#All my knowledge comes from my Tolkien-loving friends

[rahabs]

I’m so glad I’ve never been a huge Tolkien fan, or I’d be pretty angry at whatever lore-disrespecting nonsense Rings of Power is continuously pulling.

[sorcerousundries]

If you're taking requests, could you please write something about which Lotr and The Hobbit characters would be most attracted to a reader who's really intelligent and good at debating them? Like I'm picturing a sort of Rivals to Lovers dynamic where the reader is super smart and really good at arguing their points, but I'm curious which Tolkien characters you think would be most into that type of partner 🤔

I can totally picture Eomer falling for a person like that because he honestly seems perfect for Enemies to Lovers arcs, but tldr what Tolkien characters do you think would be most attracted to a super intelligent person who could debate them into the dirt? Thanks!

I have been alone all my life but with the compensations of intellect.

Lord of the rings and The hobbit characters react to an intelligent reader

Warnings: none

Includes: Elrond, Thranduil, Gimli and Éomer

A/n: thank you for your request <3

Content under the cut

Elrond — Friends to lovers

You and Elrond would meet in a fairly formal setting, maybe during a business gathering or a dinner of sorts.

You would be chatting with some high noble who would introduce you to lord Elrond and the two of you clicked immediately.

He would often invite you for tea and insist you stay for dinner, maybe offering you a bed as the hour gets later.

He is knowledgeable about history, lore and the affairs between both men and elves alike, he would likely be drawn to someone he can engage deeply in discussions of middle earths past, present and future.

The debates between you and lord Elrond would be competitive but friendly, if he lost he would shrug it off, the pinnacle of healthy masculinity. If he won, he wouldn’t care, maybe tease you if your friendship started to grow closer but never in a cruel, condescending way.

He would grow feelings slowly yet steadily, he would never force himself on you but he couldn’t deny the flutter of his heart whenever you’d smirk triumphantly as besting him during a debate of which medicine would be best to use for a rope burn, the simple action making his heart warm.

As your relationship turns romantic your playful banter wouldn’t stop, it would only grow, turning into silly debates before bed as you two move in chorus around the bedroom, performing your separate night routines though you’d never allow the room to grow silent as you chat about whatever topic comes to mind.

Overall he’d enjoy having a partner that he could chat away with, it’s rare that he finds someone who equals his intelligence, let alone best it.

Thranduil — Shared traumas

Thranduil would likely already be acquainted with you, after all the king knows everything that happens in his kingdom.

Though he only started to cultivate a relationship with you when you outwitted him in his own throne room, for the first time a millennium the king of the woodland realm was left speechless, you intrigued him, instead of sending you away he invited you to join him in his study.

The debates between you two would be filled with romantic tension, heated discussions would be filled with you leaned so forward your nose would also my be touching his, as you did something that countered his you would pull back, thoughts of how his eyes would dart down to your lips so quick you almost didn’t see it would flood your brain.

He would love discussing battle strategies and such, even better if an elf and you saw the battle for yourself.

Nothing pleases him more than falling back on you when he doubts his leadership skills, after having to listen to courtiers and advisors drone on about their ideas and excuses, he can go to and simply sit across the room as you answer his questions logically, not even looking up from your book.

Your relationship would start to turn romantic when he confided in you about his troubles, his worries for his son, even telling you about the death of his wife.

And who knows, maybe he’ll pull you in for a kiss before you turn in for the night.

Gimli — opposites attract

Gimli would first see you at the court of Elrond, during the forming of the fellowship.

He never thought his heart would lurch from his chest when he saw an elf sitting at lord Elrond side, chin held high and regal.

Not even his admiration for lady Galadriel could compare to the way his heart jumped at the sight of you.

While he’s not typically seen as a debater, Gimli has a strong sense of pride surrounding his culture and way of life, he would be drawn to someone who can engage in conversation about dwarven history and culture with him.

He would hold an immense level of respect for you, often coming to you to double check any technical blueprints or a different perspective if he’s struggling to visualise how something would come together. He would appreciate someone who can offer unbiased opinions not swayed by any existing rivalry between elves and dwarves.

Any debates with him would lively and high spirited,he would engage enthusiastically defending his views with passion and light hearted humour, your discussions could range from history and craftsmanship to the simple differences between elves and dwarves.

He would let out a small “oh!” As you kiss him on the cheek, nodding him a farewell after helping him find scrolls about an ancient smithing technique, his smile turning his eyes into slights as he pumps his fist once you’ve turned your back.

Eomer — Enemies to lovers

Eomer would find your intelligence intriguing and infuriating at the same time.

His warrior ideals and loyalty to Rohan would initially clash with your more logical approach to things, your debates would arise over strategies in battle most likely.

Early on in your relationship, misunderstandings were the main fuel to your bitter relationship. Your critical views on his leadership or warfare would be interpreted as disrespect, driving a wedge between you two.

But as the power of Sauron grows, you’re forced to put your differences aside.

He would begrudgingly admit that you’re actually very useful in a fight, offering new ideas that contrast his own.

However one night as your both sat around the fire, when every other solider has turned in for the night, he might open up, revealing to you his fears about not being a good leader, you in turn offer him insights and philosophical perspectives that resonate with him.

He thinks about the conversation when he nods silently before sauntering off to his tent, laying in bed staring up at the white linen cloth of his tent, the words he forgets as he slowly realises he in-fact wasn’t listening to your words, instead focusing on the curve of your lips and the brush of your eyelashes against your cheeks every time you blinked, the way your eyes gleamed as the fire crackled.

He frowns as the words “oh shit, I’m in love with them” echoed in his inner monologue.

He doesn’t tell you through words rather showing you, right before the rohirrims marched to Gondor he would give you heated kiss, displaying not his passion as a warrior, but as a lover.

[valar-did-me-wrong]

Hey buzzword crowd, here's the simplest, most basic way I could put the core of the problem that imo is happening between you people and most of the fandom..

(won't call you Shippers here because I know some shippers who don't use your language or agree with your opinions )

This is also me trying to convey what I believe is why people have problems with you people's essays & posts (because it is not the ship that most people have problem with, I'll elaborate) maybe this will help prevent future toxicity..

Spoiler it has everything to do with the respect you give other people & their blorbos and nothing to do with everyone except you all being anti-feminist, anti-sex, anti-shipping, anti-biotic, anti-ageing, anti-oxidant, anti-body etc etc etc..

I'll use 3 characters and 5 points, here we go!

(Ditch the namecalling and insults before you interact)

(again this is my opinion & interpretation of the situation)

1. Elrond in Adar's Tent

If you read it as Sauron as Elrond

What it adds to the story: one ship & it's characters' dynamics with each other and othes in that tent

What it takes away from the story: Elrond coming to himself as a leader, his quick thinking, his skill with words and politics, the growth of his character

What it gives Galadriel: a non consenting kiss & more ship dynamics

What it takes away from Galadriel: her friend saying sorry for treating her horribly through out S2

If you read it as Elrond in the tent

What it adds to the story: a young man coming into himself as a future leader, a friend realising his mistake and asking for forgiveness, a half elf being reminded that he has a powerful Maia in his family (he isn't less than any elf lord)

What it takes away from the story: nothing imo because the siege still happens and it doesn't negate Sauron & Galadriel's S1 dynamics so Your ship can still sail

What it gives Galadriel: she gets the apology she deserved and reconciliation with her friend

What it takes away from Galadriel: a non con kiss

You see how your interpretation of this as canon erases a whole character and his arc but the version most Elrond fan's prefer doesn't affect your ship a bit..

Now this interpretation wouldn't have been a problem if you all weren't framing your posts as feminist & show canon & the correct way of interpreting media & then start name calling & insulting anyone and everyone who disagrees.

Just like you guys don't like the show haters on reddit etc trying to disrespect you & the whole Haladriel dynamics, other fan's also don't like to be called assholes, misogynists, conservatives & Haters etc etc for simply liking the show in another way.

2. Celebrimbor and the elven rings

If you read it as Sauron's engagement rings

What it adds to the story: one ship's dynamics

What it takes away from the story: Celebrimbor's part in their creation & his talents as the greatest Elven smith of his time, the show runners statments that Sauron is not there when the rings are being actually forged

What it gives Galadriel: a personalised ring specifically for her from her enemy and all the dynamics of it

What it takes away from Galadriel: her knowledge, her trust in her family member Celebrimbor.. all of which backs her claim that the rings are untouched by Sauron

If you read it as Celebrimbor's elven rings made with Sauron's help

What it adds to the story: Celebrimbor's hardwork, his skills that he has in part learned from his grandfather THE Feanor of Noldor, his ambition, his Feanorian hubris, his partnership of equals with Annatar, call back to his love for Galadriel in a version by Tolkien (for Nenya seeming to choose Galadriel)

What it takes away from the story: a plot hole imo of Sauron having the skill to make rings of power all by himself this early in the story & not using that to make the other rings alone.. still doesn't invalidate any of Galadriel & Halbrand dynamics so Your ship can still sail

What it gives Galadriel: a correct opinion about the nature of the rings that all her people eventually come to agree with

What it takes away from Galadriel: a mistake imo which is either not correctly judging the nature of the rings or knowing and still risking the future of all middle earth by insisting every time that the rings are safe

You see how wanting the rings to Not Be engagment rings doesn't do any harm to your ship and it's dynamics & neither does it reduce Sauron's talents as a Smith.. he is still a Maia who worked under Aulë and helped in Creation Of The World & who will go on to make the One.

But constantly saying that the rings are Sauron's engagement rings erases the whole point of Celebrimbor as a character.. not to mention his talents that Sauron needed to make the other rings and Celebrimbor's input that also helps him in making the One.

