#lysaedion fanfic

[leiawritesstories]

Tomorrow

just a soft little Lysandra & Aedion scene post-KOA from this prompt sent by @autumnbabylon: I would like for someone to write a scene about Lysandra and Aedion talking about their relationship, feelings, hopes, dreams, etc. I feel like we were robbed of that moment in KoA.

hope this is kinda what you were hoping!

word count: 1,225

warnings: some slight angst slipped in there, oops

Enjoy!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Soft, pale sunlight filtered into Lysandra's room the morning after Aelin's coronation, the gentle glow so at odds with the lingering scent of smoke and Valg that permeated the palace. Yawning, the shifter stretched her arms over her head, resisting the temptation to turn that stretch into a shift. Later, Lady of Caraverre, she promised herself. Later.

A little sleepily, she made her way down the corridors to the kitchens, following the faint odor of tea and hot buttered toast. She flashed a grateful grin at the cooks as she swiped a plateful of food, carrying it and her tea back upstairs to the smaller dining room.

Where she stopped abruptly, not having expected anyone else to be there already.

Prince Aedion Ashryver carefully set down his fork, holding up his hands in a gesture of peace. "I can leave if you need me to, Lady."

Lysandra gracefully collected herself and sat down opposite the prince. "That's not necessary, Aedion."

He nodded slowly, turning over her use of his name. "Lysandra..."

She wrapped her hands around her tea, exhaling deeply as the warmth of the mug seeped into her fingers. "Don't feel obligated to say anything, Aedion. You don't need to."

"I want to." With that Ashryver determination of his, he slid his mostly-empty plate to the side and rested his hands atop the table, those turquoise eyes latching onto hers. "If you're willing, of course."

She raised a dark brow. "At least let me eat first, I'm not myself when I'm hungry."

"You and Aelin both," the prince snorted softly, a sly grin blinking across his face.

A smirk flickered across the shifter's face in return. She forced her breathing to calm as she ate her breakfast, though she couldn't do anything against the whirling of her mind. Try as she might, she could never keep those words of Aedion's out of her mind, her heart, her dreams.

I am going to marry you, Lysandra. I'll let you choose when--maybe five years, maybe twenty. But I will marry you. The flash of that endearing, brazen grin. Princess Lysandra Ashryver sounds nice, doesn't it?

They'd danced around the truths hanging heavy and unspoken between the two of them for too long.

When her stomach decided she'd had enough, Lysandra moved her plate aside and looked across to Aedion, folding her hands together. "Talk to me, Aedion."

Tentatively, he reached across the worn old tabletop, hesitantly laying his hand atop hers, still that breath of distance between his skin and hers. "Lys, I..." He cleared his throat. "I meant everything I've ever said to you."

She laced her fingers through his, rooting both of them in that small contact. "I meant it, too." She lifted her gaze, unafraid for once of revealing a piece of herself. "I love you, Aedion Ashryver."

Deny it though he might, there were tears in his eyes, too. "I love you, Lysandra Ennar."

She swallowed, gathering in her racing thoughts. "Aed, I--I'm not ready to--" She broke off, the words failing her.

His thumb stroked against the back of her hand. "I won't ask you anything unless you give me the word."

"Thank you," she murmured. A new thought popped into her mind, voiced before she could think twice. "Are you staying?"

"What?" He blinked, his brows furrowing.

"Are you staying in Orynth?" she clarified. "I know the...the rebuilding is going to take a long time, years probably, I'll be here some of the time but I am going to Caraverre when I have the chance. Are you staying?"

"As long as I need to," he answered.

Lysandra scoffed. "That's not a very Aedion-like answer of you."

"I--no, I suppose it's not," Aedion admitted. Then he turned her question around. "Are you asking me to leave, Lys?"

"No," she hastened to respond, the denial rushing out of her. "No, I'm..." You're what, Lysandra? "I'm asking you to come with me."

The prince, the feared general of the Bane, the bearer of the Sword of Orynth, gawped at the shifter, boyish hope flickering across his tired face. "You are?" he breathed, half-wondering if this was a dream.

"Will you come to Caraverre with me, Aedion?" So much more than that was wrapped into the question, and he knew it.

Will you prove your promise to me?

"Yes," he said softly, squeezing her hands. "Yes, Lysandra, as long as you wish for me to be there."

Her lips quirked up at the corners. "I suppose I'll have to figure out what to tell all the meddling family and staff," she joked.

He flashed her that brazen smirk she'd grown to love. "Tell them I'm yours, Lys. Tell them I am yours."

Gods, the way her heart thudded at that declaration. "What does that make us, though, my prince? Are you my consort? My lover?"

"I am your sword, Lady Lysandra of Caraverre," Aedion whispered, a vow echoing in his tone.

She sniffed, briefly pulling one hand away from his to flick the rogue tear off her cheek. "I don't deserve you, Aed."

Before she could continue her protest, his free hand rested by her face, his fingertips at her lips. "None of us deserve what we have, my--Lys. That does not mean we deny ourselves what we want."

Her breath caught at his soft encouragement, the declaration therein, the tenderness of his gesture. "Who said I was denying myself?" she breathed, catching his wrist before he could pull his hand away.

And she brushed a feather-soft kiss to his rough, calloused fingertips, her bright green gaze never leaving his.

He shuddered ever so slightly as he employed all of his restraint not to melt into her caress. "Lys..."

"I'm afraid, Aedion," she whispered, keeping his hand pressed between hers. "I'm afraid to go to--to my new manor, afraid of what people will say about me. About us."

"Let them talk," Aedion growled, the primal Fae part of him rising to the surface in defense of the woman he loved.

Her lips twitched. "Your territorial male nonsense isn't necessary, my prince."

"Fine," he sighed dramatically. "I won't punch anyone, Lys." A soft look she'd only ever seen him wear once--that night on the beach when she wore her sea dragon form--slipped across his face. "And I will go with you, Lysandra."

Something neither of them had yet named settled between them as he spoke those words, made that promise. Lysandra traced her thumbs over the back of Aedion's hands, running the softness of her fingertips over his rough, still-healing knuckles. "I know."

There they remained for a long moment, no words necessary to convey the depth of gratitude welling in both of their hearts. After his heart stopped fluttering, Aedion inhaled, trying to word the question he needed to ask in a way that wouldn't make Lysandra run away.

"Lys--"

She stopped him before he could speak, somehow sensing his intent. "Tomorrow, Aed."

Tomorrow.

Today, they would keep rebuilding Orynth, keep standing at the side of the new queen and king consort, keep reaching out to the citizens and listening to their stories. But tomorrow--tomorrow, Lysandra would take her leave.

Tomorrow, she would head to her new manor and begin building her new life.

