A Court of Light and Melody

Chapter 36 - Stay Gold

"A strong woman stands up for herself. A stronger woman stands up for everyone."

- Unknown

Song: Heart Like Yours - Willamette Stone

Gwyn managed to squeeze in a few more hours of rest before dawn broke. She was dressed in her leathers and bloodied - but clean - clothes before Azriel woke. When he did, she noticed his shadows were noticeably more energetic and much thicker. As though they too had recovered.

When Gwyn attempted to braid her hair she was met with a searing throb in her shoulder and an ungodly aching in her pinky. Not to mention the stitches in her side that stretched painfully.

"Let me," Azriel said, settling on the bed and patting the spot in front of him.

Gwyn obeyed, sitting cross legged before the shadowsinger, her back straightening despite the protests of her sore muscles.

She felt him gather her hair behind her shoulders, then his deft fingers set to work at the crown of her head.

"I'm impressed," Gwyn remarked. "You're going for an ambitious braid. Do you fashion many females' hair?"

The shadowsinger chuckled. "A long time ago. I used to braid Rhysand's sister's hair. He was hopeless at it - could never focus on the pattern." She could hear a smile in his voice. "And Cassian was too impatient."

Gwyn laughed softly and felt the gentle brush of his shadows against the shell of her ear.

"Gwyn," he said, his voice more serious. "We need to discuss your lightsinger abilities... and what happened at Lord Graysen's estate."

Gwyn wasn't keen to relive the experience, but after years of counselings in the library, she could recognize that ignoring what had happened didn't erase it.

So she took a deep breath and told Azriel everything as he continued to braid her hair.

She told him about her captors and how she suspected they poisoned her food with fae bane.

She left out Nolan's curiosity about his shadows though, not wanting him to feel responsible for her suffering in any way. Besides, she did not know for certain that they were after Azriel. It was best to stick with the facts.

Instead, Gwyn told him how she had blinded the guard with sunlight that she'd absorbed into her very body, using her song.

Finally... she divulged her hunch that she had compelled one of the guards with her voice.

Azriel's fingers stilled in her hair. "Truly? You suspect you compelled him?"

"I suspect that I almost compelled him. But I also suspect that I may have imagined it," she amended. "Nobody knows the extent of a lightsinger's powers and like I said, I only dreamt it was a possibility. That doesn't make it true."

"Yes, but you also dreamed about the light and that was true."

"You know a long time ago, you told me you didn't put much stock in dreams, Shadowsinger."

Azriel resumed his braiding. "Well, that was before. When you were referring to dreams where you seduced me and ripped out my throat..."

"Another dream that was half-true..." Gwyn smirked, glancing over her shoulder at him.

The shadowsinger smiled crookedly, his eyes still fixed on the bottom of her braid that he was tying off with a strip of leather. "You think you've seduced me?"

Gwyn quirked a brow. "Have I not?"

Azriel didn't answer, he only continued to tie off her braid. Gwyn grinned, her chest pinching and those muscles deep in her belly curling once more.