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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 21 2019, 11:54am
Post #1 of 59
(6612 views)
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TIME - October 21
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Today in Middle-earth
October 21, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Dwarves become more impatient waiting at the Hidden Door.
(determined from text)
...""Tomorrow begins the last week of Autumn," said Thorin...
..."...What is our burglar doing for us? [asked Dwalin] Since he has got an invisible ring, and ought to be a specially excellent performer now... ...I am beginning to think he might go through the Front Gate and spy things out a bit!"
...Bilbo heard this—the dwarves were on the rocks just above the enclosure where he was sitting... "...Good Gracious!" he thought, "so that is what they are beginning to think, is it? It is always poor me that has to get them out of their difficulties, at least since the wizard left. Whatever am I going to do..? I... ...don't think I could bear to see the unhappy valley of Dale again...""
It's time for some BS for Widfara
... A special little offering today for a special Lady who once said this first paragraph was one of her favourites. For Widfara... a moment of Tolkien-zen.
From the Prologue: The Fellowship of the Ring
..."The land was rich and kindly, and though it had long been deserted when they entered it, it had before been well tilled, and there the king had once had many farms, cornlands, vineyards, and woods.
...Forty leagues it stretched from the Far Downs to the Brandywine Bridge, and fifty from the northern moors to the marshes in the south. The Hobbits named it the Shire, as the region of the authority of their Thain... ...and there in that pleasant corner of the world they plied their well-ordered business of living, and they heeded less and less the world outside where dark things moved, until they came to think that peace and plenty were the rule in Middle-earth and the right of all sensible folk. They forgot or ignored what little they had known of the Guardians, and of the labours of those that made possible the long peace of the Shire. They were... ...sheltered, but they had ceased to remember it.
...At no time had Hobbits of any kind been warlike, and they had never fought among themselves. In olden days they had... ...been often obliged to fight to maintain themselves in a hard world; but in Bilbo's time that was very ancient history. The last battle... ...the only one that had ever been fought within the borders of the Shire, was beyond living memory: The Battle of Greenfields, S.R. 1147, in which Bandobras Took routed an invasion of Orcs. Even the weather had grown milder, and the wolves that had once come ravening out of the North in bitter white winters were now only a grandfather's tale....
......though there was still some store of weapons in the Shire, these were used mostly as trophies, hanging above the hearths or on walls, or gathered into the museum at Michel Delving. The Mathom-house it was called; for anything that Hobbits had no immediate use for, but were unwilling to throw away, they called a mathom. Their dwellings were apt to become rather crowded with mathoms, and many of the presents that passed from hand to hand were of that sort.
......ease and peace had left this people still curiously tough. They were... ...difficult to daunt or to kill; and they were... ...so unwearingly fond of good things not least because they could, when put to it, do without them, and could survive rough handling by grief, foe, or weather in a way that astonished those who did not know them well and looked no further than their bellies and their well-fed faces. Though slow to quarrel, and for sport killing nothing that lived, they were doughty at bay, and at need could still handle arms. They shot well with the bow, for they were keen-eyed and sure at the mark. Not only with bows and arrows. If any Hobbit stooped for a stone, it was well to get quickly under cover, as all trespassing beasts knew very well."
Cheers Wid :)
[league = 3 miles]
We have been there and back again.
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Ginger
Defender
Oct 21 2019, 4:25pm
Post #2 of 59
(6541 views)
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 22 2019, 10:52am
Post #4 of 59
(6501 views)
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Today in Middle-earth
(A slight refresher)
[from Elrond's examination of the map of the Lonely Mountain] "He took it and gazed long at it... ...The moon was shining in a broad silver crescent. He held up the map and the white light shone through it. "What is this?" he said. "There are moon-letters here, beside the plain runes..."
..."...What do they say?" asked Gandalf and Thorin together...
..."...Stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks," read Elrond, "and the setting sun with the last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the key-hole..."
October 22, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Bilbo finds and opens the Secret Door.
(determined from text)
... "As the sun turned west [Bilbo] saw the orange ball of the sun sinking... ...and there pale and faint was a thin new moon above the rim of Earth.
... At that very moment he heard a sharp crack behind him. There on the grey stone in the grass was an enormous thrush... ...Crack! It had caught a snail and was knocking it on the stone. Crack! Crack!
... Suddenly Bilbo understood. Forgetting all danger he stood on the ledge and hailed the dwarves, shouting and waving...
... ...Quickly Bilbo explained. They all fell silent... ...The sun sank lower and lower, and their hopes fell. It sank into a belt of reddened cloud and disappeared. The dwarves groaned, but still Bilbo stood almost without moving. The little moon was dipping to the horizon.... ...Then suddenly when their hope was lowest a red ray of the sun escaped like a finger through a rent in the cloud. A gleam of light came straight through the opening into the bay and fell on the smooth rock-face... ...There was a loud crack. A flake of rock split from the wall and fell. A hole appeared suddenly about three feet from the ground.
... Quickly, trembling lest the chance should fade, the dwarves rushed to the rock and pushed—in vain.
... "The key! The key!" cried Bilbo. "Where is Thorin?"
... Thorin hurried up... ...and drew the key on its chain from round his neck. He put it to the hole. It fitted and it turned! Snap! The gleam went out, the sun sank, the moon was gone, and evening sprang into the sky.
... Now they all pushed together... ...Long straight cracks appeared and widened. A door five feet high and three broad was outlined, and slowly without a sound swung inwards. It seemed as if darkness flowed out like a vapour from the hole in the mountain-side... ...a yawning mouth leading in and down."
2. A plan to search the secret passage is made.
(determined from text)
... "For a long time the dwarves stood in the dark before the door and debated, until at last Thorin spoke:
..... "Now is the time for our esteemed Mr. Baggins, who has proved himself a good companion on our long road, and a hobbit full of courage and resource far exceeding his size... ...now is the time for him to perform the service for which he was included in our Company; now is the time for him to earn his Reward..."
... ...Bilbo felt impatient... ...and he knew what he was driving at.
... "If you mean you think it is my job to go into the secret passage first, O Thorin Thrain's son Oakenshield, may your beard grow ever longer," he said crossly, "say so at once and have done! I might refuse... ...But 'third time pays for all' as my father used to say, and somehow I don't think I shall refuse... ...I think I will go and have a peep at once and get it over. Now who is coming with me?"
... He did not expect a chorus of volunteers, so he was not disappointed... ...the others made no pretence of offering—except old Balin, the look-out man, who was rather fond of the hobbit. He said he would come inside at least and perhaps a bit of the way too..."
3. Bilbo descends to Smaug’s Cellar
(determined from text)
...""Is that a kind of a glow I seem to see..."
... ...As he went forward it grew and grew, till there was no doubt about it... ...it was now undoubtedly hot in the tunnel. Wisps of vapour floated up and past him and he began to sweat. A sound, too, began to throb in his ears, a sort of bubbling... ...This grew to be the unmistakable gurgling noise of some vast animal snoring in its sleep down there in the red glow in front of him.
... It was at this point that Bilbo stopped. Going on from there was the bravest thing he ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterward were as nothing compared to it. He fought the real battle in the tunnel alone... ...Before him lies the great bottommost cellar or dungeon-hall of the ancient dwarves right at the Mountain's root. It is almost dark... ...but rising from the near side of the rocky floor there is a great glow. The glow of Smaug!
... There he lay, a vast red-golden dragon, fast asleep... ...Beneath him, under all his limbs and his huge coiled tail, and about him on all sides stretching away across the unseen floors, lay countless piles of precious things, gold wrought and unwrought, gems and jewels, and silver red-stained in the ruddy light.
