#house of the white wing

[elerondo]

In the midst of the Angmar War, after the Second Siege of Imladris, Elrond sends Arwen to Lorien to summon the Galadhrim.

A THICK AND STIFLING ATMOSPHERE HAD SETTLED OVER RIVENDELL . No elves sang in the Hall of Fire, they were all mailed from top to toe. Various temporary barracks were set up for the cleaning and polishing of armaments, and to suit up at a moment’s notice. Some of them did not even bother to change out of their bottom plates when they were recalled from the borders.

Elrond held an audience under a converted canopy. Its usual fair and wooded scenery now adorned in the rich colours of the House of Fingolfin, with royal blue painting the satin cloth under the roof. On the top of the shelter flew two flags; one was the gold trimmed flag of Gil-galad’s Radiant Star, the other was the House of the White Wing, symbolising the seat of Tuor of fallen Gondolin. A staunch reminder that the race of the Elves would protect the race of Man, whatever the costs.

Its space was now occupied by an oak desk, and its side benches were filled with an assortment of items. Wine, files, and leftover bread to name a few. It was guarded by two elven warriors all day and night, rotating in the evening. Those chosen were from a select few who had sworn their allegiance to Elrond in secret after the Last Alliance. They saw the Lord as High King, surviving Gil-galad, but this was only known to those closest to Elrond. In public, they were simply Wardens of the Vale. They were styled by one brown feather aside their sharp helmets, like hawks.

Runaduin, the captain of them, bellowed out the latest visitor. ❝ Hail, Maethedir, second captain of Lindon’s guards! ❞

Maethedir nodded his regards quickly, holding his helmet at the side of his hip. ❝ Lord Elrond, the North Downs are overrun, as you know. My lord Cirdan requests for an additional sortie from Imladris, ❞ Maethedir bowed his head and looked to his feet. ❝ Fornost will be lost very soon, my lord. ❞

❝ I hold the borders of Arthedain in my palms, and Rivendell has just come out of a siege. Why does Cirdan ask this? I can spare no more captains. ❞ Elrond knew that he would answer it regardless. But, with how stretched the resources were on all fronts, he needed to know just how dire the situation was. ❝ Can lord Cirdan answer for the borders of Arthedain? Can you? ❞

Already Elrond was looking back at the map on his desk. He had always tried to keep the shuffling of the troops balanced, making sure that the Valley was still adequately defended despite the aid that he had sent out. No decisions were made without surety, or with only emotions clouding his judgement.

❝ No, my lord. We have lost two contingents at the North Downs and the men are losing. We are outnumbered. ❞

❝ And you have lost also the captains of those two contingents? ❞

❝Yes.❞

Elrond stood with worry visibly creasing his brows, but he did not wish to give an answer. ❝ I will consider my options. ❞ No definite response, no false hopes.

Maethedir insisted on staying, wanting to convince. ❝ Please, lord Elrond— ❞ but Runaduin bellowed out, ❝ Assembly finished! ❞ and Elrond raised a hand, waving Maethedir away. Heightened frustration clung to his shoulders as he saw the white coat of arms of Gondor enter Rivendell. Was it fell news, or was it aid? He could only wait and see now, but Elrond turned his back for a short moment, needing a breath of fresh air as he scanned the encampment and buildings.

❝ Hail, lady Arwen of Rivendell! ❞ Runaduin spoke up then, to Elrond’s surprise.

❝ What…? ❞ he turned quickly. ❝ Arwen…! ❞ it was a half greeting, half defeated sigh as the frown on his countenance remained. His shoulders slouched. She should not be seeing him this way.

❝ Adar, ❞ Arwen came up the steps and greeted Elrond with a hand on his arm. ❝ It pains me that the lands are so troubled, but you must remember to be gentle to yourself. ❞

The machinations of his mind paused only slightly at her soft words, and he was reminded to keep his composure. It was all he could do after all, amidst the war and death flooding into Eriador once more. His expression softened, but no less worried. For his daughter, he would try.

Elrond pulled her into the shelter quickly, father and daughter like magnets to each other really. But, there was some business he needed to take care of before anything else, and so he stepped towards the entrance while keeping Arwen’s hand firmly in his. Elrond addressed one of the Wardens, ❝ Sadorel, summon Elladan to the War room and have him ready my armour. Sound the alarm to muster the remaining cavalry. ❞ The warden turned to Elrond, bowed, and made haste to his mission.

❝ Runaduin, I am in private audience. ❞

The captain nodded, and then assumed a position in the middle of the stairway as a block to any potential interruptions. There were little emergencies considered to be more important than his daughter.

