#reluctant parent nuada

[atomic--peach]

NOW AN AO3 FANFICTION

Anon asked: This isn’t a reader insert, but can you write an imagine about Prince Nuada finding an abandoned human baby in the tunnels, and basically deciding “Well, I guess I have to adopt this thing now, because humans don’t know how to treat their damn kids”

Imagine Prince Nuada finding a lost child in the underground. 

For all the concentration the exiled royal put into his training, he was ever alert for the sounds of movement in the tunnels around him. And so, when he heard the patter of small footsteps close to him, he froze a moment and strained to listened for more. 

they came again, splashing in the gathering puddles of the dank underground and echoing off the rounded walls. 

He retracted his spear but did not put it away as he kept close to the walls and crept forward to investigate the sound. The footsteps came again, this time with the faint squeak of wet rubber and light panting. 

He stayed a healthy distance away and peered around the corner to see a flash of bright yellow turn the next one, and he followed out of curiosity. Whimpers began to echo through the caverns, followed by short sobs. 

Perhaps he was not the only unfortunate resident of this wretched place. 

He continued to track the stranger silently until he reached the opening of a tunnel which he knew to be a dead end. The footsteps stopped suddenly and once more the whimpers came. 

Nuada peered around once again and for a moment was startled. 

It was a child. From the looks of it, a human girl. 

In a wet dress under a filthy, yellow rain coat, and worn boots. From the way she looked up the walls and darted from one side of the tunnel to the other, it didn’t look like she was hurt. But she was certainly afraid, and obviously alone. 

But why would a human child be wandering around in the dangerous city tunnels? 

The child turned in a circle, as if trying to find a door or escape, before backing into the corner and sinking to the ground, whimpers turning to sobs. She couldn’t have been older than five years old.

Nuada knew that if he wanted to keep his existence a secret, he would have to do something about this. Either the girl had some parent wandering around looking for her, or she would draw police into the tunnels, either way he couldn’t just let her run around alone. 

Hiding himself behind the wall, Nuada let out a low whisper, just enough to get her attention. The whimpering stopped and the silence drew out until Nuada whistled again, this time creeping his hand around the wall so she could see he was there. 

“Is someone there?” He asked and got no response, though he heard the child stand out a creep closer to him. “I promise, I won’t hurt you. You don’t have to be afraid.” 

He waited a moment, but a soft poke in the palm of his hand made him chuckle in amusement. “Now, I’m going to come out. okay?”

Still no verbal answer, but Nuada turned the corner slowly anyways. The girl was pressed against the wall only a few feet away from him, eyeing him cautiously as he looked down on her. He knelt to her level and tilted his head to the side. 

“Are you lost?”

She nodded slowly, curiosity over ruling her caution as the sight of such a stranger man drew her closer. 

“Do you have a name?” 

The girl shook her head without hesitation and Nuada chuckled a little, figuring she must have misunderstood. 

“No name? Did your parents not give you one?”

Once again, the girl shook her head. Nuada frowned, “Where are your parents? Where is your mother?”

The girl shrugged, indicating that she didn’t know. 

“Can you speak?” Nuada’s tone grew harsher as he became impatient with the child’s lack of information. Surely someone her age wasn’t so mindless that she didn’t know her own name or a vague idea of where her parents were.

The girl didn’t respond, nor did she shake or nod her head. Instead she drew away from him and hid her face.

Nuada sighed and shook his head. “Come with me, I’ll show you the way out. Then you need to find an adult and have them help you.” 

He stood and began to turn when the girl finally spoke up. “The lady said that someone would find me down here. Is that you?”

Nuada froze and looked back at her, “Who told you that?”

“The Lady.”

“Your mother?”

The girl nodded, “But she didn’t like it when I called her that. She said to stay here, and someone would come find me.” 

Nuada blinked and knelt once again. “Come here.”

At first the girl hesitates, but then presented herself to him and Nuada took her face between his thumb and finger and turned her head from side to side. She had some bruises, and a few healed cuts. 

“And she just left you down here and told you to stay put?”

The girl nodded and Nuada looked down with a sigh. 

A lost child with no name, no parents, and nowhere else to go. He rolled the idea around in his head a moment before sighing, cursing himself. 

“How long has it been since you’ve eaten?”

The girl shrugged, “A few days.” 

“A few days.” Nuada repeated in disbelief, not sure if he was angry at the mother for abandoning her child, angry at himself for not being able to just take the girl to the surface and leave her there, or relieved that he had discovered her hungry instead of discovering her corpse. 

So, knowing that he would be kicking himself for it later, Nuada made an executive discussion. 

“Come along.”  He took her hand and stood up. “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?”

“I’m going to get you some food, and then you are going to rest.” He informed her sternly. “hold my hand tightly, don’t wander off.” 

She nodded obediently and gripped his fingers firmly as she jogged to keep up with his stride. He sat her down on a hard cloth cot and looked at her with hard golden eyes. 

“I suppose I must call you something.” He grumbled, “It’s not right for a living thing to not have a name.” 

The girl sat patiently as he mulled it other. 

“Eithne” He decided finally, “Your name is Eithne. Can you remember that?” 

The girl nodded, mouthing her new name silently as he stood. 