... Smaug lay with wings folded like an immeasurable bat, turned partly on one side, so that the hobbit could see his underparts and his long pale belly crusted with gems and fragments of gold from his long lying on his costly bed...
... ...To say that Bilbo's breath was taken away is no description at all. There are no words left to express his staggerment... ...the splendour, the lust, the glory of such treasure had never yet come home to him...
... ...almost against his will, he stole from the shadow of the doorway, across the floor to the nearest edge of the mounds of treasure. Above him the sleeping dragon lay, a dire menace even in his sleep. He grasped a great two-handled cup, as heavy as he could carry, and cast one fearful eye upwards. Smaug stirred a wing, opened a claw, the rumble of his snoring changed its note.
... Then Bilbo fled. But the dragon did not wake... "...I've done it! This will show them. 'More like a grocer than a burglar' indeed! Well, we'll hear no more of that."
... Nor did he. Balin was overjoyed to see the hobbit again... ...He picked Bilbo up and carried him out into the open air. It was midnight... ...but Bilbo lay with his eyes shut, gasping and taking pleasure in the feel of the fresh air again and hardly noticing the excitement of the dwarves, or how they praised him and patted him on the back and put themselves and all their families for generations to come at his service."
4. The cup is missed.
(determined from text)
... The dwarves were still passing the cup from hand to hand and talking delightedly of the recovery of their treasure, when suddenly a vast rumbling woke in the mountain underneath as if it was an old volcano... ...The door behind them was pulled nearly to, and blocked from closing with a stone, but up the long tunnel came the dreadful echoes, from far down in the depths, of a bellowing and a trampling that made the ground beneath them tremble.
... Then the dwarves forgot their joy and their confident boasts... ...and cowered down in fright. Smaug was still to be reckoned with... ...Dragons may not have much real use for all their wealth, but they know it to an ounce as a rule, especially after long possession; and Smaug was no exception. He had passed from an uneasy dream (in which a warrior, altogether insignificant in size but provided with a bitter sword and great courage, figured most unpleasantly) to a doze, and from a doze to wide waking. There was a breath of strange air in his cave. Could there be a draught from that little hole? He... ...glared at it in suspicion and wondered why he had never blocked it up... ...he had half fancied he had caught the dim echoes of a knocking sound from far above that came down through it to his lair. He stirred and stretched forth his neck to sniff. Then he missed the cup!
... Thieves! Fire! Murder! Such a thing had not happened since first he came to the Mountain! His rage passes description... ...His fire belched forth, the hall smoked, he shook the mountain-roots... ...then coiling his length together, roaring like thunder underground, he sped from his deep lair through its great door, out into the huge passages of the mountains-palace and up towards the Front Gate.
... To hunt the whole mountain till he had caught the thief and had torn and trampled him was his one thought. He issued from the Gate... ...and up he soared blazing into the air and settled on the mountain-top in a spout of green and scarlet flame. The dwarves heard the awful rumour of his flight, and they crouched against the walls of the grassy terrace cringing under boulders...
... ...There they would have all been killed, if it had not been for Bilbo once again. "Quick! Quick!" he gasped. "The door! The tunnel! It's no good here...."
... ...Those were perhaps the worst moments they had been through yet. The horrible sounds of Smaug's anger were echoing in the stony hollows far above; at any moment he might come blazing down or fly whirling round and find them there, near the perilous cliff's edge hauling madly on the ropes. Up came Bofur... ...Up came Bombur... ...Up came some tools and bundles of stores, and then danger was upon them.
... A whirring noise was heard... ...The dragon came.
... They had barely time to fly back to the tunnel, pulling and dragging in their bundles, when Smaug came hurtling from the North, licking the mountains-sides with flame, beating his great wings with a noise like a roaring wind. His hot breath shrivelled the grass before the door, and drove in through the crack they had left and scorched them as they lay hid... ...They crept further down the tunnel, and there they lay and shivered though it was warm and stuffy... ...through the night they could hear the roar of the flying dragon grow and then pass and fade, as he hunted round and round the mountain-sides."
We have been there and back again.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 22 2019, 2:04pm
Post #5 of 59
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That is one of the scariest parts of the story for me
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A whirring noise was heard... ...The dragon came.
... They had barely time to fly back to the tunnel, pulling and dragging in their bundles, when Smaug came hurtling from the North, licking the mountains-sides with flame, beating his great wings with a noise like a roaring wind. His hot breath shrivelled the grass before the door, and drove in through the crack they had left and scorched them as they lay hid... ...They crept further down the tunnel, and there they lay and shivered though it was warm and stuffy... ...through the night they could hear the roar of the flying dragon grow and then pass and fade, as he hunted round and round the mountain-sides."
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 23 2019, 10:31am
Post #6 of 59
(6430 views)
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Today in Middle-earth
October 23, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. An angered Smaug searches the mountain.
(determined from text)
...[Smaug] guessed from the ponies, and from the traces of the camps he had discovered, that men had come up from the... ...lake and had scaled the mountain-side from the valley where the ponies had been standing; but the door withstood his searching eye, and the little high-walled bay had kept out his fiercest flames. Long he had hunted in vain till the dawn chilled his wrath and he went back to his golden couch to sleep—and to gather new strength. He would not forget or forgive the theft, not if a thousand years turned him to smouldering stone, but he could afford to wait. Slow and silent he crept back to his lair and half closed his eyes.
2. Bilbo returns to Smaug's chamber in the afternoon.
(determined from text)
..."Smaug certainly looked fast asleep… …when Bilbo peeped once more from the entrance. He was just about to step out on to the floor when he caught a sudden thin and piercing ray of red from under the drooping lid of Smaug's left eye. He was only pretending to sleep…! ...Hurriedly Bilbo stepped back and blessed the luck of his ring. Then Smaug spoke.
..."Well, thief! I smell you and I feel your air. I hear your breath. Come along! Help yourself again, there is plenty and to spare!"
...But Bilbo was not quite so unlearned in dragon-lore as all that, and if Smaug hoped to get him to come nearer so easily he was disappointed. "No thank you, O Smaug the Tremendous!" he replied. "I did not come for presents. I only wished to have a look at you and see if you were truly as great as tales say…"
..."…Do you now?" said the dragon somewhat flattered, even though he did not believe a word of it.
..."Truly songs and tales fall utterly short of the reality, O Smaug the Chiefest and Greatest of Calamities," replied Bilbo.
..."You have nice manners for a thief and a liar… …You seem familiar with my name, but I don't seem to remember smelling you before. Who are you and where do you come from, may I ask?"
..."You may indeed! I come from under the hill, and under the hills and over the hills my paths led. And through the air, I am he that walks unseen."
..."So I can well believe… …but that is hardly your usual name."
..."I am the clue-finder, the web-cutter, the stinging fly. I was chosen for the lucky number."
..."Lovely titles!" sneered the dragon…
..."…I am he that buries his friends alive and drowns them and draws them alive again from the water. I came from the end of a bag, but no bag went over me."
..."These don't sound so creditable," scoffed Smaug.
..."I am the friend of bears and the guest of eagles. I am Ringwinner and Luckwearer; and I am Barrel-rider," went on Bilbo beginning to be pleased with his riddling.
..."That's better!" said Smaug. "But don't let your imagination run away with you!"
...This of course is the way to talk to dragons, if you don't want to reveal your proper name… …and don't want to infuriate them by a flat refusal… …No dragon can resist the fascination of riddling talk and of wasting time trying to understand it. There was a lot here which Smaug did not understand at all… …but he thought he understood enough…
..."…he smiled to himself. "Lake-men, some nasty scheme of those miserable tub-trading Lake-men, or I'm a lizard. I haven't been down that way for an age and an age; but I will soon alter that…!"
