[Image description: A black and white digital illustration of Sam and Frodo from The Lord of the Rings. Sam is sitting on the ground and holding a smoking pipe while looking down fondly at Frodo, who’s asleep with his head resting on Sam’s leg. They’re on a grassy hilltop, and the Shire countryside is visible behind them.]
Sting was a mere dagger forged by the elves of Gondolin ages ago. It was a blade that could glow blue when orcs or goblins would approach. Suiting for a Gondolin knife, it could cut through the webs of Ungoliant and her spawn easily. Though a mere dagger for men and elves, it was the perfect length for a hobbit to use the blade as a sword.
The dagger came into possession of three trolls that were dwelling in Eriador, having coming down from the Ettenmoors. In the year 2941 of the Third Age, Thorin Oakenshield and his company encountered the beings, and took share of their hoard, with them the blade, Glamdring and Orcrist. The blade got its name after Bilbo Baggins used it to stab a spider in Mirkwood, who claimed the metal ‘stung’.
After the journey to Erebor, Bilbo kept Sting in his possession. As he left for Rivendell later (T.A 3001), he took the blade with him. When Frodo Baggins, his nephew, later arrived in Rivendell to bring the One Ring to Lord Elrond, the pair reunited. As it came clear Frodo would be joining the quest to Mordor, Bilbo gave him Sting, for protection.
Samwise Gamgee took over Sting for a short moment in Return of the King, when him and Frodo were lured into Shelob’s liar. He used the sword to cut down the webs of her nest and to later save Frodo from a certain spider death.
Gollum, a creature who had traveled with Frodo and Samwise, harbored a deep distaste for anything made by elves, with that including Frodo’s sword. He had seen it before in the Misty Mountains, when the company of Thorin Oakenshield met the goblins of Goblintown. Bilbo had pulled the dagger on Gollum for his own safety, hence the recognition of the blade.
As Sauron was finally vanquished at the end of the Third Age, Frodo left for the Undying Lands. It is unknown whether he had taken Sting with him, or left it to Sam, along with the book he and Bilbo wrote.
Sometimes I think about how the Mithril shirt Thorin gave to Bilbo was described as something a ‘young elven prince’ would wear
And I just can’t get this image out of my head of Frodo rocking up to Rivendell in that same shirt and Legolas just looking at him like blink blink “why is this small one wearing my bar mitzvah tunic as armor”
Aragorn: watching the sky get light, clothes worn like a second skin, whispered promises, broken swords, sleeping among the trees, songs of lost love
Frodo: linen shirts, silk waistcoats, self sacrifice, mushrooms, tea by the fire, not daring to trust, romanticizing stories of adventure
Merry: sun flowers, protective, sudden acts of strength, getting into trouble, willing to fight to protect loved ones, stepping into the wild for the first time
Pippin: easy grins and laughter, snatching berries from a neighbor’s yard, quick mind, remembering old songs, getting too deep too fast, pipeweed
Samwise: going to bed after a long days work, love of gardens, loyal to the end, dirt smudges, venturing away from places known, refusing to lose hope
Gandalf: ancient wisdom, heavy with burdens unknown, wool cloaks, fireworks fading into darkness, remembering old languages, many names, scrolls of forgotten knowledge
Legolas: in awe of forests, lost in thought, scared of death, clear night sky and full moon, reading the stars, ivy on old statues
Boromir: overcoming struggle, the smell of blood, steel swords, white stone, honor above all else, the cry of a horn in the night, desperate to do right
Gimli: rubies under mountains, gruff voices, folklore passed down generations, battle cries, humor in the darkness, naming weapons for their deeds, amber ale
Arwen: purple twilight, velvet, fearing the end of the world, prophesy, lyres and harps, bluebells among ferns, fickle magic
Eowyn: plains of yellowed grass, blue skies, freckles, hidden strength, forgotten at home, protecting at all costs, braided hair, farmiliar with grief, intricately carved wood
Galadriel: fine lace, silver laughter, ancient music, overwhelming power, beauty told in stories, full moon, golden embroidery, walking barefoot through the grass
Bilbo: learning the world through maps, finding courage in unexpected places, telling stories to children, running headfirst into adventure, red wool coats, breakfast feasts
Thorin: desperate for home, hiding emotion, crackling trees lit up with flame, hidden doors of stone, old maps handed down from father to son, fearing madness
Faramir: desperate for approval, old cave systems, waterfalls in the moonlight, remembering myth, pine trees in the wild, ruined cities restored, well worn paths
Theoden: weathered faces, greying hair, wisdom earned through experience, strength to lend to soldiers, fingers gripping the hilt of a familiar sword, riding to the aid of another
Elrond: looking into the future, fear of darkness, vaulted ceilings, flute music, fine silk, light filtering through trees, shimmer of water under the moon, honoring old allies
Hello friends, new and old! Welcome to my new blog!
It’s hard to sell oneself in merely a header, title or description, so I figured - for the sake of anyone who wanders into this place - that I would organize a bunch of fundamental information right here!
Who am I?
Who are you?You needn’t think of that now, unless of course, you’d like to.
My name is Jules, I use he/they pronouns, and I am a lifelong fan of Tolkien’s work and world. As a small child, my mother read The Lord of the Rings to me, and by the age of six I had seen the films. I read the books for myself between the ages of eight and ten, and have done so some times since.
Tolkien’s work shaped me fundamentally from that starry-eyed chapter in my youth, everything from my fantastical adventures and ambitious in my backyard to my perception of masculinity, femininity, love, power and comradery. The young man I am and grow to be each day is very much indebted to the characters and stories of all The Professor’s work.
What is this blog?
Obviously, this blog is themed around an appreciation for anything and everything Middle Earth.
