Aelin nearly forgot to pick up her dress as she stormed up to the dais. Rowan was murmuring quietly to Cassian while Azriel stood semi-awkwardly beside them. Mor was beaming at her and took her hand to guide her up the last step.
"Milady," the female said dramatically, sweeping another bow. Aelin couldn't help her laugh as she squeezed Mor's hand in her own before letting go.
"You don't need to hide the fact you enjoyed watching that." She aimed towards her mate, "Honestly Rowan, or should I say Lord Rowan, I know you like watching me send males flying to the dirt."
"It seems I missed a spot of water." Rowan gave the slightest shrug, "I'll need to double check next time."
Cassian let out a bark of laughter, "Please tell me you're not going to turn the whole room to ice again?"
Rowan simply raised an eyebrow and took a drink from his glass and Aelin spoke at the same time as her husband did, "No promises."
Mor snorted, "You two are so married."
"Which is why," Aelin announced, "I have to make the most of opportunities to dance with others." She dipped a small curtsey to their group, Azriel and Cassian glanced to her face for any indication of an invite, but Aelin instead reached a hand out to the Morrigan.
"May I have this dance?"
Mor's face went pale, her gaze immediately flicked to the crowd still dancing, no one watching them to see the Aelin's outstretched hand. The female tentitively took her hand, Mor's own skin soft and warm against her palm. The Queen of Terrasen proceeded to uncerimoniously drag her up to the top of the dais and grinn at Rhys.
"Is there any music you can really dance to in this Court?"
His response was merely to smirk and pretend to consider her question before asking, "Ya like jazz?"
Aelin's face broke into a smile and that was all it took for The High Lord to twist around to stare down the orchestra, he must have sent a mental message alongside as they swiftly changed to a jazz piece, the dancers looking confused as they looked up to where their rulers sat.
The Morrigan was trembling slightly and Aelin wasn't sure why, they always danced to jazz in groups of women in Erilea but the other female looked like she was about to bolt. Once she had pulled her down to the dancefloor Aelin whispered in Mor's ear. "You look lovely."
It was true, of course. The Morrigan always looked lovely, but today she had deviated from her usual red to wear a metallic-copper gown. It hugged around her until below her hips where it spun out to give her room to dance. The dress hid her feet but the strapless boddice still showed off her tanned skin.
Aelin ignored the strange looks they were getting and instead lead Mor into a spinning dance, the two females tended to stay apart rather than most traditional ballroom dancing. Aelin's skirt was taking up so much space that Mor's as well would make it rather difficult. The two would twirl away from each other, show off their best footwork or simply throw their faces to the ceiling and spin as quickly as they could.
She became aware how increasingly tense Mor's muscles were when they brushed around each other with small, lingering touches. Aelin spotted a group of males openly sneering, and noted their faces for later.
Her own home was blissfully accepting in comparison, there were some humans in modern areas who were trying to spread messages against same-sex couples, yet thanks to the Fae and other ancient creatures, they were having a hard time of it.
No one spoke out against females taking female lovers, because if you did thousands of witches would have their teeth at your throat in approximately 2 business days. And given that mating bonds formed regardless of gender, it was rarely debated other than in human communities.
Aelin simply bared her teeth at anyone she overheard insulting either of them. Many of them looked as if they would stop treating her like an honoured guest simply because she was 'disrespecting' their traditions by dancing with a female.
Too bad the Queen of Terrasen didn't give two shits and continued to draw more and more attention to herself, Mor got tenser as it went on but attention began to shift to Aelin due to her increasing flamboyancy.
She noticed that Mor was gradually leading them to a wall of the room, moving further and further from Aelin each time they split apart. They now had almost everyone's attention and the commenters were becoming braver. Insults swirled around them and so Aelin placed a firm hand on her shoulder, the other hand sliding round to Mor's lower back. As a particuarly fast part came up she turned and turned, Mor leading them right the the wall where as the music dropped after it's crescendo, they stopped spinning.
The other dancers had been forced into changing their focus to their own partners, letting them slip out of the limelight for only a moment. Aelin hadn't noticed the hidden hallway until her partner vanished down it, the archway was engulfed with shadow - likely a servants entrance.
She cast a desperate look up to where Rowan stood on the dais, realising she had really upset Mor, he watched her with concern then dipped his head in acknowledgement as she dashed off down the hall after her new friend.
Only half of the candles were lit, giving the space a gloomy, dingy feeling. Aelin nearly missed where her partner was in the dark. A small alcove with a low bench which was probably meant to have a plant pot on it. Mor's knees were tucked to her chest, breathing heavily and her hands were clenched in her skirts.