......Bilbo was now beginning to feel really uncomfortable. Whenever Smaug's roving eye… …flashed across him, he trembled, and an unaccountable desire seized hold of him to rush out and reveal himself and tell all the truth to Smaug. In fact he was in grievous danger of coming under the dragon-spell....
..."...My armour is like tenfold shields, my teeth are swords, my claws spears, and the shock of my tail a thunderbolt, my winds a hurricane, and my breath death!"
..."I have always understood," said Bilbo in a frightened squeak, "that dragons were softer underneath, especially in the region of the—er—chest; but doubtless one so fortified has thought of that."
...The dragon stopped short in his boasting. "Your information is antiquated… …I am armoured above and below with iron scales and hard gems. No blade can pierce me."
..."I might have guessed it," said Bilbo. "Truly there can nowhere be found the equal of Lord Smaug the Impenetrable. What magnificence to possess a waistcoat of fine diamonds!"
..."Yes, it is rare and wonderful, indeed," said Smaug absurdly pleased. He did not know that the hobbit had already caught a glimpse of his peculiar under-covering on his previous visit, and was itching for a closer view for reasons of his own....
......the dragon spouted terrific flames after him… …the nostrils sent forth fire and vapour to pursue him, and he was nearly overcome, and stumbled blindly on in great pain and fear. He had been feeling rather pleased with the cleverness of his conversation with Smaug, but his mistake at the end shook him into better sense.
..."Never laugh at live dragons, Bilbo you fool!" he said to himself, and it became a favourite saying of his later, and passed into a proverb....
......[The dwarves] had difficulty in getting anything out of him… …he was now regretting some of the things he had said to the dragon, and was not eager to repeat them. The old thrush was sitting on a rock near by with his head cocked on one side, listening to all that was said. It shows what an ill temper Bilbo was in: he picked up a stone and threw it at the thrush, which merely fluttered aside and came back.
..."Drat the bird… …I believe he is listening, and I don't like the look of him."
..."Leave him alone!" said Thorin. "The thrushes are good and friendly---this is a very old bird indeed, and is maybe the last left of the ancient breed… …tame to the hands of my father and grandfather. They were a long-lived and magical race, and this might even be one of those that were alive then, a couple of hundreds of years or more ago. The Men of Dale used to have the trick of understanding their language, and used them for messengers to fly to the Men of the Lake and elsewhere...."
..."Well, he'll have news to take to Lake-town all right..," said Bilbo; "…though I don't suppose there are any people left there that trouble with thrush-language."
...'Why what has happened?" cried the dwarves. "Do get on with your tale!"
...So Bilbo told them all he could remember…
......All the while they talked the thrush listened, till at last when the stars began to peep forth, it silently spread it wings and flew away....
3. Smaug smashes the Secret Door.
(determined from text)
... "Darkness grew deeper and [Bilbo] grew ever more uneasy. "Shut the door!" he begged them. "I fear that dragon in my marrow. I like this silence far less than the uproar of last night. Shut the door before it is too late!"
... Something in his voice gave the dwarves an uncomfortable feeling... ...[Thorin] kicked away the stone that wedged the door... ...they thrust upon it, and it closed with a snap and a clang. No trace of a keyhole was there left on the inside. They were shut in the Mountain...
... ...They had hardly gone any distance down the tunnel when a blow smote the side of the Mountain... ...The rock boomed, the walls cracked and stones fell from the roof on their heads... ...They fled further down the tunnel glad to be still alive, while behind them outside they heard the roar and rumble of Smaug's fury. He was breaking rocks to pieces, smashing wall and cliff with the lashings of his huge tail, till... ...an avalanche of splintered stones fell over the cliff into the valley below.
... Smaug had left his lair in silent stealth, quietly soared into the air, and then floated heavy and slow in the dark... ...down the wind towards the west of the Mountain... ...spying the outlet to the passage which the thief had used. This was the outburst of his wrath when he could find nobody and see nothing, even where he guessed the outlet must actually be.
... After he had let off his rage... ...he had further vengeance to take. "Barrel-rider!" he snorted. "Your feet came from the waterside and up the water you came without a doubt. I don't know your smell, but if you are not one of those men of the Lake, you had their help. They shall see me and remember who is the real King under the Mountain!"
... He rose in fire and went away south towards the Running River."
4. Smaug attacks Lake-town.
(determined from text)
..."'...suddenly a great light appeared in the low place in the hills and the northern end of the lake turned golden. "The King beneath the Mountain!" they shouted. "His wealth is like the Sun, his silver like a fountain, his rivers golden run...!
...There was once more a tremendous excitement and enthusiasm. But the grim-voiced fellow ran hotfoot to the Master. "The dragon is coming or I am a fool... ...Cut the bridges! To arms! To arms!"
...Then warning trumpets were suddenly sounded, and echoed along the rocky shores. The cheering stopped and the joy was turned to dread. So it was that the dragon did not find them quite unprepared.
...Before long, so great was his speed, they could see him as a spark of fire rushing towards them and growing ever huger and more bright... ...Still they had a little time. Every vessel in the town was filled with water, every warrior was armed, every arrow and dart was ready, and the bridge to the land was thrown down and destroyed before the roar of Smaug's terrible approach grew loud, and the lake rippled red as fire beneath the awful beating of his wings....
......Roaring he swept back over the town. A hail of dark arrows leaped up and snapped and rattled on his scales and jewels, and their shafts fell back kindled by his breath burning and hissing into the lake.... ...At the twanging of the bows and the shrilling of the trumpets the dragon's wrath blazed to its height, till he was blind and mad with it. No one had dared to give battle to him for many an age; nor would they have dared now, if it had not been for the grim-voiced man (Bard was his name), who ran to and fro cheering on the archers and urging the Master to order them to fight to the last arrow.
...Fire leaped from the dragon's jaws. He circled for a while high in the air above them lighting all the lake... ...Then down he swooped straight through the arrow-storm, reckless in his rage, taking no heed to turn his scaly sides towards his foes, seeking only to set their town ablaze....
......But there was still a company of archers that held their ground among the burning houses. Their captain was Bard, grim-voiced and grim-faced... ...he shot with a great yew bow, till all his arrows but one were spent. The flames were near him. His companions were leaving him. He bent his bow for the last time.
...Suddenly out of the dark something fluttered to his shoulder. He started—but it was only an old thrush. Unafraid it perched by his ear and it brought him news. Marvelling he found he could understand its tongue, for he was of the race of Dale.
..."Wait! Wait..! ...The moon is rising. Look for the hollow of the left breast as he flies and turns above you!" And while Bard paused in wonder it told him of tidings up in the Mountain and of all that it had heard.
...Then Bard drew his bow-string to his ear. The dragon was circling back, flying low, and as he came the moon rose above the eastern shore and silvered his great wings...
..."...Black arrow! I have saved you to the last. You have never failed me and always I have recovered you. I had you from my father and he from of old. If ever you came from the forges of the true king under the Mountain, go now and speed well!"
...The dragon swooped once more... ...and as he turned and dived down his belly glittered white with sparkling fires of gems in the moon—but not in one place. The great bow twanged. The black arrow sped straight from the string, straight for the hollow by the left breast where the foreleg was flung wide. In it smote and vanished, barb, shaft and feather, so fierce was its flight. With a shriek that deafened men, felled trees and split stone, Smaug shot spouting into the air, turned over and crashed down from on high in ruin.
