Raksha The Demon
· 14 November 2009
· Chapter 13: #13 - Argument
Good for Dior - his strength of will and faith in his wife shine even in the shadowy halls of Mandos. Interesting idea to explore, I don't think any fanfic writer has yet broached the subject. Of course, Earendil and Elwing and their parents don't get as much play in fanfic as the Feanorians, which is a shame.
Author's reply
Yesterday or the day before I read a really excellent one about the Feanorian attack on Menegroth where Dior and Nimloth died. It was written by Clodia. The title is "Blood and Fire" and is posted here at SoA. A very different interpretation of Dior in personality from what I have in my head, but extremely well written and believable, IMO.
Thank you so much for reviewing my fics, Raksha. I really enjoy your works and I'm just tickled that you enjoy mine.
Nice drabble!! I particularly enjoyed it coz' it fits right in with my interpretation of the story. I too think Dior as mortal, although my reasoning takes a different line.
Some 37-40 years pass from the re-birth of Luthien and Beren, and Dior's rise to ruling Doriath. Considering that he already had young children by that time, it's my interpretation that he grew swiftly as would a mortal. And so I like to think that he was destined to die as a mortal. Sadly, I'm a lover of tragic romance...
... but your ending is beginning to grow on me :)
Cheers.
Author's reply
Hello! Thank you for reviewing! I too, hold with him being Mortal because of the rapidity of his development as well. Had he developed as an Elf, he most certainly wouldn't have been matured to the point of fathering children by the time he'd reached 30 years old. It's just that my interpretation is that even Mortal feär pass to the West and Mandos to make their crossing of the Circles of the World to Eru, thus putting Dior right where I want him for this drabble. *grin* The idea of looking at the ages of the Half-Elven to determine mortality also fits in with Elwing and Earendil, who were about 30 years old when Elrond and Elros were born.
I appreciate your commentary and that you enjoyed the drabble.
Just a small point on the fate of Dior Eluchil. He was the son of Beren and Luthien as I have no doubt you know, however he was the very first of the Peredhil, the very first half-elf and I have no doubt that if the rules of the Valar stretched to his grandchildren and his great-grandchildren, Elros and Elrond, they would also have applied to him. A great deal is made of the choice given to Elros and Elrond, but remember that their blood relationship was even a bit more diluted than Dior's was, given the bloodline of Luthien as being half-Eldar and half-Maiar and the fact that Earendil was also only half-elven since his father came from the race of Men.
I think under the circumstances that Dior would have been given the same sort of choice and I can't find anything to indicate that Tolkien intended anything different. I suppose it could be argued that his mother was half-elven herself given that her other half was Maiar, but I do believe he would still have been counted among the Eldar.
Author's reply
Hi! Thanks for reviewing.
There's a point of chronology here. As written, Manwe did not offer the Choice of the Peredhel until after Earendil and Elwing had brought the Silmaril to Valinor. I am using just the published text of THE SILMARILLION as the inspiration for these drabbles, and as written, Dior was born after Luthien was returned to Middle-earth as a Mortal. He was the son of two Mortals, even though his bloodline was mixed Elf, Mortal and Maiar. After the Choice, we see that the descendants of Elros were Mortals and did not have the Choice offered to them.
So my interpretation is that Dior was Mortal. There was no indication in the SILM that Nimloth ever was considered to have abandoned her Elvish fate. But since even Mortals must go through the Halls of Mandos to cross the Circles of the World, I figured, as I've written in the drabble, he would not have abandoned her to be alone until Arda was remade. This way, if he and she are stubborn enough, and stick it out in Mandos until the time that Earendil and Elwing's Choice occurs; then Dior and Nimloth will get to make their Choice as well.
I'm a mushy romantic. I don't like seeing people who love one another separated for an eternity.
I hope that despite your difference of opinion on the fate of Dior Eluchil that you liked the drabble anyway.
Namo has two stubborn ones to deal with, then! Heh! Quite the pair here!
Author's reply
:) Thanks for being such a faithful reviewer, Larner!
