Disclaimer: All but Lyra belong to Sarah J Maas

Azriel watched as Cassian spread his still heavily bandaged wings, wincing just a bit but sighing in relief when they moved and answered to his commands. They spread wider and Madja watched him carefully, moving around him, studying her work with sharp eyes. "Very good, Lord Cassian." Madja said, her hands glowing as they ran just a few inches above the membrane. "It is looking very good."

"Thank you, Madja." Cassian said, his wings slowly tucking in against him again. Azriel could hear the emotion behind the thanks, could hear how much his brother genuinely meant the words. Ruined wings were death to an Illyrian warrior and Azriel knew how true that sentiment would be for Cassian.

"Of course." Madja said, laying a wrinkled hand to Cassian's shoulder and giving him a kind smile. "Do not let him push too much too fast." Madja turned her gaze to Azriel at the words, a wry smile spreading across her face. "I speak to you, for I know he won't listen."

Azriel gave a small smile to the healer, bowing his head as his brother sputtered and protested. Madja just pat his shoulder again before gathering her bag to put away her tonics and salves. Azriel watched her put the things away, glasses tinkling against each other. "You left some more sleep tonic for Lyra?" Azriel asked and Madja's eyes flickered up toward him.

"Yes, enough for the next couple days." Madja answered and Azriel felt his brother still a bit where he was sitting, his amber eyes studying Azriel as he mentioned the strange, new female. Madja didn't seem to notice, instead she just sighed and gave a sad look. "I will check on her again when I come to see to Lord Cassian, but… it is not her body that needs help right now."

Azriel frowned, knowing the truth behind her words. She had retreated into herself in the last week, not speaking or acknowledging anyone after the incident just a week before…

She was still crying. It had become less severe than before, but it was still happening, his shadows confirmed. Azriel was surprised by how much he wanted it to stop, how he wanted to help… but she was disturbed by him. He was not sure why that stung so much. He was used to people fearing him, being unnerved by his shadows and his cold exterior. Even Feyre had been cautious around him.

Mor still remained at the House of Wind with them, and he knew she was staying to help with both Feyre's sisters and Lyra when she chose to ask more questions. Since Feyre was gone- Azriel felt that icy anger and rage fill him when he thought of how his now High Lady was stuck with the bastard Tamlin – Mor had seemed to take it upon herself to personally try to make sure her sisters were looked after. And Lyra… Mor seemed to sense something in her, connect with her in that way she connected with all female's who had suffered abuse. Azriel had seen it enough over the years, that way she looked at those females she had helped nurse to health or draw out of their terror and pain enough to come to stay at the Library with Clotho.

He hated that Mor could sense that in Lyra. Hated it for both of them.

Azriel was jerked out of his own thoughts at the sound of shattering and his shadows hissed and snapped at the sound, disturbed by it. He drew up, wincing a bit at the pain that flared from his still sore wing, but he pushed past it and headed toward the sound. Lyra, she bleeds. She cries again. His shadows whispered and Azriel pushed himself toward her room faster.

He opened her door, finding her bed sheets twisted and pushed aside, but she wasn't there. He sniffed, the scent of blood stinging his nose. He turned toward the bathroom, following that smell and saw the door partially open. He pushed it completely open, about to step into the room but stopped at the glass that littered the floor. Azriel's brow furrowed, taking in the shattered mirror, the spots of blood that were splattered among the shards. His heart quickened as he found her, tucked into the corner by the tub, her hands around her head and sobs racking her body as she shook her head. She muttered something beneath her breathe, repeating it over and over.

Blood dripped from her hands, down her pale, shaking arms. Some of it leaked from her feet, the shards dug into the bottom of them. She did not even seem to acknowledge the pain of it as she rocked and cried.

"Lyra." Azriel whispered, the smell of her blood making his heart thud against his chest. She flinched at his voice, her sobs seeming to grow. His magic flared to life, the blue sweeping over the floor to push aside the glass and creating a path toward her. She didn't seem to notice.

"Lyra." He repeated, moving closer to her.

"Not my eyes. Not me." She whispered, her voice wavering as she gripped at her hair and continued to rock.

Azriel did not know what the words meant, but he gently lowered himself in front of her, trying to keep his wings and shadows as still as possible. He knew how they upset her, a sign of magic she didn't seem to believe in.

