A/N: Hi! I know it's been a while since the last chapter was posted — sorry! I've been busy with college. To be honest, I don't think I'll be able to post the next chapter until December (when I have my next vacation). We're nearing the end of this fic, though (only like 3-5 chapters left) so I hope you guys can bear with me, just a little longer.

Thank you so much to perseusannabeth (on tumblr) for beta reading this chapter! Shoutout to bookstantrash (tumblr) for helping my indecisive self make editing decisions.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

"Bye, Adira. Mama loves you," Nesta whispered, kissing her daughter on the head. She swallowed the lump that had risen to her throat.

"Papa loves you too, savitra," Cassian smiled, his expression tinged with worry. "I'm going to miss you for every second we're apart, but I'll be back before you know it."

He stroked her cheek with his thumb and then placed her in Elian's arms.

In the four months since Adira's birth, they had never left her alone with anyone else. Sure, Nesta had let Khoniya watch Adira while Nesta took a shower or used the bathroom, but that was for mere minutes — not for hours and certainly not an entire night as they were doing now. It was Brielle's birthday, and they had planned to surprise her by taking her out to her favorite restaurant. Cassian was supposed to take care of Adira, but two days ago, the Inner Circle had invited Cassian to spend the evening with them. Though he'd tried to refuse, they had complained about how little they saw him during the past few months and said that if he didn't want to go out with them, they'd come over to his house, which they were annoyed at not having been able to visit yet. In the end, Cassian had decided that agreeing was the only way to get them off his back.

They were left in a situation where neither of them could take care of Adira. They'd both gone through various scenarios, trying to figure out if they could bring Adira along. However the Inner Circle was still unaware of Adira's existence, and a loud restaurant with an open bar was hardly an appropriate location for a baby. When Nesta had discussed her troubles with Khoniya, the latter had replied that Elian was staying home with Yaran anyway, and that he would undoubtedly be willing to take care of Adira. Elian had agreed, and after demonstrating his capacity to feed, change, and put Adira to sleep, Nesta and Cassian had accepted his help.

"Bye, Adira," Cassian said softly. Adira gazed up at him, calmly resting in Elian's arms, unfazed by her suddenly emotional parents.

"She's going to be just fine," Elian answered reassuringly.

"Yes, she is," Khoniya agreed, stepping into the living room where they all sat. She was clad in an elegant emerald green dress that accentuated her curves and flowed to her ankles. Her hair was down for once, and the semi-sheer white cloth that usually covered it was tucked into a glittery black clutch that matched her shoes.

"You look amazing," Elian whispered to his mate, capturing her lips in a soft kiss. Khoniya blushed slightly before clearing her throat.

"Are you ready?" She asked, turning to Nesta with a grin.

Nesta nodded.

"Perfect. Okay." Khoniya's eyes shifted across the living room, checking that everything was in order. Then, she placed a kiss on Elian's cheek. Turning towards the hallway, she called out, "Bye, Yaran!"

"Wait, mama!" Yaran's voice answered, followed by the pitter-patter of a toddler's footsteps. Yaran entered the room, his hair disheveled as he barreled into his mom.

"No running," Khoniya scolded softly.

"Sorry, mama. I say bye-bye!" he answered. Khoniya crouched down and Yaran placed a tiny kiss on her cheek.

"Be good for Papa, okay?" Khoniya said. Nesta glanced at Cassian, who mirrored her expression of awkwardness at witnessing the mother-son moment. Both of them were parents now, but neither had been around other parents and kids.

Yaran nodded.

"Papa's taking care of Adira this evening, too, so he's gonna need your help," Khoniya explained.

"I big boy. I help," Yaran announced proudly. Then, he walked over to his father and asked, "Adira?"

Elian, who was still carrying Adira in his arms, kneeled down, so that Yaran was eye level with Adira.

The boy's face brightened.

"Hi Adira!" He waved enthusiastically. "Remember? I Yaran! I gonna help! I take care of you, okay?"

Adira blinked at him.

"I teach you! Lots and lots! You know colors? I know red and yellow and orange and green and blue and pink and black." Yaran spoke, gesticulating wildly. Then, he pointed at Adira's eyes and announced, "Blue!"