And understandaby Celebrimbor fans don't like this interpretation that reduces & erases him. But nobody would have had problems if again you guys weren't framing your headcanon essays as absolute feminist truths & calling other takes Bad Takes.

3. Nenya healing Adar

If you read it as Nenya giving him redemption by fixing his evilness

What it adds to the story: a plot hole with this magic healing ability that can fix everything and everyone who falls to darkness and evil, making way for sauron to find quick redemption

What it takes away from the story: a realistic worldview where individual choices have impact not only on the person themselves but also to everyone around them, an understanding of how healing works irl

What it gives Galadriel: a mistake for not giving away a ring of power to Sauron to heal him

What it takes away from Galadriel: her wisdom that one cannot heal another person out of their evil or mistakes (heal yourself)

If you read it as Adar gets redemption because of choosing to see his mistakes & trying to correct them after being healed by Nenya out of the torture and dark magic that turned him into uruk

What it adds to the story: Adar's commendable ability to see his huge mistakes and accept them infront of his enemy & try to fix them

What it takes away the story: the ability of the rings to heal Sauron

because in this reading it requires acceptance to look your mistakes in the eye & choice to do better that redeems a person which Sauron in show gets many chances to do but doesn't repeatedly. This still doesn't invalidate Sauron & Galadriel's dynamics so Your ship can still sail

What it gives Galadriel: an example that if someone who was under the shadow for so long as Adar can come to the light by choosing to accept their mistakes then she too despite her tryst with darkness can still come to the light by acceptance if she chooses

What it takes away from Galadriel: the burden of healing her abuser

Again reading Adar's redemption as his own achievement doesn't affect your ship at all & neither does it prevent Sauron from ever getting redeemed. It just gives him a truer to life way to get redeemed someday; even makes his future redemption more compelling imo.

But when you make the redemption all about Nenya it takes away the little good this already tragic & tortured character of Adar has. Add that to the usual insensitive framing & you'll get Me in response, an Adar fan fuming.

4. Adar's villian arc

If you read him as solely a villain

What it adds to the story: another villian

What it takes away from the story: Sauron's narrative foil and all the complexity that has been put into his character from his introduction in S1

What it gives Galadriel: a mistake imo it makes Galadriel's pity & understanding of the suffering of Adar & Uruk a mistake if he is only a villain & does everything wrong in all lights.

What it takes away from Galadriel: an example of what becomes of people who accept darkness despite love still existing in their heart and also an example of how good intentions and horrible actions can go hand in hand

If you read him as a morally grey character who had a villain's arc in one light but an anti-hero's arc in another light

What it adds to the story: a complex character that creates an emotional connection with some people who might see flashes of their persecution in the Uruk, a character who grounds the story in real world by having elements of freedom fighters & rebels choosing wrong paths in desperation, a great portrayal of the Cycle of Abuse creating abusers out of some victims

What it takes away from the story: a similar or less complex villian than Sauron but doesn't affect the dynamics of Sauron & Galadriel so Your ship can still sail

Again see how having Adar as not fullly a villain doesn't affect even a bit of your ship. It also doesn't affect Sauron and his existence as a compelling villian with a repentance arc & some good intention behind all the deception. You can still read good in Sauron's actions, Adar doesn't need to be a villain to make Sauron's goodness more visible.

But your insistence that he can only be read as a villain & people who see him as anything else are supporting genocide can irk Adar fans because the scenes showing his good traits exist & were placed conciously & weren't a collective hallucination.

5. Gay Adar being forced into ships with women

This one I'll just simply say.. The people who insist that he's gay are also the ones I see that say his relationship with Sauron was only one sided where Adar was in love but Sauron wasn't.

Here are my problems with this reading:

Adar is queercoded.. the showrunners' interview from SDCC mentions LGBTQIA+ & we all assume it was about him right..

Nowhere is it specificed that he's gay.. why can't he be Bisexual? Pansexual? Or something else or just Queer who doesn't want to be labelled by anything?

Why is this one specific way of reading him so important to you by invalidating everyone else's reading when nothing is concrete canon about this anyway?

Why can't all kinds of people from LGBTQIA+ explore their sexuality via Adar just like you all like to explore female sexuality & dark fantasies etc via Galadriel & Sauron? Because it isn't wrong in anyway I agree, I used to ship them too in S1. And most people you call names every day will agree with that too!

All this was the long way of saying, if you'll be mean to people, their reading of the story, their fav characters and their author.. some will retaliate in the same way.

It's not because they hate your ship or women or women's sexuality or villain ships or gays etc etc etc it's just simply about the respect you give out into the world & the ability to differentiate between fans of the show who like other things than you and Haters of the show.

[rey-jake-therapist]

Sorry but the more they try to justify the Elrond/Galadriel kiss, the more it's becoming awkward and sus lol

Morfydd Clark: Well, I kind of wanted the elves kissing on the mouth all the time from the very beginning. I kind of see it as an ultimate show of love and admiration, but in a platonic way. And I quite like that. It was kind of felt, to us as humans, quite like, "[Gasps] It's romantic." I quite like the idea that the elves do move through the world quite differently, and kind of a little bit bohemian. But when I read it, I was like, "[Gasps] Ooh." But I also think that this idea that romantic love is the greatest, most important form of love isn't something that I necessarily kind of — it's wonderful, but there are also so many different types of love, and the love that Elrond and Galadriel have for each other, which is millennia long and filled with respect and loyalty and admiration, is something that I think is so beautiful. Patrick McKay: To our minds, the kiss is not romantic in nature. But also, he loves her, and he's very scared she's going to die, and he needs to create a distraction to slip her a way of breaking out of her locks. And this is an expression of his love and regret, and apology for starting to realize that he was maybe wrong about some of the things she was arguing earlier in the season. I don't know, it grew organically out of the material, and felt like where it wanted to go. But certainly, it does not auger a romance between these two friends in the future. And elves are different, you know. Elves express their love in different ways. JD Payne: They're a little more European. Patrick McKay: Yes, yes, a little more European. [Chuckles]

(Source)

So first as an European lady, I feel low key offended by JD Payne's remark. Seriously, if American people genuinely think that everybody in Europe goes around kissing their friends on the LIPS, I'm afraid I'm going to break their fantasies but it's not true?! LOL Kissing in my country is actually very coded, like we've got "la bise" that almost everybody does which is two or three or even four kisses on the cheek to say 'hello', and it's very annoying because you're at risk of catching someone's bacterias, also it's gross in principle. But kisses on the lips are only for our lover/mistress/boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse! Yeah, even if our platonic best friend is at risk of dying we will probably hug them, cry and maybe even scream in pain, but one thing we probably won't do is weird them out by kissing them on the lips lol

Seriously, I feel like Charlie when Morfydd told him he would do well in the wild because he's Australian lmao

Now, on the Elves being "different". No shit, they're different indeed. But I have yet to find one shred of evidence that Elves are demonstrative folks. It always seemed to be the other way around to me, like... they always seemed rather aloof, physically speaking? I mean, I remember Legolas and Gimli, seems we lost the opportunity to see Legolas plant a kiss on Gimli's hairy lips if it's such an usual thing to do for Elves...

I just find very sus that they keep insisting that it's just a cultural thing, while we never, ever saw Elves even give a kiss on the cheek to show their affection (I think in LOTR we see Galadriel kiss Frodo's forehead, that's it?)... Let alone lip kisses. The only characters I remember seeing kiss on the lips were lovers: Arwen and Aragorn of course, and I guess, the couple in the Hobbit, sorry they were so boring I always forget their names. And I'm actually surprised that people like JD Payne and Patrick McKay, who seem to have a very deep knowledge of Tolkien's world and of the PJ movies, keep saying things like that. I mean, I'm sorry but it seems to come straight out of their heads, that Elves were like "bohemians". Morfydd wanted Elves to kiss on the mouth, I mean yeah cool, and if after season 2 we suddenly Elves kissing on the mouth at every corner, I'll just say "okay this is like this now" and I'll take it, but so far... the Elrond/Galadriel kiss is a first. And Galadriel thought she would never see Celebrimbor again and that he would die at the hands of Sauron, but she didn't kiss him on the lips, mind you.

Anyway, these fishy explanations just make me suspect that it was not always supposed to be Elrond in that tent. Yes, I'm still hanging on the Elrond = Sauron theory, because I watched the scene and listened to the music playing over and over again, and despite it being an Elrond centric scene... I can't hear Elrond's theme anywhere.

If someone can hear Elrond's theme in this scene, please let me know, maybe I just can't? Maybe I'm too biased to hear it? If someone can prove me that Elrond's theme is playing somewhere in the background of this scene, that will be the end of this theory for me tbh. I believe in plot holes, I believe in bad writing, but music... Music doesn't lie. Not with Bear McCreary at the helm, anyway. This man's a genius.

The entire scene:

The kiss:

Elrond's suite:

Elrond's theme is pretty easy to recognize, in every shape and form, so I'm deaf or it's just not there.

It especially hit me when I realized that Elrond's theme was playing again when Elrond joined the battle later (and as several people noticed, it seemed strange that there was a battle going on while... the Orcs were supposed to have stopped fighting, the time of the negotiations?), and threw that Orc who killed his horse on the walls of Eregion (poor narrative choice because why would he throw rocks on the Eregion walls, but he was angry, poor boy).

And I know that for most of you, it means nothing, but for me the music means everything. When a scene is character centric, his theme is playing at some point. I made a comparison with the Galadriel/Adar scene; in the firt scene, we can only hear Adar's theme playing, which makes sense because he's entirely dominating the situation. I think I can hear a few notes of Gal's theme inserted here and there, but it's very subtle because yeah, she's Adar's prisoner, he's the one doing most of the talking.

