Postcards from Arda by Elleth

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Fanwork Notes

Fanwork Information

Summary:

A set of ficlets for B2MeM 2011 (continued for the Season of Writing Dangerously).

New --- Day Twenty: As the new High King of the Noldor after the Dagor Bragollach, Fingon receives a reminder that not all is as grey as it seems. A double-drabble according to Open Office.

Major Characters: Beren, Curufin, Edrahil, Elrond, Elros, Elves, Fëanor, Fingon, Gil-galad, Lúthien Tinúviel, Maedhros, Maglor, Míriel Serindë, Nerdanel, Original Character(s)

Major Relationships:

Genre: Drama, Experimental, Fixed-Length Ficlet, General, Het, Slash/Femslash

Challenges: B2MeM 2011

Rating: General

Warnings: Character Death, Mature Themes

Chapters: 16 Word Count: 6, 218
Posted on 6 March 2011 Updated on 4 August 2011

This fanwork is a work in progress.

Table of Contents

Thank you, GG, for the nitpicking and patience, and the folks at the Lizard Council for their help. Mature themes are only hinted at.

Voltaire said that it's not enough to conquer: one must learn to seduce. Write a story or poem or create artwork where seduction plays a central role.

For B2MeM 2011, Day One. Helcaraxë entices and changes the Noldor.

MEFA 2011 Nominee. Thank you, grey_gazania!

Again, many thanks go to GG and the Lizards for their help.

Defiance is defined as the willingness to contend or fight. Write a story or poem or create artwork where the characters defy authority in some way.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Two. A young Gil-galad draws a conclusion about his future.

Thanks go, as per usual by now, to GG and the Lizards.

Some people have difficulty embracing changes and moving on. Write a story or poem or create artwork that shows the consequences of refusing to change.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Three: The Wedding Gift: Maedhros refuses to change an important aspect of his life. (Four drabbles according to Open Office.)

Once more thanks to GG and the Lizards.

"There would be no one to frighten you if you refused to be afraid." -Ghandi
Write a story or poem or create artwork where the character conquers his or her fears.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Four: The Office and the Instrument: Maglor and Curufin debate kingship, politics, and Maedhros' fate.

MEFA 2011 Nominee. Thank you, grey_gazania!

Thanks to GG and Erulisse for the input on improving this.

Write a story or poem or create artwork that will illustrate the consequences of isolation.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Five: Different Songs: Lúthien learns to cope with the burden of mortality. (A drabble and a half according to Open Office.)

Thanks to GG and the Lizard Council, once again.

Greed is good! Write a story or poem or create artwork that will prove or disprove this statement.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Six: Fire Unchecked: Fëanor leaves the Gardens of Lórien after his mother's demise. (A drabble according to Open Office.)

With thanks to GG and the folks at Lizard Council.

Write a story or poem or create a piece of artwork reflecting identification with or connection to one's land, country or culture.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Eight: Clouds Will Clear: After the defeat of Sauron in the Last Alliance, Elrond is left to pick up the pieces. (Mentions of Character Death.)

MEFA 2011 Nominee. Thank you, grey_gazania!

GG, LC, thank you.

A gentle breeze brushed the hilltop, combing the ruins...
Write a story or poem that starts with this line or create a piece of art that reflects this line.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Sixteen: Inviolate: Lúthien finds hope on the ruined isle of Tol-in-Gaurhoth. A drabble according to Open Office.

As per usual, my thanks to GG and the Lizard Council. 

The cuisine of the Shire is unsurpassed. Write a story or poem, or create a work of art, featuring food.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Fifteen: Breaking Bread: Shortly after the attack on Sirion, Maglor and Maedhros endeavour to win the trust of Elwing's sons.

MEFA 2011 Nominee. Thank you, Himring!

GG and Lizard Council, many thanks for the nitpicking and help.

Overcoming prejudices is as hard in Middle-earth as in our primary universe. Write a story or poem or create artwork where the characters try to reach across racial or gender or any other barrier.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Seven: By Any Other Name: Maglor and his betrothed seek to negotiate differences and similarities between the Sindar and Noldor. (Rather more fluffy than the summary hints at.)

Once more thank you for the help and encouragement, GG and people at the Lizard Council.

Everyone avoided the tower. It was believed to have ...
Write a story or poem that starts with this line or create a piece of art that reflects this line.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Twenty-three: The Araman Tower: A monument has different meanings to different people. (A drabble according to Open Office.)

GG, thank you for the help with this one. 

Write a story or poem or create artwork where the characters have to decide between loyalty or betrayal.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Nine: In Nargothrond, Edrahil has to choose between instinct and faith. (A drabble according to Open Office.)

Thanks to GG and the Lizards!

The act of kindness or hospitability usually comes from a generous heart. Write a story or poem, or create a piece of art where your character displays this virtue.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Eighteen: Diplomacy: Fingon seeks to negotiate a reconciliation with the Fëanorians at Lake Mithrim.

 

Thanks for the nitpicking and concrit, GG and Lizard Council.

