Haleth
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
Now I know what Finrod said when he saw his ring after all that time.
You depict Finrod as I understand him to be; self assured enough to be honestly humble and a kind, compassionate leader who draws people to him, even his proud younger sister, by example.
This is a fitting ending to the story of the ring of Barahir.
Author's reply
Thank-you Haleth. Apparently he wasn't much interested in the jewel itself...
Somehow I suspected that we shared a similar view regarding said Elf.. :-)
Moving deeds and wills without really being present or actaully ordering people around, just by influence and example is, to me, the quintessence of leadership. Glad that you appreciated it. The Ring is finally home, I believe.
Nilmandra
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
Oh, and lovely and fitting conclusion. These two are so complimentary - both contributed much, did what they had to, were worthy, yet neither could have replaced the other. And this is so fitting. Loved it again. :D
Author's reply
Thank-you Nilmandra, I'm glad that you liked it! It was Dot's prompting...
yet neither could have replaced the other. I like that. They were both part of a greater picture, with a role to fulfill...
Redheredh
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
This was excellent. I am very glad you added the second part. The opening was just lovely.
It is so interesting to speculate on Galadriel's character and what/who influenced her choices in life. She was not all ambition. Of course, her eldest brother, whom she stayed beside in Beleriand until she decided to remain in Menegroth, had to be a major influence in her becoming truly wiser. Still, you have given her a simply wonderful Finrod to emulate. I am not sure that Aragorn would have ever given up his ring. But, he just might if the stories passed down to him told of such a elf-lord as you have described here. Deeds alone do not always speak for themselves.
Great story, wonderful gift to us all.
Author's reply
Glad that you liked it, Redheredh! You know, I was picturing you rolling your eyes when I was writing the first chapter! But you are truly patient and generous! Glad that you even made it to the second! :-)
Fire
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
Such a nice story and it does end a long long tale. Finrod is right the ring is hers now.
Author's reply
Thank-you Fire! I think she earned it! :-)
daw the minstrel
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
Nice job, Perelleth. Galadriel is such an interesting figure because of all the seeming contradictions that have to be reconciled. It makes her feel real. I think Tolkien must have felt the same thing, given the way he changed her story.
Author's reply
THak-you Daw. You are right, she's so contradictory that it is difficult to know what was her inner drive. I like to think that not even she was completely aware of it until reaching the Blessed Realm, with time and distance to ponder not the events but the deeper picture. Glad that you liked it.
Dot
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
You really are clever with chapter titles.
I’m so glad you decided to continue this! It’s just lovely. I particularly liked the opening – that the final thing she sees in her mirror is the beloved face of someone who awaits her on the other side of the Sea, someone who will understand her struggle. I love the idea of their closeness, of a special relationship between Finrod and Galadriel.
Mmm… you wrote Finrod wonderfully. I love that moment when she realises that he had been the one to make her who she was – she had followed his guidance, though they were parted, and it made her a better person. I like the thought of his influence on her so that in a way he still played a part in all that was accomplished. She continued his task. I love that it’s his humility that gives her humility. And he’s right, I think, in saying that the Ring belongs to her – Aragorn may have understood that and Finrod does immediately.
The reassurance at the end was just perfect. This new understanding is setting her on the path to healing and soon she will be able to share her joy with Celeborn.
Author's reply
Thank-you, Dot, You are to blame!!! I must confess that I am recycling drabbles and pieces, and since you suggested that I should resurrect Finrod, I was mulling this in my head... We get to see him through the eyes of a younger sister who has missed him for a long time.. but I'm glad that you liked it.
I assume that there are truths about ourselves that take us long time to admit or discover, and that at times life only makes sense when you are able to look at it from a vantage point. It made sense to me that she might acknowledge at this point, when she has finally gained her humility, that all that she was was the result not of her own, lonesome, proud struggle, but a result of many different factors, influences, other people's struggles and sacrifices, even chance and destiny, and that she was but another, if powerful, tool. I agree with you that it would have given her the definite step to healing.
THank you for nudging me! :-)
Bodkin
· 9 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
Lovely Finrod - and nice to think of him as a major influence on Galadriel. I'm sure as her oldest brother he did spend quite a lot of time with his only sister - and he does come over as a particularly admirable elf.
I like the thought of Galadriel as the link between Finrod and Aragorn - and, as such, wearing a ring that represented honour and promise - and service - rather than dominance and control.
And I love Finrod's reassurance that Celeborn will come. Galadriel must have been very vulnerable at this point.