He began singing a clearly improvised tune while twirling around: "Blue, blue, blueberry! Berry, very blue! Beautiful blue!"

Adira giggled at him and Yaran's eyes widened.

"Papa!" He exclaimed, somehow sounding even more excited than before. "She laugh!"

Elian chuckled. "Maybe she likes you, Yaran."

Yaran jumped joyfully. "I like you, too, Adira! Lots and lots!"

Adira giggled again.

Khoniya let out a soft sigh at the adorable sight and reclaimed her place by Nesta's side.

"Alright, let's get going," she whispered to Nesta, who nodded.

Cassian took the hint. "I think I should get going too," he said.

Elian waved at them as the three of them shut the front door behind them. The sound of their children laughing echoed as they took off in separate directions.

Brielle's gasp of surprise and the look of pure joy on her face made it all perfect.

Brielle had been expecting to go on a date at a park with Saibh, who had led Brielle to the restaurant under the pretext that she wanted to take a look at the menu for future reference.

Nesta swore that there were tears in Brielle's eyes as she wrapped her arms around Khoniya and then Nesta.

"No one has ever done anything like this for my birthday," Brielle said, blinking rapidly. "I just- thank you. I've never had friends like you guys and I just… I'm so thankful that I met each and every one of you." Brielle's eyes met Khoniya's, then Riona's, Cian's, Saibh's, and Nesta's. Nesta felt the sincerity of her words and the depth of her emotions, and blinked back her own tears. Brielle was such a kind, bright, incredible fae, and it felt unjust that she hadn't been blessed with love and support and joy all her life. "You mean the world to me," she continued, "I'm so honored to have you in my life and I love you guys."

"And we're honored to have met you," Khoniya answered, her eyes reflecting Brielle's love. Khoniya was another fae whose life had been far too difficult for someone so amazing. But perhaps that had been their journeys – the struggles they had to endure to become who they were today, like the heroes in books. Perhaps their suffering had forged them, a blade in the fire, steeling them to fight against injustices and make the world better for those who came after.

Nesta smiled and then hugged Brielle, letting her emotions show openly as she'd only learned to do after meeting Brielle and Khoniya. They were not her sisters and would never be. No, their bond of friendship was something different, something stronger and far more precious. It was a choice they made every day, a bond formed from no obligation or external pressure. What tied them together was their desire to stay friends, valuing and loving and respecting one another, and forever being thankful that they had been lucky enough to meet. Nesta had learned of her own value from these females — these incredibly amazing fae who had been through hell and high water and had come out not only stronger but also kinder. They'd deemed her worthy of their time and affection and treated her like an equal. They didn't care that she was younger, colder, meaner. They didn't try to fix her. They just loved her for who she was, including her flaws, and supported her through anything and everything — not because they had to, but because they wanted to. There was nothing quite like the beauty of true friendship, Nesta mused.

Brielle smiled back at Nesta. Her eyes glittered, and Nesta knew that Brielle understood all the things Nesta didn't know how to express out loud — how much she cherished Brielle and how much of a difference she'd made in Nesta's life.

As they began ordering their food, which consisted of Brielle's favorite dishes, Saibh nudged her girlfriend, teasing with a grin, "So, you love me, huh." Brielle replied, "Oh, shut up, you." and then proceeded to shut Saibh up with a kiss.

Riona rolled her eyes at the couple, but Nesta didn't miss the way her lips twitched.

Time flew by, filled with conversation and laughter. The evening felt like a dance, and Nesta was swept up in the music, twirling to her heart's delight with her friends.

When the strawberry cake arrived at the table, the candles lit, Khoniya whispered, "Make a wish."

"What more could I wish for?" Brielle asked softly, and though the others laughed, Nesta understood exactly how Brielle felt. The night was magical and wonderful. Nesta didn't want it to end.

NIght had always meant darkness for Nesta — hopelessness and hidden beasts. At best, it was a cover for her to spill her tears, unseen and unjudged. At worst… There was a reason girls weren't allowed to be outside after dark.

