I am a firm believer that despite all the crimes Caranthir has done (kinslaying, fraud, etc), he will only be arrested for tax evasion when he gets re-embodied.

Hear me out. Maedhros would make an incredible high king not only for his own skill, but because he has six brothers keeping a close eye on everything.

Maedhros: The Leader. Inspiring. Strong. The strategist unbeaten. The one who survived what no other elf has. An incredibly strong personality that can bring even the most stubborn into his command. Undefeated in battle, feared by Morgoth himself. The diplomat who can bring together groups of people who hate each other to a common goal. A King in every sense of the word with a presence that sends the enemy scattering and elves thinking several times before daring to cross him. 

Maglor: PR and Media. Songs that can turn stupid costly mistakes into tragic tales of heroism and strength spread far a wide until no one can remember a version of events other than what he says. A great right hand able to take over when needed. Commanding, responsible, charming, can get anyone to tell him anything and great at establishing diplomatic connections. The people person. Loud and powerful or the quiet shadow at Mae’s back, always watching. Reading the court before the elves even know what they think and exposing them with deceptively soft words.  

Celegorm: The Hunter. Keeps the lands safe. Keeps them fed. Keeps an eye on the hunters and the army in general. You can’t escape him. You can’t hide from him. And with all the languages and tongues of birds and beats he speaks, he hears all. 

Caranthir: The Tradesman. The money man. Keeps everything running, keeps an eye on the economy, great at establishing trade routes that leave the Noldor in the best position. Good with materials and knows exactly what they need when. For what time of year. When to trade it. Smart and shrewd, you can’t double cross him, and he’ll always get you the best prices. 

Curufin: The forge master. The armourer. The architect. Nothing beats his work, and Mae’s armour especially is literally impenetrable. He’s the one who keeps the city at its peak, no stone at anything but perfect condition and weapons unlike any other. Hidden passages and secret stores. But he’s also a silver tongue like his eldest two brothers and he’s *very* good at convincing people, but also tearing them down and making sure they’ll never be a threat again. He can and will destroy your life before your eyes and you’ll never recover.

Ambarussa: The Spies. You don’t see them coming. You think Amrod’s gone only for Amras to take his place. Light footed and underestimated, they route out any schemes. They’re also the best connected to the green elves, so easily overlooked but smarter than most give them credit for. They’re the resident healers, and can make a poultice out of anything.

Celebrimbor: The Inventor. The one whose creativity knows no bounds. The creator of incredible Power infused devices like the rings to keep his people and family safe. A leader in his own right trained by his father and uncles who Maedhros is proud to call his heir. 

Feel free to add your own thoughts!

When Maedhros had—during an evening of drinking under the stars in Himlad—confided to the middle three of his brothers about his fear of being ignored after the incident at Thangorodrim, Celegorm had loudly proclaimed, "there shall never come a day where you call and I do not answer. Not as long as I yet dwell among the living. This I swear to you, brother!"

That had led to much alarm among them, oathbound as they were. Yet Curufin had repeated Celegorm's words, swearing to always respond whenever Maedhros called him. And before long, Caranthir too had sworn the same despite Maedhros' vehement dissuasion. "Oaths are not to be trifled with", he'd said.

"All the more reason for us to swear this," Caranthir had countered. "There are no insincere oaths, but false promises aplenty."

And Maedhros would deny tearing up at the underlying warmth in his brother's words. He was not a morose drunk, no matter what Curufin asserted, so it must've been the smoke from their campfire, for none of his brothers had commented as he had swiped under his eyes. Celegorm hadn't even looked at him as he'd spoken into the silence, "you were forgotten once, brother. Never again."

True to their words, ever since that night, every time Maedhros called, his brothers responded. None of his letters to them went unanswered, not even when he worded them less than affectionately amidst some ongoing disagreement. Never did it happen that he asked them something, rhetorical it may be, and his brothers stayed quiet. Even in sleep, if he called their name to check if they were awake, their fëar would reach out in response, reassuring him that they heard him.

