A Court of Thorns and Roses Oneshots

Homesick (Cassian)

"Cassian, would it kill you to have a little more decorum?" Rhys deadpanned. Cassian just looked up at him and answered with a mouthful of food.

"If it slowed me down on the way to getting breakfast? Yes."

I couldn't help a small laugh. I didn't know the general very well, but even just spending a few hours with him and seeing him interact with the rest of the court was like a breath of fresh air. If anyone had dared to say anything like that to Tamlin, they would've ended up in the infirmary in seconds.

Cassian glanced at me, then quickly returned to his breakfast. The four of us passed the rest of the meal with idle chatter, until Feyre and Rhys stood up to start their days.

"So, Y/N, would you like to come with me to the Palace of Thread and Jewels? I have a few things I need to pick up, and it might be a good chance for you to see a little more of the city."

I gave Feyre a smile I didn't entirely feel.

"No, that's alright. I appreciate the offer, but I think I can manage on my own today."

"Alright..." Feyre looked concerned, but she also didn't push me, which I appreciated. "Well, I guess we'll see you when we get home."

I nodded, and she and Rhys left the kitchen. I sighed, then turned back to stare at the table, only to find Cassian looking at me curiously.

"Don't you want to see Velaris?" he asked.

"Yes, I do, I just... I don't want to see it now."

A terrible, unconvincing lie. I felt confident Cassian would see right through it and push me for the real answer, but he just stared at me for a few moments before turning back to his breakfast with a shurg.

"Fair enough."

I shook my head, although Cassian couldn't see me. This certainly was different from the Spring Court.

****************

A week passed, and I did eventually venture into Velaris. It was a truly beautiful city, a peaceful, wonderful place of business and art and community. Mor took it upon herself to introduce me to the best restaurants and dance clubs in existence, and Feyre had talked me into joining her "Inner Circle", as they called themselves, for dinners in the city. All of the people I now found myself spending time with were truly wonderful, but still I couldn't help feeling homesick.

Velaris and the Night Court were just... so strange to me. And most of the time, I appreciated the differences. In a lot of ways, all the changes were good. But I couldn't deny that I missed constant, warm spring days, with all the blooming fields of flowers and babbling brooks. Being in the Spring Court just felt closer to nature than the Night Court, and I missed that more than I wanted to admit.

Another bright, sunny Saturday morning had me wandering downstairs to breakfast with an especially nostalgic feeling in my chest. If I were in the Spring Court, I would've found a way to sneak out of the palace and away from Tamlin to have a picnic in my favorite field of flowers. Here, that wasn't really an option.

I wandered into the kitchen to find Cassian already there. He'd declined going out with Mor, Azriel, and I last night, much to my surprise, and I supposed the result of that was him not being hungover and asleep for breakfast this morning.

"Good morning, Cassian," I said absentmindedly as I sat down next to him. As soon as he noticed me, he shot up in his seat, fully alert and fixing me with an intense stare.

"Morning, Y/N." He hesitated, like he had something to say but didn't quite know how to say it. I waited patiently, and after a few seconds, he spoke up again. "Feyre says she thinks you're homesick. Are you?"