Learning to Live in the Dark by Himring

Hi Himring.  The title was quite evocative and caused me to want to read on.  I never thought much about the moment that all Feanor's sons scattered to the wind and why, so that is an interesting point to explore.  The piece really took off for me with this part: He finds Maglor mistreating his harp. He is crouching beside it and keeps striking a single dissonant chord at regular intervals. It is a deep, ugly, violent sound.  That in a single beautiful auditory soundbite (so to speak) tells the whole situation about how Maglor feels and how conflicted he is -- better than a lot of dialogue would. And he finds Maglor mistreating his harp is a great line.   The line about the second oath:‘He didn’t trust us all that much, did he?’ was an aha revelation to me. I like the last lines in italics too.  Feanor is dead and the triple-locked oath.  You bring huge insight into the whole mess, making it feel realistic, convincing, and the tragedy to come inevitable -- even though we want to close our eyes and hope it will somehow turn out all right.  Great start.

This is great.

I love this part:

<i>‘If something requires doing is the fact that it probably cannot be done a reason not to try?’

‘But…’

‘I’m sorry, Tyelpo’, says Maedhros politely, ‘I’m afraid I’m going to have to throw you out, too.’</i>

Also, this is wild:

<i>After a while, Maedhros says: ‘He didn’t trust us all that much, did he?’</i>

No. He did not. That is why I love these guys so much.

Maglor's ugly dissonant chords! Heavy metal Maglor!

I could not resist the "heavy metal Maglor"! He doesn't play it in mine either and I am afraid I was pulling your leg a little there! Lovely evocative story beginning to end. I am so jealous that you can write so many stories!

You've got this knack of making me fidget, and prickle uncomfortably - Maedhros seems truly, as you say,  locked into it, but almost unwilling to look for escape. His logic is supreme. He does not seem to grieve, as if it is beyond him and that image of Maglor plucking a dissonat, screeching note symbolises how the whole thing is just wrong - Feanor is dead and it is wrong, they feel the dissonance but Maedhros brings them back.  Steel yes, but you make him so much more. Terrifically good writing.

Oh, this was a great story. First of all, the exchange between Maedhros and Celebrimbor was really well written. And Maglor playing his harp and being all angsty. The whole thing was thoughtful and interesting.

The ending was really powerful and I loved it!

This whole situation after Feanors death describes their realtionship to their father in a perfect way.

if you are made to swear an oath a second time that was meant to be unbreakable in the first place, does it make the oath more unbreakable or less so?’

Celebrimbor seems to have cut in the sorest wound with his questions, and Maedhros answers to him are as well a try to confirm himself, I feel.

The final statement  of Maedhros condemns Feanor really to hell....

He didn’t trust us all that much, did he?’

And Maglor, stopping to play, agreed by this.

Another fault Feanor could be blamed of, that he always played off all of his sons against each other They always had to EARN his love, and nobody fought more than Celegorm and Curufin, but now, he is dead this puts them close together.

Unexpectedly, Curufin and Celegorm return together, as if the affections that used to divide them have polarized and work to unite them, now that their father is dead.

Even Maglor, the most gentle, * mistreats* his beloved harp and utters his protest in playing *violent* tunes.

The Ambarussa, seen by their mother as one, and had left gone not to be divided, were at last so ( even if you don't take the plot of one of them burnt with he ships), for the reason for them to part, Feanor, is gone.

Even Amras and Amrod, the twins, are seen leaving separately, going their own way.

Sorry , my tablet decided to stop my review, before I was finished ;//

Somehow the whole campaign has lost its real sense, to follow their father, and maybe gain his affection. 

It is the lack of light after being used to it that the mind finds difficult to deal with

As long, as their father was alive, there was no room for own mind and thought, but now is, but now they are determed to follow this way, the way planned by the oath...

Maedhros realises this very clearly, but, in opposite to his father, he won' t abuse his leader ( father) role.

‘No more mistakes now,’ thinks Maedhros, looking at his brothers, his responsibility now, ‘we cannot afford another mistake.’

Maybe they would have been able to break the oath, if their father would have given in in some way, but now, that he is dead, this possibilty is gone forever, so 

Triple-locked, the Oath snicks shut...

Oh, god, I really hate Feanor, for what he did to bis sons, even if you find some excuse for him.

But Feanor, however perceptive he could be with regard to others, often seemed to have a blind spot with regard to his own actions and motivations. And gradually that blind spot grew, until more and more it skewed his judgement of others…

But to have his sons receite this oath again, not in hot temper, but full aware of the consequences for his own children , that is for me more cruel, than everything his sons did after!!!

I can forgive the kinslaying, maybe, to a certain degree, but this? Never!