♚✭♛
Feyre pretended to meander through the exquisite and silent gardens, mentally marking the paths and clever places for hiding if she ever needed them.
She didn't doubt Tamlin's claim that the rest of Prythain was deadly for a human--as she remembered her talk with Tamlin yesterday about the blight on these lands... She was beter off here for the time being.
Now she had to find someone who might plead her case to Tamlin. Though Lucien-- he could do with someone snapping at him, someone other than Aadya, if you have the courage for it but tread very slightly with Aadya, you do not want to tempt her fury, Alis had said to her yesterday.
She stole a knife from dinner that night. Her heart thrummed against it's cage throughout dinner. But neither of the males seemed to care as they rambled on about the blight and how it infected their magic and people. She would have felt pity for them had a pair of grey eyes not strained on her the entire evening.
Feyre for the first time took in the women before her. Her brown waves of hair not a single strand out of place and her toned physique. But it was her ever so cold eyes and always pursing lips that captured Feyre's attention. The sudden urge to kiss Aadya overwhelmed Feyre before she turned her sight towards Lucien who was already smirking at her.
"Were you admiring my sword, or just contemplating killing me, Feyre?"
"Of course not," Feyre said softly and glanced at Tamlin. She suddenly became vulnerable under his forest green eyes as she wondered whether he had heard her take the knife. She forced herself to act civilized, behave and possibly win him to her side.
Tamlin broke the silence. "Feyre like to hunt."
"I don't like to hunt." She harshly corrected him, "I hunted out of necessity. And how do you know that?"
Tamlin's stare was bald, assessing. "Why is were you in the woods that day? You had a bow and arrows in your house. When I saw your father's hands, I know he wasn't the one using them." He gestured to her scarred, calloused hands. "You told him about the relations and money from pelts. Faeries might be many things, but we're not stupid. Unless your ridiculous legends claim that about us, too."
Lucien cleared his throat. "How old are you, anyway?"
"Nineteen."
Aadya tsked mockingly. "So young, and so grave. And a skilled killer already."
Feyre restrained her words of fury as she turned to the males, "So is this what you do with your lives? Spare humans from the Treaty and have fine meals?"she said as she gave a pointed glance towards Tamlin and Aadya's baldric, the warrior's clothes, Lucien's sword.
Lucien smirked. "We also dance with the spirits under the full moon and snatch human babies from their cradles to replace them with changelings---"
"Didn't...," Tamlin interrupted, his deep voice surprisingly gentle, "didn't your mother tell you anything about us?"
"My mother didn't have the time to tell me stories."
Aadya suddenly stood up pushing her chair back before disappearing without a trace to anywhere other than here. She didn't want to hear Feyre talk about her mother when all it reminded her was of a past that she swore she would never have to relive again. But here she was.
♚✭♛
Aadya sat above the mountains from where Amarantha ruled Prythain. She wanted to see the stars as she felt cold wind ripple through her hair and this was the only place she knew she could do it with solitude. Her safe haven.
The stars twinkled and for a moment looked like it winked at her as she smiled at it. The stars became her permanent companion in the dark for that's all she had ever known. She felt him behind her before she heard the taunting voice.
"You do know that you can't die even if you jump for the cliff, right?"
"Not now, Rhysand." Aadya said without turning back. She made it her mission to not look him in the eye for the past fifty years for all it did was take her back to that night.
Rhysand was quiet as he watched her watch the night sky with longing eyes, like he often did. He silently walked before taking the space next to her as they both remained in silence shoulder to shoulder.
"You smell like her." Not a question. Rhysand resisted wincing at the statement before turning towards the woman besides him who refused to meet his eyes just like it had been the past half century.
"You know I don't have a choice."
She did. They both did. But it didn't stop the small part of her ache with something unknown to her. She let out a breath as she didn't want to have this conversation now.
Rhysand spread his palms as a bottle of liquor appeared in his hands as he opened it, taking a large sip before passing it to Aadya who took it without question as she drank from it.
The two immortal creatures sat in silence sharing a drink as they seeked comfort in eachother's presence for the night just like they had for the past half century. Aadya's quiet voice broke the silence.
