A few days later
Rowan knew something was off the second he left the castle today.
He had gone off to arrange wedding details, for they wanted to wed before the arrival of their baby.
"What?" Aedion asked.
Rowan raised a brow at that.
"The look on your face, what's going on?" Aedion said, simultaneously smiling at a passerby who bowed.
They had only been walking for a few minutes, as they'd refused a carriage to take them.
"It's nothing," Rowan replied. "We should get Aelin's tailor first."
Aedion nodded, not entirely convinced at what his brother had just said. So he looked over his shoulder, almost as if he could see the castle looming behind him.
The castle was marvelous he would admit. Housing a hundred plus servants and guards. Their chamber bigger than a small house. Aelin's taste for luxury would, perhaps, never change.
They walked into the tailors office, not bothering to knock.
"Your Majesty, General," the tailor said while bowing.
"How are you today?" Aedion asked.
"Marvelous, and you?"
"Fine," Aedion said with a smile.
"Well," the man said lowering his spectacle. "What may I do for you?"
Rowan cleared his throat, "The Queen needs a wedding dress as soon as possible, would you consider-"
The tailor clapped his hands together and ran behind his desk, "Oh! I was hoping she would choose me to do the dress, I have a design in mind! Don't worry, Your Majesty, I shall have it done in a week!" The elderly tailor exclaimed.
The smile on Aedion's face was anything but fake. He had spent years living in contempt. Passing people with genuine fear in their eyes.
So Aedion set a bag of gold coins on his desk and shook his hand, "Thank you, sir."
The tailor, a bit taken aback by the kindness, replied with, "Good day, General." And turned around to bow for the King.
And they left at that.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Incoming," Aelin sputtered out as Lysandra jumped to her feet and placed the bucket in front of Aelin seconds before she burst.
"Score!" Lysandra celebrated.
"You're taking way too much joy in this," Aelin muttered.
"The first few months are extremely miserable," Lysandra said, holding back Aelin's hair while she vomited again in the blue bucket.
Lysandra came to Aelin's room early, right after Rowan left. She was still asleep when she found her but as she set down the cup of coffee with a somewhat loud clink against the glass table, Aelin burst awake with a gasp.
And now it had been her fourth time vomiting her guts out.
Aelin just glared at her, "And you would know how?"
"Research, and pestering Yrene," she said with a wink.
She wiped the vomit from her chin and went to stand up as Lysandra shrieked, "No!"
"What?!"
"You need rest!" Lysandra said pushing Aelin back down on the bed.
"I will do no such thing, I'm going to go train," Aelin said standing up again.
"In this condition?" Lysandra asked.
"It'll help, I'll go light don't worry," Aelin reassured her.
"Did Yrene say you could?"
"I don't need her permission," Aelin coldly snapped back.
The pain on Lysandra's face quickly disappeared as she chuckled and said, "I'll spar with you."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"What are you doing?" Aedion asked.
"Exercise, Aedion. You could use some of it," Aelin said with a wink, walking towards the dummy.
"I get that, but aren't you pregnant? Or did you forget?" Aedion started walking behind her.
Aelin paid no heed however, she tied the gauze around her knuckles.
She won't listen, Lysandra mouthed to him.
"Rowan's gonna rip out my guts," Aedion muttered.
"Then go," Aelin started punching the dummy.
"I'll practice with Lysandra," Aedion half suggested and stated.
Lysandra nodded and the two began.
One-two, one-two, she repeated in her head.
The dummy's face started contorting in her mind.
Let's begin.
She grunted as she landed a punch so hard her knuckle cracked.
Rowan strolled in, looking for his dagger. His eyes suddenly went up to the female grunting at the force of her blows.
He opened his mouth to protest but he saw it.
He saw the way she was punching.
Rage. Sloppy, rage.
She wasn't training for her health. She was training as an outlet.
Lysandra saw that too. The realization that the vomiting occurred as she jerked awake...she should have known...
"Aelin," Rowan calmly said.
No answer.
He walked towards her, sure to give Aedion a dirty glare, who shuddered at his King's cold eyes.
"Fireheart," he whispered.
Keep going until she counts.
The Queen who was promised.
Count, count, count-
He glanced down at her wrists, the gauze set aflame and her knuckles bleeding at the contact with the leather.
"Aelin!" Rowan stepped in front of her and grabbed her wrists.
As if awaken from a trance her eyes widened.
And to her eternal humiliation, no, no, she had lost the ability to be humiliated as she hanged naked between two posts in front of Cain waiting for her daily whip.
She was shaking with relief as she beheld her mate.
Whole. Safe. Mine.
He had searched the world for her, and he would never, not even for the Gods themselves, let her go again.
So he held her in his arms until she stopped shaking. He held his Queen for however long it took.
Author's Note - Aw, that ending. I ship rowaelin so hard it. physically. hurts. Part 30!! I absolutely love and take immense joy in writing this for you, I would love to hear feedback! :)
(published again because I decided to add an explanation of what happened to Aelin that morning, sorry)