Wingless Illyrian

Part twenty six

They waited out in the snow as Feyre talked to her sisters. It was taking longer than any of them would have liked. They were too exposed. Had it not been for the grove of trees shielding them, any person passing by would have seen that two large pairs of wings that sprouted from the males backs.

Cassian sat with his back against the trunk of a tree, Keena curled against his side, protected from the cold by his wings. The elder was falling asleep.

Azriel stood within his usual shadows.

Rhysand watched the front entrance to the estate that Feyre had disappeared behind. The crown of flowers lay crooked on his head, the colours mixing with the falling snow.

-

It had been hours later when Feyre had returned for them. All of the workers had been sent back to their homes in the village thinking that a plague had fallen upon the house, not that all of the women were so believing. But it had been the only way to ensure the privacy of their arrival.

-

Keena was more than uncomfortable stabling in the entryway of Feyre's family home. Her oldest sister, Nesta, had spend the better half of their conversation growling under her breath towards them. Something that became noticeably more subtle when the third sister entered the room.

There was an aura about this sister. Keena was forced to brush it off as Cassian nudged her forwards. Apparently they were moving towards a dining room for lunch.

It wasn't that Keena was picky about food, she would eat just about anything that was set in front of her. And spending as much time as she did with the Illyrians, this was often the case. But the thought of human food didn't sit quite right with her. She remembered the stories Cassian had told her about, before the wall had separated them from the human lands. About how the food tasted like ash in his mouth. But maybe in the years since those dinners humans had learned what seasoning was.

"Our father is away on business--attending a meeting in Neva about the threat of Prythian." Feyre's voice was quieter than it had been all morning, more human than Keena had ever heard it sound.
"Prythian? Not Hybern?" Cassian questioned. His hand continued to rest on Keena's back as he guided her.
"My sisters may have been mistaken, they aren't well educated of your lands."
"We may have the advantage if humans are aware of the threat." Azriel had managed to dismiss some of the usual shadows that shrouded his hands and torso. His sleeves had been tugged over his hands to cover the scars. Keena reached towards him and allowed a black rose to grow from her fingers. He took it without word, twisting the stem between his fingers.

The sisters stood against the window of the dining room. Feyre crossed the floor to her sisters. Rhys lingered a few steps behind her. Keena was walled in between Cassian and Azriel, like she was the important one in the room, not Feyre.

The sister took in the two winged males. Rhysand had decided not to keep his own out. The elder had stepped in front of the younger, shielding her from whatever the males might do to them. A move that Keena was used to growing up.

"These are my sisters, Nesta and Elain Archeron." Feyre introduced them all one by one, leaving Keena for last. It was almost as though she had forgotten about the girl for a second. Because in the brief pause, Nesta had spoken up.
"And who's the girl?" The snark in her voice was evident to everyone in the room. While Keena was too tired to do anything about it, Rhysand had nearly tackled Cassian to stop him from advancing. Azriel had been stopped simply by Feyre's extended hand.

The sisters stared at the scene.

"We didn't come here to start a fight with you, so please don't start something. They're overly protective of me. Family and all." Keena stood tall, just as she had been taught before going to the camps for the first time. "Thank you for your hospitality and generosity, I know it's not easy to let us into your home." Keena channeled her inner Rhysand, mimicking the words he'd practice before going to the Court of Nightmares.

"We should eat before the food gets cold." Nesta quickly took her place at the table, quickly followed by Elain as she muttered a quiet "nice to meet you."

Feyre took the seat closest to Nesta, a favour they were all thankful for. Keena sat beside Elain, Cassian beside her. Rhysand was beside Feyre, and Azriel in the final chair.

They ate mostly in silence. The men showed no signs in being affected by the tasteless food, or maybe they were better at hiding it. Keena shuffled the food around her plate, the pit in her stomach growing and the silence continued.

Yet another thing that made her uncomfortable since her return.

"Kee." Her head snapped to the sound of her father's voice. It was barely a whisper. Not loud enough for the sisters to hear.
"Can I be excused?"
"Do you need to be alone, or do you want some company?"
"I think I just need to sit outside." She didn't offer any more explanation before the exited the back door. Everyone continued as though it was perfectly normal for her to leave.

-

The snow was cold against her legs. Her outer leather shirt had been thrown down by the door, allowing the air to cool her burning skin. A patch of snow had been cleared in front of her. She let her hands brush against the limp grass, small flowers growing in her wake, releasing some of the power that was urging for release. Thick thorns grew between each flower.

She fell forwards, her hands landing on the thorns with a wince. Her eyes had been millimetres away from being impaled. She pushed herself sideways onto the snow, fits of coughs racking her body.

When it was all over she was panting.
"You're okay." She repeated the two words to hers like it was the only thing keeping her alive.

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A.N.

Sorry that it's been so long. I've been in a constant state of exhaustion from school, work, and trying to have a life outside of that. Thank you all for reading and I'll try to upload more when I get the chance.