I kneeeeeeew it. I was expecting Aragorn to come and misunderstand...^^ He is, isn't he?XD

This story is really good. I like how you weave the mystery.

Wow! What a great story! I love it.

This is definitely one of the best stories I've ever read. (I'm still trying to decide whether it's better than Song in the Darkness. I might settle for a tie.) Keep up the amazing writing!

I have to say this is one of the best and most reviewed fanfictions on this site !

No, No, No, No, No! You can't leave Gimli behind. It's just not done. So I'm hoping that you won't. Anyways love the story so far, it's great.

What to say at the end of such a lengthy, substantive narrative? There was so much that I read and enjoyed. There was also much that I read and...maybe didn't enjoy per se, but certainly found provocative and food for further thought.

I still do not entirely know what I think or feel about Aragorn and the way he was while he was "under the influence": how much was Dragaer and how much was himself. This is for all the times when he wasn't actively in contact with the palantir, which were many and prolonged. That his Darkness was able to sustain itself in such a fashion, in the *absence* of Dragaer and his suggestions, does put a lot of Aragorn's actions squarely on his own shoulders. And in some ways, given what a powerful grip his Darkness had on him, it makes it strange that he was able to free himself so completely of it at the halfway point: not of the guilt and shame attending his actions, which he certainly retains, but the ingrained behaviors and beliefs themselves, and that driving, overpowering need for control.

On the other hand, Aragorn's Darkness feels comparable, maybe even directly correlative, with the physicality and substance of the Shadow that afflicts Legolas later: it felt less a product of the psyche, more a kind of demon with a will and even agency of its own. I actually felt that Legolas' Shadow *was* Aragorn's Darkness, a personal monster bestowed by the one upon the other and, in the final chapters, returned to sender and defused.

Leaving those realms of exploration aside, there was much that I loved about this story. The humor, which as I suspected at the beginning I would desperately need, was present throughout. There were frequent sources of light: Gimli, the understated but wonderful relationship between Faramir and Imrahil, Thranduil like some glorious Elven lion. I appreciated the original characters you created, and that included Dragaer in his overwhelming sadism. For all of his final banality and strutting horror, I felt pity for him. It's a habit I just can't duck somehow. Darkness comes from somewhere, and I appreciated the background that you gave him.

I was having a hard time with Arwen during this chapter (indeed, during the past several chapters), but I found it very well written and conceived.

A surprising revelation from Legolas, and an entertaining, mordantly funny choice on which to end the chapter.

I didn't comment during the earlier chapter, but it was weirdly pleasant to see our "friend" from previous chapters. "O hai Dragaer."

Much welcome comedic punctuation by Gimli at the end. 8)

I liked this chapter for its negotiations. Galemir in the court of Minas Tirith, Thranduil laying down the conditions for his use of the Palantir. I love how he pulled Gimli and Aglarond in on that: so often the Dwarves seem to be overlooked or bypassed in the great negotiations, which are invariably between Men and Men, Elves and Elves, Elves and Men. Though I don't think Gimli appreciated being involved as much this time. That was fun.

I didn't mention it, but I loved Faramir's memories of Imrahil in the previous chapter.

"...physical intimacy cannot happen without forming a mental and spiritual bond – and therefore occurs only between bonded life-mates. For an Elf then the act of rape is the forcing of an unwanted bond upon the soul – and the soul will do anything, even unto fleeing its body, to escape. Whether the initial violation was physical or mental scarcely matters."

I have a different take on the Elven rape = death equation (I'm sure there are a number of interpretations out there), but this is interesting to read. Horrifying for its implication of a bond with the rapist, which most Elves are able to escape, having the ability to willfully reject life. Legolas is constrained to live - by oaths and by other factors - but Dragaer is killed and the possibility of a "soul bond" with this loathsome individual is terminated. Still, the idea that someone could use rape to forge a bond is icky as all hell.

Alas poor Amdir. I'm sure the twelve-year-olds are sad to see him go. [/biting sarcasm]

"Lord Legolas, report!" Your Thranduil is so cool. I don't mean cool in a bad-ass, "hell-bent for leather" kind of way, but in the sense of his remarkable acumen and strength of personality. He seems to know exactly the right tack with people, exactly what they need and how to get results from them, whether it is as parent, leader or grudging ally.

[wails] You said it was going to get better! I *liked* Imrahil! [sobs]

No. Not Gimli. He's been like my guardian angel in this story, walking me through it. [weeps]

It feels terribly out of place to say this, given that you've just skewered my heart and several other vital organs, but I got a kick out of Arwen as midwife and the whole pregnancy culture clash.

Dragaer is a vile person, but fun to read because it is pleasant to contemplate his impending demise.

I'm a little curious about Amdir, though.

Re: the seven sons of Thranduil, I think it's a neat detail but I will reserve my astonished admiration for his wife. I'll applaud Feanor and Thranduil for their mighty feat of siring seven sons each when they have gestated and given birth to them themselves. ;)