There's a bit of Sauron's theme when Adar describes how Sauron's eye "bores a hole and the rest of him slithers in" ;) Again, it makes sense, because the discussion was focused on Sauron. When I say that Bear McCreary is a musical genius, I'm not exaggerating: THIS is the kind of subtlety this man will bring.

But in the second scene, Galadriel is now Adar's equal in terms of occupation of the stage, so her theme is playing along with Adar's:

EDIT: This is Galadriel's theme by the way:

In the Elrond/Adar scene, it's not just Adar dominating the stage: Elrond is right there basically playing a dick contest with him, so I just find a bit weird that Bear McCreary didn't think it would be appropriate to, you know, include Elrond's theme in there?

And what about the kiss? Only Galadriel's theme is playing from what I can hear. It's very unusual. Especially since Elrond's the one initiating the entire exchange, including the kiss itself.

Elrond's theme blasts during the soundtrack of the Battle of Eregion, which makes sense since it was Elrond's battle.

There are also Adar's and Celebrimbor's themes, which also makes sense. But at 4:06, there's another theme playing, which corresponds to the moment Elrond (apparently) sees Galadriel in a cage. It's a theme that I remembering hearing twice in the TROP soundtrack: when Galadriel drowned in season 1, both times she did. The first time, Halbrand saved her, the second time Sauron let her drown. Anyway, each time it was about him, even if it's a variation on Galadriel's theme. It may be just the music that Bear McCreary chose to accompany scenes where Galadriel is in danger tbh, but I find this coincidence interesting.

This theme then evolves towards the music that preceeds the kiss, a music which is also a part of Galadriel's theme. There are choirs with low male voices playing in the background, which are slightly different from the choirs that play in the background of Galadriel's theme; these are sung by women, and seem more... idk, lighthearted, less present too? It may not mean a thing, but I can't help remembering Bear McCreary saying he wrote Galadriel's and Sauron's themes to be quite similar.

Anyway, I can't hear Elrond's theme anywhere during this break which is the kiss scene, which I find very sus considering the intense moment he's believed to share with Galadriel.

I may regret this, but I had to post it in its own post. For the record, as delulu as I am, I don't hold the hope that they will reveal anything of the sort in season 3. As certain as I am that it was supposed to be Sauron in that tent, I also believe that it was meant to be revealed in the finals of season 2. They chickened out for some reason (probably because after Sauron tortured and killed Celebrimbor, and ordered the killing of all remaining Elves in front of Galadriel, romanticizing Sauron wouldn't have been a good look? I can see that tbh). So it will always be Elrond who kissed Galadriel, this theory will remain a crack theory that will make people laugh, and suddenly Elves are like Europeans who casually kiss their platonic friends on the mouth to say goodbye.

[lady-winter-sunrise]

I don't know how many of you are fans of The Lord of the Rings, but I've been heavily invested in Tolkien since 2022, and being a fan of the books and their adaptations, I'd like to share my opinion...

Every Thursday we have a new episode of Rings of Power, next week will be the last episode of the second season. And as a newcomer, I would like to say that the LOR fans are very surprising. Besides Tolkien being a genius, he's one of the most perfectionist writers who ever existed, and this characteristic affects his readers to this day. Tolkien died more than 50 years ago, and even though he worked his entire life, he never finished his work, nor did he stop modifying and improving various details, so no matter how much we read, we will never get the full message. And I say this as someone with little knowledge, but who is willing to enjoy what's being made available by Tolkien's work, even in the midst of so many "attempts" to demoralize the series. To finish this idea, I would like to give my opinion on the most controversial event of the week, the kiss between Galadriel and Elrond.

Much of what I know about Galadriel and Elrond doesn't come from the books or the movies, but from the series, and I love the characters, especially for their flaws. And it doesn't matter how easy it may be to mix up past and future events, I would like to look at their present. Galadriel is in the worst moment of her life, she lost her brother, her husband and contributed to the rise of her greatest enemy, Elrond is the last one that she loves, so the breakdown of their relationship is very ambiguous. Because even if we know that they love each other, it's clear how opposite they are in the use of the rings. Elrond does everything to ensure that Galadriel doesn't become a victim of her failings, and she tries to overcome her pain, but that's not easy for anyone.

At that moment of the kiss, I didn't see the son-in-law kissing his mother-in-law, but rather a friend who loves Galadriel so much that he doesn't know what to do with his feelings. And I'm sure that Galadriel only sees Elrond as brother because she loves Caleborn, she knows what true love should be, which isn't the case with Elrond, as Calebrian hasn't been born yet. Once Elrond understands love all of this will change for him. And even if I was surprised, I saw this kiss as the proof that Elrond wouldn't put Galadriel above the war, just as she asked of him. But for Elrond, if that moment was the last they would ever have, he did what his heart called him to do. Even when they end up being friends, deep down Elrond had a doubt, witch I'm not concern about it, because when Elrond finds true love, he will know the answer to his question.

So for the present time of the show, I don't see the kiss as incomprehensible, but very sincere.

[from-the-coffee-shop-in-edoras]

Hi there! So happy I found your blog! I also love everything Rohan 😄 I'm a linguist and am just wondering about the language of Rohan. Given your extensive knowledge of our beloved kingdom, I was wondering if you'd be able to share what you know about their language? I understand it's supposed to be similar to Old English? Would a modern-day English-speaking person be able to understand them at all? Or at least identify it as a language that is similar to Old English? Did the people of Rohan more commonly speak Rohanese/Rohirric or Westron? Did all of them speak/understand both languages? Thank you so much!

Hello, Anonymous! I’m so glad you’re here and that you enjoy what you’ve found so far! Your question, coming from a linguist, makes me a little nervous because I am very much not. But I have confidence that someone else will pop in to correct me if I screw it up!

Any discussion of Rohirric gets complicated by the framing device Tolkien used. We’re supposed to believe that LOTR is an in-universe history, written by people who were there and who wrote in Westron. So what we see as English in the published book is supposed to be Tolkien’s translation of Westron. He then picked Old English to represent the language of the Rohirrim as a way to demonstrate the relationship between Rohirric and Westron – namely, Rohirric is an older, more archaic language than Westron with some shared historical origins (though the shared origins between Rohirric and Westron are not as direct as the way that English descended from Old English).

That means Old English is just used to make a point, not to show us what the language itself looked or sounded like. For that, we mostly have Legolas’s description (“rich and rolling”, “hard and stern” and “laden with sadness” 😬) and a few individual words that are mostly found in History of Middle Earth. The differences between the actual language and the Old English representation is pretty huge! The Old English-style name Éothéod (“horse people”) is actually Lohtûr. The name Théoden (coming from Old English meaning “king of the people”) is Tûrac in Rohirric. Because we know “loh” means horse in Rohirric and Éomer and Éowyn’s names both have eo- coming from Old English for “horse,” their real names would start with Loh- as well!

So a real Rohirric speaker would be using a language that has no relationship to Old English and wouldn’t be intelligible to a speaker of any form of English. As to whether a speaker of Old or Modern English would be able to understand Tolkien’s Old English-based representation of Rohirric, I’m not sure. He clearly knew a lot about Old English, so I imagine his use of that is probably pretty good (though he definitely made changes, like replacing “þ” with “th”). And I know that sometimes, as a modern English speaker, I can recognize and understand Old English words, but only those that made their way down to us largely unchanged. If I listen to someone reciting a whole bunch of Old English, it still sounds mostly like mush to me.

As for what languages are used on a daily basis in Rohan, I think we’re supposed to consider that Rohirric is the everyday language. Appendix F notes that the Rohirrim “still speak their ancestral tongue” and the guards at Edoras in TT say that using Rohirric is how they recognize their countrymen and friends. But Tolkien also says the “lords” use Westron freely in the manner of Gondor, and even the Rohirric-speaking guards switch easily to Westron when Gandalf asks them to. That suggests to me that Rohirric is for everyone/everyday use, but Westron is widely known, at least for anyone who might be interacting with outsiders.

I hope that was helpful! And thank you for sharing in love and appreciation for my favorite place in Middle Earth! ♥️🐎🗡️👑

[ithiliensmenagerie]

Could Indis remarry?

The answer is probably no. The answer is probably moot, because she wouldn't want to. Even if she wanted to, the stigma, her family, the whole history would stop her. And even if not, the Valar probably would.

But just imagine it. The consequences, the gossip, the reactions.

To be clear, I don't want her marrying Miriel. While I like that threesome solution and have nothing against consensual and equal polyamory, it always sounds like a cheat solution here. People do fall in love with two people, and it mostly ends messy; rarely is the solution "let all three fuck each other" actually working. And it's Tolkien's elves, but I still feel like that's too easy.

So let's say Indis marries someone else.

I have half a story planned out here (not with intentions to write it, at the moment, though). In my head, there's a Sindarin, sunlight-born elleth who was born in the early second age and died in the third. She has no real concept of the trials and tribulations of the first age and the times before, she grew up very liberal and while she does worship the stars to a degree, she doesn't really believe in following rules because the Valar say so. The Valar are very distant entities for her anyway.

I've called her Elariel, and I have not checked if that name already exists somewhere or means something; it's a nice sounding place-holder for the moment.

So, Elariel is reborn in the third age, and meets up with some friends who sailed or were reborn around the same time, and they explore Valinor. They come to Valimar and per chance meet Indis, who gives them a guided tour. Especially Indis and Elariel hit it off, and the Sindar invite her to see their community. Indis agrees.

