Day 16: Parliament of Fools

[tanaquiljall]

'And where has [Gandalf] got to himself? He left the Lord's council before the noon-meal, and in no good mood either, I thought. Perhaps he has some foreboding of bad news.'

The Return of the King, LoTR Book 5, Ch 4, The Siege of Gondor

elena_tiriel wanted to know why did Gandalf react so strongly to what transpired at the Lord's council?

Day 16

Parliament of Fools

Talk, talk, talk! Much talk to little purpose. Mithrandir held impatience in check while words circled the table. Good men, fierce in defence of their lands, but seeing naught beyond the borders of their fiefdoms.

All save the Prince, whose mind ranged like the wild swans, flighting from northern reed-bed to southern lake. And the Lord Steward, who knew much but guarded knowledge like a dragon his hoard.

When the call for the noon-meal came, Mithrandir had learned the little the lords knew or Denethor would tell. Time to seek other news, and the Captain who might yet hold Gondor.

Comments

[rakshathedemon.livejournal.com]

Ooh, wonderful comparison of Denethor to Smaug or other dragons. And I love Gandalf's esteem for Faramir, especially since it builds on Tolkien's setup of Faramir as one of Gandalf's favored (and most valuable) pieces in the game.

Thank you!

[tanaquiljall]

Glad you liked the drabble.

I could see Denethor being very miserly with sharing any kind of information (or any real power) with the rest of the Council - or seeing the Council as anything more than a sop to the Lords to keep them happy. And how annoying Gandalf would find the whole exercise - especially when the one person who might talk sense is absent.... *g*

[elena-tiriel.livejournal.com]

Oh, my! I just *love* the line All save the Prince, whose mind ranged like the wild swans, flighting from northern reed-bed to southern lake.

And Gandalf's description of Denethor, though considerably less complimentary, is spot-on, too!

Well done, Liz!

- Barbara

[tanaquiljall]

Thanks, Barbara. I remember having a sense of how that line about Imrahil should go, and how it should involve the swans, but needing to spend a lot of time trying to get it just right.

And it was fun comparing Denethor to a dragon - especially as I'm sure Gandalf found him very frustrating at that meeting!