Yet now, Nesta finally began to see the beauty of the night. Perhaps this was the night that had seduced Feyre. Her baby sister, who had loved the stars but hated the darkness, was now in love with every aspect of the Night Court. Nesta hadn't understood it, but now as the darkness allowed her inhibitions to be lowered, to laugh louder and feel deeper, she understood the appeal. Velaris. The word felt strange on her tongue, but to so many, it was a word synonymous to hope, salvation, bliss.

Everyone seemed to echo Nesta's reluctance to end the evening. After a short discussion, in which Saibh had made Cian swear not to drink any alcohol, they agreed to continue the night at Onyx, a fancy café that doubled as a club and bar at night.

As they walked over, the cool light air blowing their hair back like painted goddesses as moonlight illuminated their path, Nesta heard Riona whisper, "Is this a dream?"

"If it is," Cian replied, "I don't ever want to wake up."

"So then I realized that what we really needed was another art studio!" Feyre explained, gesticulating wildly with her hands. Cassian was glad the table had already been cleared after their meal, so no dishes were broken. "So none of the art teachers will have to step on each other's toes and the students will have more space!"

"That's brilliant, Feyre," Rhysand replied, wrapping his arms around her for a kiss that was far too deep for Cassian's comfort.

Azriel, noticing Cassian's averted eyes, grumbled, "Now you see what I've had to deal with this whole time."

Rhysand raised his middle finger at Az, not bothering to stop the kissing.

Lucien, who was visiting for the week, looked distinctly uncomfortable as he studied the table cloth.

"How do they even breathe?" Cassian smirked.

Az shrugged. "That is the real mystery, honestly. Maybe it's one of Feyre's powers or something."

Mor laughed. "Which of the High Lords are you saying she got it from?"

"Tarquin makes the most sense," Cassian replied.

"But given his reputation, wouldn't it be Helion?" Azriel countered.

Amren rolled her eyes and sipped something red. Cassian knew she didn't drink blood anymore, but he still had no desire to investigate the cup's contents.

"Rhys, if you have a minute," Mor smirked in Rhys' direction, "Helion sent word the other day. He mentioned he's hosting a party in a month's time and we're all invited, of course."

Feyre finally tore her mouth from Rhysand's, looking flushed. She didn't seem to be out of breath as she asked, "What's the occasion?" leaving Cassian wondering if Az's theory held any truth.

Mor shrugged her left shoulder, which was bare as she was wearing a one-shoulder glittery red dress. "Helion doesn't need an occasion to party." Her lips were painted in a glossy red that matched her dress.

Amren scoffed. "So you want me to haul myself all the way to the Day Court just to spend a night babysitting you and trying to stop your drunk asses from making shitty decisions? No thanks."

"The Summer Court is also invited. According to my sources, a certain Summer Court prince is going to be there," Mor replied in a sing-song voice.

Elain's eyes widened, and she sent a questioning and teasing glance to Amren, who pretended not to notice.

Amren rolled her eyes. "I don't care."

"Is the party one night, Mor?" Feyre asked.

"It is. We're invited to spend the day before and after in Day if we want, though."

"I'm only going if my room is far, far away from Feyre and Rhysand's," Azriel mumbled.

"Hey!" Feyre complained. "We're not that bad!"

Lucien coughed. He looked like he would rather jump out the window than have to sit through a conversation about Rhysand and Feyre's sex life.

"Yeah," Rhys smirked. "We put up shields when we're really loud."

"Are you sure your shields work?" Azriel retorted.

"Yeah, cousin, maybe you're a little too distracted to work your magic properly," Mor added, raising an eyebrow.

Elain's face was bright red as she excused herself to go to the bathroom. Cassian pretended not to see Azriel and Lucien staring at her retreating figure.

Feyre interjected, "C'mon, Az, it'll be a nice vacation for all of us."

Azriel shrugged before sighing, "Fine."

"Great!" Feyre grinned. Then, she turned to him. "Try not to destroy any buildings, okay, Cassian?"

"It was one time! And only one building!" he protested. He hesitated for a second before adding, "And I don't think I can go."

Leaving Adira alone tonight was hard enough for him. He didn't like being away from her, especially overnight — putting her to sleep was exhausting, but it was still one of the best parts of his day. He knew that, at some point, his duties would require him to spend time in Illyria, away from his daughter, but there was no way he'd choose to go to a Day Court party over singing Adira lullabies.

