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CHAPTER XXV
TABLE SQUABBLES
THEY FELT RHYSAND COME BACK TO VELARIS. Immediately, they all made their way to the townhouse. Cassian and Azriel came first, but are locked out by Rhys as he spoke with Feyre inside the house.
A smile tugged on Rhys' lips, "One, no one but I, Mor, and Callaghan are able to winnow directly inside this house. It is warded, shielded, and warded some more."
"Callaghan?"
"You'll meet her soon, probably."
Rhysand then told Feyre that she was safe in Velaris and if she didn't want to meet the Illyrians, she may head upstairs and have her rest. As the High Lord talked about the winged males in the antechamber, there was a playful glint in his eyes. Feyre thought that it made him look younger.
Feyre chose wisely. She headed upstairs and went to her room as Rhys permitted the two to enter, who were now joined by Amren.
"Welcome home, bastard," Cassian basically greeted, "I sensed you were back. Mor filled me in, but—"
Amren cut him off, "Send your dogs out in the yard to play, Rhysand. You and I have matters to discuss."
"As do I," Azriel butted in.
"We were here first. Wait your turn, Tiny Ancient One."
Mor came in, still yawning, "Why is everyone here so early? I thought we were meeting tonight at the House."
Rhys raked his eye over his Circle as they talked about food. Vik and Cal still hadn't shown up.
As if sensing that he was looking for her, Callaghan and Vik appeared at the antechamber, making heads turn the moment they arrived, "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware that we were supposed to come on schedule."
"Rhys does love his surprises, sister," Viktor's eyes glimmered with mirth. "Welcome back, my lord."
Rhys rolled his eyes when the two bowed to him dramatically, "You have to talk to me too?"
Callaghan shook her head, "Spymaster Azriel has got you covered. My own spies report to him for the time being."
When she took a deep inhale, Feyre's scent came to her. She looks to Rhysand, "She's here?"
Instead of answering, Rhysand faced Azriel and Amren, "Tell me everything." Then the three left the room to go somewhere more private.
"So," Vik starts, "Who wants to join me raid the kitchens?"
A bright smile broke out of Mor's face as she linked an arm with Cal's, "I like that idea, let's go."
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VIK ARRIVED WITH MOR, casually breezing in through the balcony. "If Cassian's howling, I hope it means Feyre told him to shut his fat mouth."
Cas and Mor began to banter so Vik decided to steal the spotlight, "Hi, I'm Viktor, but you can call me Vik. Nice to meet you." The way he smiled made Feyre release some of the tension on her shoulders. This fae was young, she thought. So she took his outstretched hand and shook it. "I don't really do much over here," the boy shrugged.
"If you call creating chaos not doing much," Cassian snickered, making Vik glare at him.
"I'm not the chaotic one, you are!"
Mor ushered Feyre away from the males, taking her to the table, "I want you all to myself before Amren hogs you—"
As if on cue, the silver eyed female enters the room. The way her eyes looked made feyre realize that she wasn't High Fae at all, but something else far more dangerous and ancient. The Cursebreaker watched Amren and Rhysand, noticing the clear bond between the two. When Amren turned to her, she had never felt any smaller. It relieved her when the shorter woman nodded her head towards the empty seat beside Mor.
Vik didn't really listen to them talk. He was waiting for his sister, who was nowhere to be found again. Honestly, for a spy who had such high ranks, she was not mindful of her time.
They were about to start eating when she strolled in. "Glad you could grace us with your presence, Callaghan," Rhys said, with Cassian chuckling on the side.
"Again, I wasn't informed there was such a strict schedule to be followed," she sits on the chair across Vik.
Feyre froze at the sound of her voice, "You."
Cal offered her a soft smile, "Hello, my lady, nice to see you again."
"You helped me," the girl almost whispered.
"Let's keep that bit to ourselves, Feyre," she winked at the girl, "Rhysand didn't know."
Callaghan hoped that that was enough to cut the conversation short. It was, but only to a certain extent.
They all began eating, except for Amren who just sipped on her glass of blood. So Cassian took her plate and dumped her food onto his and Azriel's plate. Callaghan smiles at that, especially when Azriel apologized to the raven haired female.
Talk about the siphons and Illyrians came and Cal couldn't help but quiet down, that is until Feyre called the brute Lord Cassian. Cas had spewed his wine, making Mor jump up from her seat.
"If he's a Lord of anything," Vik said, "He'll be the Lord of Big Mouths."
"Probably Lord of Stupidity too while we're at it," Cal adds.
Cassian points at her with his fork, "You shut up, Cal."
"Or what?" She teased, "You gonna cry about it?"
Cassian moved to stand, and so did Callaghan, but they stopped when Rhys said, "Best behaviors, or have you forgotten?"
Both sat back down, albeit reluctantly. Cal had a smirk while Cassian had his eyes narrowed at her.
"Callaghan," Rhysand warned, as tension was still felt in the room. "Apologies," she said, not breaking eye contact with Cas, "Not my fault your General is such a baby."
"Callaghan, I will—"
"Literal children," Mor sighs, "Forgive them, Feyre, this is their best behavior."
"Cassian is not a lord," Rhysand went to explain, cutting the tension between his friends, "Though I'm sure he appreciates you thinking he is."
Callaghan remained mostly quiet after that fiasco with Cassian. She listened to their stories intently. They had shared them to her many times before but it still got her invested. Sometimes, she would quip short comments here and there but never to the point of talking over the others.
Then Feyre turns to her, "And you, how did you meet Rhysand?"
