#aragorn at weathertop

[madcat-world]

MTG x LOTR: Weathertop (1 of 2) - Calder Moore

[thranduilofsmirkwood]

[gnomescarfcomics]

Middle-earth shots of the week

[dreamingnaiad]

"Luthien Tinuviel" by artist Alan Lee, one of his illustrations for Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien.

[baba-the-yagaa]

POV: Frodo at Weathertop

tw: skulls and fake stuff like there's blue ghosts here and uh fire and skulls

click for better quality

[myhusbandsasemni]

I made a speedpaint of the lights of weathertop, including reading the scene from lord of the rings where Frodo and Aragorn spot the lights. Twas fun, and much easier to make this video than the last one I did.

[rangers-arecool]

@heartsdefine :: frodo | reply to this ::

Razor-sharp smiles and cold grey eyes. Blue fire and green lightning. A gender-fluid Ranger known for his neutrality but also for his wild nature. The man who had no issues going places where Death tended to linger, like the Northern and Southern Barrow-downs near Bree. Who Strider trusted with his life and with the lives of their kin.

The ancient Numenorean Watch tower of Amon Sûl had long been turned to ruins but that didn't stop Hal from utilising the pattern beneath their feet. Blue fire raced from the tip of his sword to the star below and the ruins lit up, forcing the Riders to move back quickly or risk getting turned to ash.

"Hal, Strider's second in command."

His words were neutral, unaffected by the darkness trying to find a way to the Hobbits. But nothing got through the protective flames, not without burning. Then he shifted ever so slightly to stand in front of Frodo, catching the on fire morgul blade in his shoulder without a flinch.

[rangers-are-cool-moved]

For: Frodo :: @heartsdefine Muse: Hal Verse: LOTR: FoTR

Visiting Weathertop wasn't something that Hal was prone to doing. It was usually only when he visited the Eglain or Candaith, that he went to the ruins. And almost never did he go when Strider was out on missions, in case of Ranger issues.

As usual when it came to camping at the ruins, the genderfluid Ranger forewent a fire and any normal signs of a camp. He had settled down in the shadows of one of the pillars, much earlier in the day. Not expecting anyone else to come that way.

Four Hobbits being chased by the Nazgul?

Definitely not the normal night time visitors but it didn't matter. He appeared near silently by the Hobbits, unusual blue flames leaping off his sword and keeping the Wraiths at a distance.

"Your companion is coming."

[glorfindel-of-imladris]

I've mentioned this in passing in this post, but this is hands down my favourite line in The Fellowship of the Ring. The line speaks volumes about Glorfindel, and yet the details are easily missed by a first-time reader travelling along with Frodo and friends, and that's because not once does Glorfindel explain how significant his words and actions were. Yet there is so much to unpack! It is only left to us to appreciate them after learning more about this world.

“There are few even in Rivendell that can ride openly against the Nine…”

Again, Glorfindel only mentioned this in passing and did not explain, but the reason for this is because the only ones Rivendell would send to ride openly against the Nazgûl were special members of the Eldar: the Calaquendi, old Elves from Valinor and who have seen the light of the Two Trees. Gandalf later explains that these Elves “live at once in both worlds, and against both the Seen and Unseen they have great power”. The Nazgûl, as we learn, were wraiths that reside only in the Unseen world, and so to anyone else, they were invisible.

We know there were very few Calaquendi remaining in Middle-earth by the Third Age, and most of them reside in Rivendell. But even among them, likely only the warriors could be sent to go after the Nagzûl, chief of Sauron's servants. This early, we get a clue that Frodo and company have met someone extraordinary.

“It was my lot to take the Road…”

By “Road”, Glorfindel meant The Great East-West Road, an ancient road that cuts across Eriador from the Grey Havens to Rivendell and the Misty Mountains. This would have been the most perilous of the roads because it would have been the most obvious path passing through the Shire. Later, during the Council of Elrond, it would be mentioned that Sauron would be expecting the Ring to go from the Shire either to the Grey Havens or to Rivendell, both routes reached primarily via the Road.

It was to be expected therefore that this is the one path most guarded by the Enemy. Again, Glorfindel only mentions his task securing the Road in passing, but the fact that he got the most obvious and thus most perilous path speaks volumes of his ability and position in Rivendell. Only a few deemed able to ride openly against the Nine were sent out, and out of them, Glorfindel was the one sent to secure the most dangerous route. What ability and skill must this Elf have to be entrusted with such a task!

"I came to the Bridge of Mitheithel, and left a token there, nigh on seven days ago."