"What!" Mor yelled, aghast. Even Amren raised an eyebrow at him.

"Cassian, you haven't been spending as much time with us recently, and we miss you," Feyre complained.

"Is there some female you've been seeing?" Rhysand teased.

"You can invite her!" Mor's eyes lit up. "We want to meet her!"

"Cassian's just scared you heathens will scare her off," Azriel answered.

"I can mind my manners!" Mor replied.

Feyre just stuck her tongue out at Az, who laughed, "Case in point."

For a second, Cassian let himself imagine being at the Day Court party with Nesta, dancing in the golden ballroom, and then going back to their room where Adira would be. He almost laughed at the image. There was no way he would let Adira stay in the room alone, and Nesta would almost certainly not enjoy the Day Court party with the Inner Circle in attendance.

"There's no female," he laughed, hoping they'd believe him. "I just can't go."

"I know you don't have any meetings," Rhysand countered.

"I just… I can't." Cassian wished he'd thought of a list of believable excuses before coming over. He should have known that sooner or later, he'd need to get out of group activities.

"Do you have a date that day?" Mor teased.

Cassian rolled his eyes, prepared for more pestering, but Feyre merely said, "Well, if you're not going with us to the Day Court, then at least party with us tonight!"

Relieved at having been let off so easily, he grinned, "I'd love to."

"You busybodies go have fun. I'm heading back to my apartment," Amren said.

Feyre smirked. "Anyone staying over at your apartment?"

"Well, Varian certainly isn't in Summer at the moment," Azriel remarked.

Amren raised a middle finger at them before getting up from her chair.

"So," Rhys asked, "where are we going tonight?"

"Can we go to Rita's?"

"We always go to Rita's," Az replied to Mor with a groan.

"Oh! I actually heard of this new place which apparently has great music." Feyre declared.

"Anything other than Rita's is fine, honestly," Cassian answered with a grin. Azriel nodded as Morrigan rolled her eyes.

"We've been going to Rita's almost exclusively for almost a century now," Rhys pointed out.

"Fine," Mor accepted with a sigh. "Where do you want to go, Feyre?"

"I think it's called Onyx."

The air vibrated with music, multi-colored lights swirling and illuminating the room. Fae were swaying, bouncing to the beat, and grinding on each other, some singing along to the song, others chatting with each other.

"Let's grab some snacks," Khoniya suggested, and everyone nodded, heading towards the bar area. The bar was set up as a mock restaurant, with standing tables and waiters arranged in a neat formation around a central bar.

"I've never been to a place like this before," Riona said, looking around dazzled. "Are they common here?"

Brielle nodded. "Fairly common, yeah. Fae usually come here to have fun with their friends or to meet someone or just to, you know, unwind and dance."

"We don't have this kind of dancing in Hewn," Cian muttered.

Saibh nodded. "Dances are always extremely formal, and usually they're for courtship only, not for… fun."

Nesta hummed in agreement. "In the human lands where I grew up, we didn't have these kinds of dances either. I always enjoyed them since they were a fun occasion to dress up and dance, but they were so much more formal and were reserved for the elite. We would dance official dances — waltzes and boleros and foxtrots. It wasn't this kind of party."

"That's the same, back in autumn, for the High Fae," Khoniya added. "For us, well, we were never invited to those, so we would put together our own dances. Someone would sing, someone would play instruments, and we'd just dance our hearts out in a circle. Kind of like this, but much less sexual and less fancy, I suppose."

"For some reason, in Hewn, dancing was considered the most intimate form of courtship," Cian explained. "Even though the dances were nothing like this, and the most you would do is grab your partner's waist or bare hand."

"It's because we're all touch starved," Riona quipped. "I mean, even making eye contact with your dance partner is mmm," Riona moaned, indicating just how amazing it was. "No one ever touches each other in Hewn, so it's like, we're all desperate for it."

"Males touch prostitutes," Saibh coughed.

Riona rolled her eyes. "Okay, yes, well, the Hewn City males can go fuck themselves. I don't give a shit about them." She turned to her brother. "No offense."

"None taken," he said lightly. "I completely agree with you."

