Rowaelin+Feysand

Chapter 3

Suddenly it occurred to me. Rhys' magic had not worked, it had spiralled us into a different place altogether, which was here. Which could be in a different world!

"I come..." I started. "From a different world called Prythian."

"Did you open a Wrydgate to get here?" she asked, curious.

"A Wyrdgate?" I asked. "No, we winnowed."

"You really are from a different world!" she muttered. "What is your name?"

"Feyre," I said, and my voice caught as I continued. "And this is Rhys."

I closed my eyes to keep from sobbing again, and the female was quiet for a moment.

"Aelin and that was Rowan, my- The male that was here before." she caught herself, and something in me knew what she was going to say. Mate. "He's not dead, you know!"

She was pointing at Rhys. I tried desperately not to claw at that piece of hope, that thread that would keep me from giving up, and failed. My eyes filled with tears again when I thought of what may happen if she was wrong. Her next question surprised me.

"Were you..." she struggled. "Close?"

Knowing that she probably could not use it against me, if I was in a different land, where nobody knew my name, I whispered, knowing if I spoke normally my voice would give way to sobs.

"He was... Is my...everything." I couldn't explain it. Yet she waited. "My mate, my husband, my High Lord..."

She gave me a look of almost complete understanding, but she asked, "High Lord?"

Ah. Different world. Right.

"Where I'm from..." it surprised me I was being so vulnerable. "There are 2 kinds of courts: Seasonal and Solar courts. The seasonal courts are the Spring Court, ruled by Tamlin, the Summer Court, ruled by Tarquin, the Autumn Court, ruled by Beron, and the WInter Court ruled by Kallias."

I checked to see if she was taking it all in, but she looked interested. I had no clue why  I was giving history lessons to a complete stranger in a new world.

"Then there the Solar courts: the Dawn Court, ruled by Thesan, the Day Court, ruled by Hellion, and the Night Court... Rhys." I looked down at him and cleared my throat.

"But it's more complicated, of course," I continued. "The night court is split into 2... Not officially, as everything is ruled by Rhys. It is the Court of Nightmares, and... The Court of Dreams. The Court of Dreams was Rhys' inner circle, basically. He put on a mask as a cruel, cunning High Lord, but... It was a mask, and he showed us all, The Court Of Dreams, his face behind the mask."

"And you are part of which?" Aelin asked.

"You see, Aelin..." I started and wondered why I felt like I was talking to a close friend. "Notice how all the rulers are men? So in all of history, there has only been High Lords. But... Rhys made me his High Lady."

My tears were a waterfall cascading down my face. "And there's more, so much more. He saved me from death from the mistress he'd been serving for 50 years to protect his friends and city, he..."

"I can heal him, you know," she said quietly. I was hit by relief but tried to push it away.

"Why did you not do it earlier?" I asked with a dangerously high octave to my voice.

"Because I wanted to see if you were worth it. " She smiled. "And you are."