...Full on the town he fell. His last throes splintered it to sparks and gledes... ...A vast steam leaped up, white in the sudden dark under the moon. There was a hiss, a gushing whirl, and then silence. And that was the end of Smaug and Esgaroth, but not of Bard."
5. Lake-town in the aftermath.
(determined from text)
..."...down the wind came the voices of the people of Esgaroth lamenting their lost town and goods and ruined houses. But they had really much to be thankful for... ...though it could hardly be expected that they should just then: three quarters of the people of the town had at least escaped alive; their woods and fields and pastures and cattle and most of their boats remained undamaged; and the dragon was dead. What that meant they had not yet realized.
...They gathered in mournful crowds upon the western shores, shivering in the cold wind, and their first complaints and anger were against the Master, who had left the town so soon, while some were still willing to defend it... ...they praised the courage of Bard and his last mighty shot. "If only he had not been killed," they all said, "we would make him a king. Bard the Dragon-shooter of the line of Girion! Alas that he is lost!"
...And in the very midst of their talk, a tall figure stepped from the shadows. He was drenched with water, his black hair hung wet over his face and shoulders, and a fierce light was in his eyes.
..."Bard is not lost!" he cried. "He dived from Esgaroth when the enemy was slain. I am Bard, of the line of Girion; I am the slayer of the dragon!"
... "King Bard! King Bard!" they shouted; but the Master ground his chattering teeth...."
October 23, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Elrond's third day in his battle to save Frodo.
(not from the appendices)
..."[Gandalf] -- Elrond is a master of healing, but the weapons of our Enemy are deadly. To tell you the truth, I had very little hope; for I suspected that there was some fragment of the blade still in the closed wound. But it could not be found until last night. Then Elrond removed a splinter. It was deeply buried, and it was working inwards... ...'It is gone now. It has been melted.'"
October 23, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Gandalf and the hobbits make their way home from Rivendell.
(not from the appendices)
..."At length they came to Weathertop; and it was then drawing towards evening and the shadow of the hill lay dark on the road. Then Frodo begged them to hasten, and he would not look towards the hill, but rode through its shadow with head bowed and cloak drawn close about him. That night the weather changed, and a wind came from the West laden with rain, and it blew loud and chill, and the yellow leaves whirled like birds in the air."
We have been there and back again.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 23 2019, 2:53pm
Post #8 of 59
(6406 views)
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Funny that Smaug is so morally outraged when he's the original thief
[In reply to]
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but he's neither the first nor the last to have that skewed perspective.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 23 2019, 8:55pm
Post #9 of 59
(6385 views)
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You're absolutely right! I've noticed that very VERY often individuals who accuse others of some slight... they're often VERY guilty of it themselves. *reads again* Yeah... that's it : And that's why they're so indignant or injured. They assume everyone behaves in the same frame of mind they have themselves. So the more the anger/indignation... the more you know their true heart's malice ;D
We have been there and back again.
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(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Oct 23 2019, 8:59pm)
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 24 2019, 10:23am
Post #10 of 59
(6353 views)
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Today in Middle-earth
October 24, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Surviving Smaug attack, but now locked inside.
(determined from text)
..."[Bilbo and] the dwarves sat in darkness, and utter silence fell about them. Little they ate and little they spoke. They could not count the passing of time… …they scarcely dared to move, for the whisper of their voices echoed and rustled in the tunnel. If they dozed, they woke still to darkness and to silence going on unbroken.”
2. The people of Esgaroth struggle to find shelter and food.
(determined from text)
..."Bard took the lead, and ordered things as he wished, though always in the Master's name, and he had a hard task to govern the people and direct the preparations for their protection and housing. Probably most of them would have perished in the winter that now hurried after autumn, if help had not been to hand... ...help came swiftly; for Bard at once had speedy messengers sent up the river to the Forest to ask the aid of the King of the Elves of the Wood... ...these messengers had found a host already on the move..."
3. The Elves learn of Smaug's fall.
(determined from text)
..."The Elvenking... ...received news from his own messengers and from the birds that loved his folk..."
October 24, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Frodo recovers and wakes.
(from the appendices)
..."Frodo woke and found himself lying in bed. At first he thought that he had slept late, after a long unpleasant dream that still hovered on the edge of memory... '...Where am I, and what is the time?' he said aloud to the ceiling.
...'In the house of Elrond, and it is ten o'clock in the morning,' said a voice. 'It is the morning of October the twenty-fourth, if you want to know.'
...'Gandalf!' cried Frodo, sitting up. There was the old wizard, sitting in a chair by the open window.
...'Yes,' he said, 'I am here. And you are lucky to be here, too, after all the absurd things you have done since you left home...'
...'...Where is Sam?' Frodo asked at length. 'And are the others all right?'
...'Yes, they are all safe and sound,' answered Gandalf. Sam was here until I sent him off to get some rest, about half an hour ago.'
...'What happened at the Ford? ...It all seemed so dim, somehow; and it still does.'
...'Yes, it would. You were beginning to fade,' answered Gandalf. 'The wound was overcoming you at last. A few more hours and you would have been beyond our aid. But you have some strength in you, my dear hobbit! As you showed in the Barrow. That was touch and go: perhaps the most dangerous moment of all. I wish you could have held out at Weathertop.'
...'We should never have done it without Strider,' said Frodo. 'But we needed you. I did not know what to do without you.'
...'I was delayed... ...and that nearly proved our ruin. And yet I am not sure: it may have been better so.'
...'I wish you would tell me what happened!'
...'All in good time! You are not supposed to talk or worry about anything today, by Elrond's orders.'
...'But talking would stop me thinking and wondering, which are quite as tiring,' said Frodo. 'I am wide awake now, and I remember so many things that want explaining. Why were you delayed...?'
...'...You will hear all you wish to know,' said Gandalf. 'We shall have council, as soon as you are well enough... ...I will only say that I was held captive.'
...'You?' cried Frodo.
...'Yes, I, Gandalf the Grey,' said the wizard solemnly. 'There are many powers in the world, for good or for evil. Some are greater than I am. Against some I have not yet been measured. But my time is coming. The Morgul-lord and his Black Riders have come forth. War in preparing!'
...'Then you knew of the Riders already—before I met them?'
...'Yes, I knew of them. Indeed I spoke of them once to you; for the Black Riders are the Ringwraiths, the Nine Servants of the Lord of the Rings. But I did not know that they had arisen again or I should have fled with you at once. I heard news of them only after I left you in June... ...For the moment we have been saved from disaster, by Aragorn.'
...'Yes,' said Frodo, 'it was Strider that saved us. Yet I was afraid of him at first. Sam never quite trusted him, I think, not at any rate until we met Glorfindel.'
...Gandalf smiled. 'I have heard all about Sam... ...He has no more doubts now.'
...'I am glad,' said Frodo. 'For I have become very fond of Strider. Well, fond is not the right word. I mean that he is dear to me; though he is strange, and grim at times.... ...he reminds me often of you. I didn't know that any of the Big People were like that. I thought, well, that they were just big, and rather stupid: kind and stupid like Butterbur; or stupid and wicked like Bill Ferny. But then we don't know much about Men in the Shire...'
...'...You don't know much even about them, if you think old Barliman is stupid,' said Gandalf. 'He is wise enough on his own ground. He thinks less than he talks, and slower; yet he can see through a brick wall in time... ...But there are few left in Middle-earth like Aragorn son of Arathorn. The race of the Kings from over the Sea is nearly at an end. It may be that this War of the Ring will be their last adventure.'
...'Do you really mean that Strider is one of the people of the old Kings?' said Frodo in wonder. 'I thought they had all vanished long ago. I thought he was only a Ranger.'
