A soft knock on the door woke me. I slowly blinked my eyes open and realized where I was. It hadn't been a dream. I was really here - in the Night Court. In their secret city which they had trusted to welcome me in even though they didn't know me. A small hope had risen in my chest. Could I, someday, belong here?

Remembering the knock, I sat up in the bed. My body felt sore from the months of travel and hardship and it felt like I had slept for weeks. Looking out the window, I concluded that it was morning. I got out of the bed and made myself as decent as one can when they have just woken up. "Yes?" I answered the knock with a shaky voice.

I saw the door handle move and the door open. For a split second, I sincerely hoped it wasn't one of the two winged males. The one frightened me with his scent and coldness, and the other had been very outspoken - rude might describe him better. And both of them were extremely powerful. They radiated power and even blind people would see that, I thought. But it was not the face of a winged Fae that poked in through the door. It was Feyre's.

"Good morning, Iris. Can I come in?" she said and stepped in and closed the door behind her. She was dressed in leathers, looking like a fighter. Her brown hair was tied behind her back. "Did you sleep well?" Her smile was warm and her eyes soft.

I smiled back. "Yes, thank you. I can't remember the last time I have slept so well," I admitted. Maybe I had never slept this well. Before my mother had given up on training me to become her heir, I had had a proper bed - nothing like the thin broken matrass on a cold floor. But still, it couldn't compare to this. And I was simply a guest.

Feyre got at distant look in her eyes. She looked like she could read my mind. Like she knew that I was thinking of the quality of my past life. But judging from the strength of my mental shields, she hadn't used abilities similar to Rhysand's. "If you ever need to talk about it… I was a prisoner, too," Feyre said. She was talking about Under the Mountain.

"What happened?" I asked, curious about hearing the story.

Feyre sat down on the side of the bed. "I was a human, living with my two sisters and my father. In order to survive, I hunted in the woods for food, and one day, I shot a wolf. I knew he was Fae, but I was angry, and I didn't understand. The High Lord of Spring, Tamlin, came to collect me as punishment for killing a sentinel of his. He took me to Spring Court with him. There was a curse on the lands. Cast by Amarantha. I met Rhysand there, not knowing what he was to me - he worked for Amarantha, but only to keep this place safe." She glanced out of the window, to the city below us. "I went Under the Mountain to try to safe Tamlin and his court. I thought I was in love with him at that time. Amarantha had three trials for me, each more challenging than the other, and they nearly destroyed me. I was there for months and Rhysand kept me alive, helping me. In the last trial, she forced me to kill three Fae. The last one being Tamlin. But it was a trick, and I figured out that stabbing him with a dagger wouldn't kill him, so I did. I completed her three challenges, but Amarantha had tricked me and refused to lift the curse. Then… She killed me." Feyre swallowed, her eyes clouded with memories of terror.

Knowing my mother, she probably hadn't killed her without torturing her first. My mother was not known to show mercy to anyone.

"Right before the killing blow, I solved a riddle she had given me. A riddle to immediately lift the curse if I solved it. But she killed me anyway, and Tamlin killed her in exchange. So, you see, it wasn't actually me that killed her," Feyre said referencing to what I had said yesterday about owing her my life.

It didn't matter to me. "It was still you. You are still the one to thank," I said, holding on to my promise to her. "What happened then?"

"The curse was broken. All the High Lords worked together to revive me. They made me Fae. As a result of their teamwork, I received powers from each of them. I went home with Tamlin to the Spring Court, but he trapped me there, thinking he was protecting me - thinking that he needed to protect me. Rhysand helped me escape my new prison and brought me here," she continued the story. Mentioning Rhysand, her eyes lit up and stars sparkled in them. "He healed me. But with the threat from Hybern, we were separated. Tamlin worked together with the king of Hybern in order to get me back. Tamlin betrayed me and turned in my sisters to the king and they were Made. I was brought back to the Spring Court. I tried to break apart his court from the inside, and after a couple months, I escaped, returning here. But there is a war coming, and we have no idea how big Hybern's armies are."

I had heard of Hybern before. That they wanted to take over Prythian and destroy the wall that protected the humans from the Fae people. "Let me help," I said with a hoarse voice. "You can use my powers. It can make you last longer on the battlefield, not burning out."

Feyre looked at me with a wary look. She was considering it. "I would hate to put you through the same that Amarantha did, but honestly, we could use all the help we can get," she admitted with a thankful tone to her voice.

"It would be an honor."

She smiled as she stood up. "Get dressed. Then I'll show you around," she said, changing the subject. She walked towards the door as she said, "I'll wait outside." She went out the door, and I was alone again.

