#I CAME HERE FROM THE SILM FANDOM

[qrovidcore]

AND another thing. because it HAS NOT left me alone for the past 3 weeks and if i must scream into the void about it then So Be It absolutely none of you are overlooking this rincewind characterization on my watch.

because the thing is. say, all of thirty pages into the light fantastic, we get some trymon characterization. some early, establishing characterization. setting up this guy. the main antagonist, the other primary viewpoint character of this book (insofar as it can be said to have either of those things, given the style of narration). this guy. who is cold, selfish, ruthless, and obsessed with things like ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆ efficiency ｡･:*:･ﾟ★,｡･:*:･ﾟ☆. and. he’s bad at languages.

“He wasn’t very good at languages, he’d always found them highly inefficient things which by rights ought to be replaced by some sort of easily understood numerical system,”

and then we smashcut immediately to rincewind:

“Rincewind had a very good ear for languages.”

and yes, yes i will stand here and argue that this is in fact an EXTREMELY plot-relevant character detail, beyond the fact that it DOES have utility in the scene at hand. all joking aside about rincewind can scream for help in 47 languages, or however the line goes. i’m just.

points to this frantically.

rincewind, whose one EXTREMELY NOTABLE CANONICAL TALENT, is languages. who is being actively and immediately contrasted with trymon. this HAS been stuck in my head for three weeks but i opened my book to make this post and actually these scenes are LITERALLY back-to-back. these character descriptions are. immediately. directly juxtaposed to one another. and i want to say something about how this description of rincewind comes up because this is a skill he is actively using in the scene in question, that does give him insight into the world and does, perhaps even more importantly, allow him to connect with the gnome in this particular scene in a way that is helpful to him and twoflower, yes, but just. actually the only way i need to explain it is this:

we are told who trymon is, and that he is bad at languages.

we are told that rincewind is good at languages.

and, actually, without further elaboration, that says a whole fucking lot about who rincewind is.

[aipilosse]

Why Pengolodh of all people is able to stoke such rage within me on his behalf is so bizarre. Like, he's a non-character, a name and some facts Tolkien came up with in his carousel of in-universe authors to keep the layers of narration he loved, but the way he is maligned in this fandom is tragic.

I've touched on before that treating the Silmarillion as if it were written and relayed by a single author is entirely incorrect so I won't go into that here, and honestly I'm sure I've said this all before BUT

The idea that Penny is for some reason *least* suited to write most of the events of the Silmarillion is PATENTLY ridiculous, and I would challenge anyone who says that to a duel, either intellectual or physical (even in my current weakened state... Tulkas is on my side I cannot fail). First of all, the one place where nobody else knows anything about what happened is GONDOLIN, so I think if anyone is going to be writing about most of the events of the Silm, they either need to be from Gondolin or need to live in Sirion with survivors.

OH WHAT'S THAT.... SIRION?!?

Yeah, Sirion! The place where not only are there survivors of Gondolin, but there are survivors of Doriath and Nargothrond AND any remnants of the Beorians, Hadorian, and Haladin. Like, I can think of no other place where the Mannish legends would be able to be recounted, and put on the same level, as the Elvish ones.

"But the Feanorians," you squall. "He's so *unfair* to them, and how could he know ANYTHING about them? That's why we know sooo little about the Feanorians and why they are soooo unjustly maligned."

Ok, first of all, ya basic. Second of all, HE HAS ACCESS TO FEANORIAN SOURCES TOO.

There is Celebrimbor, and all the other former followers of Curufin and Celegorm that could of course tell Penny what was up in Himlad and afterwards while he was in Gondolin. Also, there were probably Feanorians who lived after turning on Maedhros and Maglor during the sack of the Havens who could fill in what happened after The Luthien Incident. So, actually, Pengolodh had multiple sources to literally all of the essential events of the Silmarillion.

OH YEAH THE SACK OF THE HAVENS. Despite living through what is described as the worst atrocity of elf v elf, despite having people we KNOW were friends with him KILLED during that fight, despite having his home destroyed by fellow Noldor, he *really* gives Maglor and Maedhros every excuse. "they felt bad, they're so tired, love grew between them and their victims" etc etc. The Silm is sympathetic to the Feanorians and you can't convince me otherwise (you're not some crazy rebel because you like them!) (They are also Doomed by the narrative, but attributing that to an in-universe author requires getting into the territory of events that occurred not actually occurring and... what's the point if you're going to say that the things that the book is about didn't happen? why are you even here?)

I see people say that the bias is against the 3 Cs, Caranthir especially, which is an ABSURD statement to make in conjunction with the 'Pengolodh, sole conveyer of the Silm' theory. Like, Pengolodh most likely never met any of the 3 Cs or if he did he was very young -- why would he dislike them more than the brothers that massacred his friends? I think the theory here is that he's just such a huge Turgon fan and just absorbed Turgon's opinions on the 3 Cs, which is just conjecture on top of conjecture with no solid footing.

I think there is more credence to him being biased against Maeglin on account of the Fall of Gondolin. But, I ask you, is it really *bias* when the guy is partially responsible for the sack of the city you spent most of your life in and likely the deaths of most of your friends and relatives? And Maeglin too in the published Silm is not without his good qualities! If you hate someone, it can be very hard to admit they're handsome and smart, but Penny does not have that issue.

Anyway, justice for Pengolodh. You didn't write the whole thing, Penny, but what you did write was I'm sure fucking fantastic.

[eunoiaastralwings]

My Prince

featuring fingon x reader

fandom tolkien - silmarillion

a/n I missed writing for my silm folks

You always admired from afar as he rode upon that magnificent horse.

The prince’s long hair caught against the wind – it flowed as delicately as the waters of the Teleri.

The sun rays shining on his soft skin as his blue eyes narrowed in determination as himself and his horse trusted one another with every race, jump and leap.

Every day you sat underneath the tree – you back resting against – as the prince rode his horse.

This would be the only time a simple lady like yourself can watch one of the princes of Ñolder – the first prince of Ñolofinwë.

The first-time prince Findekáno caught your eyes many moons ago – you were only a child then and you had wandered off only to find yourself stuck in a muddy pit.