"Our freedom is not far. I can feel it. Hold on to it Rhys."
♚✭♛
The silhouette of two people was what she first saw when she winnowed back to the spring court estate. She overheard them talking as Lucien let out a cruel laugh.
"Come now. I'm to patrol the southern woods today, and I'm curious about the.... abilities you used to bring down my friend, whether accidental or not. It's been a while since I encountered a human, let alone a Fae-killer. Indulge me in a hunt."
Aadya's sickly sweet voice caught their attention as Feyre and Lucien turned towards the brunette who strutted through the grass as she stopped just before them. No one heard from her for the entire night and it was certainly not uncommon for the female to leave abruptly. "I'm sure both of you won't have any problem if I were to join you. Right Feyre?"
Not a request. An open challenge towards Feyre that made her skin crawl. Feyre shake her head as a no as the three of them set of into the forest. Aadya didn't acknowledge the other two but kept an ear out for anything suspicious from the human huntress.
"So, Feyre," Aadya began as they both turned towards her, "when are you going to start trying to persuade Lucien to beseech Tamlin to find a way to free you from the Treaty's rules? Or did I ruin your plan?"
Feyre tried not to jolt. "What?"
"That's why you agreed to come out here, isn't it? Why you wound up at the stables exactly as I was leaving?"Lucien shot her a sideways glance with his normal eye. "Honestly, I'm impressed--and flattered you think I have that kind of sway with Tamlin."
Feyre was not giving up,not so soon. "What are you both talking--"
Aadya's cocked head was answer enough. She chuckled and said, "Before you waste one of your precious few human breaths, let me explain two things to you. One: if myself or Lucien had our ways, you'd be gone, so it wouldn't take much convincing on your part. Two: we can't have our ways, because there is no alternative to what the treaty demands. There's no extra loophole."
"But--but there has to be something--"
"I admire your balls, Feyre-- I really do. Or maybe it's stupidity. But since Tam won't gut you, which was Aadya's and my first choice, you're stuck here. Unless you want to rough it on your own in Prythain,which"--he looked Feyre up and down--"I'd advice against."
"A valiant effort," Aadya chimed in.
And this time Feyre didn't bother hiding her glare at the faes.
After a few minutes Feyre quieted her riotous thoughts to say, "Where is the rest of Tamlin's court? They all fled this blight on magic?"
"How'd you know about the court?" Lucien asked quickly.
Feyre kept her face blank. "Do normal estates have emissaries? And servants chatter. Isn't that why you made them wear bird masks to that party? Why doesn't Aadya have a mask?"
Lucien looked at Aadya who has gone deadly silent. He scowled at Feyre, "We each chose what to wear that night to honor Tamlin's shape-shifting gifts. The servants, too. But now, if we had the choice, we'd peel them off with our bare hands." A pause accompanied by a look at Aadya. "As for Aadya she is not of this court. No more questions about her."
"What happened to the magic to make it act that way?"
Lucien let out a harsh laugh. "Something was sent from the shit-holes of Hell,"he said, then glanced around as Aadya swore. "I shouldn't have said that. If word got back to her--"
"Who?"
The colour had leeched from Lucien's sun kissed skin and Aadya's face held was fury that could bring mountains crumbling down. Aadya dragged a hand through her hair. "Never mind that girl. The less you know, the better. Tam might not find it troublesome to tell you about the blight, but I wouldn't put it past a human to sell the information to the highest bidder."
The sudden feeling of dread washed over Aadya saw she swiftly started searching for something that lurked in the forest. That's when she heard it. Seems like the others did too as Feyre had her bow drawn in a heartbeat, pointing in the direction of the noise.
"Put your bow down," Aadya whispered, her voice low and rough. "Put your damned bow down, human, and look straight ahead."
Feyre did as Aadya said as Lucien said, "Don't react," forcing his gaze ahead as Aadya did the same. "No matter what you feel or see, don't react. Don't look. Just stare ahead."
Aadya saw Feyre's hand tremble and go pale. The horses' ears flattened against their heads, but they continued walking, as if they'd also understood Lucien's command.
And then they felt it.