Refugee issues are our issues; their plight is our plight. Write a story or poem or create artwork that illustrates the situation of some displaced group in Middle-earth.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Twenty-Two: An injured Fëanorian meets her end at the Havens of Sirion. Warnings for blood, violence and OC character death. A drabble according to Open Office.

Thanks for the beta, GG, and the concrit from the Lizard Council.

Write a story or poem or create artwork where your character battles and overcomes their darkest hour.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Twenty-Nine: In helping others, Nerdanel gathers strength to overcome her own grief. (A drabble according to Open Office.)

Thanks to the fantastic GG, Aria, and the Lizard Council for their help.

Write a story or poem or create an artwork in which a character unaccustomed to acting as a leader must make an important decision.

For B2MeM 2011, Day Twenty: As the new High King of the Noldor after the Dagor Bragollach, Fingon receives a reminder that not all is as grey as it seems. A double-drabble according to Open Office.


Comments

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*shivers* I'm cold now.

This is fantastic. An entirely new and fascinating perspective on the Helcaraxë. Beautiful (if chilling) imagery and very intriguing ideas! And as you can probably imagine, my favourite line is this:
Helcaraxë begins to sing, and they learn to listen to its language, for are they not Quendi? b29;

Just wow.

Thank you! :) The Noldor never quite struck me as timid either (how, if even the arguably most gentle of them killed a werewolf with his teeth?), and I definitely agree with your assessment of Fingon, even if it's packed into slightly different terms in the story. That recklessness undoubtedly caused some of young Gil-galad's resentment here.

That plan didn't quite work out, did it? Although Gil-galad did rule for longer. But in the end, he was more like his father than he had planned to be: valiant, steadfast, defiant until the last. Did he remember his father that day, I wonder?

That cloven helm on the sea floor is a very striking image!

I like this very much. I completely understand and sympathize with Maglor's logic and also feel his pain. He also knows his older brother well. Curufin seems in character also and I understand his frustration. Very nice characterization throughout. Hard to do so much in so few words. Like the concept of Curufin crafting a crown for Maglor. I related to your interpretation here beginning to end. So many people write about the same subject matter and choices and my reaction is "no way that is happened like that!" Thanks for sharing,

Thank you for the review, I'm glad you enjoyed the fic. It's never easy to offer a fresh (and own!) spin on an often-written story, especially with characters that fandom tends to interpret in as many diverse ways as the Feanorians, so it's easy to find characterizations or ideas that may not fit into the personal view. Which (please forgive me the preening ;)) makes me doubly glad that my take on this particular chapter convinced you. 

Very vivid! Any situation less like Bilbo's birthday party is difficult to imagine, but the story manages to capture the basic reassuring quality of food that would have been felt by Elf and hobbit alike--I think your adaptation of the bread and salt ritual works well. One of the many details here that I like is the bit about Maedhros's braid. (Did Maglor's Sindarin wife die in the Dagor Bragollach?)

Thank you for the review, and I'm glad one of the messages I was trying to convey came through. All four of them, I think, were strongly in need of reassurance in this story. (Yes, that was a good guess; she died when Glaurung destroyed Maglor's lands in the Bragollach. I expect it will come up in a story sooner or later, too.)

I think this is the first time that I learn more about Lasbaneth! I like her already.
I also like the difficult diplomacy Fingon and Lasbaneth get to attempt here. Good thing they're both reasonable people. As usual, I am tempted to take your Maglor and shake him a little... but I guess he could use it. I suspect there's more truth to Noldóranis than Fingon realises...

First of all, sorry for the late reply, I thought I'd caught up on responding to reviews when that wasn't the case. I'm glad Lasbaneth invited a favourable response... I'm quite fond of her as a character, she's fun to write and has an interesting story to tell. Plus, more importantly, she's going to feature in an upcoming story, so that support is good to know about (you know what they say about OFCs...). She certainly deserves the title, at any rate, and is trying to do it justice. 

Maglor could, without a doubt, benefit from that shaking, for the reasons outlined in this story and many others. Thank you for the review.

Hi Elleth, thought I'd repost my Mefa review here:

Thought I'd repost my Mefa review here:

This is an absolutely gorgeous ficlet with a very creative approach to a Back to Middle-earth month writing prompt in which seduction had to play a central role. Elleth has rendered the power of the treacherous landscape of the Helcaraxë in such a way that it becomes a character unto itself, one that bewitches with its cruel beauty requiring the elves attempting to cross to listen to its song and learn its ways and to change fundamentally who they are. [“Helcaraxë begins to sing, and they learn to listen to its language, for are they not Quendi?”] I admire the wisdom in this piece – the idea that treachery requires the occasional kindness to work; the idea that the elves must learn the secrets of the terrible terrain to survive; that some become so beguiled that they purposefully become lost; and that the others who find their way, they lose some part of who they are too; and the inspired description of how they learn to talk in the bitter cold, yes with a rise of eyebrows, and no with a frown. And then there is Elleth's poetic language that sings and soars, and we hear the groan and grind and creak of the wind and the ice, and every word carries meaning and weight. When I tried to pick one line to quote, I ended up wanting to quote the entire piece. And finally there is the ending that catches one’s breath. Fabulous work!