"I can't help but feel there’s wonders in this world. Beyond our wandering."
Nori to her stepmother.
Elanor "Nori" Brandyfoot is one of the main characters of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. She is a young Harfoot. Nori is portrayed by Markella Kavenagh, first appearing in the episode "A Shadow of the Past".
Official Description[]
Nori is a Harfoot, a wandering, ancestral community of halflings who will one day develop into Hobbits. A dreamer to the bone, Nori yearns for adventure outside the small bounds of the halflings’ perilous world.
Biography[]
Nori Brandyfoot is a member of the Harfoot community led by Sadoc Burrows. She is the daughter of Largo Brandyfoot and his late wife, Rose. She is the older sister of Dilly. Nori was naturally curious and inquisitive, often venturing outside of the communities boundaries with her rule-following friend Poppy Proudfellow.
Helping a Stranger[]
Nori led her friend, Poppy Proudfellow, and several of the community's children, including her sister, Dilly, to an abandoned farm near their encampment. They found a large amount of berries, but when evidence of wolves in the area becomes apparent, Nori led them home. She was told by her father, Largo, that travellers hadbeen seen and Nori was annoyed she missed them.[2]
Nori's curious nature led to her stepmother, Marigold to worry about her, and for Sadoc to wonder if she was part squirrel. One night, a comet blazed over their camp. It crashed to the ground nearby. Nori immediately went to investigate, and found a mysterious figure in the center of the crater.[2]
She convinced Poppy to help her bring the Stranger to safety for the evening. She admitted she felt he was important and that she had to help him. Nori returned in the morning and he nearly attacked her until he remembered her from the night before. She shared her name, taught him to eat snails, and tried to learn more about his past, but believed he didn't remember anything as a result of the fall. Poppy arrived and told Nori her father has been hurt. His ankle was badly injured and the community worried if he could migrate or not.[4]
Nori and Poppy visited the Stranger with firefly lanterns to guide them. She was emotional as she felt she couldn't help him even though she wanted too very badly. He communicated with the fireflies to make them form a constellation. Nori realized he wanted their help in finding those stars, and had an idea of where to look.[4]
The night of the Harvest Festival, Nori stole Sadoc's Star-book against Poppy's insistence. Nori wanted to could find the constellations the Stranger sought as he felt compelled to help him further. She laid out the pages for the Stranger then returned to camp. The Stranger found the texts and used the fire to see them clearer, but grew confused when they lit on fire. He tripped into the camp and scared the Harfoots, though in his confused demeanor, he called out to Nori.[1]
Nori was reprimanded by Sadoc for lying, stealing, and bringing an outsider into their midst. Malva wanted to exile Nori for her actions, but Sadoc refused as she was still young. The pages, however, were irreparably burned. Nori insisted it was just her involved with the Stranger to protect Poppy. Sadoc spared her exile but moved the Brandyfoot cart to the back of the caravan. Goldie was furious with Nori and reminded her that she wasn't special. Nori understood, but could feel how special the Stranger was. In the morning, the Harfoots began their migration, though the Brandyfoot's struggled to keep up because of Largo's injury. The Stranger emerged from under the cart and called her a "friend". Nori realized he was the answer to their problem - they could help each other.[1]
The Stranger's support throughout the journey was immense, though the rest of the Harfoots weren't convinced that allowing the Stranger to stay was the right decision. Nori continued to teach him phrases and good from bad. He worried he was peril, but she insisted he was good which was impactful for him. Poppy was eager to continue the migration, and Nori suggested she sing her mom's walkin' song to help the time pass.[5]
The Harfoots were attacked by a Wolf, but the Stranger rescued them when he channeled his power over wind to knock the wolves away. He injured his arm and retreated to a puddle where he soaked his arm. Nori found him and heard him mutter in a foreign language, which caused the water and his arm to freeze. She tried to free him and became frozen herself. He accidentally knocked her away which scared her. He went to check on her, but she ran away from him.[5]
The distance between them seemed to grow as they continued the migration. The Brandyfoot's and Poppy arrived late to the Grove and were dismayed to see it ruined from a southern fire mountain eruption. Sadoc hoped Nori would ask the Stranger to fix it the way he fixed the wolf, but Poppy believed it would be rude to ask more of him. Sadoc asked him personally instead. The Stranger tried, but ultimately broke an apple tree branch that nearly harmed Dilly and Nori. As a result, the Harfoots asked the Stranger to leave, sending him toward Greenwood to find other big folk. Nori gifted him an apple for his journey.[6]
