fanfictionhyperfixation

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

In 1937, the Basque city of Gernika came under severe bombing by the Nazi Luftwaffe and the Italian Aviazione Legionaria.

Picasso was so affected he painted the piece Guernica:

Today (December 8, 2023), Gernika created their own haunting demonstration in solidarity with Palestine:

(If you unmute, beware, there is the very loud sound of an actual air raid siren.)

It's a human mosaic and includes the mother with dead child from Guernica.

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra X OFC) Part Six

TW: violence

***

Eris didn’t return to the bedroom they had been sharing that night and Rowena tossed endlessly. When she finally woke from her fitful sleep, a stark realisation struck her: when Eris was near, the nightmares went away. She shook the thought away and hastily got ready, eager to see where the male had gone. Rowena looked into every room she could find and paused in Eris’ workshop. Clearly he had been working on the wood for hours as it had started to take on even more shape. Rowena still couldn’t see what it was supposed to be, but she could feel its purpose.

She kept walking until the only option left to take was through the doors of Eris’s private quarters. If she went beyond those doors, the protection the wards offered would be of no use to her. But she needed to find him. Something deep in her chest that was ruled by something beyond reason was calling for her to find him. She steeled her shoulders and let her mask of courtly indifference fall upon her face. When she broke through the doors, she had to stop her heart from beating out of her chest. She walked around the Forest House like she had a purpose, but she wandered aimlessly. Servants bowed to her and courtiers cast her curious looks, but no one stopped her. 

Her wandering had led her to an intricately carved wooden door and as she moved to open it, a vice-like grip spun her around. Her eyes widened in panic for a moment as she took in the russet coloured hair and brown eyes. He looked too much like Eris for them not to be brothers.

“One of my future brothers in law I assume,” Rowena mused lazily as though the feral grin that was etched on his face didn’t terrify her.

“Beron said you had a mouth on you. What are you doing outside of Eris’s rooms? I would have assumed he was keeping you thoroughly exhausted. If he’s failing to satisfy you, I would be happy to oblige.” the male sneered.

Before Rowena could think of what to say, the door behind her opened and she knew who stood there.

“What I am doing or not doing with my betrothed is none of your business.” Eris said coldly and cast a look to where his brother's hand was bruising Rowena’s arm. “What do you want Fintan?”

“I just wanted to see her. You kept her secret for so long and now mother and Beron are suddenly preparing for a wedding. It would be like you to claim her before the rest of us had the chance.”  Fintan’s grip tightened even further and Rowena broke. She wrapped a rope of starlight around the young male’s neck and pulled. Both of his hands instantly flew to his neck and pulled at threads of magic he could not control. Rowena watched as Fintan struggled while Eris tenderly ran his fingers over the bruise on her arm that was already healing.

Fintan was turning purple, but Rowena didn’t relent. Only when the vessels in his eyes began to burst did Rowena release her rope of magic. Fintan dropped to the ground and gasped desperately for air.

“You’ll do just fine here.” a new voice called out and Eris chuckled. Rowena looked up from Fintan and saw another young male approaching, he too bore a striking resemblance to Eris. He looked down disdainfully at his brother before turning to Rowena and smiling wolfishly at her. He stuck out his hand and waited.

“Normally you shake a hand that’s offered.” he said smoothly, a twinkle in his eye.

Rowena grinned and happily placed it in his hand. She had expected him to shake it only for him to turn their hands and bring the back of her hand to his lip.

“Watch it.” Eris growled only for his brother to smirk at him as he straightened up.

“It’s an honour to meet you, Lady Rowena. I’ve heard great things. My name is Aidan.”

Before she could respond, Fintan spat at her feet. “Bitch,” he gasped and glared up at her. If he had desired to look intimidating he had utterly failed. Rowena chose to ignore him entirely.

“Lunch?” Aidan said cheerily and without waiting for an answer he slipped Rowena’s arm through his own and started walking away. Without having to ask, Eris came with them and slipped his hand into Rowena’s hand.

“I wasn’t aware I had extended the invitation to you as well big brother.” Aidan japed and Eris just scoffed.

“After Fintan’s little display, I don’t plan on leaving her side.” Eris said smoothly.

Rowena let out a noise of indignation and squeezed Eris’s hand, “I handled him just fine.”

“You shouldn’t have left the rooms.” Eris chastised looking down at Rowena, mischief gleaming in his eyes.

“But if I hadn’t then I wouldn’t have been introduced to Aidan and come to the instant realization that he is the superior brother.” Rowena volleyed back and Aidan roared with laughter.

“I like you.” Aidan declared happily as he pushed through a pair of glass doors that led to a patio. He released Rowena’s arm and Eris’s grip kept her from following. The male looked around, looking for prying eyes, before he dipped down closer to Rowena.

His voice was low and Rowena had to force herself to focus on what he was asking, “Are you okay?”

She rubbed her thumb over his knuckle and nodded. “I was just startled. I’m okay.”

Eris nodded his head once and his lips parted like he wanted to say more only for Aidan to bang on the glass, his face twisted into a pout.

“I hate him.” Eris groaned and shook his head.

Rowena beamed and pulled at his hand, “I think he’s excellent.”

The trio spent the next two hours talking and laughing. Even Eris let out the occasional chuckle which Aidan never failed to comment on, claiming Eris never laughed. For her part, Rowena had never laughed so much in all her life. Throughout the entire lunch, Eris kept some form of contact with Rowena like he was afraid she would disappear. 

Aidan was in the middle of a joke when a guard broke through the merriment. Eris’s face immediately fell into a hard mask and Rowena followed suit. Aidan just looked annoyed that he had been interrupted. The guard whispered something to Eris and his amber eyes filled with anger.

“I have to go. Remember what we discussed, Aidan.”

Rowena watched Eris walk away and felt the warmth from her body leach away the further he went.

“If I could paint, I would capture this very expression you wear and call it Longing for a Red Hot Poker.”

“Aidan!” Rowena shrieked, her cheeks heating as the young male dissolved into laughter. Rowena sat pouting and waited for Aidan to recover his senses. She scoffed as he wiped away an invisible tear.

He pushed himself up from his chair suddenly and held out his hand, “Come on. Eris wants you to train.”

“Excuse me?”

“Train.” Aidan said slowly, over exaggerating each syllable.

Rowena glared and him and slapped his hand away, “I heard you. Why does he want me to train?”

“Because you’ve been locked away for over a century and from what I gather the last training you may have gotten was when you were sixteen. And I highly doubt Tamlin or the bitch Queen let you get much exercise.” Aidan explained flippantly and Rowena balked at his words. He didn’t wait for her to reply and settled for grabbing her hand and began practically running through the halls of the Forest House once again.

Rowena heard the training grounds before she saw them and when Aidan burst through the doors of the arena, all eyes flashed towards them. Aidan either didn’t notice or didn’t care for the excess of stares and dragged Rowena towards what she could only assume were changing rooms while she tried not to wither under dozens of eyes.

“Here. These were made for you,” Aidan said and thrust a bundle of cloth and leather into Rowena’s hands. “Go change.”

Rowena didn’t second guess his orders and slipped into a small changing room. She kept her wings tight to her body and tried not to hit anything. After ten minutes of struggling to figure out which buckle on the armour went where, she finally emerged.

She searched for Aidan and found him talking to a brown haired fae in against the wall of the arena. She walked over on light feet and if the other male had noticed her approach, he didn’t warn Aidan because when Rowena abruptly grasped Aidan’s shoulders he shrieked in surprise. Rowena and the brown haired male laughed while Aidan spluttered and his cheeks turned the same colour as his hair.

“That was not fair Rowena!”

“You must always be prepared for battle,” the brown haired male said cheekily and sauntered to Rowena.

“My name is Hale. I’ll be assisting Aidan with your training.”

Rowena nodded, “So what now?”

“Now I see what you can do.” Hale said easily and held out a small dagger. Rowena let the weight of the blade fall into her hand and tightened her grip around the shaft.

