[Kalimac]

Baran, not to be too cynical or anything but a lot of it probably had to do with the fact that Deagol didn't have a loyal manservant standing by, ready to defend him; also the fact that while Deagol didn't know what he had, Frodo did, and was much less likely to let Gollum take a peek.

As for everything else...Gollum is a victim of mixed emotions, to put it at its mildest. It's true that he had no hesitation about killing Deagol but that was in the first flush of seeing the Ring - now it's five hundred years later, his life has been both prolonged and utterly ruined by this thing; it's the difference between someone enjoying his first shot of alcohol and looking at the bottle twenty years and several twelve-step programs later. He wants it, but doesn't feel quite the straightforward joy that he once did. Seeing Frodo and Sam reminds him of what he gave up, and he both envies and resents that.

I still maintain that Gollum would never have been able to live after the Ring was destroyed anyway. As for reforming...well, maybe. But it's a HUGE gamble to take on Frodo's part; sure, maybe he'll reform and help me, and maybe he'll kill me, 50/50. Hey, it's not like the fate of the world depends on it...oh wait, it does.