A Court of Fire and Shadows.

chapter nine.

Winnowing isn't very easy the first time. Or the second. Or the third. So by the time Elena and Mor had reached wherever the hell they were going, she felt like she was going to empty her stomach all over Mor's lovely shoes.

They step into the crowded bar, her eyes sweeping over the room. There was a dance floor in the middle of the room, sweaty bodies rubbing all over each other, hips swaying to the beat. Mor grabs onto Elena's wrist to drag her towards a booth, where all her friends were sitting.  Feeling their eyes turn to her as Mor introduces her to them, her own eyes looking for a pair of particular ones, before she stopped herself.

Pull yourself together.

"Elena, this is Nicholas. Nicholas, Elena," she says, gesturing to a male to her right. He might have been the most beautiful person she'd laid her eyes on. His hair, which she couldn't tell if it was more brown or black, slightly curling over his forehead. Thick dark lashes above dark green eyes, and a strong jawline. And if he was the most beautiful male she'd ever seen, then the woman with his hand on her thigh was his equivalent.

Dark black hair framing her high cheekbones, and going down to her mid back, her full lips painted red. Elena was momentarily awestruck before she composed herself.

"Why does everyone here have to be absolutely gorgeous? I honestly don't understand," She says finally, flopping into the seat across from them, not bothering to check who she was going in next to. The woman grins, holding out a hand with long slender fingers with only one or two scars on them. But as she shook it she felt the roughness of her palm and that took away any doubts she could hold her own.

"I'm Haven, and this is my boyfriend Nicholas, as you know-" she says, chuckling slightly as she elbows him in the side, making him snap to attention and hold his hand out to shake. "Nice to meet you," he says with a grin, before leaning back in his seat, his eyes scanning the dance floor, the small grin still on his face.

"Haven, let's go dance-" he says, pulling her to her feet, despite her protests. Belle and Jake joining them, and then Mor left to go in search of a drink and maybe something else. And it was only then she looked beside her to notice Azriel himself, with a drink in hand.

"Oh I see you've finally decided to grace me with your presence," she says, moving to go and sit across from him, suddenly not wanting to be so close to him. She didn't understand why his absence had made her feel so shitty. She'd told him everything about Erilea, about her home. Then she'd woken up the next morning in bed, the small shadow in the shape of a stag the only trace that it wasn't a dream. But that had disappeared a few seconds after she saw it anyways.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He asks, his voice rough like he hadn't spoken in a while. She watched as he took a swig from whatever was in his glass, her eyes following a drop of moisture making its way down and onto his finger.

"It means, that I haven't seen you in a week, and it doesn't make sense," she says, watching as his eyes moved over her outfit. A black silk button up top with the first and second buttons undone, tucked into a pair of high waisted pants, along with some boots. Different from all the short and shiny dresses around the room that would hurt your eyes if you looked at them too long.

He slowly moved his gaze back up to her face, his expression blank. He stared at her for a few moments, before taking another swig.

"I am under no obligation to make sense to you, princess," he says, looking away from her, and she was grateful he didn't see her cheeks that were reddened with embarrassment. "Yes, I suppose you aren't," she says, her voice cold, and Azriel was surprised, as this voice was much different than her voice that night on the kitchen floor.

"Don't look so surprised. That girl you met that night in the kitchen? You won't see her again in a long time," she says, tapping a waiter's shoulder and ordering a drink as Azriel just stared at her.

He waits a few seconds before speaking.
"How do you do it? Shut people out so quick?" he asks, and she could see it was an actual, genuine question. "Well, with you, I'll just tell myself you didn't care, and you never did. That there's nothing, and that the man who asked me about my home was no one, that he didn't exist. I tell myself everything was a lie, over and over, until I start to believe it."

"Doesn't it," he says, pausing slightly, "Doesn't it hurt?"

"Oh, sweet boy, I've had a lot of practice," she asks, finally looking him in the eyes. And he saw something in those eyes of hers. Something dark and twisted, deep, deep down. But that was only because she'd let him see that. And it was only a fraction of it.

He sucked in a small breath. "What happened to you?" he asks softly, and she's actually tempted to talk. But then she realizes who he is, and how he didn't care. Not at all. So she slowly put that wall back up between them, and he could see it happening. Her eyes became cold again, that light in them spluttering out. "Everything's a lie," she says simply, as if she's talking to herself, beginning to stand up, taking a gulp of the drink the waiter had out on the table a while before, wincing slightly.

Before turning and walking into the crowd, and she was aware of Azriel calling her name once. Only once. And she just kept walking.

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word count : 1055

hey guys im so sorry this took so long ive been busy BUT i actually have big plans for this story, and i'm super excited about it, and i hope y'all are too <3

love you all, and thanks for 600 reads

xx