THE JOYS OF A BEARD

by Soledad

Disclaimer: Not mine, all Tolkien's, except the Mary Sue and the weird plot. Sue me, and you'll be given the Sue – pardon the really bad pun.

Rating: PG, for angst and searing passion.

Summary: Our heroine has recovered and the Council can reset. The fate of the Ring is decided – and also that of the Princess. She meets Gimli for the first time.

Author's note: And we happily return to HoME 6 in this chapter. Really, you're better off with 60% Tolkien and only 10% Mary Sue.

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''If the Elves knew the joys of a beard, no dwarf would be safe.'' – Legolas, in ''A Diamond Between Wood and Stone'', the most poetic Legolas/Gimli story I've ever read. Written by Pythoness, may the Valar bless her.

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CHAPTER 3: THE DECISION

In the next morrow everyone was happy to hear that the Princess Dúrheledwen(1) recovered enough for the Council to set on again. They gathered again after they had broken their fast and continued their discussion about the fate of the Ring. After the vision of the Princess there was no doubt any more that it had to be sent to the Fire, of course, but they still had to decide what way they should chose to accomplish this most perilous task. Curiously, the younger hobbits were not invited this time, only Bilbo and Frodo. When asked for the reason, Gandalf simply answered that there was no need for their presence at the time – which did not hinder Sam to follow them and hide in the background, of course. No way was he leaving his beloved master alone with all those strangers, with only Gandalf and Mr. Bilbo to protect him!

Frodo felt drained. All that talk about the Enemy and Mordor and the perils of the roads made him feel even more weak than he already was, due the lasting effects of his injury by the Morgul-blade, so he let his mind wander a little. After a while he detected in surprise that it was not Burin son of Balin who sat beside Glóin any more, but a young Dwarf with coarse dark hair and an artfully-braided dark beard, whose round eyes were dark and fiery like dying embers in a furnace, deep below the mountains. He wore richly adorned clothes, just like Glóin, and his temper seemed to be just as short as his body.

The hobbit shook his head, chiding himself for being so distracted, and tried to follow the discussion, which had become rather heated in the meantime. It seemed that at least some of Elrond's councillors still did not agree with their Lord's decision – which Frodo, after such a powerful vision that the Princess just had had a day earlier could not understand – and insisted to send the Ring over the Sea. How could Elves be this stubborn and unreasonable? Could they not see that Elbereth herself had been speaking through the Princess?

''The peril is greater on the western road'', said Elrond gravely, ''For my heart tells me that

is the road which Sauron will expect us to take when he hears what has befallen. And if we take it he will pursue us swiftly and surely, since we must make for the Havens beyond the Towers. Those he would certainly destroy, even if he found us not, and there would be thereafter no way of escape for the Elves from the darkening world.''

''And the Shire too would be destroyed'', said Trotter in a low voice, looking towards Bilbo and Frodo.

The younger hobbit shivered from that thought and looked around helplessly, but without much result. The eyes of the Council members were downcast, as if all them were listening to an inner voice. Only the lovely Princess sent an encouraging smile in his direction, making him swoon for a moment. No, he thought desperately, I must not think of her in this manner! She is an Elven Princess, and she is already promised. And I should listen to Elrond instead.

''But on the other road'', continued Elrond'', with speed and skill the travellers might go far unmarked. I do not say there is great hope to the quest; but only in this way could any lasting good be achieved. In the Ring is hidden much of the ancient power of Sauron. Even though he does not hold it that power still lives and works for him and towards him. As long as the Ring lives on land or sea he will not be overcome. While the Ring lasts he will grow, and have hope, and the fear lest the Ring come into his hand again will ever weigh on the world. War will never cease while that fear lives, and all Men will be turned to him.''

''I do not understand this'', said Boromir. ''Why should the Elves and their friends not use the Great Ring to defeat Sauron? And I say that all Men will not join him: the Men of Ond will never submit!''

''Never is a long word O Boromir'', the Princess said softly, giving the Prince of Ond a gentle, compassionate look. Elrond nodded in agreement; the wisdom of such a young Elf amazed him to no end, and he was grateful that she would soon become part of his family.

''The Men of Ond are valiant and still faithful amid a host of foes; but valour alone cannot withstand Sauron for ever'', he added. ''Many of his servants are as valiant. But as for the Ruling Ring – it belongs to Sauron and is filled with his spirit. Its might is too great for those of lesser strength, as Bilbo and Frodo have found, and in the end it must lead them captive to him if they kept it. For those who have power of their own, 'tis a danger far greater. With it they might perchance overthrow the Dark Lord, but they would set themselves in his throne. Then they would become as evil as he, or worse. For nothing is evil in the beginning. Even Sauron was not so. I dare not take the Ring to wield it.''

