A Court of Love and Healing {ACOTAR}

Mate Bonds and Moonlight

Gwyn shifts nervously from foot to foot as she waits for Azriel to arrive to pick her up for dinner. She has so much to tell him and none of it is lighthearted conversation. A nervous knot forms in her stomach and she nearly feels nauseous, wondering if he will in fact reject her once he knows the entire truth of the matter. Yes, he was not a legitimate child, but that is not comparable to Gwyn's biology. She is quite a few things and neither are very great except for her High Fae genes.

She had worn a pale teal sundress which makes her eyes stand out and her coppery red hair glimmer in contrast. Her nerves are jittery, and she wants to run away, deep into the comfort of the library. But she doesn't. She's not that kind of female anymore. She is a warrior. A Carynthian. A Valkyrie. Nothing can take her down. Not again. She can get through this. She will endure. He's her mate, he'll understand...hopefully.

Just as her thoughts threaten to overtake her into panic, a large whoosh of wind blows her hair back and flutters her dress. Azriel's lean but broadly muscled form looms over her, wings widened in all their gigantic glory. She wonders for the millionth time since she met him how his back doesn't always hurt, as they must be fairly heavy.

"Azriel", she breathes out, staring up at him in awe.

"Gwyneth", he murmurs, bowing his head politely and holding out a hand. "Shall we?"

She nods, her voice stolen from her at how gorgeous he looks, his body haloed by the moonlight.

He smiles shyly and moves closer. "Um...I will have to hold you, to fly down...to the restaurant."

Gwyn's cheeks turn red as apples and she swallows hard, nodding her permission as she takes his hand, stroking her thumb over a couple of the scars. He flinches and pulls it back out of habit.

"I-I'm sorry, d-did I hurt you?", she gasps lightly.

Azriel meets her eyes and shakes his head. "No. You didn't hurt me. I am sorry, I'm...it's a bad habit. It's not your fault, I promise."

"Okay. I understand having certain qualms about yourself that aren't your favorite. I feel that way too...about many things about myself. All we can do is try to like ourselves more by working on those bad feelings and turning them into positive ones. It is very difficult, but I know it can happen because I went through one of the hardest things when I left the library that first time", she whispers softly. "I became a Valkyrie because I realized that I had to prove to myself that I was worthy of being something more than just another female in hiding. I'm young and I have my entire life, and I—I don't want to be that my entire existence."

Azriel nods and gazes into her eyes, looking up at the moonlight then back into her big, teal eyes, sparkling with the light of a thousand stars. He holds both his hands out and gently takes hers, sucking in a breath. "My hands...remind me of when I was in an anguished state. They remind me of pain, helplessness, and being alone. The scars were a way to make me as ugly on the outside as they believed me to be on the inside."

Gwyn's eyes tear up and she shakes her head. "Well, they did not succeed. You are the most handsome male I've ever come across, and your hands do not take away from that. I noticed you pull them away earlier too, but I didn't want to pry." She walks further onto the balcony and pulls him along with her to look over Velaris.

Azriel shields her from the wind with his left wing and she smiles cutely. Gwyn strokes small circles on the top of his hand, glancing up at him and he gives her a weak, nervous smile in return.

"Your hands are strong, able, and handsome like the rest of you. They signal the strength you possess and the trials you have overcome with your willpower. They are as beautiful as your soul, Azriel. Quite like mine; damaged by others, but not irreparable. However, yours was always flawless from where I stand."