DISCONTINUED A Court Of Blood And Night (Tog & ACOTAR crossover)

27 - Rowan

I was accidentally up til 12:00 AM, so I posted the chapter then. Hehe, whoops.

He scented them before he heard them. With a low, angry curse that would've made Aelin proud, Rowan turned, making to walk right back to that castle and wait until they were gone, despite knowing they'd catch him before he made it ten feet. He didn't want to deal with them once again so soon.

A cheery voice called, "Lorcan! Rowan!" and the manners he'd had engrained in him for centuries said it was no longer an option. Rowan looked at Lorcan, who seemed to be more irritated than anything.

He had not been there when Aelin had set the space around Remelle on fire for touching him without permission. Nor had he been there when Remelle had insulted the Demi-Fae, or when Essar figured out who Aelin was. He wondered if Lorcan would find it an interesting story.

But for now, he had the three traveling Fae to deal with. He glanced at Lysandra and, remembering who she was pretending to be, hissed "Shift, before they recognize her face."

Confusion spread across her features, but she did as she was told.

Remelle came into view on her Asterion first, just over the hill, blonde hair shining brightly in the dappled afternoon sunlight. She wasn't smiling-- a contrast to the last time he'd greeted her. But Essar, who came into view a few seconds later, was. Benson, as usual, was straight-faced and brooding.

"Lady Remelle," he said as her horse halted in front of him. "Lady Essar." He nodded to her. "Lord Benson." He forced a tight smile on his face. "How... Interesting," he said, choosing his words carefully, "that we meet again." Especially so soon after the fire incident.

Essar jumped off her Asterion with practiced ease, greeting Lorcan first, who acknowledged her stiffly. Her smile faded just a little, but then she was greeting Rowan with just as much warmth as before. Rowan greeted her more warmly than he did the others, a question and a warning in his eyes as he smiled and squeezed her hands. She read it and nodded once, subtly. Rowan's smile was a little more genuine as he released her hands.

"It's been a while," Essar began, nut was cut off by Remelle, who'd been studying each and every face in the group.

"I see you finally got rid of that blonde Demi-Fae." She said Demi-Fae as if it left a bad taste in her mouth. Cold satisfaction and disgust spread across her features as she remembered that day, and she snorted. "Good riddance."

Lorcan tensed beside him, as if he was about to show her just what a Demi-Fae could do to her for saying that, but stopped when he saw Rowan's expression.

Essar's eyes widened in horror. Remelle had just insulted a Queen, after all. But Lorcan was worried for a much different reason, as was Lysandra as she quickly pieced the puzzle together and realized she was talking about Aelin.

He was going to rip her apart for saying that. He was going to flay Remelle alive and feed her to the birds. Anger coursed through his veins, and he fixed his gaze on the blonde.

"What did you just say?" His voice was lethally quiet, and everyone, evem the Courts behind him, froze. Even the world around them quieted. Remelle swallowed, suddenly aware of the danger she'd brought upon herself.

"I just--"

"What. Did. You. Say." He was having quite the time keeping his voice even. It was one thing to insult his friends, as she'd often done, but to insult his mate, his wife...

Essar saw it. Saw that there was something different this time, just in the way she'd figured out who Aelin was on her own. A perceptive female, as always. She made no move to jump to Remelle's defense, either. That was probably her survival instinct kicking in.

It was Benson who answered him, sounding bored, "She noted that Elentiya is gone and is glad for it."

Oh, now they were just adding salt to the wound.

He smiled a lethally cold smile. "If I wanted you to tell me, Benson, I would've asked you." His eyes flicked back to Remelle. "Now. What did you say about my--" He cut himself off, catching himself, and recovered. "Elentiya. What did you say about Elentiya?"

Essar's face filled with dread as she guessed what he was about to say. Not Queen, as he once did. Not friend, either. He met her gaze, jaw set. She knew that there was something going on, at least. But she had no specifics.

If Remelle had caught it, she would have been piecing together everything he'd said during that visit. She might've even figured it out as she reflected on all of it. His anger when she suggested Benson have some fun with her. The way he'd treated her like an equal. When he was sharing her room. Yes, it was before they were together, but she didn't know that. But she was more worried about his anger than to notice a stumble like that. "You know what I said."

"Remind me." His voice sharpened.

"Is she alright, Rowan?" Essar asked quietly, trying to break up the fight before it began. But worry shone in her eyes, and Rowan realized that Essar wasn't just trying to prevent a fight, but she had taken a liking to Aelin. Before he could say anything, Remelle muttered something under her breath. Apparently her survival instinct wasn't as strong as he'd thought, because he heard every word.

"She could handle training just fine," he informed her coldly. "And she hasn't been in Adarlan in many months." He hoped. He wasn't sure whether or not that was the truth, but Maeve could have her anywhere. He glared at Remelle, still on horseback, and said, "and she certainly wouldn't have run to Adarlan of all places, even if she couldn't handle the training."

"Then why isn't she here, Rowan?" Remelle asked rhetorically, looking around as if she maybe had just not seen her. She cocked her head. "And why all the guards?" Was she... Mocking him? Rowan was a little taken aback. And to think the Fae from Prythian were his guards was laughable.

"That's none of your gods-damned business," Rowan snapped.

Lysandra smiled prettily at Remelle. "Aren't you that female my friend practically spat fire at while training with Rowan?" She asked the question innocently enough, but Rowan knew she already knew the answer.

Remelle blinked at her. "Yes." Her voice was flat. Angry.

Lysandra's smile widened. "Good. So you know the company Rowan tends to keep is dangerous. We're no exception." Her eyes went from green to a startling amber, and her hair lightened into a reddish hue. A party trick, compared to what she had done before. Remelle jumped, eyes wider than saucers, and Beron forced his horse back a few paces. Even Essar  looked wary.

Lysandra's smile faded. "Insult my friend again," she said quietly, "and I'll shift into your worst nightmare, and then some. And trust me when I say that I will rip you limb from limb."

Rowan chuckled at the shifter. His eyes flicked up to Remelle. "You'll find that many of us have little to no bad things to say about Elentiya. So I suggest you keep your mouth shut when you decide you don't like something about her." He took a step around Essar, meaning to lead the group away, but then Essar grabbed his arm gently, withdrawing immediately after he turned.

"I'll help you look for her," she offered quietly. Remelle fixed her gaze on them, eyebrows raising in surprise. He wondered what surprised her more: that Essar was willing to leave her group, or that Rowan was searching for Aelin. Er... Elentiya.

"What makes you think I'm looking for her?" Rowan asked guardedly, silently warning her not to say what he thought she was going to say.

Sadness entered her eyes, but she said strongly, "Because I know what it looks like when when two people with a mate bond are separated from one another. And from the moment we first mentioned her, you looked exactly like them."