Mother Knows Best by Lady MSM

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Chapter 1

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Mother Knows Best

 

            It started on my sixteenth birthday.

            Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen always made a big deal over my birthday, since they were immortal and age didn't matter and so my being the only person in our family who aged was pretty special. I didn't see what was so great about getting older so fast. Every year I got taller and bigger and hairer and hungrier, and every year I hated living in Androth more and more. And I couldn't tell Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen, because then they'd just feel guilty. No, birthdays weren't a lot of fun for me.

            A quick note about Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen: they weren't my real aunt and uncle (obviously, since we were two completely different species). But they took me in after my dad died in the war and my ma disappeared, and they were the only family I had. They were strict, but I knew they loved me.

            Anyway, as per her tradition on my birthdays, Aunt Loswen made a big deal of telling the story about how they adopted me to everyone. I didn't see why she bothered. Pretty much everyone except me had been there (seein' as I hadn't been born yet), and I'd heard it so many times I didn't need to have been.

            "So I was outside gettin' some firewood, right," said Aunt Loswen, "and then suddenly I hear this noise, like someone's crying. So of course I go to check it out, and I find this poor pregnant mortal girl sitting there in the snow, bawlin' her eyes out."

            "Poor thing could barely talk when Laera and Loswen brought her into the cave," said Uncle Annael, shaking his head (Laera's Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen's daughter. I hadn't seen her for a few years, since she'd gotten married and moved down south). "Just sat there crying for hours."

            "Later we found out her husband had gone to war and gotten killed, and she had been so distraught she just ran away," added Aunt Loswen. "So we took care of her for a week or so until Tuor was born, and then not too long after she just...left."

            "And so you raised me from a pup, and we're a happy family, and everything's perfect, blah blah blah," I said, rolling my eyes. "Can we eat now?"

            "Eat, eat, eat," said Aunt Loswen, shaking her head. "Is that all you ever do, Tuor?" She smiled when she said it, like she was joking, but something about her eyes made me think she wasn't. I felt a twinge of guilt.

            "Don't be ridiculous, Annael," said Uncle Annael firmly. "Tuor does loads around here. He does most of the huntin' and choppin' wood, and he helps you around the house...we couldn't get by without him."

            Aunt Loswen's smile didn't waver for a moment. "I know we couldn't." She stood up and kissed me on the cheek. "We love you, sweetie. Happy birthday."

            I rolled my eyes. "Whatever, Aunty."

 

            It wasn't until that night that I understood what was going on.

            I was still enjoying the effects of the unusually large supper we'd eaten earlier-good venison, much better than the usual soup we made out of whatever we happened to have handy (about which Aunt Loswen always said "Don't ask what's in it. Just eat it"). Aunt Loswen and Uncle Annael had given me a new pair of boots, since my old ones were too small and falling apart. They were nice boots, too. I didn't want to think about how much they'd cost.

            Across the room (I'm usin' the term "room" loosely... "cave" was more accurate) Uncle Annael was reading a yellowed piece of paper and occasionally sighing and shaking his head. I don't think he knew I was awake, and I didn't really want to disturb him, so I didn't ask what he was reading.

            Eventually, after a few more signs and shakes of the head, he folded up the paper and put it away somewhere-I didn't see exactly where-just as Aunt Loswen came in from outside.

            "Is Tuor asleep?" she whispered. "I need to talk to you."

            Uncle Annael glanced over at me. I rolled over, shut my eyes, and pretended like hell to be sleeping.

            "Yes, I think he is. What is it?"

            "We can't live like this anymore, Annael."

            Aunt Loswen's voice was tight and strained-even more so than usual. I knew I shouldn't have been listening, but it wasn't like I could help it.

            "Loswen..." sighed Uncle Annael.

            "I'm serious, Annael," said Aunt Loswen. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. "We can't. You think the land here's gonna get any better? You think we're gonna be able to feed ourselves for much longer? We're starving."

            "Loswen. We've lived here for years. We can survive a few more."

            "How? The crops won't grow, the Easterlings are takin' all our game, and we're in more and more danger every day." Aunt Loswen was almost hysterical by this point. People in the next cave probably coulda heard her. "We've got no money, no food, and almost no way of defending ourselves. We won't last until spring, let alone years. And what about Tuor?"

