DISCONTINUED A Court Of Blood And Night (Tog & ACOTAR crossover)

41 - Rowan

So, uh... Hi.
I'm back.
Or rather, this story that you're reading, the original one, is being updated again after months of abandonment. I doubt I'll update it as fast as the rewritten version, but we'll see. But I never planned to leave this story as it was. I have so much left in me to tell, especially now that KOA is out. I want to put all my original theories down even if they don't hold a candle to SJM. Also, alongside KOA, I thoroughly plan to break you all, just FYI. :) So yeah, enjoy a new chapter of something you haven't read before!

He couldn't stop staring at her. Couldn't stop taking in every detail of his mate's face, branding the image into his mind. Every day since she had come home, he'd done this, and every day he studied her just a little more.

Every breath, every word and thought and action that he'd had since she was taken, had been for this. Everything he had done had been for her, and she was finally home, and safe-- as safe as she could be, at least. The gods and the cold-blooded sacrifice they were trying to push her into would be dealt with later. For now, he would just rejoice that his mate was back in his arms in the first place.

His mate. Not Lyria, like Maeve had convinced them both. It made his blood boil, the thought that she had taken his true mate from him before they had ever met. She would pay deeply for that, and he hadn't stopped thinking of ways to torture her since Aelin was initially taken. Skinning alive, or breaking every bone in her body, or telling all of Doranelle of her unthinkable crimes and reducing her to nothing.

But for now, he was content to watch his mate, his queen. To study her face as she breathed evenly. Her skin was paler, though he was sure she wasn't in reach of sunlight very much when she was gone. She still looked sallow, gaunt. Her lips were bloodless and cracked, and her breaths rasped in her chest. He prayed to those awful gods that it wasn't an infection. Her golden hair had taken on a bronze tone and looked stringy. He was sure she hadn't been in reach of soap in her time with Maeve. It would take a few more washes to get it back to its original state.

She would never step foot outside this castle ever again without him with her. He would never let this happen again. He couldn't. Twice now, he'd lost his mate because of Maeve. Twice now, she used a battle to distract him while she slipped under his nose and hurt him, tried to break him completely. Never again, not if he could help it. At the thought, he was tempted to pull her a little closer to him, to breathe in her scent. She was with him, alive and safe. And that was enough. Let the entire gods-forsaken world end around them if it meant he could stay with her, consequences be damned.

But he looked away and finished pulling on his shirt. As much as he wanted to keep staring at her, he had responsibilities. They both did.

Rowan cast Aelin one last longing glance before he left the room, closing the door behind him gently. He didn't want to leave Aelin in bed alone, but Rhys and Tamlin had called for an urgent meeting, and Rowan couldn't ignore that however much he wanted to. Particularly if Rhys was asking for him. The High Lord didn't strike him as someone who called for meetings under the guise of urgency needlessly.

He rushed to the dining hall, where they said they'd meet, and found them already waiting for him. Tamlin was pacing, Lucien and Feyre were frowning, and even Rhysand looked anxious. That wasn't good.

Rhysand got straight to the point. "We're not the only ones who were transported here."

Rowan nodded. Had they forgotten he was there? "I saw the three others."

"No," he said, and clarified, "I mean, we have reason to believe the other High Lords of Prythian have been brought here as well. It frees Hybern from having to fight us again."

"Again?" This wasn't their first fight?

Tamlin and Lucien didn't seem inclined to speak, and Rhysand sighed. "Well, our courts. I was the only one of us four to fight in the original war. This isn't the first time Hybern's tried to enslave the mortal lands." He shook his head. "The point is, we were one of his more outspoken foes. Tamlin was an ally, but he's gotten rid of two more allies, too. I think Hybern got rid of anyone with potential ties to the mortal lands. Tamlin hadn't always been on Hybern's side, particularly when Feyre was human. Ianthe is loyal to Tamlin. Jurian... Well." He shrugged. "He's human. From the mortal lands themselves, and he fought Hybern before, in the first war."

"And you think he got rid of the other High Lords?" Rowan checked.

They all nodded.

Rowan sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I can't afford to send a proper search party, if that's what you're requesting."

"It's not." Rhysand's eyes glinted. "All I want is Azriel, Feyre, me, and one other person who knows this world to go. All of us can winnow; we'll find everyone faster."

If only Fenrys could be there to join them. Four winnowing warriors would be easiest. But Fenrys was still stuck in Maeve's clutches, chained closer as a punishment for leaving in the first place. He took a considering breath. Who could he send? He wasn't just going to leave these other High Lords to roam a world they didn't know, particularly if they could pose a danger.

He wouldn't send Aedion, Illias, Ansel, Galan, or Lysandra. They were all needed in Terrasen, and so was the Thirteen. But who else could he send alternatively? He raked his mind for answers.

Elide. The answer came to him in a snap. While she didn't know the land as well as some, she'd proven herself to be brave, and was already beginning to demand the respect her position required. Lady of Perranth. Right now, she was mostly just avoiding Lorcan. She'd been studying maps for the entire time she'd been back, just for something to do, and if Rowan could give her a job to do while she ignored Lorcan...

It wasn't that they had no need for her-- her knowledge of Morath was desperately needed-- but her uses could be of more value with the Courts while Aelin recovered from whatever traumas she would not or could not reveal. When Aelin was in shape enough to lead again, they would need Elide desperately.

Rowan nodded slowly. "Allow me to talk with someone who may be of use to you," he offered. "Let me see what they think about being your guide. I'll have an answer for you before the day is over."

They all nodded their consent, and he departed with his thoughts whirling. He had to find Elide and ask her if she would be okay with it-- being their guide. And then he had to talk to Aelin. Though she was unwilling to tell him what had happened in those months she was gone, he had to get through to her, had to make her understand that he wasn't giving her any other options.

He took a deep breath and sighed. He would talk to Aelin today. But first he had to find Elide.