Tomorrow, in the privacy of Caraverre, she and her prince could spill the hidden secrets of their hearts.

~~~

TAGS:

@charlizeed

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@autumnbabylon

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[talkfantasytome]

Pizza's Here

They've all gotten cozy, and dried off in Aelin and Aedion's case. Now it's time for their first dinner together, and Rowan's in for a bit of an awakening about a certain someone's tastebuds.

Warnings: None | Word Count: 1,888 | ToG Masterlist

Previous Part | Staghorn Slopes Masterlist | Read on AO3

a/n: For Travel/Vacation day of Rowaelin Month. Better late than never, right? XD

It only took me 9 months, but finally got the next part up! 😄 All for Rowaelin Month. I'll hopefully do more during the winter season, but wanted to post something for this celebration, and it's the only piece I have that was anywhere near close to ready. I'll try to work on some other pieces, but with Nessian Week and now Dreamlight Valley, I've been distracted. 😬

"PIZZA'S HERE!"

Perfect timing.

Aelin had just changed out of her wet clothes and into a new pair of leggings and a plush, fuzzy sweater to warm up.

She turned the fireplace on in her cozy bedroom - to warm it up while they ate - and left the room.

At the last step on the stairs that led to her room, Aelin froze.

There, walking down the corridor that led to the room just below hers, was the silver-haired paragon of perfection her cousin had been hiding from her. She'd get Aedion back for that later.

Or maybe she wouldn't. Seeing as he'd apparently agreed to let this man - Rowan - take the other bedroom in this little wing. Aedion either wasn't thinking, was too focused on something else, or had a lot of faith in his friend to allow him in such close and secluded proximity to Aelin.

The fool.

Rowan was like a god in human form. So tall her eyes just barely peaked over his shoulders, and broad enough to probably be near two times her width. His muscles were corded and clearly defined, even beneath the long-sleeved, Orynth Stags T-shirt he was wearing.

His rolled up sleeves revealed the start of a tattoo on his left forearm, the black letters of an old, unreadable language traveling up beneath the fabric, all the way to his collar, where the ends of it were just barely visible.

Her eyes continued up until they fell on that glorious, pine green stare that hadn't left her mind since she first saw it.

Meeting his gaze set her heart fluttering so fast she was sure he'd hear it, too.

"Hey," he offered awkwardly.

"Hey," she said back. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting you. I thought Lys was taking that room."

Rowan lifted a golden hand, scratching his head as he replied, "Yeah, she was. But then Aedion said she should take the room at the top of the other set of stairs." He pointed across the dining room to the stairs that came out right by the entrance. Just next to them was another staircase - this one going down - that Aelin knew led to a half floor that had the last two master bedrooms, before then going further to the bottom floor of the cabin, which held the theater, game room, and gym.

She also knew that Aedion's room was just beneath Lysandra's, and had access to a balcony with stairs that went up not only to the second-floor balcony, but also a third-floor balcony that just happened to have a door to the room Lysandra would be staying in.

"Did he?" Aelin asked, smirking to herself.

"He said something about how she should get the other room with a fireplace."

A laugh burst from Aelin, coming out more like a snort as she tried to stop it. "Of course. Very thoughtful of him."

"I'm certainly not complaining," Rowan agreed. He slid his hands into his pockets and rolled his feet. "That room is awesome. And I run warm, anyway."

"Lucky you." She flicked her eyes up and down his body obviously and then strode away to the kitchen where Aedion was already piling a plate high with pizza. Four boxes were spread out over the curved breakfast bar, already opened with each one missing at least one slice. "Are we having a party I didn't know about?"

Turquoise that mirrored her own met Aelin's eyes as Aedion looked away from the pizza. His gaze shifted to something behind her and then he was back on his cousin. "I'm a growing boy. I need sustenance."

"Let's hope that's not the case," Aelin teased, moving around the counter and nudging him. Aedion was almost as tall as Rowan and just as broad, if not more so. He certainly didn't need to get any bigger. Her eyes landed on a plastic bowl full of lettuce at the end of the row of pizzas. "What's that?"

Aedion let out an amused sigh. "I know you don't love vegetables, but I figured you'd at least know what a salad is."

"Yes, smartass, I know what salad is." She rolled her eyes and shook her head softly. "But why is it here?"

"It's for that dork," he answered, pointing at Rowan. He grabbed a fourth piece for his first helping and then joined Lysandra at the nearby, round table. She was already nibbling on a piece of Alfredo pizza.

Aelin turned and faced Rowan, lifting an eyebrow at him expectantly.

He shrugged and explained, "Balance is important."

"So do what he does and get sausage and peppers or something - meat and veg." Aelin jerked her head back toward Aedion and grabbed a plate, taking a piece of the cheese pizza with sauce-stuffed crust.

"That's not going to get me my three to five servings," Rowan chuckled.

Waving her hand at Rowan, she replied, "The food pyramid is crap anyway. It says that sweets should be eaten 'sparingly' and not every day. Who's going to listen to that?"

"Probably people who get salads with their pizza."

"Hmm." Her eyes flicked to the salad he was now mixing. "Those people are missing out on a lot of sweetness."

Rowan met her gaze, a spark of mischief brightening the green. "They find other forms of…sweetness to enjoy."

Aelin's face heated as his eyes slowly traveled down her body.

A loud cough snapped her attention away from the ruinous stare that was about to bring her to her knees. She looked back to see Aedion glowering over at them, chowing down on his pizza feast.

Shooting her cousin an innocent smile, she glided over to the table and sat next to Lysandra.

"Speaking of sweets. You ordered the dessert pizza, right?" she asked Aedion, taking a bite of her own slice, the cheese still warm enough it stretched with the bite and then snapped, a string of it trailing down her chin. She slurped it up fast, laughing softly to herself.

Aedion let out a sigh, taking another bite before he answered. "Maybe."

"Maybe?" Aelin repeated.

"He did," Lysandra corrected, laughing softly. "It's staying warm in the oven."

Rowan joined them, his plate full with two slices and a massive pile of lettuce. He sat between Aedion and Aelin and wondered aloud, "Do I even want to know what a dessert pizza is?"

Aelin exclaimed, "Only the best invention ever!"

"It's pie without the top crust," Aedion explained.

Aelin scoffed at his reply. The simplicity, the audacity to compare the two. "It is no such thing! The base is like a pizza crust, only sweetened, or sometimes it's more, like oreo-flavored. And then the toppings are based on the type of dessert pizza. There are s'mores ones, cookies and cream, Reeses, and yes some fruity ones that are like crumbles or pies. But the one we order is the Ultra Deluxe Dessert Pizza." She grinned widely at Rowan.

He stared back with widened eyes, something like concern swimming in them. "And…that would be?"

"It will change your world," she started, folding her hands together in a very Lorelai-Gilmore-like fashion. "It has a sweetened dough base, but the crust is rip-off cinnamon bites, icing for dipping included. A generous layer of melted chocolate is spread as the pizza's sauce. It is then topped with crumble, chocolate chips, hazelnut truffle sprinklings, crushed-up heath bars, and then a drizzling of chocolate syrup, caramel syrup, and a glaze icing. And, finally, garnished with chocolate shavings. You will never be the same."

She bit down on her lips to keep herself from laughing at the face Rowan was making, looking as if just the sound of the dessert might make him vomit.

"That will give you a heart attack."

"And I'll die happy."

Lysandra snorted out a laugh beside Aelin. "I wouldn't try to talk any sense into her, Rowan," she said. "Nothing can keep Aelin from her dessert."

"As if you won't be eating a piece right next to me," Aelin retorted.

Lysandra grinned. "Never said I wouldn't."

"I'm not really into sweets. I think I'll pass," Rowan sighed, shoving a forkful of salad into his mouth.

That wouldn't do. No one could truly hate all sweets. And Aelin wasn't going to let Rowan pass up this experience. Because that's what it was. Eating this pizza, it was more than just a tasty dessert. It was an activity, something she and Aedion loved to do together. Impossible to eat neatly, coming up to the cabin and getting this pizza was like going camping and making s'mores. Non-negotiable and as much about the fun of eating it as it was the actual taste. Which was also phenomenal.

"Sorry, it's a rite of passage. Everyone who stays here has to try it," Aelin decreed.

Rowan sagged, giving her a flat look. Aelin simply returned it with a big grin and triumphant bite of her pizza.

"I'm not eating that."

Rowan stared at the dessert pizza in horror as Aelin began to dole out slices.

"Don't be such a baby. It's not going to kill you," Aelin sighed.

Rowan groaned as she shoved a plate with one of the largest pieces into his hands. "It literally could."

Lysandra couldn't help but chuckle. It had been like this the entire dinner. Rowan and Aelin volleying their words, barely able to focus on anyone else. Aedion glowering at his friend and cousin as he shoved more pizza than Lysandra thought possible into his mouth. She considered attempting to pull his attention to her, to distract him, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Not with the way Aedion's strong jawline was emphasized with how he'd set it, or how his eyes became like a raging gulf.

It was too amusing. And a bit hotter than it should've been. Something Lysandra chose to 'investigate' as Aedion was distracted, angrily staring at Aelin and Rowan.

"Well, then we'll know you're one of the weak," Aelin shot back.

Rowan glowered, his gaze remaining locked with Aelin's as he brought the piece up to his mouth and took a bite of it. Lysandra could see the distaste in his eyes. She was fairly certain Aelin could, too, but her best friend didn't care. Aelin was too busy grinning triumphantly as he loudly swallowed.

"So," Lysandra whispered, leaning a bit closer to Aedion. "Are you the type of cousin who despises this? Or the kind who will place a bet on when they-"

"Please don't finish that sentence," Aedion groaned, interrupting her.

She couldn't help but laugh softly. "So the first kind. Got it." The golden ring in his eyes was like a soft flame as he turned to glare at her. "Well, am I wrong?"

Aedion sighed, "She's basically my sister. I'm allowed to feel protective of her."

"Oh please." Lysandra rolled her eyes as dramatically as possible. "That's just an excuse men use to try and control the women in their lives."

"I learned a long time ago that Aelin can't be controlled," Aedion scoffed. "I'm not an idiot."

"And yet, here you are, clearly wishing you could."

He opened his mouth to respond, but then shut it quickly. Probably unable to come up with an actual response. Lysandra smirked at him triumphantly. She was going to have fun on this trip.

a/n: Okay, so, cause of my dorkiness I'm basing the cabin entirely off of this one, as I've mentioned. However, for those detail-oriented people who'd notice, I am making one change. I've added a balcony (and access to it) to the room Lysandra will have. And then just am extending the staircase by Aedion's room's balcony area so that it reaches that spot, too. Or, well, in reality, it would be more that his balcony and her balcony both have stairs going to the main, second floor balcony. But, well, we all know what our blond boy is thinking about. 😏 I'm also probably going to just ignore all of those extra rooms on the bottom floor cause, like…that's a loooot of extra rooms and beds. lol

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[tomtenadia]

Thicker than blood - 30

Chapter with a few discovery and finally the beginning of the end as in the worst is almost over...

Ten days had passed and Rowan had kept track by the normal cycle of the sun rising and setting. Ten days. Aelin had been in Maeve’s hand for three weeks now. The bond had gone silent once again and a part of him was glad. Not feeling her pain allowed him to think clearly. He had followed a tricky path uphill and trudged through thick snow. He had one last ridge to cross and then he would be there. Maeve had taken Aelin far away. In the middle of the mountains there was a small hidden valley and he had spotted a house. He had a feeling that was the place. Before leaving he had found a satellite picture that showed a small helicopter nearby. Being a cop and the right friends had been useful.

Night was setting again when he decided it was time to leave his cavern. Blood had finished a while ago but he had been feeding on animals. He was old enough to be able to go for almost a week without feeding, but the journey was taking a toll, and, in order not to waste too much time, he had been walking at dawn and dusk too, the sun not too hot and he had endured in order to get to Aelin faster. But because of that he had to feed more regularly to heal.

He grabbed his backpack, lifted it on his shoulder and then tied his hair. He touched his face and felt a nice layer of beard on him. He wondered if Aelin would like his rugged appearance. A timid smile appeared on his lips and then his thought went back to the mission ahead.

He was about to set off when he felt a presence. His hand grabbed the knife at his side and was ready for attack. He waited until he spotted a tall figure emerge from the side of the mountain. 

Rhoe Galathynius was there. How?

“In a hurry?”

Rowan was speechless. How had he managed? He had at least a three day lead. And how did he found out?

“Oh yes, you are surprised to see me,” said the man as he dropped his backpack for an instant “When you disappeared Lys gave me the keys to your flat and saw all the maps. So I followed.”

“How?”

“I am old,” a soft smile appeared on his face “I have very little need to stop for feeding or even rest so I caught up with you and…” a grin “I know a few shortcuts.”

Rowan sighed. Maybe having Rhoe at his side was good. The man had definitely more experience.

“I was a soldier, I am used to long campaigns and rough camping.”

“I am sorry I left that way. I just could not sit and wait any longer.”

Rhoe nodded “We are going to get our girl back and destroy Maeve in the process.”

Rowan nodded.

Rhoe removed a few blood bags from his backpack and passed them to Rowan “Eat. You will need all of your strength.”

Rowan accepted the bags and drank eagerly. Animal blood never left him fully satisfied.

Once he was done Rhoe nodded and the two resumed marching together towards their final destination 

*

Lorcan was buried in his office with piles of reports on his desk. The last ten days had been a flurry of non stop work. Maeve had decided to unleash all of her minions in town and cause chaos. Newborns had taken to the streets and his units had been overwhelmed with work. The attacks had been relentless and in different places at the same time. Luckily, a lot of vampires had started patrolling the streets at night alongside the paranormal unit. However, even with the extra help they still had lost people. Those same vampires who had helped had been offered to join his unit if they wanted and a good number of them had accepted. He had discovered that a few of them were ex junkies who wanted to help out and had welcomed them in. In those days he had been thinking about Rowan too. No one knew what had happened to him and Rhoe had taken leave of absence too and he had a feeling they were together. He hoped his friend was okay. He wanted to apologise to him for suspending him and throwing him in jail. Elide had made him understand how wrong he had been.

Elide, their dating had slowly taken a more serious turn and he had to admit that he loved the result. She was amazing.

He sighed and pushed his thoughts away and went back to work.

It was an hour later when a knocking at the door pulled him back from his reports.

“Come in.”

Elide walked in with a messenger bag strapped on her shoulder. She went for a quick kiss and then plopped exhausted on the chair opposite to him.

She looked troubled.

“What is it?”

Elide grabbed her bag and extracted a large pile of files and dumped them on his desk “I spent the day at the deviation centre with three other ME. We finally gained access to the morgue.”

Lorcan prepared for bad news.

“How bad?”

Elide sighed. None of the people in the centre had deserved the treatment they had received “The ones who had been executed before Hamel was deposed, had just been killed instantaneously,” she grabbed a pile of folders “But in a separate room we found the cellars with the bodies of the ones who had been used as lab rats,” she started showing him pictures and he felt sick at the images. A very sick game had happened.

“These vampires here were made almost humans, but as we studied them we realised that their bodies did not survive the ordeal. Their genetic code in the end was so messed up that the body stopped functioning,” she explained pointing at the pictures with the tortured bodies “this level of mutations happens over a very, very, very long period of time. The body adapts slowly,” she paused “These monsters tried to push such changes in the span of  months. And we only managed to have a look at the few hundreds still in the cells. I don’t want to imagine all the ones they have disposed of.” She looked at the man with sadness “Connall’s body is still in the morgue. Aelin’s morgue. I think we need to tell Fen and allow him to give his brother a proper final send off.”

Lorcan nodded “I agree. I will speak with Fenrys and we will get something organised.”

Elide nodded “I am going public with this. I have already contacted the press. The people deserve to know. All those who lost loved ones need to know the truth.”

Lorcan nodded in silence “I will support you. As chief of the paranormal unit.”

She stood and went for a kiss “This is so horrible, Lor.”

He pressed his forehead to hers “we will make it better.”

She sighed against him “any news of Rowan?”

Lorcan shook his head “Hopefully he is fine,” a kiss on her head “are you free?”

Elide pulled back and looked at him “Why, chief?”

“I need to get out of here.”

Elide stood and grabbed his hand “Let’s go chief. We both need some fresh air.”

*

Lysandra was laying with her head in Aedion’s lap while reading a book and her fiancee busy flipping through the channels “Why do we bother with a tv? There is nothing worth spending time watching.”

Lysandra chuckled and placed the book aside and looked up at her fiancee “I have ways to keep you entertained, if you are interested.” She turned slightly and her hand landed on his crotch palming him.

Aedion groaned and she slowly felt him harden under her touch. His shorts creating a thin barrier between her hand and skin. In provocation she lowered the shorts, exposing him to her and her hand palmed him hard. Aedion threw his head back and moaned loudly “Fuck, Lys,”

“What, my love?” Lysandra looked at him and licked her lips sensually.

Slowly she sat up and removed her, actually his t-shirt, and revealed her naked form to him.

“You are stunning,” he breathed while his hands landed on her breasts and started massaging them, paying particular attention on her already hard peaks.

She straddled him while her mouth claimed his “no foreplay. I need you now.”

Aedion chuckled and lifted her in his arms and walked to the bedroom and deposited Lys on the bed then proceeded to remove his t-shirt and shorts and joined her in bed. Lysandra flipped them over and straddled him.

Aedion smiled wickedly and pillowed his hands behind his head “Go wild.”

Lysandra did not need another invitation.

It was an hour later when they collapsed in bed exhausted, Lysandra sprawled on his chest, her hand gently caressing him “Aeds, I am terrified for Aelin,” she buried her face in the crook of his neck.

She felt his arms wound around her in a tight embrace “Me too. I want to hope that Rowan and Rhoe will find her in time. It’s not two years but I am afraid of the state in which she will be when she gets back to us.”

Lysandra kissed his neck “Maybe this time having Rowan will help her recovery?”

“Maybe.”

“I have read some old books from Rhoe’s library. There are some interesting theories about vampire bonds.”

Aedion hummed interested.

She kissed his pec “I know you need to find a scientific explanation and I agree but I am also a hopeless romantic.” 

Aedion chuckled and kissed her head “As you know, the blood from a bonded partner is a bit more effective than the regular one.” Lysandra stood and ran to the bookshelf and grabbed a book and joined him back in bed “but the ancients stories also talk about a special bond, a very rare one between two souls, so powerful that it could even heal a vampire on the brink of death,” she looked at Aedion’s curious face “it’s called the carranam bond.”

“Here,” she pointed at the pages and read them to him “if this truly has these strong powers maybe it can explain why only Rowan’s blood, even if it’s basically synthetic and lethal, can actually heal her.”

Aedion was silent for a moment “You are right. I haven’t been able to find a scientific reason. If I follow haematology rules, Aelin should be able to drink only from a person with golden blood,” He commented while stroking her long hair “we know her affinity with A+ was engineered. But at this point, given the reaction with Rowan’s blood I am really willing to leave it to magic.”

Lysandra kissed his chest “Apparently if they are carranam they realise they are mates the instant they taste the other person’s blood. It took us a while, remember?”

He hummed in agreement “Hopefully this special bond will help her.”

Lysandra straddled him again “It’s so romantic,” with her canines she brushed his neck and felt him shiver. The temptation was great but they had decide to follow the rules and be traditional so they still had to wait before joining that way. “Soon Lys,”

She smiled “And then we will take a week off because I am not letting you out of this bed.”

Aedion laughed “I am looking forward to it.”

*

Maeve was walking with a quick pace on her way to Erawan’s lab. The date of the big political rally was getting closer and Aelin was not ready yet apparently, and she was loosing her patience. Her plans were slowly falling apart and her niece was her last weapon. Police and the paranormal unit had started working together and the numbers of her vampires were dwindling and all of a sudden it seemed like the movement of the Reborns had died down. They were running out of volunteers to transform. She was furious. Darrow was ruining her plans. She had tried an attack on him but it had failed spectacularly. Apparently the ad interim mayor was already beloved by vampires and humans alike. And her main target, Rhoe Galathynius, had disappeared.

She finally reached Erawan’s office and she stormed in not even bothering to knock.

The man stood quickly “What?”

“I gave you one task, and you are failing me.”

“She is not there yet.”

“I want her to be a killer and you are not delivering.”

Erawan moved closer in challenge “I can’t do it all at once. It takes time. I am not risking to kill my best project ever.”

Maeve snarled and her hand went around Erawan’s neck “I gave you an order. Make my niece a killer.”

“Any faster and I kill her.”

She kept squeezing his neck “you find a way to transform her safely. If you kill her you are dead too.”

“Science cannot be—”

The man did not have the time to finish the sentence. Maeve grabbed a knife from the tray and slashed his throat and left his body collapse on the floor.

Then she turned to Aelin’s unconscious body and grabbed the small level to adjust the flow of the IV.  She pushed it completely open and watched as the liquid started flowing faster.

“You are going to help me ruin your father. I will destroy your family and you’ll be my weapon.”

And as the door closed horrible screams spread in the room.

Maeve grinned and walked away.

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[goddess-aelin]

Stick to You Like Gum on My Shoe

Aelin accidentally spits gum into the hair of the gorgeous guy sitting in front of her in class. This could either be a disaster or the best thing that ever happened to her.

Word count: 6.5k

FLUFF. So much fluff.

TW: mention of death. Mention of controlling relationship, language

A/N: listen, I know some people prefer long haired Rowan but I’m fully team short hair Rowan. 100%.This is just a fun little 6.5k Drabble with lots of fluffy tropes. Sharing a bed, drunken shenanigans, enemies to friends to lovers, hurt/comfort. I mean, what could you ask for?

Aelin’s senior 8AM history of world politics class was the bane of her existence. The class itself? Perfect. She loved history and she loved politics.Those two subjects combined were her major, after all. No, she hated mornings. If it were up to her, she would be sleeping in until ten every day, not speaking to anyone until at least one cup of coffee was in her system, sweetened with an exorbitant amount of sugar. Who even scheduled classes at 8AM in their senior year? The answer, apparently, was her.

That was her excuse for her current predicament. Simply a series of unfortunate events leading to a level of embarrassment she had never experienced before. All stemming from her lack of sleep and hatred of mornings.

She didn’t mean to do it. The day started when Aelin didn’t have time to brush her teeth that morning, running late from snoozing her alarm one too many times and subsequently waking up with only five minutes to spare and a three minute walk to her class. In trying to hide her morning breath (at least she didn’t go drinking last night, thank the Gods), Aelin had decided to pop a stick of spearmint gum in her mouth. Nothing out of the ordinary. Aelin chewed gum all the time. Peppermint, spearmint, cherry. She had an entire arsenal to get her through the day. It wasn’t her fault that the professor happened to be the most hilarious person on the planet while dismissing them from class. It wasn’t her fault she was sleep deprived (ok maybe that was her fault but she would never admit that) and couldn’t help her cackle at whatever corny joke left her professor’s mouth. The same joke that she couldn’t even remember and was the catalyst for her chewed, disgusting, morning-breath gum ending up in the long hair of the guy in front of her.