So when, in Doriath, he called, "Curvo! Moryo! Tyelko!" and they answered not, nor did their fëar weave with his own, he knew.

He knew that there lay no beating heart inside their bloodied body. No breath left in their lungs to say, "I hear you, brother."

He knew. His calls will remain unanswered.

He knew. He shall be unheard once again. For the day had come when he called and his brothers did not answer.

He knew their oaths to him stood fulfilled. For they dwelt no longer among the living to keep it.

Maedhros knew. His brothers were dead.

we are so lucky that 6/7 Fëanorions went by their mother names in Sindarin because if Caranthir had changed Morifinwë to Sindarin instead of Carnister then his name would be Morfin and all of the memes when the Morpheus movie came out would have been inescapable

Back to Himring

Am I the villain...?

Instead of 'Am I the asshole' it's just silm characters except they're going 'Am I the villain...'.

Sons of Feanor version:

Maedhros: I might have stolen a couple of jewels from my uncle. For context, these jewels were made by my father and then stolen by others. However, when I picked up the jewels they burned me and I jumped into a chasm. I am now stuck in the halls of the dead, thinking about my past actions, and the leader around here, Mandos, is accusing me of being a villain. I have committed many crimes while I was getting these jewels back, including mass murder, theft, kidnapping, arson, starting a war against the bad guy who killed my father, and perhaps a few more. But I also saved a few people. This place keeps making me think: am I the real villain here? Am I the cause of all the problems? Am I at fault for allowing my brothers to roam unchecked?

Maglor: Am I the villain? Yes. I am the villain. I kidnapped innocent children after killing their parents brutally, burned down ships when my father asked, didn't protect my lands when my brother asked, and then I abandoned those kids I stole to wallow in self-pity. I'm contemplating whether or not I deserve to be called anything right now.

Celegorm: I just got killed by the son of this girl that I liked. My dog abandoned me for her, and she stole my family's jewel and refused to return it. And now this stupid god guy is accusing me of being a villain for not respecting a person's wishes? Am I the villain when I was abandoned by everyone and accused of crimes I did not commit?

Caranthir: I was just minding my own business, scamming people and getting in the money needed to fund a whole ass war and then my brothers decided we had to kill a bunch of people and I had to participate. So I did. Now I'm dead and this guy tells me I can't get money because I was basically a horror story told to children. Would I be the villain if I killed him? (He's already dead btw.)

Curufin: Whatever anyone else is saying, I am not the villain. But apparently, it's cool to post 'Am I the villain stuff' or so my brother said. So. I might've killed a bunch of people and I might've made weapons that harmed way more people. Does that make me the villain? I think not. Those people were keeping me and my brothers from our birthright. We asked them politely multiple times, but it didn't work. Sadly, we had to resort to violence, although we were set on achieving it through peace. Additionally, those people tried to ban our language, eradicate our culture, and refused to allow our refugees to settle under their protection because they were sanctimonious, prejudiced, and stuck-up.

Amrod: Can I be the villain when I've been dead since the beginning?

Amras: My twin was killed by my father, and then my father died. I proceeded to do unspeakable things to get revenge on the guy that firstly made my father insane enough to kill my twin and then my father. Anyone else who was injured was just collateral and completely accidental. Besides, I spent most of my time listening to my older brothers and following their orders, but this random guy I bumped into called me a villain. Am I really the villain?

top-tier addition from @classicalcassiopeia

i’m starting to think you people actually do paperwork

FIRMLY siding with this person in my notes, who is obviously a middle child. who also does paperwork.

“A king is he that can hold his own, or else his title is vain”, yes, Maedhros?

Curufin, Caranthir and Cleeg🕺

It’s going feral over Fëanorians time!

I feel like we all forget that Maedhros is, fundamentally, an Older Brother. I bet he’s insufferable about being the tallest. Sometimes he’ll just pick up his brothers to annoy them. Naughty little elves go in air jail.

