A/N: Well hello... It's been a while ':) I'm sorry I haven't updated in a REALLY long time, but the truth is, I just genuinely don't have much time anymore at all. I'll try to update the next chapter soon, since SPOILER ALERT - CLIFFHANGER at the end of this chapter.

With all that said, I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please don't hate me for not uploading much! Thanks!

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters referenced


"Ren! Guess what!" Aelin slammed her hands onto the desk of the unassuming boy.

His head, which was previously nestled into his arm, shot up in surprise, grogginess clouding his eyes. "By the wyrd. Haven't talked to you in a while. Been busy with your little boytoy?"

"Okay, first of all, fuck you, second of all, I have some awesome news!" She twirled around the desks and landed in her wooden chair with a loud thump.

"What."

"We're going to Prythian!" A moment of silence as Ren looked her up and down in a judgemental manner.

"I know…" He finally spoke, "Aedion told me yesterday."

Aelin's jaw dropped. "He told you before me?"

A half shrug and nod.

"What a baboon." Aelin seethed, pounding her fist onto the table surface. Ren shuddered.

"Do you know who else is coming?" Aelin asked, but before he could respond, the classroom door swung open, hitting the wall and sending tremors reverberating throughout the hall.

Arobynn entered. But he wasn't his usual annoyed yet playful self. This time a dark shadow covered his eyes as he walked straight past Aelin and Ren and stopped beside Nox and Sorrel's desks where the two were indulging in casual conversation.

"Nox." His words were laced with venom. Nox cocked his head in a sceptical manner.

"What?"

"My keys and laptop are gone."

"And you're telling me this because..?"

"Because I gave the keys to you, but found my door unlocked and laptop missing the morning I came back."

Nox' eyes widened in realization. He muttered, "Shit."

"Yeah, shit sounds about right." Arobynn barked. At this point the entire attending class had their eyes glued on the tense exchange.

"Hey, listen, Arobynn, buddy-"

"This is not matter to be discussed, Nox. And you won't be let off the hook that easily either."

The menace in Arobynn's glare sent shivers snaking down Aelin's spine. She took a breath to speak up, but before a word could pass her lips, Sorrel stood up. "I'm the one to blame, Arobynn. I was with Nox and distracted him. He must've forgotten to lock the door. If anything, I'm the one to blame."

Silence. Utter, complete silence. Sorrel wasn't known to take sides or defend anyone; she hardly spoke in class, so for her to so blatantly defend someone, Nox nonetheless, left the entire class completely dumbfounded.

Arobynn glanced between the two students for a second. "Nox, is this true?"

"No!-"

"Of course it is. What reason would I have to lie?" Sorrel abruptly cut him off, shooting him a warning glare as she dug the heel of her shoe into his foot. Cringing in pain, Nox shut his mouth.

"In that case… Both of you. 1-week suspension. Just so you know, this is hardly a punishment. I should be fining you for having to change the locks and get a new device, but I'm sure the headmistress is more than willing to pay for it, especially considering your financial situation, Nox." Arobynn sneered. "Class is cancelled. You have a free lesson. You won't be expected to show up for school tomorrow."

Nox face turned into one of blank rage. There wasn't much that would get him extremely riled up, but the one thing he hated was being looked down upon. He wasn't wealthy. He hardly had the money to care for himself. He got into the university by studying, unlike most of the heirs and rich pricks, so to be so blatantly insulted by a teacher made his pulse thunder. He shot up. "Listen here, you pri-"

"Nox, stop." Sorrel grabbed his arm.

When he spun his head around to look at her, he was met with remorseful eyes. He had never noticed how dark her eyes were. There was a silent plead within them. The rage that had sent his hands trembling dulled. If he did anything stupid now, she would suffer from the consequences as well. It was bad enough that he had gotten her into a week's worth of suspension, especially considering how strict the Blackbeak family was.

The thought started setting in. What would she have to go through just for defending him? His lips parted ever so slightly. He couldn't let that happen. "Arobynn!"

But when Nox spun around, the teacher was gone. "Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit."

He started towards the door after Arobynn, but Sorrel wouldn't let go of his arm. "Let go."

"No."

"Aren't you listening to me? I said let go!" He tried to tear out of her grasp, but she refused to yield. "Sorrel, you didn't do anything wrong-"

"Come with me." She started walking out of the room. Not knowing what else to do, Nox followed, assuming they would be going to the headmistress' office.

Before exiting, Nox looked back one more time, to all the students who were still watching them intently. "The fuck are you looking at?! Get a life!" And the door slammed shut behind him.

Nox didn't comment when he heard Sorrel sigh in annoyance. He didn't comment as they walked down the hallway towards the teachers' lounge. He did however comment when Sorrel turned a sharp corner towards the staircase to the roof. "Sorrel. What are you doing. We're going to Arobynn and the headmistress right now-"

"Shut up."

"You know you have an odd habit of interrupting me. Now turn around." Once again, he attempted to hang back. Her grip on his arm slid down to his wrist as she tugged him up the stairs and spat, "You're insufferable."

The crispy autumn air met them as they stepped out onto the roof. Sorrel let him go.