“I’ve never fought before.”

“You nearly killed Fintan a few hours ago. What you lack in technique you make up in raw power and instinct. Those are invaluable assets that can’t be taught.” Aidan said seriously and it struck Rowena as odd to see the male as anything but joyful.

Without warning, Hale struck out with a short sword and it was a pure reflex that sent Rowena’s hand flying up and blocking the blow. The force of Hale’s swing sent her stumbling back and her eyes widened in shock.

Hale grinned like a kid who had just received a large lump of candy and charged forward again. Rowena knew he would come for her, but that didn’t mean she was prepared. She tried to grasp onto any advice Rhysand or Cassian had told her when she was young, but she couldn’t. Her mind was blank and Hale was swinging again. She managed to sidestep his approach, but only just. The closeness of the strike was emphasized by the wisp of hair that floated onto the arena floor after it was cut by Hale’s blade.

“That’s sharp?!” Rowena exclaimed. She didn’t have time to wait for a reply as a burst of flame shot right at her. She held up her hand summoned a wall of light to block it and just as it had to Beron’s fire, it bounced back to Aidan who was approaching like a predator stalking its prey.

“Two against one is not fair!” Rowena exclaimed as she looked around for anything bigger than a dagger.

Aidan laughed shortly as flames licked up his arms, “A fight is rarely fair. Get used to it.”

Their threeway dance continued for ten minutes before Rowena remembered she could fly. She felt like an idiot and as another bolt of flames shot from Aidan’s hands she shot into the air. Aidan let out a whoop of delight and redirected his aim. Rowena dodged as much of Aidan’s fire as she could and blocked the rest with walls of starlight but her back was screaming at her. It had been fifty years since she had stretched the muscles she needed to fly and she knew it was a matter of time before she crash landed. She chose the kinder option and flew straight to a rack of weapons that stood on the other end of the arena.

“Don’t run away, Rowena! That’s no fun.” Aidan whined and took after her on foot. Hale tracked where Rowena was going and sprinted after his partner.

“She’s going for the weapons. Pick up the pace Aidan!” Hale shouted with delight as he wove around the other people who were training. Most of those fae had stopped fighting as soon as Rowena had taken flight and were watching with curiosity as she flew faster than a shooting star. 

Rowena landed firmly on the ground and loaded up her vest with weapons and picked up a sword that called to her. It was light and shone like the moon. She turned on her heal and in one movement flung a throwing dagger straight at Aidan’s head. The assault sent the male sliding across the ground of the arena so he could dodge the weapon but Rowena had not time to relish in her quick thinking before Aidan’s sword coming down on her. She met his blade and pushed her power behind shoving the brown haired male away. 

She could feel her body tiring, and knew that she would have to yield soon or there would be blood. 

“Come on Rowena! Fight back.” Aidan shouted and attacked again but she could to nothing but defend. She was in no position to attack. She could feel Aidan circling and as a ray of red hot heat came towards her back she cried out and slammed her fist into the dirt floor of the arena. The impact sent the two males stumbling as Aidan’s flame dissipated into the air. She stayed crouched on the ground, panting with sweat dripping down her face.

“Enough.” she rasped, her voice ragged.

A pale hand reached out into her line of vision and she happily grabbed it. When she looked up she saw Aidan beaming with pride. Hale wore a similar expression and even over her heaving breath she could hear the whispers of the fae around her. Some were impressed others disdainful. It didn’t matter to Rowena though. She had fought and hadn’t died. 

Hale approached and clapped her on the shoulder. “You did great. I’ll come get you tomorrow morning bright and early.”

“What?” Rowena gasped but Hale just laughed and walked away. She looked to Aidan for an answer but he just grinned like he was in on some secret joke.

“Do you still like me?”

“No.”

#Eris Vanserra #Eris Vanserra Fanfiction #Eris Vanserra Fanfic #Eris Vanserra X OFC #ACOTAR #TW: violence

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra X OFC) Part Five.

TW: suggestive content, anger, yelling

***

Rowena’s breath was coming in short bursts as she finally broke through the doors of Eris’s private quarters. She hadn’t dared look down at her arm yet. She had felt the tattoo spring to life on her inner arm and knew her fate was sealed. But so was Beron’s. She paced around the entryway and waited. Slowly her breathing returned to normal and she settled on an overstuffed couch as her new reality sank in.

She didn’t flinch as Eris burst into the room, rage clear on his bloodied face.

“What have you done?!” Eris exploded.

Rowena turned to him with tired eyes and finally let her mask fall. She sighed and walked away. She heard Eris following her, his steps heavy and his voice full of anger as he ranted. Nothing he said registered in Rowena’s mind as she pushed through the door to the bathroom and turned on the faucet to the tub. She poured in oils that smelled of cinnamon and clove and finally turned to Eris who was looking at her like she was mad.

“Are you seriously bathing now? Do you realise what you have done?” Eris said, his voice filled with quiet anger.

“I am perfectly aware of what I have done. I have saved my life.” Rowena said earnestly as she walked up to Eris and stood chest to chest with him, forcing the taller male to look down at her. Before he could say more, Rowena trailed her hands up his arms until they reached the neck of Eris’ bloodied shirt. She began to undo the laces and he flinched away.

“What are you doing?”

“Shut up.”

Eris balked at her words but as the female before him pulled his shirt from over his head, all words seemed to fail him. She let her fingers trail over the tattoo on Eris’s left ribs that matched her own.

“I trust you can do the rest.” Rowena said softly and turned away from Eris. A maelstrom of confused thoughts ran through Eris’ head but the loudest was why Rowena wasn’t leaving. She had bent over the bath once again, checking the temperature and adding soap to the running water so great mountains of white bubbles formed on the surface. Eris hesitated as he began to undo the laces of his pants, but he was completely certain that Rowena would throw him in the water half dressed if he didn’t follow her directions. 

Eris’ eyes trailed the female as he lowered himself into the steaming water. He groaned in delight as his screaming muscles and aching wounds found relief. Rowena had busied herself gathering supplies and she could feel Eris watching her. It made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up in anticipation. She took a deep breath to control her wild thoughts. Without missing a beat she turned back to Eris and dropped to her knees at the edge of the tub.

“What are you doing?” Eris asked again, his voice quiet and devoid of anger.

“Helping.”

Without another word, Rowena dipped a soft cloth in the hot soapy water. Eris watched every movement she made and felt his heart jump as she brought the cloth down against a patch of dried blood. Tenderly, Rowena rubbed away the dried blood from Eris’ arms and body. She trickled water through his rust coloured hair and lathered soap in his wavy hair. She kept moving her hands, dragging her nails over Eris’ scalp in a delicious way that sent the males’ head spinning. She waited until the shampoo turned pink before rinsing it from his hair.

When she was done, Rowena didn’t rise from her place by Eris’ side. She crossed her arms on the ledge and dropped her head down. She looked at Eris and offered him a small smile. Eris was looking at her with an emotion she couldn’t decipher, but it didn’t scare her. Slowly, like he was worried he would frighten her, Eris reached a damp hand to the pins that held her hair up. One by one he pulled them out until a small pile formed on the ground and her red waves tumbled completely free.

“Do you want to join me?” Eris teased, but there was no fire behind his words. Rowena chuckled and she shook her head while toying with the ends of her hair.

“Another time.”

“Promise?”

Rowena poked him in the shoulder and Eris feigned pain. “I’ve made enough promises for one day.”

Eris watched her rub at the new tattoo on her arm and felt the fear she had chased away clawing its way back into his heart.

“Why did you do it?”

“Because I’m selfish.”

Eris looked at her, pushing her to talk.

“I don’t want to be a prisoner again. I don’t want to be taken by my brother. This was my choice to make. Beron has to keep his word. If he doesn’t, well there will be consequences.”

“And your end of the bargain? You intend to keep it?” Eris pressed.

