Kingdom of Recovery - A Throne of Glass FanFic

Chapter 2

And chapter 2 is here! This one is pretty long and I hope y'all enjoy. Comments and votes are greatly appreciated! 

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Rowan had known that their lives would not be perfect just because they had won the war. He knew that his queen and every member of her court need time to recover and begin living lives that are not haunted by the dead and their past decisions.

Unfortunately, things seemed to be getting worse before they could get better.

Rowan supposes that being at war keeps people moving, keeps them from thinking about all of the people and time they have lost. Now that the war is over, they must all confront the grief that has been kept to the shadows for the past few months or years.

Watching his brave and strong fireheart struggle is the hardest part for Rowan. His mate is now finally in a stable and safe environment for the first time in years, but now that she does not have to worry about fighting day in and day out, she has to face the memories of those she lost. She grieves and breaks down when she is in private or just with her mate, away from the eyes of her kingdom. The night terrors and bouts of insomnia have come on strong and add to her stress that has accumulated from rebuilding her kingdom.

Rowan walks down the stairs behind his queen as they head toward breakfast and realizes a few other things about how they are coping. Both Rowan and Aelin have much better days when they are with each other most of the time but that is not to say that having bad days is uncommon for either of them.

Today is unfortunately a bad day for Aelin.

Now of course that is not to say that Rowan does not have his bad days as well. He has his fair share of days where all he can do is watch Aelin to try and prove to himself that they are both here alive and well, living out their dream not actually in a dream.

Aelin runs her elegant fingers down the railing as the exit the grand stairwell into an open hallway. This will lead them to the sitting room they usually have breakfast in with the rest of their court.

Rowan gets off the last step and falls into line with his mate, putting his arm around her waist. She leans into him a bit. Just enough for him to feel her rest some of her weight on him. It slows their walk a tad but neither of them mind.

"What is on our agenda for today, my queen?" Rowan asks.

"Well first we have breakfast but then we have meetings with Darrow and the other Lords to discuss the best way to implement a new voting system."

"Is Darrow bringing Evangeline? If so we should arrange for her to be with Lysandra while we have to sit through our meetings." Rowan inspects the new decorations in the hall as they leisurely make their way down to breakfast. The bare stone walls that have now been decorated in tapestries and green symbols of Terrasen and seemed so cheery, you could almost forget that this same hallway had been filled with soldiers, both dead and alive, only months earlier.

"I am not quite sure" Aelin responds. She looks to be considering saying something else but they arrive at the breakfast room and Rowan pushes the door open.

The room is exploding with chatter as Aelin's court bickers over any topic they can think of.

Aelin's face gets a crooked grin across it as she takes in the chaos that is her beloved court.

Rowan can not help but to smile as well. Seeing how far this court of misfits had come, forming both a family and a supporting court for their queen. They shift from scared individuals to making their own loving family was a great achievement but they still had some way to go.

Fenrys still struggled with the death of his brother, all of the cadre morned Gavriel, and Adeion longing for a relationship with the father he never got to know. Through it all, they have pushed though and settled down but they still have a ways to go.

"I refuse to attend any event where I have to wear that" Lysandra says.

Rowan and Aelin are intercepted by Fenrys as they pass the threshold of the door. Rowan is pleased to see the pup smiling and happy, a great contrast to how he was only a few months prior.

"Glad you two finally showed. We were worried we would have to send someone to go get you and I was not gonna take that job." Fenrys said with a smirk.

Aelin playfully hits the pup on the shoulder and gives him a smile in return. She looks brighter than she did when she first woke up but still not quite to a normal level.

"You are just jealous of my extremely hot mate." Aelin says.

They both just chuckle at each other and head over to get seats at the table. Aelin looks back at Rowan, making sure he is still there with her. He gives her a reassuring smile and pulls out a seat at the table at her before sitting down on her left side. Fenrys sits on her right side and they begin a conversation about training for a group of guards.

Aelin is trying her best to keep up with the discussion but is failing to be her usual snarky self. Rowan can see when Fenrys notices something is up with his queen. He softens slightly, not enough that most people can tell, but enough to show he is concerned. Fenrys has had plenty of bad days and is always ready to try and make his best friend feel better.

Lysandra, Aedion, Lorcan, and Elide join them at the table in their respective seats. Aedion and Lysandra, newly married, can never keep their hands to themselves. They continue to bicker over what the correct and most comfortable choices of formal wear are, even as they begin to grab food from the center of the table.

The elaborate table had been placed in the room just two weeks prior, and now all of their inner court meetings and meals occurred here. The table itself was made from ornately carved wood, decorated with imagery relating to the kingdom, the new queen, and her court. The table was not overly large, just big enough to fit the inner court and occasionally a guest or two. The room was homey and comfortable, trying to keep its occupants at ease.

The court grabs their preferred meal choices and get to eating, all while chatting and arguing about whatever topic interests them this morning.

Aelin on the other hand, merely picks at some fruit on her plate and gazes around the table, taking in her family. Rowan slips his arm around her shoulder and whispers to her.

"How much do you wanna bet that if we did not intervene, they would just argue for the rest of their lives?" Rowan asks, gesturing at Aedion, Lysandra, and Fenrys. Aelin gives a small chuckle.

"You are not much better, you old buzzard." Aelin says.

Rowan can not help but to smile at his mate. Yes they all have their bad days, but they have so many more good days ahead. 

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So chapter 3 has some Aedion feels so get excited!