No one came to your aid even as you cried for hours in that lonely field – until the little prince found you himself.

You swore he was joking when he introduced himself as a prince – almost laughing at his face.

He didn’t take it too well, having made a grumpy and pouting face at you – but nevertheless being the kind ner he was even then as a young child he tried to help you out of the muddy it you had yourself stuck in.

You couldn’t help but watch as he got himself into all sorts of mischief just to get you out – eventually he had even gotten his horse, his friendly companion, who was only a mere foal at the time and pulled you out by racing on him.

You only rarely saw him afterwards – of course he was once the princes, where did he have the time to search for clumsy nis he once helped out.

But you saw him again – and while your eyes didn’t always meet, you were happy having gotten used to watching him from afar.

Just like you were doing now – pretending to be reading when your eyes were really on prince Findekáno and his trusted companion.

You came here almost every day – just to see him – having now fallen for him for many years now.

Your heart fluttered at the sight of him.

Then suddenly – his eyes met yours in a split second catching your gaze and you immediately hid your face with the book you were reading.

For a moment – you heard nothing but the wind around you as you held your breath.

You frowned – not hearing a sound and figured you had imagined the scenario.

So slowly you peeked from the book – you frowning seeing no sign of the prince of his horse.

You looked around the field – but nothing, it was as if he had only just vanished.

Then – you got up placing your book back in your little basket as you got up – dusting your dress, still confused as to where the prince silently disappeared to.

You were too focused on trying to find prince Findekáno – you had suddenly missed your footing, slipping against the mud.

Just as you fell – suddenly you heard a horse neighing and a strong arm wrapped around your waist from behind simultaneously, instantly being pulled up – breaking your fall so you do not hurt yourself.

For a moment – you only felt the rush of air and heard the pounding of hooves.

Slowly then you blinked your eyes open nervously – shocked to find yourself on the back of the beautiful horse that belonged to the prince you secretly loved.

You tensed – feeling your back pressed up against the prince.

The heat rushed to your cheeks as you heard his breathy amused chuckles from behind.

“It seems you’re still as clumsy – I may need to save you every time, my little damsel in distress.”

You heard – light heartedly teasing you.

You turned knowing meeting his eyes – the dimples on his cheeks making your heart flutter.

“Forgive me, prince Fi-”

But you cut yourself off – listening to his words as he kept riding his horse with you in front.

“…Every time?”

You frowned – looking at him again.

He smiled playfully and politely at you – and slowly rode into a gentle stop.

“Well, he and I haven’t forgotten our first rescue.”

The prince grins at you.

It was then you noticed how the horse was reacting to you – the stallion was quite calm in your presence, in fact he didn’t seem startled or nervous like horses usually were with strangers.

He slowly reaches up – turning its head allowing you to brush through his mane.

“He remembers you. . .as do I. . .”

Prince Findekáno tells you gently.

Your eyes widened as he spoke – looking at him shocked at a prince like him would remember you out of all people. . . ?

“My lady, why do you look very surprised to hear my words?”

He smiles at you – a small smirk hiding too.

“I did not. . .well it was many moons ago, my prince. . .”

“Perhaps – yet you did not forget me, you watched me every day and never approached me again – I must say that wounds me so.”

Prince Findekáno says to you.

“Well. . .you’re a prince and I. . .well I. . .”

“- A fair maiden worthy of many things. . .”

He finishes – a sincerity in his tone that speaks volumes for his well upbringing.

“You think so, my prince?

You blushed.

“Yes – I ought to do so. . .”

He says – and you believed then – taking the chance to now see him from up close that far away.

Eunoia's taglist:@mismaeve @fizzyxcustard @wandererindreams @ranhanabi777 @spidergirla5 @asianbutnotjapanese @bunson-burner @floraroselaughter @doodle-pops

[doot-boi]

"But Finrod walks with Finarfin his father beneath the trees in Eldamar"

I think it's no surprise to my followers who pay attention to my silm posting that I love Finrod Felagund's character, but this is the line that sticks with me heavily. Within the Quenta Silmarillion, it is told that all of those Ñoldor caught within the Doom of Mandos and of the Silmarils will "yearn for [their] bodies, and find little pity", which is often taken to mean that none of those who left Valinor would be granted the possibility of returning to physical form, to live in the bliss of Aman (though arguments can clearly be made that only those who participated in the kinslaying were under such a doom, but I choose to ignore that). That's what makes this line so much more impactful to me, along with a more important facet; it's placement in the chapter.

Just 2 pages earlier, at his death, Finrod says it will be long before he is seen again amongst his people, perhaps believing he will not be granted a bodily form until such a time as the rest of the Ñoldor would be. He dies in the darkness of his corrupted tower, and is mourned at length by Beren until Lúthien his love arrives and rouses him, and together their hope is kindled again as the sun rises (a very common theme in Tolkien's works). They honour and bury Finrod atop the island, a tomb to be unchanged until the War of Wrath caused upheaval in all of Beleriand

It's here that this line comes in. His tomb is inviolate until all the land is, but he himself walks with his father, the only of Finwë's sons to remain in Valinor, and that says so many things.

He is one of few, or perhaps the only, Ñoldorin exile to be gifted bodily rebirth. He surpassed the Doom of Mandos (see my 2nd link in paragraph 1)

His father welcomes him home and forgives his leaving

No matter the state of his grave, Felagund is himself unmarred

No timeline is given for Finrod's bodily resurrection, but I choose to believe it is before the end of the First Age (and the fandom wiki agrees, tolkien gateway being more vague), for no other reason than Eärendil. It is because of Finrod, his assistance of and sacrifice for Beren, that the man of Bëor lives long enough to be united with Lúthien in the Quest, and they, along with Huan, are able to retrieve the Silmaril that Eärendil brings to Aman. I consider that Finrod is likely unaware of the success of the Quest, given it seems the rest of Valinor was (or at least they waited for a plea from Middle-Earth before acting on anything). Imagine his wonder, his pride, and his joy, at seeing that not only was the quest successful, but here, 80 years after he died, he sees Beren and Lúthien's grandson-in-law bearing the jewel. I wonder what he would have said to Amarië his love, if he would have remarked in joyous tears that the horrors and the death that led him back into Aman were not faced in vain. I wonder if, taking up his weapon to participate in the War of Wrath, he either sat a moment in sorrow, or in hope, or in some other emotion, considering what lay ahead of him, and as he came home afterwards with many of his kinsfolk, what he felt as he came to the bliss that would last until the changing of the world.