Aelin always admired Mr. Silver Hair from afar. She always noticed his shiny, flowing, grey-tinted hair that ran to just below his shoulders. Sometimes it was pulled up and back in a ponytail, sometimes in a half-up bun. The hair sometimes ran over his extremely muscled shoulders and touched his deliciously defined arms. Those arms were the subject of many fantasies she dreamed up during the more boring periods of the class. She imagined how it would feel to run her fingers over his smooth, tanned skin. To be lifted up by his toned arms. To run her fingers through his silky hair. Oh, to live in that fantasy.

It was a much better fantasy than her current situation where she was internally panicking over the fact that her wad of gum now rested peacefully in the hair nearest to this poor man’s skull. Maybe he wouldn’t feel it and she could escape before he noticed. Or maybe he’d be nice about it. Both dreams were shattered as the victim turned around, fixing his emerald gaze upon her and reaching a hand into his gorgeous locks. Aelin had to admit that she was dumbstruck by his green eyes. She felt as if they pierced her soul and it felt as if time stopped. Aelin always knew she had a penchant for dramatics, though, and that thought was confirmed as a deep voice spoke a few choice words.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” He might as well have slapped Aelin in the face with how quickly she was torn from her reverie. Raising her eyebrows and gaping like a fish was all she could do before he picked up his books and stormed away angrily.

Aelin’s head dropped into her hands, mortification overtaking her at the thought of what just transpired. She just spat gum into the hair of the most beautiful man she’d ever seen. Fuck. She had two other classes right after this, no coffee in her system, and she was starving. That, in addition to what happened just minutes ago and the fact that she had two exams to study for, were all the reasons why this day was off to an absolutely fantastic start.

- - - - -

Aelin made her way back to the apartment she shared with Lysandra and Elide, completely exhausted. She was ready to pop open her favorite bottle of wine and forget everything that happened that day. After the incident, her day only got worse. She decided to get a coffee from the campus cafe but turned around as soon as she saw what may or may not have been a head of silver hair. Aelin couldn’t take that chance. So she walked all the way over to the vending machine on the other side of the building and got herself an iced tea instead. The same iced tea that she immediately spilled on herself. Then, afterwards, she received her grade for her senior math midterm which was….not so great. She didn’t fail but she could’ve done better. To top it off, today was the anniversary of her father’s death. Really, it was no wonder why her day was going the way it was.

So yes, Aelin was ready for a nice glass of wine. Or two or three. Anything to drown out this horrible day.

When she entered the shared space, she smelled something delicious. Lysandra was at the stove, cooking what looked to be a scrumptious beef stew. Aelin could have kissed her friend at that moment. But when she went to reach for a tiny taste test, Lysandra smacked her hand away with the wooden spoon, claiming that she had a netflix date tonight with her new boy and wanted to bring something easy but nice to dinner for him. Who this elusive “him” was, Aelin didn’t know and her friend refused to tell her. But Aelin would find out soon enough, she always did. Though it wasn’t like Lysandra to be so secretive. She had her fair share of lovers but she had never been this quiet about it before. Aelin wasn’t sure if that meant she really liked him or didn’t think it would last. She had a mind to follow Lysandra when she left but decided against feeling the wrath of her friend afterwards.

After Lysandra left, Aelin was just about to text Elide when the door opened and in walked the woman in question, arm in arm with her hulking brute of a boyfriend. Aelin and Lorcan were self-professed enemies. They simply had clashing personalities. Truth be told, she thought sweet, innocent Elide could do much better than Lorcan Salvaterre but she kept her mouth shut about that since Elide was in love. So Aelin kept her distance and tried not to pick fights. Even if she tried, though, she couldn’t help it sometimes. It was just so much fun.

Lorcan’s presence made Aelin decide to get takeout by herself and hole herself in her room to study. She had two exams tomorrow, anyway, and then she was free. At least for the weekend. Fenrys was having a party at his new house he rented with his brother and new roommate, Vaughn, the next day and Aelin could not have been more excited. She needed a good party after this week. She needed to dance with Lysandra, take shots with Elide, and absolutely crush Aedion at beer pong. And she needed to completely forget every mortifying thing that happened that day.

- - - - -

Aelin was ready. She did her entire makeup and pre-party routine, already having had a few hard seltzers and some whiskey shots. She knew she looked damn good in her tight, golden dress. It wasn’t her normal choice of outfit but Lysandra leant it to her and insisted that it would look amazing on her. Lysandra, as always, was right. To top it off, she had her favorite pair of heels on and a pair of cute emerald gemstone earrings dangled from her ears.

She could already hear the bumping bass coming from the corner house as she, Lysandra, and Elide made their way to the party. Aedion was meeting them there, never one to miss out on one of Fenrys’ great bashes. Aelin could tell that the house was already full of people based on what she could see through the windows. And as they entered the doorway, her suspicion was confirmed. There were a ton of people there. More than Fenrys probably even knew. And it was loud.

Elide quickly veered off to the left, meeting Lorcan in the doorway to the kitchen and kissing him as if she hadn’t seen him in months. Ick. Aelin made a face and decided that this was a great time to get a drink, taking the other entrance to the kitchen. Here, she found the party’s host and gave him the tightest bear hug she could manage in her already-tipsy state.

“Aelin! So glad you could make it!” Fenrys always had a way of making her smile. He was like a puppy in human form, always happy even if he truly wasn’t. He took her hand and pulled her back into the living room before she could grab a drink. “So Aelin, you know Connall. And this here is our new roommate, Vaughn.” Aelin gave a little wave to the man in question. Fenrys looked as if he was searching for someone. “Our other new roommate is around here somewhere.” Other new roommate? Aelin thought it was only the three of them. Hmm.

Just as she was about to leave to finally grab her drink, Fenrys shouted a loud “Rowan!” Across the room. Aelin heard a voice before she turned and distantly thought about how deep and beautiful it was. Familiar, too. And as she turned, she found out why.

“You.” Mr. Long Silver Hair- Rowan- spat. Except Mr. Long Silver Hair now had short hair. Oh gods. It wasn’t often Aelin was embarrassed but this was one of the rare occasions she was sure she turned beet red.

Aelin was about to reply. With a sorry? With an argument? She wasn’t sure since this man completely infuriated her in the few moments she’d known him. But before she could reply, Fenrys started. “Wait, you two already know each other?”

Rowan looked as if he could spit fire. “Know each other? This is the girl that spit gum into my hair yesterday and caused me to get a very unwanted haircut!” His tone and arrogance were stroking Aelin’s fire.

At that, Fenrys started cackling. “Wait, you’re gum girl? Oh, this is just too good!” Rowan glared.

“It was an ACCIDENT, okay? I didn’t mean to do it!”

“And still, you haven’t even apologized for it yet!”

“Well you haven’t even given me a chance to! You walked away right after!”

“Well maybe you shouldn’t chew gum in class anyway!”

“What kind of stupid comeback is that!? I’ll chew gum whenever I please, thank you very much!”

“You’re probably the person that sticks gum to the bottom of tables. No regard for anyone else.”

“Well. You’re….You’re..” Aelin didn’t know what he was. She let out a noise of frustration. He was so aggravating. Arrogant. Irritating. Rude. Obnoxious. Handsome. Boy, was he handsome, especially with the short hair. And boy, did she want to kiss him right now. She wouldn’t. But she wanted to. And apparently Fenrys had the same thought because he was looking at them as if they were the night’s best entertainment. She knew the gleam in his eyes, knew what his raised eyebrow meant.

Aelin was about to storm away in frustration when a voice she did not want to hear called her name. Chaol was weaving through the crowd toward her, looking like he wanted to have a conversation about their relationship. Or lack thereof. One in which Aelin did not want to have with him. Ever.

“Aelin! Wait! Can I just talk to you for a second? I don’t like how we left things. Please!”

I don’t like how we left things? Rich, coming from a guy who called her a monster just weeks before. The guy who told her she was unlovable because she didn’t let people in. Yeah, she was not going to have this conversation with him.

So instead, she turned tail and walked briskly for the kitchen. She found a staircase leading up to the second floor so she took it, grabbing two beers from the cooler on her way up. She remembered Fenrys mentioning a balcony and luckily, the first door she tried was the winner.

The cool night air soothed her soul and calmed her nerves. What she hoped was going to be a night of fun and dancing was quickly turning into a night she’d very much like to forget. She opened the first beer with a crisp pop and, after realizing how disgusting it tasted, decided it was just better to chug it. So she did. And the second one. Maybe she’d feel better after this. Aelin wasn’t a heavy drinker, she swears. It had just been a really shitty, ridiculous week.

Once she was feeling better, lighter, she decided to go and find Lysandra. She turned the knob on the door only to be met with resistance. Locked. Shit. Fishing her phone from her wristlet, she called Lysandra to no answer. Elide picked up on the second ring and when asked to come and help her, Elide claimed she was indisposed. Which really meant she went home with Lorcan and was currently naked. She told Aelin to try calling Fenrys, which she did to no avail, either. No answer from Aedion and she didn’t want to even think about calling Chaol. Fuck. She truly was stuck out here.

As a last resort, she tried banging on the doors and yelling. After waiting a few minutes to see if someone came up to find her, she slumped on one of the patio chairs, giving up. Of course no one would be able to hear over the pounding music. Her phone was about to die. She had no food or water. And it was getting a little chilly out here. This definitely was not how she imagined her night going, that’s for sure.

It could’ve been minutes or hours that Aelin sat there, distantly listening to the muffled bass pumping from below. She supposed she could try climbing down the side of the building but it was high. And she wasn’t feeling entirely stable after chugging those two beers. Finally, she heard the click of the door and got up as quickly as her tipsy legs would allow. Which apparently wasn’t fast enough because the person was already standing on the balcony staring at her, door completely shut. And if it wasn’t Rowan. Shit.

“What are you doing out here?” Even though Aelin knew he probably hated her because of the gum incident, she was taken aback by the accusatory tone in his voice.

“I came out to get fresh air, you Buzzard. And then I got locked out here. And now you’re locked out here too unless you can magically produce a key.” Aelin knew they would have no such luck when his frown deepened. “I called everyone who I know at this party and no one picked up or had already gone home.”

“Let me call Fenrys.”

“Tried it. And texted him. He’s probably making out with that brunette he was hanging with when I got here.”

“How about Lorcan?”

Aelin scoffed. “As if I would have his number. But no. Elide left early which meant she went home with Lorcan which means they’re occupied. I already tried Lysandra and Aedion, too.”

“They’re also currently occupied.” Aelin could only gape.

“What?” Lysandra and Aedion?

“I mean, you’re talking about that green eyed brunette you came with, right? And Aedion is the blonde that is literally the spitting image of you?” Aelin nodded. “They were making out before I came up here.”

Aelin plopped back down onto the cushioned patio furniture. It wasn’t often someone could surprise her but Rowan sure as hell just did. Lysandra and Aedion didn’t bother her. No, they were quite cute, actually. She always had a mind to set them up for years. It was just the fact that Lysandra had been seeing someone for a few weeks now and said nothing to her about it being Aedion. She would certainly have to have a talk with her whenever she escaped this balcony.

Aelin took a deep breath. “Ok, so our options are waiting here or you can climb down and come back up through the inside and unlock the door.”

“Me? I’m a little drunk, princess. I don’t think that climbing down a two story building is in my best interests right now. Why don’t you do it if you think it’s so easy?”

“Because I just chugged two beers before you came up here and already had a few seltzers and shots in me. So I am also fairly drunk and would most likely end up dead. So no thank you, Buzzard.”

Rowan just let out a huff and sat down next to her on the cushioned bench. For a while, their breathing was the only thing that cut through the night air and muffled music. Rowan leaned forward and put his head in his hands.

“This is not how I thought the first week in the new house was going to go.”

“Tell me about it.” Aelin murmured as Rowan lifted his head up, giving her a conflicted look. Aelin just side-eyed him and rested her head on the back of the bench. “Yes, Rowan. I’ve had a shit week, too. Being stuck out here is just the icing on the cake.”

“You’ve had a shitty week but were you the one who ended up with gum in your hair? Didn’t think so.”

“Oh, get over it. It’s not the worst thing that could’ve happened. The haircut looks good on you, anyway.” Rowan scoffed, looking more annoyed by the minute. But Aelin couldn’t help but notice the shadow that crossed his face. Which is what prompted her to sigh and softly say, “I am sorry for doing that though. I didn’t mean to, I swear. I like pulling pranks on people but never something like that. So I’m sorry.” Rowan didn’t say anything, just looked at her with furrowed eyebrows, so she kept going. “I don’t even remember what the joke the professor made was. Probably something stupidly cheesy. But I was very sleep deprived and left that morning without brushing my teeth and without coffee. So that’s my only excuse.”

Rowan let out a long sigh and after what felt like an unending moment, replied, “It’s okay. I needed a haircut anyway.” When their gazes met, they both had half-smiles on their faces. Rowan let out a small cough and looked away before asking, “So who was that guy you were running from?”

It was Aelin’s turn to let out a sigh. How much information did she want to give to this virtual stranger? Nonetheless, a stranger who hated her up to a few minutes ago. Her tipsy brain decided on the whole truth. “His name was Chaol. We dated for like six months but broke up about a month ago. He was just…controlling. Nothing I did was ever the right thing with him. The little things got to me the most. He was always telling me to put on shoes when I wanted to go barefoot in the grass. Or would order my meal for me. Or telling me that I couldn’t wear a certain outfit because it was too revealing. He would hate this dress I have on tonight even though I don’t think I’ve ever worn a piece that feels more…me. In hindsight, it was actually really horrible and I’m not sure why I tolerated that for that long. I’m not something to be stifled. I need to feel the air in my lungs, ya know? It sounds super cheesy but I just didn’t feel like myself anymore.” Aelin shrugged.

“So when he told me he loved me, I totally freaked out and ran.” She let out a small laugh at that. “It was not my finest moment. But it wasn’t the wrong thing, either. I came back like an hour later and he yelled at me for running off and told me I was being ridiculous. And I told him I wanted to break up and he just called me all sorts of names. Not so nice ones. And he basically said I was unlovable. So yeah. That’s why I ran from him tonight. Because, honestly, I’m not sure if I could have a civil conversation with him without wanting to punch him in the face.”

Aelin finally turned to Rowan and braced herself for the judgment on his face. But there was none.

“I don’t blame you for any of that. Hell, I probably would’ve punched his smarmy face if you had stayed. If he doesn’t appreciate you as you truly are, then he’s incredibly stupid. You’re not unlovable, Aelin. That’s just bullshit. Plus, that dress you have on is…is…” Aelin giggled at that. Giggled. There was something about Rowan trying to compliment her that made her feel like she was back in high school again.

“It’s what, Buzzard?” Aelin smirked.

“I’m not saying anything else to feed your ego since it already takes up all the space on this balcony.” He smirked, though his eyes softened. “You know how beautiful you are, Aelin. You don’t need me to tell you that.” Aelin felt her cheeks heat and her heart rate speed up a little. Gods, what was this man doing to her? A few moments ago they were ready to tear each other apart. Now she just wanted to tear his clothes.

“I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier. And for being an ass yesterday. I haven’t gotten a haircut in so long and it was just…very unexpected. That’s all. I knew you didn’t mean to do it and I just reacted badly. I’m sorry.”

Aelin smiled and gave him a nod.

“Since you shared your sob story with me, maybe I could share one in return that will hopefully make you hate me less for the way I acted.”

“One, I don’t hate you. And two, yes of course share your sob story. We can bond over our shared woes,” Aelin laughed. Rowan returned the smile even though a nervous jitter rose in him.

“Okay. Well, I had this girlfriend in high school. We had been dating since sophomore year so I guess we were technically high school sweethearts. I loved her but when we went away to college, we just… grew apart. Or I guess I did. I called her one night in freshman year and told her that I just didn’t think we could do the long-distance thing. I wasn’t very good at breaking it off. And like I said, I did love her but just not in the way I should’ve. So she insisted she drive to see me and that we talk. She was going to school in our hometown of Doranelle and was going to make the 300 mile drive to see me here in Wendlyn. She was maybe halfway when she got hit by another car and died. That was three years ago.” Aelin’s heart was breaking for this man she barely knew.

“She was in cosmetology school so she was always the one cutting my hair. I felt so guilty for the longest time. I was the one who was a coward and couldn’t just tell her not to make the drive because my answer was going to be the same whether we talked about it or not. I wanted to break up either way. I always think about how maybe if I was just open with her, that maybe she would still be alive.

“Anyway, I haven’t gotten my hair cut since then. I suppose it’s mostly out of guilt. But she also always liked my hair long so I kept it like that to honor her, I guess.” Aelin could see the tension in his face. She also thought maybe she saw a few stray tear tracks down his face but she didn’t comment.

All she could do was whisper, “Rowan.” It was at his name that he finally looked at her. “I’m so sorry. For everything. I’m sorry for causing you to get your hair cut. I’m sorry that this happened. I’m just….sorry.” Aelin wanted to hug him. To take him in her arms and hold him as tightly as she could. But she wasn’t sure if they were there yet or if he even wanted that from her.

“I’ve never told anyone that before. Fenrys and Lorcan know that something happened but I’ve never told them exactly what.” He huffed a small laugh. “And not only do I not blame you, I almost want to thank you. Because I’m not sure I would’ve taken that step by myself. You pushed me to move on in a way.”

“Can I hug you?” As soon as Rowan gave a nod, Aelin threw her arms as tightly as she could around him. She buried her face in his shoulder, breathing in his pine and snow scent deeply. She could feel her dramatic side making its way to the surface again because she could swear that she never felt so at home as she did in this moment.

After that, it was easy to pass the time. They talked about everything and nothing. Aelin told him how her parents were politicians and her dad died in what might have been an accident but probably was an assassination. And why that’s the reason she wanted to get her degree in history and politics. She told him about her favorite color (red) and her favorite food (anything sweet, duh). They laughed and chuckled and when things moved to more serious topics, they listened intently and held each other.

Hours later, Aelin was dozing on Rowan’s shoulder, his head resting on hers and his jacket wrapped halfway over her, when the balcony door opened.

“Well, well, well. What do you know? Looks like everyone owes me money.” Aelin and Rowan glared at Fenrys, who interrupted what actually was a very nice and comfortable sleep. “I bet that you two snuck off to hook up. I blamed the belligerent sexual tension I could feel just oozing from you two. Looks like I was right.”

Aelin was up before she knew it, trying to tackle Fenrys. Before she could, strong arms wrapped around her and held her back.

“We weren’t hooking up, Fenrys. We were trapped out here.” Aelin could hear the irritation in Rowan’s voice at the stupidity of their friend. “You didn’t pick up the phone and no one else could be bothered to help us out. But apparently you could bet on us.”

“Oh, I saw the text hours ago. I just wanted to give you guys some time to work things out. And then I actually forgot. Oops.”

Panic struck Aelin. Did Lysandra know where she was. “What time is it?”

Fenrys checked his phone. “4 AM.”

Aelin muttered a shit at that.

“Don’t worry, your friends know exactly where you are. I told Lysandra I would look out for you so she went home.”

“Alone?”

“What?”

“Did Lysandra go home alone?”

“Oh. No. She went home with someone...” Fenrys looked apprehensive to say any more.

“Fenrys. I know she went home with Aedion. It’s really fine.”

“Alright, well… this has been a great conversation but I must get my beauty sleep.”

“Wow, what a great person to have ‘looking out for me.’” Fenrys gave a shrug as if he knew that she now had someone else to look out for her.

Aelin followed Rowan into the hallway after Fenrys disappeared.

“I suppose this is where I leave you,” Aelin crooned.

“Do you have a ride home?”

“No. I was going to call an Uber. Annnnddd my phone is dead. It’s fine, though. I’ll just walk. I live just a few blocks from here so it’s no big deal.”

“Or you could stay and we could just finish what we started?”

“Rowan…ya know, I actually don’t know what your last name is…Are you trying to get in my pants?”

“What!? No! I swear I didn’t mean it like that. I just meant that you were already half asleep and if you wanted to, you could just stay over. And sleep.” Rowan slapped a hand to his face. “Oh my gods.” Rowan slowly met Aelin’s eyes with a sheepish look on his face. But Aelin just laughed. It was like music to his ears.

“I’ll stay. If you don’t mind. I can take the couch or something but I don’t have any clothes.”

“You can take my bed. And you can borrow some from me.”

“I’ll only take the bed only if you also take the bed. Also your shirts will literally swim on me.”

“Does that matter? I have an extra toothbrush, too. My room’s the third one on the left. Go and get comfortable and I’ll get you a bottle of water.” He started walking away before stopping abruptly and looking her way. “Whitethorn.”

“What?”

“My last name is Whitethorn. Earlier you said you didn’t know my last name. So my name is Rowan Whitethorn.” He held out his hand. “Nice to officially meet you.” Aelin gently took his hand but instead of shaking it like he meant to, she pulled him closer to her, tugging him slightly down to her height. Her lips met his before he could think about anything else. And before he could deepen the kiss, she pulled away and sauntered off down the hallway. She knew exactly what that dress was doing to him. He supposed he did give his hand away earlier when he fumbled for a compliment like a high schooler, anyway. With a shake of his head he made his way to the kitchen.

- - - - -

Aelin was lounging on his bed when he returned, golden dress laying delicately over her curves. Rowan took a deep breath before entering completely. This girl. He quickly made his way to his dresser where he pulled out a pair of sweatpants that were slightly short for him and a t-shirt that had his name on the back from his hockey days. He threw both at her with a little too much force. She started cackling immediately. This. Girl.

As she went to change, Rowan took the time to change into something more comfortable, too. He usually slept shirtless but would Aelin be uncomfortable? Before he could find an answer to that question, she walked out of the bathroom in his clothing. A protective and possessive feeling came over him as he watched her climb into his bed wearing his clothes. Clothes that had his last name on them.

“Well? Are you going to join me?” Deciding that two could play at this game, he chose to forego the shirt, climbing into bed next to Aelin. She looked pleased with herself. Before he could let himself feel any type of self-consciousness, Aelin reached out an arm and pulled herself closer to him, almost hugging him like a tree. This was great. Aelin was a spooner. A smile crossed his face.