Mor was in the doorway now, alarm and sadness written over her beautiful face as she took in the sight of the bathroom. He saw her nostrils flare a bit at the scent of the blood and she took a step into the room, flinching as she saw the droplets of it on the floor.

"You're hurt." Azriel said, reaching out slowly, cautiously toward the female. He touched her arm gently, both to not alarm her and to not hurt her. He was a bit surprised when she didn't yank away and she looked up at him, tears streaming down her face as her icy, white blue eyes met his.

"That isn't me." She whispered, her voice wavering and her face crumbled again. Azriel gently pulled her hand toward him, scanning it to make sure she hadn't cut any major artery. A cut ran along her palm, blood oozing down but he could feel it already healing.

"What do you mean?" Mor asked gently, hovering behind him.

But Lyra only stared at him, more tears slowly falling down her cheeks. "My eyes… this body." She let out a choked sob again, shaking her head. "Why won't I wake up?"

Azriel's heart sank at the words, the sadness and pain in her face. "I'm sorry." He whispered, hoping she heard the sincerity in his words. They didn't seem to reach her though, her eyes drifting far away. She seemed to be retreating into herself, withdrawing inward. Her fingers curled into her palm, digging into the cut, making Azriel flinched. But the pain she caused herself seemed to calm her somehow, though she still cried.

Azriel gently lifted her, but she didn't even acknowledge the movement. Didn't even seem to care. He set her on the edge of the tub, explaining to her in a soothing voice that he was going to get the glass out, to bandage her up. She said nothing, showed no reaction, even as he pulled that glass out and bandaged her feet and hand with Mor's help. The pain didn't even seem to draw her out of the place she had retreated too. Mor watched her worriedly, exchanging a fearful look with Azriel as he finished cleaning her up and then lifted her to take her back to the bed. She finally moved when he settled her there, but only to pull the blankets around her and turn away from them, staring at the wall with a broken, dead look.

"I'll stay with her." Mor said softly, though Lyra didn't react to her voice. Azriel nodded but the thought of leaving the female like this…. Something in him fought the urge to stay near her, to protect her. Mor knew what to do with pain like this, with those who had suffered in ways he would never know. As much as he wanted to help her, he knew Mor would be better.

So he left Mor in the chair beside the bed, Lyra's back to her. Left with the scent of her blood still in his nose.

"Try to get her to leave that room. To interact with someone. Perhaps the High Lady's sisters. They may understand." Madja continued, closing her bag, and putting it on her shoulder.

Perhaps they would, but the thought of subjecting Lyra to the withdrawn and pained Elain or the hissing, dark anger of Nesta made Azriel flinch a bit. They would understand, but he wasn't sure either would help the female. But he bowed his head in thanks for her advise and watched her retreat from the room.

"She still isn't any better then?" Cassian asked, his voice casual, steady. It was the voice he used when he was trying to pry but subtly. It wasn't ever as subtle as his brother thought it was.

"No." Azriel said, offering no more. Cassian shifted and he could feel the questions simmering in him. He hadn't been well enough yet to venture out of his own room or even meet the female himself. Azriel wasn't sure it would be good for her to meet him anyway. She still shrunk back from his own wings, his shadows.

"Perhaps we should make her come out." Cassian said, running a hand through his black curls. "Bring her to the table for a meal or to the balcony. Getting out of that room would be best for her."

Azriel gave a simple 'hmm' in response and he saw Cassian give him a slightly amused look. He glanced back, his face hardening a bit at the gleam growing in his eyes. "What is it about her?" Cassian asked, that amusement now lining his voice and it grated on Azriel's nerves. Mostly because he didn't know the answer himself.

"Perhaps I should ask you the same about Nesta." Azriel answered darkly and the name of the eldest Archeron sister had the exact effect he knew it would on his brother. That smile was wiped from his face and it took on a hard edge. Grim satisfaction flickered through Azriel.

"You compare her to Nesta?" Cassian bit back and Azriel only gave a cold look in return. Cassian's face broke, a laugh escaping him as he shook his head. "I need to meet this female."

"Leave her be." Azriel answered, his words biting more then he meant. It only served to amuse Cassian more. Azriel left him in his own amusement, irritation growing when he snapped the door shut behind him. He slowly walked past Lyra's own room, pausing to listen, and letting his shadows drift beneath the door, studying her, making sure she was alright in there.