In the next years, they meet again and again, until Elariel and Indis spend almost all their time together. They get along great. Indis likes that Elariel doesn't judge her past, that she gets along great with Findis and Finarfin (and potentially further children that are reborn), that she does not seem hemmed in by society and expectations, living by her own moral code not to harm anyone else, but to live the life you choose. Elariel likes Indis beauty, her intelligence, her willingness to see things through and accept the consequences, her stubborness and decisiveness, her vast knowledge.

Nothing else happens, until one day they are visiting Findis, who is leading a hermit-life in the mountains (I don't remember if it's Fanon or Canon, it's definitely my head canon), who suggests they get married.

Indis is shocked, she did not even think of that. Elariel takes it in stride, while she would like a more physical side of things, by her people's standards they are basically married, and she is also happy with the status quo. There is not much discussion, Indis leaves very confused.

While she is still contemplating the idea, never mind the implications, Findis tells Finarfin that Indis is remarrying (because Findis is of the house of Finwë, and being a hermit does not mean she never meddles.) Finarfin would have preferred to have heard it from Indis herself, but he really likes Elariel, they get along great and she very obviously makes his mother happy. He gives a dumbfounded Indis his blessing.

So it goes. The house of Finwë is still not great at communication, so it takes quite a while to find out that Indis and Elariel never actually agreed to get married, but absolutely everyone likes Elariel and agrees that this is a great idea, actually. Even Miriel thinks that might work out.

(And Finwë, if and when he gets asked, does not really have a leg to stand on, especially as Indis and Elariel are not going to have any more children)

Now how the Valar react, is a different question. And if it actually gets through, whether Finwë gets reborn, too. And then I think we'll have quite a situation when it turns out Finwë and Miriel can't just get back together. And who's supposed to be high king, anyway?

Now while I thought about this concept a lot, any plans to actually write it currently lack someone to discuss this with, because my life is sadly devoid of people liking both the Silmarillion and Fanfiction, so if anyone would like to discuss the concept or has ideas to add, feel free to comment or contact me! The biggest problem of my world building right now is deciding who gets reborn, and when, but the moral and political implications will make it interesting...

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

Hello hello! 👋

I have been a fan of your Grima-centric fics for a while now. I find it fascinating how he works as a character and seeing you explore his personality throughout your works is a favorite treat of mine ^^

One thing that stands out to me in particular is the dynamic that you’ve written for both Saruman and Gríma. Despite knowing that Gríma’s affection for Saruman is wholly one-sided, do you think there was a part of Saruman that considered Gríma as an almost companion? This came to mind when I realized that Saruman could’ve travelled alone to the Shire in the books, yet decided to take Gríma with him anyways. Would love to hear your opinion on this, seeing as you write them so well ^^

Aww thank you! I'm so glad you enjoy my little works - they are great fun to write and I'm always happy to hear when people find them a delight to read :D

The Saruman-Grima dynamic is one of those moments where I'm not sure Tolkien entirely appreciated what he had there with those two.

I personally do not think Saruman felt any sort of affection for or companionship with Grima. Initially, pre-war through to the early stages in February/March 3019, Grima was a useful pawn for Saruman in his chess tournament against both Rohan (whom he resented) and Sauron (who he wanted to triumph over).

So long as Grima was useful to him, Saruman might display warmth or a sort-of kindness, but it would have only been skin deep. Indeed, we know that as soon as Grima stopped being useful Saruman ceased being kind (presuming, naturally, that he had been kind previously. I assume he had, but that's speculation).

There is no depth to Saruman's affection for people - he is all about means to an end and that end is domination (he wants everyone and everything under his purview and to act and behave as he wishes for them to act and behave).

Saruman's calculating chilliness is born from his ambition, his pride and arrogance, and his disdain for those around him. Even Gandalf, one of the Wise, a fellow Maiar, barely makes the cut of someone Saruman might have a semblance of respect for. And that vanishes as soon as Gandalf says "dude, maybe don't align yourself with Sauron? That has, historically, not worked out for people. Also he's evil."

As Saruman says to Gandalf (emphasis mine):

"We may join with that Power. [...] As the Power grows, its proved friends will also grow; and the Wise, such as you and I, may with patience come at last to direct its course, to control it. [...] We can bide our time, we can keep our thoughts in our hearts, deploring maybe evils done by the way, but approving the high and ultimate purpose: Knowledge, Rule, Order; all the things that we have so far striven in vain to accomplish, hindered rather than helped by our weak or idle friends."

Aside: we might think Knowledge! that's good! But it's more along the lines of knowledge attained through horrific means to serve a horrific end. We're not talking about a high minded scholarliness here.

Saruman is the sort of person who breaks things (and, it can be inferred, people) to see how it works but with little intention of putting it back together. I love this particular exchange between Saruman and Gandalf (emphasis mine):

'White!' he [Saruman] sneered. 'It serves as a beginning. White cloth may be dyed. The white page can be overwritten; and the white light can be broken.' 'In which case it is no longer white,' said [Gandalf]. 'And he that breaks a thing to find out what it was has left the path of wisdom."

In any case, Saruman's not a warm or loving person. I do wonder if he might have once been - because Gandalf tries to save Saruman from himself on several occasions and I get a sense that there is real heartbreak for Gandalf in Saruman's betrayal. But was Saruman faking that the entire time? Who is to say.

Once Saruman's powers are removed and his staff broken we are left with the shadow of someone who once had been great and who is now bitter and twisted through with anger and resentment. Yet, his desire to control and dominate people in his life remains making for an even uglier combination than when he was at the height of his power.

Which brings us back to Grima - Grima who represents the Rohirrim (those measly horse lords who dared defy Saruman! and won!), who represents the race of Man (pathetic creatures Saruman thinks are incapable of managing themselves with sense or wisdom, better he control them), who represents the fall from power and grace, who represents everything Saruman is angry at.

Saruman brought Grima along so he would have one last thing to stand atop of. One last person to beat down and degrade. One last man he can scrape his claws through the brain and soul of in order to dismantle him for the sake of dismantling him.

When Frodo offers Grima a hand, a way out from Saruman that is truly a way out, with someone who would support him, and Grima is clearly tempted to accept Frodo's offer we see fear from Saruman. He lashes out: the Worm isn't very nice; didn't someone ask about Lotho? The Worm killed him. The Worm has been very hungry. The Worm might have eaten your cousin, why would you offer the Worm anything? The Worm should stay with me.

It's desperation and flailing, on Saruman's part, and all as a means of keeping Grima with him so Saruman has someone to beat, starve, and degrade. If there is someone else to be cruel to, then Saruman won't have to be alone with only himself to look at.

-

So yeah! In summary, I don't think Saruman is someone who would want to be alone because he would rather have a fellow traveler he detests and can be cruel to for the sake of cruelty. It gives Saruman a sense of control, a sense of "at least there is one person who is lower than me and it's this Worm that should crawl on his hands and knees after me. Which is what I deserve. I deserve followers and people to bow and scrape and serve me." etc.

Domination of others because you believe you know better (and are better) than them and that you could rule and order their life to your own desires is one hell of a drug. Don't take it! Not even once!

-

Thank you for the ask! :D I love talking about our beloved damp bog rat snake man who is confusingly wet. Also love talking about the local Tower Top.

[bi-bard]

Original Characters Masterlist [Vol.2]

Hello!

This masterlist feels both sudden yet incredibly expected. Over the years, I have created original characters (OCs) for a variety of fandoms. I adore them all, but many of them were not made with the intention of being more than a one-off story. That led to some stories that I am simply not as proud of as I would like to be. Also, they were written when I was a coward and was terrified of changing known canon. Now that I am much more comfortable doing that, I want to make something that I can feel much prouder of.

This will serve as a new beginning for many of my OCs and as the new official masterlist for all of the stories in those current timelines.

I have remade an OC before. I am not remaking all of them. This is merely a way for me to keep moving forward and not get stuck in one spot.

The remade OCs are the Hannibal OC, the Criminal Minds OC, and the Supernatural OC.

The other OCs will be left as they are, though I have done a lot of work behind the scenes in order to get those characters to flow much better than they did before.

I hope you all enjoy these stories!

If you want to read the original stories for the remade OCs, click here.

If you want to go to the main navigation guide, click here.

Special Note: Some stories feature other original characters outside of the reader. I utilize face claims for such characters as to have physical descriptions to separate them throughout the stories. No such face claims are used for the reader (main oc).

----------------------

Criminal Minds OC - Spencer Reid X Gideon!Reader

When Jason decided to take in a newly orphaned child after a particularly rough case, people had many thoughts. Some called it kind, some impulsive, some even called it fate. More begin using that last term when (Y/n) and Jason begin working alongside each other.

“I have found that it is the small everyday deed of ordinary folks that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love.” - J.R.R. Tolkien

Pre-Show:

Season 1:

Season 2:

Season 3:

Season 4:

Season 5:

Season 6:

Season 7:

Season 8:

Season 9:

Season 10:

Season 11:

Season 12:

Season 13:

Season 14:

Season 15:

Season 16 [Reboot]:

Post-Show:

Criminal Minds/Supernatural Crossover OC - Emily Prentiss X Winchester!Reader

Changing your name and running away doesn't always free you from your past. (Y/n)'s past rears its head just as they're making a name for themself. (Y/n), their brothers, and their team learn a very important lesson: "monster" can be both literal and figurative.