Rowan breathed in her delicate scent. He can’t remember the last time he felt so calm. This definitely wasn’t how he pictured his night going. Especially not with gum girl. But he couldn’t say that it was a bad night. No, not at all.

- - - - -

Aelin awoke well-rested. Probably the most well-rested she had been since the semester started. She attributed that to having a very nice, very muscular pillow. One that smelled very, very good. Aelin took a deep breath and inhaled Rowan’s pine and snow scent, relaxing into him once more. She was content to stay like this forever. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt this safe. And loved. She knew Rowan didn’t love her. They had just met for Gods’ sake. But she could envision it. Waking up with him like this every morning, being enveloped in his arms when she needed a hug. She was getting ahead of herself, though. First she needed to work up the courage to ask him on a date. Her liquid courage from last night wore off and she was more doubtful of herself now than she was when she kissed him last night.

Finally, he began to stir, letting out a few groans until his eyes fluttered open. Aelin’s own eyes met his own and the biggest, most uninhibited smile overtook his face. “Morning.”

“Morning, buzzard.” He let out a deep belly laugh at that.

“Where did that even come from?”

“I don’t even know. I just looked at you when you came out onto the balcony last night and it just fit.” Aelin gave him a sheepish smile which he returned.

“Hungry?”

“Absolutely famished.”

“I can go make us something. Eggs and bacon okay?”

Aelin nodded. As he rolled out of bed, she asked, “Okay, what’s the catch?”

“The catch?”

Aelin nodded. “There’s always a catch. You’re extremely handsome. You lent me clothes and had an extra toothbrush. Let me sleep in your bed. Let me pour my heart out. Gave me the biggest and most wonderful smile when you woke up. All of this despite the fact that I spit gum in your hair, and now you want to make me breakfast? So what’s the catch?”

Rowan gave her a grim smile. “There’s no catch, Aelin. I like you. So I want to do this for you. And if you let me, I’d like to take you out to dinner later. Or whatever you want to do.” He gave her a shy smile as he moved closer, close enough to take her hand. “I’m sorry that other guys gave you the impression that you have to give them something for them to do something nice for you. But I like you. And it sounds crazy but I just want to do things for you because I want to see a smile light up your face.” At his words, indeed a dazzling smile spread across her face.

She gripped his hand tighter and brought her forehead to his. “Okay,” she whispered. With a small kiss to her forehead, Rowan made his way downstairs to start breakfast. Aelin took a moment to freshen up and brush her teeth before following him. Once down in the kitchen, Aelin stopped in her tracks, eyes darkening. She didn’t know that a man cooking for her, shirtless, was a thing for her but apparently it was. Though she thought maybe her thing was more of just a Rowan thing.

As they sat there eating breakfast (Rowan was a fantastic chef, Aelin thanked the Gods), Aelin felt contentment wash over her. She never felt so content to just be. Usually, her mind was going a thousand miles a minute but now it was quiet thanks to Rowan’s presence. She could get used to this. As they set up their date for that night, Aelin hoped she would be getting used to this. Who could’ve known that spitting gum into a beautiful man’s hair would be the start of a great love story?

Tagging: (as always, lmk if you want to be added to/removed from my general list

 @cretaceous-therapod @morganofthewildfire @tomtenadia @live-the-fangirl-life @charlizeed @violet-mermaid7 @euphoric-melancholyy @kritical24 @rubyriveraqueen @dealfea @maeclin @ayaashryver @anna-swims @leiawritesstories @whoever-you-choose-to-love @holdthefrickup @kyereads @heirofflowers @bananaanna23 @thecrispypotatochip @shanias-world @rowanaelinn @bruiseonthefaceofhumanity @hanging-from-a-cliff 

[thequeenofnightmares]

Feyre Archeron from my fanfic, Of Hearts and Swords.

5 years have passed since Bryce Quinlan fought the Asteri—and lost.

5 years since the Horn in her back was then used to permanently open the gates between worlds. Midgard, Erilea, and Prythian are now in open war--the reunited Fae of each world working together to fight the Asteri.

But much has changed in the war-ravaged years that have passed. The Crochan Witchclan fights alongside the Valkyries. Hunt Athalar has sought day and night for a way to bring Bryce back from the dead and end this war. And the beloved High Lady of the Night Court--Feyre Archeron-- left Prythian for Erilea, just after their Inner Circle was cleaved apart forever by a newcomer.

As war rages on, the Asteri have found an unlikely ally in Prythian--one that might turn the fortunes of battle against the Fae.

This is an alternate ending to CC3 (HOFAS) where the Asteri win. Bryce was killed in the conflict that followed and the Horn in her back was then used to permanently open the gates. It will follow each of the main character ships (Feysand, Nessian, Rowaelin, Lysaedion, Manorian, Quinlar, etc.) as well as introduce some new ones for some other beloved characters (Azriel, Fenrys). Lots of relationship angst with a happy ending.

Read on AO3.

[bookofmirth]

I just wanted to say I loved your take on the ask you got recently that was about elriel and elucien and how people care more about screen time than Elain herself. What I like about SJM is that she writes relatable real female characters and it’s sad to see people bashing them because they won’t end up with their favorite or bashing certain pairings because they want their favorite to have more screen time. I want to see Elain’s journey to happiness like we’ve seen Feyre and Nesta’s. I want to see Gwyn and especially Mor grow and develop and be happy. Whatever people might ship, isn’t the point of shipping two people being invested in both of them as characters and supporting their journey together? If someone is all about Azriel and making sure he gets screen time - at that point why not just read an x Reader fic?

What I like about SJM is that she writes relatable real female characters

Thank you! You'd think that this was a common denominator. That at the very least, we would have that in common, an appreciation of the central women in the series, and an understanding that they are, indeed, central to the story because we are reading Sarah Janet Maas, not... idk some random dude.

I will legit put books down at the store and not buy them if I see that all the MCs are guys. I did that a couple of weeks ago when I picked up a book by John Gwynne and in the blurb all four MCs were dudes lol. No thank you! I've had enough of that for one lifetime <3

And I agree re: shipping, I can't get into a ship unless I like both/all characters. That's why I am meh on gwynriel (I'm side-eyeing Az for a thousand reason) and why I never got on board with lysaedion (he can jump off a cliff after KoA haha). I guess people ship differently and find different things that bring them joy, I just can't see it! Why would I spend my time thinking about characters where I really love one of them, but with the other one I'm just like, "well, I guess you can come too". (pun intended?)

But also to your point, there has been a LOT more reader fanfic since acosf came out. Like it was not really a thing prior to acosf, at least in this fandom, and now it seems pretty popular. I'm not judging, just making an observation. An observation that seems to support what you're saying.

[illyrianet]

The time is almost here to visit Adarlan once again!

Are you ready? Whether or not this is your first reading, fourth, seventh, or tenth, we are extremely excited to start Monday

For further details check out the original post: here

To participate in the reading discussion join our discord : here

If you have any questions feel free to contact any of The Cadre

- @vanserrasvalkyrie @starbornvalkyrie @oversizedbats @booksandlewks

[faerieaelin]

[at dinner]

Aelin: can you pass me my will to live?

Lysandra: Aelin, i can’t toss Rowan across the table.

[leiawritesstories]

Now that you did a rowaelin dealing with teenagers story, do one on lysaedion!!

it would be my pleasure 😁

word count: 3.1k (oopsies)

warnings: language, exhausted parents, references to sex, emotions

enjoy!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Babe?" Aedion leaned against the kitchen doorway, watching his wife finish stacking the last plates into the cupboard. After almost twenty-four years together, he knew what Lysandra did and didn't like to do.

And he knew she only organized the kitchen when she was stressed.

"Hey, babe, it's okay," he repeated, meeting her tired emerald gaze.

Lysandra sighed heavily, flicking off the light as she came to wrap her arms around her husband, pressing herself into his warmth. "I don't know how to handle this," she admitted. "It--I guess it just doesn't seem real, Aeds, no matter how long we've had to get used to the idea."

"We'll never get used to the idea of our oldest leaving for college," Aedion said softly, stroking Lys's back in soothing motions. "Shit, it feels like just yesterday we brought him home."

She nodded, sniffling quietly against his shoulder. "Yeah, it does. Gods, babe, it's like I blinked and our tiny little boy turned into a man."

"Man-child," Aedion corrected rapidly, his lips quirking.

Lysandra snorted quietly. "So insistent that our son never grow up."

"Hey," Aedion smirked, "you called me an overgrown child for gods know how long."

"Still do," she smirked right back. "I've got my reasons."

He chuckled. "Come on, babe, it's really fuckin' late and we have to leave at the ass-crack of dawn."

"Remind me again who planned it that way?" she crooned.

He grumbled something under his breath as he led her down the hall, turning off the lights as he went. Lys let him go into their bedroom; she stopped at their son's door and tapped softly.

"Awake?"

Emerson cracked the door open, blinking sleepily. "I was about to be asleep, Mom."

"Sorry," she whispered, her gaze darting into his room, over the suitcases and boxes neatly stacked on one side.

Her son sighed, the exhale turning to a yawn. "I'm ready for tomorrow, Mom, I promise."

"I know," she said. "I...I just wanted to say goodnight, Emerson."

His lips tilted up into a sleepy little grin and, albeit a little awkwardly, he wrapped his mother into an affectionate hug. "G'night, Mom."

"Goodnight, my boy." Lysandra reached up to smooth down his dark hair. "Gods, I'll never be quite used to you being taller than me."

Emerson chuckled. "Don't worry, I know better than to try and look down at you."

"Damn right you do." She pinched his cheek, smirking at his disgruntled grumble, and let him go. "Sleep well, son."

~

Lysandra tasked herself with waking up the children in the morning, knowing Emerson and Sana had both set alarms but might need a little nudge and the promise of caffeine to get them up and going at so early in the morning. So she headed into the kitchen and started up a fresh pot of coffee after getting herself ready, then went to Emerson's room.

"Rise and shine, kiddo!" She stuck her head into his room, noting with pleased surprise that his lamp was on and he was awake, if not yet out of bed.

"So early," he grumbled, smashing his pillow over his head.

"Blame your father," she retorted, "this was his grand idea."

"Fine," he conceded. Then he sniffed, his nose for caffeine overpowering his longing to sleep a few more minutes. "Coffee?"

"Freshly brewed," she laughed. "Better get there before the rest of us do, though." She withdrew and moved down to the next door, taking a quick breath in preparation for dealing with her daughter.

No light showed beneath Sana's door, so Lysandra wasn't surprised to see that her daughter's room was still dark. "Morning, Sana," she said, poking her head into the room, her eyes adjusting to the dimness and finding--

"Shit!" Sana squeaked, her bedcovers rustling as she reached to her side and shook the person next to her. "Uh, hi, Mom!"

"Shit!" yelped a boy's voice, the offending intruder rapidly burying himself under Sana's comforter.

"SHIT!" Lysandra exclaimed, rapidly yanking herself out of the room and rubbing her eyes as if to cleanse the image she had very much not wanted to see at five in the morning. Pulling her phone from her back pocket, she fired off a quick text to her daughter.

>Don't even think about letting him go through your window. I'll keep Dad away.

A few minutes later, a very sheepish Sana cracked open her door. "Uh...good morning, Mom?"

"Good morning," Lysandra replied calmly, the steel in her expression belying her even speech. "Good morning to you too, Owen."

Owen, Sana's boyfriend, waved awkwardly. "Hi, Mrs. Ashryver."

Because she was a woman of her word, Lys quickly checked the hallway and then motioned her daughter and Owen to follow her out to the patio door. No doubt Owen had either come in that way or snuck through Sana's window or she'd simply brought him over when Lys and Aedion were out finishing a last-minute errand. Aedion was sufficiently occupied for now, probably in the shower from the sound of it, so she waved the two of them out. "We'll see you later, Owen."

Sans kissed her boyfriend goodbye and came back into the house, her cheeks flaming. "Um..."

"Honey." Lysandra calmly handed her daughter some coffee. "Don't worry about it."

"That scared the shit out of me," Sana mumbled, her blush barely fading.

Lys smirked. "We'll be discussing this, but since your father didn't see, I don't think he needs to have any more reasons for his blood pressure to go up, hmm?"

Her daughter loosed a huge, relieved sigh. "Oh, thank all the gods."

"I wouldn't thank the gods yet," Lys said dryly, sipping from her own coffee. "Go on and help lug all Emerson's shit out to the car, Dad wants us to leave in twenty minutes."

"As if that's gonna happen," Sana snickered. She snapped the lid onto her travel mug and headed out of the kitchen, pausing and whirling back around to give her mother a quick, fierce hug. "Thank you, Mom."

"Love you, honey," Lys murmured. She winked. "Hell, I was a slightly wild teenager once, too..."

"Stop it!" Sana squeaked, making a hasty retreat.

Lysandra snickered, knowing full well how well hinting at her and Aedion's...past affected the kids. Making sure all the dishes were in the dishwasher and the coffee pot and toaster had been unplugged, she set her coffee mug down on the counter and grabbed the small box of kitchen stuff Emerson wanted for his dorm. Since he was a freshman, he was required to live in the dorms, and he grumbled about it but she knew that he'd at least be able to enjoy some of the experience. And since he knew how to use a stove and oven, she had no doubt that he'd be the most popular guy in the hall.

"Mom!" Emerson called as soon as she walked out to Aedion's truck, carrying the box. "Thank god, we need you!"

"What now?" she sighed, pretending to be exasperated.

"Son of a bitch!" Aedion yelled from the truck bed, muffling a string of even filthier words.

Emerson took the box from Lys and rolled his eyes. "That's what."

"Babe," she sighed, hopping up next to her husband, "what the hell is going on?"

"Dropped a box on my foot," Aedion mumbled, hiding his embarrassed flush from his wife.

She sighed and made him sit down, prodding his foot to make sure he wasn't badly injured. "How'd that happen?"

"I, uh--stacking too many things," he admitted.

"Fascinating," she deadpanned.

He grumbled something about stop being right. "I know, babe, I know. I shouldn't be doing this at my age."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," she snickered. "Come on, babe, there's only a few more things and it'll all fit with plenty of room, you don't need to worry about space."

Aedion hefted a sigh himself and kissed the top of her head. "Gods, why are you always right?"

"It's my job," she grinned.

He chuckled and kissed her softly, one hand coincidentally dropping down to her ass.

"Oh my fu--god!" Emerson groaned, almost dropping the box he carried as he screwed his eyes shut, not having needed to see his parents being horny teenagers in the back of the pickup.

"Truck's seen worse, my boy," Aedion snickered gleefully, relishing in the way his son grew visibly uncomfortable. "How much left?"

"Ju--uhh--just this box and your suitcases." Emerson ran back into the house as fast as he could, blinking rapidly as if to scrub away the image to which he'd just been treated.

Both Lysandra and Aedion burst into laughter at his discomfort, finding a small way to cope with the crazy emotions of bringing their firstborn to college.

~

Seven hours of driving and only a few friendly family disagreements later, Aedion pulled into the parking lot of their hotel, turned off the ignition, and released a deep sigh of relief along with the rest of the family. Emerson had enrolled in Adarlan State University, which wasn't as far from home as he could have gone, but was far enough away for him to feel independent. Instead of flying, they'd opted to make the drive to move him in, taking a few days' vacation of sorts.

Aedion hopped out and went into the hotel to check in, returning shortly later with the room keycards and the printouts. "All right, we're good to go."

"Thank god," Sana grumbled, wasting absolutely no time getting out of the car and stretching herself out. "Is it just me, or does Rifthold air smell different?"

"It definitely does," Emerson agreed, jumping out from his side. "Less mountain-y."

"That's not a word," Sana scoffed, grinning wickedly.

Her brother rolled his eyes. "Thought we were out of school, Little Miss Grammar."

"Call me that one more time--"

"Nope!" Lysandra stopped her children before they could start. "Please, we just got here!"

"Sorry, Mom," both of them mumbled, slightly abashed.

She huffed. "I know you want to be free, son, but please at least try to pretend your father and I taught you something resembling manners."

"Okay," he agreed, going to grab the suitcases.

Sana grabbed her backpack out of the truck and pushed the door shut, taking her suitcase from her brother. "Thanks, Mer."

"No problem, young one."

She poked him in the back of the neck. "I'm sixteen, jackass."

"And I'm an adult," he smirked.

"Okay, Emmy," she retorted, snickering at his frustrated snarl.

"Kids," Aedion called lazily, watching the two bicker like they always had, "how about we haul our shit up to the room and get dinner?"

That, apparently, was the magic word.

Half an hour later, they'd dropped off luggage in their third-floor room, each taken a turn in the bathroom, and were back in the truck with Lysandra scrolling through the list of nearby restaurants on her phone. "Do we want burgers or Thai?"

They wanted burgers, apparently.

Though that may just have been the vocal eagerness of the two man-children in the car.

~

The next day, Lysandra awoke with a small heaviness in the pit of her stomach, a feeling that only built as they drove into Adarlan State University's campus, greeted by a whole host of students dressed in red and white and black, the school's colors, waving "WELCOME!!!" signs and cheering for the new freshmen. On the flip side of the overabundance of school spirit, though, there were lots of signs directing the students and families where to go, and they found Emerson's dorm building easily.

Getting his stuff into his dorm turned out to be a lot less easy.

"Goddamn move-in crowds," Aedion grumbled, his forehead damp with sweat as he set two more boxes down on the dorm floor.

With so many people moving in at once, the elevators were constantly busy and constantly had a waiting line, so the Ashryvers had opted to take the stairs and cycle from the car up to Emerson's dorm and back.

Too bad Emerson's dorm was on the fourth floor.

Aedion didn't know the last time he'd walked so many stairs, let alone walked stairs while hauling boxes and luggage.

"That's it!" Emerson grunted, plopping the last box onto the ground and huffing. "Hell, I think I just got in my lifting and cardio."

Lys and Sana appeared in the doorway a moment later, loosing sighs of relief. "Right, my boy," Lys said, wiping strands of hair away from her face, "what do you need us to do?"

Emerson braced his hands on his hips, scanning the pile of boxes and luggage and other things on the floor and his side of the room. "Dad, can you help me loft the bed?"

"Of course." Aedion checked the metal bedframe. "Simple. You grab that side, I'll get this side, we both lift."

"Good. Mom," Emerson threw her a grin, "I know how much you want to, so yeah, you can organize my clothes."

"I know they won't stay that way," Lys chuckled.

"Sana?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you do all my desk shit?"

"That's a very broad term," Sana drawled.

Emerson rolled his eyes. "Look, you're better at putting that stuff in normal places, and if I do it, I won't be able to find shit."

"Language," Sana teased, grinning. "Yeah, I'll handle that. You try not to pop your shoulder out. And yes, Dad, I was talking to you."

"Smartass," Aedion grumbled, his lips quirking up. "Okay, on three!" He counted off and pushed and he and Emerson successfully lifted the bed into lofted position. He slapped his son a high five, quietly jarred by just how tall the boy was--almost at eye level with him.

Fuck, when did that happen?

About an hour later, they were all sorting through Emerson's stuff and slowly beginning to make his half of the room look more comfortable than the blank walls initially indicated when the door creaked open and another boy walked in, rolling a couple of suitcases behind him.

"Emerson!" the guy exclaimed, shoving his suitcases off to the side. "Bro, I didn't know you were here!"

"Selvari?!" Emerson half-shouted, abandoning the suitcase he was unpacking to grab the dark-haired boy in the bro-est bro hug Aedion had ever seen. "Shit, you're my roommate?"

"Unless you can't read, yeah," Nyx Selvari grinned. "You're stuck with me, Ashy."

"Shut up, jackass," Emerson laughed, "I might not be much, but I'd know Room 420 anywhere."

"Cheers." Nyx knocked his fist into Emerson's. "Gonna make it a--nope, nope, not saying that shit, nope!" It was like he hadn't realized Aedion and Lysandra were right there.

"Hi, Nyx," Lys laughed, grinning at her son and his friend. Nyx had played football with Emerson for years, all the way through high school, and the boys had practically grown up together. "Fancy meeting you here."

"Nice to see you again, Mrs. Ashryver," Nyx beamed. "I didn't ever check my housing except to see that I'd actually signed up for a meal plan, so I had no idea who my roommate was gonna be."

"That's funny," Lys snickered. "Mer didn't even check his student email until a week ago."

"Mom!" Emerson groaned. "Stop it!"

"Never," Lysandra smirked.

"So much for helping," another deep voice drawled, Nyx's father entering the room to plop two armfuls of shopping bags down onto the floor. "You could at least--shit, Ashryver?!"

"The one and only," Aedion smirked. "Getting a little tired, old man?"

"Fuck you," Rhysand Selvari snorted, tossing his arm around Aedion's shoulder. "Darling, look what the cat dragged in!"

"What a lovely surprise!" Feyre beamed, depositing her load of shopping bags and a large duffel bag next to the pile of stuff on the floor. "Now we know our son will have at least a little bit of sense in his life."

"Moooom!" Nyx groaned. "Really?"

"Cheer up, mijo," Feyre smirked, ruffling her son's hair. "We'll be out of your hair soon enough and you and Emerson can do whatever stupid things the new college freshmen do." She hugged both Aedion and Lys. "So good to see you again."

"You too," Lys grinned. "Have fun getting the wild one settled."

~

Evening had fully fallen when Emerson walked downstairs with Lys, Aedion, and Sana, the four of them all walking over to the pickup and pausing, unsure quite how to proceed. Up in the dorm, Lys had already shed a few tears, and though Aedion would deny it to hell and back, he'd shed a few tears too.

"Fuck, stop growing up so fast," he muttered, trying to mask the thickness in his voice with gruffness.

Emerson stepped into his father's embrace, squashing down a few tears of his own. "I'm not that far away, Dad."

"I know." Aedion rested his hands on his son's shoulders. "I'm so goddamn proud of you, son."

His son wiped the back of his hand across his face. "Love you too, Dad."

Lysandra pressed her son into her embrace, identical emerald-green eyes soft and shining with mingled pride and sadness. "I love you, my son." She sniffled. "Please don't do anything stupid."

He snorted a soft laugh. "I'll try, Mom. Love you." She released him, and he turned to his sister. "Have fun being the only child." Try as he might, he couldn't quite muster the swagger he'd intended.

Sana gifted him with a fierce hug, whispering something into his ear that made him snort with laughter. "Fucking gods, Sana!"

"I'm not wrong!" she beamed. "Don't let the RAs catch you hiding booze, Mer."

He snickered. "I'll try."

As Aedion reversed the truck and slowly pulled away from the parking lot, Emerson stood in the lot, a half-sad, half-excited grin on his face, and waved to his family until they rounded a corner and he fell out of sight. Lysandra exhaled shakily, dabbing a few stray tears from her face.

"It's okay, babe," Aedion murmured, sliding one hand across to link with his wife's. "He's gonna be just fine."

"I know," she whispered. "Gods, it's not easy to leave your kid at college, though."

He squeezed her hand, his thumb tracing circles on her thigh. "No, it's really not."

Back at the hotel that night, Lys curled herself as close to Aedion as possible, taking comfort in the warm, solid strength of him. He held her just as close, tangling his fingers into her soft, dark hair, feeling the heat of her mother's tears drip into his worn old sleep shirt. He pressed tender kisses to her forehead as she let her emotions pass, allowing her to reach up and brush the tears off his own cheeks.

"He needs this," she murmured, convincing herself as much as him. "He's going to do just fine, Aeds."

"He will." Aedion kissed her gently. "Because he's your son, Lys."

She sniffled. "You're a big old teddy bear, babe."

He wasn't even going to try to deny it.

