#aragolas

From “Embracing Darkness”

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ARALAS WEEK 2023 PROMPT LIST

We are delighted to present #aralasweek2023!

The event will run over seven days from April 8 to April 14

Everyone is welcome! Mark your calendar and get some prepared!

Prompt & Suggestion

Day 1: Crown | Leaves

Suggestion

heirs and legacy

woodland and everything in it

Day 2: Sword | Bow/Archer

Suggestion

battle and blade

strength and courage

Day 3: Whimsical | Magnificent

Suggestion

beauty inside everything

affection and adoration

Day 4: Hope | Desire

Suggestion

wish and belonging

heart and mind

duty and honor

Day 5: Heaven | Ocean

Suggestion

skyborne, flying

comfort and healing

Day 6: Luminous | Stars

Suggestion

flame and shine

starlight, elfstone

Day 7: Spring | Eternity

Suggestion

new age 

glory and victory 

eternal and infinity

The hashtag is #aralasweek2023 #aralasweek

Information & Guidelines

This badge is a small gift for #aralasweek2023. Everyone can use it as profpic (or anything)

For all aralas week participants, you can edit with your name Download here

OKAY! Warning I know very little and there is probably a lot wrong or missing here! So right of the bat I'm seeing we've got different species and power dynamics at play

Gimli and Legolas are dwarf4elf, so that may be worth mentioning. If I'm remembering right, Gimli is also the "and my axe!" fucker, and I know Legolas is the shooty mcshootinson bitch, so right away we've got the shared love of weaponry and fighting, though they very likely have incredibly different styles for more reasons than one. Dwarven and elven values and attitudes towards death and violence are likely different, but this is Tolkien so it's probably existence and I'm on limited time here.

Hang on. These are the "never thought I'd die fighting side by side with an elf" people. Okay so here we've got a clear display of their growth (since Gimli was originally distrustful of Legolas' intentions) and how the two characters developed emotionally to put aside their difference and unite, both in battle and emotionally. It's not unreasonable to say that they can take that another route and into relationship territory (not that one is better than the other, just another path to take). Despite their differences, they are, in canon, capable of the necessary growth to make a healthy relationship.

Okay I'm also seeing that they became friends when walking through the woods, and elves are very woodlands creatures, so perhaps we can find a bit of similarity between their interests there. How do the dwarves view nature? Scrap that question I just read in the wiki that he went into the Undying Lands and Tolkien said it was strange that any dwarf would be willing to leave Middle-Earth for any love. I don't have any fucking clue what that means but it feels important.

I'm a third of the way through my time let's look at Aragorn. GOD wiki please tell me what species he is this is ridiculous. Okay he's not an elf but is descended from them? So he's got an unusually long life span? Okay his character description says he's somber and grim, and that kind of outlook might mesh well with an elven one like Legolas'? I'm not actually sure. Something about the seriousness feels like it could match an elven look and help them work together.

His name is also mentioned a lot on Legolas' wiki page, multiple instances of the two of them going through things together (though Gimli is a notable third addition). Found a random site that mentions something about Aragorn's true identity and Legolas defending him to Boromir, which was either when they met or very early on in their meeting. That sets a strong foundation for future relationships and a clear feeling of protection and trust in it, which is beneficial. Listen I have no context for this scene I have no idea who knows what or how they feel about it, but potentially this hinting towards Legolas knowing his identity could've built a bond between them from the get go that forces them to be more careful with each other, and that can lead to interesting dynamics.

There's also the whole matter of similar backgrounds, or at least more similar than Legolas and Gimli. Even if Aragorn's got a whole complicated situation with his race he was raised by Elrond in Rivendell (i think?) so he's got some elven thinking. If Elrond is indeed an elf but I've got six minutes so I'm not checking. And Legolas is Legolas, raised however he was. He's pretty clearly and elf, but the one thing that trips me up here is that he was "unimpressed" when he came to Rivendell to see the council of Elrond, as it displays that perhaps these two elven backgrounds may be as different as Gimli and Legolas' differences.

My other thought is that when I was key word searching through all their profiles, more often than not all of their names were coming up together. They seem to be a trio for a lot of the story, so why try to decide between a pairing? Why not all three of them if they're bonded so and endured so much together? Legolas has two hands, after all. But then I'd also have to get into what Gimli and Aragorn's relationship is like to see if it would be a triangle sort of a pairing or if they were both dating Legolas but not each other.

I think my final conclusion is that I can understand the shipping either way, but I don't think either one is superior to the other. Gimli and Legolas seem fun for the dynamics and depth they bring, and Aragorn and Legolas sound entertaining for the subtlety and intrigue. But also this was just thirty minutes of frantic skimming articles and trying desperately to remember my limited lotr knowledge.