Rowena cast her eyes down, knowing what he was asking. “When he calls on me, I will reveal myself.”

“Rowena…”

“And I will marry you.”

Eris reached out and tilted her head up so she couldn’t hide from him. An unreadable expression crossed Eris’ face and Rowena held her breath as he leaned closer to her. She could feel his warm breath wash over her lips as her eyes fluttered open. The ghost of his lips brushed hers when a series of sharp knocks rang through the silent room and Rowena sprang from her position like she had been burned. Eris looked as startled as she was and hauled himself from the bath as Rowena flew to the door. She cracked it open just enough to peak out, the design of her dress left her shoulders bare so she could pass off being interrupted as she was about to bathe.

Narvla flashed her an apologetic smile. “We’ve come to talk about your wedding dress. Beron insisted.”

Rowena stuttered out a simple, “Okay.”

She shut the door and turned to find Eris standing in nothing but a towel which left not a lot to the imagination.

I need you to undo my dress. I can’t reach the laces on my own.

Eris nodded and quietly padded towards Rowena. He took his time sweeping her hair away from her back and Rowena couldn’t suppress the shudder that swept over her body. Eris would have laughed in any other scenario, but he was entranced by Rowena. He moved his fingers through the laces until he saw the dress sag enough that Rowena needed to clutch her hands to her chest to keep it up.

Neither of them moved.

Eris’ hands burned through the fabric of Rowena’s dress as he clutched her hips. Without thinking, Eris leaned down and pressed a searing kiss to her bare shoulder. Rowena let out a shuddering breath as her blood was set aflame. Before she could do anything, another knock rang from the door and Rowena knew her time was up. She rushed behind a changing screen where she had stashed a spare nightgown and quickly threw it on. As she dashed to the door, she spared a glance at Eris whose fists were clenched as his eyes blazed with fire.

Narvla and her maids wasted no time in bustling Rowena away. She was soon drowning in a sea of fabric silhouette choices, but all she could think about was Eris and the way her soul sang when he was close. How everything was calm for those blissful moments when all she had to do was wash blood from his wounds.

“Rowena,” Narvla said and startled the younger female. “Do you like any of these?”

Rowena glanced down at the fabrics around her and only one caught her eye. It was rust coloured and gilded leaves danced across the bolt of fabric. She ran it between her fingers, “This one. This is the one. I trust you to choose the design.”

Narvla smiled sweetly and let Rowena go. Without a destination in mind, Rowena began walking through the halls until she stopped in front of a door. She could hear the smooth sound of wood being carved and knew who was inside. What he was doing. She knocked once and waited. The door swung open and Eris moved aside. Rowena slipped in, drifting towards the piece of wood that sat on the table. 

“What are you making?” she asked and trailed her fingers over the rough wood.

“I don’t know yet.” Eris muttered, and came to stand behind Rowena. She basked in the heat he gave off and waited. She waited for him to move. She gasped as he trailed a hand over her shoulder, leaving a burning trail in his wake. 

“You kissed me.”

“On the shoulder.”

Eris chuckled and as if he wanted to prove something to her, he did it again. Without a second thought, Rowena turned around and pressed her lips to Eris’. He wasted no time in wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her onto the workbench, a growl escaping his throat. Rowena felt like every inch of her body was on fire. Her body worked on its own accord and she wrapped her legs around his waist to try and bring him as close as possible. She moaned as he swept the tip of his tongue against her lips. Eris started playing with the ties of Rowena’s nightgown and as he started to pull, she panicked.

“Wait, wait, wait.” Rowena panted and pulled back.

“What?” Eris asked and nipped at her swollen bottom lip.

Rowena groaned as Eris ground against her and for a moment what she wanted to say disappeared from the tip of her tongue.

As Eris’s hand started roaming again, the jolts of electricity that followed his fingertips gave her enough energy to remember what she had wanted to say.

“I’ve never done this.”

Eris stilled. 

“You’ve never done what?”

“Please don’t make me say it.” Rowena whined and hid her head in the crook of Eris’s neck as her cheeks turned red.

Somewhere deep in Eris, a possessive groan rumbled to life, “I need you to say it.” 

“I’ve never been with another male. I’ve never had sex.”

Eris pressed a scorching kiss to Rowena’s lips and then pulled away completely. He rested his forehead against hers and took a few steadying breaths.

“The first time I have you, I’m going to do it right and not on my workbench.”

“Okay.” Rowena said breathlessly. Eris trailed a hand down her back and grazed the juncture where her wings met her back. Instantly, she arched her back and let out the most provocative moan Eris had ever heard and had the male second guessing everything he had just said.

“I’m going to remember that.”

#Eris Vanserra #Eris Vanserra Fanfiction #Eris Vanserra Fanfic #Eris Vanserra X OFC #ACOTAR #TW: suggestive content #TW: yelling

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra X OFC) Part Four

TW: mention of violence, mention of imprisonment, blood

***

For a few days, nothing happened. Rowena adjusted to living in what she had discovered were Eris’ private quarters and after Narvla’s visit so did a wealth of dresses that were tailored to accommodate her wings. Rowena didn’t second guess it once she felt the rich velvets and satins caress her skin. And for a few days it was enough to just delight in new clothes, copious space, and more books than she had seen in years, but she was lonely.

Beron had let Eris have just one day to rest before he called his eldest to his side. From the time Rowena woke up to the time she closed her eyes, she was alone. She knew she wasn’t trapped in these rooms but she didn’t want to leave them without Eris. She didn’t know what or who laid beyond his warded doors that only a select few people were allowed to enter. It was on the fourth day that Narvla came bustling into the Eris’ rooms with a grim smile on her face followed by equally dower looking servants.

“What’s wrong? What’s happened?” Rowena asked nervously as she laid her book aside and thoughts of Eris being in danger made her blood fill with fear.

Narvla wasted no time and spared no comforting words when she spoke to the young female. “Beron knows. He wants you before him in the next hour.”

Rowena’s heart sped up and she sprang from her seat and raced behind Narvla into the room that Eris and her had begun to unintentionally share. The next hour had no less than half a dozen fae worrying, poking, and polishing Rowena until the female she saw blinking back at her in the mirror looked unrecognizable. Her hair had been pinned up and small gold and silver stars dotted her head like a crown. She had been slipped into a golden dress that shone like the sun and she stood as still as a statue.

“Rowena,” Narvla urged and smoothed a stray hair back into place. The worrying gesture of a mother. “We need to go. Beron doesn’t like to wait.”

Rowena straightened her shoulders and let the crown of stars on her head pull her up. She was the daughter of a High Lord once. She knew how to walk into a room and hold her head high. She had been the daughter of a High Lord once. She could do this.

As she was led down the winding halls of the Forest House Rowena felt old pieces of an old life fall into place. They were old and rusty and didn’t quite fit right anymore, but they were there and they would have to be enough.

“When was the last time you had to face a Court?” Narvla asked as she smoothed her own dress.

Rowena let threads of power illuminate her body. She let power she didn’t understand take over, “I was sixteen.”

As the doors swung open Rowena steeled her eyes until they were well honed violet blades that could cut down an army of fae. She let her body glow with power and she refused to look anywhere but at Beron. She refused to acknowledge the blood dripping from Eris’ bloodied body or the way his face swelled as he stood by his father and how her heart screamed for her to run to him. She kept her steps even and calculated. Refusing to back down from Eris’ calculating and cruel gaze. She imagined what it would be like for the High Lord of the Autumn Court’s head to roll from his shoulders. She wondered how she could make him suffer. She came to a pause at the bottom of dias where Beron has his throne and stood stock still even as the others bowed.

Beron snarled but Rowena didn’t flinch.

He leaned forward and looked her up and down like she was nothing, “People typically bow to their High Lords.”

“You are not my High Lord.”

“But you are a guest in my Court. It is the respectful thing to do.”

