Rising Flames | Throne of Glass

44

i knew i was forgetting something. here's your update which also happens to be the last of this part !! enjoy :D

[2103XX]

Celaena waited till she was positive Sam was asleep before slipping out of bed and making her way to the rooftops.

A motionless silhouette sat at the edge, hair shining silvery-gold in the moonlight.

'Tell me one thing about you,' Fenrys said as she sat down beside him.

She blinked, unsure of what to reply.

'I'll tell you something,' he said, still not looking at her. His gaze was fixed on the mountains beyond them and the rustling treetops. 'I had a sister, once.'

Celaena's gut clenched. That had never been mentioned in the stories before.

'Her name was Lyria. She was the sweetest, kindest soul to ever grace the earth. And... she was murdered.'

Lyria was my mate. Realisation struck Celaena. Rowan's mate had been Fenrys' sister.

'But I found her dead, slaughtered by Adarlanian bastards.' Fenrys voice remained flat; it didn't wobble, didn't waver. She wasn't sure if he was even grieving or not. 'I smelled one of the grunts on her. They'd raped her, then whipped her to death.' This time, he couldn't mask the lethal anger that shook his words, and Celaena didn't dare look at his face.

'What happened after?' she asked.

He let out a dark chuckle. 'It's not a story for the faint hearted to hear.'

'You can tell me.' How bad could the consequences have gotten?

'I hunted down those Adarlanian bastards. I broke all their bones, slowly, one by one, and when I was done, I carved out their hearts in beast form and ate them. The one who had raped my sister got to watch it all. And then I skinned him with my claws and left him impaled through a branch of a pine tree by the gut, bloodied and raw for the birds.'

She could hear the smile in his voice as he said this, and Celaena couldn't help but shiver at the pure brutality of his words and what he'd done.

'In those moments, I realised that I delighted in causing pain. When Maeve took me in, she realised this, too. She loved that - and honed my anger into a lethal weapon. I let her.'

Arobynn had done that to her, too.

'Connall was less affected because he had been called away on a mission. He never knew, never saw, exactly what happened to his sister. I never told him the truth. And I'm glad for that, really.' Fenrys finally turned to look at her. Half of his face was masked in darkness, the other painted by moonlight. His face was open, honest... but something else flickered in his eyes, something she couldn't quite place. 'I know you hate me, Aelin, but do you understand, now?'

Celaena's throat went dry. After all you've done, I should hate you. But the words didn't come. 'I-' She stumbled. 'I don't hate you. You and I... we're both very similar in some ways.' How could I hate you, after all you've been through?

'I don't love Maeve, not really. People just see what they want to see.' Fenrys' voice broke, so suddenly and abruptly. 'Hate me, goddamnit! Why don't you hate me?' A sob racked his powerful body as he hunched over and put his head in his hands.

Celaena sat there, lost. And after a moment of hesitation, she reached up to brush a thumb lightly across Fenrys' cheek. He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. Celaena kept her hand there, and Fenrys didn't move.