Author's reply
THank-you, BOdkin, yours is a great compliment coming from the one who has better pinned down the Elf in question ( in my eye, of course! :-))
wearing a ring that represented honour and promise - and service - rather than dominance and control. *grins* Yes, that's exactly what prompted me. There are Rings and Rings, I suppose...:-)
"Ocorrono troppe vite per farne una", "Many lives are needed to make up one life" Eugenio MOntale, an Italian NObel Prize said. What any of us may become is, among other things, the result of what we allow ourselves to absorb from the good -or evil- around. We know so little about Firnrod, only that he gave up his inmortal life to save the life of a mortal. That deed does not come up in a fancy whim, but it is the result of a deeply seated conviction and personality. And that elf must have been an example for friends and family not in his death, but before, in his life, so his legacy was not just the deed, but the firm belief that promtped it, in my opinion. That is, in my tale, one of the "many lives" needed to make of Galadriel the powerful and eise Elven woman who finally had the strength to allow Aragorn engage Arwen and to refuse the Ring...
Apologies for the digression... :-)
meckinock
· 8 July 2006
· Chapter 2: The Mirror of Galadriel
I'm glad you showed us the gift passed on, Perelleth. The departure from Lorien was bittersweet, but the fulfilled promise of home, family, and peace was heartwarming. I'm glad the ring found its way home, too.
Author's reply
Thank-you meckinock.
I like to think that Finrod’s deed had a lasting impact upon Galadriel and that it may have influenced her attitude towards the second born, leading her to assume her brother's role until the time of the elves reached its end. So she would have mirrored his behaviour and continued his task, and so the Ring actually belonged to her as both Aragorn and Finrod understood...
The Karenator
· 26 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Wow! Perelleth, just wow! This little snippet really carries a wallop.
The dialogue is perfect--Aragorn offering his apologies for disturbing her and Galadriel reminding him it's his gardens after all. Her thoughts about him are a mixture of pride and pain. He has claimed a bride very dear to her heart.
Galadriel's weariness is palpable. She's ready to go to Valinor, to leave the future in the hands of men, and she finds comfort in the man who will be at the helm.
I had no idea what was in the pouch and was startled by the contents. What a beautiful sentiment! I love it.
Gosh, Perelleth, this is just wonderful. You have a way with words, you do! In fact, I think I'll read it again.
Author's reply
Thank-you Karen, I´m glad you enjoyed it!
I think you are right that she feels proud of him despite tiredness and pain, and then he goes and gives her yet another chance to feel even prouder. They taught him very well, and he was very considerate to acknowledge all the lives and sacrifices that were needed to make him king...:-)
Haleth
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Yet another beautiful story.
Galadriel must have known of Arwen's relationship with Aragorn. I've always wondered if she had foreseen it and encouraged it or perhaps deliberately turned a blind eye. Aragorn seems to be aware of this, although neither of them will openly speak of it. You convey a great deal in a short piece.
I wonder what Finrod will say when he sees his ring again? Will he want to know of the men who carried it? Especially of the one who sent it home him? Or will he be like Aragorn and not ask any direct questions at all?
Author's reply
Thank-you Haleth!
Now that's a good question. Whatever the answer, she did meddle at some point, easing Aragorn's path when she orchestrated the troth-pledging moment, and by the words she tells to him in Lorien when they part, I think that she really cared for him, beyond seeing him as an instrument of fate, and I think that, in redeeiming Finrod's ring and giving it to her he would be acknowledging without words her love and support beyond simple duty...
I wonder what Finrod will say when he sees his ring again? Ah, but you should know! :-) Perhaps he is so intrigued that he becomes a relic-hunter in M-E?
French Pony
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Now this is something you don't see too often. Aragorn and Galadriel. Whoa, that's like a planetary conjunction there. Two cosmic forces meet and greet. I loved the dignity they shared, that respect that you only really have for a colleague who you know done good.
Author's reply
that's like a planetary conjunction there LOL! I liked that! I think she really values him, and with this parting present he shows her how tall he has grown and how many thngs he can say without words...:-)
Dot
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
This is marvellous, perelleth.
It was a lovely glimpse of Galadriel at the end of her days here. You’ve really caught a sense of weariness and of her stepping back and knowing that time has moved on and she’s no longer part of shaping of M-e. I thought it was a very nice moment when she acknowledges that she’s in his gardens – she’s no longer so… untouchable, I guess.
