Primarily because it made me think about what an imaginative leap is required on the part of the writer to try to envision how the world would look from the point of view of a semi-immortal being: how much would remain new and different and how much has been seen or experienced before. I think you bridge that gap nicely by handling the emotional side of the main character so well. If one is living, then one is changing, and, therefore, there will always be something new or an old experience newly encountered will take on whole different layers of significance.

Samaril's interaction with the boy Val is so heart-tugging without ever coming close to shading into the sentimental. I am also looking forward to reading more about the younger queen again soon. The characters really live for me. You have quite captured me in their world.

Promise to send remarks on Chapter 8 later today, hopefully not too little or late to be of any use.

Great work. I cannot recommend this story highly enough.

I haven't said enough how much I love this! I'm so pleased to see the latest chapter here.

On (this) re-read, the line I keep thinking about is:

"Onto my right forefinger one of her teardrops fell, an ephemeral jewel that mingled with the salt of my blood."

A very emotive image.

(Happy to be a skink!)

This is a great story. The more I read of it, the more I realize it has everything I love: plot, characterization, history, imagination, canon, you name it. I adore the two queens. These two are fascinating. Little-by-little you give the reader more glimpses into who they are and what has driven them. I am not as hung up on searching for the perfect story characterizing strong women as many people express that they are—I’ve know a lot of strong women in my life. But You do an extremely satisfying job of giving us women with brains and backbone here. I believe them. They absolutely ring true for me, Yet I’m also looking for a good man, i.e., complex, conflicted, and loveable, and we surely are given that in spades with SSámaril.

It just kills me when you introduce Sámaril’s flashbacks to the one he refers to as his former mentor. Regret is something one must learn to live with as one gets older, and hindsight is so cheap. The question is what will he do with it? And you always give me teasing glimpses that hint to me that, whatever it is, it is going to be interesting. I particularly liked this chapter because he and Elerína have finally have a breakthrough. The mitigation of the worst of the strain between them makes me want to keep reading. Unrelieved angst in a story and continuing inability to communicate eventually just gets dull. Makes me want to say to the character—get over yourself already. You avoid that trap entirely in this story. You draw the reader in and make us care, you make them suffer, add suspense, but don’t just leave us there.

Another thing that I think I mentioned in another place when reading an earlier draft of this story is that I am interested in where you are going with sexual tension. (No I am not obsessed with sex, but I do suspect that you are not just titillating us that this will have a point in the story.) Well, enough of me and what I like. My point is that this is great reading. I am so hooked and looking forward to the continuation.

Thank you so much, oshun.  I'm honored by your compliments and that you like the story and in particular, the characters.  I realize I take a big risk with my focus on OCs, so I feel like I should strive to offer the reader characters that are multidimensional and connect to the Middle-earth milieu.

In keeping with what JRRT wrote about "elvish nature," Sámaril is prone to regret yet he also continues to have ambivalent feelings regarding his former mentor as well as the skills and knowledge he gained from Aulendil.   Likewise, I'm not keen on unrelieved angst or sexual tension.  

Again, thanks.  I'm delighted that this story has captured your interest and that I have such a discerning reader in you! 

 

Fabulous, simply fabulous. So much is happening in this chapter, yet it's full of such delightful details which colour both scenes so immensely well.

What is so palpable here is how the grief of the deaths sink in: important people ripped away, empty seats and empty stables. Tears, the chills, a big lump in my throat as Sámaril just sits there. Just with the previous chapter, but wonderful queens just jump off the paper: witty, intelligent, collected and also vulnerable. And yeah, Galfaron just feels that he's been under Celegorm's tutelage ;) This is such a marvellous story, and I am looking forward to see how this will continue. I mean I can't help but to wonder what Isilmë exactly saw as Sámaril stood there. *thumbs up*

Thank you so much, Rhapsy!  Although the queens and Sámaril are well-removed from "the front," it still affects them in a big way. 

I'm glad that Galfaron resonated with your muse.  These OCs crop up and I start thinking about their backstories.  Thus I'm tempted to come up with a fic about Galfaron's hunting experiences with Celegorm! :^)

In the next chapter, Isilmë will elaborate on what she saw. Stay tuned!