“There is nothing I would not do for those who are really my friends. I have no notion of loving people by halves, it is not my nature.” - Jane Austen

Pre-Show:

Season 1:

Reunion [ep. 1 - Supernatural]

The Moment Spencer Reid Became My Best Friend

Scrapbooks

Season 2:

Tragedy in a Pair [ep. 1 - both]

Revelations [ep. 14 & 15 - Criminal Minds]

Season 3:

Season 4:

Season 5:

If the World Was Ending... [ep. 22 - Supernatural]

Season 6:

Season 7:

Just Between Us, Did the Love Affair Maim You Too? [ep. 2 - Criminal Minds]

Rebuilding [ep. 23 & 24 - Criminal Minds]

Season 8:

Season 9:

I Didn't Mean To

Season 10:

The Retreat [ep. 8 - Supernatural]

Season 11:

Season 12:

Season 13:

For Those Who Don't Know Who I Am [ep. 15 - Criminal Minds]

Season 14:

Season 15:

Season 16 [Criminal Minds Only]:

Post-Show:

Doctor Who OC - The Doctor X Timelord!Reader

(Y/n) spent most of their early life as nothing more than a weapon. Continuously called the Savior by the Time Lords training them, (Y/n) knew all too well about the weight sitting on their shoulders. However, when Time War comes and (Y/n) fails their very purpose, they have two choices: hide away from the universe forever or travel the universe and help as many people as possible.

“It must be good to die in the knowledge that one has done some truthful work and to know that, as a result, one will live in the memory of at least a few and leave a good example for those who come after.” - Vincent Van Gogh

Other Important Original Characters

Pre-Show:

The Savior Fails

Series 1:

Plastic Promises [ep. 1]

Familiar Foes [ep. 6]

Special: Reckless [2005 Christmas Special]

Series 2:

Series 3:

A Normal Life [ep. 8 & 9]

Arguments & Paradoxes [ep. 10]

Series 4:

Series 5:

Series 6:

Series 7:

Clever Boy [ep. 1]

Series 8:

Series 9:

Series 10:

Series 11:

Series 12:

Series 13:

60th Anniversary Specials:

Season 1:

Post-Show:

Hannibal OC - Hannibal Lecter X Reader [Sunshine Character Trope]

(Y/n) had been sheltered for quite some time. When they finally get a chance to see the world around them, they did not know how vulnerable they truly were. If they had, maybe they would have turned away from the first man to show them affection.

“Dreams are sweet, until they're not / Men are kind, until they aren't / Flowers bloom, until they rot, and fall apart” - Anaïs Mitchell, Flowers

Pre-Show:

Season 1:

Season 2:

Season 3:

Post-Show:

House MD OC - James Wilson X House's Sibling!Reader

If you were to ask anyone at Princeton–Plainsboro Teaching Hospital how the House siblings ended up working at the same place, then there would rarely be a straight answer. It went without question that it wasn't because Greg had put a good word in. And in the end, maybe it didn't matter how they both got there. All that mattered was that they both stayed there... and didn't end up killing each other.

“Talent isn’t genius, and no amount of energy can make it so. I want to be great, or nothing.” - Louisa May Alcott, Little Women

Pre-Show:

Season 1:

Season 2:

Season 3:

Season 4:

Misdiagnosis [ep. 9]

Season 5:

Season 6:

Season 7:

Season 8:

Post-Show:

The Last of Us OC - Joel Miller X Reader

(Y/n) and Joel had never meant to cross paths. However, when (Y/n) and Tess meet, Tess's protective side rears its head and forces the two together. Ellie's presence pushes Joel and (Y/n) together in a very different way.

“There comes a point when you have to realize that the sum of all your blood, sweat, and tears will ultimately amount to zero.” - Max Brooks

Pre-Show:

Season 1:

Changes [Episode 4 & 6]

Those Three Months [Between Episodes 5 & 6]

Something Good [Between Episode 6 & 7]

God’s Plan [Episode 8]

Post-Show:

Shadow & Bone OC - Kaz Brekker X Sun Summoner!Reader

Ketterdam had been the closest thing to home that (Y/n) had known. With that home came the Crows, the closest thing that (Y/n) had ever known to a family. When their secret is exposed in order to protect their family, it's all stolen from them. Now, (Y/n) needs to find a way to tear down the Fold and get home to the people they care about.

“Men mock the gods until they need them” - Leigh Bardugo

Pre-Show:

The Easiest Way to Steal a Man’s Wallet is to Tell Him You’re Going to Steal His Watch

No Saint Ever Watched Over Me

Season 1:

They Tell Each Other Who to Look After and Who to Watch Out For

When They Took Everything from You, You Found a Way to Make Something from Nothing

You're the First Glimmer of Hope I've Had in a Long Time

Season 2:

Stay till the End... And After, And Always

Post-Show:

Supernatural OC - Winchester Brothers & Adopted!Cambion!Reader

The Winchester brothers find themselves caring for a being far more powerful than they had ever known. In a story of about the constant battle between good and evil, the question of nature versus nurture is taken on in the most extreme of examples.

“Take courage, my heart: you have been through worse than this. Be strong, saith my heart; I am a soldier; I have seen worse sights than this.” - Homer, The Odyssey

Other Important Original Characters

Pre-Show/Story:

Season 4:

Season 5:

Season 6:

Season 7:

Season 8:

Season 9:

Season 10:

Season 11:

Season 12:

Season 13:

Season 14:

Season 15:

Post-Show:

[ladysolidor87]

More thoughts on the season finale. WARNING: Spoiler Alert 🚨 Only read if you’ve watched the season two finale.

- Towards the end of the episode we see Sauron with Feanor’s hammer, which I assume he will use (alongside his own blood) to forge the one ring. We also see Elendil take Narsil, the blade that will cut the ring from Sauron’s hand.

We see both Sauron’s way to power and the beginning of his downfall. As Celebrimbor tells him, he creates his own doom. All his power in one object, an object we know will ultimately be destroyed by one person, Gollum. Celebrimbor pretty much predicts it for Sauron and Sauron hates it.

Sauron weeps. I’d like to think a small slither of him is sad for killing Celebrimbor but let’s be honest, he’s crying for himself. I’m almost certain, deep down he knows he’s doomed.

- It’s implied at the end that Durin may end up wearing the ring that led to his father’s madness and death. (Loved that he managed to take the bloody ring off in the end though) With oppositions rising to take the throne they all look to the ring, be it warily at the moment. I’ve got a dreadful feeling Durin will eventually put it on. I can foresee lots of horrid things and it makes me sad. I love them so much. But the dwarves do dig and Khazad-Dum does fall…gotta get there somehow.

- Queen Miriel is seen in chains before Pharazôn. Am I right in thinking that he marries her in text to strengthen his claim to the throne? Forgive me friends, my knowledge isn’t as complete as I’d like. If a learned friend could confirm or deny that would be great. Whatever the case, I hope Elendil raises a force to rescue her.

- I think Eärien will see the errors of her way. She looked rather uncomfortable at points, especially when the faithful were declared as traitors and she immediately went to warn her father. When Isildur returns I think she will turn against Pharazon if she doesn’t before hand. A nice mini redemption arc would be sweet for her. Bonus points if she bumps off Kemen (although I think Isildur will do that!)

- Gandalf has arrived. Not sure how I feel about his early arrival but I must admit it’s bloody lovely to have him! He is such a wonderful character and we see now where his deep love of the Halflings comes from. I do wonder who the dark wizard is though. Any theories? I don’t know Tolkiens work well enough to guess myself. (I’ve only read the Silmarillion once and my poor mind couldn’t absorb much of it.)

- Did we see the birth of Rivendell? That’s where the elves are, right? Can’t wait to see that explored in season three.

- Gil-Galad and Galadriel getting on for once was lovely 🥰

- Elrond is perfection as always. For the record, I don’t think the kiss between Elrond and Galadriel was at all romantic. Just my opinion! If you ship them then that’s great. I just think it was a farewell kiss and a bit of distraction. They definitely love each other but just don’t see the romantic aspect myself. I loved when he put on the ring. He was so reluctant but did it for Galadriel. Loved it ❤️

That’s all for now! Send me your own thoughts and theories. I genuinely want to talk about this amazing series. Also, for anyone who knows the texts inside and out, teach me! And correct me when I’m wrong which is…probably a lot 😆

[airyairyaucontraire]

I don’t normally want to listen to audiobooks because I can read faster than they can talk and it’s frustrating, but it occurred to me that that might not happen with a book I’ve read before. I’ve got stuck in my LOTR reread but I want to get unstuck and I’m trying out the unabridged Fellowship of the Ring as read by Andy Serkis.

So far I’m enjoying it, because he has a lovely bedtime storyish reading voice, and he also does distinct character voices (although his Sam mangel-wurzel accent and his Pippin brogue [because he follows movie precedent, Pippin is Scottish] get a bit broad and cartoony sometimes). And he sings the songs! No music unfortunately, and he tends to go flat if he has to hold the note at the ends of lines, but after all the characters are not supposed to be trained singers, they just sing a lot because it’s their culture, and it’s just nice to have the songs acknowledged (one day someone will have the indomitable courage to adapt the Lord of the Rings for the screen as the musical it is, but that day has not yet come).

This time around I’m struck by how long it takes between Tolkien bringing Pippin on stage, as it were, and when he actually gets dialogue. He’s just sort of there as Extra Friend Who Isn’t Sam Or Merry (or Fredegar or Folco but they’re very C-list). We soon know Merry is the practical, helpful friend with local knowledge and a take-charge, can-do attitude (and if we listened to/read all the preface stuff, we know he grew up to be important and wrote books), but Pippin’s personality is pretty much a blank until he, Frodo and Sam are well into their hike from Hobbiton to Buckland.