~~~

TAGS: this is my general list, please lmk if you want to be tagged or not :)

@charlizeed

@cretaceous-therapod

@clea-nightingale

@autumnbabylon

@nerdperson524

@fireheartwhitethorn4ever

@morganofthewildfire

@rowanaelinn

@wesupremeginger

@stardelia

@shanias-world

@mybloodrunsblue

@swankii-art-teacher

@wordsafterhours

@cookiemonsterwholovesbooks

@violet-mermaid7

@holdthefrickup

@goddess-aelin

@rowaelinismyotp

@dealfea

@irondork

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@live-the-fangirl-life

@darling-im-the-queen-of-hell

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@hanging-from-a-cliff

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@rowaelinrambling

@thegreyj

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@backtobl4ck

@throneofus7

@elizarikaallen

@llyncooljones

@booknerdproblems

[talkfantasytome]

Congratulations on 500!!!!!

“I can’t believe I’m gonna jump face first into that snowbank.” “You don’t have to. You could choose not to.” “No, I’m gonna.”

It's screaming Nessian or Rowaelin 😂

Okay, I'm finally ready! And you're so right! It absolutely is! I love this prompt, though I'll admit I'm not in love with my execution. 👀 I had a whole plan, it involved a hot tub and jumping into the snow before going into the hot tub, which was a thing I definitely did on ski trips...BUT, then I went a bit Aelin on myself. Just take that prompt and sub "jump face first into that snowbank" with "start a new AU", and you have me against my logical brain last night. 😂

So, instead, I went a slightly different route, but I still think it's kinda cute. XD

Rowan and Aedion pick the girls up from Aelin's parents' house on their way up to the mountains, making introductions as they do. It's not an incredibly eventful ride, but all trips have to start somewhere.

Warnings: None. | Word Count: 3,423 | Read on AO3 | Masterlist

a/n: The cabin I used for inspiration, and all pictures I have used or will use, come from here.

Combined with another prompt answered/shown in:

Don't Tell Aedion

Also, just wanted to add another huge thank you to all of you for your support and for just reading my pieces! It means the world to me and I can't tell you how happy I am to have decided to come on to tumblr to share my writing, and that's all because of you! 💕

Excited squeals traveled through the house as Aedion walked in. He braced himself for the oncoming tackle, only to find the foyer completely empty, no golden hair in sight.

He took a few steps further before stopping to look around, wondering if she was hiding. But there wasn't anywhere to hide in the foyer. So he slid off his shoes and pushed them against the wall just as another set of high laughter echoed through the house.

"Shoes off and then follow me," Aedion said to Rowan as he started up the winding staircase.

"Seriously, that's it? No time for me to comment on this palace?" Rowan chuckled as he took off his shoes and shut the door behind him.

Aedion continued up the stairs. "No way, I'm not dealing with that shit. Now be quiet."

He could practically hear Rowan roll his eyes as he led his best friend up the stairs. But he didn't say anything else. Not as he made his way up the stairs, down the corridor toward the opening that led into a small living room. Beyond that room was the tiny hallway that held the doors to both his and Aelin's bedrooms.

As expected, Aelin was sitting on the large sectional, speaking animatedly with the friend she was bringing - Lysandra, if Aedion remembered correctly.

The two were chatting, but facing the large television on the wall opposite the entrance Aedion was now standing in. All he could see was a full head of golden blonde hair and another of dark chestnut.

Tiptoeing, he made his way toward the blonde, quickly sliding his hands over her eyes. He regretted it instantaneously.

Aelin shrieked and yanked her head back, turning and hitting him right in the gut before she recognized who he was.

His breath whooshed out of him as if it had been completely pushed from his body, and Aedion couldn't help but keel over a bit to try to temper the pain.

"Oh my gosh, Aedion!" Aelin cried, standing up and running around the couch to her cousin. "I'm so sorry!" She rested her hand on his back, rubbing it slightly to comfort him as Aedion took in a few deep breaths.

"It's okay," he rasped. "I should've known better than to sneak up on you. Good punch."

Aelin let out a small chuckle. "I learned from the best."

He flashed her the nicest smile he could and then stood straighter, scrunching his face slightly from the pain. "Let's go back to you actually waiting and then tackling me when I walk in, yeah?"

"I'll see what I can do," Aelin laughed, finally giving her cousin the hug he'd been expecting when he first walked in.

Rowan stood frozen in place, torn between amusement and stupefaction.

There, hugging his best friend - just after punching him in the stomach - was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. The same one he'd been desperate to meet for months. Ever since the beginning of the year when he saw her walking across the prom that first day of classes.

He wanted to go up and talk to her right then and there, but he was heading in the opposite direction and was on the verge of being late. Hoping he'd see her again, Rowan hadn't worried too much. How hard could it be to find someone on a campus of over thirty thousand students?

Answer: extremely.

Rowan kept his eyes peeled, always searching, but he only saw her once more over the course of the fall semester. On Halloween, of all nights.

He couldn't believe his luck at first, to find himself at the same party she'd ended up at. Only to then see her with some brown-haired guy's arm attached to her waist. So, once again, Rowan had decided not to try and speak with her. He wasn't the type to go after girls who were dating someone else. Even if he sorely wanted to.

Looking at her now, smiling up at Aedion, he didn't know how he missed the similarities. The two looked like twins with their near-identical hair colors and exact same turquoise eyes ringed with gold. Of course, her features were far softer, her body curved and completely tantalizing. Still, it was a bit jarring to see them next to each other.

"It's so good to see you," Aedion sighed, giving his cousin one last squeeze.

"What are you talking about? We have brunch every other week, at least." Her smile was wide, and it had Rowan's lips trying to curve upward. But he held his look of indifference, not wanting to look like a creep.

"I haven't seen you in a month."

She paused, her mouth falling open. "Really? It's been a month?!"

"Yeah. Remember, we rescheduled because of hockey practice. But then you had to cancel because of a finals study group."

"Oh, right." She nodded, laughing at herself softly. "Well, we're both here now!" She turned a bit, motioning toward the girl that had been on the couch with her, but was now standing at the edge of it. "This is Lysandra. My roommate and the best person ever."

Rowan watched as Aedion finally moved his attention away from his cousin and then stilled completely. Rowan had seen that look before. Or, he'd seen a similar look, but never this intense.

Aedion was just staring at her, his eyes focused on her face. It wasn't a long pause, just long enough to tell Rowan that Aedion was taken off guard. He then stumbled over his feet slightly as he held out his hand for Lysandra to shake.

The girl watched him, her emerald eyes sparkling with amusement as she accepted his hand and gave him a soft smile.

Rowan could admit she was pretty. The contrast of her hair against her skin added something he could only describe as striking. With that and her eyes, she was a forceful sort of beauty, as if her body were demanding appreciation. Yet, there was a softness to her that still made her more approachable - as if that would have stopped Aedion. He definitely had a flair for the dramatic. A woman like this - exactly the type that would pique his interest. But, perhaps what lay beneath in that kind stare would be enough to hold it in a way most couldn't.

Before he could try toread further into their interaction, Rowan's attention was entirely stolen as Aedion's cousin's eyes turned to him.

He shifted his weight as he waited for Aedion to stop staring at Lysandra, but apparently his cousin is far more impatient.

"Aedion. Are you going to introduce us to your friend?" she asked, her tone a soft scold. Her eyes, however, never left Rowan's. It sent a holt through his veins as he held her stare. A flash of something Rowan couldn't quite read swam across that sea, and he didn't know why, but it had him throwing her a playful half-smile.

Finally, Aedion looked back at them, his gaze flicking suspiciously between the two. "Rowan, this is Aelin. And Lysandra. Girls, this is Rowan."

"Rowan," Aelin breathed softly, as if she were testing it out. Rowan certainly liked the sound of it on her tongue. "Great name."

"My parents liked it. I'll pass on the compliment."

"Wonderful. I love it when parents like me before even meeting me." She threw him a smirk that had Rowan inhaling deeply.

He raised his eyebrows toward her, laughing softly. "I don't recall inviting you to meet my parents."

"No. But you will. If I want you to."

"Because the princess gets what she wants?" he taunted.

Aelin's grin grew wider. "Always."

"So!" Aedion interjected, coughing with the sudden shout and drawing Rowan and Aelin's attention. "Shall we get going? Wouldn't want to hit traffic."

Aelin rolled her eyes, exchanging a look with Lysandra, who just chuckled quietly. "Because the mountains are known for their heavy traffic on random Wednesday evenings," Aelin sighed, starting toward the opening that looked like it led to bedrooms.

Lysandra followed, and as the girls grabbed their bags, Rowan and Aedion took turns using the bathroom to prepare for another long car ride.

They were going up to the ski cabin Aelin's parents owned for a bit of a post-finals celebration before Aelin's parents joined them the next week. Rowan couldn't get home for Christmas that year. With the frequent storms in both Terrasen and Doranelle, which had already preemptively cancelled two flights he'd booked, he and his family agreed it would make the most sense for him to stay in Terrasen. So Aedion suggested he go home with him for the holidays, instead of staying on campus alone.

It was a pretty easy decision to make once Rowan made sure Aedion's family was okay with it. It helped finding out his cousin was bringing a friend home, too. Once that was all sorted, Aedion and Aelin managed to convince Aelin's parents to let them all go up almost a full week earlier than the original plan, since all their finals would be over anyway. So they were about to have five days up at the cabin before Aelin's parents got there.

Rowan didn't think much about it at first. But knowing who Aedion's cousin was, suddenly he was extremely excited to have a few days without parental supervision. Even if they were all technically adults, college students were generally still kids in parents' eyes. And it would be hard enough to get to know Aelin with Aedion around. Rowan doubted adding her father to the mix would make things easier.

Not that he was planning to do anything untoward, of course. Not at all.

In fact, to the best of his knowledge she could still be dating that guy from Halloween. The realization sobered Rowan and tampered the anticipation. There truly was nothing to worry about for her parents. At least not in regards to Aelin. He couldn't speak to what Aedion might get up to if Lysandra was willing.

By the time he was out of the bathroom the girls were rolling their bags out from Aelin's bedroom. They'd also slid on their jackets and slung purses over their shoulders. Rowan and Aedion took the bags down and packed them into the car as they both went to the bathroom, and within ten minutes they were in the car and on the road.

"Ew, no. We are not listening to this," Aelin demanded from the back seat. She leaned over the center console and stole the auxiliary cord straight out of Rowan's phone.

"Hey!" Rowan objected.

Aedion just chuckled from the driver's seat. "I warned you."

"If you think the feel of this week is going to be sad boy music, you've got another thing coming." Aelin was quick getting her phone set up, blasting 'I Love It' through the SUV.

"Cause this is so much better?" Rowan grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back into his chair.

The rest of the car answered with a passionate, "Yes!" that had Rowan rolling his eyes, even as he huffed out a small chuckle.

"It's called 'pump up' music," Aelin added. "The term is over, we're going up to the mountains, to Stonewood Cottage - which is one of the best places ever. It's incredibly fitting."

"Stonewood Cottage?" Rowan asked, looking over at Aedion.

Aedion let out an amused, fond-sounding sigh. "We were up at the cabin when Aelin first read Pride and Prejudice. When she finished, she decided that our cabin should have a name like all the manors in that book. Stonewood…well, you'll see when we get there. She was seven, it wasn't particularly creative on her part."

Aelin let out an offended scoff and poked Aedion in the arm.

"Ah." Rowan nodded in understanding. "Well, I wouldn't know that about this cabin, yet. That it's one of the best places ever. So I'm sure you can forgive my…calculations."

Lysandra's head snapped up from what she was doing on her phone. "Hang on. Aedion didn't spend hours going through every photo he has of the house and mountains?"

"…No?" Rowan turned, raising an eyebrow at her. "Should he have?"

"They're just clearly not as close as we are," Aelin sighed, flashing a mischievous smile.

It was Aedion's turn to huff. "Just because I don't keep an absurd amount of photos on my phone and computer to bore Rowan with does not mean that he and I aren't just as good of friends. I'll remind you that we've known each other a whole year longer than you and Lysandra, who have been friends for a whopping four months."

"Time isn't the only measure," Aelin rebutted in a dismissive tone.

The next thing Rowan knew, the entire car was engaged in a huge debate over which pair were better friends. Rowan wasn't typically one to engage in such pointless discussions, but Aelin had a way of drawing him in. Her challenges required him to respond, something he'd never experienced from another person. Yet, it felt familiar. As if he'd gone home only to find his parents had completely redecorated - a new house by sight, but it was still home.

The argument didn't end until Aedion pulled into a gas station for a quick rest stop.

While Aedion and Lysandra went in to use the bathroom and grab some drinks, Rowan pulled out his sketchbook. He'd been working on the sketch of a woman, just to practice drawing people, and finally figured out some final touches he'd been struggling with.

"Is that a drawing of me?"

Rowan practically jumped out of his seat at the sudden question. Looking down, he said a silent thank you to whatever deities exist that his pencil hadn't been pressed against the paper at that moment.

"No. It's not a drawing of anyone," Rowan replied. He turned to see Aelin's head almost right next to his as she leaned over his seat.

"Hmm." She was still staring at the sketch. "It looks like me."