...'Only a Ranger!' cried Gandalf. 'My dear Frodo, that is just what the Rangers are: the last remnant in the North of the great people, the Men of the West. They have helped me before; and I shall need their help in the days to come; for we have reached Rivendell, but the Ring is not yet at rest….'
...…As the evening drew on, Frodo woke up again, and he found that he no longer felt in need of rest or sleep, but had a mind for food and drink, and probably for singing and story-telling afterwards. He... ...discovered that his arm was already nearly as useful again as it had ever been. He found laid ready clean garments of green cloth... ...Looking in a mirror he was startled to see a much thinner reflection of himself than he remembered: it looked remarkably like the young nephew of Bilbo who used to go tramping with his uncle in the Shire; but the eyes looked out at him thoughtfully.
...'Yes, you have seen a thing or two since you last peeped out of a looking-glass,' he said to his reflection. 'But now for a merry meeting!' He stretched out his arms and whistled a tune.
At that moment there was a knock on the door, and Sam came in. He ran to Frodo and took the left hand, awkwardly and shyly. He stroked it gently and then he blushed and turned hastily away.
...'Hullo, Sam!' said Frodo.
...'It's warm! ...Meaning your hand, Mr. Frodo. It has felt so cold through the long nights. But glory and trumpets!' he cried, turning round again with shining eyes and dancing on the floor. 'It's fine to see you up and yourself again, sir! Gandalf asked me to come and see if you were ready to come down, and I thought he was joking.'
...'I am ready... ...Let's go and look for the rest of the party!'
..."'...Hurray!' cried Pippin, springing up. 'Here is our noble cousin! Make way for Frodo, Lord of the Ring!'
...'Hush!' said Gandalf from the shadows at the back of the porch. 'Evil things do not come into this valley; but all the same we should not name them. The Lord of the Ring is not Frodo, but the master of the Dark Tower of Mordor whose power is again stretching out over the world! We are sitting in a fortress. Outside it is getting dark.'
...'Gandalf has been saying many cheerful things like that,' said Pippin. 'He thinks I need keeping in order...'"
2. Boromir arrives in Rivendell at night.
(from the appendices)
..."...a tall man with a fair and noble face, dark-haired and grey-eyed, proud and stern of glance. He was cloaked and booted as if for a journey on horseback; and indeed though his garments were rich, and his cloak was lined with fur, they were stained with long travel. He had a collar of silver in which a single white stone was set; his locks were shorn about his shoulders. On a baldric he wore a great horn tipped with silver...."
We have been there and back again.
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Otaku-sempai
Avenger
Oct 24 2019, 1:23pm
Post #11 of 59
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And in the evening of October 24 was the feast where Frodo is reunited with Bilbo, meets the Dwarf-lord Gloin, and (outside of the film trilogy) meets Arwen for the first time.
"Change is inevitable. Growth is optional." - DRWolf (after John C. Maxwell)
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 24 2019, 3:16pm
Post #12 of 59
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I love this exchange between Frodo & Gandalf
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..."Frodo woke and found himself lying in bed. At first he thought that he had slept late, after a long unpleasant dream that still hovered on the edge of memory... '...Where am I, and what is the time?' he said aloud to the ceiling.
...'In the house of Elrond, and it is ten o'clock in the morning,' said a voice. 'It is the morning of October the twenty-fourth, if you want to know.'
...'Gandalf!' cried Frodo, sitting up. There was the old wizard, sitting in a chair by the open window.
...'Yes,' he said, 'I am here. And you are lucky to be here, too, after all the absurd things you have done since you left home...'
Only a good friend could tease you like that when you're in a hospital bed recovering from a near-death experience. It says a lot about how deep their bond is.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 24 2019, 3:20pm
Post #13 of 59
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..."'...Hurray!' cried Pippin, springing up. 'Here is our noble cousin! Make way for Frodo, Lord of the Ring!'
...'Hush!' said Gandalf from the shadows at the back of the porch. 'Evil things do not come into this valley; but all the same we should not name them. The Lord of the Ring is not Frodo, but the master of the Dark Tower of Mordor whose power is again stretching out over the world! We are sitting in a fortress. Outside it is getting dark.'
...'Gandalf has been saying many cheerful things like that,' said Pippin. 'He thinks I need keeping in order...'"
There's Gloomy Gandalf in the shadows, throwing rain on Pippin's parade, and Pippin's carefree sarcastic reply. When you contrast that with their relationship in Minas Tirith, later on Pippin has matured a great deal and Gandalf has become much fonder of him. In fact, I think Pippin is the only hobbit of the four that vexes Gandalf, and it's the only Wizard-hobbit relationship that needs work.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 25 2019, 10:43am
Post #14 of 59
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Today in Middle-earth
October 25, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. The Dwarves venture into the Mountain.
(determined from text)
...""Now do be careful!" whispered the hobbit, "and as quiet as you can be! There may be no Smaug at the bottom, but then again there may be. Don't let us take any un-necessary risks!"
...Down, down they went. The dwarves could not... ...compare with the hobbit in real stealth, and they made a deal of puffing and shuffling which echoes magnified alarmingly... ...every now and again Bilbo in fear stopped and listened, not a sound stirred below....
......They saw the little dark shape of the hobbit start across the floor holding his tiny light aloft. Every now and again, while he was still near enough, they caught a glint and a tinkle as he stumbled on some golden thing. The light grew smaller as he wandered away into the vast hall; then it began to rise dancing into the air. Bilbo was climbing the great mound of treasure. Soon he stood upon the top... ...Then they saw him halt and stoop for a moment; but they did not know the reason.
...It was the Arkenstone, the Heart of the Mountain. So Bilbo guessed from Thorin's description; but indeed there could not be two such gems, even in so marvellous a hoard, even in all the world....
......The great jewel shone before his feet of its own inner light, and yet, cut and fashioned by the dwarves, who had dug it from the heart of the mountain long ago, it took all light that fell upon it and changed it into ten thousand sparks of white radiance shot with glints of the rainbow.
...Suddenly Bilbo's arm went towards it drawn by its enchantment. His small hand would not close about it, for it was a large and heavy gem; but he lifted it, shut his eyes, and put it in his deepest pocket....
......"Mr. Baggins!" Thorin cried. "Here is the first payment of your reward! Cast off your old coat and put on this!"
...With that he put on Bilbo a small coat of mail, wrought for some young elf-prince long ago. It was of silversteel, which the elves call mithril, and with it went a belt of pearls and crystals. A light helm of figured leather, strengthened beneath with hoops of steel, and studded about the brim with white gems, was set upon the hobbit's head.
..."I feel magnificent... ...but I expect I look rather absurd. How they would laugh on the Hill at home! Still I wish there was a looking-glass handy!"
2. The Elvenking's host leave Mirkwood for Erebor.
(determined from text)
..."...the Elvenking rode forth... ....marching with many spearmen and bowmen; and crows were gathered thick, above him, for they thought that war was awakening again, such as had not been in those parts for a long age."
October 25, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Council of Elrond.
(from the appendices)
..."Suddenly... ...a single clear bell rang out. 'That is the warning bell for the Council of Elrond,' cried Gandalf. 'Come along now! Both you and Bilbo are wanted.'
...Frodo and Bilbo followed the wizard quickly along the winding path back to the house; behind them, uninvited and for the moment forgotten, trotted Sam...
