Sorry @scyllas-revenge I don't mean to screenshot instead of reblog, but for some reason the other post was flagged as mature and like OH TUMBLR, I CAN GET MATURE WITH THIS IF YOU WANT
BOROMIR LIVES AU, EPISODE 5: BOROMIR BRUSHES HIS TEETH SHIRTLESS (I have to advertise since everything gets hidden below the jump now)
Oh yeah, I have THOUGHTS about this. I think overall, Boromir would have a commanding officer’s mindset that good grooming shows good discipline and morale, and part of his job is to set that example. That said, I think his fastidiousness would go in stages.
TW- unhealthy weight loss
Head raccoon aside, I think on the journey from Minas Tirith, he’d let his beard grow out but keep up basic soldier hygiene otherwise, simply out of habit and as a way to keep the madness of a solo trek at bay. There’s something about cleaning your teeth each morning that reminds you you’re human.
And we're all just human, after all.
I think a switch flips once he leaves Imladris with the scruffy, patchwork ranger who apparently has a claim to the throne of Gondor. Boromir would make a point of keeping his beard trimmed and his gear tidy as a direct antithesis to Aragorn. He’d pass it off as just being a good soldier—but you know inside, his pride would be on absolute overdrive. His discipline combined with the Ring’s growing influence would push him into haughtiness and self-righteousness.
*JUDGES EXTREMELY LOUDLY*
That haughtiness, of course, would all come crashing down after Amon Hen. Out of reach of the Ring, and realizing that he was the first among the Fellowship to fall, and blaming himself for their sundering, I think he’d completely lose his sense of self, and with it, his soldier’s grooming. He’d stop shaving and keeping his hair kempt. Things would only worsen after reaching Edoras, where he would see the degradation of this once-great sister city, the frailty of Theoden, the disgrace of Eomer, the suffering of Eowyn, and the death of his friend Theodred. I think he’d equate Rohan’s desperate state with his own ruin. By Helm’s Deep, he’d have lost weight and muscle and be resigned to the fact that the world of Men was about to collapse.
He’d fight as hard as honor dictated, of course, and thanks to that and the leadership of Aragorn and the support of Legolas and Gimli—who have probably been trying to snap him out of his spiral all along (I’ve got a comic on that brewing)—he’d be stunned to find that he didn’t die and that the world of Men isn’t going to cave that easily.
We're... alive? Is that what just happened?
Post Helm’s Deep would be a turning point for him as everybody turns their attention to Gondor. Reuniting with Merry and Pippin and marching with Rohan’s army back to his city and his brother would ignite a sense of hope that he’d thought he’d never feel again. He’d get back to his soldier’s hygiene routine, but without the self-righteousness this time. It would be with a grim, fulfilling sense of purpose—he’s the High Warden of Gondor, and he’s coming back to save his country.
And then finally, I think he’d go full tilt on Aragorn’s plan to march on the Black Gate and playact the hubris of Men. Leaving Minas Tirith so soon after returning on a suicide mission, and with Faramir wounded and his father dead, would be one of the hardest choices he’s ever made, but I think by this point he’d know his place is by Aragorn’s side as his Captain. And just like Aragorn gets pretty, Boromir would get pretty too.
^That's Faramir, not Aragorn--sorry, I was rushing my character designs
But then he comes BACK and everything is FINE.
dailybridgerton
tangentwithtanner
germansingergirl
romaincrisis
janainaart
snowghoul
baratheonpilled