Thanks again for you compliments and for your loyal readership! :^)

Definitely another fascinating chapter. Lots of further detail which reinforces of the character development and firmly anchoring the story in the time and setting you have chosen. The whole bit about the horse and the reaction of Isilme and Samaril to it is compelling reading, coupling that with the news from the front really keeps the reader engaged with the story. You really make the story and these characters come to life.

Oh my goodness, I have shivers running down my spine at the moment. Being a kinda Numenorean story fan and ventured into that area long long long ago (not in a galaxy far far away), the way you describe the accelaration in the downfall of Numenor is chilling, yet so effectively done. You don't use to many words to picture these tragic events and leave it up to the reader to create their own image (although of course, you know me, I do want to know what happened exactly to Isilmës brother). You achieve two things here: you give the reader enough room to fill in some gaps themselves and for some they will most likely applaud for more (well I would). Now as for Valandil's violent dream: did that poor tyke get a foreshadowing of his father's and brother's fate? Poor thing! Yes, I do know that those of the Numenorean line have 'The Sight', yet I just so feel for him.

I wonder an worry all the same on what fine line Samaril is balancing in many area's: forbidden love, the imprints of his master, how far he dares to take his craft knowing this and how this influences him outside his workplace. So many ponderings and so much more to look forward to! Court politics as a kinda icing on the cake.

 Okay this is enough rambling on my behalf! (I do look forward to the next chapter(s).)

I'm pleased that Isilmë's abbreviated account of the downfall resonated with you!  I intend (or at least hope to!) to explore this more extensively in future stories.  Isilmë's narrative here amounts to an outline of what I hope will be a much more detailed description of her experience including the death of her brother (Lord Vórondil's father). I also have a (very) rough draft of a story that addresses the first human sacrifice from Sauron's PoV. 

Yes, indeed, Valandil's dream foreshadows the disaster of the Gladden Fields.

Re: court politics - I decided to take Isilmé back to Annúminas to give myself an opening for future fics about her and how she might deal with machinations in the court. 

Thanks so much for the comments, Rhapsy!  Your loyal readership ensures there will be future chapters! :^) 

Hmmm, I can't help to think that the mirror functions as the end of a optical cable/network, that would be indeed a nice curwe discovery. It was such a pleasure to see Mélamírë back and poor Valandil, no longer remembering how his dad looks like. I just love the thought of Thorno and Sam going on a road trip, and for an important mission as well: finding out what is wrong with the palantir (which at itself spawned some bunnies). Thoughtprovoking and a pleasant read as ever, I am looking forward to the next chapter.

Thanks so much, Rhapsody!  The technology behind the Mirror is pretty exotic, so much so that I have no clear idea of what the Istyanis did, but it might have something to do with quantum physics and string theory although she wouldn't know those terms. ;^)  We'll see a little more in the enxt chapter and the one after that (in progress) is the Road Trip!  Glad you enjoyed this.  I'm having fun writing it, too, which, of course, is the point.

Oh, this re-read offers me with so many more impressions. Yet again, am so excited in how you show us, the reader, the music and the threads in time. It leaves me pondering that indeed men and hobbit have a latent gift to see these threads, although they cannot place it. Yet I cannot help to wonder that those who can interpretet these viewings must be well trained or have a gift for it. Would there be a difference between Silvan and Noldo elves for example, or between those who did journey and those who did not wanted to travel or lingered?

Secondly, this time it jumped more at me. The three men and women who came with Oromë, is it possible you hinted them to be Maiar? Or am I reading too much into this.

What I really loved (besides what I already mentioned to you :c) ), is the moment between , Sámaril and Elerína, her comment:

 “Let me believe it is magic.”

It just touch me because with all the science and rational explanations in the world, sometimes it is just as blissfull that for a moment people can believe or enjoy that touch of magic. I have so much more to note, but let's quit while I am still ahead ;)

Thanks so much for the comments, Rhapsy!

It leaves me pondering that indeed men and hobbit have a latent gift to see these threads, although they cannot place it.

Indeed they do!  I did have Frodo's experience with the Mirror in the back of my mind here. 