......Elrond was there, and several others were seated in silence about him. Frodo saw Glorfindel and Glóin; and in a corner alone Strider was sitting, clad in his old travel-worn clothes again. Elrond drew Frodo to a seat by his side, and presented him to the company, saying:
...'Here, my friends, is the hobbit, Frodo son of Drogo. Few have ever come hither through greater peril or on an errand more urgent...' ...And seated a little apart was a tall man with a fair and noble face, dark-haired and grey-eyed, proud and stern of glance... ...He gazed at Frodo and Bilbo with sudden wonder....
......all listened while Elrond in his clear voice spoke of Sauron and the Rings of Power, and their forging in the Second Age of the world long ago....
...'...What shall we do with the Ring, the least of rings, the trifle that Sauron fancies? That is the doom that we must deem.
...'That is the purpose for which you are called hither. Called, I say, though I have not called you to me, strangers from distant lands. You have come and are here met, in this very nick of time, by chance as it may seem. Yet it is not so. Believe rather that it is so ordered that we who sit here, and none others, must now find counsel for the peril of the world....'
......Boromir stood up, tall and proud, before them.... '...In this evil hour I have come on an errand over many dangerous leagues...
......a dream came to my brother in a troubled sleep; and afterwards a like dream came oft to him again, and once to me. 'In that dream I thought the eastern sky grew dark and there was a growing thunder, but in the West a pale light lingered, and out of it I heard a voice, remote but clear, crying:
Seek for the Sword that was broken:
In Imladris it dwells;
There shall be counsel taken
Stronger than Morgul-spells.
There shall be shown a token
That Doom is near at hand,
For Isildur's Bane shall waken,
And the Halfling forth shall stand. ...Of these words we could understand little, and we spoke to our father, Denethor, Lord of Minas Tirith, wise in the lore of Gondor. This only would he say, that Imladris was of old the name among the Elves of a far northern dale, where Elrond the Halfelven dwelt, greatest of lore-masters. Therefore my brother... ...was eager to heed the dream and seek for Imladris; but since the way was full of doubt and danger, I took the journey upon myself... ...I wandered by roads forgotten, seeking the house of Elrond, of which many had heard, but few knew where it lay.
...'And here in the House of Elrond more shall be made clear to you,' said Aragorn, standing up. He cast his sword upon the table that stood before Elrond, and the blade was in two pieces. 'Here is the Sword that was Broken!' he said.
...'And who are you, and what have you to do with Minas Tirith?' asked Boromir, looking in wonder at the lean face of the Ranger and his weather-stained cloak.
...'He is Aragorn son of Arathorn,' said Elrond; 'and he is descended through many fathers from Isildur Elendil's son of Minas Ithil. He is the Chief of the Dúnedain in the North, and few are now left of that folk.'
...'Then it belongs to you, and not to me at all!' cried Frodo in amazement, springing to his feet, as if he expected the Ring to be demanded at once.
...'It does not belong to either of us,' said Aragorn; 'but it has been ordained that you should hold it for a while....'
... [Then Gandalf spoke of his fears] 'I was lulled by the words of Saruman the Wise; but I should have sought for the truth sooner, and our peril would now be less.'
...'We were all at fault,' said Elrond, 'and but for your vigilance the Darkness, maybe, would already be upon us. But say on!'
...'From the first my heart misgave me, against all reason that I knew,' said Gandalf, 'and I desired to know how this thing came to Gollum, and how long he had possessed it. So I set a watch for him, guessing that he would ere long come forth from his darkness to seek for his treasure. He came, but he escaped and was not found. And then alas! I let the matter rest, watching and waiting only, as we have too often done.
...'Time passed with many cares, until my doubts were awakened again to sudden fear... ...That was seventeen years ago. Soon I became aware that spies of many sorts, even beasts and birds, were gathered round the Shire, and fear grew. I called for the help of the Dúnedain, and their watch was doubled; and I opened my heart to Aragorn, the heir of Isildur....'
...'...And then in my despair I thought again of a test that might make the finding of Gollum unneeded. The ring itself might tell if it were the One. The memory of words at the Council came back to me: words of Saruman, half-heeded at the time. I heard them now clearly in my heart.
...'"The Nine, the Seven, and the Three," he said, "had each their proper gem. Not so the One. It was round and unadorned, as it were one of the lesser rings; but its maker set marks upon it that the skilled, maybe, could still see and read..."
...[Much later after it's established they had the One Ring, talk turned of what to do]'...Very well, very well, Master Elrond!' said Bilbo suddenly. 'Say no more! It is plain enough what you are pointing at. Bilbo the silly hobbit started this affair, and Bilbo had better finish it, or himself. I was very comfortable here, and getting on with my book.... ...I am just writing an ending for it. I had thought of putting: and he lived happily ever afterwards to the end of his days. It is a good ending... ...it does not look like coming true; and anyway there will evidently have to be several more chapters, if I live to write them... ...When ought I to start?'
...'...Of course, my dear Bilbo,' said Gandalf. 'If you had really started this affair, you might be expected to finish it. But you know well enough now that starting is too great a claim for any...'
......The noon-bell rang. Still no one spoke. Frodo glanced at all the faces, but they were not turned to him. All the Council sat with downcast eyes, as if in deep thought. A great dread fell on him, as if he was awaiting the pronouncement of some doom that he had long foreseen and vainly hoped might after all never be spoken. An overwhelming longing to rest and remain at peace by Bilbo's side in Rivendell filled all his heart. At last with an effort he spoke, and wondered to hear his own words, as if some other will was using his small voice.
...'I will take the Ring,' he said, 'though I do not know the way.'"
[to be continued]
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 25 2019, 11:33am
Post #16 of 59
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It makes me giggle every time I read it. It's always interests me the relationship Gandalf has with each of the hobbits; but this one with Pippin is something very unique. They had so many incidents to work through... the well in Moria, the Palanatir, the ride to Gondor, Denethor, Faramir, pyre... so much. I can't help but include the wonderful moment from the film when they're waiting for the enemy to break down the door and they talk about death. So powerful... and, for me, captures their relationship so well.
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 25 2019, 11:38am
Post #17 of 59
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Gandalf's relationship with Frodo
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As with Pippin in the post below, I think Gandalf has a unique relationship with each of the hobbits. The one with Bilbo and Frodo are at a whole other level. He has such respect for them and knows them the best. I do love how he teases Frodo here. I also love how he sends Sam away on an errand... probably sensing Frodo is coming to consciousness... so he can have this quiet moment with Frodo. You're so right... teasing someone in such a situation is the sign of a close friend :D
We have been there and back again.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 25 2019, 1:44pm
Post #18 of 59
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*nodding head in such enthusiastic agreement, nearly sprains neck doing so* :)
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That movie scene between them was a real standout, one of those things that as a book-lover I still love, because as you say, it really encapsulates their relationship.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 25 2019, 2:26pm
Post #19 of 59
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Thanks for posting this, Gramma. I love the entire Council of Elrond, and on first read, I think I re-read the chapter about 3 times before moving onward, because it seemed to explain so much while still being overwhelming. Anyway, I have a huge number of favorite quotes from this chapter, one of which is Elrond's comment:
What shall we do with the Ring, the least of rings, the trifle that Sauron fancies? That is the doom that we must deem.
I like how he mocks Sauron's message to Dain via the Nazgul. Up until now, Sauron and the Black Riders have been the Big Bad that everyone is afraid of. He doesn't seem like someone you would make fun of.
‘I am deeply grateful,’ said Frodo; ‘but I wish you would tell me plainly what the Black Riders are. If I take your advice I may not see Gandalf for a long while, and I ought to know what is the danger that pursues me.’
‘Is it not enough to know that they are servants of the Enemy?’ answered Gildor. ‘Flee them! Speak no words to them! They are deadly. Ask no more of me!
