A Court of Tears and Starlight

Home sweet home, no more.

The light was blinding. After a week of Night I had forgotten how bright the direct glare of the sun was. I stumbled at the complete whiteness around me. I heard Rhys' soft chuckle and felt his hands steady on my shoulders as I continued to squint and blink. Eventually shapes began to emerge and then colours. All the wonderful colours that I had once tried to capture, flooding back into sight. I blinked a few more times, the world returning to perfect vision.

We were standing by the gate near the manor, the very same one that the puca had led me towards in what now seemed like a life time ago. I looked down at my feet, not ready to face the farewell that lay before us. I felt Rhys's hands slide down off my shoulders and intwine with my own which were clenched into balls at my sides. I felt a rough texture pressed between my fingers and looked down in surprise to find a rolled sheet of rich parchment.

What is this? I asked looking up into his face, searching for an explanation.

It's a letter He replied smugly.

I scowled. I know it's a letter! I meant what is it for?

Find out. He challenged.

Now he was grinning, unable to contain his amusement at my anger.

Oh.. and Feyre, if I were you I wouldn't ask anyone else to read that to you. He eyes twinkled with a sinister delight as he failed to hide his satisfied smirk.

I let out a huff and turned to storm off. Thank the Cauldron I was back in Spring - if he was going to be such a bastard after all that had happened this past week.

I only made it one step away before his hand grasped mine and he tugged me back into his arms. Then he was kissing me. Hard and sweet and certain. The kiss held all of the words that we had left unsaid. In it I felt how desperately he didn't want to let me go. If I had ever doubted his intentions towards me, I did not now. He pulled back abruptly and began to disappear into tendrils of darkness. As I looked up into his eyes I saw a smug bemusement that I didn't understand... that is, not until I heard the very nearby sound of someone clearing their throat.

"Well that was disgusting" said a cocky voice I knew so well.

"I'm just glad I only have one eye, because if I'd seen anymore of that I might have thrown up breakfast" he continued and then added a series of awful gagging sounds.

I looked up sheepishly at Lucien who was staring at me. His face was clearly torn between genuine disgust and delight that he had finally found something to hold over me.

"Lucien..." I began to explain.

"Don't" he cut me off.

"I honestly don't want to know. Just be glad Tamlin isn't here or he would likely tear down the entire Manor and we'd all be left sleeping out here tonight ."

I suddenly recalled Tamlin tearing apart the Manor after a previous visit from Rhysand. I shuddered at the memory and was thankful that it had been Lucien, not Tamlin, who had witnessed our parting exchange.

"Where is he?" I asked with genuine curiosity.

"Avoiding Rhysand" he said with his usual candour.

I raised my eyebrow in query.

Lucien rolled his eyes.

"Come on - What did you expect Feyre? Rhysand is a smug awful bastard. We all hate him. And despite how things are between you and Tam, he still feels responsible for you. By the cauldron, he was so furious when I told him Rhys had taken you. He's been impossible for days. We've both been trying not to imagine all of the dreadful things that he might be doing to you. The only thing that stopped Tam from storming into the Night Court and starting a war was the fact that we are all still reeling from the losses that occurred under the mountain."