Hellfire

Rowan

 Rowan barely made it to their room before he started chuckling. He sat on the bed, tracing his fingers over the embroidery in her shirt. Not even a month ago he had her bloodied shirt in his hand, and a hole in his heart. He wondered at his Fireheart, who shoulders such burdens and yet could laugh with such ease. Rowan's mood shifted as he remembered what Elide had told him upon that hill, when he had held the ruined fabric up to his chest. His growl sliced through the room. He'd slaughter Cairn, then Maeve, and then maybe the world for spite. He'd tear them all apart for what they'd done to her. Maybe let Aedion join him in ripping them all to pieces one by one. He and Aelin had found each other across voids of despair and menace, across seas of pain and terror. He could not, would not accept that they'd found each other, saved each other, only to lose themselves again. Rowan's hands bunched in the fabric, knuckles turning white. He would keep his Fireheart's core of light burning, no matter if he had to tear into hell itself to find her again.

The door swung open, and Aelin stepped in, laughing at whatever Morgan had said. Her smile died when she saw his face. Quieting, she shut the door behind her, holding her towel tightly against her chest. She sat next to him, stunning blue eyes filled with concern as she studied his face.

"What is it?" she whispered, reaching up to run her hand through his hair.

"I don't want to lose you again," he breathed, finding it hard to swallow. Aelin tucked her head into his chest, her hand gliding through his hair.

You won't.

So close. I was so close to never seeing you again. Silver began to line his eyes at the thought.

Aelin nestled closer against him. She peered up at him, searching his face. 

I'm here, she told him. And I'm never leaving. He caught her swallow at the end, and knew what thoughts were going through her head.

"You know I have no intention of letting go through with your plan, right?" he said quietly. Her eyes widened a fraction, and she opened her mouth to interject, but Rowan dropped her discarded clothes to the floor and pushed her down onto the bed. She squeaked in protest, but Rowan twisted until half of his body was covering hers, and his forearms were braced on either side of her head.

"I will not accept, Aelin, that after all you've gone through, you have to give it all up for a mistake made hundreds of years ago. You - we - do not deserve that path. We found each other after years and years of searching, of hate, of pain, of despair. And I am not going to let you go before it's time. You are young, and you have experienced pain that would have killed someone three times your age. This cannot - and will not - be the end. Not for either of us." He leaned down, resting his forehead against hers. Tears began to well in her eyes. "Do you understand, Fireheart?" he whispered. Aelin nodded, slowly, tears sliding down her cheeks. He lifted a hand to brush them away, one by one. Her hands reached up to cup his face, and Rowan's spine locked as she looked deep into his eyes, burning her way to the core of him.

I love you, Rowan, and I don't want them to take me away from you.

I will not allow them to. I will not let them take you away from me, or take me from you. You are my Fireheart, and I love you.

Aelin lifted herself up, depositing her towel next to her clothes. She took his face in her hands and kissed him slowly, lingering on his lips. Rowan's blood pounded through him, heat coursing through his body. Aelin arched beneath him as she felt his body react, but pulled away.

"Not tonight, Prince," she murmured, sliding herself into the bed. Rowan nodded, but couldn't resist dragging a finger down her body. She trembled, and smacked his hand away. 

"Buzzard," she hissed, and Rowan laughed quietly before sliding into bed next to her, his magic swirling through the room to extinguish all the candles. She faced him in the dark, her blue eyes finding his. He reached over and traced a finger around the point of her Fae ear, and he felt Aelin's breath warm his face as she hissed through her teeth. He laughed again, and Aelin moved closer, arms reaching out to tug him closer to her. He obeyed, and wrapped his arms around her waist, enjoying the feel of her bare skin beneath his palms. One of her arms cradled his head, while the other planted itself on his chest. She kissed him softly before settling into the pillows.

"Just hold me," she whispered, nestling herself as close to him as she possibly could. He kissed her neck gently, then her forehead. "Your wish is my command." He felt her smile against his chest as sleep claimed them both.