A Court of Fate and Failure | Azriel

30: Vulnerable and Vacant

Night fell swiftly over the Court of Dreams and everyone dispersed to their respective dwellings. Naoise remained as a silent listener to the conversations that followed her reveal and occasionally answered a question brought to her. But as the night waned, one after another they would leave their seats at the table and disappear.

Naoise stayed where she was, always. Sure, she was exhausted. Rightfully so after the day they'd had and the pounding headache building at the forefront of her skull. But she stayed because Rhys was restless and anticipation crested a wave higher and higher with each person to leave. 

All until Naoise was watching Azriel head down a hall into the mountain, presumably to his room in the House.

Then she looked to the seat across from her and had no difficulty finding those violet eyes. They were trained intently on her, after all. A sense of deja-vu swept through her then from a meal two weeks prior. Though the sky was dark where it had been light, where the table was empty when there was a breakfast fitting for an army, and where he could now freely see the darkness that swept through the room on an unseen breeze, it felt very much the same.

Yet there was less anger and more fear. More trust.

Naoise shifted her wings and tilted her head a fraction in inquiry. What did he wish to discuss?

Rhys looked down to his hand resting at the edge of the table, fingers fiddling with a small piece of lint. Or maybe there wasn't one and he merely needed to have something to do. Some reason to remain in constant movement even as he sat, tall and regal in the dining chair. He was impeccably dressed, as usual, and it made her want to smile for a reason she couldn't pin down.

"You have a certain talent for this," he began, smiling to himself.

She regarded him, taking a careful scan of his steady heartbeats. Either he was learning to mask the un-maskable or... or he trusted her. Truly trusted her. 

And the faint fondness that she found echoed that feeling in her chest at the thought of his mannerisms was all there was to feel.

"I have talents for many things," she said. "What's today's?"

Violet eyes flicked up to meet hers and she found she liked the way they crinkled in the corners with deep crows feet when he smiled truly and genuinely. Rhys laughed and shook his head, focusing back on his hand in an instant. 

He wasn't being fearful, she realized. He was just... hesitant. 

Because this was vulnerability.

"You speak in riddles and cryptic messages, Naoise. More than you talk in general."

Naoise leaned back in the chair and nodded to herself. "Mor said the same."

That made him smirk that curling, enchanting smirk. "Great minds think alike."

"Or you stole her line."

"That too. Maybe you're just... predictable."

Naoise raised an eyebrow in surprise, lips curling into a smirk of her own. "Me?" she rasped, deadpan humor dropping her voice a notch. "Predictable?"

He nodded and began to study her again. "I mean," Rhys paused and leaned forward a little bit, that tease at the edges of his lips and eyebrows raised high in jest. "you lied about your abilities, didn't you?"

For a moment, she could only blink at him. Then Naoise sighed and shook her head, lips pulled into a frown. How could she have thought he wouldn't try something like this to weed her out? 

"Of course you did that on purpose," she grumbled.

Rhys winked.

"Do you have control over any other abilities?"