Queen of Thorns and Roses

chapter 3

"I am not staying here, end of discussion," Aelin said, crossing her arms over her chest. She watched the boys at the door, Tamlin dressed.. Well it was his fashion choice. He was half naked. Literally. What type of party was this?
"Fine," Tamlin growled, seemingly uncaring, "don't say i didnt warn you."
They didn't need to take horses. The festival was close. Aelin heard the drumming from the house.
"It's an annual thing," Lucien explained. "It's also called fire night. It signals the start of spring. Each high lord gets possessed by magic and it causes them to find the maiden. When the Magic is released it restores the crops."
Aelin snorted, "so it's for the girls."
Firenightfirenightfirenight
Lucien grinned. "Well, duh." He mocked her. Aelin considered handing his ass on a silver plate.
"And you didn't want me to go in case some rough man wants to get with me." Rowan would have kicked his ass then sat back to let Aelin continue.
"Sort of."
"Aelin," a male voice said, loud enough to be heard over the roar of the crowd. She knew that voice. She stopped in her tracks, too frightened to look back and find out she was imagining it. But if that voice was here, that would mean...
Tamlin and Lucien were staring at her and then at each other. They watched Aelin turn around slowly. Her breath hitched as she stared into the sapphire blue eyes of Dorian Havilliard. And next to him stood Aedion with his Ashryver eyes.
"Hey there. Not interrupting something am I?" Dorien asked.
Aelin ran to him, throwing her arms around the both of them. Dorian hugged her back, and Aedion laughed softly. she could feel that they were as relieved to see her as she was. People were staring at them, wondering thoughts that they couldn't help but think. Tamlin wasn't the first to turn away. He wondered if Aelin already loved someone.
When Aelin finally stood back, she hooked an arm with Dorian's and the other with Aedion's. She led them off to the side, none of them speaking. Aelin didn't even look back at her new friends. She led them through the crowd.
"Aelin-"
"Sh, everyone has super hearing." She muttered, finally finding a quiet clearing in the forest.
"Are we dead?" She asked immediately. "After I got hit in the battle I woke up here, but if this is another life why do I remember everything?" She prayed someone had answers.
"No, we're not dead. I know that for sure. I don't know where we are though." Aedion said. Gods, she missed her cousin.
"Did you fall too? Were you injured?"She asked them and they nodded.
"At least we know that everyone else is okay." She murmured. "But if both of us are here, who's ruling Adarlan? Who's ruling Tarrasen?! Dorian, I refuse to let my kingdom fall just because of some stupid thing like death."
Dorian chuckled, gripping her shoulders. "Aelin, I'm sure your Carranam is figuring something out. He wasn't born yesterday." he trailed off... Shaking his head. "But really, I know just about as much as you."

"Oh? Please, he's a big baby. I doubt he can even last a few days without me." Aelin said.

Aedion looked behind them, "oh sorry, I'm just making sure Rowan didn't pop out and cut our tongues." The three of them shared a laugh. It was nice to laugh when everything was so bleak.

Aelin turned a fiery gaze on Dorian. "Can you use your magic?"
"I hadn't tried-" Aelin's head snapped to a nearby tree and she sniffed, putting a finger to her mouth.
"Who's there?" She demanded, walking away from Dorian.
A man, incredibly handsome with black hair and violet eyes stepped out.
"Who are you?" Dorian demanded, both males sizing each other up. The man then turned his attention to Aelin.
The man stared at her, her gaze just as intense. "You shouldn't be here." He uttered, and with that, he vanished.
"What the hell was that?" Dorian demanded, clearly confused.
"I don't know, really. All I know is that we're in a land called Prythian and these people are called Fae-"
"Like you?" Dorian interrupted. Aelin hit him on the arm.
"Sh. They don't know. They said that there's a curse on the land called the Blight and it tampers with people's magic. But-" she looked around, lowering her voice "my magic is still working fine. They're lying about something."
"Why would they lie about a curse?" Aedion mumbled, looking at the strange people around them.
"I don't know. I can't just ask them. I'm just trying to play along and find some answers."
She quickly explained to him the history of prythian, and the cauldron that they basically worshiped and the wall that divided the two species. Then she explained the celebration, Dorian chuckling.
"It's called fire night? They made a night just for you? I wonder if they'll make an ice day."
Aelin cracked a smile, elbowing him.
"Aelin." She turned to her name, finding a shirtless, disheveled Tamlin standing in front of her. He seemed relaxed. He even grinned.
"Come with me?" He extended a hand to her.
"Where to?" She asked, taking a step forward. She's not careless. If he meant her harm, she could take him down without breaking a nail.
"Oh, stop being uptight. Come on." He said, his mouth curling into a smile.
"Fine. Dorian, I'll see you later." She said, taking tamlins hand.
"So, who's Dorian? He's not a fae. Did your human friend cross the wall for you?" He asked, picking up a glass for her to drink. "Don't worry though, I'm not jealous."
Aelin scoffed, taking comfort in thinking that if Rowan were here, he'd probably peck a bit on his infuriating mask and then find a nice bird bath while she finished him off. It made her smile. Tamlin got on her nerves a lot. "I didn't ask if you were and frankly I don't care." she said.
"He doesn't smell like human. Neither do you. Well, just a bit."
Aelin sloshed her drink around, sniffing it.
"I'm insulted you'd think I poisoned you." He said, leading her to some place she couldn't predict. Aelin sighed and took a sip. It tasted alcoholic.
Finally they seemed to arrive to a cave of some sort. Aelin let go of his hand to look around, finding a bed, and paint. She raised her eyebrow, taking it all in.
Tamlin pushed her roughly, twisting her and pinning her against a wall with his body. "You smell divine." He chuckled in her ear.
Her heart sped up, but not because of what he did to her, but because her limbs felt too heavy from the alcohol. That's not fair! I only had a sip!
"Tamlin, get off of me, right now." She ordered, her words slurring together as he started forcing himself on her. She pushed him, as his lips met hers, his mask hitting her in the nose.
"Ow, Tamlin! Stop! I don't want this." Damn alcohol made it hard to think. To act.
"Dorian!" She screamed, and then the world froze around them.
-
Aelin finally managed to push Tamlin off of her, not realizing her dress was nearly off her shoulders. Dorian was already over to her, blocking her path as she fixed herself. Aedion ran in after them, holding a branch menacingly.