[pop-a-cornn]

hi!!!

you’re one of my most frequent interactions on my blog and I love seeing your comments and asks!! youre just abbreviated to ‘popcorn’ in my brain so whenever I see your interactions I’m like “omfg popcorns here!!” sooo to flip the tables,

I would LOVE to hear some of your South Park headcanons!!

thank you!!

The way I literally SCREAMED upon seeing this and stop your actually so sweet and I’m giggling, I love everyone’s different abbreviations of my username it’s actually so fun

BUT FORMALITYS OUT THE WAY, LITERALLY NEVER POSTED HERE BEFORE AND WAS NEVER PLANNING TO BUT FOR YOU, I SHALL

I literally ran to my notes app and wrote down all the things I could come up with/remember off the top of my head, so I hope you enjoy 🫶🫶

- Kyle is the designated driver of the main 4, Stan gets absolutely wasted, Kenny is high out of his mind, and no one trusts cartman to drive

- Tolkien + Wendy + Kyle are the honor student trio. Literally doesn’t matter what class they’ve always got a casual friendly rivalry for the top spot

- Kyle + Clyde are sport buddies. Kyle mains in basketball (obvi) and Clyde pretty much dabbles in everything (idgaf Clyde is the most awkward jock ever in my mind)

- TWEEK AS A BOXER. I REFUSE TO ACCEPT HIM IN ANOTHER OTHER SPORT. And he’s literally one of the strongest in his grade despite his relatively small size and build, fight with the wall

- Kinda following up on that, despite Craig literally being the tallest in his school (by the time he’s 16 hes like, 6’0), Tweek can lift him up with ease. Craig on the other hand has the strength of a twig, man could not carry tweek to save his life

- Stan is bi, and literally everyone else knew before he did and treated it as common knowledge. People would literally come up to him like “dude that guy over there totally looks like your type” and he’s just like “wtf ???” cause this dude has never said ANYTHING about being into guys

- Lowkey stealing this from my friend (thanks memberment 🫶🫶) but Kenny is fluent in literally EVERY LANGUAGE, cause hell most definitely isn’t a English-exclusive place

- Stan, Kenny and cartman all started growing muchhhh sooner than Kyle, making him the shortest for a few years. Then one day, puberty hit him like a truck and literally towered over all of them. They’re still in shock over it

- Red and Craig as cousins, they literally talk shit about everyone

- Dipping into my own-unwritten-band au here, Tweek and kenny play drums

- Wendy had the longest hair for everrrrrr and then one night had a breakdown over school-stress and chopped it all off. The public was stunned

- Another one stolen from memberment, Tweek is literally incapable of remembering to locks doors/windows. Kenny breaks in often

- Kenny breaks into lots of peoples houses fullstop, no one really understands what he has against doors

- Stan is a night owl. He will stay up all night and be absolutely insufferable to wake up the next morning

- Bebe is literally the most diva to ever diva, and absolutely no one can hate her for it

- Kenny will see any feral animal (eg. A raccoon) and will announce it as his pet. If you argue against it he will argue “anything can be a pet if your man enough”

- Cartman will doxx anyone on the internet who disagrees with anything he says

- This ones sot related, but Stan was originally part of Kupa keep. He met Kyle while patrolling at some point and shortly after, decided to switch his allegiance

- Bebes the type of girl to have Polaroids hanging in her locker of all her friends, she probably figured out a way to get fairy lights going too

- When tweeks stressed out, Craig puts his chullo on his head so he can pull on the strings instead of his hair

- Another of my band au- Kyle plays electric guitar, Stan plays bass

- This is a thing that happened at my Highschool in my cohorts younger years, but I just KNOW that the girls decorate each others lockers for their birthdays with streamers, balloons, cards, you name it both inside and outside

Okay yikes I can’t tell if that’s a lot or not, but ah well

REGARDLESS HOPE THIS WAS ENJOYABLE, MUCH LOVE 🫶

[lady-of-the-spirit]

Please tell me more about your Tolkien-verse OCs????

HAPPILY!!!

I've got Athalia, who's for The Hobbit trilogy, and Kiana and Annunel, both for the Lord of the Rings trilogy. They all exist in the same timeline, with Athalia's story meant to be a prequel to Kiana/Annunel's.

Athalia was originally written as the daughter of one of Bilbo's friends/neighbours and ended up raised by Bilbo after her parent's death. I scrapped that idea a few years ago, though, and made her his childhood friend instead, partly because her staying his niece didn't feel right to me anymore and partly so I could write them being snarky best friends.

Athalia's Not Like Other Hobbits. you know how the fandom characterizes Bilbo's mom as being an adventuring hobbit lady? Athalia is very much the same. She wants adventure in the great wide somewhere and - scandalously - actually goes off on a journey to see all of Middle Earth some 8 years before the start of the story. She comes back from her journey, reuniting with her best friend Bilbo, claiming she wants to settle down again, just in time for Gandalf to show up asking Bilbo to go on his own adventure. Athalia is immediately on board and claims that "surely two bandits is better than one!" And gets Bilbo on board (despite his many many reservations about the whole thing).

She has a lot of information on what she's seen of the world and is very eager to share and learn more, always, always jotting down notes in her journals (she has many) and collecting little trinkets when she can. Her enthusiasm, cheerfulness, and seemingly endless knowledge and opinions successfully seduces Fili after maybe a week on their journey.

Not everything is all sunshine, though. The background of her fic, most important, is that I was watching the Hobbit movies (for the first time) at the same time I was rereading Fushigi Yuugi: Genbu Kaiden, in which the main character 1) uses a spear as a weapon and 2 (spoilers) ends up getting tuberculosis. I was so compelled by this character and the tragic nature of prequels that it ended up factoring into Athalia's story a lot. I created my own little plague that affects only the hobbit community and is very rare, but has no cure, and Athalia is slowly dying over the course of the story. She's known since before she returned to Bag End - it's the reason she returned, wanting to see her oldest friend before she died. But she doesn't want a peaceful, quiet death, withering away to nothing. So Gandalf's quest is a way for her to have both some time with Bilbo and doing what she loves, seeing the world, and making her last little bit of time on this beautiful earth matter. She's accepted her death.

Until she falls in love with Fili, and worse, finds out he loves her back, which makes everything so much harder. because now she wants to live.

So yeah this fic and her character were VERY tragic in nature, as prequels often are. I never could decide on an ending - killing both her and fili, just killing her (through various means), or in an alternate ending AFTER the tragic one was posted, saving them both.

I totally meant to start writing this fic, but then covid hit, and it just seemed inappropriate to do so after that.

Now onto the happier ocs- Kiana and Annunel! Originally, Kiana and Annunel were supposed to be two separate stories. But then I went well why not put them together? And they ended up together, same story. And together as in they're in lesbians together 💖 because why not???

Kiana is unrelated to the rest of the main cast, princess and heir to the throne of a foreign kingdom in the south. I think canonically it's Umbar but I didn't know that when I made her and chose a random place on the map, and I've just stuck with that. Her kingdom was inspired by ancient Persia. Smth fun about her is that in her country's language their term for "King" is a completely gender neutral term so she's gonna be a woman king. she's very emotional but hides it behind her royal persona and only lets it slip the longer she's with the fellowship. She's also besties with Boromir because their countries are friends with each other and I was fucking sick of all the ocs hating on Boromir, my beloved.

Annunel is the twin of Aragorn. They used to be much closer when they were younger but as they got older they drifted apart. (They're both rangers though. Her nickname with the rangers is "West" which is a little reference to her name which means "west/sunset" in Sindarin. Or says the website I found years ago which I can't find now.) She gets herself tangled into the fellowship before Frodo gets himself stabbed, when she finds them in the woods - Gandalf called her. It's the first time she's seen her brother in years. It's weird. but hey. she's here. (and then she sticks with him when Frodo takes the ring because she's invested now.)

There's a little onesided beef on Kiana's part with Annunel because she and Boromir are both of the opinion Aragorn/Annunel abandoned Gondor and that's a big no-no in her book. But they get past that over time.

(Eowyn gets a little crush on Kiana and Annunel is jealous that's important to me.)

[rockinlibrarian]

An Index of my Fanfic!

Tumblr wasn't letting me add anything more to my pinned post so I've made a fresh(ish) one. Here, minus the long and convoluted intro of the original post, is a handy-dandy index to my work on AO3! It is sorted by How Much Previous Knowledge You Need to Enjoy Each, to encourage people to read outside their fandom zone! And then comment on it! So please, check out something new! And comment on it!

STORIES THAT REQUIRE NO FAMILIARITY WITH THE SOURCE MATERIAL:

The vast majority of my fics on AO3 are for the weird cult-favorite FX TV show Legion, which is a very small fandom for which I am one of the only writers. Lucky for you, most of my Legion fics take place many years before the show, so don’t require you to have seen it since it hasn’t happened yet. And the best place to start is probably

The Loudermilk Chronicles, a series of eight-and-one-that-isn't-written-yet stories tracing the childhood and coming-of-age of my favorite character. Characters. You’ll see when you read it. If you like stories of really weird people trying to find their place in the world, platonic love stories, and odd-couple sibling dynamics, you need to read my biography of Cary and Kerry.

But if you’re looking for a NON-platonic love story (note, I do Not Do smut, so you’re out of luck there), “A Strictly Scholarly Collaboration: the Original Romance of the Mind” tells how the Loudermilks’ eventual best friends, the Birds, fell in love while at the same time developing the roots of Summerland, the setting for at least the first season of the show. It is a banter-heavy bickering-research-partners-to-lovers story with psychic power shenanigans! I’m pretty sure I fell in love with Oliver while writing this, if it helps. If you want to read ALL of this in CHRONOLOGICAL order, this story takes place just before the sixth story in The Loudermilk Chronicles.

