Child of Night and Fire

09- Cassian

We have been looking for Ae for ten years. Rhys has been gone for twenty. I sit at the table with Az, mor and amren. We have a chocolate cake in the center of the table. For aelins twenty seventh birthday. She left eleven years ago to look for Rhys. We have no idea where she is. Is she is alive.

"Cass" says mor softly "it's your turn"

I nod my head and wipe away a single tear. Every year we take turns blowing out the candle. I blow it out and I see amren look away and wipe her eyes. I put a hand on hers and she gives me a grateful look.

We all eat our cake then mor, az and I head out. For the next month we will look for her nonstop. Az will ask his shadows for help. Mor will talk to her friends in the other courts. I fly over all the forests and the mountains. Every year we do this. Every year we are hopeful that we will find her. But we never do.

———time skip brought to you by cassian and aelins sibling bond———-

The month is over. We didn't find her. I head back to Velaris. We will find her next year. It is my fault that she is missing. She left because I left. She needed me. She blamed herself. And we left her all alone. She was slowly dying and we didn't Even speak to her for ten years. A short time for us. Forever for her. It has now been twenty years. And she is gone. When I fly back I see everyone else waiting for me. At the sidra. Thirty seven candles on floating boats to represent the thirty seven years she has been gone. I land next to everyone. They all shake their heads. Nothing new. I look at az. He as a slight light in his eyes. Hope, marred with fear.

"What did you find?" i say anxiously.

"It could be nothing" starts Az

"Or it could be our sister" i growl at him

"There is word that there is a human girl. Who is the only one refusing to praise Amaratha. She was whipped almost to death on her first day but still wouldn't praise her. She has survived the longest anyone ever has" he says.

"Where" i growl.
"Cass you can't go there. You would die before you even go to her. Assuming it is her" he explains

"Where" i repeat.

"Endovier" he winces. Mor and amren break down crying.

I launch myself into the sky but az grabs my wings. Stopping me.

"Let me go!" i roar. "Let me get our sister"

"You would be dead before you got to her" he makes me look at him "I don't want to loose two siblings. We have lost enough"

He has a point. I grumble and agree to say here. We fly back to the ground and Mor tramples me. "Don't you dare leave me" she whimpers and i hug her close. She then promptly stands ans smacks me in the face. "Thats for scaring the hell out of me" she says and walks away.