"Mor? Mor are you alright?" She placed a worried hand on the female's shoulder and she flinched away from the touch, pressing further into the alcove. "It's me Aelin, it's just me."
She managed to fit herself onto the wooden bench alongside Mor and wrapped her arms around the other female's shoulders comfortingly. "There's nobody else it's just us."
"I- I can't... I can't." Mor managed to choke out. Aelin just hushed her, rubbing soothing circles onto the bare skin of the female's shoulder. "You don't have to do anything it's alright you're hidden away. Nice and safe."
"Safe," Mor breathed, "Safe," She repeated to which Aelin nodded and hummed comfortingly.
"What they were saying.... I... should be used to it by now."
Aelin hissed angrily, "No." That was enough for Mor to glance up and meet her eyes in confusion.
"You should never get used to that, all you were doing was dancing with a friend." Mor only let out a strangled noise which broke Aelin's heart.
"I spent 10 years listening to people talking about me without knowing I was there, talking of how I was a traitor or turncoat. They thought I had ran from my responsibilities. They just didn't realise I was working to fix it the whole time I was 'living in luxury'. People don't know anything about you. So their judgements can never be accurate."
The female's sobs subsided and she listened as Aelin went on. "My cousin, people thought he had betrayed his country. They thought he was loyally serving the enemy of his nation - leading the country's army to kill its own citizens." She tried to keep her own voice steady, "He was just trying to stay alive. He was trying to be in a position to make change given the opportunity." Aelin couldn't help but shake her head desperate to keep control of her breathing.
"I have another friend who found out she'd spent a hundred years killing her birth Clan after being tricked by her grandmother who raised her." Mor gaped at her slightly for than one and Aelin smiled softly at her as their eyes met. "Can you be worse than her?"
When she still didn't reply Aelin went on, heart heavy. "What about a woman who permanently scarred a child's face? She still gets tormented for that. Of course they don't know she did it to save a 10 year old from working in a brothel."
Mor finally spoke, "Your world... it sounds awful."
Aelin snorted at that, "It is, but every world has its faults." She went quiet for a moment before quietly murmuring, only loud enough for the weeping woman sitting by her.
"What about the girl who was so caught up in her own self pity, her only real friend orchestrated their own murder to spur her into action."
The Morrigan's only response was to wrap her own arms around Aelin and squeeze her tight. "You know some very brave people."
"I also know many cowards, andI know you are not one of them. Live your Truth Morrigan and do not allow others to assume to know you."
The two sat huddled in the alcove for a long minute, clutching each other. Aelin felt a tug deep in her heart, and recognised it to be her mating bond. Rowan was calling. She curiously ran a featherlight finger over the taught bond only for it to be pulled again, insistent.
Aelin slid back off the bench, straightening out her dress and rearranging herself. Mor was taking deep breaths still, to calm herself. Aelin watched with wonder as magic wrapped around the other female, makeup fixing itself and hairs being tucked back into place.
Mor's hands were shaking as she smoothed her dress and her eyes were watery when they met Aelin's. It was all the queen could do to give a comforting smile and take Mor's hand. "You still look lovely."
A spark re-entered the third's eyes and she gave a grin which was only half-forced, "I always look lovely."
Aelin let her face fall into a mask and made a grim promise, "If anyone says anything else about you I'll gut them myself."
Their eyes met, and the pair held each other's gaze. Tentatively, Mor leaned forward and pressed her lips to Aelin's. The kiss they shared was sweet and comforting, lasting a moment before Mor pulled away to rest her forehead against Aelin's.
"Thank you." Mor murmured softly.
"I may, however, have to fight someone for the honour of defending you." Aelin murmured back with a slight chuckle. When she had glanced to Rowan on her way out, the shadowsinger looked two seconds away from downing his drink in one and committing genocide. She doubted he was going to let Aelin spill blood without himself getting a chance as well.
She took Mor's hand and gently led her back to the archway the pair had fled through minutes before. It was only when she stopped that she heard it.
The music. Oh gods the music. Rowan must have shown it to Rhys, who then must have taught it to the musicians. It was a folk tune, a folk tune from Wendlynn. A tune she had heard for the first time in Mistward at Beltane. The orchestra's sound was glorious, pure and swift and reminded her so much of the Fae from her world that it hurt.