She was still in bed, not asleep, still stuck in that place inside her head. He frowned, a flicker of pain at the report, before he pulled them back and headed toward the kitchens. His shadows whispered where the Archeron sisters were as well, with Nesta in the chair she had taken over in the library and Elain in her room, staring out that window. She didn't fare much better than Lyra, lost and broken from her time in the Cauldron. Nesta tried to help her in what way she could, but no amount of pushing seemed to help the middle sibling.

Azriel headed toward the balcony after his shadows slithered back to him from reporting on the others and spread his wings wide. His left still burned a bit when he did, but he was finally able to fly again after a week. He had to get out of this house for a bit before the pain from them all consumed him as well.

So he took flight, to where, he didn't know. But he prayed to the Mother something changed when he came back.

Lyra woke to these strange feelings yet again, hating the way she was able to hear, to feel the other people in the large house moving and walking around. She felt and heard more than just their movements, could feel what made them… other. She hated it. It made her feel even more insane than she was sure she already was.

Every time she opened her eyes, she willed herself to be back in her apartment. Every time she opened her eyes her chest caved in when it was the same, foreign bedroom in this strange world.

She dug her nails into her arm, pain radiating up and drawing her back to herself. The pain helped to distract her from the heart beats she heard, the ocean waves, the people milling about in this city.

From his shadows that he sent to look at her, whispering along her floor and observing her.

They were gone now, left with him after he had drifted past her room. She could always feel where he was, even in ways that she couldn't with the others. Even when he went to the floors below her.

She paused and searched for where he was now. She wasn't sure why.

But she couldn't feel him. At all.

Lyra lifted from the bed, turning toward the door and frowned, listening for him again. She felt the other two woman the floor above, one in the same room she always was in and the other roaming around. She felt that other man in his room, though he was restless in his bed. But Azriel and his shadows weren't there.

She felt oddly panicked at that, though she wasn't sure why. She gripped her blanket, her fingers shaking a bit. Why would he have left?

Before she fully knew what she was doing, she pushed up from the bed, swaying a bit as her head spun. She had rarely ventured out of the bed, only to use the bathroom or take the food that Mor left in her room. It took her a minute to steady herself and once she did, she headed toward the door. Her feet had already healed, faster then they should of. She tried to ignore that, but it only served to remind her that her body was no longer the same.

Her hand landed on the doorknob, her heart thudding more then she wanted it too. She hadn't felt like this, so helpless and terrified of the outside world in years. Not since she was young, not since her mother had left her with that monster…

You are stronger than this. You can do this.

She jerked the door open, terror threading its way through her veins. She peaked out, glad that the hallway was empty and quiet. She picked a way to go at random, venturing down it cautiously, ready to run back to her room if she needed too. She turned a couple times, trying to remember which way to make sure she made it back.

She found a dining room, large and spacious that led to open doors and a balcony that looked down on the city below. She felt the breeze on her skin, cool and night kissed. Stars twinkled outside and she stared, transfixed by the beauty of it. Somehow, she knew it wasn't the night sky she had looked at for almost her whole life. It was different… even more beautiful.

"Finally left the room, huh?"

Lyra whipped around, her heart thudding painfully against her chest as she caught sight of another winged man, his features similar to Rhysand and Azriel's, though he looked different. He was handsome, just like the other two, but rougher, like he was made from something different. More from the earth. She wasn't sure how she knew, but she realized this was the man she could feel from several rooms away. Azriel, Mor, Rhysand and the small, strange one named Ameren visited him this last week.

His wings were bandaged, but she could see the same leathery skin, same large talon on the apex that Azriel's had. Whatever they were, they came from the same place. They were too similar not too.

"Lyra, right?" The man asked, studying her with those amber eyes. Though he looked and felt wild and brutal, something about him was kind. There was a gentleness there that reminded her slightly of Mor.

"You're the other one." She muttered, her voice hoarse and rough. "I felt you in that room."

Cassian tilted his head at her, taking in the words. Despite how crazed they sounded, it didn't seem to unnerve him. He looked like he believed her. It settled some of the fear in her stomach.

"Cassian. And I've been healing." He said simply, jerking his hand toward his bandaged wings. "They got pretty tore up."

