[ Gluttonous snake, Rhaenyra says, and contrary to what most may expect, Elrond smiles, a huff of laughter escaping him at the description. Perhaps it's because he's still relatively new to it all that he reacts to the unfolding events with amusement rather than pure annoyance or anger, or perhaps it is because of his age — time has a way of lending perspective to such things, of drawing new lines around what one might have thought previously set in stone. But he understands, too, that what they're speaking of has a different kind of weight when one's time is so limited.

He nods, then, at her suggestion that they speak with her father, first. Even aside from the fact that the marriage was more her father's choice than her own, it will do them good to ensure solidarity among their allies (to put it coldly), especially in the face of such an attempted blow to their legitimacy. As for the rest— ]

If there is any blame to cast, I think it should fall at my feet. We are wed — I owe it to you to be more forthcoming. And if my family's history should sound didactic, then I apologize for that as well.

[ He pauses, then, wondering where to start. (He will deliver some version of this story to the Small Council, later, but here, in the intimacy of their quarters, the task seems somehow difficult to take on.) He draws another chair, next to hers, a gesture that both fulfills a need and takes up a little time, granting him another moment to clear his mind. ]

In the history of my kin, there have been two great unions between Men and Elves, [ he begins, speaking deliberately in an attempt to keep his thoughts in order, ] that of Beren Erchamion and Lúthien Tinúviel, and of Tuor, son of Huor, and Idril Celebrindal. My father and mother — Eärendil and Elwing — were their children. If it is my lineage that they seek to question, they will find nothing but the names of Kings and heroes of the Edain.

[ But those are simply facts, rather than what he knows to be of more importance to her — that is, the personal rather than the historical. Though, to a certain extent, the two are inextricable. To wit: ]

As for the title of half-elven— [ another pause, a breath ] —in a time of great strife, my father sailed to Valinor to plead with those who shaped the world to lend their aid in the fight against Morgoth. Because he sailed on behalf of their two peoples, rather than for himself, the Valar granted to him — and to his descendants — the choice between joining the Elves or the race of Men. That is what "half-elven" truly means.

[ His gaze falls. What comes next is not necessarily difficult for him to speak of, nor only a source of hurt, but— well, he supposes she will understand. ]

My father now sails the sky, bearing the light of a star, and my mother, upon white wings, flies to meet him. As for my twin brother, he— we made different choices, of the gift given to our family. His legacy is that of Númenor, as its first king.

[ There are years upon years of sentiment in the tone with which he speaks of his brother, a bittersweet fondness that will ring familiar to any who have lost a loved one. His feelings toward his parents are somewhat more complicated — they live, still, but are ever distant from him, in the performance of duties that seem almost inconceivable to any who had not witnessed such things occurring firsthand, and he and his brother had been but children when they had been taken captive.

Which, now that he thinks of it, does sound like something Otto Hightower would latch onto. Somewhat more quietly: ]

I suppose I ought also to mention that Elros and I were once taken from our parents by those who were driven to slay their own kin. An attempt was made upon the life of our mother, and we were— to be abandoned, at first, until one of them took pity upon us. We stayed with him — with Maglor — for some time, and he showed us great kindness. But he was lost to us as well, after the War of Wrath.

[ He sighs, suddenly aware of how much he's said. ]

That is the short of it, at least. I can only hope I have not bored you with it.