A throat cleared beside their table. A waiter was standing there, his deep violet eyes wide. The male was clearly a Night Court High Fae.

"Did you just say Hewn City?" he asked, his deep voice bordering on a growl. His eyes narrowed on Cian. "Are you from Hewn?"

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Riona hissed. Her eyes were fierce, her mouth pressed in a firm line, even though Nesta could tell that she was nervous from her fidgeting fingers.

"My business? Of course it's my business! Velaris is my city, and it's reserved for dreamers, not Hewn City trash," he scoffed at Cian as he said the last words. Then, his eyes trailed Riona's figure, studying the similarities between her and Cian — their dirty blond hair, pale skin, thin nose. Finally, he let out a gasp. "You too? What is this, an infestation? We don't want your kind here!"

"My kind?" Riona raised an eyebrow. "What the hell are you saying? I'm fae, just like you. Don't you think I deserve the chance to be a dreamer, too?"

The waiter let out the most sarcastic, condescending laugh Nesta had ever heard. "You? A dreamer? Please, don't try to feed me that bullshit. I know what you are — whores and thieves and liars, abusers and rapists and torturers. There's a reason they call it the Court of Nightmares." He growled at them. "We don't want you vermin here."

"Excuse me, but who gave you the right to speak for Velaris?" Khoniya replied in a threateningly calm tone. "You work here as a waiter, to serve your customers, yet you clearly don't seem to be doing a good job if you can't even take an order without making assumptions about customers and threatening them. Insulting and growling at customers doesn't really fit in with the whole city of dreams thing, does it? So really, if there's someone here who doesn't deserve to be in this city, it's you." She glared at him for a long moment, her fox eyes flashing in the semi-dark room. "Luckily, Velaris is big enough for all of us," she said finally, raising an eyebrow as if daring him to reply.

The waiter shrank back. Perhaps that would have been the end of the discussion if it hadn't been for the fact that a second waiter walked past. Their waiter muttered to the other one, "Some stupid Autumn Court low fae bitch thinks she can tell me about Velaris."

"What the fuck did you just call her?" Nesta demanded.

"Only what she is," he scoffed.

The other waiter gasped — he clearly recognized Nesta.

"He didn't really mean that," he stuttered.

"Of course I meant it! Why should I have to listen to some Low Fae — from Autumn Court, no less — talk to me about who should or shouldn't be in my city?"

The second waiter whispered something into his ear, which made his eyes widen. For a second, he was silent. Then, he scoffed again. "I don't give a shit. I'm not scared of the High Lady's alcoholic whore of a sister."

"Shut the fuck up," Riona hissed, standing up.

He raised an eyebrow. "Or what? You nightmare brats will stay here? Or you'll… multiply?"

He looked between Cian and Riona in a way that made Nesta want to throw up.

"You have three seconds to apologize," Khoniya said.

"Apologize? To these pieces of Hewn City filth? Yeah, that's never going to happen," he smirked.

"Three, Two," Khoniya counted calmly yet threateningly, as only the parent of a toddler could. "One."

The male just rolled his eyes.

"Alright, then," Khoniya said evenly before standing up.

Perhaps Khoniya would have punched him or made him disintegrate, but Nesta never got to find out because, at that moment, a throat cleared beside them.

"Is there a problem here?" Nesta turned around, along with everyone else, to find Rhysand's violet eyes staring back.

"Look, we just came to Onyx to have fun and celebrate my birthday," Brielle sighed. "We weren't trying to cause any trouble, and we can leave if you want."

Rhysand had listened to the argument as summarized by both parties and then had dismissed the waiter. At some point, Azriel had appeared by his side, although the Illyrian had remained silent.

"I know you weren't trying to start a fight," Rhys frowned. "I'm more concerned about the allegations." His eyes shifted to Riona and Cian, studying them, and then slid over to Saibh, who clearly shared their features.

"These fae are my friends. I can assure you that they aren't doing any harm to Velaris," Brielle replied.

Saibh, Riona, and Cian remained silent. They were clearly terrified of Rhysand and had good reason to be, if what Nesta had been told about Rhysand's image in Hewn City was true.