Yet I cannot help to wonder that those who can interpretet these viewings must be well trained or have a gift for it. 

In my 'verse, the ability is inherent (a gift for it). Among the elves, it is distributed among their populations, just like a trait would be in our own mortal populations.  The trait expresses itself strongly in some, weaker in others, or barely at all in many.  In the latter, some training might enhance it. 

is it possible you hinted them to be Maiar? Or am I reading too much into this.

Nope.  You're not reading too much into that.  Stay tuned! :^)

sometimes it is just as blissfull that for a moment people can believe or enjoy that touch of magic.

Yep!  Even I do that! :^)  

Thanks again!  It's such a delight to have readers like you!  Keeps me going... 

 

 

This is just another great chapter chock full of goodies. Love the interaction between the Dúnadan Lónando and Thorno. (Thorno has always been a great character, but now is developing into a truly memorable one who will live far beyond this story for me. I just knew what would happen when Sámaril told Thorno about Lónando "embarrassed admiration"-with Thorno's irrepressibility? Nothing else was possible. What did I say at Lizard Council: something to the effect that Sámaril's testiness with Thorno was too funny for words, the do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do school of advice giving. It only makes me love Sámaril even more; he is just so human. And I was delighted that Thorno called him on it. That description of Thorno skinny-dipping, however, was worth the whole chapter-I am shameless: "He stretched like a cat, flexing supple muscles, and then walked to the edge of the rock.  He gathered himself then sprang into the air, his body tracing a swift and graceful arc. He cut the water with the slightest of splashes.  Lónando sucked in his breath. ‘He is so beautiful.' " Really good physical description of Sámaril also. I think that is canon for the Noldor, isn't it? Not going to look it up, but that somehow stuck in my mind from somewhere. His memory of his mother talking about his father and "the girth of Tulkas," I saw that coming, but it didn't make it a bit less entertaining. Glad you didn't just tease poor Lónando and leave him miserable. Better to have tried, than always wondered, I say. (TMI here-maybe why my personal life has gone the way it has!)

Of course, the big thrill in this chapter for me was meeting Feanor (swoon). I definitely have a Feanor thing. He's what drew me to Silm canon in the first place. You got him just right for the period in his life when Sámaril encounters him. (I am such a sucker for any kind of time travel. Seeing into the past is so exciting.) Sámaril's look at how Sauron has changed was devastating too-it gives a reader further insight into how those who admired had known him once. Much more interesting story than if he had been evil and ugly through and through, or, as I have seen him portrayed in some pieces, so cold as to make you wonder how anyone would be fooled. The science stuff around the repair of the palantír was amazing and so much fun to read. Also loved the part about the attitude of the Queen's expert toward Sámaril when he arrived.

All and all just a very satisfying chapter in a compelling story.

Thanks a million for the comments, oshun!  I'm flattered that Thornangor is becoming a memorable one for you.  He may not be in the same rank as the (in)famous Neldor, but I'd like to think that as an OMC, Thorno has his own distinctions!   I'm relieved that my attempts to convey Sámaril & Thorno's flaws are working, too.  I figure the Elves' view of themselves within their cultures and how they interact with one another will not be the same as the perspective of say, a hobbit who tends to idealize the Firstborn a bit, er, a lot.

Although I think it's reasonable to presume there will be variation in height and overall build, yes, the Noldor were tall as a whole.  In "Númenórean Linear Measures" (Appendix of "Disaster of the Gladden Fields" in Unfinished Tales), JRRT wrote "The Eldar of the Elder Days were also very tall. Galadriel, 'the tallest of all the women of the Eldar of whom tales tell', was said to be man-high, but it is noted 'according to the measure of the Dúnedain and the men of old', indicating a height of about six feet four inches."  I tend to think that Sámaril & Thorno have physiques similar to competitve class rowers :^) with Thorno being the more gracile of the two.

Fëanor was (and remains) hands down my first love when I read The Silmarillion for the first time many years ago.  He was such a thrilling, brilliant and flawed character -- so refreshing after the rather stuffy, pompous or overly merry elves of the LotR and The Hobbit. I'm so relieved that interpretation of my favorite long-suffering scientist-hero worked for you!  I was pretty skittish given that Fëanor has been written so well by others here on the SWG, present company included.  You probably recognize that image of Sauron from my fell beast draft!  

