The Old Grey Widow-Maker

[lilith_lessfair]

Prompt: Bramley’s A Hopeless Dawn
Format: Ficlet
Genre: gen
Rating: gen
Warnings: none
Characters: Amandil, Mairen (Lady!Sauron)
Pairings: none
Summary: The King’s prisoner is about to take ship to Númenor. It might be part of the Revelator ‘verse.


“What is a woman that you forsake her
And the hearth fire and the home acre
to go with the old grey Widow-maker?”

Hearing those words, Amandil turned in surprise and looked at the King’s prisoner. She stood behind him at the dock, staring out at the grey sea.

“Have you not been at sea, lady?”

“Not in many years,” she answered. “I respect the sea, its power, its ever-changing nature, but I do not like it.”

“Why not?” he asked.

She smiled slightly before she answered. “I was born of fire,” she said softly. “I have no sway at sea.


The verse is Kipling’s “Harp Song of the Dane Women.”

Comments

[kayleearafinwiel]

Oooh! I'm not sure I know that 'verse, but this intrigues me...

[lilith_lessfair]

Thank you!

I love the sea and my grandmother used to recite it, so it’s often in my mind. It would work well for Erendis, I think.

Revelator refers to a set of stories I’ve written featuring a female Sauron. She’s been an interesting journey. I’ve had to rethink a number of different assumptions about the character.

[heartofoshun]

I love that poem too! This is very atmospheric. You are on a roll!

[lilith_lessfair]

Thanks. The poem popped in my head as soon as I saw the prompt.

Mairen and Amandil have been thinking of the sea or were when I left them on their journey some time ago — he has been thinking of his early voyages with Pharazôn and she on the journey to come
and how uneasy the sea makes her.

[hhimring]

She is going to respect the sea even more and like it even less, before she is through, I suspect!

[lilith_lessfair]

Yes, her general thought when the wave comes is somewhere between “I’m doomed.” and “Nice touch.”