A Court of Rising Starlight

Chapter XVII

Derek POV:
I felt it before I saw it. Pain came and passed fleetingly, only leaving a bit of shock in its wake. I only turned when I heard a thump behind me. "Mor, Az!" Lily yells. She knelt in front of my mate with panic in her eyes. "It's much more extreme for her. It may not pass for hours. Prythian's Rising will be this terrible for all of the royals. There's no helping it. We need to get her to a more open space."

"What's wrong with here?" I ask.

"I can barely contain my power now because of all this. She's so much stronger than me as the actual heir. I don't know-"

Wind whipped through the room in strong gusts, cutting her off. Day court. "The field!" my father shouts.

I nod, lifting Acacia in my arms and winnowing to the open field a few miles from our house. I lay her down again. I know I should step away from her as she was losing control, but I stood frozen, knowing she was in pain. Another strong chill rips past me and I feel myself fall back from the force of it.

It was like an explosion. One moment I saw her laying in the grass and the next she was encased by every element that ran through her veins. Flames roared, fed by the whistling wind as water made a liquid cocoon around her. The ice shards flew, a few cutting my face as I watched in amazement and worry. Each deadly icicle was graced by a blinding glow that could only come from the Dawn Court. Peaking through the flames I saw a constant shift. She was going between beast and human. Shape-shifting. Spring.

It swept in with the force of a hurricane, looking like a living monster. A monster of beauty. The shadows closed in slowly. As a dominant force, the darkness swallowed the Princess of the Night Court. While it had at first seemed so haunting, it seemed to be everything that was needed. The once piercing light dimmed to a bearable glow and the flames slowly dissipate, leaving torched ground, the remaining smoke disappearing as ice melted over it. The storm-like winds calmed to a light breeze as water flooded the ground, soaking my clothing.

The shadows that had seemed so eternal had finally lifted to reveal my mate, unconscious but in human form. Not human. Fae. I approach her, staggering slightly. Her features were enhanced now. Thinner, delicate, beautiful. Brushing her hair back I find her ears are slightly pointed. Looking around I notice we are no longer out in the field.

We were in a townhouse. It was beyond elegant. Dark blues and blacks decorated the main room. While dark, the curtains in the room were sheer and the last light of the day broke through the fabric easily. We were in the Night Court.

I lift Acacia in my arms again, cradling her against me. "Derek," I hear. I turn, finding my mother behind me. "Follow me." She navigated the house as if she had been living here every day. "Hundreds of years since the downfall and everything is exactly the same," she says, talking to herself more than me. She opens a door and her smile becomes broader. "In here."

She pulls back the comforter on the king size bed and I lay Acacia down. "Don't worry," she tells me quickly. "She'll be unconscious for a few days, but she'll bounce back. Rhysand used to lose control. He never stopped being the arrogant ass we all loved." I nod, smiling a bit at her last comment. "Let's go back down."

I follow her out, shutting the door behind me. Her extremely bright mood made me relax. If she was confident no harm was done then I would trust her.

"I should probably go down to the Court of Nightmares," she mumbles as she passes my father. I see him tense as she suggests that.

"No," he replies immediately. You go out to the city. Maybe take the kids with you. I know how much you hate that place. I'll go. Besides, I doubt-"

"Anyone there will listen to me because no one has belief in equality of sex despite Feyre's influence as High Lady and simply due to how much time has passed since the downfall?"

"Yes," he sighs. "I'm sorry."

She shakes her head. "Just go try to solve whatever chaos has erupted in that hellhole." He kisses her forehead before winnowing away. "Do you all want to come with me. All I'm doing is checking who all made it out on the downfall and came back to Velaris."

"Mor," Lily starts. "I need to go back."

She nods slowly, opening her arms. Not much could make my mother cry, but when it came to family she was weak. I remember what she was like after losing Lily and Acacia's parents. I don't hear what she whispers to Lily, but I had a feeling it was something about her safety. I do manage to catch her last few words.

"I can't lose you again."

"You won't." She comes to Nicole next, then Megan. She had been brought here as her parents had lived in the Court of Dreams. When she finally reaches me I hug her tightly. "You better take care of her. If anything happens to my sister I'll kill you."

I chuckle. "That's a difficult promise to keep." Her expression doesn't change. "She's safe with me." I kiss her cheek. "Be careful yourself, Lily."

"When Az gets back and Cacia wakes up..."

"We will." I see tears in her eyes even as she looks away. I hug her again. "She'll be fine. I promise you she's safe. We all are. At the end of this mess you'll be right back here with us. Home."

"There are still so many people missing. They'll never be back."

She pulls away from me. Without another word of goodbye she winnows from the Night Court and back into our enemy's game.