"What was that all about?" Nox cursed. She walked towards the ledge and looked out at the horizon. "Sorrel. I have to talk to Arobynn and sort this out. You are not to blame."

"If I allow you to confront that man right now, you're going to try to rip his throat out."

"For good reason! He insulted me-"

"You'll end up dead." Sorrel heard his steps quicken as Nox joined her. He grabbed her shoulders and spun her around, slamming his hands onto the railing on either side of her. Sorrel backed up against the cold metal, her back arching upon impact.

"Do you mind?" She snapped, "I understand that you're mad. It was rude of Arobynn to say something so degrading, but why are you this upset about it? Why are you so dead set on confronting him now? It's over. The damage has been done."

"But not rightfully!" Nox exclaimed, oblivious to their proximity, "I should be the one in trouble! You did nothing wrong! Why did you defend me like that?!"

At that point, Sorrel had had enough. "Because I care. You were the first person who ever accepted me as a friend, not for my surname, but for me. And I didn't want to risk you being expelled over something as trivial as losing a key."

Nox' lips parted ever so slightly. "Sorrel…"

She stared at him so intently, he was at a loss for words. Nox leaned closer. She could feel his heaving breath on her lips. Her cheeks flushed. All of a sudden, Nox let his head fall forward, his forehead resting on her shoulder.

The tension that had previously hung in the air was blown away by the cold wind that swept across the concrete roof, tearing at Sorrel's braid as she let out a shaky breath.

"I'm sorry I overreacted." Nox finally mumbled after minutes of silence, his breath tickling her collarbone.

Sorrel let out a breathy chuckle. "You're such a bloody idiot."


"So, what are you going to do?" After what seemed like hours of just standing at the railing in silence, with nothing but the sound of birds chirping to keep them company, Nox and Sorrel had sat down, leaning against the metal bars.

Sorrel sighed, "I guess I'll just have to find somewhere to stay for this week. I don't think Arobynn has any interest in telling our parents or caretakers about suspensions, since lots of the student live alone. Neither will the suspension be permanently marked since the headmistress is very understanding. I'll just tell the matron I'm staying with a classmate for some sort of project. I doubt she'll question it, since autumn break is next week either way."

"You seem to have everything planned out." Nox chuckled, running a hand through his hair.

"I tend to get paranoid quite easily." Sorrel admitted with a half shrug and the shadow of a sheepish smile on her lips.

"Speaking of autumn break…" Nox spoke up, carelessly folding his arms behind his head, "What do you plan on doing?"

Sorrel though for a moment. She huffed. "Probably stay at the mansion and try not to get confronted by the matron…"

"Well, I don't know if you're interested, but Celaena and Aedion are planning a trip to Prythian with a bunch of others, including me, so I was wondering if you'd like to come along…?"

Sorrel fell silent. She fidgeted, adjusting the cuffs of her uniform before looking at Nox. "Would I be allowed?"

"Would you be allowed?" Nox snorted, "You must be kidding. Of course, you'd be allowed. Now stop with the fidgeting. Nervousness doesn't suit you at all."

Sorrel smiled softly, burying her nose in the sleeves of her shirt. Nox grinned and laid a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Now that's more like it."


"Well, that was intense…" Aelin muttered, making her way to the cafeteria with Ren close on her heels. He shrugged, "I wouldn't say Arobynn overreacted, but the fact that Sorrel so blatanly defended Nox… surprising to say the least."

"Mhmm" Aelin stared skipping down the hallway.

"Slow down, short stuff, the bell literally just rang."

She giggled with a scoff.

"You know what's the most surprising though?" Aelin asked when Ren finally fell into step beside her.

"What?"

"That Nox really convinced her to stay at his place for the week."

"I know. I never knew those two were so close."

"Well, that's what he said when the two of them came back to the classroom. She seemed quite flabbergasted though."

They continued conversing loosely as they walked into the large hall and met Rowan, Aedion, Lysandra and Manon. Aelin greeted Rowan with a peck on the cheek to which Aedion scoffed and the two girls cooed.

"You two are just precious!" Lysandra exclaimed with a coy smile.

Just as Aedion was about to retort in disgust, the sound of static rang through the speakers. Then a distorted voice.

"Ladies and Gentlemen."

Everyone stared at Kaltain, who was standing on the cafeteria's stage (since the hall doubled as a performance hall) with a microphone in hand and a cocky smile tugging at her lips.

Aelin sighed. "What does that wench want now?"

"I have some news to share."

"I think this might get interesting…" Ren cocked his head and sat at one of the many lunch tables scattered across the room. The others joined him without second thought.

A projector lit up the wall behind Kaltain, revealing, in bold lettering, the words: THE TRUTH.

"How dramatic." Aedion spat sarcastically, blowing a loose strand of hair out of his face.

Then the projected picture changed. Heavy silence fell like a thick layer of snow covering the crowds. A picture of Aelin.

"I'm sure you all know this girl as Celaena Sardothien." Kaltain walked around the stage with her chin up high. Her gaze briefly met Aelin's. "Well what if I told you, that Celaena Sardothien didn't exist?"


A/N: Hope you enjoyed! Once again, please follow my art instagram my_average_art_s
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