Hey everyone, I hope you all had an amazing Christmas Chapter 2 is here! Its just a short chapter, but I wanted to get something out before the end of the year. I hope you enjoy

I do not own Harry Potter of LOTR.

Chapter 2

Laston carried the sleeping elfling securely in his arms as they moved quickly through the forest. They had been quite a distance out and all were anxious to get the elfling to safety. Their forest was not as safe as it had once been. A darkness was spreading, and it was getting harder to hold it back. No one spoke as they ran. Laston knew that they were all as shocked as he was. No word of an elfling being born had reached their ears, but here sat one, softly snoring in his arms, as though his very presence wasn't a miracle. Every elf was on high alert, wanting to return home without incident.

Eventually they reached the border to their lands. Laston didn't even spare a thought for the beauty of his home, as he usually did, before surging on. They paused only briefly to wrap the small elfling in a cloak so as not to garner attention from anyone they passed before hurrying in the direction of the throne room. Though they had covered the elfling, they still managed to gather attention simply due to the fact they were racing as though orcs or possibly dwarves were on their tails.

They ignored the elves on duty and burst into the throne room, only to find it unoccupied.

"Go and find his Majesty and Prince Legolas" Laston directed to two of their company.

He stood for a moment taking deep breaths and collecting his thoughts, it would not do to seem flustered when appearing before their King.

It took only a few minutes before Thranduil came striding into the room, Legolas trailing close behind him.

They did not run, but there was a certain urgency to their steps that denoted the importance of the matter.

They paused before Laston.

"What is this matter of urgency that required Nessa to retrieved us from an important meeting?" Thranduil asked imperiously. Legolas merely stood behind him looking curious.

"It is this, my King" Laston whispered, as he pulled the cloak away to reveal a sleeping child. Thranduil looked unimpressed and Legolas disappointed.

"You had us hurry here for this, to see a sleeping child?"

"No, your majesty… for this." With that Laston pulled some of the thick curls to the side to reveal soft pointed ears. It wasn't a human child; it was an elfling!

Thranduil considered himself quite a stoic elf, he had lived for a millennia and thought little could surprise him. However, when Laston pulled back thick dark locks to reveal a sleeping elfling snuggled in his arms, he didn't think he had ever been more shocked. Though outwardly he appeared calm, inwardly his mind was torn between turmoil and joy. An elfling! His mind reeled. How was it possible that an elfling was here, where were his parents? Why had he heard nothing of an elfling being born, it seemed impossible that word had not reached him.

Even as his mind spun with the impossibility of it all, his heart rejoiced. An elfling was before him. It had been age since he had last set eyes on one. He leaned forward to examine the child. Now that he looked closer, he was amazed that he did not recognise him for what he was immediately. The child was stunning, with thick beautiful black locks and soft pale skin that seemed to glow.

Legolas was tense behind him; the younger elf had never seen an elfling before and was probably even more shocked than he was.

Thranduil reached out a hand, and was surprised to see it shaking slightly, to run through the thick curls. It was unusual, elves didn't usually have curls, their hair more often than not, was dead straight. He looked up to see Legolas staring in awe at the sleeping elfling.

"Nessa" Thranduil said quietly, not wanting to disturb the little one's sleep. "Go and fetch several guards and meet us in the guest room opposite my room."

Nessa nodded and hurried off, not making a sound as her feet glided over stone.

"Come Laston, we will put him in a guest room to rest, then you can explain just how you managed to find an elfling while out on patrol. Adan, Gale you will also come."

The other elves nodded, and all followed behind as Thranduil lead them to a room. The room was situated in an area of great honour, across the hall from Thranduil's own room and next to Legolas'. These rooms usually only reserved for family or visiting guests of great importance.

Laston placed the sleeping elfling onto the large bed, managing not to wake him in the process, just as Nessa walked in with three guards.

"You two" Thranduil said sternly, pointing to the two closest elves. "You are to remain in the room at all times and ensure the elfling is safe. While you" he continued, pointing at the last elf "are to remain on guard at the door."

The three elves nodded but none took their eyes off the miracle before them. It was a mark of how deeply shocked they were that they didn't even bow to their King as he left the room.

Thranduil lead the group to his study, a beautiful room, with a large oak desk, comfortable chairs and a beautiful tapestry that ran the length of one wall. The tapestry depicted a battle fought long ago, but one that held significance to the King.

"Please be at rest." Thranduil said, motioning the rooms inhabitants to be seated, as he himself sat behind his desk.

"Explain" he said, piercing Laston with a hard look. If the elf didn't know his King so well, he may have been worried. As it stood, he understood that Thranduil was simply concerned about the elfling, and honestly Laston didn't blame him.

Laston took a deep breath and ran his hands through his caramel coloured hair to steady himself before beginning.

"It started like any other patrol. We travelled for most of the day, scouting, we came across nothing of concern. As the sun set, we made camp for the evening. While breaking our fast in the morning Nessa heard a rustle of leaves so Gale left to investigate."

Thranduil and Legolas both nodded as Laston continued.

"He came across what we thought was a child, but unfortunately startled him. He ran off and was surprisingly fast for such a small child." Laston said with smile. "When we finally caught him, we discovered that he was in fact an elfling, which as you can imagine was quite a shock."

"Did he say anything?" Legolas interrupted, looking serious.

Nessa spoke up now. "He said that his parents were dead and that he didn't know where he was."

Thranduil frowned at that, and if possible, looked more concerned.

Laston picked up the tale again. "We didn't wait to find out anything else, deciding to bring him straight here."

"A wise decision," Thranduil nodded. "The question remains, where did he come from?"

"He looks so young, only around 14 years. How did we not hear anything of his birth?" Legolas asked the room.

Every elf sat in thought. It seemed impossible that an elfling had been born and they had not heard of it.

"We must reach out, contact the others and see if they have heard anything of an elfling being born. I won't tell them about the elfling, I wish to learn what they know first."

The others nodded in agreement.

"Legolas, you will stay with the elfling until he awakes. Send for immediately when he does."

Everyone took that as the dismissal it was, leaving their King to write missives to the other elf communities.