Impurities

Chapter Five: Unexpected

Tauriel wanted to hold her, but the truth had hit Anawrete too hard that she would not permit the guard captain to touch her. Shocked, hurt, and a little angry, the young prepubescent girl was trying to calm her raising voice, "You allowed me to spend thirteen years of my life trying to be like you, only to find out that I never will because I have human limitations". "If you knew of the limitations, you would have allowed them to keep you from succeeding," Tauriel tried to hold back from crying. They sat unable to look at each other as a few minutes went by. A single tear ran down Anawrete's face as a sign of her frustraition while Tauriel had already let go of several. "If you desire to leave in order to live among the race of Men, I will not keep you from doing so", Tauriel said uneasily, "Legolas and a few other guards can---". She had been cut off. "Mirkwood is all I know," Anawrete turned to the elleth who had raised her, "I will find my place in it, if Thranduil is gracious". The young girl fought her emotions to embrace the guard captain, "Thank you for loving me, naneth". That was the final time Anawrete referred to Tauriel as mother.

Anawrete was swift to draw her bow when a disturbance was heard among the bushes, but Thranduil held her from shooting. When he removed his hand from her shoulder, a large waddling animal made it's appearance before them, "I do not need protection from a mere porcupine". Anawrete returned the arrow to her quiver with embarrassment, she was too quick to prove herself yet again. "I already know that you are quite a skillful archer", he commended her regardless and set his elk back into motion. She no longer needed lessons from Legolas for she had mastered the skill, only coming second to the prince himself in all of Mirkwood. "Do you remember the promise you made to me?" Anawrete asked as she watched the autumn breeze lightly blow Thranduil's hair across his face. "I am older my lord, I will reach fifteen years tomorrow", the young woman uttered. As they approached a wide stream Thranduil recalled her desire of joining the guards. Thranduil rode upon his elk while Anawrete walked along side. It was routine for him to go on nature rides ever so often, but it was new that he had invited Anawrete to accompany him. Now that she was aware of her place and what she truly was, she had quickly lowered herself to be one of Thranduil's servents. What began as pity soon became favoritism that the Elvin king treated her better than he did other subjects. Not wanting to lose the status that she had with him, Anawrete was always proving her loyalty and trying to keep his gaze. 

"You must be older," Thranduil said. The young woman had aged and matured much in the two years that had passed, but it was evident to him that she was yet to reach her full potential and therefor she was unfit still. When they reached the rushing stream, Anawrete bent over to remove her shoes. In the process of slipping them from her feet, she looked up to see Thranduil patiently awaiting her so that they may continue across. Their eyes met with a slight tension before she stood. It was when Thranduil broke his gaze on her that Anawrete determined to test his boundaries. Halfway across the stream, with the water up to her knees, she forced herself to trip into the cold depth below. The Elvin king, convinced that she had misplaced her footing, extended his hand down to her, "You need to be more careful". The clothes on Anawrete clung to her soaked body and made every curve of her maiden figure more evident as she allowed Thranduil to pull her up.

"I'm afraid I will never be as graceful as an elf," she continued her charade dripping wet. It took a few seconds for Thranduil to reason himself to look away from her revealing condition. The delay in his turning confirmed a number of things Anawrete had been wondering about him. Being that the Elvin king was thousands of years old, the question of if he still possessed carnal desires had arose in her mind. If he should still have those desires, then the question that followed was would he ever mate again? And should he decide to remarry---were his options limited to the Elf race? Anawrete pondered such, developing a likening of him beyond what she believed should be allowed. She crossed her arms over her budding chest to shield herself from the cold wind before she accepted that Thranduil would never involve himself with a youth of fifteen. She must be older.