A Court of Song and Shadow

Chapter 55

I jolt awake to singing and I calm down when I realize it is just Rhysand and my mother--singing the annual birthday song of the Night Court. I smile when I notice the small cake with a candle in it--when they finish singing I close my eyes and blow out the candle.

"Did you even make a wish?" Rhys asks with an eyebrow raised.

"All of the wishing will come tonight." I smile even wider when I realize what tonight is--because my birthday just happens to fall on my favorite night of the year.

Starfall.

"Please tell me you have made me a dress--" My mother cuts me off by beginning to walk away with a knowing smile.

"It seems you will have to wait until we begin to open gifts." She says as she walks out into the hallway. I look to Rhys and make a face at him.

"Do not worry sister, I will be sneaking in Cassian, Mor, and Azriel later tonight." He tells me and I smile at the thought of what will happen tonight--of how drunk we all get every Starfall since we were teenagers. "We still have all day to get ready for tonight--let's go open some presents."

I make another face at my brother--every year he always goes out of his way at getting me so many presents. One year when we were little, he managed to get a goat from somewhere and include that in my many presents. When my father found out, he was furious and took the goat from me--most likely slaughtering it and eating it for his dinner.

I still miss that goat to this day.

Rhysand tells me he will be waiting in the living rooms. I quickly get changed into a tunic and loose pants and make my way to where Rhys is waiting for me. I shake my head at the abundant amount of wrapped gifts waiting for me around our couches.

"Why are you like this?" I ask him, and he raises his eyebrows--acting like he has no idea what I am talking about. I let out a sigh of defeat as I take a seat as my mother enters holding another wrapped gift. Rhysand begins handing me present after present. I spend hours opening a variety of jewelry and books--and I love every single one of them. One thing I will always be grateful about Rhys getting me all of these presents is he know exactly what I like. I thank him when I finish opening all of my presents, but he pulls one out behind the couch and hands it to me. I make a confused face at him when I feel how heavy it is and begin unwrapping--my heart drops when I notice a familiar metal gleaming through a part of the wrapping paper.

"They made it for you months ago and were planning on giving it to you for your birthday--they gave it to me so I could add Illyrian runes on it and I was supposed to give it back to them to give to you after the war but--" Rhysand cuts himself off as I run my hands down the Valkyrie shield.

My Valkyrie shield.

Only the greatest Valkyrie warriors receive these shields made out of the strongest metal--it was the same material that Tanwyn's was made out of but it was styled differently. While Tanwyn's was a perfect circle that was golden--mine was in an oval shape and completely colored black with golden designs across of it. I notice a saying written in two different runes from both of my people --I read the Illyrian runes first--

For the girl with powers of the night--

I look over to the Valkyrie runes that finish the saying written beside the Illyrian runes.

--And a heart filled with light.

I let out a shaky breath as tears form in my eyes and I look up to Rhysand and my mother--whom both have tears in their eyes also.

"Thank you." I whisper because that is all I am able to do right now. I admire the shield for minutes before I lightly place it on the seat beside me. I wipe the tears that fall from my eyes--not just at how beautiful the shield was but at the thought that the Valkyrie had decided to make this for me months ago.