"How dare you touch my cousin!"

Tamlin looked like he was about to explode. But first, the world rocked and the cave ceiling started cracking. Tamlin didn't seem to notice.
"Who the hell are you? You're interrupting something that you do not understand. How do you even have magic?? You're human!" Tamlin demanded from Dorian.
Aelin marched up to him and slapped him. Hard.
"Do not ever touch me like that again. Possessed or not." She seethed, grabbing Dorians hand and dragging him outside to see the commotion, Letting Aedion follow. She didn't care that she left Tamlin growling. What she cared about was the screaming voices and the raging fire ahead.
"Great, this is going to ruin my outfit." She muttered. "I'll hold back the fire and you guys save the people." She said, exchanging a look with them as they went their own ways.
Aelin Ashryver Galanthyuis walked into that fire, fully intending on saving these people she didn't even know.
The fire-breathing-bitch-Queen spread her arms out, trying to reach the fire. The fire belonged to her. It submitted to her. It obeyed her because she was its master.
And now, she didn't want the fire here. So it absorbed into her. At first it was fine. It was warm, and comforting. But she underestimated the size of the fire because it became too much.
Aelin didn't stop. Wouldn't.
Everything went from red to black. She wondered again if she was dead. But, no. There was a pulse inside her. She felt it. It wasn't hers though. It was familiar and comforting and she wanted it back.
Her carranam bond. She felt Rowan giving her the strength. Both of them were alive.
Gods, she wanted him back.
Can't go a few days without burning up, can you?
That's your fault. You're awfully bad at your job.
"Aelin! Aelin, can you hear me?" Dorians voice pulled her away.
Where are you?
If I knew..
Aelin, don't do anything stupid. Like dying.
And with that, she woke up in a bedroom. She heard yelling nearby. Someone had changed her clothes. Aelin sincerely prayed to whatever Gods existed in these lands that it was Dorian or Aedion.
She stood up slowly, her body refusing already. She made her way to the study, to find Dorian and Aedion holding their ground against the two fae.
"You have magic." Tamlin wasn't asking.
"Yes." Dorian responded, looking exactly like a king without a crown.
"Who are you to Aelin?" Lucien butted in. What a busybody.
"A friend. Why does that matter?" Dorian was seriously lost.
"Stop." Aelin made herself present. "These are fools questions. What I want to know is who attacked the party last night." She demanded, eyeing the four of them.
Dorian stood up, making his way to her, Aedion gluing his eyes on the two high fae. "Aelin... That wasn't last night. It's been a few days. You've been in and out of a fevered sleep." He said, feeling her forehead for more Fevers. "Actually, once you sleep walked over here and curled up on the floor." He tried to defuse her.
"That... That doesn't matter. Who attacked?"
"The Blight." Lucien and Tamlin answered together.
"The Blight?! How is that possible?! The Blight is an illness." Aelin demanded, fed up.
"Aelin, you should get some food." Tamlin said softly. Okay, so he cared. But there was fierceness in him that made his caring nature... Scary.
"Do not tell me that. I was there that night like all of you and I am not weak to be treated like.. Like i would break if you gave me answers. You have no idea what I have gone through in my life. I awoke one morning in my parents bed to find them murdered- I am Adarlan's assassin, Arobynns prodigy-" she knew they probably had no idea what she was on about. Aelin was infuriated with being kept in the dark "-I survived a year in Endoviar- and i am the last of the Galanthyuis line. I am the Queen of Tarrasen and if i demand to be informed, you will inform me. I demand to know what's going on. I demand to know how many people are killed and what are we going to do about this." She gripped Dorians arm, Seriously weak because she probably hasn't eaten since she had gotten the fevers.

Everyone in the room was shocked into silence. Tamlin and Lucien exchanged looks.

"Sorry, your majesty. We physically can not tell you." Lucien said, earning a glare from Tamlin. Clearly that wasn't discussed. Aelin huffed, glaring at the two of them. Maybe that was part of the Blight. It had to be.
"Dorian and Aedion are staying here, I take it." She murmured, earning tamlins attention again.
"Oh, no. He they are not."
"Well, neither am I, then." Aelin said, immediately.
"Aelin-" Dorian started, but she cut him off with a quick "be quiet," look.
"If it weren't for the both of us, more of your people would be dead." She said, feeling Dorian tense up. "Dorian is staying here and if you can't spare a room then he can stay with me." She said, tugging on Dorians arm for them to leave.
When they left the two men baffled, Aelin said softly, "I heard Rowan. While I was unconscious."
Dorian looked surprised but squeezed her hand gently. "No wonder you didn't want to wake up."