tindez:

#sorry it’s not very long and ends awkwardly abrupt #searched for something for Manwë #wanted something simple and peaceful #what can i say – he’s an Air Nomad #also the idea of sending the Istari to Middle-earth as old men came somewhere #manwë is not his brother he does not want control #his is not a jealous love spiteful of his brother #Vanyar aren’t Boring #Good is Not Dumb #tasked by Eru to create and govern all of Arda #fighting Melkor for eons before the elves ever awaken #my theme of physics + ainur continues #inside the vastness of something you do not see it #also how spaced out gas molecules are #…if that at all comes across

 #i don’t find that ending awkward at all really? #this is such a different interpretation of manwe #at least from what i usually see #i will have to spend way too much time thinking about this #manwe #tolkien #fanfic

Aw, thanks! With Manwë I was definitely inspired by his most well-known follower, Olórin aka Gandalf, and especially Gandalf in the Shire and his love of the peacefulness of it and of the Hobbits – and that humbleness. And that Tolkien quite clearly defines Manwë as not his brother, as someone who isn’t a hyper-inflated ego wanting to master others, a good king. Manwë who loves and obeys Eru and knows he is in Arda as Eru’s regent.

And a lord of air should be someone that can walk unseen, that is vast and invisible but absolutely essential.

Other interpretations of Manwë as in a boring figurehead or asshole? Or just really remote?

squirrelwrangler:

The kindly-faced man sits on a corner of the streets in Valmar, appearing to do nothing at all except bask in the warm golden light and listen to the clarion bells. Sometimes pigeons bob at his feet, or a wandering cat or dog curls their heads on his lap. His eyes are a brilliant blue, when they are not lidded in the peaceful countenance of a man who delights in a warm day and the pleasing tones of the city’s many bells. 

“You are one of the Maiar,” says a pedestrian with tightly coiled golden hair, standing just so their shadow does not block the light upon the bald man with stunningly clear blue eyes. “I can feel the difference in the souls, between Eldar and Ainur. I apologize that I do not recognize you, though I believe you must be one of the minor servants, for you do not blaze in my senses like many I have met. Is there something you need? You appear tired.”

The man sitting on the corner of the street smiles. “A little weary, perhaps. The war has been long, my task longer. But the sound of the bells helps to soothe, and the warm air rising up from the stones, and the kind offers from strangers.” He laughs, the creases around his brilliant blue eyes folding up to cover their brightness, the sound of his laugh as pure and light as the smallest chimes. “Air has a great weight. You don’t feel it, as it is always pressing in from every direction. You don’t see how much it weighs.”

kazaera said: ahhh this is beautiful! I love Manwe in disguise, just taking in everything. And oh man “you do not blaze in my senses/you appear tired” Manwe ;___;

Oh yes, if any series allows a wandering king in humble disguise, it’s Tolkien 😉 

I wanted a way to convey that the Vanya mistakes Manwë in that oswarë double-sense as only a part of his power, not because Manwë is deliberately suppressing and hiding his power – not sure if the text works. But yeah, if elves can and will eventually fade due to the weariness of immortality in Arda, and if Manwë and the other Valar have already dealt with Melkor’s shit for far longer than any elf has been alive, he’s allowed to have moments where he needs a break from sitting enthroned in Ilmarin.