For an alternate take on these backstories, in an alternate timeline, have The Childhood Friends AU, which is an excuse for me to write MORE of Cary and Oliver’s friendship by having them meet as kids instead of in college! The first story especially is one of my favorites but with the LEAST number of hits, so REEEEEAD it! It’s just a story of a couple of neurodivergent nerds (not spelled OUT in canon, but pretty clear if you know what to look for: Oliver has ADHD and Cary ASD) being friends oh and also they’re both Marvel-type Mutants, so lovely stories! The last in this series is actually bonus scenes to “A Strictly Scholarly Collaboration,” merging the two timelines together.

Then, obviously, you need no familiarity with the source material when there IS no source material. My sole “Original Work” on AO3 was written for an Inklings fandom challenge.

I was tasked with writing a time-travel story that JRR Tolkien might write. Actually, that’s not exactly what it was. And this story definitely isn’t Tolkien-esque style-wise. “Rewind” is a time loop story starring an unnamed inventor whose Rewind Button comes in handy for getting to the meeting in which she’s supposed to present it (or does it? Come in handy, I mean?). It was at this point I looked closely at my AO3 and said “DO I MAYBE HAVE A THING FOR STORIES INVOLVING SPACE-TIME TRAVEL OR IS THIS A REALLY WEIRD COINCIDENCE?”

STORIES THAT DEBATABLY REQUIRE SOME FAMILIARITY WITH THE SOURCE MATERIAL, SEE ANNOTATIONS:

Speaking of which, “Tesseract” merges two properties that both claim that the titular concept can be used to travel through space-time, with my favorite headcanon premise: Meg Murry’s father disappeared while working for S.H.I.E.L.D. This story is a Wrinkle In Time prequel from Alex’s POV, set in the MCU. You probably don’t need any Marvel pre-knowledge except that Howard Stark is a world famous scientist-inventor (and honestly you might pick that up from context); you MIGHT want some Wrinkle pre-knowledge, but on the other hand, it is a prequel— with the exception of the epilogue. If you haven’t read Wrinkle you’re going to be like “WHAT? BUT WHAT HAPPENED?” in between chapter 3 and the epilogue, because I skip over the actual Wrinkle happenings, but that’s just your cue to go out and read the friggin’ book already. Admittedly, at this point in time, we’re not remotely there yet, though. While I have quite a lot of this written, it’s all in bits and pieces, so there’s only one actual chapter posted online so far.

Also speaking of another which, the Inklings, did you know there's actually an Inklings RPF fandom tag on AO3? I know because I included it on "The Pipeweed Mafia Epic," even though none of the Inklings are actually IN it on account of being dead. The fic's MAIN fandom is "Lord of the Rings/Hobbit movies RPF," with a lot of references to Tolkien's work as a whole, one very important reference to CS Lewis's work, and some references to Sherlock, too. This is just a bunch of interconnected bits of crack I started writing over a decade ago beginning with the prompt "You get into a fender-bender with your favorite actor and he has a body in his trunk." It is FULL of references to not only these works, but a lot of private jokes as well. But I love it and decided to put it up once I figured out how RPF works. I don't think you NEED to get ALL the references to enjoy it for the crack it is?

“Exploration of the Astral Plane: An Immersive, Multidimensional Study, by Cary Loudermilk, PhD, and Oliver Anthony Bird” is yet another Legion prequel, in that it happens before the show, but it DOES assume familiarity with at least the Birds and Loudermilks. Which means if you’ve already read The Loudermilk Chronicles, you probably don’t need any more than that to understand this one, really. But you may HAVE to watch the show AFTERWARD, because this fic has a canonically sad ending otherwise. The first few chapters are quite a lot of fun, though. Also, you can fix the sad ending by then reading:

“Syd's (Third) Childhood Begins,” which is one of those weird stories that, thanks to the miracle of TIME TRAVEL (yet again), takes place technically AFTER the show but also BEFORE it, in another timeline. So technically you kind of need to know how the show ends? But also it takes place during “Exploration of the Astral Plane” so you can also just read it right after? If you never plan to watch the show and aren’t worried about spoilers, what the heck, just read it after “Exploration,” then.

“We Will (Not) Always Have Each Other” is another story you’d want to avoid if you’re avoiding spoilers for Legion, but honestly I’ve always been curious how it reads to someone who hasn’t seen it. This story is Chapters (episodes) 6-8 of the show, but told from the POV of the Loudermilks, because they actually have their own arc over the course of those chapters and it works as a stand-alone story that way. It also could function as the sequel to “Exploration of the Astral Plane,” since it does (if only temporarily) resolve the ending.

As the title indicates, “The Fall of [Spoilers Redacted]: a Freestyle Ballad by Lester ‘Apollo’ Papadopoulos” is absolutely spoilery for the first three books of the Trials of Apollo series, because it basically retells all three. See, at the beginning of Book 4, Apollo, the friggin’ god of POETRY, sings an epic funeral ballad that also explains to the people they’ve just met up with what has been going on with him lately. Now, because I hate myself, I thought it would be fun to try to actually WRITE said ballad, although I’ve never been much of a poet. So, if you’re never planning to read The Trials of Apollo, and just want to admire and/or laugh at my attempts at poetry, SURE you can read this without having read the books!

“A Captain With Seven Children...What's So Fearsome About That?” is a crossover I started writing almost as a joke but it honestly fits SO DANG WELL and I’m having so much fun with it. It’s basically The Sound of Music at The Umbrella Academy— Maria is hired to be the governess for a DIFFERENT strict militaristic single father’s seven children and changes their lives with the power of music. If you know The Sound of Music without The Umbrella Academy, that’s okay because it takes place twenty years before the show (although there will be spoilers if you DO plan to watch the show) (note: that show ALSO heavily involves space-time travel), and you can meet all the characters right along with Maria. If you know the Umbrella Academy but not The Sound of Music, then it’s probably just like reading a fic with an original main character, you just won’t appreciate how amazingly the movie’s script adapts to the world of the show (but what is wrong with you, go watch The Sound of Music NOW). If you know neither property? You might be more confused. But on the other hand, you might not. I’m not stopping you from trying!

Or, you could get a straight-up retelling of the first three seasons of The Umbrella Academy from one character's point of view. Viktor canonically had a therapist before the show started, and when I off-hand imagined him going back to said therapist, the concept of filling in this poor therapist on everything that had just happened amused me so much I immediately started writing "How to Catch Up with your Therapist after a Couple of...Busy Months." Do you need to have seen the show? Well, you ARE getting one side of the (seven-sided) whole story right here! But you don't know what you're missing, either! So...that's up to you!

Now, I wrote this next Umbrella Academy fic for the Masked Author Remix event, for which we wrote spin-offs of other people's fics, and when I read a drabble suggesting that, in another universe, Five, Ben, and Viktor would have still met at "some event where they didn't even speak a common language yet" and instantly bonded anyway, I immediately sent them to an international conference for the Leaders of Tomorrow and wrote "What's In a Name?" which IS a childhood friends AU like the Legion one above, but I feel like part of the fun is seeing the familiar characters in a new context, so it's not quite as no-previous-knowledge-needed, but on the other hand, why not, it's an AU.

STORIES THAT DEFINITELY REQUIRE FAMILIARITY WITH THE SOURCE MATERIAL, BUT WHAT THE HEY, I’M NOT STOPPING YOU FROM READING AND COMMENTING ANYWAY:

Speaking of Umbrella Academy AUs, I am writing a sort of sequel to Season 3, "New World Symphony," that imagines a rebooted universe that is, basically, the canon characters suddenly finding themselves in what fanfic labelling calls a "no-powers/no-adoption AU" and figuring out how to fit in to this world with new roles already written for them. Also, whoever made this AU is a Fiktor shipper. Don't know who that could have been.

Seriously, it’s so against my BRAND for me to ship a non-canonical couple (in this case, #fiktor, formerly known as #fiveya) that my first attempt at writing them, “Not Just Stupid Kids,” was originally posted to AO3 anonymously because I was embarrassed. The truth is it’s just an innocent childhood romance between two sad, lonely kids (who, yeah, happen to be adoptive siblings, but their LIFE is HARD, cut them some slack!), and honestly I wrote it to try to MAKE my embarrassingly non-canonical ship fit canon as much as possible, so the childhood flashback is bookended by two “missing” scenes from the third season (one during episode 2, the other right after the season end), of the now-adults talking out their childhood relationship. Otherwise, there’s also more swearing than I usually put in my fics, because in-characterness, so that’s TWO off-brand bits for me! But it’s also about lonely kids who take comfort in each other, and that’s VERY on-brand for me, so…?

Then I decided to write another #Fiktor Fik to prove WHY they belong together so truly, so "On Soul Mates and Nemeses" poured out in a long and rambling amount of 'Five-and-Viktor-trying to convince each other that they're the monster and the other is their hero and end up just convincing themselves that they can't live without each other,' and it's a lot better than that sounds, honest!

And because I'm apparently addicted to this stupid ship, "Morning-After Meltdown" is the sucky title of THE most blatant Fiktor Fik yet, on the aftermath of drunk sex, which I still manage to completely avoid Smut on though because I'm like that. In fact, it's kind of sweet.

(PSSST! I also have a Fik that is STILL "Anonymous," because it links BACK to a smutty fic, which I didn't really want a link to on my page. But this is me linking to MY, not-smutty (though referencing smuttiness) fic, "Renegade Teenage Hormones." As long as you understand what you're tangentially getting into before you click)

OKAY BUT.

