MaironsMaid

Dwarf: …. So you’re saying you can’t get any closer to that to the forgefire?

Elf: not comfortably, no

(Later)

Dwarf: *thrusting a hand out* back!

Elf: it’s really all right, I’ll just use the tongs to—

Idk what else to put into this drawing so im posting it.

Hes crying:(

Hey Russo…. What if…. We were ducks 😳 🪿

So from that point onward one of the three settings stands empty and he absolutely HATES how tacky it looks, and no one sensible dares say anything about it?? Oh and he can’t even get it remade because he canonically REFUSES to take off the Iron Crown—

And imagine he tries replacing it with some lesser stone and it just looks worse somehow because of course next to the Silmarils every jewel looks like it’s on clearance from Claire’s and Gothmog or someone unwisely tries to be nice like, “my lord, the diamond looks very—” before getting yeeted out the hall with extreme prejudice

It has 30 prompts for November but feel free to write and post whenever, but please add the tag #No one nuts November or #NoonenutsNovember wherever you post. You do not have to @ or credit this blog if you use any of these prompts.

(Text version under the cut)

But as I said before, most importantly, Mairon LEARNED from Melkor. He used his methods when rising to power! Of course, it's also fair to say that he wasn't behaving exactly one-to-one like Melkor, but he was still his apprentice, and it shows.

"Melkor only relied on his brute strength and was dumb as a brick" is just such a blatantly wrong statement that you start to wonder if all the people who say this have even opened Silm. His powers were his main asset at the very beginning of Arda, even before Tulkas arrived there. After that, perhaps only the breaking of the Lamps could be counted as a deed for which he needed nothing but his strength. Otherwise, he was hiding, scheming, planning, gaining allies, and, whenever he was defeated, he always managed to come back with a new plan and start causing problems again. How is that even remotely similar to someone who has "muscles but no brain"?

And I swear, at least part of this agenda comes from people's obsession with making it seem as if the time Mairon served Melkor was nothing but hell and torment for him. As if he was the only reason Melkor's empire was functioning, carrying all the responsibilities on his back, making all the plans, being the smart and responsible one while Melkor was just a decoration on the throne.

I think this also falls into a wider trend among shippers where the twink is the thoughtful femme one and the muscle has to be thoughtless and masculine despite that characters, like people, can contain multitudes.

They can be warriors and magicians, philosophers and conquerors, capable of great violence and appreciative of great art. Look at real life examples like Ghenis Khan, Alexander of Macedon, Timur, who could do it all.

I think any over simplification of either of them does them a disservice when they were both written as very layered and interesting antagonists who plotted and connived and also had tempers and rushed in to situations without thinking. Mairon rushes in to battle against Huan and Lúthien, and Melkor bides his time and seeks out an ally before attacking the Trees (so much that everyone thinks he's just gone sulking off).