No matter his feelings on the Wars, what his experiences are and what he goes through after his resurrection, we know this:

Finrod walks with Finarfin his father beneath the trees of Eldamar

[luthnethril]

2024 Fic Round-Up / AO3 Wrapped

tagged by @queerofthedagger, thank you!! <3 i'll be doing your combined tag game too

Works Published: (30 total)

Total Words Published at end of year: 174k

Fandoms: Tolkien (mainly Silm) and DMBJ

Top 3 Ships:

Wu Xie/Zhang Qiling (pingxie) [7]

Maedhros/Maglor [3]

Fingon/Maedhros [3]

Top 5 Tags:

Ambiguous/Open Ending [14]

AU - Canon Divergence [14]

Time Travel [10]

Established Relationship [4]

Hurt/Comfort [4]

Top 3 Fics by Wordcount:

the gold and the rust (51k; daemags - Third Age)

plant my feet, loosen my hold (20k; Maglor - Fourth Age)

into the fire (15k; time travel, Maedhros - Years of the Trees)

Top 3 Fics by Kudos:

into the fire

no choice but to love you (3k; pingxie - Mob AU)

back from the edge (1k; time travel, Fingon - Amon Ereb)

Highest Everything (raw kudos, hits, comments): apparently it's into the fire at 1.5k Hits, 138 Kudos and 62 Comments

New Things I Tried: uh, some exploration of generally darker themes (at least compared to what my reading/writing experience in the tolkien fandom was last time a few years ago), writing new ships i was not into previously. Also writing/reading about a wider range of canon characters im not as obsessed about and making making more in-depth linguistic hcs/lore.

Fic I Spent the Most Time On: instinctively i would have said the daemags 51k one bc of the sheer amount of time i spent daydreaming about it, but i think it's actually the darkness got a hold on me (Maedhros/Maglor/Daeron; 7k) bc i wrote a terrible first draft, finished my second draft distracted while on a voice call and then re-wrote the entire thing for the final draft that i must have double-checked for typos at least like. 5 times before i posted it bc i wanted to make sure the plot and emotions made sense.

Fic I Spent the Least Time On: that should be back from the edge, i think i wrote that like. half an hour before i posted it with barely any read-back for typos and stuff.

Favourite Thing I Wrote: that is definitely the gold and the rust, which is an extremely self-indulgent monster of a fic and i really like how the prose i experimented with came out. but i have to say that tale of tinúviel is a close second because i did not expect to have so much fun with that one.

Favourite Thing(s) I Read: um, oh god. so much stuff. i think ive read entire tags since getting back into the fandom, it's a truly insane amount of fics that i could not possibly list everything here, but im going to make an indicative list with my top 5 that i've re-read the most throughout this year.

Concerning Lace by @clothonono; such a fun exploration of the family dynamics between the finwians during the Years of the Trees. i love all the cousins and siblings trying to get along

Mockingbird by @littlewhitemouseagain; really fun fic and really fun maedhros and maglor dynamic. i love maglor in this one

i've been so worried (you've been so still) by @welcomingdisaster; maglor in one of my favourite eras of him! i've grown so unreasonably fond of Ellind

The Sun Must Go on Rising by @tilion-writes; aroace maedhros has my entire heart and his friendship with fingon in the context of the (twist of the) myth here is. so good

lungs full or roses, heart full of thorns by anon; i have a soft spot for hanahaki fics and this is a maemags hanahaki fic. i recced to someone before it even finished it

and also a honorary mention of A Thread Unraveled by @theheirofashandfire, because it was on my marked for later list for three years and reading it started the tumble that landed me back in the tolkien fandom. a good time-loop is perhaps my most favourite trope.

Writing Goals for 2025: nothing super coherent; i never start out with planned-out goals because the existence of a goal inevitably leads me to failure. i'd like to get back into writing longfics and perhaps also write the post-canon daemags/maglor's wife that's vibrating around in my head.

i have no idea who has done this already so if you have, um. sorry, feel free to ignore the tag. @aredhels, @vryivs, @thescrapwitch, @polutrope, @welcomingdisaster, @melestasflight, @elvinye, @sallysavestheday

[polutrope]

Ya know, reading your wonderful fic Everlasting Darkness made me realize the Earendil x Maedhros ship kinda makes sense cause like in one version of Silmarillion, Maedhros did hang out with Earendil in Vingilot or something while sailing the skies, and then after went to the Valar to beg forgiveness so yeah.

Are you the same Anon who sent me an Ask about this fic a few weeks ago? Anyway, so glad you love the fic! It's one that's close to my heart despite (because of) its crackiness.

Now I hope you'll forgive me for diving into an analysis here because what?! Hahaha I never heard this idea of Maedhros spending time on Vingilot, but I suspect I know where it came from. I thought I'd share because I'm genuinely fascinated by how the "tales grow in the telling" in the fandom with respect to Tolkien's drafts. AND, I discovered to my surprise in revisiting this passage, this interpretation isn't exactly wrong.

Here's a passage from The Sketch of the Mythology, titled The 'Original' Silmarillion by Tolkien. It was a summary of his mythology written for a friend as background to his alliterative Lay of the Children of Hurin. It dates to 1926 and underwent various revisions between then and 1930. I've incorporated revisions in the excerpts below. The relevant quote isn't until the very end, but it's such an interesting passage so I couldn't resist quoting the context.

