The Boys of Summer by Keiliss

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Fanwork Notes

Note 1: Written for Marchwriter for the 2013 Sultry in September swap.

Fanwork Information

Summary:

This does not pretend to be the story of the Nirnaeth Arnoediad. That is a vast tale of a battle to rival the Battle of the Somme in our own time, with all its moments of terror and heroism (plus dragons, balrogs, and the death of a king). This is just about Gildor, son of Lalwen, and Glorfindel of the House of the Golden Flower (which Gildor assures me sounds better in Quenya) and something of their experience during those six days of horror.

Major Characters: Gildor, Glorfindel, Maeglin, Turgon

Major Relationships:

Genre: Adventure, Drama

Challenges:

Rating: Adult

Warnings:

Chapters: 1 Word Count: 10, 906
Posted on 21 December 2013 Updated on 21 December 2013

This fanwork is complete.

Table of Contents

1. The Boys of Summer

Nowhere does it say Gildor is Finwë’s grandson. Then again, nowhere does it say Gildor is NOT Finwë’s grandson. His family and social connections are a blank slate. I wrote on it. We had fun.

Comments

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This story takes events we all know turned out awful (Aredhel, the Nirnaeth) which through Gildor's point of view  become fresh and compelling (I couldn't help sharing in their impatience: what's the matter with Maedhros????!!!).

Other great points: Maeglin, vulnerable and nasty at the same time, and his unusual condition as orphan, the claustrophobia-inducing life in Gondolin, Gildor crying for all of them while leaving the battlefield. Wonderful story!

Thank you :) I've never written anything like this before, I wasn't even sure of the geography and had to study it, lol. The story more or less ate my life for a while and I started to care about those people so much - Gildor wasn't the only one crying when he rode away at the end. Maegilin surprised me. I hadn't originally planned to include him but realised I had to as he'd been there and then he just appeared - not as I'd pictured him either. This fic is one of my favourites and I'm so glad you liked it.

~Kei

I finally got to that open tab! It's such great work, Kei - the telling the whole battle from Gildor's POV while bringing in so much from their early years, from Gondolin; the sense of family with its tensions and love; the anxiety of the wait for a Maedhros; the military descriptions; even the tiny comment on Nargothrond... it was all beautifully done and if you hadn't told me otherwise, I would have added effortlessly. It just flows that well.

I read it again recently and I'm surprised I wrote it. Also surprised the way Gildor and Glorfindel fitted together. There were more bits I didn't have time for - a fleshing out of a scene between Gildor and Fingon (I chickened out, I've never written Fingon and knew I'd mess him up), more Maeglin, more Glorfindel (there can never be too much Glorfindel). I waited to post it anywhere after the swap, thinking I'd add this all in, but in the end if felt finished so I decided not to mess with it. The battle scared me - really out of my comfort zone there - but then I realised Gildor would only know what was happening directly around him, so i didn't have to cover what happened to Maedhros or actually see Fingon die. Some one needs to write that battle, just the six days, an epic war story.

If it seems to flow well, I'm more than happy. Thank you so much, love. The review means a great deal.