To the Shadowsinger | Azriel

Chapter 76: Live

 Azriel quickly got dressed, knowing there were uninvited guests raiding the pantry. He had heard them arrive earlier but he wasn't going to let anyone interrupt his time with Rai. He had put up a small ward to the entrance of the bathroom so that no one would interrupt her after he left.

"I know for a fact you have food at your own house," Azriel crossed his arms over his chest and raised a brow.

Nyxous was on top of the counter to reach the sugar from the top shelf while Wylla had her arms filled with a mix of supplies. Both of them looked shocked to see the shadowsinger had caught them both red handed.

"We didn't have the stuff to make pancakes," Nyxous hopped down from the counter without the sugar. Azriel wasn't mad, he was actually glad to see the two troublemakers. Nyxous looked prepared to defend himself and Wylla as Azriel approached, but the shadowsinger simply reached over the boy and plucked the sugar from the shelf.

Before handing it to Nyxous, Azriel eyed him, "Do you even know how to make pancakes?"

The boy pinched his lips together, reminding him of Feyre when she was frustrated.

"We know what goes into pancakes," Wylla offered with a half smile.

"And we know you pour the mixture into a pan and flip it," Nyxous took the sugar.

Azriel nodded, turning his back on them and planting his ass on a stool. "I'll supervise if you make enough for me and a guest."

It was as if the air was sucked from Wylla's lungs. Her blue eyes were wide and trained on Azriel, a question failing on her lips. Azriel nodded, "She'll be out in a bit."

He thought that answer would have been good enough, but it wasn't. Wylla dropped what she was holding onto the counter and took off in a sprint towards the first-floor living room. Nyxous gave Azriel a questioning look, but Azriel was already getting up and going after the girl.

Wylla searched the house like a dog hunting for food. The next place she ran to was Azriel's bedroom, but the open door showed only an empty room. When Wylla spun around to head to her next place to look, Azriel caught her, lifting her up, and spinning her upside down. Something that always made her squeal with laughter.

"A little patience wouldn't kill you," he set her down and anchored her to the floor.

Her small fist slammed into his stomach, "Even if it did kill me, I would just come back to life."

Azriel shook his head. Someone needed to get this girl's ego in check before she realized she didn't have unlimited lives. He placed his hand on her back to guide her back to the kitchen, where they heard Nyxous talking.

"She didn't even recognize our map," Nyxous was almost out of breath. "At first, I just thought she had never seen a map before but she was actually a little smart. She was able to draw and label a map of where she was from. But she didn't write in our language, mom had to teach her."

Azriel's eyes immediately went to Rai as they entered the kitchen. Her hair was still wet from the bath but she was in the pink dress. It was almost natural seeing her in the kitchen, cracking an egg and listening to Rhys' spawn talk. She was patient with him, nodding along with a polite smile on her face.

"Rai," Wylla stood still in shock.

Rai's eyes widened as she turned to see who called her name and as soon as she saw Wylla, her face broke into a smile that made Azriel's chest ache. She looked for something to clean her hands with and ended up racing to the sink and rinsing off the egg. Wylla was there before she could even dry off her hands, wrapping her arms around Rai's torso. At first, Rai didn't return the hug. She looked surprised, her hands stayed in the air, and then she took Wylla in her arms and held her. She hugged her as if Wylla was her own daughter. Azriel wasn't sure what the connection between them was, but something was there. He saw it in the way Rai's face twisted in relief. In the way Wylla was so quick to go to her.

"You're okay," Rai held back her tears but her voice was raw with emotion. She pulled away and held Wylla's face, scanning it. "You've gotten so big."

Wylla hiccupped and when she pulled away, Azriel could see her face and eyes were red. "You saw my mom and dad," she said through the tears.

Rai nodded and offered the girl a kind smile, "they miss you but they're all okay. Even your brother and Uncle Dorian and-"

"Fleetfoot?"

This made Rai laugh, "Fleetfoot lives like a Queen."

Wylla wiped at her cheek, "good."

Centuries of secrets, fighting, bloodshed, and working to build a life his family could be safe and happy in, Azriel took a step back and realized that this is what it was like to have someone to live for. He would lay his life down for either of his brothers, Mor, Feyre, Amren, Elain, and even Nesta, but he never thought of what it was like to live for them. The world would keep spinning if he faded into the shadows, he had thought about it often, disappearing from this world. He knew his friends and family would miss him but they would go on. They had each other. But looking at Rai and Wylla, Azriel saw his whole world. He didn't want to fade into the shadows, he wanted to step into the light, his mate's hand in his, and live.

Together, they would build a life. He could see it brighter than he had ever witnessed it before-- Rai braiding Wylla's hair before bed because Azriel always did them too tightly... cooking together... setting up a home... raising a family. He came back to the idea of a home. Never in all his years of staying in the House of Wind, did he think about packing up his dark room. The House was quieter without Cassian in the next room, but it was the home Azriel knew. Now, he wanted it all. He wanted to see the smile on Rai's face as they entered a house they would make a home.

Azriel. Raisa. Wylla. The three of them had battled their own hells and yet they found each other. Together, they could heal. And as Azriel realized this, his shadows quieted down and let him feel the sensation of true happiness.

A/N: The story isn't over yet, I still have some things to wrap up but it is definitely coming to an end :( I'm so happy I ended up writing this because it has helped me get through my own grief and this stressful time and I am so thankful for you all, the readers, who have encouraged me to keep writing this beast of a fanfiction. I mean, we're almost at 100k words and I thought this would be 60k at most. Oh, and pleassse no spoilers for ACOSF, I haven't started it.