The Gods [Valar] [...] march through the lands summoning the remnant of the Gnomes [Noldor] and Ilkorins [Sindar] to join them. All do except the people of Maidros. Maidros prepares to perform his oath, though now at last weighed down by sorrow because of it. He sends to Fionwe [Eonwe] reminding him of the oath and begging for the Silmarils [etc., much as in the published Silm]. Maidros and Maglor submit. [...] On the last march Maglor says to Maidros that there are two sons of Feanor now left, and two Silmarils; one is his. He steals it, and flies, but it burns him ... [Maglor casts the Silmaril into a fiery pit.] One Silmaril is now in the sea [because Elwing cast it there], and one in the earth. Maglor sings now ever in sorrow by the sea. [There follows a long passage about the prophecy about the end of the world, including the line:] In those days the Silmarils shall be recovered from sea and earth and air, and Maidros shall break them[1] and Belaurin [Yavanna] with their fire rekindle the Two Trees [...] And thus is was that the Silmaril came into the air. The Gods adjudged the last Silmaril to Earendel -- 'until many things shall come to pass' -- because of the deeds of the sons of Feanor. Maidros is sent to Earendel and with the aid of the Silmaril Elwing is found and restored. Earendel's boat is drawn over Valinor to the Outer Seas [...] From sections 18-19, The Sketch of the Mythology, History of Middle-earth Vol. 4: The Shaping of Middle-earth

"Maidros is sent to Earendel" -- yep! That's there. And, to my surprise, this is after Earendel "sails by the aid of [seabirds'] wings even over the airs in search of Elwing, but is scorched by the Sun, and hunted by the Moon, and for a long while he wanders the sky as a fugitive star." (Section 17).

Fascinating! I can't say I think Tolkien intended in this sketch to suggest Maidros served some time as Earendel's crewman but I also can't say the text precludes that reading. Thank you, Anon, for bringing this little nugget to my attention. I wish I could say I was playing on it in Everlasting Darkness, but I was not.

[1] Maidros is replaced by Feanor in all subsequent versions of this prophecy. I do find Tolkien's first impulse to make it Maidros fascinating.

Btw if you're intrigued by the role of Maglor in this passage, a little plug for my Maglor Biography on SWG.

[child-of-hurin]

Do you have any idea on the timeline with the petty dwarves? I wouldn’t think anyone was killed earlier on in Thingol’s disappearance because Orome would’ve still been there to intervene. But also later assuming any dwarves were killed near Melian she would say something. Like a teacher of birdsong could distinguish an animal from one of Eru’s children?

That's relatively easy to answer per Silm canon, see chapter 21:

For Mîm came of Dwarves that were banished in ancient days from the great Dwarf-cities of the east, and long before the return of Morgoth they wandered westward into Beleriand;(...) Before the Dwarves of Nogrod and Belegost came west over the mountains the Elves of Beleriand knew not what these others were, and they hunted them, and slew them

So elves stop killing the Petty after their first contact with the Dwarves from Nogrod and Belegost. Earlier in the Silm, chapter 10:

It came to pass during the second age of the captivity of Melkor that Dwarves came over the Blue Mountains of Ered Luin into Beleriand.

In the same chapter, we are informed that Melian advised Thingol to have a kingly dwelling built "when the second age of the captivity of Melkor had passed"; since we know Menegroth was built by Dwarves, we have here two pieces of evidence that that happened after the Sindar became aware of the true nature of the Petty.

So I would say your timeline, according to the silm, is: the Petty Dwarves were seen as animals by the Sindar, and victims of their hunting, from the very first time these peoples met until the second age of Melkor's captivity, when the Dwarves of Belegost and Nogrod made contact with them. There's no way for us to know when exactly they were banished by other Dwarves, and when exactly they ended up in Beleriand, except it was definitely before Elves did, for which it seems to me logical to assume this was happening while Orome was "around"

TBH I'm not sure why you assume Orome would stop one thing or another, or even be aware such a thing was happening; same for Melian, we don't really know if she was involved in these hunts, or even aware of them; if she knows about all the animals of Middle Earth, or just the ones she likes; etc. We don't know how involved the Ainur are in Beleriand issues, and we know for a fact they aren't omniscient! Melian taught nightingales to sing like her; that doesn't mean she was a master of all sounds of Arda. It doesn't mean she WASN'T, either. Could she hear the cries of the Petty when they were slayed in her proximity (WERE they ever slayed in her proximity)? Could she tell they were not animals merely by their cry? Would she care? Did anyone bother asking for her opinion on each of the animals the Sindar regularly hunted? If they did, what would she reply?

Besides, what does 'hunted' mean? Was there an active effort to exterminate the Petty?

I don't think any of these questions are answered by canon, so it's up do you to explore the possibilities, if you are interested.

I'm kind of obsessed with you calling Dwarves the Children of Eru, because I don't think that term is usually used in a way that implies them in either canon or fandom! It makes me think of us as Gondorian scholars discussing (what little we know of) theology/cosmology :^)

[niennawept]

MAEGLIN AND AREDHEL IN DORIATH PLEASE

Okay - this one is a little wild so forgive me. I don't spend a lot of time thinking about it, lest I snap and start writing it. [Not Written Yet Fics]

So this came to me when I was thinking about how Eol is a kinsman of Thingol and how Thingol does seem to have a soft spot for children in need.

I will warn you before going on that this does feature more nuanced headcanons about Eol than are widely popular in the fandom. If you would rather not read that - I don't blame you. My reading is based on the idea that the Silm narrative was written by Pengolodh and he's ... not unbiased given the Fall of Gondolin.

The only abuse here is restricting people's freedom to leave Nan Elmoth. Aredhel and Eol married each other without any form of coercion on his part (but they are in a freaky magic forest that likes to play matchmaker). It was way too hasty - they had a kid to try to save the marriage and we all know that doesn't end well. It was just a bad match. They wanted different things out of life and over time, Eol subtly got worse and worse about his terror of the outside world. His insistence that they do not leave because it is not safe. People are out to get them et cetera.

I feel like that needed saying before I go on - or the rest might not make sense.

So Aredhel and Maeglin go to Doriath because at some point in their marriage Aredhel told Eol enough about Gondolin that he figured out its location.

She worries that if they fled that way, he'd find them and bring them back.

Maeglin is still not fully grown. He doesn't have great fondness for sunlight either.

He's a little scrawny and pale and he's never played with other children - but after a rocky patch, he does find a niche with the rest of the Doriathrim.

