"It is a fictional world, but so many readers, deep down, cannot help but entertain the possibility that in some universe, these stories may in fact be true..."

At a Tolkien conference in the Seventh Age, Findekáno listens to the inspiring words of a curious Quenya scholar among the Atani, and makes a new friend.

Finrod and Bëor stop for a while on the road to Nargothrond to rest. The bodies of the Secondborn often grow weary, and Finrod laments, massaging Bëor's back and renewing his beloved's vigor with the work of his hands. But Finrod has other burdens of his own, Bëor soon discovers, returning Finrod's favor in the best way he knows how.

Maglor without Maedhros, Daeron without Lúthien. Alone, they are nothing, but together, they can be something more.
Where do you turn, when you have no one else left?

Written for Tolkien Reverse Summer Bang 2023, featuring artwork by athlai.

If I sing now, will you answer me?

Once childhood friends, now king and captain, Finrod and Edrahil mourn for what they lost in each other on the Helcaraxë.

A fleeting moment in the last days of Celebrimbor's life, in the dungeons below Eregion. Even if it hurts to kill the one he loves, even if Celebrimbor has forever changed him, it is too late for Sauron to turn back.

Together, they could have been great. But love cannot last, on the inescapable path Sauron has set for himself.

As he gains more territory in Eriador after the fall of Eregion, Sauron contemplates his solitude.

Balan, in hopes of comforting Finrod and reminding him of the time they still have together, gifts him a lullaby passed down among his people. The memories of the Elves are unfading, Balan knows- as long as Finrod remembers, Balan will continue to live.