The Bridge of Mitheitel, or The Last Bridge, is the only way to cross the great River Hoarwell (Mitheitel) from Weathertop to Rivendell. Aragorn, as much as he could, avoided the Road, himself knowing the dangers possibly waiting for them there. Later though he tells the Hobbits, "I am afraid we must go back to the Road here for a while, [for we] have now come to the River Hoarwell... There is no way over it below its sources in the Ettenmoors, except by the Last Bridge on which the Road crosses."

Aragorn and the Hobbits therefore went to the Bridge dreading to encounter the Nazgûl, only to find it safe. Instead, Aragorn finds an elf-stone in the middle of the bridge, which gives him hope. We now learn that it was Glorfindel who left it there, for he has secured the Bridge, likely knowing how important it was to do so because unlike all other paths, this was the one path that Frodo and company would inevitably need to take. If the Enemy wanted to lay an ambush, they would have done so at the Bridge; strategically Glorfindel understood this, and coming after them at the Bridge was exactly what the company needed from him for them to stay safe.

“Three of the servants of Sauron were upon the Bridge, but they withdrew and I pursued them westward. I came also upon two others, but they turned away southward.”

Here once again is Glorfindel describing something incredible in the simplest of ways: the Nazgûl actually flee from him! Thus far in the book, the Nazgûl were the first source of terror for Frodo's company as well as for us, the readers, yet here Glorfindel was riding about with bells on his horse, not even trying to hide at all. He is the one hunting the Nazgûl and not the other way around, this was made very clear.

Glorfindel has been my favourite character from the start. He got me from their first meeting because he gave the Hobbits a sense of safety, even though they and we perhaps do not yet fully appreciate who he was and what he was capable of. As we read through the rest of the books, and even beyond through The Silmarillion, The Fall of Gondolin, The Peoples of Middle-earth and all these other books that share his history, I only learned to love him all the more. Years later, having read all these other books, I still sometimes just sit in awe thinking back on this first encounter in this first book, in the Fellowship of the Ring, about how Frodo and his friends met this seemingly humble Elf, who in actuality was literally an Elf of legend. Yet apparently one would not think it, encountering Glorfindel on the road.

[holliday-is-holligay]

OKAY LORD OF THE RINGS HOT TAKE - I WISH THE MOVIES KEPT THE BARROW DOWNS

Art by: QuintusCassius

You don't have to keep Bombadil, they can find their own way out for the sake of pacing, but when I think about just how much this scene actually ties into the rest of the story's themes it becomes more and more of a shame it didn't make it in.

It introduces the idea of a land falling to shadow and establishes, in the most show-don't-tell way so far how intense the threat to the landscape itself the evil they're facing could be. This is a story about a war on the land as well, after all, and this land LOST. And it's NOT a far off land from their own home. Such shadowy devastation and evil and rot and despair is so close to their own home.

We learn these ruins belong to Arnor, an even greater kingdom of men than Gondor. Which, hey, is gonna become super relevant multiple times across the story - like when Boromir is pleading for help with Gondor's plight or talking about its strength, or when we see Minas Tirith under siege. And we KNOW that kingdoms of Men greater than it have fallen.

It establishes The Witch King really early and subtly. This doesn't even need to be mentioned at this point. It can be done the same way it's done in the movies RE Weathertop when Gandalf is explaining who The Witch King is. He can just explain it further. "He stabbed Frodo on Weathertop, and he laid low the Kingdom of Arnor." Flashback to Weathertop and the Barrowdowns.

This also makes it more significant, like it was in the books, that The Witch King is the one leading this army. He's destroyed a kingdom of men once before, he'll fucken do it again.

It makes Aragorn's defeat of him on Weathertop WAY more impactful! One of the Dunedain driving off The Witch King at the site of one of Arnor's greatest losses to The Witch King is a symbolic cue that though these are dark times, these are changing times.

And, of course, it sets up Merry's sword. Merry doesn't just have some random sword in the books. He takes a sword from the Barrow Downs, a sword of the Dunedain, and carries it through the ENTIRE STORY and that's what he stabs The Witch King with on Pelenor Fields. The books even have a paragraph briefly eulogising the sword and talking about the pride of the swordsmith who would never know that they made the weapon who undid their greatest enemy, wielded by a hobbit.

Like... Yeah, as a filmmaker and writer myself I FULLY understand that pacing is a vital thing to keep hold of. And The Fellowship of The Ring is perfectly paced. And deciding what to keep and what to cut is just... a nightmare that Peter Jackson and his team did better than anyone had any right to do.