Rowena let out a huff of air and rolled her eyes, “The last High Lord who I was a guest of didn’t treat me too kindly. I’ve lost faith in the kind of hospitality fae of your status provide.”

Beron’s face changed as quickly as the turn of a falling leaf as a great deep laugh boomed from his chest. The sound was more jarring than any threat that could have spewed from his lips. Rowena’s wings twitched as though they would fly her to freedom without her permission if given the chance.

“I see your years of captivity have not dulled your tongue,” Beron purred and Eris tensed at his insinuation. Rowena, however, remained like a statue. Her face did not move a fraction, a practiced mask of indifference she had mastered throughout her life.

“As you can see my son has been punished for keeping you from me. I’m surprised you aren’t more concerned for his well being given how his scent is so intermingled with yours.” Beron pushed.

Rowena refused to rise to his bait but let her mind fill with questions about Eris’ intention. She wondered if that was why Eris had kept her so close and in his quarters. He had practically claimed her without ever touching her and she hadn’t even noticed. 

“He shouldn’t have kept the information from you but I wasn’t under liberty to reveal myself to you. I haven’t found it in me to leave Eris’ quarters of late.” Rowena said smoothly, not wholly confirming Beron’s thinly veiled accusations.

Beron hummed at her reply and relaxed into his throne. “I feel I should tell your brother that his beloved sister is actually alive. That would be the right thing to do.”

“I would rather you didn’t.” Rowena said quickly. She had no desire to so Rhysand after all these years.

“Interesting. You are not keen on a little family reunion? It would be so sweet.”

“I am in no hurry to meet with my brother because he was in no hurry to find me. I owe him no loyalty.”

“And to my son?”

“He found me Under the Mountain and offered me freedom.”

“It was not his to give.”

“And it is not yours to take.”

Rowena and Beron were locked in a silent battle that neither would relent in. Rowena let her power pulse and something akin to fearful fascination flew across Beron’s face. In an instant Beron shot a blaze of fire towards Eris but before it could touch him a wall of starlight erupted in its path. The fire bounced off the shield and back towards Beron who reabsorbed his power. Silence fell over the throne room as everyone turned to Rowena who hadn’t so much lifted a finger to summon a power no one had ever seen before.

“What are you?” Beron seethed, fire licking at his hands.

Rowena cocked her head to the side and smiled cruelly, “Something you will never understand.” Because even she didn’t know where that had come from. Rowena let her eyes drift to Eris lazily like he was barely worth her attention even though she wanted nothing more than to grab his hand and run.

Are you okay?

Eris shifted his head and that was all Rowena needed to see. She turned back to Beron, disinterest painting her face. “Should we make a deal then?”

“What kind of deal?” Beron snapped. Clearly not liking that his one constant weapon would have no effect on Rowena.

“I will remain your guest here, with Rhysand being none the wiser. Then, when the right time comes, I will help you distract my dear brother with my miraculous reappearance. I’m sure that seeing his dead sister again will rattle him greatly.”

Interest sparked in Beron’s eyes as a wicked smile broke over his lips, “Fine. I agree. You have the protection of my court. And I get to use your existence to unsettle your entitled ass of a brother.”

Rowena didn’t wait to be dismissed and turned on her heal, waiting for the burn of a new tattoo to appear on her body. She had almost made it to the doors that led away from Beron and his throne room when his voice rang through the room.

“But I want more. Keeping you hidden in my court will cost me greatly. You are a valuable female. Your power is unique,” Beron said, greed lacing his every word, “I agree to your terms if you agree to one of mine.”

Rowena looked over her shoulder to Beron, desperate to leave. “What is it?”

“You marry Eris.”

Rowena drew in a sharp breath at his words. Even she could understand Beron’s motivations. She may have been captive and held away from the world for most of her life, but even Rowena knew the value of marriage like the one he was proposing. 

Eris had opened his mouth to protest but Rowena spoke before he could.

“Fine.”

#Eris Vanserra #Eris Vanserra fanfic #Eris Vanserra fanfiction #Eris Vanserra X OFC #ACOTAR #TW Violence #TW Blood #TW Imprisonment

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra X OFC) Part Three

TW: mention of violence, mention of imprisonment, blood

***

Rowena’s eyes fluttered open as hushed voices floated into the room. 

“Eris I don’t understand why you’ve locked yourself in here.” a female voice pleaded through the crack in the door, Eris’ body blocking whoever she was.

“Mother, like I said, it is the first time in fifty years that I have been able to sleep without worrying someone might kill you or me or Fintan or Aidan or Hagan. I just want to rest.” Eris said, sleep lacing his voice. Clearly he had just woken up and from the nest of blankets that were pooled on the floor by the armchair by the fire, he hadn’t gone far to do so.

There was a pause and a feminine sigh, “Ceara said she saw someone with you. Someone she had never seen before.”

Rowena froze.

“There are other things I would like to do after fifty years of confinement.”

Heat flooded Rowena’s cheeks at the implications and sent her thoughts to Eris once more.

Can she be trusted?

Eris’ shoulders tensed and he turned his head to the side a fraction, but Rowena knew she heard him. He nodded once.

Completely?

He nodded again.

She won’t tell your father before we agree it’s safe?

Eris sighed and she knew he was getting annoyed.

“You can move Eris. She can come in.” Rowena called out and sat up in the bed, making sure her makeshift dress covered everything important. Eris moved aside and a small auburn haired woman slipped into the room. She took one look at Rowena and gasped.

“You’re supposed to be dead.”

Rowena fiddled with her hands in her lap and tried to keep calm. Eris walked sluggishly to his abandoned chair, shooting a dart of fire into the embers of the fire and sending the logs roaring to life once more. The new female walked to the foot of the bed and braced herself against the wooden frame. Rowena watched every move and Eris did the same though he tried to hide it.

“I’ve heard that for a before. I suppose what Tamlin and his family did made the rounds.” Rowena said evenly. Her voice devoid of emotion. The new female flinched at Rowena’s tone and she felt a twinge of guilt prick her heart.

The female nodded and watched Rowena with motherly care. “My name is Narvla.”

Rowena nodded and forced a smile, “And you know my name. Eris did.”

“Rowena. It’s a beautiful name.” Narvla said with the calming smile only a mother could form.

The young female nodded tersely. “Eris says I can trust you. Is he right?”

Narvla flashed a look to her son. The meaning behind her honey brown eyes masked to Rowena and that made her nervous. Narvla caught the change in her demeanor and her eyes immediately filled with concern and sympathy.

“Eris speaks the truth. You can trust me just as you can trust him.”

“How do I know that?” Rowena pressed, starlight dancing across her fingertips.

Eris leaned forward in his chair, his low voice a warning, “Careful, Rowena.”

“It’s okay Eris. She has a right to be wary. I can’t offer you much protection, Rowena, but I can be your confidant. I have ears everywhere here.” Narvla revealed.

“Why would you tell me that?”

“Because I need you to know that I am no threat.”

Rowena nodded slowly and relaxed as the Narvla’s words washed over her. 

The older female looked like a question was trying to escape her lips and Rowena had a feeling she knew what it was.

“I can just show you if you want,” she said and looked to Eris. She nodded her head and beckoned him over. Without hesitation he heaved himself up from his chair and Rowena didn’t miss the shocked look that passed over his mothers face. Eris fell onto the bed and looked at Rowena with no expectation in his eye. 

Rowena made herself comfortable and reached out to the two Autumn Court fae in front of her. She let memory after memory flood her mind starting with the moment Tamlin and his family sprang upon them in the woods, to her imprisonment in the Spring Court, the despair she felt and the hope she lost. She showed them how she was taken to Amarantha’s court and how she didn’t see a speck of light for fifty years. She showed them the constellations she drew and the songs she sang. She showed them everything and if they betrayed her, it would be their guilt to carry.