            Ah, now they were gonna start talking about me. I grinned. This would be fun.

            "He's only sixteen, and he's mortal. He's not as tough as we are, Annael. How are we gonna provide for him in a place like this, huh? If it was just you and me, sure, but we've got to think about our kid. Didn't we promise his ma we'd take care of him?"

            "I don't know what to tell you, Loswen," Uncle Annael said. "That we're all just going to pack up our bags and move? Other people live in these caves too, you know. Our entire tribe is here. What am I supposed to tell them?"

            "I don't know," said Aunt Loswen. All the fight had gone out of her by this point. "I'm sorry, Annael."

            "That's all right, love. I know how you feel. Life here is hard. But we've just got to stick it out for now."

            I heard them both lie down on the cot on the other side of the cave. They were asleep with in minutes. I tried to fall asleep too, but I was still getting used to what Aunt Loswen had said.

            I was a goddamn burden.

            Sure, she hadn't said exactly that, but she'd certainly hinted at it. And she was right, too. I wasn't the most ideal son. I took up too much room and I ate too much and since I was mortal and still growing, I would just keep gettin' worse. That's why Aunt Loswen had acted how she had at my birthday supper. They were starving because of me.

            But what was I supposed to do about it?

            I sighed. No way was I getting any sleep tonight.

            After a few minutes of lyin' around feeling sorry for myself, I decided to go read for a while. We actually had a lot of books-Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen were big believers in education, and were constantly telling me I'd never get anywhere without it. They didn't really need to threaten me like that, since I loved reading.

            Grabbing my favorite book (it was about ships and the ocean, and I'd read it so many times I practically had it memorized), I sat back down on my cot. When I opened it to the first page, a folded piece of paper fell out.

            This must be what Uncle Annael was reading earlier, I thought, unfolding it and glancing it over. It was obviously a letter, and from the looks of it had been read quite a lot, since the paper was kinda falling apart. And according to the name at the end of the letter, it was from someone named Rian.

            Rian? Holy shit, this was from my ma.

            I sat down and started to read.

 

            Dear Annael, (the letter said)

            By the time you read this, I'll be gone, and probably dead.

            Now, I know what you're thinking. "She's abandoning her baby," you're probably saying right now. "She's insane." Well, maybe I am insane, Annael, and if I am, what kind of mother do you think I'll be to that boy? Better to leave him with nice, sane people like yourselves, instead of his crazy old ma. Tuor deserves better than me.

            I'm nothing without my husband, Annael. I'm going to go find him, and if he's dead-because he's dead-I'm going to die next to him. That's the only way I'll ever be happy again.

            But do me a favor, will you, Annael? Take care of Tuor as long as you can. Make sure he's healthy and gets and education. We're going to need him to avenge the House of Hador someday, and he can't do that unless he's got good people to take care of him when he's a kid. So look after him. Make sure he doesn't do anything too stupid.

            Thanks, Annael, I knew I could trust you. You and Loswen have been so kind to me over these past few days. I couldn't have survived without you. You'll be much better parents than I could have ever been. You'll do right by my son, I know you will.

            One last word of advice: Let him go when he's ready. Mortals grow up faster than Elves, and he'll be an adult before you know it. Don't try to hold him back.

            Thanks again, and goodbye.

--Rian

           

            The first thought that went through my mind was, Wow, Ma had issues. Abandoning her kid so she could die next to her husband? Nice.

            The second thought that went through my mind was that I knew what to do now.

            Really, there was only one thing I could do. I had to leave, and I had to do it soon. Otherwise I'd just keep causing trouble for Uncle Annael and Aunt Loswen. That's what Ma had said in her letter, right? Take care of Tuor as long as you can. My foster-parents obviously couldn't take care of me anymore. And if I was really supposed to avenge the House of Hador and do all this great stuff, then I was just procrastinating by stayin' here for so long. I was sixteen now-practically an adult in mortal years. I could take care of myself.

            I grinned and got back under the covers. Tomorrow, I would tell Uncle Annael what I had decided.

            Tonight, I would enjoy my last night in Androth.

            Happy birthday to me.

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Chapter End Notes

Of course, Tuor didn't end up leaving right away. Annael convinced him to come with the rest of them down Sirion to the sea, and the rest is history.