Rowan furrowed his brows, flicking his gaze between the drawing and Aelin. He didn't want to admit it, but she was right. It did look an awful lot like her. And he had only been working on it for about a month or so, since just after Halloween. Well after her face started living in his head rent free.

"Must be a coincidence," he muttered, feeling the tips of his ears warm.

"Shame. It's gorgeous. I'd have liked it to be me."

Rowan's eyes snapped to hers, twinkling in the golden light of early evening. "We can say it's you, if you'd like," he offered in a rasp.

A smile spread across Aelin's lips that had Rowan's twitching upward. "Can I have it once it's done?"

He nodded, his heart thundering at the proximity of Aelin's face. At how close those curved lips were to his. "Just…don't tell Aedion who drew it."

"Deal," she agreed with a light laugh just as Lysandra opened the door. Aedion was still outside, filling up the car with gas.

She eyed Rowan and Aelin, a knowing look in her emerald eyes. "What are you two up to?"

"Just chatting while you hit on my cousin," Aelin teased as she leaned back in her seat. Rowan couldn't help but miss the soft heat radiating from Aelin's face that he'd felt on his cheek.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Lysandra's voice was flat as she lifted her chin in a sign of indifference.

Aelin let out a loose chuckle. "Sure Lys."

The car grew silent after that, and even when Aedion joined the conversation didn't pick up.

A quick look behind him showed Rowan that Aelin and Lysandra were both drifting off to sleep. So he turned back around and engaged Aedion in some light conversation about the ongoing hockey season. They were both big fans of the Orynth Stags, and Rowan knew Aedion didn't like it when the whole car fell asleep on him.

The two made the decision to power through instead of stopping for dinner, to get to the cabin a bit earlier. Which, luckily, meant that they were less than an hour away by the time the girls started to stir and ask about food. Aelin huffed a bit when they first said they'd decided not to stop, but being so close to the cabin seemed to keep her from arguing too furiously.

Instead, a general buzz of anticipation began to spread throughout the car. Rowan could practically feel in the air the shaking of legs and tapping of toes. He could smell the adrenaline that started coursing through their veins as the crisp, clear scent of the snow-covered mountains made its way into the vehicle. It was still silent, but now for an entirely different reason as they all looked excitedly out the window. Not that much was visible in the pitch black night.

They'd been driving the back roads for at least twenty minutes when Aedion turned down a particular street and Aelin suddenly squealed.

"So close!"

Rowan watched as they slowly passed houses that were each about a quarter of a mile from the last. The roads became windier with each turn Aedion made, the houses more extravagant. He didn't care what Aedion or Aelin said. None of these houses were cabins.

Finally, Aedion turned into a long driveway. The house wasn't extremely visible from within the car when on the street - in part due to no lights being on yet - but as he drove up the hill, the structure came into view and Rowan felt his bottom lip drop.

The large house was stone on the bottom and wood on top, easily explaining the name seven-year-old Aelin came up with. Even if he'd argue this was in no way an actual cottage. There were large windows and a balcony around what Rowan was starting to realize was technically the back of the house. He figured that the house was designed for the 'back' to face the road because, with the way the mountain sloped down, that side likely offered the nicer views.

Behind the house, the mountain continued to slope upward gradually, though it was steep enough there weren't other houses built behind it. It was just a wall of snow and trees. And with the spread of houses on the road, that left them a large amount of privacy Rowan shouldn't be caring about.

Aedion pulled around and parked just in front of a two-car garage that seemed to be at the back of the house, but based on the covered walkway to the door, he realized this was the true "front" of the house. Instead of going into the garage, Aedion kept his car outside as he shut it off. And before the car fully stopped, Aelin was opening the door and jumping from it, running a few feet away and taking a large breath.

They followed her out, Rowan watching her closely as a soft smile rested on her face, her head lifted to the sky and her eyes closed. It was yet another image of Aelin he tucked away for safekeeping. One he very well might draw, this time purposefully.

"It's so good to be back," she breathed, looking at them as they all joined her.

Aedion looked up toward something, but all Rowan could see was a large pile of fresh snow. Clearly Aedion saw more, though. His eyes lit up and he nudged his cousin excitedly.

"You wanna?" he asked, grinning down at her like a five-year-old.

She followed his gaze to see what he was looking at and then let out a small laugh. "Oh my gosh. I can't believe I'm about to jump face first into a snowbank."

Rowan flicked his eyes to her. "You…you don't have to," he sighed, his confusion clear in his voice. "You could choose not to."

"No, I'm gonna," she declared. Then she looked back at Aedion and gave him a nod. "On three?"

He beamed widely. "One…two…"

"THREE!" they both shouted before bolting straight toward that heap of snow and diving straight into it.

Rowan could barely believe his eyes. But as Aelin popped up, her hair full of snow, her nose red, her eyes twinkling, and a laugh cascading from her lips and fluttering through the air to kiss his cheeks, Rowan knew one thing.

He was in deep, unending shit.

@danibutterr @boredserpent @thestoriesyoutell @superspiritfestival @lemonade-coolattas @thegreyj @live-the-fangirl-life @morganofthewildfire @backtobl4ck @confusedfandomslut @sayosdreams

If you'd like to be added to my Rowaelin, Lysaedion, or general tallest, just let me know! 🙂

[tomtenadia]

A Little Braver - 73

So, who is ready for tooth rotting fluff? As promised the angst is over and I love this chapter madly... There’s two giant stepping stones for Rowaelin... Rowan visit an old familiar place and we meet some old friends 

And then the final big surprise... I swear the fluff is through the roof. I love this chapter and the next few ones. Two more to the final one and then the epilogue with 76. I am seriously not ready to let go. I have been re-reading this and I love where they all are, all they have overcome. Fine... no time for crying just yet. See at the very end for a question that I can’t ask here because spoilers...

MASTERLIST

Aelin had been discharged from the hospital ten days later and now, seven weeks after the fire they were back at the hospital to have her casts removed. The doctor had ran a few tests and assured that the fractures had healed properly and was ready to use crutches. She had been allocated a physio schedule to speed up recovery. The neurologist had scheduled a few more visits to make sure she was fully okay and Aelin had been promoted with flying colours.

Now they were both in the car and heading to east station. Rowan had taken the morning off and Ansel subbed for him for a few hours. He had begged Aelin to go home but she had insisted that she wanted to go to the station and be with her team.

They parked along the pavement and Rowan rushed to get her crutches. He almost started explaining her how to use them but Aelin stopped “stop fussing, I know how to use them.”

He grabbed his bag and slowly they walked on the apron and spotted the big doors open. Engine and truck parked outside and her team hard at work washing them “That bumper still look disgusting. I cannot see my reflection.”

The team stopped and turned at the familiar voice. Then chaos erupted.

They all ran to her and enveloped their captain in a huge team hug. She had missed her team so much.

“Easy guys, I am not that stable.”

“Please don’t break her. They just let her free,” added Rowan. He kissed Aelin’s head and went to get changed and left Aelin with her team.

Once done, he went to the ambulance and greeted Elide and Ansel “ladies, I am back.”

“Oh yes, we just finished smooching that girl of yours.”

Rowan grinned and turned to Ansel “thank you for subbing, I know you hate being a paramedic.”

The woman shrugged “you’ll have me next month for a shift for my licence. That will be a fun ride. I need to brush up my skills.”

With the two women he joined the apron and found Aelin sitting on the bumper of the engine laughing happily with her team.

Rowan relaxed. He had feared that this accident might trigger bad memories but Aelin had been okay. Now that she was back home he could keep an eye on her but she had been sleeping peacefully at night with no nightmares. From his own battle with ptsd he had learned a lot and had been trying to encourage Aelin to talk to him if she felt panic rise when in enclosed places or with anything that might trigger an attack. And that she did. She talked to him and he confessed too all of his fears. While she was still in hospital unconscious he had gone to his therapist when he felt his fears were becoming too much.

Aelin’s eyes landed on him and she gave him a bright smile.

Everyone moved to the common room and Aelin went with Manon in her office.

The woman let her captain sit down on her chair and she took the one on the other side of the desk.

“So, acting captain. How does it feel?”

“Do you remember how much Aedion hated it when it was his turn?” Aelin laughed, she did remember her cousin moaning.

“Cap, the paperwork is endless and the report for the high-rise fire took me ages. Then you have payroll, rotas and all the stuff that Dorian dumps on me,” Manon leaned back on the chair “please come back soon because I miss being a simple lieutenant.”

Aelin smiled. She wanted Manon to learn her job, because if she and Rowan decided to have kids she could not work in a firehouse anymore and would ask for a transfer at the fire academy. Manon was her successor. Brullo was another option but she knew the man did not want the job. He had barely accepted to become a lieutenant.

“Manon, it’s the natural progression.”

“Cap, you are coming back. This is your house and your team.”

Aelin played with a pen “you are doing a wonderful job and Dorian would have not appointed you if he thought you were not capable.”

The two women chatted a while longer until Luca’s voice informed them that lunch was ready “Come on acting captain, this girl here is starving.”

When they arrived in the common room she spotted Rowan and Brullo at the stoves “we really need a new candidate.”

They started sitting down when three figures appeared.

“Guess they smelled the food” was Rowan’s comment when he noticed Lorcan, Connall and Vaughan.

“We know that you guys try to have lunch around this time and since we don’t have classes until the afternoon we decided to pop by.”

Lorcan went to Elide and kissed her and she caressed his face. Lorcan, with her help, had slowly adjusted to civilian life and could not believe his luck when Elide stuck with him when he had bad days. He expected her to bolt any day but never did and realised that he had been the luckiest man on heart to have found her. Lorcan went to help distribute the food when dispatch alarm went off but it was a call for ambulance only. Elide and Rowan sprang into action and left the firehouse.

“It’s so strange to see him as a paramedic,” Lorcan confessed to Aelin as he sat at her side “But I don’t think I have ever seen him this happy.”

“Elide did a number on you as well. You smile, commodore.”

The man shrugged “She is… special.”

Aelin grinned.

Food on the table, they all started eating and the guys started telling Aelin some of the callouts they had.

“Manon put to the test her knew found knowledge for dangerous materials. Alex begged her to join him in his team.”

Aelin laughed “I am going to have a word with him. He is not allowed to pinch my firefighters.”

“Hazmat never had a female member,” added Asterin.

“Well, Alex can find his new member somewhere else. Not in my house.”

“Cap, I am not leaving for hazmat,” added Manon quietly “yes, the job is amazing and fascinating. But I am a firefighter.”

Asterin hugged Manon fiercely and Aelin knew that the woman was the only one allowed such acts towards her lieutenant. The two women had been friends for a very long time.

The meal was halfway through when the two paramedics came back and Aelin spotted Rowan run for the bathrooms.

“He is fine,” added Elide at Aelin’s worried expression “just one of the many accidents of the job.”

“Puke target?” Asked Ansel amidst a chorus of groans.

The petite woman nodded “unconscious woman, we were checking on her when she suddenly wakes up again and used Rowan for target practice.”

Aelin grabbed her crutches and slowly made her way to the bathroom where a shirtless Rowan was getting cleaned up.

“If you wanted to show off your muscles there was no need to have gross stuff on you.”

Rowan turned and walked to Aelin then lifted her and sat on her on the counter while Aelin squealed in joy. He stopped in front of her and kissed her deeply. Her hands found purchase in his unbound hair and a moan left her when his tongue teased in a silent permission. Aelin opened for him and tried to wrap her legs around his waist but the movement was still too much.

“We haven’t broken in our new bed yet…”

Since she had been discharged, Rowan had been extra careful with her, but Aelin was done being ill. She wanted him.

“Aelin…”

“Ro, I am okay, stop fussing,” her hand trailed down on his butt and squeezed it “I miss you. I need you.”

Rowan groaned and pulled back and kissed her nose in apology “not in the firehouse bathroom. Tomorrow if you behave.”

Aelin gave him a sloppy salute and Rowan roared with laughter, then went to grab a clean uniform from his locker.

**

The following morning Rowan was off at ten and they were now en route home. Aelin was still getting used to living in the north of the city but she loved being much closer to nature. They had woods not far away and Rowan had told her that he had gone to have a look for a few paths for walking. She was eager to be able to walk more than a few minutes without getting exhausted. Rowan who had gone through a much harder rehab had been helping her and also made sure she did all of her exercises.

The house was still a mess. They had been tackling one room at a time. She had been put in charge of the library. Mostly unboxing all of her books and solving the daunting task of coming up with a cataloguing system. Rowan had started buying paper books too now that he didn’t have to worry about not being able to take them with him. Aelin had discovered just how much a bookworm her boyfriend was. It was sexy. She wanted so badly to drag him in the room and have sex surrounded by books.

It was a few hours later when Aelin was surrounded by books at every flank, that Rowan appeared. She was sitting on the floor and was unboxing them and dividing them. Rowan would be the one shelving the books under her supervision.

“Looks like the enemy has you surrounded…”

Aelin looked up at him and almost laughed when she noticed the apron. He was cooking. She grabbed the hem of the apron and started pulling him down “Is the hob or oven or anything that can burn, on?”

Rowan shook his head “I was preparing the vegetables. No flames.” After two years Rowan had learned all of her quirks in terms of fire safety in the house. Before they moved in she had begged him to have someone to do a testing of all the electrical equipment and also do some checks on the wiring. She had allowed him to keep the fireplace active but only after they had found a protector screen that met her standards and had the chimney inspected thoroughly. He never laughed. He knew that in her job she had seen on plenty of occasion how such accidents could turn destructive. So he happily let her be paranoid.

“Then come down here, captain.” Rowan kneeled. He adored when she called him captain. Even if he was out of the airforce he will always be her captain.

“I thought you were getting hungry…”

The kiss she gave him made his legs go jelly and Rowan was glad he was already on his knees.

“I have a different type of hunger now.” Aelin pulled Rowan fully to her and deepened the kiss. She pushed some book aside and lay down dragging Rowan on top of her. She wanted to straddle him but that was not possible yet.

Rowan’s arms caged her head and he lowered for a sizzling kiss.

Aelin paused for a second and searched for his eyes. There was something she had been meaning to tell him for a while now. A decision she had reached after she had realised all of her fears had finally gone.

“Ro…” her hand caressed his face in a very sweet gesture “I am ready. I am not scared anymore. I am ready for the next chapter in our lives. Ready for our future and our family.” She kissed him again “I want to start trying…” a soft whisper against his lips. His eyes grew wide in surprise and then softened “what about becoming chief?”

She shook her head “I talked to Dorian. Beside that he only made chief three years ago, so it might be a while before he steps up, I am not sure I want the job after all.”

“Too much politics?’

Aelin laughed “I have a spot at the academy. Chief O’Neill wants me to take over when he retires. He hasn’t give up on that yet. And I really love the academy and teaching.”

“Are you sure?”

Aelin nodded “Yeah. I will miss the firehouse, but I want a family with you.”

Rowan’s head went to the crook of her neck and she was positive she heard him sniffle “I love you so much, captain.” He peppered her neck with kisses “you made me the happiest man alive in these two years together.”

She lifted her finger in warning “this stays between us. No word of it at the station or the guys will start taking bets.”

Rowan chuckled “yes, ma’am.”

“Now, captain… what about having good old sex on the floor surrounded by books? I have plenty of steamy romance books that we can take inspiration from.” She grabbed one of said books and started flipping through the pages while Rowan’s hand disappeared under her t-shirt and as they touched her already peaked nipples she let out a loud moan.

“This…” a moan “oh this is a good one.”

“Read away…”

*

 Two days later Rowan was driving to a place he hadn’t visited in a very long time and he felt nervous. When the airbase finally appeared in front of him he hesitated, before driving to the check point and show the guard his papers. He had an appointment and he remembered the strict security protocols. He was given a visitor badge and was told to park in a specific place and Rowan rolled his eyes. The guy was new and had no idea who he was. He parked and left the car looking around him. A loud noise broke the silence. He lifted his eyes and saw a jet take off. He was expecting a pang of sadness to hit him but that never came. He had the life he wanted. Had he been still in the airforce what was about to do would not be possible. What Aelin had asked him in the library would not be happening. No, he had no regrets or nostalgia.

He walked the familiar paths and showed his pass to the guard inside who recognised him “Captain, sir, it’s good to see you.”

“Thank you. I am here to see commodore Matthews. He is expecting me.”

The guard nodded “I assume you still remember your way around.”

When Lorcan stepped down he had to find his replacement, a person good enough to take over and be promoted to Commodore. Captain Matthews had been the choice. He was one of the two officers who had taken Rowan’s side at the inquiry for fuzzy’s death. Matthews was one of the good guys and his appointment had been Lorcan’s last act of rebellion against Clark. Matthews hated the Marshall too and Lorcan had selected just the right man to piss him off. Luckily it was rumoured that the monster was finally due to retire soon and vice marshal Munro would take over. Rowan liked the man.

Slowly he walked the path when all of a sudden a chorus of familiar voices stopped him. He turned his head and saw his students.

“Captain?”

Snitch was the one who called him. They looked so grown up and in their uniform of flying officers. He moved a step towards them “Look at you all. Seems like you are not cadets anymore…”

They all smiled proudly and stood straight. Rowan’s heart ached. It would not take long to wipe that smile from their faces. He had been just the same.

“You are a paramedic, sir?”

Rowan was due on shift after this errand so he had his uniform already on “Yes, I work at east station.”

“That is so cool,” added Racetrack with a big grin.

“Are you still with the hot captain we saw at the navy party?”

“Yes, we are still together.”

“Nice,” added another one of the students.

“We heard…” added snitch quietly “we heard about the commander. He was a great man.”

Rowan placed a hand on the young man “we miss you all… even the commodore,” added Crashdown in a sad voice.

Rowan chuckled “they have a flight school in the south west. The Cadre flight School… go and say hi. I am sure they will be happy to see you are well.”