When she pulled away from their minds, the two fae wore very different expressions. Narvla had tears streaming down her face and Eris looked like he wanted to rip the world apart. Rowena sat still and waited. She knew those memories like the back of her hand. They had replayed in her mind for decades every time she closed her eyes. They didn’t scare her anymore. She didn’t cry anymore. She just existed.

“Oh Rowena.” Narvla cried, her hand inching towards the younger fae’s ankle.

“It’s okay. I’ve had nothing but time to process.” Rowena said quietly, afraid that she might break the tenuous calm that was clutching at the room. 

Eris was a silent storm raging on the corner of the bed. On instinct, like something drew her to him, Rowena reached out and grabbed onto his clenched hands. Slowly she unfurled his tensed fingers and slipped her small hand into his larger one. She felt him relax and the fire within him cooled. Narvla watched the interaction with interest. No one could calm her eldest so easily or beckon him with ease and yet this supposed to be dead female did it with ease. Her heart constricted as a thought, a forbidden thought, raced across her mind. She banished it from her mind. The idea far too dangerous to entertain.

“Breathe, Eris. Just breathe.” Rowena murmured, her thumb rubbing over Eris’ rough knuckles. Miraculously, he listened. Slowly his breathing evened out.

#Eris Vanserra #Eris Vanserra fanfiction #Eris Vanserra fanfic #ACOTAR #Eris Vanserra X OFC #Eris X OFC #TW imprisonment #TW Violence

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

I Thought You Were Mine

Azriel x Original Female Character(s)

One shot based off the song "First Burn" by Ari Afsar, Julia Harriman, Lexi Lawson, Rachelle Ann Go, and Shoba Narayan. Would highly recommend giving the song a listen. Some of the dialogue comes directly from the song so all credit to the song and the writers. They took inspiration from the song "Burn" from Hamilton.

TW: cheating

***

The acrid taste of some long forgotten alcohol she had found in a back cupboard rolled down her throat and it still wasn’t enough. It wasn’t enough to burn away the conversation she had with one of her friends who overheard a conversation between her husband and his best friend. His brother. Someone she had known for centuries and told her time and time again that Azriel was a good male. She laughed bitterly as those memories replayed in her mind, her tears mixing with the dull brown liquid she held. With a shaking hand, she read over yet another letter. This one was from when they had first started courting over a hundred years ago. It was littered with words of devotion and love, a side Azriel only showed her. She got to the bottom and saw his neat scrawl staining the paper.

All my love,

Azriel

Without a second thought, she tossed it into the fire and let her eyes follow the sparks as they danced up the chimney. She heard them stumbling home before the door even unlatched and didn’t flinch as they stumbled into the house. Cassian and Azriel. Great Illyrian soldiers reduced to stumbling mountains. The vision would have made her heart sore before and she would have laughed while offering to make coffee. Now she could hardly stand to look at them.

Her friend had come earlier in the night and seen something horrible. Through the rush of blood that blurred her thoughts, she managed to steer her friend to the couch who was ringing her hands constantly and couldn’t speak. The sorrow that burned in her friend's eyes would be etched in her heart forever as she told her to just look for herself. With dread pumping her heart, she had slid into her friend's mind and was immediately confronted with a recent memory.

Azriel wore a worried look on his face as he talked lowly to his brothers. At first she couldn’t hear anything but as she edged closer, their voices grew clearer. She heard snippets about a female Azriel had been seeing. The conversation was piecey and at first she thought he was talking about one of his spy’s or a correspondent who had information. But why would Azriel take the risk and talk about it so openly? As she got closer the conversation got horrifically clearer. 

The female wasn’t one from his spy network. She had been a mistake. A lapse in judgment after too long away from his wife. He had been on a mission and it was a lapse of judgment. He insisted it was. Except he mournfully admitted that it had happened three times.

Three times wasn’t a lapse of judgment. It was a decision he made. Repeatedly. 

She saw Azriel’s eyes light up when he caught sight of her. He quickly shoved his brother off his shoulder and started walking over to his wife.

“Don’t,” She snapped, venom dripping from her voice. Azriel froze and fear gripped his heart.

“Did you know I’ve saved every letter you wrote me?” she asked morbidly and threw another piece of paper into the fire, tracking its incineration. “From the moment I saw you, I knew you were mine. The male who would make my life complete. You didn’t care that I wasn’t some great warrior or greatly accomplished. You said I brought you peace. You said you were mine.”

She heard Azriel let out a strangled noise but she refused to look at him as tears blurred the roaring fire into a mass of flickering light.

“I thought you were mine. When I told my sister about you she said to be careful. That you were too good to be true, but I brushed her away because I knew she was wrong. I should have listened to her.”

Azriel took a hesitant step towards her and the sound of his falling sent her head reeling. She turned to him, but it was Cassian who caught her attention. His normally tanned face had blanched and he looked horrified. It was like some sick confirmation.

“Don’t take another step in my direction. I can’t be trusted around you. Because I know,” a sob broke her voice and Azriel lurched towards her. “I know that if I let you talk to me that you will convince me I’m wrong. I will listen to you and forgive you, but this is unforgivable. So don’t think you can talk your way into my arms.”

Azriel took a step closer to her and her white wings bristled at the proximity. He was too close. She sprang from the couch and walked towards the liquor cabinet. She braced herself against the wood that creaked under her grip.

“I don’t know what you’ve heard but it’s not true. My love I promise,” Azriel said evenly but even he couldn’t hide the uncertainty in his last words.

“Stay over there,” she ordered and even through the tears the order rang through the room. Azriel stopped moving. “I don’t know who you are. Clearly I have so much to learn even after a hundred years. I’ve been re-reading you letters and wondering if even back then there was a sign. A sign that I wasn’t enough. That we weren’t enough.”

“Please tell me what’s going on. Please,” Azriel pleaded, his voice breaking as visions of regret flashed through his mind. She cast a look towards him but she couldn’t watch him crumble. If she did, she would forgive him and she knew she owed it to herself to stay strong. So she looked to Cassian again. 

“Your brother knows. Ask him,” Cassian was filled with regret and pain, but she wouldn’t relent, “You were so open with your confessions earlier. I’m sure he remembers.” she said bitterly and knocked another drink into her mouth.

The sharp intake of breath Azriel took could have shattered glass and she wondered if he could hear what was left of her heart breaking. The sound of rustling sheets in a bedroom upstairs caught her attention and she prayed the silencing charm she had cast would hold firm. She prayed that the three children sleeping upstairs wouldn’t hear a thing.

“I don’t know what you think you heard but - ” Azriel tried again but his wife reeled on him with such ferocity he took a stumbling step back. He took in her tear soaked face and the rage burning in her eyes and felt his soul cracking. It was the heart-break though that threatened to break him. She held out a hand and for one gleaming moment he thought she might be reaching for him but with a flick of her wrist she sent a box of letters hurtling towards the fire without so much as looking away from him.

“Don’t. I’m not naive. I’ve seen how other females look at you. How you send them small charming smiles that send them blushing. I used to think that it was charming because you were mine. I was so sure those smiles never meant anything because you loved me. You were loyal to me,” she said, her voice becoming more detached with each word. “When did it happen? When did you start lying to me? When did the first time happen? The second? The third? When did I stop being enough?”

Azriel felt like he was dying.

“I think I should go,” Cassian said quietly, his voice full of grief but as her eyes sliced across his retreating form, his legs stopped moving.

She carefully walked towards him, circling the couches and keeping as much distance as she could from Azriel. When she spoke, her orders were clear, “You will stay right where you are. You spent years feeding me lies about him so you will stand here and watch him break my heart so no one wonders what happened.

Azriel cried out for her and she turned to him.

He opened his mouth to speak but she silenced him with a shake of her head, “You have thrown it all away and you can stand back and watch it all burn.”

A small cry came from up the stairs and the three grown fae went rigid. She was the first to recover and quickly scrubbed away the tears that lingered on her face. 