He is a bit disappointed that he doesn't get to see the famed city of Gondolin (or at least, as famous as it is in his little mind) and "Uncle" Thingol does not seem as cool as the Uncle Turgon he was promised, but he does dote on the boy.

He still makes friends with the dwarves. His father taught him to respect them and although he doesn't completely understand everything his father did - that doesn't seem like a bad thing

Aredhel has a more difficult adjustment. She's a Noldo and she's on thin ice for her family's role in the kinslaying. It's fair to say she's tolerated rather than embraced.

Kinship rites among the Sindar dictate that she be treated like the King's "niece" - but it's very strained.

Meanwhile in Gondolin, Eol is captured trying to enter the valley and put to stern questioning. When they learn of the way he kept Aredhel from leaving, he's thrown into a prison cell.

(he receives a court order for mandatory counseling, since he doesn't seem to get what he did wrong)

A short while later, Galadriel returns and her presence eases some of that tension. Her close relationship with Melian sheds some light on the whole Nan Elmoth situation.

Aredhel learns of the ancient magic there that draws people together - often in ways that even Melian does not understand.

Maeglin grows up. Aredhel dons hunting leathers for the first time in many years and walks in the forest with Beleg and Mablung and Nellas. For a time, they are all content

Then disaster child Turin turns up and Maeglin feels a strange kind of kinship with the boy. He aids him how he can, even giving him a weapon he forged. (when has that ever gone wrong?)

Maeglin gets a front row seat to a "there but for the grace of the Valar go I" situation when everything with Turin goes south.

We check in on Eol - he's ... better. Taking him out of Nan Elmoth seems to have cleared his mind a bit. He still doesn't like the Noldor, doubly so since they're holding him in Gondolin, but he's earned his way out of prison. (He's still closely watched - out on parole)

Then the -uh-Nauglamír situation happens and Maeglin leaves without fighting anyone - dwarf or elf. That won't right the situation with the Silmaril and it won't bring Thingol back.

Aredhel is loathe to leave the marchwardens to deal with this - but Maeglin is still her kid, so she chooses to go with him - but it's a difficult decision.

That's about as far as I've gotten. I do think there's some kind of reunion (Maeglin and Aredhel with Eol) but I don't see them being a big happy family so much as people who have ties to each other and who are trying to sort through what went wrong years ago.

I think it ends on a hopeful note. Not everything is forgiven. Nothing is forgotten, but maybe they can coexist.

Like I said, it's messy (partially because it's a little autobiographical in places, there's a reason I feel so badly for Maeglin) - but I think about it from time to time.

[eilinelsghost]

20 questions for fic writers

Thanks very much to @sallysavestheday and @thelordofgifs for the tag! I don't think I've ever done this one before, so let's give this a try.

1. How many works do you have on Ao3? 27

2. What’s your total Ao3 word count? 164,434

3. What fandoms do you write for? Only the Silmarillion

4. What are your top five fics by kudos? - Atandil (part 1 of the series by the same name) - Atanatárissë - Grief in All Her Guises (Atandil part 2) - In Memory Untarnished (Atandil part 8) - Ye Shall Render Blood (Atandil part 4).

5. Do you respond to comments? Yep! I think I have responded to all of them, but I'm sorry if one fell through the cracks there. Comments are honestly a huge part of what keeps me writing and I want to make sure they know I've seen and appreciate them.

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending? Probably In These Holy Waters? Though I got a lot of screaming in the comments on A Heady Fragrance of Honey also, so I'll drop that in as an honorable mention.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending? Feeling convicted about how hard this is to find a happy one lol. I think probably By Any Other Name, which was a little Finrod/Bëor fluff piece I wrote for @actual-bill-potts last year.

8. Do you get hate on fics? Not so far. Or wait, maybe? There was a weird anon about one of the sentence prompt ficlets on here awhile back where Bëor was having a lot of intentional "accidental-innuendos," but I don't think I'll dignify that by calling it fic hate.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind? I wrote two (here and here since they're posted anon), but not sure if I'll try my hand at that again or not. It was really a really helpful exercise to work past a lot of baggage I still had from growing up in a very conservative family where shame was the prevailing attitude toward anything related to sex. But I don't know that I'll write more - it's very out of my comfort zone 😂

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written? I'm not sure what a crossover is, so that probably means no?

12. Have you ever had a fic translated? Yes! One of the aforementioned smut pieces was just translated a couple months ago.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before? Not so far, but @actual-bill-potts and I periodically joke about co-writing a modern Finrod/Bëor AU so who knows what might happen :)

14. What’s your all time favorite ship? Surprising no one but myself (I was initially a hater and reread the Athrabeth to prove to myself it was impossible...and came out of that with a series that's 135k and counting), it's Finrod/Bëor.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will? Probably this Dior Eluchíl idea. I'm very attached to it, but I think I may have permanently stalled on it.

16. What are your writing strengths? Worldbuilding and dialogue, I think? But I'm horrible at listing strengths (looking at you dreaded resume process), so it may be something entirely different. These are the ones I feel most confident about, at least.

17. What are your writing weaknesses? Humor, believable flirtation, battles, politics, trade strategies etc etc etc

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic? I do this occasionally in Atandil, but I tend to like it less for full dialogue and more for passing words - if Balan is hearing Finrod say something to another Elf in order to stress the otherness, or if they each fall back on words in their own tongue when not finding the right one in the other's. I think full dialogue would be a struggle for me.

19. First fandom you wrote for? Silm - first and only!

20. Favourite fic you’ve written? Oh god. Uh. I do not know. I'm particularly fond of Darkly the Sundering Flood - one of the few I was genuinely pleased with from the get- go (normally I have a 1-2 week hate period after I post anything). But And Still the Light Returns is also a top contender from Atandil because I really enjoyed exploring the parent-child dynamics between Balan and both his sons. Also because of the duck story. I dearly love the duck story.

Thanks so much for the tag! I've been out on a work trip for the last week and not on Tumblr much, so I have no idea who has been tagged in this so far...just ignore this if you've already had one. 😂 Tagging @that-angry-noldo, @searchingforserendipity25, @outofangband, @melestasflight, and anyone else who would like to join in!