Her Fae blood screamed to move, to dance and be free to the wonderful song. She had never heard it played by a full orchestra, it was usually played by the dancers. By random Fae who had an instrument they could play as they partied in woods and fields. With an entire kingdom's ensemble, the best musicians in the land - it was breathtaking.
And there, in the middle of the floor which clear other than worried High Fae hanging around the edges, Rowan. Her mate wasn't alone however, he was doing a rendition of his favourite jive with.... Azriel.
The spymaster was swirling in shadow, his tight face the only tell that he wasn't too keen on being the centre of attention. The two males used almost the entire floor as they rotated around each other, sometimes joining up to waltz or polka the lengths of the room.
While there were actual dances to be done at Fae celebrations, plenty of choreographed steps to match this particular piece, the majority of the Fae would freestyle to it. That was a lot easier than trying to teach someone steps to a dance they had never heard of, as well as being lot more fun.
Azriel and Rowan alternated their holds, neither one always taking the traditional 'male' position and instead sliding into whatever fitted best from where they danced. What had Aelin grinning the most however, was the moment that Rowan flung Azriel out into an open space for him to spin, and caught him off guard by forming a circle of ice under his feet. The spymaster spun twice as many times as he had been aiming for and there was a glimmer of exhiliration in his eyes from being surprised.
She noticed her mate trying not to laugh as Azriel's eyes continued to glow with a mixture of emotions when he slid gracefully back to Rowan, like nothing had happened, just in time to complete three turns of a waltz.
It would seem Rowan's habits of trying to scare his partner shitless also wasn't working on Azriel. Instead the spymaster simply reversed the methods and competed to try make Rowan freak the same way the male was trying to scare him.
Aelin dragged Mor after her onto the floor and the female desperately tried to pull backwards into the dark. Upon seeing their return Rhys tapped his glass and in a quiet tone instructed his subjects.
"In honour of our Wild Fae guests we will dance one of their traditional pieces. Everyone find a suitable parter and let us dance!"
With that, Rhysand descended the steps into the crowd to where Cassian was waiting with a shit-eating grin. Feyre smirked at them from where she remained on her own throne, before catching Mor's eye behind Aelin and rising gracefully to her feet.
The crowd had tentitively found same-sex partners and were trying to sort out the difficulty of having to dance a way you had never paid attention enough to learn. Only a few of them grasped the point that you could chuck any sections of steps you knew into whatever order you wished and that counted as acceptable dancing. Rowan had managed to get Azriel to understand that and the spymaster looked to be constantly fighting a smile.
Feyre weaved through the crowd until she appeared next to Aelin and Mor. "Ladies." Her voice was a sultry purr and Aelin couldn't help grinning back. The Morrigan's eyes were filled with a mixture of sadness and love for the people around her. Aelin couldn't bear seeing that expression on her new friend's face and promptly grabbed her arm to take her right to the heart of the party.
The Fae joined in circles of males and females, grasping hands and skipping one way and the other. Aelin found a group of 5 females who looked nervous rather than bitchy, and joined up with them alongside her two companions. As an 8 they skipped one way in a circle, then Aelin let out a whooping sound and forcibly turning them the other.
The Hewn City females looked terrified of the three who had joined them but politely followed Aelin's lead. There ended up being a lot of skipping to jolly country music and Aelin danced with so many beautiful females the world seemed to spin around her. Her eyes could only focus on dresses and skin, the only physical touch being soft flesh beneath her fingers.
The piece lasted about 15 minutes and the musicians didn't let up for a second of it. The High Fae were panting but Aelin and Rowan just took the space that cleared in the middle and hooked arms before spinning round each other as fast as they could, Aelin leading the whoop which exploded from her throat as sound of pure, undiluted joy.
It was only when they slowed and halted that Aelin trusted enough to let go of him. Rowan was notorious for whisking her in a spin the opposite direction without checking if she was still holding on. Aelin took in deep breaths to her aching lungs and grinned at Rowan with a smile so feral the Fae around them, despite their exhaustion, shrank away.
She heard a few murmurs that she liked, even a few of the males who had insulted the Morrigan were now complimenting her for entertaining the guests so well with their taste in dancing. They called her intuitive and bright, though some other Hewn City residents dropped their partners' hands in disgust and walked away immediately to find company of the opposite sex. Rhys was smirking like a feral cat as he winked at Cassian and guided Feyre back to their seats at the top of the room.
The pair gave slight bows to Aelin and Rowan when they passed, appearingly in another way to suck up to their Wild Fae guests, but really to thank them for bringing a wonderful idea and acceptance to the Court of Nightmares.
