Shadows like mine

4

Azriel didn't leave the house for hours. Work was waiting in his office, on the other side of the Sidra.
    But right now that didn't matter.
    He waited and waited. Feyre and Elain were downstairs at some point, but Nuala and Cerridwen did not come.
    Feyre had asked them to stay with Aurora. Because of their half being as a spirit, Aurora had accepted them very easily. She seemed... less afraid.
    At least, that is what Feyre said.
    "Azriel," said Rhys then. Azriel blinked a couple of times. It felt like he woke up from a dream. How many hours had passed?
    "Yes?"
    Carefully, his brother came closer. Azriel raised a brow. It was like Rhys tried to come close to a wild animal.
    "Are you okay?" Rhys' voice was so soft that only Azriel could hear it. He knew what Rhysand meant. And he wasn't sure. Was he okay? There was so much going on in his head.
    "It's a lot to process," he answered. And that was true. After thinking, all of his life, that there was no one with shadows, he had accepted it.
    Thinking that he was some special occasion, a descendant from an ancient race. Or that the shadows had pitied the broken boy in that tower so much, that they stitched themselves to him. To his body and soul.
    Whatever it was, it didn't matter.
    "I know," said Rhys. "Are you sure you want to be here?"
    Azriel frowned at that question.
    "I need to know who she is," he answered. Rhys nodded, he understood. Of course he did.
    "But not today," whispered Rhys. "You saw how scared she is. It won't help her if my master spy is interrogating her."
    Azriel clenched his jaws, but nodded. "Sounds reasonable."
    "Give her a few days, then we ask her to come to the House of the Wind. We need to make sure she will trust us."
    Azriel nodded.
    "I'll just..." He got up, hesitating. "I'll just go to my office."
    Rhys nodded and gave him a smile. "It will be alright."
    Azriel nodded. "With some time."
    Before he left, he looked over his shoulder. Azriel knew that Elain was listening the entire time from the kitchen. His shadows had told him. It was almost aching to see how much she cared. How badly she wanted him to stay here with her. To talk to him. To ask for an explanation.
    Now Elain was standing in the opening to the kitchen. There was flour on her apron and a concerned look on her face.
    Azriel left.

Days and days Azriel spent in his office. His big, wooden desk was covered in papers that he tried to order.
    He didn't contact Rhys or Feyre. There was no use in that. He got the same answer all the time.
Give her some time.
    But he wanted to get to know her so bad. Wanted to ask her questions, so many. He wondered if Feyre and Rhys had. Did she talk to them? Feyre told him that Aurora was still wary, but started to relax little by little.
    She thought Aurora was nice, but very shy. She barely talked. Barely got out of her room. What else she did, he didn't know.
    That much they didn't tell their master spy. Azriel could find out Aurora's routine any minute if he wanted to.
    But he was scared.
    Scared that he would mess up. What if his shadows would be noticed by her own? Betray his spying presence? That would be a disaster.
    She wouldn't trust them. She would leave. She would leave Velaris and leave him with all these questions.
    So Azriel stayed in his office. His home. He never came by. Elain reached out to him and he accepted her offers to go to the markets. To buy everything she needed, even though Nuala could get it.
    But he knew that Elain was doing her own groceries so she could see him. He didn't mind. Being out of the only two places he spent his days, was good.
    Elain blushed every time they were standing a little too close.
    Azriel was not a fan of the markets—too many risks of people touching him or his wings. But he could bear it.
    And then, after almost a week, he got an invitation to the House of the Wind.
    And Aurora was coming.
    How they had done it, he didn't know. But apparently, Rhys and Feyre had earned enough trust from Aurora. She was coming.
    Azriel was there early. The night was not even there yet, the sun was coming down at her slow pace.
    As he landed in the House, he remembered a very specific detail about this evening that he had forgot.
    He looked it right into the eye.
    Amren smiled at the master spy as she got up from the chair.
    "Azriel," she said with a toothy grin. "It has been a while. Working hard?"
    "Sort of," he said and he returned the smile. He tried not to show that he was actually a little nervous. Amren would know—and he didn't want her to know.