[qrovidcore]

Ignore what you've been told, starting with Rincewind is objectively correct (slightly kidding but only about the objectively part). Welcome to the Discworld! We have puns here.

HIHIHIHIHIHI I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE IN MY INBOX <33333333

mostly because i'm just very excited to Talk About Rincewind With People, but also because everyone who has interacted with me so far has been very nice and the vibes here are great .w.

[between-thepages]

Hello, re: that post about bothering with questions and statements; I am bothering you with questions and statements.

How did you get into The Silmarillion fandom? LOTR for me was the one major childhood literary obsession that stuck with me, but I haven't read Silm through all the way. I hope you have a lovely weekend!

Okay, to be honest, there are some parts in here where even I am unsure how that happened.

I started reading LotR at 13 after we watched about 10 mins of the first movie at school, and once I had finished the book (like 2 years later, the translation was a chore to get through at times) I really wanted to read more (I had read the Hobbit at some point during those two years), and the next obvious choice was the Silm, which I actually read on holiday and somehow managed to finish in barely two weeks.

I know I got deep into shipping Erestor/Glorfindel during that time and actually didn't think much about the Silm (I also wasn't really active in any fan spaces and had no knowledge of AO3 yet), and then other fandoms happened for a long while.

And then last summer I learned that Magic the Gathering had released a LotR expansion, and that brought me back into it, first Glorestor (which is an excellent gateway drug) and then I started a reread of the Silm and got lost very deep into the lore and world (to the point where I got goosebumps every sentence, which is a little annoying if you're sitting in a drafty train). The rest came from reading Dancing with my Punchlines on AO3.

And now I'm here, very deep in an obsession with terrible elves (there might be a pattern xD) and far too many thoughts to put into words.

Thank you so much for asking!

[eccentricmya]

heya! did you use to have another username/avatar and changed those recently? I see you on my dash all the time, but I've been gone from Tumblr for a while and now I don't recognize who you are ^^

Hello!

I've always had this name and pic, anon 😅 but like you, I was gone for a while... 2-3 yrs. I used to be active in the Silm fandom in '19-20 so maybe you followed me then?

It happened with me too btw. When I came back I couldn't recognise a chunk of blogs... And some of them were from fandoms I am no longer interested in. It took some time to get reacquainted (most of which was dash curation to fit the current me lol).

If Silm/Tolkien is no longer your thing, feel free to unfollow. I completely understand! See what you want to see on your dash! That's the motto here!

[zealouswerewolfcollector]

3, 6, 12

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

When I stumble upon a terrible take (which happens from time to time), I argue with that person in my head for a while and then usually forget about it. So I don't remember seeing anything as crazy as blaming Celebrimbor for his torture (seriously, what? I think that might be THE worst take I've seen), but I have come across your usual Elwing abandoned her children, Indis is a homewrecker, the Feanorians were justified in attacking Doriath and Sirion and (rarer but still terrible) the Teleri are to blame for the first kinslaying. And then of course, there is rewriting the entire book to make Morgoth and Sauron misunderstood woobies and everyone else evil and uncaring.

I've also seen a few terrible takes in fics like Elrond slapping Elwing (immediately noped out) or two characters being in a relationship that is incredibly unhealthy but is presented as normal.

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

Russingon? Haha. At the very least by virtue of it being the most popular ship. If I didn't ship it, I might have been annoyed too by how pervasive it is, but I do ship it, so sorry for being annoying ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Maybe it's because I haven't gone looking for it, but I haven't noticed big ship wars in this fandom, which is a major cause of a ship and its fans becoming annoying.

I also get annoyed by most Finrod ships, but that's just a question of a personal preference and not the fans being annoying.

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Thingol. Yes, he is an asshole. Yes, he did some questionable things. But so did almost all of the characters in the Silmarillion, yet Thingol doesn't get the same grace and understanding that others are allowed. Maybe it's because I read CoH before the Silm, but I've always liked Thingol.

He accepted Turin, raised him and loved him. I know some people have found issues even with his treatment of Turin, but I believe that he genuinely loved Turin and wanted the best for him. After Turin left, he also accepted Morwen and Nienor. He had a great redemption arc after the quest for the Silmaril and people always ignore it. I honestly don't think he seriously meant for Beren to bring him the Silmaril. It's a common fairy tale trope when the King sends his daughter's suitor after an impossible thing, believing that he won't do it. Thingol never intended to get the Silmaril. He just said something he thought was impossible to get rid of Beren. It is an assholish thing to do, but it isn't overly malicious.

He admitted his mistake and accepted Beren when he and Luthien came back. He grieved for him when he died. I think this also gets forgotten when people talk about Thingol.

He is also one of the few characters in the Silmarillion that makes a joke. It's such a humanizing moment. His joke isn't even at someone's expense. It makes Nellas feel at ease and she's able to speak to him.

Thanks for the ask <3

ask game here

[lordgrimwing]

-and I took that personally

Now, don't @ me if you disagree because I'm right and I'm not getting into an argument with someone who's wrong. Ungoliant is the most bad-ass character in the Silmarillion (all of Tolkien's works, actually, but people on this site are just so fixated on the Silm). She gets ignored and overlooked by the fandom and I think that speaks to the character of a lot of the people here, tbh.

A non-exhaustive list of why Ungoliant is the BEST character:

Older than the literal world and it shows. She literally saw god making earth and when 'it's free real-estate' and 'i'm about to end this man's whole career' and just invited herself in. No questions. No one even tried to stop her from doing it because they knew they couldn't. Now she's here and if she wants it, it's hers: light so bright it burns evil? Now that's a good snack. A literal treasure trove of gems? She's worked up a bit of an appetite so why not. She ate.

Takes shit from no one, gods included. Heaven help you if you try to fool her because she can see right through you. She literally threatened to kill someone who tried to reneg on a promise after she did her part, and she said 'nah-ah'. And if she did it once you can bet she's done it before. And, when said god came crawling to her for help, she gave him the verbal lashing he deserved, humbled him. She says it as it is (because she will make it so).