The COOLEST FIC I have EVER WRITTEN is unfortunately a Legion fic that really does assume you know Legion, "The Magic Man of Oz." David sweeps everyone up into an Astral Plane reenactment of The Wizard of Oz, and is enjoyable to read as-is because I do all sorts of fun fourth-wall breaking, but you can't exactly appreciate the way I've fit the Legion world into the Wizard of Oz story unless you know the Legion world, and goshdarnit I did a really good job at it, too!

Now, maybe this one only requires you to have read The Loudermilk Chronicles, although it ASSUMES a reader who’s seen Legion and will get all the references. On the other hand, it TEACHES you everything I know about The Loudermilk Twins, because it is, in fact, “Everything I Know About Writing the Loudermilk Twins,” a brain dump of all my theories about my favorite character(s).

There are a couple other Legion one-shots that take place during the show and assume you’ve been watching everything that takes place before and after. “Chapter 19.5: Hidden. Safe. Somewhere.” obviously takes place between Chapters 19 and 20 (ie Seasons 2 and 3), and is a minor fix-it that explains exactly what happened to the Birds in that time, as told by a sad but determined Cary. And:

“The Limits of Two-Part Harmony” is an alternate scene in Chapter 4 of Legion, as requested by Versaphile in a fic exchange, meaning this is the very first thing I posted on AO3! It is shockingly one of the only Legion fics I've written that actually has supposed-main-character David as a speaking character, and also has LOTS of Oliver Bird, and that alone is its selling point.

AND THEN I CROSSED OVER MY TWO BIGGEST-WRITTEN FANDOMS: "The Beginning of Something Else Entirely" is a post-canon fixit for both Legion and Umbrella Academy, in which the Hargreeves find themselves spat out at Summerland, a place where they can actually get therapy. It's from the Hargreeves' point of view and they're meeting the Legion people, so theoretically you can get by without having seen Legion (I even have one enthusiastic reader who's seen Legion but not TUA), but there are massive spoilers for both.

“Introduction to Infernal and Eternal Crossover” Cross between my two favorite sitcoms of the 21st century, which poses the concept that Community is actually a Bad Place simulation run by demons in the (after)world of The Good Place. You need to know the characters of Community in order to get who the characters in this story are talking about; you PROBABLY need to have seen at least into the start of Season Two of The Good Place to understand what the characters are doing. But if you do know both? I welcome you to write your own story that takes place in this scenario, I would totally read it.

The beginning of Season Two of The Good Place is exactly when this next fic takes place, specifically sometime during the very many Bearimies unseen in episode 3. And there's a lot of inherent dramatic irony in this one counting on you knowing things that Chidi, the viewpoint character, does not. "In Which Jason and Chidi Rob a Bank" is a sort of missing-episode I wrote for the Yuletide exchange, and I have been TOLD that it's very funny. You don't have to take my word for it: In the three weeks between its posting and me updating THIS post it's already my second-highest kudoed fic, just below THIS one:

“The Invitation: an epilogue” This story takes place immediately after (note the subtitle) the BOOK of Howl’s Moving Castle. If you’ve only seen the movie, you’ll be lost, because these characters aren’t even in the movie, unless you count Howl, which I DON’T because BOOK HOWL IS SO MUCH MORE INTERESTING A CHARACTER THAN MOVIE HOWL SO GO READ THE BOOK ANYWAY. That said, this is to date my highest-kudoed fic on AO3, which must mean SOMEBODY likes it. It’s the story of how Howl convinces Megan to come to his wedding (in fifteen minutes).

“The Puppy-Fly Effect” Like “Syd’s Third Childhood Begins,” this is a prequel that actually happens AFTER the source material (Back to the Future), thanks to the miracle of everyone’s favorite recurring trope, time travel! It assumes you have seen the movie, so you understand what Doc is doing, though you’ll probably figure out that this is the story of how he meets Marty before he figures it out. I mean, because I just said so, too.

“On the End of Endgame: A Series of Scenarios” Yeah, you definitely had to have seen Avengers: Endgame for this, because it’s basically me expounding on why certain theories about the (guess what) TIME TRAVEL in the movie DO NOT WORK on a character basis so shut up, supposed “screenwriters.” You do not need to have watched Agent Carter even though the majority of the story is based on it, because it’s all written from an outside perspective (Steve’s). I didn’t originally intend this to be a FIC, it was more a rant that took the FORM of a fic, and then I realized I had an AO3 account now and could post it, so I did.

So right! Read my stories and tell me about it!

[distinguisheddwarffriend]

Hi! I know I'm late with this, but if you still feel like it, do these questions from the fanfic writers ask game maybe? 🫶

7. tell us about the plot of the first fanfic you ever wrote

11. what’s something neat you’ve learned while doing research for something you were writing? also, how much do you worry about doing research in general?

20. what is your favorite trope to write?

47. what story are you most proud of?

Hi & thanks for the questions, I'm always happy to do the fanfic writers ask game!

7. The first fanfic I ever wrote:

When I was 15 (so half a life ago) I discovered Tolkien & High Fantasy for myself, and started writing an original work called "Elven Blood", that may have had original characters& my own world, BUT almost all of it was inspired by Tolkien. Each "race"/ elven sub-race, the societies etc all were VERY Tolkien, it basically WAS a fanfic.

The plot was the beautiful cliché of a young girl waking up on a beach without any memories of who she is. She wanders & gets found by the wood elves(her best friend is an Arwen 2.0), a reclusive kind of the elves (there also were Firn-Elves, Light-Elves, Night-Elves, Blood-Elves), and later, for some reason, runs away from them and comes into the kingdoms of men, falls in love with a young king that travels the world in disguise of a Story-Teller(Aragorn), because he does not want to be king, and while there was a 'big evil' somewhere(Sauron), and the peoples fought that.

I had this really funny twist planned, where there is this legend of the Queen of the Light Elves(Galadriel), that was enchanted by someone evil (Annatar) & cheated on her husband, having a bastard child. Her husband killed the child in anger, and the Queen faded in grief.

However, the MC later finds out that she is said child from the story, the King of the Light Elves could not kill her after all, and her mother did not die but turned insane, leading her people into a hidden exile (Lorien) and secretly planning her revenge against all elf kind by teaming up with her Ex Lover (Sauron/Annatar).

Maybe one day I'll finish/ revamp it.

11. For one of my current WIPs "Homeward bound", I had to research certain parts of European and American history.

I learned about the war between Denmark & Schleswig Holstein around 1850, the Northernmost German state & close to where I live. I had no idea this war even existed!

If I do research, then I really research things, for example I now even know the exact dates& places of various battles, how the different uniforms looked, what happened to wounded sell-swords after battle etc.

20. My favourite trope to write BY FAR is Modern Girl in Middle Earth.

It's funny, because I used to think of it as cringy for years, because I mostly knew about the "messy-bun, blue-orbs Mary-Sues", but when I needed a change from my usual stuff, I gave it a try & now I'm forever lost.

47. What story I am mostly proud of?

Ooof, tough one.

It's easier to answer what idea I'm proud of the most, because much of my work is unpublished/unfinished, so I cannot be proud of it yet.

Therefore: I'm proud of the idea for my "Opus Magnus" that could be a Tolkien fanfic, but is also a very original work.

It's far from finished, but it combines the MGiME trope with The End of Our World, the "saving" of parts of our humanity by the Valar, the Building of a new, utopian society, the interaction of Tolkien & his characters, the moral question of 'what is the MC allowed to do/change' and the dangers of our world's knowledge encroaching into a fictional & medieval world.

[eilinelsghost]

Hi!! I’m such a huge fan of your Atandil series and had a question about it - maybe you’ve already addressed it elsewhere, if so, I’m sorry I’ve missed it! I know Balan refers to Finrod as Nóm, the name his people gave to Finrod - but I’m curious as to whether Balan has ever actually called him “Finrod”? Does he even know this is the Elf’s common name? I know very little about Tolkien’s complex etymology so maybe I’m missing some obvious tidbit about how only Finrod’s family call him Finrod or something … thanks so much! Keep on writing - you truly have a gift! 💜

Thank you so much! I'm so glad you've enjoyed the series so far!

That's a great question - and no, I haven't addressed it anywhere so far. The short answer is that Balan has never referred to him as Finrod in the text of Atandil itself so far, but it's feasible that he has done so in Nargothrond in more formal settings. Though typically in those I think he would be most likely to still just use a title instead of a direct name.

Balan knows most, if not all, of Finrod's names by the current point in the series, but he typically defaults to Nóm. "Finrod" is still a bit of a stranger to him, rather unreachable, very "the king, but Nóm is the person he knows and loves. The thing that comes to mind for me on this is thinking of meeting my friends from on here in real life. I don't go by Frankie in my day-to-day (it's my middle name, but I don't use it much even though I prefer it) and hearing all my friends here calling me by my first name would feel so strange - as it would to them to call me by a different name, I'd assume. So it's less of a knowledge thing for Balan and more of a deliberate choice. Nóm is a name of intimacy and by retaining that while he shifts to Nargothrond, he asserts a continued claim to that intimacy in this new setting, which keeps the king-subject dynamic from taking over. And by doing so, he continues to ground Finrod in the same steadiness that drew him to Balan in the first place: Balan sees him, knows him, names him - as himself, not as a performance of kingship.

You joked about a tidbit re only Finrod's family using the name - and that is a thing! Only it's Ingoldo (his mother-name) that the Shibboleth says is "used by his brothers and sister, who loved him." I actually did a little ficlet about that (re Balan) in response to a prompt if you want some silliness with those two as a break from Atandil's ongoing angst. 😂

Thank you so much for the ask! It was so fun to get to talk about this a bit.