A Court of Death and Retribution

chapter 33

Elain wasn't like her sisters. Nesta was a strong warrior who faced death and watched as it cowered in her sight. Feyre took down armies and was fierce in her own way, never letting anyone hurt her or her family. Elain was kind and gentle, a strength that not many could hold for hundreds of years.

We walked through her gardens as she showed me her favorite flowers and taught me how the sunlight affected the different kinds. She told me about what flowers thrived in each season and how they closed at night, only to awaken in the day.

This was the first time I had heard the middle Archeron speak, and with each word, it showed me exactly why people adored her. She spoke with grace, her light voice rivaling the songs of the morning birds, and each step she took was light and careful, as if she feared to hurt the grass beneath us.

We stopped in front of a bush where white roses bloomed. She brushed a gentle finger along the soft petals, then turned to me. "When the Cauldron was repaired, I was still able to see some aspects of the future as they came to me."

I took my gaze away from the delicate roses and looked at Elain. Nyx had told me she was a Seer, but I never exactly knew what that meant, nor had I asked.

"They don't come as often, but when you showed up, I saw white roses. So I planted them." She smiled softly at me, then looked back to the bush. "I think my visions were trying to tell me that you would bring hope to Prythian."

I scoffed. Hope? If anything that the Dark Mother said was true, hope would not be the word that comes to mind.

She looked back at me in curiosity. "You don't have to believe me, just believe in yourself." Then, she walked further into the garden. I followed after a moment, but she didn't linger on the topic as she continued explaining the different flowers to me.

After our walk, we sat in the kitchen while she showed me how to make bread. I had asked her, practically begged her, to teach me. After having that toast coated with jam, I needed the feeling of euphoria that it brought me.

We made a mess of the flour, giggling as she taught me how to knead the dough. I was careful to follow her steps exactly, and felt proud of myself when we put our loaves in the oven to cook.

"How much of that flour actually ended up in the bread?" Lucien strolled in and swiped a finger through a layer of white flour on the counter.

Elain giggled and pulled him into a hug. "It's fun to get a little messy sometimes."

"I'd like to see you do what we did and not make a mess." I teased.

"I would do it perfectly thank you very much." Lucien shot back with a challenging grin.

Elain snorted, then sorted out the ingredients on the counter. "Let's see it then."

Lucien's russet eye whirled, then he smirked at us before getting to work.

He did, in fact, make a mess.

We laughed at him as a cloud of flour shot from the dough he had dropped onto the counter. He grumbled at us as Elain took over. "Whatever, I'm much better at other things than either of you."

Elain slapped him playfully on the arm. "You've just started a competition with the most competitive female I've met Lucien."

I raised an eyebrow at Elain, but caught Lucien's narrowed eyes and mimicked them. "Name your other things that you're so good at Lucien."

He chuckled, then crossed his arms. "A horse race. You and me. The fields. Thirty minutes."

"Ten, and when I win, I want a trophy saying, 'I'm better than Lucien at horse racing.'" I held my hand out for him to shake.