Call offered her a short smile, "We met — in an unfortunate circumstance."
"You were stealing from the man in charge," Mor said, "It was bound to happen."
Viktor went silent. No matter how many times he heard this story, he will never be ungrateful for what she did for him, just to give him a good life. He owed it all to his dear sister.
"He was newly crowned, only several decades in. I was caught, beaten, and brought before the High Lord for probable execution," Cal looks to the High Lord, "But dear old Rhys offered me something better, a bargain if you will. He let me and my brother, who was merely six at that time, live here with them. He offered me protection and a house to live in. Who could decline that, right?"
"So you work for him?"
"No," Rhys' gaze flickered to her, he expected that answer. "I'm under Azriel, as a spy."
Feyre was confused, "Then why were you Under the Mountain?"
Callaghan meets Rhys' apologetic eyes, "I went in there as a servant to listen around and gather information, that was the plan. Until the queen bitch had a plan of her own, trapping all of us there. I could have tried sneaking out, but the risks were too high and I wouldn't leave my High Lord behind. The safety of Velaris and our family was much more important. So I stayed, for nearly fifty years."
"When you came to me," Feyre looked at her. How she carried herself now, compared to when she first saw her. It was so different. Gone were the tight and calculated movements, she was more loose and confident now. "You were so—"
"Weak, fragile, timid?" Rhys spoke up. "You see, our dearest Callaghan has a flair for theatrics. She can act and lie her way out of a situation. She can make you see a mask that she had perfected on her own."
"You flatter me," the spy went back to her food, "Although, it wasn't all an act. It was hard living under that Mountain. Existing there drained me to the core. But then again, we're all great pretenders, aren't we, Rhys?"
Rhysand didn't answer. He had also noticed the tight grip Azriel had on his knife, knuckles almost turning white.
With that, the conversation about Callaghan and her life Under the Mountain ended. The table went quiet. Recalling the dreadful years they went through without their friends.
Then Vik felt eyes on him so he looked to his High Lord, "What?"
"How's your meowing, Vik?"
Instantly, the boy's face went red in shame. He turned to Callaghan, "You told him?"
"Az did," Cal points to the shadowsinger. She would never rat out on her brother, unless she benefited from it, of course. Vik snaps his head towards the quiet Illyrian, "It was one time! I turn into a kitten one time and everyone suddenly knows!"
Confusion was evident at the Cursebreaker's face, still not knowing how Vik fit in this circle, so Callaghan took the liberty to explain, "My brother, Viktor, was basically raised and trained by all of us. Rhys and Amren especially. They helped him gain control over his abilities, maybe they can help you too, if you would allow them."
Feyre turns to the still red-faced fae, "What can you do?"
"Shapeshift," Vik answered truthfully, "I can mimic animal sounds too. It's not much, but it's something."
"You pull yourself too much, my boy," Cal tells him, "You're great."
"You're doing well," Amren agreed, tilting her glass towards the young Morphling. It was obvious she had a soft spot for him.
Their interactions made Feyre miss her own sisters. She too would do anything to keep them safe. Feyre had made up her mind, "I accept your offer — to work with you. To earn my keep. And help with Hybern in whatever way I can."
A smile creeped up Callaghan's face as she heard Feyre speak. The newly turned fae had agreed to offer her help, just as what she expected.
This would be fun.
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RHYSAND AND FEYRE were about to leave the House, his wings already out, when Callaghan called out, "Rhys!" Both fae turned to face her. "Before you go, may I speak with Feyre for a moment?"
Rhys glanced at Feyre, to which the female nodded her head, "Make it quick, Callaghan." His wings disappeared as he walked back in the House to leave the two women on the balcony. "You know I don't like it quick, Rhysand," Cal said.
The spy let out a sigh when she was certain that it was only the two of them, "I want to apologize for dinner."
"What for?" Feyre asked.
"We were squabbling about and it was your first time meeting us formally," Cal wringing her hands together, "It wasn't a good impression, I'm sorry."
The female was a bit skeptical, "Is this another of your acts? Another lie?"
"No, not at all," Callaghan was quick to say, "This — This is just Callaghan. The real boring Callaghan."
Feyre stayed quiet so Cal spoke again, "Also thank you for giving us a chance, for giving Velaris a chance. We'll protect you here, I promise you."
"All I ask is, for you to trust us," Cal continued, taking Feyre's hand in hers, "I didn't trust them at all when I first came here too, I only trusted my brother. But look at me now, I'd die for every single one of them, even you."
The Cursebreaker looked at her with a new light. She was loyal, so loyal. Feyre was afraid that the loyalty Callaghan has would end up being the death of her when the time comes.
"You can come out now, Rhysand," Cal called out to the night sky when she stepped away from the youngest Archeron.
The spy punched his shoulder when he appeared near them, "Sneaky bastard, I wasn't going to steal her away. I can feel you hovering, it's annoying."
"I'll speak with you later, Callaghan," Rhys simply dismissed her.
Cal just rolled her eyes and turned to walk into the House, "You know where to find me."
"She's different," Feyre says when Cal was out of earshot.
"That's our Callaghan for you."
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[ notes! ]
uhm so yeah,,,
i feel like cal is a love child of inej ghafa and nina zenik from the grishaverse 👁️👄👁️
i want to thank you all for supporting my work and i will try to update as frequently as i can but im just not finding the drive to write these couple weeks so,,,, updates may take a while im sorry 😭
BUT STILL THANK YOU FOR ALL THE SUPPORT
I APPRECIATE YOU ALL SO MUCH
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