She has an agenda and if you don't fit in it, step aside. it's no secrete: hard work is thirsty work. Never get between her and her drink, she'll rip you a new one with her words and then her fangs. Everyone knows, she's here to eat the light. Full stop. And the gods have never been able to stop her fair and square. She literally set up shop in their special god-island to have easy access to be buffet, and they never kicked her out. She is cold blooded.

Nobody wants to mess with her. Honestly, this goes without saying. She scuttles in and out of the narrative whenever she wants and no one stops her. She makes her home wherever she wants and no one stops her. She fill whole forests with little-ungoliants so bad-ass that no one wants to mess with them either. And lest you doubt me still, when she decided to leave the special god-island (because she literally ate all the light they had), the mere shadow of her presence was so terrifying that everyone who fell under it just froze in fear for hours.

Yeah, this isn't even everything. I'd be here all day if I tried doing that. Obviously, Ungoliant is the most bad-ass character and y'all really need to start acting like it.

Earendil-truthers and Melkor-appologists DNI!!!

well, i think i'm funny

*jigsaw voice* hello tumblr user who likes analyzing characters. in front of you is a female character from a media you enjoy. you must make one meta post about her without mentioning any male characters or assigning her any non-canonical familial roles. you also have to list at least three traits of hers that she actually has in canon. if any of those traits are “nice” or “kind” or “caring” i release the hounds

[curufiin]

sorry for being Dead i had mental problems AGAIN.

anyways i play the guitar now. that was all i was going to tell you. however, there is a lot more random shit i can tell you so here i go

previously, the silm server's celegorm and i (the server's curufin) had matching profile pictures but now i am sort of matching pfps with the server's finrod (it's two characters from the same fandom, but from two different adaptations? i honestly don't know lmao)

i am still having mental problems and i think i'm not gonna post anything on tumblr (on my main account obv i'll never post anything here) for quite a while. i am also still struggling with consistent and healthy relationships because i either keep 1. running away or 2. saying stupid things that make people sad.

HOWEVER the people that Dislike Me (TM) are going to continue being disappointed by me because i think being alive is actually pretty cool since there's this whole thing called Travelling and Nature or whatever. also Arts & Crafts.

i have also been up to some shenanigans, such as creating a whole theory that one of the people i know is a fish. there are several people that support my theory. i have also done some stealing and burned a few things, but that's not much, is it? no murder today, although i have gotten close to it several times. other than all that, i have been obeying the laws.

i got a cat toy which is a realistic fish, which i will give to my cat, who is also me. i am not sure what to do with the catnip that came with it.

i am also going to pass out fish pens to my friends because i got some of those and i think they're pretty cool and i have like ten of them. despite what this may imply, i do not celebrate christmas.

anyways that's all. thank you for reading this. have a day

-🪴

hello welcome back <3

hell yeah for playing the guitar! i can't do that even though i have a guitar bc. ouchie my fingers. so. you are braver than me

i totally get the relationship woes honestly. incredibly shocking news to everyone bc i am so irresistably charming but *handshakes in can't keep a friendship going 90% of the time bc of what i'm starting to think is brain issues so what i say next may also be influenced by brain issues*. but i think viewing friendhsips as this constant back and forth is pretty exhausting. like. people get busy! they get sad! sometimes they're just not gonna be around. i think that's totally normal and fine and you're still friends if that happens actually in my brain. i always tell people even if we stop talking for 5 years i will be just as happy if you suddenly message me. the only way to get me to not think of you as a friend is by making me mad so hopefully this thinking also helps you <3

also that's so real live to spite people who hate you and enjoy your cat toy LMAO

here's a random activity i'm going to do: make some tiramisu tomorrow hopefully it turns out well

[wareagleofthemountain]

Glorfindel with a guide dog

A/N: For disability pride month this year, I wanted to incorporate guide dogs since there’s a lack of blind content in the LOTR/Silm fandoms.

Summary: Glorfindel decides to try working with his blind SO’s guide dog for a day.

You smiled as you felt the warm Imladris breeze hit your face, strands of your long hair brushing the tips of your pointed ears as it too was rustled by the Summer afternoon. The steady pull of the harness handle held in your left hand guided you confidently through the garden pathways. You’d gone out to collect a basket full of the first strawberry bloom of the season with the intention of sharing them with your love after dinner that night. A cold nose nuzzling your upper thigh and the abrupt stop let you know that you had approached one of the many spiral staircases of the city. Your companion, a golden retriever Glorfindel had so lovingly named Pilot, wagged her fluffy tail as she placed her front paws on the first step, asking if you’d like to go up.

“Good girl.” You coo, reaching into your pocket and rewarding her with a small treat. “Forward.”

Pilot began her climb in measured steps, walking slightly in front of you so as to allow you to feel each step as she took it. She was always very good about keeping you away from trip hazards and the other elves grew used to giving the two of you a wide berth as you weaved through a crowd, lest they get nudged aside by her nose for standing in the way. You could still remember the day Glorfindel had first placed the warm, squirming puppy in your arms after returning from a mission in one of the nearby human settlements. He’d purchased her from a tradesman there upon learning that humans trained dogs to act as eyes for their blind counterparts. Though he held a firm belief in your abilities to travel independently, he couldn’t help but worry about your safety when he had to go away. Besides, if he could provide a way to make your life easier, he saw no reason not to act on it. He hired a human trainer to reside in Imladris for two years where they’d work alongside you and Pilot everyday until she learned to be your efficient eyes.

You reached down to pat her chest as you reached the top of the stares. The two of you had graduated from bootcamp this day, and you were eager to return to your room and tell Glorfindel.

“Left.” You instructed Pilot as you reached a fork in the hallway. Though you didn’t really need to; she’d memorized this route long ago, and she knew dinner awaited her in your chamber.

You heard the skitter of Pilot’s claws clamber across the hardwood floor as soon as you removed the harness.

“Oh yes, hi! You're so excited! Hi baby!” Came Glorfindel’s cheery voice as he pet Pilot, the dog circling him and whining excitedly as she pawed at his robes.

The ellon laughed as she licked his cheek. “Thank you for the kisses, sweet one.”

The next thing you knew, strong arms were wrapped around you and pulling you into a solid chest. “And you, meleth nin, how was your day?”