''Nor do I'', said Gandalf, shaking his head in sorrow.

''But is it not true, as I have heard said, O Elrond'', said Boromir, ''that the Elves keep yet and wield Three Rings, and yet these too came from Sauron in the ancient days? And the Dwarves, too, had rings, it is said. Tell me, Glóin, if you know it, whether any of the Seven Rings remain?''

''I do not now'', said Glóin. ''It was said in secret that Thráin (father of Thrór, father of Thorin(2) who fell in battle) possessed one that had descended from his sires. Some said it was the last. But where it is no dwarf now knows. We think maybe it was taken from him, ere Gandalf found him in the dungeons of Mordor long ago(3) – or maybe it was lost in Moria. Yet of late we have received secret messages from Mordor, offering us rings again. It was partly on this account that I came to Rivendell; for the messages asked concerning one Bilbo, and commanded us to obtain from him (willing or unwilling) the ring that he possessed. For this ring we were offered three such as our fathers had of old. Even for news of where he might be found we were offered friendship for ever and great wealth(4).''

He paused and shook his head with a deep sigh. And the young Dwarf who was seated beside him took over and spoke now for the first time, and his voice was deep and powerful like the echo of great hammers deep the corridors of Dwarven mines, deep under the earth. And Frodo saw with suddenly reawakening jealousy that the fair Elven Princess gaped at that sturdy Dwarf in awe, as if some evil Dwarven spell would have been put upon her.

''Our hearts are troubled, for we perceive that King Brand in Dale is afraid'', the young Dwarf said, letting his fiery eyes sweep around the circle, ''and if we do not answer Sauron will move other Men to evil against him. Already there are threats of war upon the south.'' Spoken like a true Dwarven warrior, he gave the damascened hilt of his great battle axe, that he kept at hand even in the Council, a fond stroke. The Princess seemed completely enchanted by that sight.

''It would seem then that the Seven Rings are lost or have returned to their Lord'', said Boromir morosely. ''What of the Three?''

''The Three Rings remain still'', Elrond answered. ''They have conferred great power on the Elves, but they have never yet availed them in their strife with Sauron. For they came from Sauron himself, and can give no skill or knowledge that he did not already possess at their making(5).''

''And to each race the rings of the Lord bring such powers as each desires and is capable of wielding'', the Princess added, turning her eyes that were brighter than the stars of Elbereth, from the Dwarf to Boromir. ''The Elves desired not strength or domination or riches, but subtlety of craft and lore, and knowledge of the secrets of the world's being. These things they have gained, yet with sorrow. But they will turn to evil if Sauron regains the Ruling Ring; for then all that the Elves have devised or learned with the power of the rings will become his, as was his purpose.''

Once again, not Boromir alone but all that were present gazed at her in awe. For 'twas true that Elves could gain great wisdom when they put their minds to it, but that was usually true for the Elven-wise only, not for the rustic woodland folk, and even less so for someone who was barely five hundred years old(6). Frodo asked himself if there had been other blood in the family of Mirkwood's Elvenking but that of woodland Elves.

The only ones who seemed fully unimpressed were the Dwarves, of course, but what could one expect from such creatures who had no sense for aught else but gold and jewels. Though, and Frodo found that very confusing, Prince Legolas, too, rolled his eyes secretly, and exchanged looks with the young Dwarf that a hobbit could not quite understand. 'Twas somewhat disturbing that the fair Prince could not see the wisdom of his own sister. But that might be because they were siblings. Frodo had seen often enough in the Shire what harm sibling rivalry could do.

''What then would happen, if the Ruling Ring were destroyed?'' asked Boromir.

''The Elves would not lose what they have already won'', answered Elrond; ''but the Three Rings would lose all power thereafter.''

''Yet that loss'', the Princess whispered with downcast eyes and there was great sadness in her soft, musical voice, ''all Elves would gladly suffer, if by it the power of Sauron might be broken(7).''

''Thus we return again to the point whence we started'', said Erestor. ''The Ring should be destroyed; but we cannot destroy it, save by the perilous journey to the Fire. What strength or cunning have we found for that task?''

''In this task it is plain that great power will no avail'', said Elrond. ''It must be attempted by the weak. Such is the way of things. In this great matter fate seems already to have pointed the way for us.''