Strider: 'You may escape from Bree, and be allowed to go forward while the Sun is up; but you won’t go far. They will come on you in the wild, in some dark place where there is no help. Do you wish them to find you? They are terrible!’
The hobbits looked at him, and saw with surprise that his face was drawn as if with pain, and his hands clenched the arms of his chair.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 26 2019, 11:58am
Post #20 of 59
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Today in Middle-earth
October 26, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Thorin learns news of Smaug's death from the ravens.
(determined from text)
...[Balin speaks of ravens] "They live many a year, and their memories are long, and they hand on their wisdom to their children. I knew many among the ravens of the rocks when I was a dwarf-lad. This very height was once named Ravenhill, because there was a wise and famous pair, old Carc and his wife, that lived here above the guard-chamber. But I don't suppose that any of that ancient breed linger here now."
...No sooner had he finished speaking than the old thrush gave a loud call, and immediately flew away.
..."We may not understand him, but that old bird understands us, I am sure," said Balin...
......Before long there was a fluttering of wings, and back came the thrush; and with him came a most decrepit old bird. He was getting blind, he could hardly fly, and the top of his head was bald. He was an aged raven of great size. He alighted stiffly on the ground before them,... ...and bobbed towards Thorin.
..."O Thorin son of Thráin, and Balin son of Fundin," he croaked (...he used ordinary language and not bird-speech). "I am Roäc son of Carc. Carc is dead, but he was well known to you once. It is a hundred years and three and fifty since I came out of the egg, but I do not forget what my father told me. Now I am the chief of the great ravens of the Mountain... ...we remember still the king that was of old. Most of my people are abroad, for there are great tidings in the South—some are tidings of joy to you, and some you will not think so good.
..."Behold! the birds are gathering back again to the Mountain and to Dale from South and East and West, for word has gone out that Smaug is dead!"
..."Dead! Dead?" shouted the dwarves. "Dead! Then we have been in needless fear—and the treasure is ours!" They all sprang up and began to caper about for joy...
......[Thorin asks] I would beg of you, if any of you are still young and strong of wing, that you would send messengers to our kin in the mountains of the North... ...and tell them of our plight. But go specially to my cousin Dáin in the Iron Hills, for he has many people well-armed, and dwells nearest to this place. Bid him hasten!""
October 26, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Thorin learns news of Smaug's death from the ravens.
(determined from text)
...[Balin speaks of ravens] "They live many a year, and their memories are long, and they hand on their wisdom to their children. I knew many among the ravens of the rocks when I was a dwarf-lad. This very height was once named Ravenhill, because there was a wise and famous pair, old Carc and his wife, that lived here above the guard-chamber. But I don't suppose that any of that ancient breed linger here now."
...No sooner had he finished speaking than the old thrush gave a loud call, and immediately flew away.
..."We may not understand him, but that old bird understands us, I am sure," said Balin...
......Before long there was a fluttering of wings, and back came the thrush; and with him came a most decrepit old bird. He was getting blind, he could hardly fly, and the top of his head was bald. He was an aged raven of great size. He alighted stiffly on the ground before them,... ...and bobbed towards Thorin.
..."O Thorin son of Thráin, and Balin son of Fundin," he croaked (...he used ordinary language and not bird-speech). "I am Roäc son of Carc. Carc is dead, but he was well known to you once. It is a hundred years and three and fifty since I came out of the egg, but I do not forget what my father told me. Now I am the chief of the great ravens of the Mountain... ...we remember still the king that was of old. Most of my people are abroad, for there are great tidings in the South—some are tidings of joy to you, and some you will not think so good.
..."Behold! the birds are gathering back again to the Mountain and to Dale from South and East and West, for word has gone out that Smaug is dead!"
..."Dead! Dead?" shouted the dwarves. "Dead! Then we have been in needless fear—and the treasure is ours!" They all sprang up and began to caper about for joy...
......[Thorin asks] I would beg of you, if any of you are still young and strong of wing, that you would send messengers to our kin in the mountains of the North... ...and tell them of our plight. But go specially to my cousin Dáin in the Iron Hills, for he has many people well-armed, and dwells nearest to this place. Bid him hasten!""
2. The Elves make their way to the mountain.
(determined from text)
..."...the king, when he received the prayers of Bard, had pity, for he was the lord of a good and kindly people; so turning his march, which had at first been direct towards the Mountain... ...hastened now down the river to the Long Lake. He had not boats or rafts enough for this host, and they were forced to go the slower way by foot; but great store of goods he sent ahead by water."
We have been there and back again.
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(This post was edited by dernwyn on Oct 26 2019, 12:49pm)
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 26 2019, 12:18pm
Post #21 of 59
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Well Done! :D Elrond really displayed his power over the fear of Sauron without diminishing the threat. This chapter was an eye-opener for me, too! Especially when Frodo said he'd take the Ring. After everything he'd been through! GREAT CHAPTER!
We have been there and back again.
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CuriousG
Asgardian
Oct 26 2019, 5:13pm
Post #22 of 59
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I suppose Elrond can afford to be cocky
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when he's just wiped out the Black Riders with a little flood. 
And yes, Frodo agreeing to take the Ring to Mt Doom remains an epic standout for a chapter with many standout moments.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 27 2019, 1:28pm
Post #23 of 59
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Today in Middle-earth
October 27, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. News travels of Smaug's defeat.
(determined from text)
..."Very great indeed was the commotion among all things with wings that dwelt on the borders of the Desolation of the Dragon. The air was filled with circling flocks, and their swift-flying messengers flew here and there across the sky.... ...Far over Mirkwood tidings spread: "Smaug is dead!" Leaves rustled and startled ears were lifted. Even before the Elvenking rode forth the news had passed west right to the pinewoods of the Misty Mountains; Beorn had heard it in his wooden house, and the goblins were at council in their caves."
October 27, 2949 (S.R. 1349)
1. Bilbo has some unexpected guests.
(not from the appendices—determined from text & referencing tuckborough.net]
...[Eight years after the Quest] "One autumn evening … Bilbo was sitting in his study writing his memoirs—he thought of calling them "There and Back Again, a Hobbit's Holiday"—when there was a ring at the door. It was Gandalf and a dwarf; and the dwarf was actually Balin.
..."Come in! Come in!" said Bilbo, and soon they were settled in chairs by the fire. If Balin noticed that Mr. Baggins' waistcoat was more extensive (and had real gold buttons), Bilbo also noticed that Balin's beard was several inches longer, and his jewelled belt was of great magnificence.
...They fell to talking of their times together... ...and Bilbo asked how things were going in the lands of the Mountain. It seemed they were going very well. Bard had rebuilt the town in Dale and men had gathered to him from the Lake and from South and West, and all the valley had become tilled again and rich, and the desolation was now filled with birds and blossoms in spring and fruit and feasting in autumn. And Lake-town was refounded and was more prosperous than ever, and much wealth went up and down the Running River; and there was friendship in those parts between elves and dwarves and men.
...The old Master had come to a bad end...
..."...The new Master is of wiser kind," said Balin, "and very popular... ...he gets most of the credit for the present prosperity. They are making songs which say that in his day the rivers run with gold."
..."Then the prophecies of the old songs have turned out to be true, after a fashion!" said Bilbo.
..."Of course!" said Gandalf. "And why should not they prove true? Surely you don't disbelieve the prophecies, because you had a hand in bringing them about yourself? You don't really suppose... ...that all your adventures and escapes were managed by mere luck, just for your sole benefit? You are a very fine person, Mr. Baggins, and I am very fond of you; but you are only quite a little fellow in a wide world after all!"