Rowan smirked and kissed his mate's cheek before slipping away with the two Illyrian's to get snacks. Mor on the other hand came up beside Aelin, with flushed cheeks and bright eyes. She whispered in the third's ear, "Such a shame. These female's are so beautiful, but their personalities!" Aelin pulled back and mimed gagging on something which Mor giggled at.
Mor's pupils were blown like she had taken every drug in existence and the grin just couldn't seem to leave her face. They hooked arms and strutted through the staring Fae to get their own - albeit slightly stronger than mosts - drinks.
After their folk dance, the majority of nobles leaving after being horrifically embarrased from dancing with other males and females. Mor no longer seemed upset about it, instead agreeing with Aelin when she giggled in her ear, "More space for us huh?"
The two females danced and drank the night away, both being equally aware that Rhys and Feyre wanted to leave, but they were having too much fun. They danced practically every number together, which meant whenever Rowan heard one he liked, Azriel fell as his victim.
Or so the spymaster may claim. Aelin saw however, how he was forcibly stopping a grin and challenging his partner at every turn to spin faster. Rowan was still as volatile as ever with the ice under his feet, he was still taking the overflow from Aelin. She was starting to feel a lot better, not even tired after 2 and a half hours of having magic sucked from her.
The Hewn City was trying to hint that it was late, more people leaving and only enough staying to appease their rulers. The remainers were either people trying to stay on Rhys and Feyre's good side or young Fae who didn't need an excuse to party.
Finally Mor pulled Aelin off the floor to pant against a pillar in the shadows of the hall. "What is your stamina!" The female gasped as Aelin, barely breathing hard, raised an eyebrow at her. Ignoring the question, she glanced back to the now near-empty dancefloor. Rowan and Azriel were waltzing slowly, at least slow by their standards. The footwork was magnificent and no one dared comment on the two males as Rowan kept his teeth on display at all times.
On seeing their friends stopped by the side, the pair glided towards them and split apart to greet Mor and Aelin with smiles. It was only when Rowan's hand closed around Aelin's forearm that she realised how exhausted she was. She nearly slumped into her husband who quickly supported her weight, Mor's legs were physically shaking and she looked up at Aelin in surprise.
"What the hell did you do?!" The female was laughing as her legs spasmed beneath her. "I was fine a moment ago!"
Azriel was also instantly at her side, tucking an arm around her and lifting his friend to stand properly. "I'm just so magical to dance with you don't notice until it's too late." Aelin was giggling uncontrollably and at a flicker of Feyre's power the remaining Fae cleared from the ballroom.
"Good night everyone!" Feyre's voice was honeyed but laced with threat as her subjects nearly sprinted back to their rooms. The musicians rose to exit but their High Lady waved a hand in instruction to remain a lilting background noise.
Rhys and her stood from their thrones, Cassian had nearly fallen asleep where he had crashed into Aelin's vacated chair but he then stood with a lazy smirk as he stretched like a kid who had fallen asleep during travel. "We heading home?"
"Finally." Rhys grumbled at Feyre nodded. The High Lady glared at him and Aelin realised she was the reason they had been allowed to dance as long as they wished. Rhysand would likely have dragged them away long ago but it seemed Feyre wanted Mor to have fun. What a strange dynamic.
Rowan helped Aelin as Azriel had to practically carry Mor, they exchanged a look which had Cassian snorting. The general brushed around his friend to help the Morrigan from her other side. He likely thought his comment was quiet enough no-one else would hear but Aelin and Rowan had exceptionally keen hearing. "When was the last time you danced with a male all night Az? Was that the same time you went missing after the ball for two full days before turning up with selective mutism about where you'd been?"
The spymaster's face tightened and this time it was not to hide a smile, "Let's just get Mor home," was his only reply to Cassian's taunts.
AN: The chapters are getting longer and the editing is becoming non-existent. I promise I'm going to edit the whole thing at some point but this is 3.5k words and I am not rereading my shitty writing just to get rid of some typos. I hope this is gay enough for all of you! I wanted to make it gayer but when I was writing it I got bored and skipped around in a weird order so it didn't really come out as I wanted. Hope it's at least readable and not 'cringy' as the kids say.
I just needed some Rowan and Azriel dancing together in my life and so I wrote this... I know this could have been done better and I'm sorry I couldn't deliver but I cannot be arsed today. I possibly started watching a bunch of ballroom dancing videos for this which didn't help time wise. 1 more chapter to finish off Part 4! A warning that it's likely going to be Saturday cause tomorrow is very busy for me!