"I think I'll be the judge of that," Rhysand answered firmly. His brows lowered slightly as his eyes moved from Brielle's face to Khoniya's.

"I didn't realize we had so many foreigners in Velaris," Rhysand whispered to Azriel.

"Excuse me?" Of course, despite Rhysand's low voice, all of their fae hearing had picked up on what he'd said.

Rhys raised an eyebrow at them.

"I've lived in the Night Court since I was a child," Brielle announced. "I'm not a foreigner."

Rhys didn't answer, opting instead to look at Khoniya as a silent reply.

"I've lived here for over a century with my mate," she said, looking Rhysand straight in the eye. "My son was born here. My ancestors may not have lived here, but Velaris is my home."

Rhysand hummed in acknowledgement, his expression serious. He seemed to put aside whatever issues he'd had with Brielle and Khoniya and focused back on Riona, Saibh, and Cian.

"I'm sure you know that Velaris is not open to Hewn City residents." His voice had never seemed so passively threatening.

"Please," Riona whispered. A piece of Nesta's heart broke at how frail Riona's usually confident and sassy voice sounded. "Please, my lord, we would die if we returned to Hewn City."

"If you have concerns, you may bring them up to the Steward," Rhysand said coldly. "You may not, however, enter Velaris without permission."

"Please," Cian folded his hands in a prayer position, pleading with Rhysand. "My lord, we can't go back. We-"

"Hey Rhys," Cassian's light, jovial tone cut in as he walked up behind Rhys, balancing three glasses of some alcoholic beverage. He handed one to Azriel and one to Rhys before turning towards the other. His eyes widened. "Nesta? Brielle? Ri- What are you guys doing here?" Then he observed Rhysand's serious posture. "What's going on?"

Rhys tossed out his hand, gesturing at the siblings. "They are intruders from Hewn City." Cassian's eyes widened.

"Please," Riona begged, her voice trembling. "We'll do anything, just please don't make us go back."

Rhys opened his mouth to reply, but Cassian interjected, "Woah, woah, woah. Riona, calm down. We're not just going to send you back there."

"You know them?" Rhysand asked, baffled.

Cassian nodded. "Yeah, Riona, Cian, and Saibh are friends of N- mine." He stumbled slightly over the last word, as if he were going to mention that they were Nesta's friends too and then realized that wouldn't be of significance to Rhys.

"Oh, why didn't you just say so?" Rhys laughed, his earlier cold expression melting into a warm smile. "If they're friends of yours, of course they can stay." His tone had flipped, too — the harsh high lord was gone and replaced by the amicable, benevolent friend.

Nesta exchanged a glance with Khoniya, silently communicating how hypocritical and nepotistic Rhys' shift had been. Neither would voice their opinions, of course; no matter what they thought, ensuring the siblings' safety was the number one priority, and it wasn't their place to say anything.

"Anyway, Cassian," Rhysand paused to sip on his drink. "Are you sure you can't-"

"My lord," Saibh interrupted. Nesta had never seen anyone look so somber yet fierce, so afraid but brave. "I mean no offense, and I- we appreciate your kindness in allowing us to remain here… but I have to ask."

Cian's eyes widened. "Saibh, what are you doing?" he hissed fearfully.

Saibh inhaled deeply, ignoring him. "Don't you believe that the same courtesy should be extended to others in Hewn CIty, even those who don't know General Cassian?"

"And those that aren't your cousin," Riona added.

Rhysand looked taken aback, as though he had expected them to completely forget about his previous words the moment his attitude had shifted. "What?"

"My lord, if we had remained in Hewn, my brother would have been killed," Saibh said, gesturing to Cian. "My sister would have been married off to a cruel male, who would have destroyed her."

"And my sister," Riona interjected, "would have been forced into a marriage with some male. She never could have found love. If she'd even tried — if they had ever gotten a clue that she loved females — they would have killed her or perhaps done far worse."

Saibh met her sister's eyes as they exchanged a serious yet loving glance. Nesta didn't need to be a daemati to know what they were thinking: thank goodness we got out.

"We're here now," Saibh continued after a moment. "We escaped such fates, but there are others — so many other males and females — who are facing such cruelties as we speak. Shouldn't they, too, be offered a chance to leave?"

