Cassian & Nesta / Velaris
Cassian & Nesta
Nesta winnowed to their living room, she rubbed her temples by the effort she made on winnowing in a extremely far distance.
Cassian walked to the upstairs, the female waited for the throbbing on her head to stop, which took a few minutes until she was able to walk properly.
She went to were Cassian was, the room of their son. The agony of looking at the baby being sick and then having to put him in Danika's arms, to be take inside the ship – to have a chance to survive, and the fact that no one knew how to stop the disease – got worst as she looked around the empty room. The agony she felt, at the moment, wasn’t only hers, but also his.
Cassian used a hand to cover his mouth as he stared silently at the cradle, his wings touched the floor, hands shaking, he fell on his knees, tears falling from his eyes.
No sound came from him, he cried as he used to do as a child, when he was starving, in the extreme cold of the mountain’s worst winter in years, in the day he thought he would die, and was too afraid to make any sound, since it was night, there wasn’t any ramshackle tent left, and he had to go far from the camp, in the beginning of the florest, looking for a cavern.
Nesta looked at the dresser close to the door, where laid a pair of small gloves, the gloves that Remiel used in the first day he left home to take sun light and fresh air, she grabbed it, holding tightly on her fingers, then walked close to the winged male, lowed behind him, curving her arms around him and resting her head on his back, tears on her cheeks.
Memories were accidentally shot through the bond by Cassian, when he felt Remiel moving on Nesta's abdomen, the day he was born, when he held his son on his arms for the first time, and how Remiel used to flap his small wings while smiling.
If wasn’t for Nesta holding him, Cassian would be probably already laid in the floor, they both stayed in there for awhile, crying, suffering with their son's absence.
oOoOo
Velaris
Lucien wrote a new letter to Jurian and Vassa. He didn’t receive any answer, neither from the magic notes, or the letter he sent.
During the first two weeks he stayed at his apartment, he got called by Feyre twice, when Elain was having the blur visions. At the third time, his presence was enough to make she calm down a little.
Then he decided to stay more time, during it he heard about the disease, then Feyre told him about the underground plans, she also told him that Jurian and Vassa were save in the Continent, so he wouldn’t need to worry about it, which he tried to, as she was – is – his friend, and he trust her.
A note arrived – from Elain. He took it as the paper fully materialized in the desk. The female was calling him to her house, Feyre's house actually.
Lucien stood, grabbing a cloak on his room and walking out of his apartment. His loose hair – shorter than the day he arrived, but still long as he like – was moving in the wind, the city was silent, streets desert, for a moment he asked himself if the entire population of Velaris was going to the New Lands inside the ships.
oOo
The red haired male knocked the door, in a few seconds it got open by the brown eyed female. She smiled at him, giving him space to enter in the house, he lightly nodded, curving up a corner of his lips as he walked in, Nuala came, taking his cloak to put it in the guest's closet, he thanked her a second before she left.
“Your eye arrived.” Elain closed the door, then whirled, pacing to the living room, grabbing a small dark brown box from the coffee table, “Here.”
He was a few steps behind her, walked close as she waved him a hand “Thank you.” He said, carefully took the box with his two hands, giving her a polite smile.
Elain smiled back “Would you like tea?” Lucien opened his mouth, but she didn’t give him a chance to answer “Well, I already putted the water to boil, so…” she walked to the kitchen, he followed her, and then he noticed the kettle sound.
“I am sorry if it might be meddling, lady. But why didn’t you take a ship?” the red haired male sat in the counter seat, resting his arms at the black marble surface.
“You can call me Elain.” She said low, blinking slowly “I might be tracked by the Cauldron.” She shook her head “Also, today I woke up sick, and I didn’t want to see my niece and nephews walking into it, leaving.” The female took two mugs from the cabinet, “What about you?”
“I didn’t want to take someone’s else place… And I can fight, just need to work out to get my muscles back.” He snorted a low chuckle, opened the box to check his new eye. “I also don’t want to accidentally cross the path with my father, or brothers.” The metal eye was made of gold as the old one, but shiner.
“I understand.” She putted the mugs in the balcony, then walked back to the cabinet, looking for tea sachets “Nuan said she made improvements in the eye, but she didn’t explained what improvements exactly.” The female said checking the lower cabinets, imagining that Nuala might have changed stuff from their original places.
“Is she staying?” Lucien closed the box, pocketing it.
“I suppose she is.” Elain started to check the upper cabinets “She is master at tinkering, and well, our magic…” she finally found the sachets, at the last cabinet “This sound” she said closing the cabinets, she wanted to change the subject “Makes me remember when Danika was a baby-” the brown eyed female putted each sachet in the mugs “I used to warm her bottle and make tea to myself, Azriel would hold her while it, rocking her on his arms. When he warmed her bottle he used to have only one free hand, because she liked to see what was being done in the stove, and as he was strong so he could hold her for a long time.” She took the kettle and purred water in the mugs. “I always had fear to accidentally hurt her while being in the kitchen when she was a baby, but he didn’t.” She smiled as she remembered, her eyes were distant, “Once, in a Solstice party, her parents weren’t giving her attention, Cassian and Nesta would come only a week later. And she was so sad, then I took her gifts and hid in the garden.” she looked to the wall, as if she could see the garden through the it “Then me and Az took her there, and he made a shadow rabbit, we told her that it would lead her to her gifts. She got so happy at the end of the night.” She let escape a laugh.
