#and so the Woodland Realm wouldn't fade

[sotwk]

Not to give you two asks in the one day but I always find it interesting to consider which elves stayed or went to the Undying Lands but sadly most of my 'real life' friends do not have any opinions on Thranduil staying or going. I find the idea of him leaving really interesting (how long does he stay? how easy/hard is it for him to leave? what makes him finally decide to go? how does the rest of middle earth/his people respond?). I think it really makes sense in your au for him to go (not that I know much about it) to be reunited with Maereth and his sons. For me, I've always thought that he would stay because I think he wouldn't necessarily mind living on in a different Middle Earth the way other elves might and also stubbornness. (Also I subscribe to the theory that Legolas's mother is alive and well, which very much changes things).

This is a very long and rambling way of saying that I'm glad to hear your take on Thranduil leaving/staying in Middle Earth because it's a topic that has always interested me and also would you ever write him and Maereth reuniting in the Undying Lands?

SotWK AU Headcanon: Thranduil's Fate in the Undying Lands

A Thranduil headcanon I feel very passionate about yet I feel does not get enough mention in fan writings, is the depth of his suffering and the true extent of his losses during the Third Age.

Certainly, Mirkwood gets a happy ending when it survives the fall of Dol Guldur and is reinvigorated into the new kingdom of Eryn Lasgalen. But it took Thranduil nearly everything he had to get his people there.

Putting aside the deaths of his most beloved wife (grievous enough to cause lesser elves to fade) and two of his sons, the Elvenking battled against Sauron and his minions from TA 1000 to 3019. In the SotWK AU, the death of his wife in TA 2793 meant at that point, he had already lost half of his family, and been forced into underground halls, his once proud people turned into refugees on their own lands.

Yet he always picked himself back up and continued to protect just not Mirkwood, but also their allies in Dale during The Battle of Five Armies. Then, he sent his last remaining son to The Council AND thwarted Sauron's invasions into Mirkwood during the War of the Ring.

Yes, Thranduil is perhaps the most enduring elf in Middle-earth, but centuries of holding fast against corrupting darkness and suffering would be enough to take a toll on anyone. We Thranduil stans like to point out that he did not have the advantage of a Ring of Power. So what powers did he lean on? His own!

By the time the "happy ending" is achieved, Thranduil is just as badly beaten and bruised in spirit as the ringbearer Frodo. Look at it this way: Frodo carried the One Ring for about 18 years (the last year being the Quest) and suffered unspeakable pain as a result, and was never fully-healed again.

Thranduil, whose spirit was tied to Greenwood the Great, used his inner strength and innate "magic" powers to guard it as best as his could and prevent Sauron himself from overwhelming that entire forest for 2,000 years. In my mind, Thranduil turned his very self into a shield to protect the Elves of Mirkwood against the Darkness, to prevent every last one of them from being hauled off to Dol Guldur where they would be corrupted into an orc army. (Which isn't to say this did not happen to some unfortunate Silvans throughout the Third Age.) The point is, the Elves of Mirkwood still had enough quality of life to hold merry feasts in a Valar-forsaken forest, and Thranduil had to have paid a steep price for that. He HAD to have been SO TIRED. But he carried on.

At the start of his rule, young Elvenking Thranduil might have declared he was prepared to live in and rule the Woodland Realm forever. But that was not his destiny.

As that quote we love so well goes:

“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo. "So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

Thranduil needed to retire to the Blessed Realm to achieve healing and rest, just as much as Frodo and Bilbo did. And of course, to reunite with his beloved wife and sons. THAT is his happy ending--in my mind and AU, at least.

How long does he stay?

Thranduil sails on the Last Ship with Celeborn, Círdan and (pardon the spoiler) Gelir, the last of his sons to leave Middle-earth. The date this last ship sails is unidentified in Tolkien canon, but takes place at least after FA 171. Why?

A neat SotWK timeline event for you: In honor of his wife Maereth's love for the Durins and his family's friendship with the Dwarves of Erebor, Thranduil led an army to assist Durin VII in the Retaking of Khazad-dûm. Thranduil and Maereth shared special memories of Khazad-dûm, and Thranduil was actually moved to tears to see those halls finally cleansed of orcs once more.

How easy/hard is it for him to leave? What makes him finally decide to go?

200 or so years was more than enough time for Thranduil to ensure that Eryn Lasgalen was properly re-established under the kingship of his heir, Aranion, son of Mirion. His granddaughter, Anariel, had committed to staying with her brother in Middle-earth and helping him in his rule. The Silvan people were in excellent hands.

Thranduil's daughter-in-law, Itarildë (eager to reunite with Mirion), and his son Turhir, had already sailed to the Undying Lands in FA 61, on the same ship as Samwise Gamgee. Legolas left with Gimli in FA 120.

By the time the Last Ship sailed, Thranduil was more than ready to go and join the rest of his family in Aman.

How does the rest of Middle-earth/his people respond?

The people of Eryn Lasgalen deeply loved Thranduil, and were of course sad to see him leave. But they also knew their King had suffered long enough and missed this wife terribly, and they wished only joy and healing for him, especially after everything he had endured for their sake.

Farewell feasts were certainly held, to allow friends and allies from across Middle-earth--Gondor, Dale, Rohan, the Shire and Khazad-dûm--to pay their respects to the great Elvenking.

I have no specifics, but I know that his departure from Middle-earth was forevermore commemorated in a great annual feast in Eryn Lasgalen.

Would you ever write him and Maereth reuniting in the Undying Lands?

