Carmina Brethilia by Robinka

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Fanwork Notes

My heartfelt thanks to Pandë, Hrymfaxe and Erulisse (One L) for their beta-help, proof-reading, and invaluable advice. To my brother, who was my consultant regarding the Latin language. To Carl Orff for his “Carmina Burana” that was unbelievably inspiring. And to my muse, of whom I thought that he had abandoned me for good. As you can see below, never, ever doubt Beleg! He returned, quite unexpectedly, to me, and this is what we've plotted together. Enjoy!

Fanwork Information

Summary:

Or an account of the battle in the forest of Brethil as seen by Beleg Cúthalion, told in two parts.

Major Characters: Beleg, Elu Thingol, Haldir, Halmir, Huor, Húrin, Mablung, Original Character(s)

Major Relationships:

Genre: Drama

Challenges:

Rating: Adult

Warnings: Expletive Language, Mature Themes, Violence (Graphic)
Chapters: 2 Word Count: 18, 835
Posted on 14 July 2011 Updated on 24 March 2014

This fanwork is complete.

Table of Contents

A toast for the forest soldiers

(...) Halmir lord of the Haladin sent swift word to Thingol, for he had friendship with the Elves that guarded the borders of Doriath. Then Beleg Strongbow, chief of the marchwardens of Thingol, brought great strength of the Sindar armed with axes into Brethil; and issuing from the deeps of the forest Halmir and Beleg took an Orc-legion at unawares and destroyed it. Thereafter the black tide out of the North was stemmed (...).

[J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion, "Of the ruin of Beleriand and the fall of Fingolfin"]

 

Fortune, let us mourn together

Thus it was that the sons of Galdor were fostered in Brethil by Haldir their uncle, according to the custom of Men in that time; and they went both to that battle with the Orcs (…). But being with a company that was cut off from the rest they were pursued to the Ford of Brithiach (…).

[J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion, “Of the ruin of Beleriand and the fall of Fingolfin”]

Comments

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So many interesting things here! An unusual angle on Beleg to start with: although very much a Sinda, he seems a lot more robust and soldierly (so does Mablung).

The Battle of Brethil is an episode in the history of Beleriand that is often overlooked--and yet it is the exception to the rule that Thingol withdrew his troops from any major involvement in the struggle against Morgoth after the first battle of Beleriand.

It is also the exception to his rule of non-involvement with Edain. It is not often one sees a lot of the Haladin, except for Haleth herself, so it is good to see Halmir and Haldir receiving their share of attention.

Also, not one, but two strong OFCs! Especially Sullinn, who is giving Beleg a run for his money!

Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to leave a review.  *squeeeeeeeeeeee*  I'm so glad to hear that you think "Carmina" is interesting. I've had an idea of depicting the battle of Brethil for a looooong time, but somehow I couldn't get around to write it. I'm happy that you liked Beleg (and Mablung as well! He was -- as ever -- fun to write) and the Haladin. The folk of Haleth are great as far as character development goes because they're not overly popular in f-fic.

Once again, thank you so much! You made my day. I had (perhaps too)high hopes about this story and was a bit saddened to see it gets little attention. Now I'm happy and have a goofy grin on my face ;)

*hug*

Who would not want a daughter like Sullinn, maimed or not? We'll see what her dad says when they meet finally :) Yes, Beleg and Súllinn are quite good together. I'm very fond of her. Too much, I think ;) Thank you so much for reading and reviewing. I'm so nervous about this fic that I've had my stomach all in knots since I uploaded the final part. Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. It's much, much appreciated. Thank you!

Tales of Brethil, let me hunker down with a cup of tea for more :D Seriously though, I know that in the past we've talked about the axemen of Doriath coming to the aid of of the Haladin. And I just love to see that women get the equal footing here: go Súllinn. There is more of this right? If not... will there be more? You have a great set of characters here, the dynamics of the marchwardens, the friendship and trust between them (and lucky Mablung hahaha) and you just show here that life in Beleriand wasn't always tralilalal, but not dour either. You did have me in stitches about Beleg's opinion about Daeron's skills. Do let me know how I can enable you further, which bunny needs poked because I would really love to see more of this.

Yeah, we talked about it many times :) Look how a simple sentence can inspire so many words ;) I'm happy that you liked the story, and Súllinn as well -- she's like a child to me, in a way. That's mainly why there's going to be more to the whole story about her. "Carmina" as it is is finished, but there's already more about Súllinn in my B2MeM 2014 story. And also I brace myself for writing a sequel to "Carmina", the one about the Nirnaeth and the meeting between Súllinn and her potential father. [Courage, courage, Binka... ;)] Thank you so much for your wonderful review, such a surprise, and you made my day :D I'm so happy I could fly! (((hugs)))