But I think The Barrow Downs should honestly be talked about similarly to how we talk about The Scouring of The Shire. Its effects and thematic overtones are incredibly far reaching and important to the story and it's definitely one of those "it's a real shame it got cut" moments but I DO understand why they cut it.

[sweetshire]

💛 LOTR GEN FICS REC LIST 💛:

for @genworkjune i’ve put together some of the fics i’ve loved reading (ignore that it’s the last day of the month please). as usual, don’t forget to leave a kudos or a comment if u enjoyed them! oh also, if this formatting seems familiar — that’s because i’ve shamelessly copied it off of @emyn-arnens; i just think it’s neat XD! onward, and enjoy :)

O Wandering Winds by yet_intrepid (G, Faramir & Boromir, 3.5k):

By the time Faramir is told in his sleep of Isildur's Bane, he is already accustomed to seeing with more than his eyes.

The Darkest Lord by rhymer23 (G, Sauron, ~600 words):

Sauron sings us a summary of his nefarious deeds, in an attempt to prove that he is the ultimate Dark Lord of fantasy fiction.

Home Fires Burning by starryeyedknight (G, Hobbits, 5.2k):

The War of the Ring rages on and, in the Shire, the hobbits learn to live without those they love.

Eowyn’s New Toy by @torchwood-99 (Éowyn & Gimli, 1.1k, cw gore):

Gimli, son of Gloin, pays a visit to the White Lady of Rohan, and brings with him a very welcome gift.

Something of Home by @emyn-arnens (G, Faramir & Finduilas, ~800 words):

Faramir never stops bringing his mother flowers.

with every seed you sow, let it wash away, wash away by @afaramir (G, Faramir & Legolas, Éowyn & Faramir & Legolas, 3.9k):

In which an elf and a prince of Gondor speak of grief and death and the sea, and life and song and brothers.

Looking for Dragons by Raksha_The_Demon (G, Gandalf & Belladonna Took & Bungo Baggins, 1.3k):

Gandalf makes a new friend, in an unanticipated and fruitful meeting.

Too Burdened to Fly by @hobbitwrangler (G, Finduilas, 3k):

A look at Finduilas' thoughts during her final moments.

On Gardens and Growing Things by rhymer23 (G, Sam & Aragorn, 2.5k):

En route to Weathertop, Aragorn tries to ease Sam's distrust of him. It doesn't go quite as planned.

Bitter Was Their Parting by @dreamingthroughthenoise (G, Arwen & Elrond, 2.2k):

“You knew,” Arwen said, unable to meet her father’s gaze. “You’ve always known what path I would follow.”

On These Hither Shores by @emyn-arnens (G, Frodo & Boromir, 3.2k):

As the Fellowship travels south, Frodo and Boromir speak of their homes and families and come to understand one another, for a time.

The complexity of bachelorhood by unknownlifeform (G, Gimli & Boromir & the Hobbits, 1.5k):

Gimli explains to the Hobbits and Boromir that marriage is for Dwarves only one of the paths that can be taken.

The Horn of Gondor by @saentorine (T, Boromir, 3.5k):

Five-year-old Boromir receives the horn of Gondor, which goes about exactly how you'd expect.

Greenleaf’s Tree by @sotwk (G, Legolas & Thranduil, 2.8k):

Six-year-old Legolas goes on royal progress with Thranduil for the first time and learns more about the sort of king his father truly is.

The Fathers of Fools by Carlandrea (G, Glóin & Thranduil, 1.3k):

Gloín, on the way home to the Mountain, tells the Elvenking what has happened to his son.

The Adventures of Peregrine Took by bunn (G, Pippin & Sam & Merry, ~450 words):

A Poem by Samwise Gamgee (Mayor) and Merry Brandybuck on the occasion of Peregrine Took, Knight of Gondor, becoming Thain of the Shire.

What Keeps Us Here by @sallysavestheday (G, Celeborn & Thranduil, 1k):

Celeborn and Thranduil after the War. To sail or not to sail.

Different Ways To Light A Path by baby_bat_98 (G, Gimli & Legolas, 5.1k):

Legolas has a hard time in Khazad-dûm. Gimli helps.

For Want of a Ring by @tathrin (G, Gimli & Legolas, 4k):

The aftermath of the Battle of the Hornburg is a time for the survivors to rest and heal, a brief pause in the long march to war. The same is true of the lone Dwarf and Elf who fought there—but the members of the Fellowship of the Ring faced peril long before this bitter night, and some scars sit deeper than any mere bandage might soothe.

The Ring has gone beyond their reach now, with but one casualty from their Company to its name so far; but that does not mean its dark whispers do not linger still within the hearts that heard it.