..."Thank goodness!" said Bilbo laughing, and handed him the tobacco-jar."
October 27, 2010 and all is well.
...After years, months, weeks and days of peril and adjustments, on October 15, 2010 it was announced that The Hobbit was greenlit and that Peter Jackson is producing and directing the 2-part film project. Then, on October 27, 2010, it was announced that filming of The Hobbit is staying in New Zealand!
...October 27, 2012 finds us with the The Hobbit being expanded from 2 films into 3!!!
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 27 2019, 4:12pm
Post #24 of 59
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Today in Middle-earth
October 28, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. Elves reach Lake-town.
(determined from text)
..."...elves are light-footed, and though they were not in these days much used to the marches and the treacherous lands between the Forest and the Lake, their going was swift. Only five days after the death of the dragon they came upon the shores and looked on the ruins of the town. Their welcome was good... ...and the men and their Master were ready to make any bargain for the future in return for the Elvenking's aid."
October 28, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. Rivendell does its magic
(not from the appendices)
..."For a while the hobbits continued to talk and think of the past journey and of the perils that lay ahead; but such was the virtue of the land of Rivendell that soon all fear and anxiety was lifted from their minds. The future, good or ill, was not forgotten, but ceased to have any power over the present."
October 28, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. They reach Bree at nightfall.
(from the appendices)
..."'So it was that near the end of a wild and wet evening in the last days of October the five travellers rode up the climbing road and came to the South-gate of Bree. It was locked fast; and the rain blew in their faces, and in the darkening sky low clouds went hurrying by, and their hearts sank a little, for they had expected more welcome.
...When they had called many times, at last the Gate-keeper came out... ...He looked at them with fear and suspicion; but when he saw that Gandalf was there, and that his companions were hobbits, in spite of their strange gear, then he brightened and wished them welcome.
...'Come in!' he said unlocking the gate. 'We won't stay for news out here in the cold and the wet....'
......When they came to Bill Ferny's house they saw that the hedge there was tattered and unkempt, and the windows were all boarded up.
...'Do you think you killed him with that apple, Sam?' said Pippin.
...'I'm not so hopeful, Mr. Pippin,' said Sam. 'But I'd like to know what became of that poor pony. He's been on my mind many a time, and the wolves howling and all.'
...At last they came to The Prancing Pony... ...and there were lights behind the red curtains in the lower windows. They rang the bell, and Nob came to the door, and opened it a crack and peeped through; and when he saw them standing under the lamp he gave a cry of surprise.
...'Mr. Butterbur! Master!' he shouted. 'They've come back!'
...'Oh have they? I'll learn them,' ...and out he came with a rush, and he had a club in his hand. But when he saw who they were he stopped short, and the black scowl on his face changed to wonder and delight.
...'Nob, you wooly-pated ninny!' he cried. 'Can't you give old friends their names? You shouldn't go scaring me like that, with times as they are. Well, well! And where have you come from? I never expected to see any of you folk again, and that's a fact: going off into the Wild with that Strider, and all those Black Men about. But I'm right glad to see you, and none more than Gandalf. Come in! Come in...!'
...He led them down the passage to the parlour that they had used on that strange night more than a year ago; and they followed him, a little disquieted, for it seemed plain to them that old Barliman was putting a brave face on....
...'...You see, we're not used to such troubles; and the Rangers have all gone away, folk tell me. I don't think we've rightly understood till now what they did for us. For there's been worse than robbers about. Wolves were howling round the fences last winter. And there's dark shapes in the woods, dreadful things that makes the blood run cold to think of....'
...'...I expect it has,' said Gandalf. 'Nearly all lands have been disturbed these days... ...But cheer up, Barliman! You have been on the edge of very great troubles, and I am only glad to hear that you have not been deeper in. But better times are coming. Maybe, better than you remember. The Rangers have returned. We came back with them. And there is a king again, Barliman. He will soon be turning his mind this way....'
...'...Well, that sounds more hopeful, I'll allow,' said Butterbur. 'And it will be good for business, no doubt. So long as he lets Bree alone.'
...'He will,' said Gandalf. 'He knows it and loves it.'
...'Does he now? ...Though I'm sure I don't know why he should, sitting in his big chair up in his great castle, hundreds of miles away. And drinking wine out of a golden cup, I shouldn't wonder. What's The Pony to him, or mugs o' beer? Not but what my beers good, Gandalf. It's been uncommon good, since you came in the autumn of last year and put a good word on it. And that's been a comfort in trouble, I will say.'
...'Ah!' said Sam. 'But he says your beer is always good.'
...'He says?'
...'Of course he does. He's Strider. The chief of the Rangers. Haven't you got that into your head yet?'
...It went in at last, and Butterbur's face was a study in wonder. The eyes in his broad face grew round, and his mouth opened wide, and he gasped. 'Strider!' he exclaimed when he got back his breath. 'Him with a crown and all and a golden cup! Well, what are we coming to?'
...'Better times, for Bree at any rate,' said Gandalf.
...'I hope so, I'm sure,' said Butterbur.... '...Nob, you slowcoach!'
...'Nob!' he said to himself, slapping his forehead. 'Now what does that remind me of?'
...'Not another letter you've forgotten, I hope, Mr. Butterbur?' said Merry.
...'Now, now, Mr. Brandybuck, don't go reminding me of that! But there, you've broken my thought. Now where was I? Nob, stables, ah! that was it. I've something that belongs to you. If you recollect Bill Ferny and the horse-thieving: his pony as you bought, well, it's here. Come back all of itself, it did. But where it had been to you know better than me. It was as shaggy as an old dog and as lean as a clothes-rail, but it was alive. Nob's looked after it.'
...'What! My Bill?' cried Sam. 'Well, I was born lucky, whatever my gaffer may say. There's another wish come true! Where is he?' Sam would not go to bed until he had visited Bill in his stable."
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Avenger
Oct 27 2019, 4:15pm
Post #25 of 59
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Today in Middle-earth
October 29, 2941 (S.R. 1341)
1. With the help of the Elves, Bard arranges shelter and food for the townsfolk.
(determined from text)
..."Their plans were soon made. With the women and the children, the old and the unfit, the Master remained behind; and... ...men of crafts and many skilled elves; and they busied themselves felling trees, and collecting the timber sent down from the Forest... ...they set about raising many huts by the shore against the oncoming winter; and also under the Master's direction they began the planning of a new town, designed more fair and large even than before, but not in the same place. They removed northward higher up the shore; for ever after they had a dread of the water where the dragon lay... ...stretched cold as stone, twisted upon the floor of the shallows. There for ages his huge bones could be seen in calm weather amid the ruined piles of the old town. But few dared to cross the cursed spot, and none dared to dive into the shivering water or recover the precious stones that fell from his rotting carcase."
October 29, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The hobbits rest in Rivendell.
(not from the appendices-no text)
October 29, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The company rests at the Prancing Pony.
(not from the appendices)
..."...Mr. Butterbur could not complain of his business next evening at any rate. Curiosity overcame all fears, and his house was crowded. For a while out of politeness the hobbits visited the Common Room in the evening and answered a good many questions. Bree memories being retentive, Frodo was asked many times if he had written his book.
...'Not yet... ...I am going home now to put my notes in order.' He promised to deal with the amazing events at Bree, and so give a bit of interest to a book that appeared likely to treat mostly of the remote and less important affairs 'away south'.
...Then one of the younger folk called for a song. But at that a hush fell, and he was frowned down, and the call was not repeated. Evidently there was no wish for any uncanny events in the Common Room again."
We have been there and back again.
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