Yes, they are stubborn, but for a good reason. The nice thing about the SILM is that Professor Tolkien left so much to our imaginations that we can interpret the personalities and events in so many different ways.
I know Dior was Paredhil, did he choose to be counted as Secondborn then?
Lynda
Author's reply
Thanks for reading and reviewing, Lynda. Please see my reply to Shemyaza as to what my feelings are about the Choice of the Peredhel in regards to those who lived and died before Earendil and Elwing brought the Silmaril to Valinor.
As far as which Choice Dior and Nimloth made if they were granted the opportunity, my muse hasn't told me yet. *grin*
I can understand why she would be jealous of him having his parents returned to him while her were not and also not being the center of his life as all he had left anymore. However, I think a part of her would have been happy for him as well. Poor Elwing, but happy day for Earendil!
these little ditties of yours are delightful!
Author's reply
Thank you for the compliment, Ellie. :) She is pleased for him, truly she is; but it is hard to see an unexpected reunion like this and know that you will never see your parents again (or at least she doesn't think that she will).
Of course, now Earendil will have to get used to having Mum and Dad about to give him advice and such. Sometimes after being independent for so long, having parents poking their noses into one's life can be a little bit not fun. *grin*
A wonderful gift for him, and a reminder for her that her own parents are gone forever beyond the boundaries of Arda. At least one of these couples was able to live in blessed peace!
A wonderful gift for him, and a reminder for her that her own parents are gone forever beyond the boundaries of Arda. At least one of these couples was able to live in blessed peace!
Author's reply
I have to admit that I had never before really thought about whether Idril and Tuor really did make it to Aman or not, and then the muse dropped this into my lap. The POV was entirely accidental; I'd initially intended to write it from Idril's POV but the first word my fingers typed was "Elwing" and I decided to try it from her perspective. :) I'm glad I did!
Certainly both we all need at times. But now is the time when the Silmaril shall shine its brightest, and still upon his brow.
Author's reply
Earendil's grace is that he did everything for the love of both Men and Elves, and was unselfish enough to sacrifice everything to obtain the help that both races needed to survive and to finally defeat Morgoth. I'm so very glad that this drabble spoke to you so eloquently. Thanks for reviewing.
Meldenya,
Indeed, their confidence is not ill placed! Earendil is not the Mariner for nothing!
Tye-melin,
KAylee
Author's reply
I liked that it was stated that these three had been at his side from the beginning of his voyaging. They would not have stayed with him for so long and taken on his quests, if they had not believed in him. I'm still hoping that the muse tells me what happened to them when they got back to Middle-earth.
I'm so glad that you loved it, meldenya. :) I really appreciate your enthusiastic support of my writing, and am very grateful for your friendship too.
Thanks for everything!
Hooray--Elros and Elrond are born, and there to greet his homecoming! A joy!
Author's reply
A careful reading of this portion of THE SILMARILLION just makes this possible. I was glad that I was able to squeeze this in! Unfortunately, it is not too long after their birth that he heads out once more to try to find the way to Valinor...
Larner
· 10 November 2009
· Chapter 8: #8 - First Meeting
Ah--what a propitious meeting!
Author's reply
Aye. And less stereotypical than the "across a crowded room trope. *grin* I'm glad you liked it!
That he will do precisely as he says is the joy--and grief--he must know!
Author's reply
The whole issue of fore-ordination, and the reality of the influence of prophesy and oaths on the events and participants in Arda is something that I find intriguing from my years of study of Early and Middle English literature. Earendil was prophesied to come to the hope and healing of Middle-earth from before the day that Tuor first saw Idril. Unfortunately, as Galadriel tells Gimli: Love is mingled with grief and Earendil and Elwing experience that in full.
And what a sweet image this is, knowing tomorrow he will greet the Sea, but tonight he sleeps!
Author's reply
I'm so glad you liked this, Larner. So much of THE SILMARILLION is sad and tells of desperate circumstances. It's nice to be given a glimpse of a simpler, happier event from the perspective of one who is young enough to not view the world through experienced, cynical eyes.