Thanks so much for reading and for everything else!

 

Oh! What an end...poor Isilmë, that's not the news she would be expecting. This is such a great chapter where from smiles and giggles, to an intriguing communication in the past, we end with such bad news. It reads very smoothly. Oh gosh, the horror of that Dunadan when he thinks he might have offended Sámaril. Elvish beguilement indeed (both are gorgeous elves!) and beautiful touches upon cultural differences, even between the men divisions. I really liked that and what a great idea to tackle bunnies like that ;) j/k

However, I loved how you brought back the decisions and well concequences of Sámaril's past. Even though one should not judge a person simply because of a past mentor, its in a way understandable if loathing and fear of the actions of that person runs deep. But to assume that pupils would be corrupted as well, that would still be a big struggle and prejudice Sámaril has to overcome. I am glad though that he feels more at ease with his past won skills (like the deeper arts), in that sense he has grown on that level as well. So great character development stuff! 

Ah and what to say about Fëanor? I really like the way how Sámaril combines the threads to repair the palantir, its immensely creative and it is so great to see Fëanor himself taking heed of scientific ethics in this case. Even though I am not sure how phonons work, I'll take your word on it. The way you wove such beautiful science in the chapter made sense to me (not such a beta person). I think I got the idea how this device works quite well! Again my compliments for that!

Before I will end this long (& excited) ramble: the view of Sauron and Sámaril's reaction to it gave me the shivers. There is so much more, ok just one then: I loved the portrayal of Isilmë being in charge of the dinner/meeting with the crescent moon, I simply love details like this!

Thanks a million, Rhapsy, for the comments and compliments! 

Yes, Sámaril's talents and his relationship with his past mentor cause him a great deal of introspection, in part because he knows that there are always two sides of the coin when it comes to technology the deep arts: the capacity of useful, even sublime, creation and for destruction. 

To echo what I said the oshun, I'm relieved that the scene with Fëanor worked for you!  He's my first love of The Silmarillion. On phonons and such, well, that's just jargon for the "scientifiction" as Tolkien called it that infects my writing.  Phonons delve into quantum mechanics (not my bailiwick) and the mathematics behind it, well...Fëanor could probably derive the equations necessary.  Based on this chapter alone, I should probably tack on the "science fiction" label available in the SWG drop down menu!  But I figure that the Mirror and the Palantíri's "magic" (Tolkien's word for extremely advanced technology and his wizard wand waving) may have its basis in solid state physics.  The Threads?  That's an allusion to string theory, a favorite device of sci-fi writers!  But again, I don't want to get too "sciencey" and risk Elerína's admonishment. :^)

Oooh, and I'm glad you liked that imagery with Isilmë!  Yes, that was quite deliberate.

Thanks again, Rhapsy!   

[It will be a bit before the next chapter goes up although it's written in very rough draft form; femslash and fell beasts (two separate stories!) have distracted me.]

Yey, Sam's back! Still as workaholic and as succinct as ever I see (but for different reasons), maybe that's why I liked him a lot--he's so like me (workaholic and a bit grumpy at times). 

I could see how much his guilt and regret is gnawing at him but I'm also intrigued on what part he still has to play in ME that makes him stay, other than revenge. Loved the Feanorian cameo, though I suppose you're almost tired of hearing that from me by now.

I like the way you fleshed out Elendil and Isildur--they're among the Silmarillion characters I would have wanted to see more of but since there are so many of them, they end up in the sidelines. 

Sorry I couldn't provide any competent review about the technicalities of writing since I'm hardly equipped in that area.  All I could ever write about is what I liked about the story.  

Felt sorry for Samaril in that scene with the young Queen and her son--it's like he's suddenly facing what he has been trying hard to forget for so long. 

The part where Thorno reminisced about Aulendil was very touching but I found myself smiling at the line: "Who knows? Maybe he tells your joke to his orc-captains? I wouldn't put it past him."

Hi, whitewave!  Oh, I'm glad you're reading this!  Thanks so much for the comments!