Well, seeing as writing just this headcanon post got me all misty-eyed and punched in the feels, I suppose I could write that reunion story once I'm able to gather the emotional strength for it. XD

Thank you as always for this superb Ask, Ace Reporter @hobbitwrangler! <3

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#sotwk answers #sotwk headcanon #sotwk oc #thranduil #maereth #tolkien #tolkien elves #middle earth #thranduil x oc #thranduil headcanon #valinor #grey havens

[demonprincezeldris]

"B-but you have an entire Realm to populate... what need would you have to come here to Brittania!?" Elizabeth gasped out, "Are you not encroaching upon the humans, fairies, and giants by colonizing Brittania!?"

That was what the Arch Angels and Mother had said at least when she had asked why the Goddess Clan needed to be involved with demonc clan matters.

"The Underworld has little food and a large population forced to hunt often dangerous prey to sustain it, what use does the Goddess Clan have for Brittania!?"

'A fancy garden,' the thought came unbidden to Elizabeth's mind, 'And thousands of devout vassals and followers to listen to Mother's teachings. But...'

"...That doesn't explain why you are here, demon."

"I was defending the Pack from the Arch Angel when they launched an unexpected attack on a village of civilians trying to settle in an otherwise uninhabited woodland and got caught with Mael's Sunshine and Tarmiel's Tornado almost slicing my arm off and came here to hide away, what do you think I'm doing here!?"

"The. Why won't you simply let me help you!?"

"Why the hell should I trust you!?"

"Because I'm not like them!" she said. Meliodas raised an eyebrow. "Really?" he asked sarcastically.

After a few moments he sighed. "I can see that you're not going to leave until you heal my damn wound. So let's just get this over with so you can leave me the fuck alone."

The dangerous aura around the Demon slowly faded away, allowing Elizabeth to take a closer look. Meliodas growled in warning as she came closer. "If you try ANYTHING, Goddess, I won't hesitate to slice right through you like paper."

Elizabeth wouldn't do anything to him. She would keep her word.

(Sorry if this is a bit lackluster. I'm a bit tired lol-)

#Healer Liz AU #Melizabeth

[headcannonballs]

It is made clear that the ruler of the Woodland Realm was never in possession of a Ring of Power (even Cirdan of the Grey Havens held one, for a time). Yet of all the elven kingdoms of the third age, Mirkwood is the place which appears the most overtly magical.

Yup, it's headcannon time.

We know that Celebrimbor forged the rings during the second age and gave them to Gilgalad, Galadriel and in some drafts directly to Cirdan. It was only at Gilgalad's death that Vilya passed to Elrond.

From the attitude Oropher held towards the Noldor, it is to be expected that he would not be given a ring. And though Thranduil seemed less distrustful, I doubt any of the three felt close enough to him to wish to personally entrust their ring to him.

However, the Woodland Realm is a large elven kingdom that is remarkably close to Mordor. Leaving it unprotected would seem like great folly, especially when the Shadow rose and corrupted it from Greenwood into Mirkwood.

There must be something about Thranduil's rule which assured the rest of the Wise that he could hold his own, should the kingdom be under attack. And that is where magic comes in.

Tolkien's description of magic is very vague. Sure the Valar and Maia have powers, and so do magic rings embued with power. But other than that, most magical happenings go unexplained.

What is interesting is that overt magic in Rivendell (water horses and healing powers) and Lothlorien (stasis of the passage of time and preserving beauty) are explained through the presence of a ringbearer. But not the overt magic in Mirkwood, where the river is enchanted, bonfires can lead to hallucinations and doors are magical.

This leads me to think that Thranduil has powers, magical powers that are strong enough in and of itself to be a deterrent to enemies. It might not be as potent as a ring of power, but it is enough to protect his kingdom despite not being a ringbearer or being a light elf.

And I can't help but think that this has something to do with Thranduil growing up in Doriath under the guidance of Melian.

Oropher was noted to be a Sindarin Prince, and whether or not he was directly related to Thingol (a headcannon I'll leave for another post), he must surely be of high enough standing to occasionally get to meet the Maia Queen. It is during one of this meetings he decides to bring along his young son, and the blond elfling just charms Melian.

Perhaps the golden strands of his hair signified Vanyar blood, or reminded her of the golden tree. Whatever it is, Melian decides that this boy is talented, and she wants to tutor him.

Thingol too takes a liking to Thranduil, somehow seeing a lot of himself in the elfling. Oropher is delighted that his son has made an impression on his king and queen, and offers to bring him to the palace regularly.

And so it is, directly under the Maia Queen herself, that Thranduil learns his magic. He learns enchantments to repel and to protect, he learns the languages of the birds and is able to converse with them. He becomes more attuned to nature and the seasons, and finds himself as one with the forest.

Thingol occasionally drops in to their study sessions and speaks of Menegroth and trade with surrounding kingdoms and the day-to-day business of ruling. Thranduil is young enough to be just like a sponge and he absorbs all these knowledge, not really knowing what he will do with it but keeping it in his memory anyway.

And, after the fall of Doriath, the disappearance of Beleriand, the founding of the Woodland Realm and the death of his father, Thranduil recalls those lessons from long ago. He puts them into use and cannot help but think to himself, maybe Melian did see something in him after all.

#Thranduil #Melian #Thingol #Woodland Realm #Mirkwood magic #yes I know that the elvenking was most likely originally meant to be Thingol #which in my opinion just strengthens the idea that Thingol and Melian would just take to Thranduil instantly #btw this would also explain why Elrond and Galadriel were stressing out so much on the fate of the One Ring #but not Thranduil #because when the One Ring was destroyed the Three would loose their magic power #but Thranduil wouldn't #because his magic is his own #and so the Woodland Realm wouldn't fade