“When the time comes, you can explain to the children the pain and embarrassment you put their mother through,” Azriel was splintering apart in front of her as his chest heaved and tears fell from his eyes. He was breaking apart, but he had shattered her.

“I really thought you were mine,” she gasped brokenly as a fresh wave of tears threatened to fall from her eyes. She took a steadying breath and walked up the stairs towards the cries of her youngest. They were her legacy and she would protect them from anything or anyone that threatened to hurt them.

#Azriel (ACOTAR) #Azriel #ACOTAR #Azriel fanfiction #Azriel oneshot #Cheating #Songfic #TW: Cheating

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra x OFC) Part Two

TW: mention of violence, mention of blood, mention of kidnap, mention of imprisonment, death

***

She was sure she would have fallen had Eris not held her so firmly. Rowena quickly released Eris once she was sure of her footing and looked around her. The smell of apples and crisp leaves entered her senses and her heart calmed instantly as the moon began to crest over the trees. Autumn had always been her favourite time of year. She loved it especially when the moon was bright.

“We shouldn’t linger. I’d like to keep you hidden for as long as I can.”

Rowena froze and her heart started beating so fast she thought it might burst. She shook her head furiously and backed away, leaves crunching beneath her bare feat. Eris looked at her with confusion as he saw panic take over her entire body.

“No.” Rowena said quietly, her wings flaring.

Eris took a step towards her.

“You are not locking me up,” Rowena began to let her strings of power gather in her hands. “I will not be made prisoner for another lifetime!”

Eris went numb at her words before white hot anger exploded in his veins.

“What?” he said with deadly calm.

“I will not be held prisoner in another court! I was taken by Tamlin and locked in a room for a hundred years only for Amarantha to do the same for another fifty. You will not do the same. I won’t let you.” Rowena seethed as light shot from her hands and straight towards Eris. The impact sent him reeling backwards. His amber eyes widened in shock as he stared up at Rowena. She had knocked him on his ass. His brain could hardly wrap around the fact that a weakened fae had bested him before his eye was met with the impossible. 

Rowena was glowing.

The moon had risen above the red and golden trees of the Autumn Court forest and Rowena stood in the elongating rays of the full moon. And she was glowing. All fae had a certain glow about them. Eris always dismissed it as something to do with their immortality. But Rowena … Rowena was something else and Eris was entranced. She glowed like the thousands of stars which burned in the sky. 

Eris’ eyes flickered to her hands which glowed brighter than any other part of her.

“Rowena. I’m not going to trap you. I just don’t want my brother or father to see you before I can explain. They certainly can’t know about your powers.” Eris said carefully as he stood up. Rowena’s hands dimmed.

She looked down at her hands and her violet eyes widened as she finally noticed what was happening. She took stuttering steps backward as though she was afraid of her own body. This had never happened before. The longer she stayed in the moonlight, she felt the effects of the wards and the ash leaving her body. It was like the moonlight was burnin it away. She looked up and as her eyes locked on the great silver moon she heard singing ring through the air. A beautiful pure song that sounded so familiar. With a gasp she realised it was the lullaby she had sung through her window time and time again. It was the lullaby she sang in the heart of the mountain even though she couldn’t see the moon.

“Rowena.”

Eris’ voice startled her. He had moved closer and she hadn’t even noticed.

“We need to move, Rowena.”

She nodded numbly and slipped her hand into Eris’ without a second thought. She let him guide her through the forest and watched in fascination as the glow on her skin came and went as they darted between shadows and moonlight. Rowena bristled as she came face to face with a great oaken door.

“There’s no ash in here right?” she asked and pulled back on Eris’ hand. The red headed male shook his head.

“None of the rooms you will be in will have ash.”

“So there is ash in this house.” Rowena pushed. She had to know.

Eris paused. “Yes. Yes there is. In some of our weapons.”

Rowena took a breath.

“Okay.”

Eris pushed open the door with ease and kept a firm grip on her hand as they wound through the halls of the Forest House. She kept her eyes downcast, hiding her eyes with her mahogany red hair, and hoped that if anyone saw her walking with Eris they would just assume she was another member of the Autumn Court. She held her breath every time someone came close and spoke to Eris, praying they would ignore her. When Eris pushed through a set of double doors and they clicked behind her Rowena felt wards lock into place. She panicked as she felt the magic fall around her, but reminded herself of the promise Eris made. She stole a look at him and saw that his eyes were closed and his shoulders had relaxed.

“Eris?”

“Protection wards. You are not trapped here,” Eris breathed and walked further into the room. Rowena followed his movements around the room and quickly saw that they had walked into an antechamber which split off into other rooms, probably equally grand.

Where are you going? Rowena called out to Eris silently and he stilled. He spun on his heel and looked at her with amazement.

“You’re daemati?”

Rowena nodded and watched him with anticipation. Waiting to see his reaction.

Eris’ face melted into a feline grin, “That, little one, will be very useful. And I’m going to sleep. You’re welcome to join me.”

“Do you have a bath?”

Eris chuckled and waved his hand for Rowena to follow. She trailed after him and took her time to take in the wooden carvings and elaborate murals that painted the walls. She picked up on the sound of water running and the smell of cinnamon filled the air. She followed her nose and found Eris pouring soaps and salts into a large tub that was quickly filling with water.

“Why do you have such a large bath?” Rowena blurted out.

Eris chuckled, “Do you want the savoury answer? Or the real answer?”

Rowena felt her cheeks redden as her mind wandered with possible answers. “Both.”

Eris outright laughed and nodded. “The savoury answer would be that I just enjoy a soak. The real answer,” he fixed her with a daring and lust-filled look, “I enjoy a good soak.”

For the first time in years, Rowena laughed. She actually laughed.

“Thank you, Eris. For everything.”

Eris smiled softly and left the room. Rowena looked around the great bathroom and smiled. It was warm and comfortable and the steam rising from the bath looked delightful. The tepid baths she had taken in the Spring Court and under the mountain were in small metal tubs that she didn’t fit in, her wings hitting the sides. As she dipped her toes into the steaming water she groaned with relief, the water and heat immediately relaxing her body. As the water crested her shoulders she wondered if this was what true peace was like. She sat in the tub for hours, the water never getting cold. The only thing that would make the experience better would be if the small window in the bathroom was ten times larger. 

With regret, Rowena hauled her body from the bath and quickly dried herself. She was met with a new problem as soon as she saw her pooled dress in the corner of the room. Clutching the deep green towel to her chest, Rowena hesitantly opened the bathroom door and tried to find Eris. She quietly made her way to different rooms, each one empty except for furniture. She found an office, a sitting room, a library, and what looked like a woodworking room. She was beginning to wonder if Eris had wandered off when she opened one last door and saw Eris splayed out on a carved four poster bed that was bathed in deep reds, greens, and oranges. The blankets looked so soft and plush that any sane fae would have drooled at the sight. But what held Rowena’s attention was Eris splayed out on the bed, shirtless with his bargain tattoo blazing across his ribcage, with one arm slung over his eyes. All that she had wanted to say disappeared from her mind and it suddenly became very clear that she was an of age fae that had never seen a male before in her life. She struggled to regain her thoughts and was saved from further embarrassing herself by Eris himself.

“Can I help you Rowena?”

“Clothes.” she choked. Her brain slowly started to work again.

Eris moved his arm and squinted in her direction. Rowena didn’t miss the way the scent in the room changed or that it was coming from both Eris and herself.

“Eris?”

Eris cleared his throat and shot up from the bed, “Right.”

He walked through yet another door and came out quickly holding a cream coloured shirt. 

“That won’t work.” she blurted out as Eris held out the cloth. She let her hands dance over the soft fabric and wished that it would fit. When Eris quirked his brow at her in question, Rowena flared her wings.

“Right,” Eris thought for a moment before a wicked grin broke out on his face. He practically dove for the bed and pulled up a soft looking purple blanket.

Rowena scoffed as he held it up to her. She said, “You can’t be serious.”

“Very.”