He continues to do this in Beleriand btw. A human follower is like, I just saw Lord Maedhros pick up Lord Caranthir??? Like an angry kitten???? And their elven followers are like yea he does that. It’s even more of a power move now that he’s only got the one hand.

placing morifinwë carnistir in your hands, please keep him safe 🤲

or torment him if the urge strikes, both are for his enrichment

Caranthir the financial advisor from hell

The guards of Nargothrond glanced from side to side as if to ask each other ‘Is this allowed?’ They’d had three Feanorians staying with them for a while now but they were still unclear on the protocol for dealing with one of them just turning up at the gates. Nonetheless, they parted to let him through with little protest once their commanding officers gave them the go ahead.

He did not respond to their hesitance, to their great relief, none wished to be on the receiving end of that glare of his. He strode forward with a simple nod of acknowledgment to their general, his boots clicking evenly on the marble floor and somehow managing to echo through the corridor despite the background noise of a bustling city. Did all their nobility have some kind of powers when it came to being excessively dramatic? They’d thought their king was overly theatrical but the Feanorians all seemed to be as well, albeit in different ways.

He made his way straight through the corridors to the ongoing council meeting. This was concerning for numerous reasons, not the least of which being that everyone was fairly sure he had never been to Nargothrond before, so how could he possibly know their floor plan, let alone their schedule? Nevertheless, he flung open the doors and stood in the doorway, his glare at his cousin perhaps not as intense as his father’s but enough to terrify most into submission.

‘Moryo!’ Celegorm began to grin, the sight not even remotely reassuring to anyone. The two other sons of Feanor seemed way too at ease, but then who could ever claim to understand what was going on with that lot? Caranthir shot a far harsher yet somehow fond glare towards his brothers, ‘Tyelkormo. Atarinkë,’ he replied with little enthusiasm. ‘It’s been years, would it kill you to write, brother!’ Celegorm teased jovially. ‘I wasn’t aware you could read. Brother.’

A little snort broke the tense silence and the only grandson of Feanor beamed at his uncle through his amusement, ‘It’s good to see you uncle.’ Caranthir shot his nephew a quick smile and softened his tone, ‘A pleasure as always Tyelpe darling.’ He now brought his focus back to Finrod who was apprehensive as if he knew what was coming, the same as the Feanorians who were all giving each other conspiratorial glances. ‘Ingoldo. Findarato. My dear cousin.’

‘I have recently received your yen’s expenses report.’ ‘Holy shit,’ murmured Celegorm under his breath though still very much audibly, the grin on his face growing to troubling levels. ‘You have truly outdone yourself. Really.’ Finrod was turning gradually paler. ‘Why do you have access to documents from Nargothrond’s treasury?’

‘Because all our relatives have been delegating financial matters to me since I was forty. You didn’t think Fingon could actually draft a budget for his army himself did you? And Nelyo can’t barely do long division. They may say that something is for the king’s eyes only but what they really mean is it’s for Fingon to send my brother in between some graphic sketches and love letters and then for Nelyo to send to me once he’s exhausted his energy for calculations.’

‘And I have to wonder if you have a single person in your council capable of basic budgeting skills or if you simply regularly ignore expenditure plans to support your jewellery problem. I’m guessing the latter. So I have taken the liberty of drafting a comprehensive plan for all your financial dealings for the next yen and I expect you to follow it.’ He slammed a heavy tome onto the table, ‘I’m trusting Curufin to make sure you don’t deviate too far.’

‘Caranthir, it’s hardly like you’re living in some austere shack yourself!’ Caranthir shot a cold glare back, ‘Unlike you I manage my money. I am giving you the chance to do the same and I advise you take it.’ He stalked over to his family and accepted a kiss on the forehead from Celegorm before placing one on Curufin and Celebrimbor’s. ‘Three Cs for life!’ Celegorm called after him, still way too pleased to see his cousin get scolded. ‘That’s never going to catch on!’ Came the synchronised yells of Curufin and Caranthir.

Caranthir

Richer and prettier than you 💅💅