He chatted a bit longer and then they group excused themselves and Rowan looked at them walk away. His students had been the only reason he remained in the airforce after the trial. He had loved teaching.

A deep sigh left him and finally kept walking until he reached the door he needed. A very familiar door. He knocked and he entered.

His friend was sitting at his desk working hard.

“Commodore?” He offered a very sloppy salute with a wicked grin.

The man stood “Damn it Rowan, look at you,” then his smile faded “is that how you salute a commodore?”

Rowan chuckled “With Lorcan I would use my middle finger on occasions.”

Rowan took a seat “how does it feel to be a commodore?”

The man in front of him sighed deeply “some days it sucks big time but it makes me happy when I ruin Clark’s day.”

A deep groan left Rowan “I thought he was going to retire.”

“Three weeks and he is out. So I am making sure I make his life as miserable as I can. Munro is going to be such a nice change.”

“Are you going to have a nice party?”

“I am in one mind to allow everyone a day off and go and get wasted to celebrate.”

Rowan laughed out loud.

“How’s paramedic life treating you?”

“I love it. We have good days and bad days but at least no one is trying to shoot me down.”

The commodore laughed “you can put that response skills to use when dispatch alarm goes off.”

“Turns out that firefighters are much better than us at scrambling.”

“I met Vaughan a while back, he told me that the three of them have opened a flight school for civvies.”

“They did and it’s really good too. I helped them before the opening to check all the planes.”

Matthews laughed “Oh, you elite boy…”

 “Another life… another me…” he looked at his watch, he was due to start his shift in and hour.

“So what is this project you need help with?”

And Rowan told his friend his plan and he promised he was going to do his best to help him out.

Back in the car he had a big smile painted on his face.

*

At the station he parked quickly and ran to the lockers. It was shift changeover and second team was coming off. The PIC walked to him “we had a hell of a busy shift and came back from the last call only twenty minutes ago. The rig will need restocking. Sorry, Rowan.”

“That is fine, don’t worry.”

Elide was not there yet so he did an inventory of the ambulance and went to the storage room. When he came back ten minutes later with two baskets full of supplies Elide was just approaching the vehicle.

“Are you having fun without me?”

“Second shift had been really busy and had no time to restock. I got here early so I just got on with it.”

Elide looked at him “you have a strange light in your eyes. Did you and Aelin do something?” She gasped “oh my gods you eloped.”

Rowan chuckled and grabbed Elide’s wrist dragging her inside the ambulance. Then closed the doors.

“You are very close to Aelin, but what I am about to tell you stays in this ambulance.”

The woman nodded.

“I am going to ask Aelin to marry me.”

“Holy fuck, finally.” Elide’s arms went around his neck “oh, is it going to be a romantic proposal? Maybe at a hockey game? Or in the woods? Or while doing some crazy stunt?”

Rowan shook his head and told her.

“That is so friggin perfect. Oh my god she is going to love it so much. She is bound to say yes.”

“No words of this with anyone. Not even Lys. Please.”

“No of course.” Elide squealed happily “I am so happy for you both.”

“Now we just have to convince Lorcan…”

“Ah, he and I are okay where we are just now. Lorcan is in a good place and we need a bit of stability.”

Elide had told him all about Lorcan struggles. He had a few bad months after he left the airforce where he struggled with adapting with civilian life all the while ptsd had eventually decided to pay him a visit. Both Elide and Rowan had helped and he slowly got better. Rowan would meet with his friend and they would discuss how to transition to a less structured way of life. According to his last report from Elide he was doing much better and working at the flight school made him happy. The man had finally learned how to smile. He would be forever grateful to Elide. His friend was like a brand new man and finally happy.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if one day he decides to pop the question. You made a miracle happen with him.”

Elide grinned.

“Come on young lady, we have an ambulance to stock up.”

*

 The part that Aelin hated the most about her recovery was being stuck at home. Yes, there was still a lot to do in the new house, but Rowan did not want her to do anything too strenuous without him around. She had finally finished organising the books and had to wait for Rowan to actually fill up the shelves.

She was parked on the sofa and had just finished a book and could not start a new one yet, she was still processing the one she just terminated. 

The tv offered little distraction so she had an idea. Lysandra was off, so she texted her friend.

It seemed that Lys was just as bored because she replied very quickly and in less than thirty minutes they had organised to have lunch together. 

Since Aelin had not been cleared for driving just yet, Lys had offered to pick her up and she felt bad at having her over eight months pregnant friend to drive.

Aelin was waiting for Lys in the driveway. Once she arrived she climbed in the car happy for a bit of distraction “Look at us, both benched and forced into boredom.”

Lys groaned “Chief Harker keeps telling me that I should take my maternity leave, but I want to do a few more weeks.”

“Hey, at least if you have the baby at the academy you are surrounded by paramedics.”

“There is no fucking way I am letting the students put their hands on me.”

Twenty minutes later they were pulling inside the car park of the shopping centre. Neither of them being able to walk for long so they had decided to stick to the shopping centre. It had shops and places where to eat all under the same roof. It had been an easy choice.

“Do you want to do some shopping before we stuff our faces with food?”

“The bookstore has comfy chairs.”

Aelin laughed “look at us… choosing a shop based on the fact it has chairs or not.”

“Hey, I am carrying a watermelon.”

The two friends had ended up spending more time than planned at the bookshop and the in the food court where they feasted on tacos. They were now wandering around a shop for baby clothes when Lys stopped.

“You okay?”

“Indigestion? I think I had far too many tacos.”

“Lys, are you having contractions?” Aelin stared at her friend flinch.

The dark-haired woman shook her head “probably just Braxton Hicks.”

Aelin looked at Lys, clearly not believing her “Let’s go and sit down.”

Lysandra groaned and Aelin had a feeling it was not Braxton Hicks.

They were on the escalator to the lower level when Lysandra swore and looked at Aelin in panic.

“Was that your waters?” Aelin pointed at the little pool that appeared on the metal steps.

“Shit,” groaned Lysandra.

They finally managed to find some seats while Lysandra’s grunt were getting stronger.

“I cannot have this baby in a shopping centre.”

“I am calling the ambulance. If we are lucky it’s Elide and Rowan.”

Lysandra leaned back against the wall and breathed in through the pain “it fucking hurts.”

“Lys, you have delivered a few babies, what did you tell all the mothers?”

“Breathe.”

Aelin brushed her head “Yes, breathe.”

A shopping centre attendant approached them and asked if they needed assistance but Aelin replied that the ambulance was on its way.

She was calming down Lys when she spotted a head of silver towering over the crowd “look who dispatch sent?”

“Good,” groaned Lys in pain “two paramedics I can trust.”

“Aelin?”

“Shush.” She told him before he could lecture on why she was not at home “water broke about five minutes ago. Contractions are getting closer very quickly. She is definitely in active labour.”

“Ambulance, now. We will examine there in privacy, ” ordered Elide.

Rowan nodded at Elide’s order and loaded Lysandra on a gurney and Aelin slowly followed behind, Rowan slowing down on purpose to walk with her.

“We just spent the time in the bookshop and had tacos. I am fine.”

Rowan kissed her head “ride with us.”

They arrived at Med ten minutes later and Elide and Rowan did the drop off and then joined her in the waiting room “I can’t get through to Aedion. He must be on a call.”

Rowan stopped in front of her and his hands cupped her face “we have to go back to the station, will you keep me posted, please?”

“Yes, of course.”

Rowan stooped for a kiss and then they left and Aelin tried to call her cousin once more.

It was almost an hour later when he answered. Sorscha had asked the nurses in the maternity ward to allow Aelin in until she could get in touch with Aedion.

“Aelin, what’s all these missed calls?”

“Lys is in labour. We are at Med. Maternity ward, room 255.”

Aedion did not even answer. He hung up and she was sure he went to call Dorian to have his lieutenant to sub for him.

Aelin went back in the room to an exhausted Lys.

“I got Aedion, finally. He is on his way as soon he clears it with Dorian.”

“I will forever blame the tacos.”

The two women laughed.

Aedion burst through the door like a tornado a little later. He still had his bunker gear on and Aelin knew he must have ran like a crazy man.

“Ae…” Lysandra stretched her hand towards her husband.

“I am here… sorry, I was on a call that took ages.” He kissed his wife gently on her head and then turned to Aelin “thank you for looking after her.”

Baby Aidan Gavriel Ashryver came to the world twelve hours later. A little boy with his father’s hair and his mother piercing green eyes. The most gorgeous baby Aelin had ever seen.

She was sitting at the bottom of the bed “Can I hold him?”

Aedion passed her nephew to her “hello wonderful,” the baby cooed at her “I am your aunt Aelin and I am going to spoil you so much,” a soft kiss on his head “you are going to have so many girls fighting for you when you grow up.” She looked at the couple “you have such a wonderful boy.” She passed the baby back to Lys and Aelin took some picture to send back to the guys at the station. Her mobile had been inundated by messages as soon as the news spread and Manon had sent her a video of Ansel running around the engine shouting firehouse baby.

“I hope you are ready for mayhem to descend on you two as soon as they are off shift. And remember there are two firehouses.”

QUESTION: NOW THAT WE KNOW ROWAN IS GOING TRO PROPOSE... HOW DO YOU THINK HE WILL DO IT? SEND ME YOUR THEORIES 😂

TAGS:

@rowaelinismyotp @swankii-art-teacher​ @whimsicallyreading​ @elentiyawhitethorn​ @aelin-bitch-queen​ @bruiseonthefaceofhumanity​  @mis-lil-red @thegreyj​ @sailorsassley​ @leiawritesstories​ @clairec79 @morganofthewildfire​ @sv0430 @heartless--aromantic @autumnbabylon @rowanaelinn @backtobl4ck​ @susumaus98  @gracie-rosee @mybloodrunsblue @tanvee1231 @avenrebekah @whoever-you-choose-to-love  @theywillnotsingforme @universallytreepost @black-daisy-water @goddess-aelin @whispers-in-the-darkest-heart

[goddess-aelin]

Dancing to a Happy Song

Masterlist

Part 4: Reunions pt II

 Word Count: 4k

FLUFFY, SO SO FLUFFY

TW: language, mention of sexual content.

It was time. Time for the dinner and subsequent pregnancy announcement. Time to pull the biggest surprise ever on her friends.  Aelin could barely contain her excitement. As she walked hand in hand with Rowan to the small dining room where they were holding their dinner, Aelin went over the plan again. They were going down early, Rowan already having made sure that the dining room was clear of any of their friends. She would welcome her friends like normal but ask them to refrain from any hugs under the guise of not wanting to spread whatever “stomach bug” she had yesterday. She’d be sitting at the head of the table the entire time so that the table would hide her belly, which was, at this point, very, very noticeable. And then after, at the most opportune moment, perhaps during a toast, she would stand, her tight fitting wine red dress revealing the most well-kept secret Terrasen had ever seen. She couldn’t help but smirk at the thought.

When they got to the small, cozy dining room, Aelin took a seat at the head of the table with Rowan to her left. There was no seating arrangement but she had hoped that any of the fae males would be farther down the table so they wouldn’t scent her. Fenrys, luckily, was the next to walk in and took the seat at Aelin’s right. As they waited for the rest of their family and friends to mosey in, Aelin basked in the warmth of the small fire in the hearth behind her, allowing it to calm her nerves. Though it wasn’t cold outside, the fire was always her comfort.

Lorcan, Elide, and Callum were the first to arrive, followed by Chaol, Yrene, and Troian. Next, Emrys, Malakai, and Luca strolled in and were promptly introduced to anyone who they didn’t know. Ansel and Galan were after, noting that Rolfe had decided to stay with his ships that had sailed up river and were now docked in Orynth’s small harbor. Nesryn, Sartaq, and Borte filled a few of the chairs farthest from Aelin, which left only one family yet to be accounted for. Right on cue, Aedion, Lysandra, and their tiny baby boy, Gavryn, rushed into the room, followed by Evangeline who seemed to have a whirlwind of energy.

Aelin smiled brightly at her cousin and her best friend as tears came to her eyes at the small bundle in Lysandra’s arms. Aedion stepped closer to Aelin as if to approach her for a hug. She hadn’t seen him in over 6 months, after all. But before he could, Aelin held up a hand. “Wait! I don’t want anyone to come closer to me since I had a small stomach bug yesterday. I wouldn’t want to pass it on to anyone. Just in case it’s still lingering.” Aelin gave a guilty smile and a shrug. Aedion looked as if he wanted to say something, eyebrows furrowing and lips pursing, but before he could, Gavryn let out a tiny wail.

The young man’s attention was diverted to his son and Aelin let out a small sigh of relief. Not yet. She had to wait until the most opportune moment for her secret to be revealed. Aelin met Yrene’s eye down the table and she could tell the young mother was suppressing a knowing smile.

As the first course, leafy greens with fresh tomatoes and a vinegar dressing, was served, Aelin sat back and took in her friends. They were all so happy. This would be the first time meeting Troian and Gavryn and to be quite honest, their cuteness was making her consider abandoning her plan altogether so that she could hold them. She looked at each little family, noting the way that the troubles of yesterday seemed to have been wiped away by happiness. She took joy in the fact that the past no longer plagued their faces, instead seeing the small wrinkles forming in places each person was smiling. If they were anything like her, she was sure that they had their troublesome days, but lately, those days were few and far between.

Aelin could feel Rowan looking at her, noting the way his brows were slightly furrowed as if he were worried for her. Aelin did suppose that she had zoned out there a bit so she turned to her husband and gave him a small smile. He returned it almost immediately. “Everything okay, Fireheart?”

Aelin’s heart clenched the love and care in his voice. She gave a small nod before leaning towards him. “I’m just so happy. Happy to have everyone here together. Happy to have you, and Terrasen, and the…” She caught herself before she could say what she wanted to say. Not yet. It wasn’t time to reveal this yet. Just a few more minutes. She didn’t exactly plan for when that moment would be but she’d know it when it was time.  

She could tell Rowan was holding back a smile. So instead, he grabbed her hand under the table and gently caressed his thumb over the back of it. Fenrys, having heard the whole conversation, graciously said nothing and only offered them both a small, knowing smile.  

A sudden thought hit Aelin as she snapped back to reality. “Hey, wait a minute! Where’s Manon?”

It was Chaol who answered, “Dorian’s not here. Did you think Manon would attend without him?” A few snorts went out at that.

“So you’re telling me that they finally got their heads out of their asses and are officially together?” Aelin had hoped it was the case. They had been dancing around each other for years at this point, neither admitting the full extent of their feelings for one another.

Chaol snorted. “Ha! That’s really funny, Aelin. As if either of them would ever tell anyone else what’s going on between them. Though I will say, they’re almost always together. If Dorian’s not going to the Witch Kingdom for “business,” then Manon’s in Adarlan, “checking on the wyverns.” That had Aelin letting out a large cackle.

“Sounds about right.” A few of their friends laughed. It was at that point that Callum gave a loud shriek and before Elide could even comprehend what was going on, the two year old slid off of his mother’s lap and ran towards Aelin.

“Aunty Ay!” Aelin couldn’t move fast enough and before she knew it, the boy was at her side, reaching for her to pick him up. And as she looked into his wide brown eyes, who was she to deny him? Surprises be damned. No one would know she had a baby bump. Holding Callum would hide that. Aelin slowly and carefully picked the young boy up and sat him on her lap, facing her. He began to show her the contents of his tiny pockets, pulling out rocks, crumpled flowers, and a few dead bugs. Elide looked mortified.

“Lochan, your son is quite the collector.” Aelin said with a smirk.  

Before anyone could respond, Callum, ever the little menace, stated, “Aunty Ay, you belly like mama’s!” Aelin froze. His tiny hand patted her swollen belly gently and Aelin couldn’t help the little smile that crossed her face at the boy’s antics. Oh, he was certainly going to be a great big brother.  Aelin pulled her eyes away from the little boy to look up at her friends. Almost everyone, with the exception of Yrene, Fenrys, Lorcan, and her friends from Mistward, had a look of shock on their faces. Complete silence filled the room as Aelin looked at Rowan, who’s eyes were wide.

The silence was only broken by Lysandra. “YOU BITCH! I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!”

Aelin was about to respond when a tiny voice in Aelin’s lap shouted, “Yeah! You beech!” The stunned faces were wiped away as howling laughter filled the room. Callum had a huge smile on his face, proud that he made everyone laugh.

“Looks like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, does it Lorcan?” Lorcan just rolled his eyes at his queen though a small smile graced his face. Elide quickly gave a light smack to Lorcan’s arm, a demand to fetch their son. After Aelin was freed, she stood. Gasps rose all around. Aedion was the first to sprint over to her and envelop her in a lingering hug. “I’m so, so happy for you, Ae,” Her cousin whispered. After that, the dinner became more of a circus, everyone rising to offer the expectant parents congratulations. Each one of her friends took their turns giving her hugs and rubbing her belly. She got many questions on if they had picked a name (no they hadn’t) and do they have a guess on the gender (Rowan is thinking a girl, Aelin a boy).

It was Elide who said “I knew you weren’t sick! I knew it. I’ve literally seen you work through immense amounts of pain and still keep going. So I knew something was fishy when you didn’t come to greet us yesterday.” She quickly looked at her husband, who had a small smirk on his face, and pointed her finger directly at him. “And you! You knew, didn’t you?!”

Lorcan threw his hands up, claiming innocence. “She told me nothing.” “But you suspected, didn't you?” A nod confirmed what Elide was thinking. The spitfire of a woman crossed her arms, pouting.

“How!?” Aelin truly was baffled. She had barely seen Lorcan in the last few months, much less talked to him.

“Well it’s easy to infer when you’ve been sick most mornings and then every time I saw you in the halls, you turned around and sprinted in the opposite direction. You aren’t as sly as you think you are, your Highness.”