Rowena groaned and grabbed the blanket. Without warning she turned around, dropped the towel and wrapped the plum fabric around her body, crossing the edges over her body so she could tie the corners behind her neck. When she turned around she was faced with a stunned Eris whose eyes were firmly rooted south. 

“You okay Eris?” Rowena teased and slipped around Eris, her eyes focused entirely on the bed before her. She lifted the covers and slipped in before Eris could so much as object. She closed her eyes and snuggled into the pillow, delighting in the warmly spiced scent that lingered on the pillows. A dark shadow fell over Rowena and she peaked one eye open to see Eris looming over her.

He planted his hands on his hips and stared down at her. She didn’t flinch.

“Normally females are invited to my bed, they don’t just jump in uninvited.”

Rowena sighed and brought the blanket closer to her chin, the heat she felt in her belly dimming as sleep took hold of her body. 

“I saw a really nice couch in one of the other rooms.”

Eris spluttered at her words but she didn’t bother listening to what else she had to say as a dreamless sleep called her.

#eris vanserra #eris vanserra fanfic #eris vanserra fanfiction #ACOTAR #slow burn #mention of violence #mention of imprisonment #mention of kidnap

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Masterlist

Started: December 30, 2022

Updated: January 7, 2023

Total Works: 2

***

ACOTAR

Eris Vanserra

Forgotten Starlight (18+ Fanfiction)

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Azriel

I Thought You Were Mine (Oneshot)

#ACOTAR #Azriel #Azriel (ACOTAR) #Eris Vanserra

[fanfictionhyperfixation]

Forgotten Starlight (Eris Vanserra x OFC) Part One

This is the first thing I have ever posted here so please let me know what you think! This hasn’t been Beta’d so I apologize for any mistakes.

TW: violence, blood, kidnap, imprisonment, death

***

The screams that rang through the forest overshadowed the sounds of rustling leaves and singing birds. Rowena watched in horror as her mothers eyes rolled back in her head as Tamlin’s brothers shore her mothers wings from her back as his father stood back and watched with a twisted smile. As Astra’s eyes fell shut and her mouth went slack, Rowena continued to hear screams. It was only then that Rowena realized the screams were coming from her mouth and they wouldn’t stop. 

“Shut her up before someone hears.” Tamlin’s father growled. The last thing Rowena saw before Tamlin brought the pommel of his sword down on her head was his father raising his blade and bringing it down to her mothers neck.

***

At first she had been secreted away to some cruel lord's house in the Spring Court. She had been put in a grand room and was told she was a guest. Except she couldn’t leave the room. The door was locked and warded, the room lined with ash wood. It didn’t matter to Rowena much anyway as she laid in the bed, uncaring for the silk that touched her skin, as the vicious memories of the days before broke through her mind like an unending storm. Her mother’s screams. Rowena’s own cries of distress. The way Tamlin and his brothers had hunted them for sport. He was supposed to have been Rhysand’s friend.

Rhysand.

Her big brother. The male who swore to protect her no matter what after. He had made that promise when she was no more than ten autumns old when she had fallen and scraped her knee. He had found her crying quietly in the streets of Velaris as blood trickled from her wound, he had been thirty at the time and visiting from Illyria. She had looked up to him so much when she was younger. She loved him and she thought he loved her. But then he never came. He abandoned Rowena and their mother while someone he thought he could trust ambushed them. He was the reason their mother died. But despite this, for years Rowena kept faith that he would come find her. That he was searching for her.

The first time her faith in her brother waivered was when she felt him come to the Spring Court with their father. Even sheltered away in her great room, miles from the  manor house of the Spring Court, she felt his power. Like called to like and she begged him to find her. For the first time in days she moved. She all but crawled to the window, her strength depleted from lack of food, and screamed. She screamed for her brother to come. She screamed until her voice was nothing but a rasping noise floating on the perpetual spring breeze. She screamed until she felt the pulse of magic pulse through her veins that told her the title of High Lord of the Night Court had passed on from father to son. She felt the moment he ascended to power. And then he was gone.

The maid who had been assigned to her found Rowena collapsed by the window, her eyes wide open and unblinking. 

He hadn’t come for her.

It seemed that a life for a life had been taken that day because Tamlin returned to the house Rowena had been stored in with his newly inherited powers. His father had been killed by hers and his brothers had all been killed. He came for her the day after the slaughter and hauled her back to the manor house. Rowena barely registered the change of scenery. It took her two weeks to recover from the shock of what had happened. That her brother hadn’t found her and that both her parents were dead.

She didn’t see much of Tamlin, but she didn’t mind. Nothing mattered much to her anymore. The only comfort she got was from the moon and stars that shone through her bedroom window at night. She would sit by the window and just watched as the moon made her nightly trip across the sky. Always there. Ever present. Never dying. 

Slowly the moon started to heal Rowena and for fifty years she sat in her room, rarely leaving. She sang to the moon and the stars, casting wishes upon their shining forms that one day she might be free. She knew she was only living a half life. One that no fae should have to endure as the wards dampened her power and the ash woods left her permanently weak. She knew this was no life. But Rowena was from a court of dreams and so she wished on falling stars that one day she would feel a cool autumn breeze lift her into the air, her wings catching the current.

***

It was a rare day for Rowena that Tamlin let her out of her room. For a few hours every few months he would let her be free. Free, of course, under his conditions. The ash wood woven rope burned her ankle and she felt it poisoning her blood as it chaffed her skin raw, but Rowena didn’t care. She didn’t care that all she felt was a sickly spring breeze or that she was only permitted to fly so high and so far. She didn’t care that sentinels aimed their arrow at her and tensed with every move she made. If she closed her eyes she could almost imagine she was flying with her mother once more.

A sharp tug on the rope made her hiss as the fibers dug into her blistering skin. Rowena ignored it. When the gloved sentinel pulled again she trained her stormy violet eyes on the male below her.

“What?” she snapped, her patience waning. She knew what was about to happen. She was going to be banished back to her room and any bit of strength she had acquired from her moment away from her cell would wither like a sick plant.

“The High Lord has a visitor coming. You are not to be seen. Be grateful he let you out this long, you winged bitch.” the sentinel, Avery she had learned his name was, snarled with ferocity as he pulled harshly on the rope. At her own pace, Rowena slowly floated from the sky, the strain on her ankle lessening as the rope slackened. She waited patiently for her shackle to be untied and from how Avery fumbled with the rope with his gloved hands, he could see he was panicking.

Before she could ask what was happening, a new form of power swelled around her. She froze as evil seeped into her pores. She saw Tamlin through the windows of the house as he swung open the doors to his manor and revealed a female with flaming red hair and a sinister smile. Suddenly she wanted nothing more than to be back in her room where no one talked to her and everyone that visited were as weakened as she was.

“Take me through the servants corridor. I don't want her to see me.”

For once Avery didn’t argue or say anything snide. He quickly rewrapped the rope around Rowena’s wrist and pulled her to the back entrance. She saw the flick of orange hair, so bright and angry and unlike her own deep red hair, and the cruel stare of black eyes turn to her for a single eternal second. Rowena let out a breath she had been holding as black eyes met violet and she knew her safety was even less assured than before. One thing was for certain, Rowena’s existence was no longer a secret.

***

For a brief moment, Rowena thought she was safe. She was doing her nightly ritual, sitting and singing softly by the window to a beautiful full moon when she heard the doors of the manor burst open. She stopped singing mid note and immediately backed into the corner of the room, her wings wrapping around her like a security blanket. Through the screams of the staff who worked in the house she knew her time was up. They had found her. Whoever had visited Tamlin had come back for her.

Her heartbeat raced in her ears as the sound of heavy boots got closer. Her eyes darted nervously around the room, looking for anything that could be a weapon. 

All she had was a pen and a candlestick.

But it would have to be enough.