Larner
· 10 November 2009
· Chapter 5: #5 - Waiting in Alqualondë
The question as to whether she and her beloved should be punished for their temerity in coming here does need to be answered, after all. She does well to wonder, I think.
Author's reply
It must have been very frightening not knowing if Earendil would ever return to her, or if she would be dragged away to face the judgment of the Valar and face an unknown, and therefore even more frightening, punishment.
Celeritas
· 8 November 2009
· Chapter 8: #8 - First Meeting
I wonder at what point they met each other formally, or when they both learned the other was halfelven? If they managed this introduction before something more formal, surely there must be some sort of story here...
Author's reply
Oh, I'm sure that there is a story to be told. It could, probably, be an amusing one, or a touching or romantic one. I'll let the muse munch on the idea awhile and maybe, one day, she'll let me peek into the lead in to the courtship....
Nice bit of extrapolation here! I love how you took the song of Ulmo and the journey and applied it to the way a child like Earendil would see the world.
Author's reply
I do especially like imagining the characters as small children... :) This drabble really just sort of appeared "full grown" in my mind. I wish I could draw the picture of him snuggled up against Tuor's shoulder!
Very well done meldenya! I loved the imagery of the whole chapter, it's beautiful!
Kaylee
(By the way, what happened to Chapter One? It vanished!)
Author's reply
Thanks for the heads up on Chapter One. I fixed it. :)
I'm so glad you are enjoying the drabbles. I hadn't intended to focus so much on Earendil, but I've got to write what the Muse dictates. Hopefully she will give me some stuff on Elrond and Elros, too.
Celeritas
· 6 November 2009
· Chapter 5: #5 - Waiting in Alqualondë
The Teleri of Alqualonde would have an especial interest, I think, in knowing of Elwing's sad story, since their city was the first casualty of the Noldor. But it must have been hard waiting, not knowing what would happen next!
Author's reply
I'm glad that the difficulty of waiting came across so clearly. I have a lot of sympathy for Elwing, really. She was trapped into making a very difficult decision, based upon the pressure of her history and what she had been taught was her primary duty. She lost far more from that choice than she gained, even accounting for the gift of the Life of the Eldar that she was granted in Valinor. And then, Tolkien implies that she lived a life in Aman still isolated from the majority of the population there, in that tower, where she waited for Earendil's return from his stellar voyages. But I like to think that she was always welcome in Alqualonde, even if being at the Havens might have aroused sad memories of the Mouths of Sirion.
Celeritas
· 6 November 2009
· Chapter 4: #4 - In the Birchwoods of Nimbrethil
It would make sense for the elves to be able to tell how well a tree was suited to a particular task, before it was felled. I especially liked how the whiteness of the tree's bark actually matches with the name Vingilot. It made the tree feel more elvish.
Author's reply
Thanks for the comments! Actually, Tolkien shows that his knowledge of shipbuilding is a bit faulty, because birch is not a good wood for shipbuilding; but I figure I can always excuse it by saying that the species of birch in Nimbrethil was made extinct when Beleriand sank, so maybe it had better properties for it! :)
It must have been interesting for the Elven foresters, since they could communicate with the trees. Someday I want to write something from the tree's POV...
Celeritas
· 6 November 2009
· Chapter 3: #3 - Wedding Gift
This somehow seems a fitting use for the Silmaril and also explains how Earendil had sufficient claim to present it to the Valar. When one considers all that that jewel's been through it's both diminished and hallowed by its role as a wedding gift. Well done!
Author's reply
Thank you Celeritas. :) I'm so glad you liked this! (Sorry about the late review reply. RL has been a bit of a bear lately.)
Celeritas
· 6 November 2009
· Chapter 2: #2 - Eärendil Through Idril's Eyes
The last line of this one is truly haunting and really reflects how Tolkien viewed the call of the Sea.
Author's reply
The Sea-longing is a facet of Tolkien's writings that has really fascinated me. Then again, I have a bit of it myself, having been in the Navy for 24 years, and in love with it since my grandparents first took me to Rehobeth Beach, Delaware when I was a child. It figures that I live in the midwest, with no easy way to reach the sea!