You sighed in bliss and learned into his lips as he kissed you. “Mm. Better now that you’re here.”

You could hear the smile in his voice as he ran a hand up your back, the other reaching over to relieve you of the heavy basket. “Went berry picking? You know these are my favorite.”

“Aye. I believe a celebration is in order.”

Glorfindel looked intrigued. “What are we celebrating, starlight?”

“Pilot was cleared in her training today.” You were quite thrilled by this, as your job as a musician regularly required you to travel to other realms during diplomatic meetings. And with another trip just one week away, you were excited to travel without the arm of an escort or your cane getting caught on a rock and snapping. “So she’ll be able to accompany me to Dale.”

“Congratulations to you both.” The Balrog slayer released you and gave Pilot a few affectionate pats on the head. “You two make a great team.”

You leaned in for another kiss. “That we do.”

Glorfindel caught you around the waist again, a mischievous note in his tone. “We’ve got a few hours until we have to show up for dinner…”

“Yes…” You smile, forced to pull apart sooner than you would have liked due to a soft knock on the door.

“Lindir.” You recognized his mannerisms immediately. “What can we do for you?”

“Forgive my intrusion, but we must go over some last minute accommodations for our visit to Dale.”

You give a slight bow. “Of course. I’ll meet you in the courtyard in a moment.”

Once the door is shut you turn back to Glorfindel. “You two can manage on your own for a while?”

He raised an eyebrow as he watched you unfold your long, white cane. “You’re not taking her with you?”

“Nay. She’s worked hard enough today. Besides, I shouldn’t be gone long.”

His eyes followed your retreating form and it wasn’t until you turned the corner that he shut the door to the room. The elf lord stoked the fire and opened up a book he’d been meaning to finish. Sprawling out on the large bed, he chuckled softly as Pilot rested her head on the edge of the mattress and fixed him with her pleasing brown eyes.

“Oh alright. Come on.” Glorfindel let her snuggle into his side and stroked her ears as his thoughts began to wander. So often he’d watched the two of you walk together, steps in sync like some highly trained soldiers. A perfect team. Often enough, he’d wondered what it would be like to spend a day in your position. The use of his eyes was vital to who he was, and you never ceased to amaze him with how well you got on without your own.

Besides, he was putting a lot of faith in this dog. She was well trained and adorable, of that he was sure, but your safety was never a concept he took lightly. He glanced around the room, his eyes falling on the harness handing on a hook by the door.

“Hmm…”

XXX

Marchwarden Rúmil of Lothlorien was currently lounging on wide, flat rock soaking up the sun and sketching the surrounding meadow in his journal. The past few weeks had been filled with an influx of duties, him barely receiving any time off between his usual border shifts and being sent to escort Lady Celebrian back home. And now, at Elrond’s behest that he stay and assist in training new Imladris border guards, it could be months before he got repreeve. Which is why it was very hard for the ellon to maintain a friendly air with Glorfindel when he came barging in on his solitude.

“Ah, mellon, I’ve been looking all over for you.”

Rúmil gave a huff of acknowledgment, not looking up from his drawing.

“Say.” The Balrog slayer continued. “Do you uh… have a spare blindfold I could borrow?”

At his request, Rúmil’s pen stilled on the paper, fixing Glorfindel with a sideways glance over his book. After a moment of carful thought, he finally spoke up. “I did not think it necessary since they can’t…”

“No, no. Not for them. For me!” Glorfindel couldn’t hold back his laughter at Rúmil’s confused expression. “Look, do you have one or not?”

“Let me check my pack.” Rúmil began rifling through his things, finally producing a heavy duty blindfold. All Wardens carried one as it was protocol to shield the route to Caras Galadhon from the eyes of non-elvish visitors. “But, what do you need it for?”

“Come. I’ll show you.”

XXX

Glorfindel had cleared out one of the archery fields and built a pretty impressive obstacle course in its wake. Five empty wine barrels, pull up bars set about chin height, arrow targets, and finally a set of stairs on either side of an above ground pool with a wide wooden plank bridging across the water for Pilot to guide him through.

“Marchwarden, this is Pilot, my love’s guide dog. I must test her prowess to ensure that she is capable of assuring their safety.”

“This is going to be an interesting incident report to write up to Haldir.” Rúmil muttered into his palm, watching Glorfindel nervously as he harnessed the dog and tied the blindfold over his eyes. Pilot looked up at him curiously, knowing that he was not her usual handler.

Now then, he’d seen you work her many times before, but failed to remember the commands you’d use.

Where are the reigns on this thing?

Suddenly, it came to him. “Ah yes. Forward!”

And with that, they were off. Putting his full trust in an animal was a new feeling for Glorfindel, though not an unpleasant one as she artfully wove them through the barrels and targets in their path. “Well done! Very nice!”

He flinched, expecting to feel one of the bars smack him in the head, but Pilot stopped him in time and led them around those too.

Glorfindel smiled, picking up his strides and pulling on the handle, urging the dog to go faster. “Let’s finish off strong, yes?”

They ascended the first set of steps and the ellon felt the wood creek slightly under his feet, indicating thru were going over the shallow water below.

So eager was he to finish the course that he missed Pilot’s cue that they had approached the second set of stairs…

CRASH!

XXX

You yawned and stretched your back. That meeting with Lindir had run much longer than you’d expected, and now you were pressed for time to get Glorfindel for dinner.

That was, until you were stopped by Rúmil in the hallway.

“Looking for Glorfindel, I take it?”

You blushed, slightly embarrassed about how late you were going to be. “Yes. Is he already at dinner?”

“Well, actually…”

You couldn’t believe your ears as you heard the story of what had happened on the way to the infirmary.

“Rúmil, you were supposed to watch him! He what? He fell down the stairs?”

“Lord Elrond says he’ll be alright.”

When you entered the infirmary, you stroked Pilot’s head as she sprang up to greet you, Glorfindel groaning dramaticley as he lay on a bed with his arm wrapped.

“I don’t know. I think she needs more training.”

You chuckle and sit beside him, leaning over to kiss his forehead. “I think you need more training.”

Tag list: @creativity-of-death @glassgulls