Heh.  Yeah, Sámaril appreciates mortal women.  I think he took his teacher's words ("You're the same damn species!") to heart.  

Canon events and canon characters are important components of The Elendilmir, but it is OC driven, mostly as a challenge to myself to see if I can engage readers in what is a borderline (non-copyrightable) o-fic in a recognizably Middle-earth setting. Although Elendil and Isildur's wives had to exist, JRRT said little to nothing about them so Isilmë and Elerína amount to OFCs. The Noldorin smith Mélamírë is entirely invented in response to some comments about men and women's vocations in Laws and Customs of the Eldar.  You might think of her as an echo/mirror of Nerdanel in Middle-earth.Hers is a secondary story of The Elendilmir, but I intend to give her a novel of her own in the future.  OFCs have a bad rep in Tolkien fan fic but I don't think you'll find these women to be Mary Sues.

I'm hoping you'll like Thorno, too. :^)

p.s. Read your latest installment, and I was just dying.  Many LOL moments.  I'll get some words up there. 

First of all I must warn you that I have the tendency to lapse into raving fangirl mode every so often, especially now that I have figured out my "living" equivalent of Samaril:  Hugh Jackman! It's really more for me because it makes it easier for me to visualize him.  As for Elerrina, I  think a brunette and maybe a bit more mature Scarlett Johanssen (or maybe Rachel Weisz) is how I see her. I'm enjoying the sweetness of Sam's interaction with Val and I'm glad he's starting to relax a little again.

And I still haven't thanked you properly for including Laurefin (my third favorite blond after Tyelkormo and Finrod) so here goes:  / Squee! /

Whenever I read a chapter of your stories, I always enjoy the details you give us, but I find it a bit distracting too because I get torn between enjoying the story and "analyzing" just what it is that keeps me interested, so to compromise, I read it twice.  I particularly liked Coldring's frustration with having to do cobbler duty, which must seem so mundane to him.  It's great that you gave us a more practical side of the flashing banners and pennants and golden trumpets of an Elven army on the march, the very image of all those muscled elves makes me want to do an "Eowyn"  but for entirely unnoble reasons. :^>

Re: raving fangrilishness -  in spite of my attempt to remain detached and hip, I indulge in it, even at my advanced age.  Hence I succumb to shameless Glorfindelism, much to my chagrin.

Hugh Jackman and Rachel Weisz. :^D  That could work!  Jackman need to shave close.  It's fun to cast roles for these things.  I'm more concerned over the screenwriters and the director...and maintaining creative control. ;^)

I just realized when I read this chapter how perfectly placed the characters are for intense tension:
the "Father" of the Ringwraiths and the (soon to be widowed) wife of the One Ring...

Sam can be too modest sometimes, makes me want to hug and kiss him (Just kidding), especially with the "I'm a mere stone mason's son" part.  So Isilme has been doing a bit of "research" on Sam, hmmm...

The Sam-Elerina bit is getting more and more interesting. I loved Elerina's walk out part and the very very nice "walk-in-on-Sam-shirtless" part, it had me thinking what she really meant when she said:  "Sometimes I think I will never be warm again." The part where she feels that Val may never truly know his real father struck me and I'm now very curious how things will play out
after Isildur dies.

Yey!  Sam gets to dress up and look all princely!  Mighty spear indeed! He could be a prude sometimes.
Felt sorry for him when he was reminiscing about his wife and unborn son.  Could it be that he just misses his wife and sees her in Elerina or could he really be attracted to her?

The scene where Val calls Sam "Atya" was very touching, especially when the child said "I do not remember what he looks like."

Very interesting back story about the crafting of Galadriel's mirror and the mention of the female dwarf had me thinking of additional possibilities of what happened to Melamire and I want to know what she saw.

"are they Maiar?"

Maybe. :^)

The Maiar in my 'verse are a bit more like the demi-gods of Graeco-Roman mythology, that is, they have more concrete interactions with humans (and other creatures!) and thus mingled more in the mammalian gene pool.

Reading (a lot) between the lines, canonically speaking, it struck me that Valandil wouldn't know much of his father since he was only three years old when Isildur left for war.  Sámaril and Valandil, both in search of family connections, are good for each other.