“Who is Danika?” his voice was soft, and curious, he putted a lock of hair behind his ear, then regretted for asking it as her facial expression changed.
“Oh… Feyre's daughter.” Elain pressed her lips in a thin line, whirling back to the cabinet to take the biscuits
“She had a daughter?” he lifted a brow, Feyre never told him that.
“And a son.” She took two plates, putting some biscuits in both of them.
“Well –” Lucien was going to say something, but he lost his thoughts as Elain putted a plate in front of him, “Doesn’t… The… The bond won’t –?” be stared at the mug she had just put close to the plate.
“Only if I had made the biscuits. It doesn’t work to drinks, or something that was already made by someone else.” She said calm, grabbing a biscuit from her own plate and taking a bite, then took a third mug and sachet, pouring water on it and leaving in the balcony close to the cooker.
“Alright” The red haired male took the mug, blowing the hot liquid before taking a slip from it, “I didn’t know that Feyre had children.”
Elain opened her mouth, she was going to say something but Feyre and Rhysand had winnow to the living room.
“Mor will protect and take care of them” Rhysand said rubbing his temples and lowering his head, he tried to calm Feyre with words as her hands were shaking.
“She will do it with Kaillu.” Her voice was harsh, eyes wet.
“And Danika.” The dark haired male touched her shoulder, his eyes narrowed by the headache, his other hand on his forehead. “And Remiel.”
Feyre shook her head, pushing his hand away “She won’t, Danika won’t let her do it, to herself or Remiel, because you asked, and also Cassian and Nesta asked to a friend of theirs do it already.”
“What are you talking about?” he rubbed the back of his head.
Her eyes narrowed, “It is too late, our relationship with her is over, she –”
“Feyre –” Rhysand lifted his brows
“She didn’t even look or talked with us as she left.”
A muscle feathered his jaw, “I will fix it. When she came back –”
“We don’t know when they will come back.” Her throat bobbed “Look what we did to her, that is our fault.” Tears falling from her eyes.
“Feyre –” he tried to come closer to her, but she took a step back.
Azriel winnowed close to the kitchen, his eyes surveyed Elain, then Lucien, “I will give you both some privacy.”
With shadowsinger's words, Feyre and Rhysand realized the presence of Lucien and Elain in the kitchen, Feyre walked to her room, ignoring her mate's words.
“Az.” Elain called him, before he had the opportunity to enter in a shadow, she took the third mug, then walked close to him, “You haven’t eat today.” She held up the mug, grabbing his hand and making he hold the object.
“I am not hungry.” He said low, without taking his gaze from Elain
“Then drink it, at least.”
Az took a slip from the tea, then held the mug with both hands, “How are you feeling?”
“Better.” She lightly curved upward her lips, touching his lower arm.
Lucien took a last slip from the tea, standing as he dragged a hand on his red hair, “Thank you for the tea, lady– Elain.” He lightly lowed to her, nodding to Azriel before walking to the entrance, Cerridwen gave him his cloak back.
As the red haired male opened the door, walking to the outside, a heartbeat later, an ash arrow got the left lower part of his abdomen. Everything was silent to him, even as the city was suffering a new surprise attack.
He felt two pairs of cold female hands on each of his arms, the half shadow wraiths, they dragged him back to inside the house, where his senses where back.
“Shields aren’t working, go to the basement.” Feyre's voice echoed in the living room, a second later she winnowed.
Elain walked faster than the half wraiths, opened the basement door, as they walked inside, she closed. Nuala and Cerridwen left Lucien in a armchair, as they guarded the door, Elain walked close to him with a white box – that she took from a cabinet in there – in hands.
“Healing powers aren’t working anymore” she took two chairs – that where close to the same cabinet – putting one in front of him and the second at her side “I will remove it, alright?”
Lucien nodded, then she gently held the arrow's shaft, keeping the closest part of it on his body motionless, as she broke the arrow one centimeter from her hand.
“Now I will pull it.” She said calm, helping Lucien learn forward, “It will hurt.” Her voice was low, worried.
The red haired male nodded, Elain putted a hand in the shaft that was coming out of his back, pulling it fast, Lucien let scape a grunt of pain, he supported his left hand on her shoulder. The wound was still painful, but at least the ash arrow wasn’t on him anymore.
Elain removed his cloak and shirt, then opened the white box, taking a few tissues from it, she started to clean Lucien's wounds, he tried his best to not wince as she touched it, then she bandaged his abdomen.
When finished, Lucien leaned at the arm chair, “Thank you.” He gave her a lightly smile, she did the same and nodded.
The sounds of destruction were loud, the floor and walls around them were trembling, dust falling on them.
“How many people stayed here in Prythian?” Lucien asked after a couple minutes of silence.
“A good part of the population, actually” she looked around as a new loud sound of destruction came “Majority of them are males.”
“On my way here, the city seemed desert.” He said trying to not move his body, or breath heavily.
“People are wailing their relatives absence.” She curled her fingers on her skirt.
Lucien glanced at the door guarded by the half High Faes, then rested both of his hands on the arms of his seat, “Do you have an idea about how the underground plans are going?.” His throat bobbed by pain as he breathed too fast.
“They started recently, with this attack, it will be delayed.” She answered in a vacant stare.
“I see.” He let escape a painful groan as he tried to sit straight, Elain grabbed his lower arm while staring at him, a silent order to stay still, then she started to talk with him – to distract him from the pain – about the garden she made a few years ago, Lucien listened to her, paying attention to each detail about flowers and soil she said without taking her hand away from his arm.