“Good”

[atomic--peach]

Anon asked: This isn’t a reader insert, but can you write an imagine about Prince Nuada finding an abandoned human baby in the tunnels, and basically deciding “Well, I guess I have to adopt this thing now, because humans don’t know how to treat their damn kids”

Imagine Prince Nuada finding a lost child in the underground. 

For all the concentration the exiled royal put into his training, he was ever alert for the sounds of movement in the tunnels around him. And so, when he heard the patter of small footsteps close to him, he froze a moment and strained to listened for more. 

they came again, splashing in the gathering puddles of the dank underground and echoing off the rounded walls. 

He retracted his spear but did not put it away as he kept close to the walls and crept forward to investigate the sound. The footsteps came again, this time with the faint squeak of wet rubber and light panting. 

He stayed a healthy distance away and peered around the corner to see a flash of bright yellow turn the next one, and he followed out of curiosity. Whimpers began to echo through the caverns, followed by short sobs. 

Perhaps he was not the only unfortunate resident of this wretched place. 

He continued to track the stranger silently until he reached the opening of a tunnel which he knew to be a dead end. The footsteps stopped suddenly and once more the whimpers came. 

Nuada peered around once again and for a moment was startled. 

It was a child. From the looks of it, a human girl. 

In a wet dress under a filthy, yellow rain coat, and worn boots. From the way she looked up the walls and darted from one side of the tunnel to the other, it didn’t look like she was hurt. But she was certainly afraid, and obviously alone. 

But why would a human child be wandering around in the dangerous city tunnels? 

The child turned in a circle, as if trying to find a door or escape, before backing into the corner and sinking to the ground, whimpers turning to sobs. She couldn’t have been older than five years old.

Nuada knew that if he wanted to keep his existence a secret, he would have to do something about this. Either the girl had some parent wandering around looking for her, or she would draw police into the tunnels, either way he couldn’t just let her run around alone. 

Hiding himself behind the wall, Nuada let out a low whisper, just enough to get her attention. The whimpering stopped and the silence drew out until Nuada whistled again, this time creeping his hand around the wall so she could see he was there. 

“Is someone there?” He asked and got no response, though he heard the child stand out a creep closer to him. “I promise, I won’t hurt you. You don’t have to be afraid.” 

He waited a moment, but a soft poke in the palm of his hand made him chuckle in amusement. “Now, I’m going to come out. okay?”

Still no verbal answer, but Nuada turned the corner slowly anyways. The girl was pressed against the wall only a few feet away from him, eyeing him cautiously as he looked down on her. He knelt to her level and tilted his head to the side. 

“Are you lost?”

She nodded slowly, curiosity over ruling her caution as the sight of such a stranger man drew her closer. 

“Do you have a name?” 

The girl shook her head without hesitation and Nuada chuckled a little, figuring she must have misunderstood. 

“No name? Did your parents not give you one?”

Once again, the girl shook her head. Nuada frowned, “Where are your parents? Where is your mother?”

The girl shrugged, indicating that she didn’t know. 

“Can you speak?” Nuada’s tone grew harsher as he became impatient with the child’s lack of information. Surely someone her age wasn’t so mindless that she didn’t know her own name or a vague idea of where her parents were.

The girl didn’t respond, nor did she shake or nod her head. Instead she drew away from him and hid her face.

Nuada sighed and shook his head. “Come with me, I’ll show you the way out. Then you need to find an adult and have them help you.” 

He stood and began to turn when the girl finally spoke up. “The lady said that someone would find me down here. Is that you?”

Nuada froze and looked back at her, “Who told you that?”

“The Lady.”

“Your mother?”

The girl nodded, “But she didn’t like it when I called her that. She said to stay here, and someone would come find me.” 

Nuada blinked and knelt once again. “Come here.”

At first the girl hesitates, but then presented herself to him and Nuada took her face between his thumb and finger and turned her head from side to side. She had some bruises, and a few healed cuts. 

“And she just left you down here and told you to stay put?”

The girl nodded and Nuada looked down with a sigh. 

A lost child with no name, no parents, and nowhere else to go. He rolled the idea around in his head a moment before sighing, cursing himself. 

“How long has it been since you’ve eaten?”

The girl shrugged, “A few days.” 

“A few days.” Nuada repeated in disbelief, not sure if he was angry at the mother for abandoning her child, angry at himself for not being able to just take the girl to the surface and leave her there, or relieved that he had discovered her hungry instead of discovering her corpse. 

So, knowing that he would be kicking himself for it later, Nuada made an executive discussion. 

“Come along.”  He took her hand and stood up. “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?”

“I’m going to get you some food, and then you are going to rest.” He informed her sternly. “hold my hand tightly, don’t wander off.” 

She nodded obediently and gripped his fingers firmly as she jogged to keep up with his stride. He sat her down on a hard cloth cot and looked at her with hard golden eyes. 

“I suppose I must call you something.” He grumbled, “It’s not right for a living thing to not have a name.” 

The girl sat patiently as he mulled it other. 

“Eithne” He decided finally, “Your name is Eithne. Can you remember that?” 

The girl nodded, mouthing her new name silently as he stood. 

“Good”