    "Curious?" She raised an eyebrow and Azriel acted like he didn't know. Acted casual.
    "Not more than normally." Liar. He had been counting the days for this evening.
    She nodded and he could not tell if she believed him or not. Clacking her tongue, she gestured at the table.
"Curious about this girl?" Her eyes twinkled as he pushed back her chair and Amren sat down.
"I would like to know more."
Amren hadn't seen Aurora yet. Azriel wasn't sure if it was good if she saw her tonight. If Aurora really was so scared of them all, Amren would be the scariest.
But Azriel thought about the good things. Amren was sharp with her questions. Maybe she could even find out things about her.
Azriel and Amren chatted for a little while until Mor and Elain got from the balcony.
"Cassian, you're such a gentleman," whined Mor and she strode towards the table, wearing her casual red dress. "I love it when you act like you're about to drop me."
She showed her fangs as Elain hurried towards her chair.
"What can I say?" said Cassian and he winked at Mor. "I just love it to make you scream." He winked at her and Azriel rolled his eyes. Elain blushed with a little amusing smile.
"How have you been, master spy?" asked Mor Azriel and she sat down next to Amren. Her dark brown eyes looked in his own and Azriel raised a shoulder.
"I have been good like always."
"No more headaches?" She winked dramatically at Elain, referring to the gift from last year at Feyre's 21st birthday.
"Maybe I am finally getting used to you guys."
Mor cackled and reached towards the first bottle of wine she saw. This time she did not uncork it with her teeth. "I hate, hate, hate winter," she started again. "So that means this bottle is mine."
"Maybe you shouldn't drink tonight," said Amren with a cold tone and looked at Mor. "We have a very special guest."
"Who is very afraid."
"And nothing is more scarier than a drinking Morrigan," added Azriel and Mor rolled her eyes.
"Okay. I still claim the bottle, but drink one glass."
They all nodded and not long after that, the last of their group arrived. Rhys was the first one to enter the room and he shook his head.
Cassian and Azriel frowned.
"It took us half an hour," he whispered fast, "to make her not use the stairs."
Cassian tried to hold his laugh. "Why? She wanted to exercise?"
"She doesn't like to be touched. Feyre carried her in the end."
He rolled his eyes and Feyre walked in. Behind her Aurora followed her, with big eyes and a wary posture. It looked like she was planning an escape route and Azriel frowned.
"I'm so glad you could make it!" yelled Mor enthusiastic and Rhys shrank at her loud voice.
Aurora took a step back.
Mor hugged Feyre tightly and the girls laughed and talked, took place at the table. Azriel kept looking at Aurora as everyone took their seat. Feyre asked Aurora to sit down, but she did not react.
She kept staring at them all, with those golden eyes. Scanning every single one of them.
Her eyes stopped at Azriel, the last one. She looked at his face, his wings and his shadows. Especially his shadows.
He did the same with her. He watched how her shadows wrapped themselves around her body, trying to hide her. She was wearing a dark grey jogging outfit, like she knew how to dress for these lazy evenings together.
"Do you want to sit down?" he then asked her, the first thing he said to her.
Aurora blinked a couple of times and looked at the two free chairs at the table.
"Can I sit at the end of the table?" Her voice was just as soft as his own. She pushed her black hair behind her pointy ear.
"Of course." Azriel gestured for her to go to her seat and followed her. She seemed a little skeptic about that, also when he pushed back her chair and shove her towards the wooden table.
She mumbled a thank you and Azriel went to sit next to Mor, across her from the table.
"Let's eat!" exclaimed Mor loudly and she groaned. "I didn't eat this afternoon."
Elain started to talk with Feyre about her garden and the new recipes she wanted to try. She also asked about Nuala and Cerridwen. Cassian got into a heated discussion with Amren about puzzles and Rhys rolled his eyes over and over again, making valid points. Mor was in love with her single wine glass, whining about Amren and Rhysand.
Azriel didn't say anything. He listened to his family.
Aurora kept staring at her hands and again it looked like her shadows wanted to hide her from the world.
