Impurities

Chapter Two: Unnatural Eyes

Cutting into the sweet bread on his plate, Thranduil was sat across from his son at the breakfast table. Since he had only made a brief appearance in the healing room, Legolas filled him on what he had missed from the previous night. "Even though she refused to tell us her own name, she named her child", he spoke enthusiastically about the young mother, " 'Anawrete' is what she has called her daughter". Without looking up from his plate, Thranduil asked a simple question, "Does the name have meaning among the race of men?" Legolas sat up straighter as he realized they had overlooked the thought, "I'm not sure. We did not think to ask". In the silence that came after, the nurse from last night entered the room looking distressed. She glanced from the prince to the king as they stared back at her, waiting for her to speak. "My lords---", she began before taking in a deep breath, "The newborn is well, but I'm afraid the mother is nowhere to be found". 

Thranduil and Legolas went back to the room with the nurse and indeed found the woman gone. "How long did the mother and child go unsupervised?" Legolas asked as he touched the empty bed sheets. The nurse shrunk into herself before confessing, "I took to the bed behind that curtain over there, to give the mother and child privacy, and there I remained all throughout the night. I woke to find the young woman gone". Thranduil rolled his eyes to the ceiling with a frustrated sigh, the incompetence around him was aggravating, "Awaken your senses, your task was not difficult". He looked back down at the ashamed nurse before making a realization, "Where is Tauriel? Someone needs to explain to me why none of the watch guards noticed the woman leaving".

In the time that it took Legolas to get Tauriel, the baby had awaken and was crying. The nurse gently picked up the child and soothed her as Thranduil proceeded to address his guard captain. "If we send out numbers now, we may be able to find the mother," Tauriel argued in defence, "She could not have gotten far". Legolas was quick to agree with her, "She might very well still be within our borders". Thranduil was about to respond when Anawrete began crying out again. The nurse gave her to Tauriel who held her with uncertainty, "She must be hungry. Please carry her while I go prepare something in the kitchen".

Tauriel managed to reduce the noise of the child pressed to her bosom by gently swayed from side to side, "I promise my lord," she looked up from the baby in her arms, "We will find the woman". Thranduil furrowed his brow at that thought, "Do not bother sending out any elves for a search, she does not want to be found". He focused his expression on the child, "Anawrete will know neither her father or mother. Select a number to go to Rohan, if there is any hope for this child, she will find adoptive parents there".

Tauriel looked at her king in disbelief, "She is too young for travel!" Anawrete had quieted down to a mere whimper as Thranduil fixed his eyes on her, "What place does she have in Mirkwood among elves? It is best that she goes to Rohan and is raised by her own race". Tauriel broke Thranduil's scrutinizing stare by moving the infant unto her shoulder, "Is there anything wrong with her being raised here?" Thranduil saw the child growing up with identity issues if she were to be raised by any race apart from Men, "I can think of many things wrong with her being raised by elves, but the first problem is which among us would take such a task?" Apart from Elrond, who lives in Rivendell and is a Half-Elvin himself, Thranduil did not know of anyone that would receive a human child. Tauriel shocked both king and prince when she said, "I will take her". The look of surprise left Thranduil and he quickly became unimpressed, "What help do you have?" The brave captain dared to look to Legolas in plain sight of his father, but when the prince did not commit himself, she took the risk and boldly said, "I will raise her on my own".

"What will you do when she is old enough to understand she is not as us?" Legolas, finding his voice again, posed a possible issue. Thranduil raised his eyebrow at Tauriel as she hesitated to answer his son's question. The nurse returned before the captain guard opened her mouth, "I---I will tell her", Tauriel uttered. "I will tell her of her mother and how she came to be my child. I will also give her the choice to go live among Men when she is of age", Tauriel continued as she handed Anawrete over to the nurse for feeding.  "Do as you will and raise her, but should this child pull you from your duties---", Thranduil paused to find Anawrete staring up at him while she fed on what the nurse provided and returned her glance with a dull stare for he was no longer alarmed by the unnatural blue color of her eyes as he had been the night before, "---I would not hesitate to give her to the race of Men", he professed before he taking his leave from the room.