But what could tempt an Elf of Mirkwood to look upon that terrible Shadow with aught but loathing?

the innermost life of my life by pinkmoon (G, Frodo & Sam, 1.5k):

Sam meets Frodo for the first time.

A Corner of the Hall by Zdenka (G, Aragorn & Bilbo, ~550 words):

Aragorn gives Bilbo the promised help with his song.

a red book pressed into his hands by dirgewithoutmusic (G, Bilbo & Frodo, Sam & Frodo, 2.4k):

Even on the sweet walks of the Shire, things come along that sweep you off your feet—adventures, wizards, children. Bilbo came down, a month after he’d adopted this strange, quiet boy on a whim and a wonder, and found his whole (second) living room scattered with some unholy combination of paint, jam, and mud. Frodo sat in the middle of the mess, with dirty hands and innocence plastered all over his face.

Bilbo leaned on the door because something in that bright grin had taken his balance from him. He went for a mop. He had not felt so at home since thirteen dwarves had tumbled through his round green door. He felt like Frodo had stolen something from him and then given it back better than it had left.

Thievery, perhaps, ran in the family.

[glorf1ndel]

It’s October 6! On this day, the hobbits and Aragorn fought the Ringwraiths at the ruins of Amon Sûl, or Weathertop.

[thranduilofsmirkwood]

[mynameisaury]

I don’t know if it’s just me but one of the LOTR moments that I love the most and that makes me cry all the time is the battle of Weathertop. I remember rewatching it after having finished the trilogy and crying because of it. I mean, knowing how Frodo will have to leave Sam at the end also because of his wound and the fact that he will never heal from it makes me physically and psychologically sick. Moreover in the films, as soon as Frodo is stabbed Sam runs to him and Frodo says “oh Sam” with that super sweet and grateful tone and Sam just smiles to him. And in the meanwhile Aragorn that fight all the Nazgûl’s alone and risks his life for his little hobbits. God all of this makes me sob.

[whiteladyofithilien]

We know Frodo stays abed and his wound bothers him on the anniversary of his encounter with the witch-king at Weathertop so I wonder if Eowyn and Merry both get melancholy and have numb arms and have to lay abed on the anniversary of The Battle of Pelennor Fields?

Also that must be a super bummer because while in the Shire there's probably not much to-do over the anniversary; in Gondor I'm sure it's probably a big deal and everyone would probably expect Eowyn to appear in public as both a hero of the day and wife of one of the great lords of Gondor but instead she's got depression and a numb arm... Which, to be fair knowing Faramir he probably stays home with her rather than attending the festivities. I'm sure Aragorn understands and is more than happy to allow his absence.

[buck1eys]

okay but can you IMAGINE how devastating it is for the party when Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings comes out in 2001 and against all odds it's actually GOOD? Like Mike and Will are in town visiting Joyce anyway and Dustin suggests getting the old gang together to watch it and so the six of them all pile down to Indianapolis (Hawkins cinema shut in '98 and God if the passage of time doesn't bring a lump to El's throat she can't explain) and prepare to hate on it, apart from Max who goes because she knows how much it means to Lucas and El because she just likes to see her old friends. But then it's GOOD it's actually wonderful and Will can't help but shudder at Weathertop when Frodo is attacked because he knows how it feels to be marked with a burden forever and Lucas is thrilled by Strider the ranger and Mike loves Sam with his whole heart from the second he steps out of the Shire. Merry and Pippin have them giggling like idiots. The first real blow is when Gandalf dies and Max and Mike are surprised when El grabs their hands so hard her knuckles turn white, they wonder what she's thinking about. But the real kicker is the end, everyone's invested by this point, even Max who found the books too dry and weirdly written to get past Rivendell (though she did love the Hobbit when Lucas got her a copy) and even though they know what's coming it still hurts like hell when the orcs attack and the party is separated forever, and the sad shire music is only making it hurt more so when Boromir is hit once, twice, three times defending the hobbits and Aragorn is too late to save him there are more than a few sniffles, but then Will turns his head and sees Dustin on the end of the row, thirty years old and silently sobbing his heart out. He nudges Mike to get his attention but then he sees that Mike is staring, glassy eyed at the screen too. It's not til they get out and pile back in the car and have dissected every costume decision and deviation from the book (where was Tom Bombadil, Mike wants to know, but Lucas and Dustin say good riddance) that Will brings up the ending, gently, hey, the breaking of the fellowship was really well done, and there's a silence before Dustin says, yeah man, Eddie would have loved it.