She ran her eyes along those wings, that feeling of panic rising in her at the sight. They weren't right, weren't human. Mor had tried to engage her more and tried to probe her to ask more questions, but Lyra had always shut it out. She was too scared to hear the answers. Cassian seemed to see something in her eyes, because he tucked his wings in just a bit and quickly jerked his head toward the table, distracting her. "You want food?"

At the words, she was suddenly aware of how hungry she was. She had barely eaten during the week. But she just looked back toward the sky, her brow furrowing.

"He's gone." She said, frowning.

"Azriel?" Cassian asked, drawing her attention back to him. He was studying her a bit more now, something odd in his eyes as he looked at her. Like he was looking for something she didn't understand. "He'll be back. Probably went to talk with Rhysand."

Cassian made his way to the table, settling himself into a chair and gestured toward the other one. He was so casual with her, so at ease that it almost felt like he had known her for years and not moments. It made her feel… normal for the first time this whole week.

She slowly walked toward the chair across from him, easing herself into it and he smiled at the simple action. He made a movement with his hand and she jerked back, flinching when a plate full of food suddenly appeared in front of her.

Her eyes closed, her heart speeding up. She shouldn't have left the room. This wasn't real.

"Hey, just breathe."

Cassian was watching her, his face soft as he leaned a bit toward her. She stared back, tears pricking her eyes as she saw that food was still in front of her. She dug her nails into her palm at the sight of it, her breathe becoming shallow. Cassian face grew worried.

"Breathe." He repeated, frown deepening and nostrils flaring when her nails drew blood. "Just look at me and breathe."

She met his gaze, taking a rattling, deep breath. Cassian nodded, smiling just a bit and she took another. After a few moments, the fear settled a bit, though she still felt it there. He was watching her cautiously, like she was a trapped animal that would lash out at any moment.

"Good." Cassian said, nodding at her encouragingly. "It's just food. It's alright."

"This can't be real." She whispered. It had become her mantra this last week, every time she felt that power beneath all their skins, every time she woke up to the sound of other people's hearts in her ears, when she felt those shadows sneaking under her door.

"You were human before, weren't you?" He asked, studying her.

"What else is there?" She asked, her voice sharper then she intended. It didn't disturb him though, he merely leaned back, those massive wings shuffling a bit. She flinched at the movement.

"Well, we're Fae." He said simply and she saw his wings still, as though he was trying to have her forget about them.

"Fae." She repeated, her voice skeptical. "Like… fairies?"

"Yes." He answered, brow rising a bit at her answer. He hadn't expected her to know. "You have them in your… where you're from?"

In your world. She knew it was what he had wanted to say.

"No. They're myths." She snapped, though she wasn't sure why she was angry at him. He took in her anger, observed it and just grabbed his fork and began to eat as he thought over her words. "They aren't real."

"I believe you." He said, though the words made her angrier for some reason. "Things like Ameren aren't supposed to be real here either."

She glared back at him; at the casual way he said the words. She felt still felt like what they were trying to convince her had happened was an elaborate trick. A way to toy with her, make her feel even more unstable than she already did. She was about to snap at him again, but she stopped when she felt Azriel again, the breeze from his wings making her shiver. She turned, her stomach twisting at the image of him against the night sky, those wings flared to full length and cloaked in shadows that drifted around him like smoke. He stared back at her, surprise in his usually blank face when he took in the sight of her sitting at the table with Cassian.

"You… are eating?" He said, looking slightly confused. His wings tucked into his body, the shadows slipping beneath his shirt and out of sight.

"You were gone." She answered, though she blushed at the words. She sounded so needy, so weak. She dug her nails into her skin again.

"I-I am sorry." He said, seeming genuinely upset for leaving her alone, though he owed her nothing. He didn't even know her. She frowned, pulling her arms around herself and turning away from him. She shouldn't need him. She shouldn't put that on him.

"It's fine." She said tightly and he continued to watch her, those eyes boring into her as she turned away from him and stared instead at the plate before her. Cassian took in the exchange, some kind of recognition crossing his features as he looked between the two of them.

"Want some, brother?" Cassian asked, still putting on the air of casualness. Azriel shook his head, though he went to sit beside Cassian, sinking into the chair next to him.

"Brother?" Lyra asked, her eyes moving between the two. It made sense; they were so similar looking.

"Not by blood." Cassian laughed, his massive hand coming to land on Azriel's shoulder. Azriel eyed him, his face tightening in what looked like annoyance. It was a look that she realized probably happened a lot, a look that was familiar and human. Long suffering annoyance. "Just two bastard nobodies with no family of their own."