"There you are!" Feyre's voice cut in as she walked up behind Rhys. She placed a kiss on his lips that was far too long for Nesta's comfort before pulling away and giving Cassian a greeting hug. Nesta ignored the tiny twinge in her chest at the gesture.

"I was looking for you guys," Feyre laughed lightly as she shot Azriel a smile that he surprisingly returned.

She turned slowly, her eyes landing on the unfamiliar faces before gasping as she saw Nesta's. "Nesta? What are you…" She tilted her head to the side. "Have you started coming to Onyx now? You have to admit that it's a huge upgrade from those taverns you used to hang out in."

Nesta didn't deign to reply. She knew Feyre was genuinely curious about her, but it didn't really matter what her intent was. Instead, Nesta focused on trying her hardest not to blush as her sister's humiliating words washed over her in front of her friends.

At Nesta's silence, Feyre merely sighed and took a sip from Rhys' glass. "Mmm, this is really good! What is this drink called?" Feyre wondered out loud.

"It's an Illyrian Sunrise, darling," Rhysand purred, wrapping an arm around her waist. For a moment, Nesta assumed Rhysand would use the opportunity to walk away or to move on from the previous conversation.

He surprised her by turning back to Saibh and answering, "The Court of Nightmares has many evils. It's unfortunate, but presently the city has a good amount of self-governance, which means it doesn't really want to change. Of course, we could go down there and dictate new laws and attempt to enforce them, but it's debatable if it would change much since most citizens wouldn't support it. Also, bBringing fae from Hewn City to Velaris would only ruin the safe environment we've fostered here."

Saibh sent Khoniya a pleading look. Saibh clearly wanted to say more, but was terrified that speaking up would mean getting on Rhys' bad side and jeopardize her and her siblings' ability to remain in Velaris.

Nesta wished she could be the one to speak up, but she knew that anything she said would be viewed as her trying to stir up trouble and needlessly demonizing Rhysand and Feyre. So though there were a million things she wanted to yell as Rhys, she kept quiet — because her friends and the point they needed to get across were more important.

"Isn't Velaris the court of dreams?" Khoniya said, her calm voice somehow carrying more impact than yelling ever would. "The city for dreams, where hopes can become a reality? Shouldn't they be allowed to dream of a better world, too?"

Feyre took another sip of Rhysand's drink as he replied, "We can't just let everyone come here."

"Why not?" Khoniya challenged.

"They would threaten the joy and safety of those who already live here. It would ruin Velaris, and there would be no more City of Dreams left."

"You have laws here, don't you?" Khoniya retorted. "If they don't follow the laws, they can be punished, but shouldn't they at least get a chance?"

Rhysand tilted his head. "Well, Velaris isn't big enough to house every single person who wants to come here."

"Then expand it," she answered, looking him straight in the eyes. "Expand the city, or make more cities like Velaris in the Night Court."

"That would take years," Rhysand sighed, "And it would be a lot of work to build so much."

"Aren't you the High Lord?" Khoniya arched an eyebrow. "Besides, I'm sure many people would be willing to work if it means creating a place where they can be free."

Rhysand's violet eyes shifted, and a new expression took over his face. He looked as though he was seriously considering Khoniya's words.

"Feyre! There you are!" Morrigan's shrill voice cut in as she approached, along with Lucien and Elain. "I was wondering where all of you went!"

"You want to go dance?" Feyre asked Mor, who grinned and grasped Feyre's hand, pulling her towards the dance floor.

Rhysand absently sipped the drink Feyre had handed back to him. "Look, it seems like you have many great ideas. I can't promise to make all of them a reality, but perhaps it would be a good idea to arrange a meeting where we could talk about this further."

Khoniya's eyes widened in surprise, but she nodded hastily. "I know that these things take time, but hopefully-"

"Khoniya?" Her name sounded like it meant serendipity as it slid off of Lucien's tongue.

She gasped, turning towards him and taking in his features under the flashing lights. "Uncle Lucien?"

"What the fuck?" exclaimed Cassian. Nesta couldn't agree more with his words.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed that! Please leave reviews to let me know what you thought (and to motivate me to write)! I really love hearing from you guys :)

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