And I just love her thoughts about him. This line, I think, is a wonderful look at how she sees him: Bold son of a man, she thinks with a brief wave of regret, who dared claim the gift of a Firstborn with such impertinent confidence…and such honourable steadfastness. There’s that touch of regret, a hint of admiration and even some affection. And this seems to me to be one of the best descriptions of Aragorn that I have ever seen: For all his youth, this one has always been sure of his fate, and has embraced it with a grace that made him an equal among those doomed, be them Eldar or Edain.
Yet, for all that she feels she knows him, he still manages to surprise her! I gasped aloud when I realized what he’s given her! That’s just so perfect. He returns to her the symbol of the tie between elves and men, between her family and his, makes his gratitude known, gives her a sense of release and, I imagine, reminds her of family waiting for her. She should go with a sense of accomplishment. I love the last line because there are so many ways for it to be read. But it was just such a perfect gesture, and I love the idea that the two of them had this moment. This whole piece was beautifully written.
Oh, and I love the title! :-)
PS. Are you going to resurrect Finrod and let us see what he says?!
Author's reply
Thank-you Dot!
I'm glad that you gasped too, Galadriel understands you perfectly! :-)
By the words she tells to Aragorn in Lorien I think that she really cares for him, and she must be proud of what he has accomplished,although she must be of course worn out by this time. But yet he is her project, too, and he gaves her the last gift behaving so elfy and surprising her with that. He was reared up by elves and he has learnt what is important for them, and what to tell and how, so I think this was a double surpirse for her. ANd she must needed that at that time.
Are you going to resurrect Finrod and let us see what he says?! I fear Finrod is well beyond my abilities!
NanaHalfelven
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Oh, Very Good!! What a perfect "ending" for the long incredible history of keeping the faith, and so just it should go home...More, please!
Author's reply
Thank-you, Nana, I'm glad that you liked it! It seemed appropriate to me after such a long time that it was returned.
daw the minstrel
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Nice glimpse of these two, Perelleth. I like the idea that "respect and connivance" mark their relationship.
Author's reply
Connivance was not exactly the word I was looking for, I think, but it has the sense. Maybe complicity. She sounds very affectionate when they part in Lorien, and she helped him catch Arwen, so I think there must have been some kind of deep understanding between the two. Glad you liked, it, thanks!
shirebound
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
*applauds* From the title to the final line, this is marvelous. What a unique and creative idea!
Author's reply
Thank-you shirebound! :-) (I am particulary fond of the last line.. :-))
meckinock
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Oh, perfect, Perelleth! I love the relationship between Galadriel and Aragorn:
He proffers his arm with the mix of respect and connivance that has always distinguished their relationship. Bold son of a man, she thinks with a brief wave of regret, who dared claim the gift of a Firstborn with such impertinent confidence…and such honourable steadfastness.
She really has his number, doesn't she? There's such nobiility and sadness in her; weariness, too. It's wonderful that Aragorn does, to her surprise, prove capable of surprising her, and also of tying the past to the future. This was wonderful.
Author's reply
Thank-you, meckinock!
Galadriel seems quite affectionate when they part in Lorien, and she orchestrated the whole troth pledging thing, so I am sure that these two have had a deep understanding of each other from the very beginning... and I was amused that in the end he was able to catch her by surprise. Returning the Ring seemed to me a nice way to express his gratitude, by releasing her House from a Three Age long oath... GLad you liked it!
Nilmandra
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Ooh, this is wonderful. I had wondered what Aragorn would do with the Ring of Barahir. This seems so incredibly fitting an end for it in Middle-earth - and that he gave it to Galadriel even more so. She, the last of the Noldor exiles perhaps, returns here at the end of the final alliance of Elves and Men with the token of their kinship. Wonderful story, Perelleth. And a wonderful birthday present :>)
Author's reply
The kind webmistress deserved far better, but hey, let's party!
I am glad that you liked it. It seemed fitting to me. He most probably kept it, but returning it seemed to me a way of acknowledging all the services and releasing them from any other duty. I am sure Finrod would appreciate the gesture.. :-)
Bodkin
· 24 June 2006
· Chapter 1: The Ring Goes West
Oh, nice one, perelleth.
I do think Galadriel would be right at the end of her endurance at this point - and giving Arwen over to Aragorn and the fate of men must have been just about the last straw.
To have him prove that he is, indeed, worthy - and to offer her the ring that links men to her family .... and at the same time remind her of who will be waiting on the other side of that impassable ocean .... Yep. A very emotional moment.
Lovely!
Author's reply
Thank-you Bodkin. I too think that she must have reached her limit by then. She seems very affectionate when they part in LOrien, so I thought it would be good that for once he could return her the many favours...and catch her unawares. Glad that you liked it.