When the door splintered open Rowena had to suppress the scream of terror that ripped at her throat as she took in the sight of soldiers dressed in black armour. She watched them stumble as the wards and ash took hold of their bodies. No doubt they were beginning to feel dizzy as their bodies and powers sped away faster than a shooting star, a sensation Rowena was all too familiar with. This was her moment.

Rowena sprang from her place and jumped on the first soldier she saw. She tried to remember any of the training her brother had given her when she was younger, but those memories were blurry and buried in her mind. She fought on pure instinct as she jabbed her pen into a soldier's exposed eye and tried not to think about the warm specks of sticky blood that sprayed onto her face. The sound of screams seemed to bring his companions out of their stupors and Rowena suddenly had five fully grown fae warriors bearing down on her. She gripped the candle stick as tightly as she could and swung at anyone who got too close. She held them off for longer than she expected, but she really was no match. 

Rowena didn’t notice the glint of a well honed blade cascading towards her shoulder before it was too late and the sharp edges of a dagger lodged itself deep into her flesh. She dropped the candle in shock which gave the soldiers the chance they needed. They wasted no time in binding Rowena before they were sucked away into darkness and winnowing to somewhere unknown.

***

Amarantha.

That was the name of the female who had come to see Tamlin.

The female who had spotted her and sensed power even beneath the layers of ash and wards.

From that fateful day on, Rowena became a prize that Amarantha coveted. She became a bargaining chip that only Amarantha and Tamlin’s loyal followers knew of. Rowena was how Amarantha would call Rhysand into line if he ever crossed a line and how she kept Tamlin under her control. Rowena’s existence threatened the tenuous peace that existed in her court Under the Mountain. And no one even knew she was there.

The red headed fae from Hybern copied Tamlin’s method of imprisonment to a tee. She added wards and ash wood and hid Rowena away from any prying eyes. Amarantha hid Rowena so deep in the mountain that no light reached her room. The moon and stars, her constant companions during her last fifty years of imprisonment, were unreachable. 

But she felt him.

She felt as he cast out a giant burst of power as Amarantha cast her curse and she wondered if he felt her. She wondered if Rhysand had noticed her trapped in the same mountain just as she was.

But he never came.

***

Over the last forty-nine, almost fifty years, Rowena had drawn the night sky as she remembered it. She draw the stars from her childhood and the stars from the sky in the Spring Court. And sometimes she would wake up and draw the stars and constellations she had never seen clearly before in her life. It was strange to see stars in her dreams that hadn’t truly been visible to her, even in the Night Court. But they were her favourite constellations.

Even deep under the mountain Rowena sang to her constellations. She sang and wished and hoped. But now she didn’t wish for her brother to come for her. Even when she felt the air shift in this hellish court towards something different, she didn’t hope for him to find her. She hoped for escape. For freedom and the ability to fly freely. She hoped that Amarantha would die so her wards would break with her and Rowena would finally be free.

One night, one quiet night as the air stilled with an aura of expectation, it happened. Rowena felt the power around her quake and she felt something break. She didn’t dare breathe. Her great plan of escape, the one she had dreamed of for a century and a half, was forgotten. Her brain screamed at her to move, to flee, to find a way out but her legs wouldn’t move. She was stuck where she sat. She stared at the door to her room and waited for someone to kill her. Surely even if Amarantha had died, she would die with her. Amarantha must have told someone about her. So she waited for hours.

But no one came.

Slowly, Rowena tiptoed to the door as though the sound of bare feet on rock would wake a great beast. She turned the door handle and felt no resistance. That was all it took for her brain to begin to race and her legs to start moving until she was sprinting down dark hallways and careening around corners. She stopped for nothing as her limbs screamed at the unfamiliar movement. Her chest heaved as she finally breathed untainted air and something deep within her burned to life.

He heard her before he saw her. It was the sound of someone running desperately and he crouched down, ready for a fight. What he hadn’t expected was a small fae female to crash into him. He reached out and steadied her. His eyes widened in shock as he took in her leathery wings, violet eyes, and red hair. For a moment he wondered if all the years of being Amarantha’s whore had led Rhysand to siring a child. His first thought was to grab her and winnow her to the Autumn Court. She would be the best tool to keep Rhysand in line. But something stopped him.

Something deep in his chest hummed in delight as the feeling of her soft body pressed against his sank in. Before he could move she had yanked her body free from him and stared at him with equal parts rage, fear, and determination.

“She’s dead.” she said. A statement, not a question. The male before her nodded once as though saying more might summon her from the afterlife.

“How do I get out?”

“Why should I tell you that?” the male said, finally finding his voice as he throttled the feeling in his chest.

“Because I am no threat to you.” 

The male paused, “I don’t know that.”

“I have been a prisoner far too long to be a threat. I just want to be free. I want to fly again.”

“What court do you belong to?” the male asked and Rowena froze. He shifted closer to her and she took a step back, shaking her head.

“I don’t belong anywhere.”

“Would you like to?” the male asked suddenly, the question erupting from somewhere deep within him. The look of shock that flashed across his face would have been comical had the situation been different and Rowena wasn’t running for her life.

But something in her told her to wait. To pause and listen to the male before her. He had deep red hair that shone like the fiery leaves of autumn trees in the bobbing fae lights that had popped up along the hallways. In the flickering light his eyes skewed amber and Rowena had to stop herself from getting lost in their honeyed glow. And Mother above he was so warm. It felt like the kind of warmth you feel when you wake up from a perfect nights sleep. It wasn’t something Rowena had felt for decades.

Rowena shook her head again, clearing away thoughts that ran rampant in her mind. “What’s your name?”

“Why?”

“I don’t know you. If there was any chance of me going with you I need to know two things: your name and what you plan on doing with me should I go with you.”

The male perked up at the second part of her demand. He liked that she was smart enough not to trust him. It thrilled him.

“Eris. My name is Eris Vanserra.”

Rowena took another step away from him. She knew the name Vanserra. He was a son from the Autumn Court. Her memory was foggy but even she knew who the oldest son of one of the cruelest courts was.

Eris saw a look of recognition pass over her face as she backed away from him. He took a step towards her and held up his hands. He didn’t want her to think he was a threat to her.

“I won’t hurt you.” He said lowly reassurance lacing his voice.

Rowena looked him up and down, “I don’t know that.”

For the first time in over one hundred years, Rowena felt power leach into her veins. She clung to it desperately.

“I promise. I will not harm you.”

Rowena paused and assessed Eris. She knew a warrior when she saw one. Her brother had been one. Every move calculated and thought out. But as Eris stood before her, Rowena saw nothing but sincerity and she wondered if it was a practiced mask or genuine emotion. She clutched for her waking power and held out her hand.

“Swear it. Swear it and I will go with you.”

Eris’s hand rose without hesitation and took her smaller one in his. 

“I swear.”

She felt the sting of a new tattoo etch across her chest. It felt just like it had when she had made Rhysand promise to get her ice cream and a small star appeared on her pinky she used to seal the deal. Their mother had been furious when it appeared and greatly relieved when the small tattoo disappeared after Rowena sat happily eating her icey fudgy treat. She was so lost in her memory that she almost missed the look of shock that crossed Eris’s face as he felt the tattoo appear and the way his hand fluttered to his chest. His eyes widened as something in his mind clicked in place.

“You’re supposed to be dead.”

Rowena froze. “What?”

“You’re Rowena. You’re Rhysand’s sister. You’re supposed to be dead.” Eris said brokenly as he forgot every bit of courtly training he had received as he looked down at a ghost. 

“And you’ll keep me from being killed, yes? Even when you take me to the Autumn Court and your father figures it out. You’ll keep me safe.” 

Eris paused and his chest burned at the words he knew he had to say, “I can’t promise all that. I won’t hurt you, but I make no promises about my family.”

Rowena froze and looked so intently at Eris that he thought time may have stopped. “Fine.”

“Shall we?” Eris asked and held out his arm. Rowena didn’t hesitate as the sound of footsteps reached her ears.

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