When Elrond turned back to face her, his eyes were of firesmoke and resolution, having come to the conclusion of what he must do. ❝ Forgive me, Arwen. You must go to Lorien. ❞ Aid must be sought from the Galadhrim, and the best representative he could send in his stead was his dear, sweet daughter. Elladan must hold the ring when Elrond marches against Angmar. ❝ The hawks will ride with you. ❞

[jessbakescakes]

Martin Sheen and Allison Janney | The Emmys, September 15, 2024

[sher-ee]

This is what happens when you don’t vote. This is what happens when a wannabe Dictator appoints Supreme Court Justices for lifetime appointments.

We will lose our democracy should Trump win. Those uneducated Republicans who think this is a win will wake up one day and wonder what in the hell has happened to our country.

Vote BLUE.

[deadpresidents]

What's been your favorite Oval Office layout?

I liked President Clinton's Oval Office because I feel like the colors really popped out at you, especially with the blue carpet:

Clinton's Oval Office also kind of reminds me of the Bartlet Oval Office in The West Wing, although the Oval Office in The West Wing was always super dark for some reason. I know some readers are going to be surprised that I didn't choose LBJ because LBJ is always my answer when it comes to favorites, but the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s decorations weren't great. It is funny, however, to see the giant TVs -- one for each of the three television networks at the time -- that LBJ had in his Oval Office because he was such an information junkie (LBJ also had a teletype machine installed in the Oval Office so he could get news reports immediately):

I also really liked George W. Bush's Oval Office, but it would have been better with a bit more color. My favorite color is blue, so I would definitely have wanted to see more blue in Bush's Oval. But I do like the rug that President Bush used, which was also used by President Reagan.

For those who are interested, it looks like the awesome White House Museum website, which disappeared for a while, is now being hosted here. You can see photos of how the Oval Office was decorated for various Presidents ever since the West Wing was built.

Also, here's a great photo of a completely empty Oval Office (stripped of everything, including carpets) as it was being cleaned during the transition between Presidents on Inauguration Day:

[stimboard-central]

"Isaac, and his mother, lived alone in a small house on a hill..."

A Binding Of Isaac stimboard for myself!

💊 x 😇 x 📺 🤍 x 🧸 x 🖤 🏚️ x 👿 x 🔪

[ambermaitrejean]

May in Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. Commerce City, Colorado. Photos by Amber Maitrejean

[somniatic]

i don't often feel sympathy for dain aetos but i somehow found myself writing a drabble about him watching xaden interact with brennan (someone i think that dain once saw as an older brother) while also listening to half-return by adrianne lenker and the one-two punch of those things was enough to bring tears to my eyes

[lassie-farce]

There’s so much love in his eyes

Like

„Look at my beautiful boyfriend. He’s so cute when he sings weird latin songs. I love him so much”

[sesamenom]

Reverse Gondolin AU family portrait

[epically-epic-epicosity]

[zuntoshere]

Fellas, I think I know what's going to happen to q!Philza :^) .....

Just remembered that Phil wanted to make an insanity arc for his dsmp character during "The Hog Hunt " . When d!Philza was locked in his house by d!Tubbo and started to dig a giant hole under his L'Manberg house, but Techno rescued Philza really fast.

(ty whoever made a compilation of all Sad-ist dsmp animatics that just shook my memories)

[giraffecreates]

Red Winged Blackbird, White Breasted Nuthatch, House Sparrow

[deadpresidents]

So now we’ve seen some nice-looking Oval Office setups. Do you have some atrocious ones?

When President Kennedy traveled to Texas in November 1963 and was scheduled to be away from the White House for a few days, White House staff put the finishing touches on a planned redecoration of his Oval Office. JFK, of course, was assassinated on that trip, so he actually never saw his redecorated office, but it was pretty brutal-looking, in my opinion, as they installed a bright red carpet that just didn't seem to fit in the Oval Office:

Here's a comparison of the Oval Office when JFK took office in 1961, which largely looked like the decor used by President Eisenhower throughout the Eisenhower Administration, and the ugly, red carpet redecoration that Kennedy never saw due to his assassination:

When LBJ assumed office following JFK's assassination, he kept the bright red carpet for a while, but eventually redecorated again and got rid of the carpet. LBJ also swapped out the legendary Resolute desk that has been used by most Presidents over the past 120 years. President Johnson was a physically large man, and he installed a larger desk that he had previously used when he was in the Senate and serving as Vice President. The desk that LBJ used -- which is actually called the "Johnson desk" -- is now on display at the LBJ Presidential Library | @lbjlibrary | in Austin, Texas in the museum's Oval Office replica, which displays LBJ's Oval Office as it looked once he replaced the ugly red carpet and had the office redecorated to suit his own tastes.

[raxistaicho]

Chapter 95 jump out!

Just posted chapter 95 of my fanfic, On Black Wings :)

It’s a ludicrously in-depth retelling of the Crimson Flower storyline of Fire Emblem Three Houses, focusing on character moments, tactics and strategy, and the day-to-day life at Garreg Mach.

The battle for the Great Bridge of Myrddin begins…

[the-last-kenobi]

none of this would be happening if jed bartlet were president