His gaze slowly switched to her and he studied the girl in front of him. Her features were soft and she was small. She was a little bit smaller than Feyre. Her eyes were big and her lips full and pink. Her skin was just as pale as before.
Her hair was wavy and hung over her shoulders. Not just her shadows tried to hide her — she did the same with her body. She sat crooked and her shirt was a little too big for her.
"Do you want to drink anything?" he asked her and her eyes looked up to him.
"Water, please." Azriel nodded and got it immediately. When he sat down again, he watched how she drank some.
"My name is Azriel," he then said, realising he hadn't introduced himself yet. "Nice to meet you, Aurora."
She nodded again and looked at her hands. "I'm a little shy," she whispered.
"That is okay." His answer was quick. "I hope you're comfortable."
She looked around.
"I'm fine. I'm not a... people fan."
Azriel nodded and noted this in his mind. "I hope you don't mind me talking to you."
The tiniest smile he had ever seen came across those pink lips. "I don't mind, Azriel," she said. "I like talking. I don't do it often."
He nodded and saw that Amren kept an eye on them. He was happy she didn't interrupt them.
"How is your stay here so far?" He tried to keep their conversation light and fresh. He didn't want her to feel uncomfortable. And besides, if he wanted answers, she needed to trust him first.
"It's really nice. I like Nuala and Cerridwen. The High Lord and Lady are very nice to me and I am very grateful."
Azriel saw Feyre and Rhys's pleasing when she said that.
"That is very good to hear." He gave a her a tiny smile.
She took another sip of water. "I have never seen warriors with wings," she then said. "Am I rude if I ask?"
Azriel shook his head. "I'm Illyrian," he said. "We're warriors from the North, and we do have wings." He explained it all to her, his culture and who the Illyrians were and Aurora listened interested.
He didn't tell her about his past. That was too soon and too much for a first conversation.
"Illyrian men are very sensitive and possessive," said Feyre loudly. "We can tell. Isn't that right, Rhysand?" She grinned at her mate.
"Feyre darling, why do you need to make us feel so vulnerable?" They smiled at each other and Aurora smiled a little bigger.
"So, Aurora," started Amren and they got their food served. "Where are you from?"
Aurora took a bite of potatoes and seemed to hesitate.
"The Dawn Court," she then said very softly. That explained a lot. For example—her eyes and her name. But the shadows... it didn't make sense. Someone from a Court of light with shadows?
Amren nodded. "Why did you come here? Like travelling?"
"Sort of." Amren raised a brow.
"So you don't actually travel?"
"Amren..." started Feyre. The tiny lady looked at Feyre and sighed.
"I just think it's special for someone from the Dawn Court to be in the Night Court," she said. "That is a very big difference."
"I know," said Aurora. "But I like being at multiple places."
"Also the reason why you don't like being around people?" Amren took a sip of wine.
Aurora didn't answer and her shadows grew closer around her. Azriel wanted to hit Amren on the back of her head.
She just started opening up and now Amren closed her again.
An awkward silence fell upon them. "I'm just saying." Amren looked at all of them. "We can all act like we're not curious about you, but I don't want to pretend."
Aurora almost disappeared in her shadows. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I can't."
Amren rolled her eyes and Mor kicked her from beneath the table.
"But why?" It seemed like Cassian agreed with Amren and Feyre gave him a destroying look. So did Azriel. The one person he had ever met with shadows was sitting in front of him and his family tried to scare her away.
"Do we have to do this now?" asked Feyre then loudly. "We just met each other."
Amren didn't look away from Aurora. Then she looked at Azriel.
"Your shadows are intriguing."
"Amren, shut up," said Azriel loud and even Elain seemed to flinch at his sudden voice. Everyone at the table became silent. Aurora looked up at him with a thankful look in her eyes.
"Let her be," he continued. "We will get to know her. Won't we?" He looked at Aurora, her shadows became thinner.
"I hope so." The way she said those words made him frown. Like she was not sure, or even scared.
The more he got to know this young woman, the more she started to interest Azriel.