In the Bleak and Early Morn by Elleth

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Fanwork Notes

I took some liberties with the Laws and Customs in this story that challenge the ideas on marriage put forward in the original text, but tried to avoid making a decisive statement on which idea is "right". Tolkien did, after all, allow the caveat that different Elven cultures had different approaches (the Mithrim Sindar in my verse are based on Eurasian nomads; the station Lasbaneth is referred to as having is roughly analogous to that of a shaman, though none of that is more than background information here). However, if any of the above isn't your cup of tea, please steer clear of this story.

Lasbaneth uses Sindarin at times (goelydh is the Sindarin form for the Noldor, with a pejorative undertone), Maglor uses Quenya unless the personal names he refers to are in Sindarin. Noldóranis means Queen of the Noldor, the hypothetical female form of Finwë's original title, celvar are animals, Hecelmar, literally Land of the Forsaken, is a Quenya name for Beleriand and references the Elves who did not sail. Naucalië translates to Dwarf-folk.

The title of the story is from Rogue Valley's The Wolves and the Ravens (which is quite a Maglor song in itself, though lends itself better to his lamenting by the sea), and I'd like to thank Zeen for having a look at this; any remaining mistakes are my own.

Fanwork Information

Summary:

A story for B2MeM 2013, combining the prompts for archetypes, good and ill, and back to lands you once did know (days one, two and four respectively):

Maglor's wife, a Sinda of Mithrim, learns about the events of Alqualondë, and confronts her husband about his actions, differing beliefs, and the future.

Major Characters: Maglor, Original Character(s)

Major Relationships:

Artwork Type: No artwork type listed

Genre: Drama, Het

Challenges: B2MeM 2013

Rating: Teens

Warnings: Mature Themes, Sexual Content (Mild), Violence (Mild)
Chapters: 1 Word Count: 3, 099
Posted on 5 March 2013 Updated on 5 March 2013

This fanwork is complete.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

To elaborate on the archive warnings: the story contains non-graphic mentions of sex and nudity, hints at possible domestic violence, alcoholism, and mentions of general violence of the kinslaying variety.

Comments

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Thank you! The story was tremendous fun to write, and Maglor I think is quite a challenging character to get right. There is a trend (or was) that writes him as wholly whimpish and incapable, rather than as a competent but very flawed person, and that is something that I'm trying to avoid in my own fics about him, even if it needs foregrounding by other means, like his alcoholism here (which to me falls into the same behavioural category as his wanderings; recognition of his faults and mistakes - at this early point in his history - a large degree of avoidance rather than the self-imposed penance he will come to do).

There are a lot of Fëanorian-centric fics on the archive, and many of them are well worth a read if you have time.

As odd as it sounds, I'm glad the story was a painful one - that's some success at the portrayal of a painful situation, and Lasbaneth convincing as Maglor's wife made me happy. I do enjoy the Vingariës and Narmincës and Aurels of different authors' fic-verses, because it's awesome that the Finwëan wives get a spotlight, but Lasbaneth (naturally!) is quite dear to my heart.

You're right, too; there is another part in the works (I need to do more research to determine the ending, but it's looking good so far), and there may be more (albeit more loosely connected) of the same series depending on the B2MeM prompts that come up.

Thank you very much for such a lovely review. :)

Maglor doesn't do very much here to motivate any kind of forgiveness here, does he? Without apologetics for him, I don't think he is a bad guy, though he is definitely letting his flaws get the better of him in this fic, and that isn't very commendable behaviour (nor is the kinslaying, for that matter, though I tend to read the Silm as presenting a very fine line between outright condemnation and acknowledgement of a less clear-cut tragedy in that regard, and that's something I'll definitely try and address in the sequel).

But yes, she comes back - it was tricky enough to figure out the why and how - but she does. As I said to Angelica, I'm glad the story as a whole came across as sufficiently disturbing and/or painful because that's the overall tone I was trying for, and knowing that Lasbaneth's strength shines through all that is wonderful. Thank you for your review! :D

Thank you very much, Indy :D! I found (and still find) it very surprising that the story is garnering such favourable reviews because it is rather dark. But - I'm glad the layers here are noteworthy; I think they do some degree explain (not excuse!) Maglor's decisions and his behaviour. And Lasbaneth convincing here makes me happier than I could say. So, thank you very much for taking the time to let me know! :)

Thank you, Oshun! I had the story's concept in my head almost immediately when I saw the prompt, and it was quite easy to write down, but it was quite a rough experience to engage with the characters in this particular situation. I'm glad it paid off, and that a skilled writer like you could enjoy it.

Soooo... I really should've mentioned how much I loved this story awhile ago. But I didn't, so here you go: I loved - and still love - this story. Lasbaneth is an amazing OC, and a perfect match for Maglor (who, by the way, I think you wrote perfectly here!). Such an intense subject of conversation here, too, and I love the way you wrote THIS ENTIRE THING 'cause yeah. And that last line was perfect.

You're amazing. Just, um, thought I should say that.

I'm sitting here all starry-eyed and happy about your review - Lasbaneth is near and dear to my heart and I was a little afraid that writing her asserting herself and pointing out the... less savoury aspects of her marriage would provoke a lot of dislike, but seeing the fic received so well has been a wonderful surprise. Thank you so much! :)

This is the first time I've read Lasbaneth (I assume she's appeared in your work before?).  I quite like her!  All things considered, she handled it very well.  Poor Maglor...and yet, he kind of got what was coming, given he entered into the marriage concealing something as grave and important as Alqualondë.

Thank you, Huin - I quite agree that Maglor made a huge blunder (mildly put) there, so it seems only fair that he should deal with the consequences. Lasbaneth has appeared a few times, though mostly as a tangential figure (in Breaking Bread and By Any Other Name in Postcards from Arda, and Sunset Into Night and Mithrim Flowers in Súlimëo Quentar) since I didn't quite trust myself to do her justice in a more in-depth fic before writing this - she's a much greater presence in my mind (and Maglor's), so far, but hopefully that will be remedied eventually. :)