''Very well, very well, Master Elrond!'' said Bilbo suddenly. ''Say no more! It is plain at least what you are pointing at. Bilbo the hobbit started this affair, and Bilbo had better finish it, or himself. I was very comfortable here, and getting on with my book. If you want to know, I am just writing an ending for it. I had thought of putting 'and he lived happily ever afterward to the end of his days'; which is a good ending, and none the worse for having been used before. Now I shall have to alter that – it does not look like being true, and anyway, there will have to be several more chapters, even if I do not write them myself. It is a frightful nuisance! When ought I to start?''

Elrond smiled and Gandalf laughed loudly, and all the others joined him, even the Princess whose laughter rang like the water of a silver fountain falling back into its basin. For a moment Frodo even forgot Bilbo's brave offer, so enraptured he was listening to that lovely song. But then he shook his head ashamed. This had to end. He was not allowed to lust after the Princess. 'Twas wrong.

''Of course'', said the wizard, ''if you had really started the affair, my dear Bilbo, you would be expected to finish it. But starting is a strong word- I have often tried to suggest you that you only came in (accidentally, as you might say) in the middle of a long story, that was not made up for your sake only. That is, of course, true enough of all heroes and all adventures, but never mind that now. As for you, if you want my opinion once more, I should say that your part is finished – except as a recorder. Finish your book and leave the ending! But get ready to write a sequel when they come back.''

Bilbo laughed in his turn. ''I have never known you to give pleasant advice before, Gandalf'', he said, ''or to tell me to do what I really wanted to do. Since all your unpleasant advice has usually been good, I wonder if this is not bad. Yet it is true that my years are stretched and getting thin, and I do not think I have the strength for the Ring. But tell me: who do you mean by 'they'?''

''The adventurers who are sent with the Ring.''

''Exactly, and who are they to be? That seems to me precisely what this Council has now to decide.''

There was a long silence. Frodo glanced round at all the faces, but no one looked at him – except Sam; in whose eyes there was a strange mixture of hope and fear. All the others sat as if in deep thought with their eyes closed or upon the ground. A great dread fell on Frodo, and he felt an overwhelming longing to remain at peace by Bilbo's side in Rivendell.

At last with an effort he spoke. ''I will take the Ring'', he said. ''Though I do not know the way.''

Elrond looked keenly at him. ''If I understand all the tale that I have heard'', he said, ''I think that this task is appointed for you, Frodo, and that if you do not find the way, no other will.''

''But you would not send him off alone, surely, master!'' cried Sam, unable to contain himself.

''No indeed!'' said Elrond, turning towards him with a smile. ''You at least shall go with him, since it is hardly possible to separate you from him – even when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not.''

''Sam subsided, but whispered to Frodo: ''How far is this Mountain? A nice pickle we have landed ourselves in, Mr. Frodo!''

''When shall I start?'' asked Frodo.

'' First you shall rest and recover full strength'', answered the Princess gently, guessing his mind. ''Rivendell is a fair place, and we will not send you away, until you know it better. And meanwhile we will make plans for your guidance(8).''

TBC

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End notes:

(1) I am terribly sorry, but since this is the chapter where the Sue falls for Gimli, I created the name by typing in ''Pervy Dwarf Fancier'' in barrowndowns' name-generator. ducks ashamedly I simply could not resist. This fic seems to have a deteriorating effect on my morale.

(2) In ''The Hobbit'' Thráin was not the father of Thrór but his son. Tolkien made quite some changes back and forth – it would be too long to discuss them here.

(3) In the dungeons of Dol Guldur in Mirkwood in FOTR.

(4) The first draft of Elrond's council contained the line that the Dwarves still possessed some of their ancient Rings, that Dáin had one, and that Sauron was demanding them back.

(5) I am serious. In Tolkien's original concept all Rings of Power were made by Sauron. Of course, all the lines given here to the Sue were those of Elrond originally. I just swapped a few of them to her, in order to remain true to the ''line-stealing'' rule, but I haven't changed a word in the dialogue, except probably the occasional ''then'' or ''and''. 'Tis all Tolkien™, people! Even the grammar!

(6) Needless to say that I personally disagree with this – but the sad fact is that many fics handle the Wood-Elves as if they all were idiots. Another cliché that I had to incorporate to remain faithful to the Way Of The Sue. As for her age, the only reason to make her 500 years old was the fact that in many horrible stories this is Legolas' age, in order to make him young, stupid and weak, so that everyone whom he normally would beat to bloody pulp with one of his arms tied to his back could take advantage of him.

(7) That would have been Glorfindel's line. sighs Poor Elf-Lord, some chick always steals something from him. If not his lines, then his horse.

(8) Obviously, these lines had been stolen from Elrond. Never mind that the Lord of the Valley would have the right – and to means – for making decisions and preparations. No Mary Sue would let herself be hindered by such nuisances.