Valiant and Dauntless by Himring
Fanwork Notes
The Tengwar prompt essë (name) coincided with the tolkienshortfanworks prompt "name".
So I will shamelessly double-claim "A common root" as a fill for the Tengwar challenge, in the knowledge that I have already posted enough Tengwar prompt fills to get all the stamps I will be getting. (Because: the "All the Prompts" stamp? Ha, ha, no! Although I sincerely admire all those who made that!)
I am hoping there will be more conversations between Hurin and Fingon to follow eventually, so somewhat optimistically there is an overarching title for what is so far just one drabble.
No content warnings for the drabble as such, but there is all the canonical background of the years after the Dagor Bragollach implied.
- Fanwork Information
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Summary:
Fingon and Hurin: I. A Common Root
Major Characters: Fingon, Húrin
Major Relationships:
Artwork Type: No artwork type listed
Genre: Fixed-Length Ficlet
Challenges: Tengwar
Rating: General
Warnings: Check Notes for Warnings
Chapters: 1 Word Count: 103 Posted on 1 June 2024 Updated on 1 June 2024 This fanwork is a work in progress.
A Common Root
- Read A Common Root
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‘I hear they are calling you Thalion, now,’ said Fingon, almost casually.
‘I guess they do.’
‘Don’t be embarrassed, Hurin—it is well-deserved! Do you know they used to give me a similar byname? The Valiant. The Quenya word astalda is related. It was intended humorously, originally, I believe.’
As far as Hurin knew, everyone was still calling Fingon ‘Valiant’ and they were entirely serious in doing so, regardless of their recent grievous losses.
‘I suppose a partly shared name constitutes some sort of brotherhood?’ offered Fingon wryly.
‘Of course it does,’ said Hurin heartily. ‘Brotherhood! Let’s drink to that!’
Chapter End Notes
Inspired by the recent discovery (reading a discussion on Eldamo) that the canonical bynames of Fingon and Hurin are (probably) etymologically related, although they are not usually rendered in the same way. (Thalion is usually glossed as "steadfast" or "dauntless", not "valiant", and we also don't know for a fact that Fingon was "Astaldo", although it's plausible.) The common root would be STAL.
I don't actually know when Hurin got his byname, but he seems to have had it before the Battle of Unnumbered Tears already, according to the Children of Hurin. So that unnamed battle in the aftermath of the Dagor Bragollach where he saves the west of Hithlum (while Cirdan's fleet helps to save the East) seems to be as good a moment as any.
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