Aelin let out an indignant huff.

It was Chaol who next spoke, turning to his wife, “That means that you knew, too! That’s why you were rushed off yesterday.” Yrene gave a shrug.

“I helped her out with her nausea and it looks like she’s feeling much, much better now.” Poor Troian was sitting in the middle of his parents, looking for all the world like he might start crying. Yrene noticed and ran her fingers through his thick brown hair.

After a while, things settled down again and the friends continued their meal. Aedion piped up from the other end of the table, “Any other surprises we should be aware of?” Aelin let out a laugh before shaking her head. The moment her head stopped shaking, the doors to the dining room were thrown open, letting a slight breeze drift through the room. Manon swaggered through.

“Hope I’m not too late. I had a small stop to make on my way here.” Before Aelin could wonder what possible stop she could make in the short walk from her rooms, none other than the King of Adarlan walked through the doors. 

“You really thought I’d miss this?” Dorian strutted through the doors, hands raised at his sides. Troian was the first to pop up, running towards Dorian, squealing. Aelin hadn’t seen a single ounce of the chaotic energy that the boy now exhibited throughout the time he quietly and politely sat at dinner.  As the small boy hugged his uncle, Aelin took a long glance at Dorian. No longer a young man, Dorian had filled out and the body that was once lanky and thinner was now filled with muscle. The crown was nowhere to be seen and his hair was slightly shorter than the last time she saw him. He looked… happy. “So what did I miss?” he asked as he pulled up an extra chair at the far end of the table, next to Manon who was already digging into the food the servants had laid out for them.

Before he could sit, Aelin got up from her seat and waddled towards Dorian, intent on hugging her friend. 

Dorian took one look at Aelin’s belly before sputtering “Well that’s new.” Aelin chuckled and brought her friend into a hug. Dorian gripped her tighter, whispering in her ear, “It’s nice to see you, Aelin. And congratulations.” Aelin returned the sentiment before returning to her seat. She knew Manon probably wouldn’t appreciate a hug, though she did get a small smile and dip of the head from the witch.

Before she sat down, Aelin felt the need to make a small speech. Everyone quieted down as they realized her intention. “I just wanted to say how happy I am that you all are here. Our little band of misfits, together again. I haven’t seen most of you as much as I may have wanted these last few years but I’m happy that you’re here now. So a toast,” Aelin raised her glass of water, “to everlasting friendship and the love of family.”

As she sat down, Rowan was smiling at her. “That was cheesy,” he joked.  Aelin rolled her eyes and sent a small smack to his arm. “But it was lovely, Fireheart.” He raised her hand to his lips and placed a small, gentle kiss to the back of it.  

“Not to steal the spotlight from their highnesses, but I guess it’s a good time to make another announcement.” Manon, frozen, didn’t look like she particularly wanted anything to be announced, but she allowed Dorian to continue. “We also will be welcoming a baby witchling sometime in the near future.” The dumbfounded silence returned. Manon looked like she wanted to be anywhere but in the dining room.

“So…” Aelin tried to find the words. “So, you’re together then? Or did you secretly get married? Because if so, I will be very upset that I wasn’t invited to the wedding.” That seemed to break the tension that was palpable in the room.

It was Manon who answered with a chuckle. “I suppose we are married in every way that counts. I...I love Dorian. And he loves me, so he tells me all the time. The witches don’t do traditional marriage like you all do. But, yes. We’re together.” At that, a bright smile crossed Aelin’s face. And once again, the room turned into an uproar.

“Will it be a girl?” “Which kingdom will they rule?” “When are you due?”

“Okay, okay, everyone. Let’s all calm down.” Dorian could see that Manon was getting overwhelmed and knew that at any moment, her iron claws might make an appearance. She had been more volatile since she found out she was pregnant, though she was only a few weeks along. “I will explain. We didn’t exactly plan this but a witchling is a true blessing especially because it has not been possible since before the wastes went barren. And as for which kingdom she will rule, well…” Dorian smirked at Manon. “Perhaps we’ll just have to have a second one so that each kingdom can have a ruler.” Manon let a slight huff of breath out at that.

Aelin could not be happier for her friends. As the night continued on, she and her friends spoke about anything and everything. From how they were doing to new hobbies to how the kids were doing, Aelin soaked up every piece of her friends that she could get. She held Gavryn and listened to his little coos and eventually even got Troian to open up to her. He was an extremely bright boy once he came out of his shell. Eventually, the night had to come to a close. Especially since the welcome ball for the peace summit was the next day. Aelin needed as much sleep as she could get to be ready for what she was sure would be a very exciting and very draining time.

It wasn’t until they were back in their room and snuggled into the warm bed that Aelin brought up the topic of baby names to Rowan. They hadn’t seriously talked about what to name their child but given that they would be meeting the tiny one in a few short months, it was probably a good idea to have something picked out.

“Hey Buzzard?” Rowan looked over at her but not before he rolled his eyes at the nickname and let out a sigh.

“Yes, fireheart?”

“What do you want to name our baby?” At that, Rowan became more alert, turning fully onto his side to face her. A small smile crept across his face.

“I might have a few ideas.” Aelin cocked an eyebrow at that. “But I want to hear what you like first.”

“Well, I’m not really sure to be honest. I sometimes hear names that I like but then I’m not sure if they’re befitting a future king or queen. And then other times I hear something I like only to realize that it’ll be way too much of a mouthful with the last name Whitethorn-Galathynius.” She let out a giggle at that.

“Would you want to name her after your mom? Or maybe Elentiya?”

“What makes you so sure it’s a girl?” Aelin wasn’t entirely sure what she thought but simply because Rowan was so adamant about it being a girl did she claim it was a boy. 

“I just know. I am always right. But ok, let me amend my statement. Do you want to name the baby after your parents? Or Nehemia? Or maybe Sam?” His eyes softened as he said the last name.

With a sigh, Aelin considered. “I…I don’t think so. I don’t want our child’s life to be marred by past events. All of those names have such a heavy feeling and bad memories associated with them. I think our baby needs their own name. One that’s completely their own and that has no connotations associated.” Rowan nodded. “And I think it’d be kind of weird if we name the baby after a former lover, don’t you?” Rowan understood completely. He wouldn’t want to name the baby after Lyria. He didn’t even want to bring that option up.

Rowan kissed her forehead before answering softly. “Ok. So that leaves us where?”

“I like the name Elliana for a girl. Or maybe Malin. But maybe that sounds too much like Manon. Ooh or how about Arya? Or Elluna? Nella?” Rowan knew Aelin was going off on a bit of a tangent as she continued listing names. He wasn’t sure if she had a list in her head or was just coming up with whatever she could think of. She was obviously getting into the groove as she sat up and leaned against the wooden headboard of their bed. She paused to catch her breath. Her shoulders drooped as she paused.  “To be honest, though I don’t love any of those.”

Rowan had just the thing to fix it. “Don’t you worry, Fireheart, I had a plan for this exact occasion.” Aelin gave him a strange look as he rose from their bed and made his way to the small oak desk in the sitting room adjacent to their bedroom. He was only gone a moment before he returned and sat next to her at the headboard. He handed her a small, wrinkled piece of paper and as Aelin gently unfolded it, she realized what it was.

“Is this a…list of names?” Rowan gave a nod. “So this is what you’ve been so quick to stash in the drawers whenever I walk into the room.” Aelin gave a chuckle as she swore Rowan’s cheeks turned slightly pink. Her mate wasn’t just incredibly hot but also incredibly cute. “And why are they all girls' names?!”

“Because I know it’s going to be a girl. And yes, I have been working on this list for a while. They’re some names in the old language I liked and thought you might like, too. I picked a lot of them out for their meanings. Things I thought were fitting for a child of ours.” He smiled.

Aelin couldn’t help the emotions piling up and she felt the tears starting to prick her eyes. A few tears fell before she could catch them but Rowan’s thumbs were there, wiping away any stray tear marks left behind on her cheeks. “Why are you crying, my love?”

“Because you put so much love and care into this list just like I know you’re going to give so much love and care to our baby. I can’t help but be emotional. Plus after seeing you hold Gavryn tonight, I was already a mess. Crying was inevitable.” Rowan chuckled but continued to hold her face in his hands, thumb stroking her cheek. Aelin took a cleansing breath and turned back to the task at hand. “Ok, so girls’ names, then.” She scanned the list slowly and had to admit that Rowan picked out some really, really cute names. She could see any of them as her daughter’s name. The name of a future queen. “What does this one mean?” She pointed to a name towards the top of the list.

“Idalia? That means ‘behold the sun.’ That was one of my favorites.” Aelin just let out a sound of agreement. “How about this one?” “Auryn means gold.” At that, Aelin looked at him with a disbelieving stare.

“You’re kidding me. You put a name that means ‘gold’ on this list? Is this because of that godsdamned gold nightgown?” Rowan let out a full-bellied laugh. “I probably could get Lysandra to let me borrow it again if you’re feeling nostalgic. Though I don’t know that it would fit right now.”

“That was not my intention but if the shoe fits, I suppose. I do genuinely like that one. And no, don’t worry. I much prefer you without any nightgown at all.” Aelin rolled her eyes, blushing, and went back to the list. One name in particular caught her eye as she neared the end of the list.

She pointed. “This one?”

Rowan’s eyes softened and he answered, “That one means ‘soul.’” The corners of Aelin’s lips tilted up at that. She could see it. Their tiny daughter. With this name that meant ‘soul,’ just as she was going to be the biggest part of their own souls. The soul of the kingdom, hopefully leading their people in peace for many years to come.  

“That sounds perfect.” Aelin’s eyes slid to Rowan’s and they leaned forward at the same time to touch their foreheads to each other.

Aelin couldn’t help the yawn that escaped her after a moment. She definitely was tired. Boys names would have to wait for another day, it seemed. They both slid under the covers once more, Rowan placing the list at his bedside table.

Aelin was almost asleep before Rowan spoke again.

“It was because of a dream.”

“Hmm? What was?”

“The reason I think it’s a girl. It was because of a dream. When we were searching for you for those two months you were in Doranelle, I swear I had different variations of the same dream over and over again. The one constant was always that it was you and our children in that dream. What we were doing might have changed as did the tone of the dreams but I always saw you. And our daughter. She had golden hair like you but with my eyes. And our boys, one with silver hair and your eyes and one that looked just like me. Then there was a little girl with silver hair and blue eyes.” 

“FOUR KIDS, Buzzard?! I think not.”

“Five.” Aelin’s eyes snapped open at that. “Five kids. You were pregnant.”

 Aelin was silent as she considered. “Well, we will just have to see about that. You’re going to stay far, far away from me after this one.” Rowan chuckled. Aelin closed her eyes again but a small smile still played on her lips. Rowan swore he caught a quiet five kids my ass before he closed his eyes, as well. And that night he dreamt again of babies with golden hair like sunlight and emerald eyes as bright as Aelin’s wedding band.  

A/N: Cmon guys, you thought I’d tell you the name right away? I have to keep you in suspense somehow. I totally just wanted this to be a fluff-fest so I hope you enjoyed it and I hope your insides feel like they’re exploding with joy. Next chapter brings the schemes so be prepared :) LMK if I missed tagging you or if you want to be added/deleted 

Tagging: @cretaceous-therapod @morganofthewildfire @tomtenadia @live-the-fangirl-life @charlizeed @violet-mermaid7 @euphoric-melancholyy @kritical24 @rubyriveraqueen @dealfea @maeclin @ayaashryver @anna-swims @leiawritesstories @whoever-you-choose-to-love @holdthefrickup @kyereads @heirofflowers @bananaanna23 @thecrispypotatochip @shanias-world @rowanaelinn

[house-of-galathynius]

41 - Aedion and lysandra

Lysaedion ghost/living person: Aedion died in battle 40 years ago and Lysandra is struggling with a choice, and he appears to her to help. 

WARNING: This is sad and I’m sorry.

Lysandra tried not to think of the day Aedion died. She didn’t like to think about watching him get pulled off the battlefield, covered in blood, his chest barely rising. She didn’t she like to think about the way Rowan had just shaken his head after what had seemed like hours of trying to heal him, or how he had put his hand on her shoulder and murmured he was sorry. She didn’t like to remember how Aelin had been screaming his name, begging anyone to save her cousin, how she had clung to Rowan whilst she sobbed over his body. She hated remembering, and she’d done well to repress the memories. 

Until now. 

Theo had got down on one knee and proposed to Lysandra three days ago. She’d seen it coming, but had refused to acknowledge they were at that stage of their relationship. As soon as he did it, her mind went to Aedion. She thought of the time he’d promised to marry her, the time he told her no matter how many years it took, he would be her husband. She couldn’t give an answer to Theo. She wanted to say yes, but it felt like a betrayal; so she’d asked for time to think; but all that time had done was bring up bad memories. 

Aelin had told Lysandra that whenever she needed a break or needed to think she would walk around the gardens of the palace, and then she’d go to the temple and pray. So that’s what Lysandra did. 

She got to the temple and knelt down and began to pray. It didn’t take long for the tears to arrive; they slid down her cheeks and fell to the floor. She made no move to wipe them away, she just let herself cry. She missed him. That was the honest truth, she missed him and some days she didn’t know how she survived. 

Movement to her right made her stop; and she looked to the side and all the breath left her lungs. Stood in front of her- in his finest clothes- was Aedion. He was whole, and real, and smiling at her like he used to.

“W-what are you doing here?” Lysandra stood up, her legs feeling like they could give in at any moment. “This isn’t real. I’m dreaming.” 

Aedion smiled, the smile that made her go crazy. “I’m here. It’s very much real,” Aedion gestured for her to come forward, “now tell me why you’re crying.” 

She couldn’t help but let the tears fall once more, but she slowly moved towards him, afraid that if she moved too fast he would disappear. 

“Lys. I didn’t convince all the Gods to let me come down here just to sit in silence. Why are you crying?” 

So she explained. She told him how she’d fallen in love with another man; how he was kind and caring, how he would bring her flowers and chocolates, which Aelin would always steal. She told him how he accepted every part of her, the good and the bad. She told him that ever since he came into her life, she would wake up and she wouldn’t feel the ache in her chest that had been there since he had died, she could sleep without nightmares about that day. She told him that she smiled more and didn’t hate the world anymore.

“Then why are you sad?” 

“I feel like i’m betraying you. He is asking me for the life that we should’ve had and I don’t know how to get past that,” a sob escaped her, “I don’t know how to let you go.” 

“It’s easy Lys, you just say yes. Say yes and live your life, you can’t let me hold you back. This man, he loves you, and he wants to spend the rest of his life with you,” Aedion gave a sad smile, “I can’t give you that, not anymore. So please, for the sake of your happiness and mine, please go marry that man and have a happy life. I’ll always be there Lys, in your heart, as you are in mine.” 

“I miss you, Aedion.” 

Aedion smiles once more, his eyes shining with tears, “be happy Lysandra, because that’s all I want for you… Happiness.” And then he was gone. 

Lysandra sank to he knees once more and cried until the light disappeared outside and the candles burned softly. 

When her eyes had finally dried, she stood up, brushed the dust off her dress and marched into the village- where she found Theo at his home- and told him yes; a million times yes. 

Disclaimer: I do not want Aedion to die, I ship Lysaedion a lot so I do not want this to happen. Also, again, I apologise for poor grammar and spelling, it’s 1am and I’m tired! Lastly, I’m sorry if there are some continuity errors or things don’t add up to the books (e.g. I don’t know whether Lysandra is immortal or not). 

Just a reminder that I am not taking anymore prompts/fic requests at the moment. I need to get through these first. I’ll let you know when I’m accepting requests again though :) 

[theladyofdeath]

In the Bleak Midwinter {Masterlist}

The Cadre, Part II. 

A Throne of Glass Period AU: P.B., 1920s.

All characters belong to Sarah J Maas. I’m just a fan with a plot.

First, read  The Cadre - 1920s AU {TOG} (:

Inspired by Peaky Blinders.

Summary: 2 years after Arobynn Hammel is killed by Rowan Whitethorn, Maeve has returned from Eyllwe with a vengeance. Meanwhile, Rowan is getting married, Lorcan is a father, and Lysandra is finally ready to give her heart away. There’s been peace in The Cadre’s Orynth for 2 years, but peace never lasts.

Chapters:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Epilogue

[charincharge]

Cruel Summer, Masterlist

Cruel Summer (COMPLETE)

Summary: Rowan Whitethorn is forced to spend one miserable summer working at Ashryver Playland, Terrasen’s local amusement park. Cleaning up trash and separating horny pre-teens on the ferris wheel isn’t actually what he wanted to do with his summer -- not even close, but he’s got to pay the bills somehow. Will his summer somehow turn around when he meets a chatty blonde, who happens to share the name of the park? ...probably not. Because dating the boss’s boss’s boss’s daughter is definitely a no-go when you’re getting paid minimum wage. And nothing ever works out how Rowan wants. Loosely based on the lyrics of Taylor Swift’s Cruel Summer (so, if you know the song, you sorta know where this thing is going). Flirty summer fun and drama ahoy. Rated M for Aelin’s potty mouth and eventual sexual situations. *she looks up grinning like a devil*

Chapters:

Part 1 /// Part 2 /// Part 3 /// Part 4 /// Part 5 /// Part 6 /// Part 7 /// Part 8 /// Part 9 /// Part 10 /// Part 11 /// Part 12 /// Part 13 /// Part 14 /// Part 15 /// Part 16 /// Part 17 /// Part 18 /// Part 19 /// Part 20 /// Part 21 /// Part 22 /// Part 23 /// Part 24 /// Part 25 /// Epilogue 

Outtakes:

Elorcan 1

AO3 Link

Cruel Summer Lyric Video (for those who enjoy doing homework)