He said it so nonchalantly. Like it wasn't a sentence filled with pain and perhaps years of trauma.

"Eat. It's good." Cassian said, nodding toward her food as he began to eat his own again. Lyra lowered her eyes to the plate, observing the chicken, potatoes, and green beans. It was a normal looking meal despite how it had gotten here. She sniffed it subtly, checking for any difference between how the meal smelled before when she was home, but found no difference. How she would know, she wasn't sure. Her scent was better now, to much so, but its not like she would of known what to look for here if something was wrong.

"Do you want something different?" Azriel asked, his voice calm and steady. "I can get it-"

"No." She said because she couldn't take seeing more food come from nowhere again. Azriel seemed confused by her reaction, but he merely nodded. She picked up her fork, cautiously picking up a tiny bit of potatoes and bringing it to her mouth.

It was delicious. Rich and flavored. She wasn't sure what she expected magicked food to do to her, but she was still cautious and slow as she ate it. She was so hungry she wanted to scarf it down, but she restrained herself.

Azriel watched her the whole time, looking relieved when she ate more and more. She tried to ignore him and the way his concern made her feel oddly warm.

Cassian began to speak with Azriel, asking him questions that Lyra didn't quite understand but she didn't listen much. He didn't push her anymore about her home or about things she didn't want to discuss. She was glad of it and thankful that he seemed to realize it was a bad road to go down. Azriel conversed with him, though she could feel him still observing her, taking in all her actions.

When she grew full, she set her fork down and glanced around the room, taking in more of her surroundings. This place was so big, more massive than any house she had ever been in. She knew it was bigger than she even fully knew because she could hear others outside of the two women, Cassian and Azriel, distant and far away.

She heard the familiar footsteps of the other woman further in the house, heard her rummaging through something. She could hear her heartbeat as she concentrated, steady and even. She felt that unnatural power too, like ice and fire and something so terrifying she found herself flinching back from it a bit. Whatever she was, whatever power she held, it was not normal… like Ameren. It was wrong and foreign and dark.

"Lyra?"

Azriel's voice called her back to the dining room, away from that unsettling power. She blinked, looking over at him and saw the worry in his eyes as he observed her. "Who are they?" She asked, looking back toward where the woman was still walking around in the distance.

"Our High Ladies sisters." Azriel said and she saw Cassian stiffen just a bit, that casual ease evaporating. He didn't stop eating but she saw his fingers tighten around his fork and his jaw ticked. "Elain and Nesta Archeron."

"She isn't right." Lyra muttered, her brow furrowing as she continued to look toward them. Cassian's eyes snapped up to her then, something like fear crossing his face.

"You can feel what it is?" Cassian asked, his voice strained. He was watching her with an odd intensity that she didn't understand.

"I don't know. It's just not right. It feels like…" She paused, a shiver running down her spine as she realized why the feeling unnerved her so much. "It feels like when I was in that water."

Cassian didn't seem to know how to answer that, but she could see that the words pained him. Whoever this woman was, the rough man clearly cared for her to worry that much. She felt bad that the words had disturbed him.

"Did she come out of that… thing too?" She asked, regretting the words as another pained look crossed Cassian's face. But she had to know. If they had come from somewhere else too…

"They were put in it." Azriel said, watching both her and Cassian for any sign of distress at the words. "But they came from here."

Lyra frowned, that hope disappearing just as quickly as it had come. She leaned back in her seat, suddenly feeling exhausted and heavy. "I… I don't know how to get back to my room." She muttered. Azriel caught onto her words, quickly standing and nodding toward the hallway to the left.

"I can show you." He said and she nodded, pushing away from the table and heading back toward her room. Azriel stayed a healthy distance away from her, seeming to struggle with what to do around her. She tried to concentrate on how to get back, but she was so tired and after everything that had happened tonight, she didn't have enough left in her to pay attention. She wanted back in that bed. She wanted away from people again.

Azriel stepped back and allowed her to open her door when they arrived at her room. She went inside and she saw him stand back, looking unsure of what to do or say as she stepped inside. She merely said a quick thank you before shutting the door on him. It took everything she had to crawl into the bed and bury her face into the soft pillows. She felt an odd comfort at the sight of that wall as she slowly drifted into a fitful sleep.