Hey guys, I'm not sure why there have been issues with uploading the chapter but I hope it works this time. Enjoy the chapter.

Aelin woke up to a pounding head. Her entire body was sore and her brain was fuzzy.

Maybe she had drunk a little too much.

Knowing that they had nowhere pressing to be that day, the assassin opted to sleeping in and resting in bed. But after a few hours of doing absolutely nothing, Aelin was quite restless. She was too tired to even try to work with some Wrydmarks or deal with Elena, and she was much too lazy to train. It would have been an idle day for reading, but her head ached too much for her hobby to be pleasurable.

Having nothing to do, Aelin decided to scavenge for some of that chocolate cake; the perfect solution to her hangover.

She left her room in yet another short top and bottom, liking the Night Cour's fashion with each passing day. The manor was oddly quiet. The princess wondered where the cadre had all disappeared to as she made her way to the kitchen. After some searching, she found that precious gem. Aelin then decided to go outside; she was curious about the ground, never have wandered before.

With the sun beaming down on her and delicious food in her mouth, it made a nearly perfect morning. The landscape was gorgeous, the garden especially pretty. Numerous flowers that she could not name and endless greenery. The princess had eaten half the cake and already longing for more. That though, however, did not last long. Not when she heard rustling behind her. Honing her skills, Aelin went completely still, her head turned to the side, ready to capture any sound. There was something in the bushes, something that was trying to sneak up on her.

"Are you going to come out willingly or will I have to drag you out?" She sang, a hand on the daggers that she had borrowed from Azriel. Well, it wasn't technically borrowed since she hadn't exactly asked, but that wasn't very important right then. Aelin knew that acting recklessly in a realm she did not know, on land that was foreign, when it could be a number of things behind her that could kill her wasn't very intelligent. But to be honest, she was way too hungover to care.

More rustling was heard as the creature came out of hiding. Smirking, Aelin turned and was surprised at what she found.

Calling it a creature had been correct. It was a gray skinny thing whose limbs were thin and long. With a hunched back and tattered rob that barely concealed it. Its eyes were soulless and teeth horrifically large. It desperately needed a manicure and pedicure; those yellow cracked nails were just atrocious.

"Well aren't you the loveliest thing ever," She purred.

The creature looked at her, a sinister smile on its face. "I can smell the lie on you,"

Aelin smiled back at that. "What a fun talent,"

The creature took a step forward, analyzing her like one would a foreign bird. "A humane, but not one...how peculiar," Its voice was incredible too, she noticed. Soft and gentle, but also rough and calloused. Low and high, alone but together. It was fascinating.

"Did you smell that on me too?"

The creature ignored her comment and asked, "What are you?"

"I was going to ask the exact same thing,"

"I'm a Fae, one of many different kinds."

Aelin looked it up and down. "Well, now I know where all the good looks went,"

It smiled, amusement illuminating its soulless eyes. "You are interesting,"

"So I've been told." She had never before seen a fae like it. "What kind of fae are you?"

"A Suriel," It answered instantly.

"What are your powers?"

"Knowledge,"

"How old are you?"

"Older than the bones of this world," Each answer had been immediate and true; she detected no lies. Either the Suriel was unafraid, or truthful by nature. If that was true, she could extract some needed information from it. She hadn't spoken to any fae outside of Rhysand's cadre since her arrival. Well, besides that red-head male from the ball, but this was more interesting, and perhaps more useful.

"I have some questions and something tells me that you have answers,"

"Like what?"

"Like information on a specific book that is capable of great power." Indeed, she had been right from its gaze, it knew what she sought out. Aelin hadn't given up on her quest for that magical book that Elena had ever so generously told her about. The bargain she had made with Rhysand was not her complete plan, simply her backup. If she was able to find the book without his help or knowledge, she could use her favor for something else. Like immunity and protection from stealing the very weapon that he planned to use to stop the pending war. But that was only if her plan failed. And, in order for it to work, she needed information on said book.

"I'll tell you what I know, for something in return,"

That hadn't been entirely unexpected. It would have been stupid to give information for nothing in exchange. She wasn't sure what she could give it. It needed a new wardrobe but Aelin wasn't its size. And it definitely needed something for his complexion, but there was no rouge on her person. The only other possibility would be a sexual exchange. It was only natural that the thing would be thirsty for something like that; it looked like it hadn't been laid in a millennium. Of course, Aelin would never use her body for information- well, that was debatable, but she had no plans in doing so. Looks like she would just have to torture the information out of it.

"What is it you want?"

The wrinkly being looked at her silently for a moment before responding. "Do you have a chicken?"

That took her aback. "Excuse me?"

"I liked freshly slaughtered chicken," It tilted its head. "Do you have any?"

In her short but adventurous lifetime, not much surprised the assassin. The offer Dorian had made when she was freed from Endovier, the shock that was Cain's monstrosity, and perhaps when Elena had first made her unfortunate appearance. And now this, a request for chicken. Well, at least now she did not have to worry about having sex with the thing. "I don't have chicken" Aelin then remembered the half-eaten cake. "But I do have this,"

The fae looked relevantly surprised at her counteroffer but nonetheless and stared at it as if it was some object it could not quite understand.

"It's chocolate cake," As she was talking, the assassin was already grieving its loss. "Trust me, way more delicious than any chicken."

That seemed to convince it and took it from her hands. Aelin had half a mind to go back on her word and take back her precious cake. But she resisted; when she got back to Erilea, she'd go to the market and buy some.

She watched as the Suriel sniffed the baked goods before tasting it. By the sound of it, the immortal being approved. Nothing beats chocolate.

"It's called the Book of Breathings,"

Of course, this magical book had to have some elaborate name, much like every single other artifact or magic being.

"How can I get it?"

The Suriel took another bite. "Stealing it from the Mortal Queens but the other half 's location is unknown."

"Explain," She knew that the Mortal Queens had it, having been there when Rhysand requested it of them. She simply wanted to know how to get it from them, if there was some sort of trick to doing so. She hadn't expected there to be a half.

It took a break from eating, licking its cracked lips. "Why does a human want such a thing?"

"I'm the one asking the questions,"

"It's cut in half," Ah. That might prove an issue. She was now concerned with getting it from Rhysand should he get his hands on it, somehow finding out the location of the other half and then taking that one too. All while keeping her head down. Lovely.

"Can a half be used by itself?"

"No,"

There goes that shred of hope.

"What can it do?"

"Such interesting questions for a human," It squinted its eyes at her. "Why are you in Prythian?"

"Just eat your cake and answer my questions,"

The Suriel lost interest as he continued taking small bites of the cake. "It does everything,"

Aelin resisted asking more direct questions; if the creature revealed such things for a mere piece of cake then her conversation with it could travel to other ears too.

"How was Amarantha defeated?" That was a question that had been eating away at her for a while now. Ever since her discussion with that male from the ball, Aelin had many questions left unanswered. He had told her about Hybern's second in command Amarantha, and how she had enslaved all the courts for decades. But the redhead never told her how she was killed.

The Suriel stared hard at his empty hand. "Do you have more?"

"No," The word was tense, trying to keep it tethered to the conversation. "Who's Jurian?" That was something else that had been discussed. A brief mention of him, and his eyes were supposedly used as an ornament for Amarantha. Aelin definitely needed a backstory for that. But it appeared that the Suriel was done talking.

"I want more," It frowned, licking the remaining crumbs from its hand.

"Then come visit me again," She started walking away, giving it the last glance. "But take a spa day before you do,"