In particular, though, I intend to post a combination of quotes from the novels and/or films, and brief observations or notations I find in the margins of my copies of the novels as I re-read them, perhaps with some fresh notes to join them. In addition, I am taking a class this semester in University entitled “J. R. R. Tolkien and Counterculture,” (with our dear @wilderlandranger) and will likely post some notes, food for thought, or even scribbles for assignments.
There will also likely be memes. Maybe some of my own writing.
I am very much going to treat this blog like a more organized version of a very disorganized Word doc currently festering on my Desktop called “Tolkien Diary,” if that adds any briefer explanation or flavor to what you expect.
Additives and Addendums
If I find anything more noteworthy to add to this post of great importance, then it will be listed under this section! But, for now, good day!
The following piece of ficcery was unashamedly inspired by Certain Incidents Involving Dwalin The Cookie Monster from keelywolf’s Most Excellent Bagginshield Fic The Road Delivered Us Home
The Rise of the Cookie Bandit Commander
It was a common misconception held by Certain Dwarves (read: Thror, who was proud of his grandson and Thrain, who was utterly mortified) that the Infamous Cookie Bandit Commander of Erebor was none other than young Prince Thorin. It was known, of course, that Thorin loved Chunky Chocolate Chip cookies and the chunkier the chips, the better!
They couldn’t be further from the truth.
In fact, it was Balin who discovered that the said Cookie Bandit Commander was none other than his own younger brother Dwalin. Dwalin was the one who inducted Thorin in the fine art of Cookie Banditry. One had to stage a Cookie Raid with all the cunning, stealth and skill of a general preparing to go to war.
And as for Cookies, Dwalin had no special preference because he loved all types of Cookies and was always ready to try new kinds. Though he did have a weakness for classics such as Oatmeal Raisin.
Balin, it must be said, kept his silence, after being suitably bribed with a Fudge Bar Cookie.
There were many successful raids taken on by Prince Thorin and Dwalin, though they never forgot the number one rule which was Always return the jar. Obviously, returning the jar meant more cookies and a raid to be planned for another day. And a broken jar meant disgrace and dishonor indeed!
Later on, Dwalin would induct Fili and Kili in the fine art of Cookie Banditry. Like his Uncle, Fili loved Chunky Chocolate Chip. However, young Kili would inherit the Durin Chocolate Madness, which was, if one thought about it, a much saner alternative to Gold Sickness and easily remedied. It was pure Chocolate Dipped for Kili and he would take Daring but Especially Clever Risks for the sake of these cookies, so much so that Dwalin had contemplated that perhaps Kili would be his successor after Mahal had recalled the older warrior to his Halls.
These days, with the dwobbits of Thorin and Bilbo running loose in Erebor, Dwalin would have Frerin (the Child of Man’s height was especially useful for tall shelves), Bella and wee Frodo, to plan Cookie Raids with. And recently, with the pending arrival of Frodo’s Took and Brandybuck cousins, plus young Samwise Gamgee, the ranks of Dwalin’s recruits would be swelling indeed.
Let Bilbo Baggins and Bombur beware and guard their kitchens well. The Cookie Bandit Commander of Erebor was on the move!
The first rule anyone learns about babies - whether Elfling, Dwarfling Badger, Hobbit Fauntling or a Human Child - is that they are rather fond of pulling one’s hair.
Bilbo had done his share of babysitting duties for tiny cousins and said tiny cousins adored Big Cousin Bilbo who could tell the best stories and make the best sweets. So he thought he was fairly prepared for Frodo… except that he really, really should have counted on Frodo inheriting those remarkable Durin blue eyes and the adorable puppy expression that went with them. So poor Bilbo could only wince and coax Frodo not to pull too hard on his marriage braid, which the little dwobbit was inexplicably fascinated with.
Frodo was a remarkably good-tempered dwobbit baby and generally well-behaved and quiet, content with observing anything and everything with those wide blue eyes, unless one tried to pry chubby dwobbit fingers off one’s braid and then Mahal help you. EvenGandalfhad to resign himself to letting part of his beard be enfolded in one tiny fist when he carried around the tiniest Prince of Erebor.
And Thorin had to hide his smile when Frodo managed to bend ThranduilElven-king, of all people to his will, snuggled against the Elf’s shoulder holding contentedly on to a lock of long golden hair.
Eventually Balin had to admit to Bilbo that this was a Durin trait through and through. Thorin was much the same as a babe, content to sit quietly in the company of the adults - especially King Thror - happy as long as he was holding on to one of Grandda’s braids. So Bilbo shook his head and smiled as his ridiculously adorable husband and son wreaked havoc upon the hearts and sensibilities of the free folk of Middle-earth, with some additional help from their equally ridiculously adorable nephews.
***
I FICCED AND I AM NOT SORRY.
BLAME WANDERINGQUILL FOR BRINGING ME STUFF TO SQUEE OVER OKAY.
THIS MAY BE A RESULT OF THAT PLOT BUNNY THAT WENT MISSING A FEW POSTS BACK SINCE IT WAS A FRODO AS THORIN AND BILBO’S ACTUAL DWOBBIT BABY BUNNY….
I forgot i never posted this but I finally watched the Lord of the Rings trilogy all the way through for the first time a couple months back and I got stupidly attached to Sméagol and I just like the idea of a post canon dynamic where he doesn’t give in to the corruption of the ring and lives in Frodo’s backyard as Frodo tries to slowly reintroduce him to society lmao
I miss the Shire. I spent all my life pretending I was off somewhere else. Off with you, on one of your adventures. But my own adventure turned out to be quite different. I’m not like you, Bilbo.
ELIJAHWOODasFrodo BagginsinTHELORDOFTHERINGS:TheFellowshipoftheRing 2001 | dir. Peter Jackson.