Nori regretted her kindness to the Stranger and told Goldie she was right about her not being special. She understood now that she was a Harfoot and that was all she was meant to be. In the morning, the Harfoots found the Grove completely healed by the Stranger's magic. They were soon visited by three Mystics who tracked the Stranger's power. Nori tried to protect his journey by pointing them in the wrong direction, which spurred Sadoc and Largo to protect her. The Mystics retaliated when they burned the Harfoots carts. Nori felt responsible for the events and her spirit broken. Largo gave a speech to the entire community about how Harfoots might not be the most fearsome of Middle-earth creatures, but they stay true to each other no matter what, more than any other creature in Middle-earth, and they just keep walking. Feeling a sense of renewed strength and a determination to make things right, Nori ventured into the woods after her friend alongside Sadoc, Goldie, and Poppy.[6]
They found him in the Greenwood captured by the Mystics. Nori hurried to free her friend who was tied to a tree. As she freed him, he transformed into his true form as The Nomad, who threw Nori back. She and the Mystics prepared to kill Nori until the Stranger emerged from the tree line, freed by Goldie. He summoned the wind and saved Nori, who retreated with Goldie and Poppy. The Ascetic told the Dweller to make the Stranger see, so she approached him with her staff. The Halfings threw rocks at her, so she retaliated by throwing fire into their hiding spots. Amidst the chaos, Nori grabbed the Dweller's staff and brought it to the Stranger, begging him to take it. He warned her to stay away or he'll harm her again, as the Mystics showed him what he was. She told him to choose what he was by his actions. She knew he was here to help. He bid the Mystics a return back to the shadows. The Mystics realized he was not Sauron but the other, the Istari. He sent a wave of light that pulses across the Mystics that turned them into moths. Nori celebrated with Goldie and Poppy until she noticed Sadoc alone, his wound from the battle having grown. He knew it was his time to wander off-trail. He requested to sit and watch the sun come up with his friends.[7]
Goldie, Poppy, Nori, and the Stranger returned to the Grove. She and the Stranger and Nori shared a moment on the cliffs as he decided to pursue the journey to Rhûn. He hoped to discover more about himself. Nori asked what "Istar" meant, and he translated it to "wise one" or "wizard". She had enough adventure as any Harfoot could hope for, and planned to return to her people. Largo had another idea and gave her a sack to carry with her on her new life. Goldie knew the Stranger needed Nori and that her daughter was part of something bigger now, belonging out there and not wandering with them. She tearfully bid goodbye to Poppy, who promised to look after everyone, and Nori promised to return one day. Nori joined the Stranger on top of the hill, where they both realized they had no clue of which way to go. The Stranger chose on a direction because the air smelled sweeter in that direction. He reminded her that, when in doubt, to always follow her nose. Together they started off on their new adventure together as the Harfoots headed in the opposite direction.[7]
Travelling East[]
Nori and the Stranger continued to travel into the east, although their journey was not an easy one. The heat grew as they walked, and they soon ran out of food. It appeared they were lost, going around in circles, although the Stranger believed that there was a evil on the land confusing their path. Nori convinced the Stranger to use his power on a tree in an attempt to make fruit grow, but he lost control and the tree exploded. Nevertheless, the explosion unearthed a large number of insects, enough for the pair to eat for the next few days. Nori attempted to get the Stranger to talk about the dreams he was having, believing that they might be the key to what they were searching for. The Stranger recounted some of it, but not all, believing somethings were not meant to be uttered. They talked of Nori missing home, but soon realised that they were being followed.[8]
Setting a trap, Nori and the Stranger captured their pursuer, finding out that it was Poppy Proudfellow. Nori was overjoyed to see her friend and asked questions of home and of her family. Poppy answered that they were well, then told them that she had consulted Sadoc's old book and found that Harfoots had wandered the same way a long time ago and had left a warning: "Not to forget the words to the song, or you’ll just go round in circles." Realizing that The Walkin' Song was the clue to stop them from getting lost, Poppy joined Nori and the Stranger, heading east and crossing into the lands of Rhûn.[8]