Sons of Stone by The Wavesinger

Fanwork Information

Summary:

Aule muses on his creations.

Major Characters: Aulë

Major Relationships:

Artwork Type: No artwork type listed

Genre: General

Challenges: B2MeM 2013

Rating: General

Warnings:

Chapters: 1 Word Count: 238
Posted on 17 May 2013 Updated on 17 May 2013

This fanwork is complete.

Sons of Stone

Written for B2MeM13, Day One. Prompt: Rebellion. FINALLY posted on SWG in May.

B2MeM 2013 Day One--Rebellion

Read Sons of Stone

"But fearing that the other Valar might blame his work, he wrought in secret: and he made first the Seven Fathers of the Dwarves in a hall under the mountains in Middle-earth."
—The Silmarillion, Of Aulë and Yavanna

My children, you fill me with pain.

Think you that I am blind, that your father, the one you call Mahal, forgets you? Think you that your deeds pass unnoticed? Nay, I love my children, and I watch you from the shadows. I see your deeds.

You build, but in doing so, you destroy.

You find, but in doing so, you lose.

You laugh seldom and cry seldom, but it is Melkor who does not jest, Melkor who scorns all mirth and sees tears as weakness.

You craft your work from the Earth, but you do not love it—for you, it is simply a tool.

You are protective to the point of obsession, loving your kin and holding them dear, but you do not trust any other.

You make great works, but always mar them with some evil.

You fashion all metals and gems into beauty, but you are as a master to them, not a lover.

You create, but you lust for your creations.

You are the sons of stone, and yet you seek mastery over it.

I created you, I know, and my failings have been passed into you. But tell me, oh children, whence came this power-lust?

Comments

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Another brilliant work of insight. I think this piece reflects the dwarves in a very honest and realistic light. Keeping Doriath in mind its very plausible that Mahal would be more than a tad ticked off, not to mention the events that go down in The Hobbit. Yet at the same time, the element of paternal love is partly clouded by the ire commited to his sons' misdeeds. Overall though, a facinating ballad and one worthy to be reread and explored in better understanding the Valar.

I'm still figuring out SWG and I saw this only after three long months, so bear with me, please.

It isn't 'suffering', as it were. The Dwarves are adopted Children of Eru, and, as such, I think, have all too human failings. Tolkien himself said that greed for gold was their downfall, and I wanted to explore that. And also, there is Aule to add to the equation. For all he's a Vala, he's still mortal in one sense, and sees fellow creatures as a part of his world, so the Dwarves, too, are viewed in his eyes. And for Aule, who's the creator of the earth (earth as in lithosphere) and loves every bit of it, the Dwarves' clinical approach to its ingredients is unfathomable. It was meant to be a character study of both the Dwarves and Aule :). Gimli is exceptional, but we don't know what he's like as a Dwarf, as such, around other Dwarves, so I don't know. I think I'll leave that door open, though imagining a greedy Gimli is extremely amusing :p.

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Of course, this is all my 'verse and strictly non-canonical and/or quasi-canonical :).