Oikeroi

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This content is considered pre-canon. While the subject of this article is based on official information, it was replaced or emended in later stages of the legendarium.

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Oikeroi
Biographical information
Titles	Thane of Tevildo
Birth	Elder Days
Death	First Age
Realms	Tiberth's hall
Physical description
Race	Cats
Gender	Male
Eyes	Green, red, or yellow
Culture	Angamandi (Cat-servants of Tevildo)

Oikeroi was a thane of Tevildo slain by the wolf-hound Huan in "The Tale of Tinúviel", given in The Book of Lost Tales Part Two.

Biography

Oikeroi was "a fierce and warlike" cat, counted as one of Tevildo's thanes. As a result of being a thane, he had access to the sunning ground beneath the hill-top halls. As one of Tevildo's thanes, Oikeroi was better than most cats at catching birds and beasts. Oikeroi had often spent so much of his time in Angband that eventually nobody paid attention to him when he was there.

When Beren was first brought to Tevildo, Oikeroi may have been among the thanes who stood with Tevildo and lashed their beautiful tails.

Some time later, after Tinúviel was brought to the dining chamber in the halls and claimed that Huan was lying wounded in the nearby Withered Dale, Tevildo followed her with Oikeroi and another thane. Unlike Umuiyan, Oikeroi carried Tinúviel down the hill-top without falling asleep.

Upon arriving at the Withered Dale, Tevildo decided that he, Oikeroi, and the other thane would surround Huan and silently approach him, tormenting him before they ended his life. However, just as all three cats pounced, Huan jumped onto Oikeroi's back to bite near his neck, killing him.

Huan kept Oikeroi's pelt as a trophy because of how mighty Oikeroi was. Though later, Tinúviel implored Huan to give it to her so that Beren could have a disguise. Huan was amused by the sight of Beren in Oikeroi's fell. Tinúviel used Beren's disguise as Oikeroi to trick Karkaras Knife-fang that she was being escorted by the thane. Once in Angband, Beren hid beneath Melko's throne, eventually tearing apart Oikeroi's fell when Melko was asleep.

Etymology

Oikeroi may be a Qenya word, though it is not glossed.

Other versions

While Oikeroi and Tevildo would be excluded as characters from later versions of the legendarium, many elements of Oikeroi's role would be reused in the Lay of Lethian, before being given to Draugluin.