I finally had purpose in my life. Something to fight for other than my own life. Amarantha couldn't destroy me. I went over to the dresser, looking in the drawers. I grabbed the first pair of black pants and a dark blue tunic to wear. I changed into them and went in the bathroom to freshen up. Looking in the mirror, I already looked stronger. It was wonderful what a good meal and a whole night's sleep could do to you. My eyes even had a slight spark to them. I braided my hair and tied it with a leather band, similar to the way Feyre had worn her hair.

I went out the room to find Feyre waiting for me as promised. She gave me a tour of the house, explaining how things worked around here, and telling me of the Night Court. She showed me the kitchens, letting me know that I could go there anytime if I was hungry. I was most impressed by the library that was filled with books of every genre. I made a promise to myself that I would have to return here. When the tour was over, she guided me towards the dining room where we had eaten the night before, telling me that it was time for breakfast.

Around the table, there were new faces. I recognized Azriel, Cassian and Rhysand. But I didn't recognize the face of two females. The first one was small and silver eyed. Her hair was black and went to her chin. Something told me that I didn't want to cross me. Perhaps it was the shadows in her eyes that twirled as she looked at me. I shuddered as I removed my gaze from her, looking at the other stranger instead. A female that was seated across Azriel and next to Cassian. She was possibly the most beautiful Fae I had ever seen. She had golden hair, plump lips and beautiful curves. I felt ridiculous standing in the same room as her. I felt like a copy of her, but of less quality with my lifeless hair and skinny body. I quickly looked to Feyre, eager to think of something else than to compare myself with this female. I sent Feyre a look that told her I would like further introductions.

Feyre smiled to the strangers at the table and she went over to take a seat next to them. "Iris, this is Amren and Morrigan. I have told them about you. Oh, and don't worry, Amren doesn't bite," Feyre said with a laugh. I figured that Amren was the silver eyed female that, contrary to Feyre's words, looked like she could eat me with her eyes.

"Hello, Iris," the other female said with a light voice. The beautiful one - Morrigan. I nodded politely and followed Feyre, sitting down at an empty seat. Amren didn't say anything to me. She looked intensely at me for a few second. Then, she opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted before she could form the words.

"I wouldn't have taken Amarantha's daughter for someone who snores," Cassian said with a smirk on his face. "My room is across from yours and I didn't get to close one eye."

I gaped at his words. But shocked at the fact that I had, apparently, been snoring and at his bluntness. I didn't know what to reply so I just stared at him.

Cassian laughed at my silence. "I think you have found yourself a worthy opponent, Azriel. You might finally lose a quiet game," he said to Azriel, blinking mischievously at me.

"Sounds like you could learn something from watching," I challenged him. Cassian and a few of the others laughed at my words. Cassian sent me an approving look. He seemed cocky, but friendly.

Morrigan and Feyre fell talking and I zoned out while eating breakfast. It was weird to sit between these people, feeling like I was a part of something. I hadn't ever had allies. Or friends for that matter. Because they seemed friendly and from time to other, I was sent welcoming smiles from each of them. Except Azriel and Amren. The former didn't seem intestered in me the slightest, and the latter kept looking at me. She didn't have a plate before her like the rest of us, only an empty glass. There was a slight red residue in the glass from whatever liquid it had held. I didn't dare to guess at what contents it had held.

When we had all finished eaten, Amren suddenly spoke. "How deep does it go?" She was speaking to me, judging from her piercing look at me. She didn't explain what she meant or what she was referring to, but she didn't have to. During the meal, she had used her strange powers to feel out mine. I could sense that her powers were strange, different from Feyre and Rhysand's. And different from the power that Cassian and Azriel held. The others around the table snapped their head to her.

"I don't know. Infinitely, perhaps, but I haven't tested it," I answered her. I also answered her stare by looking into her eyes with the same intensity, not blinking or looking away. She was asking about my power - that well of power that went deep inside me. I hadn't never dared search for a bottom.

Feyre joined in. "Iris has offered to help us in the war," she said to no-one in particular.

"What can you do?" Cassian poked his in head. He knew it probably wasn't my non-existing fighting abilities that Amren was referring to.

I looked at him, relieved to break the staring contest with Amren. "I can channel my powers. Transfer them to other people," I explained to him.

"Even Illyrians?"

I blinked. I hadn't heard that word before, but I figured that was what he was. Illyrian. I glanced quickly at his wings and the red stones that shone on his body. All seven of them. "I can try," I offered, raising my eyebrows with my offer.

Cassian laughed excitedly, not backing down to an offer like that. He stood up and I copied him. I smiled at him. He did not know what he was saying yes to, and his extreme confidence made me consider giving him a little more than necessary… He positioned himself, telling me he was ready. I reached out, imagining the smoke from a fire. Dancing towards him, then reaching him. I could grasp his powers, felt how much he contained. I could feel that those stones were connected to his powers which was strange for me. I imagined cutting a slight piece of my power, sending it to him. Feeding it to his powers.

Cassian felt to the floor with shock in his expression. Azriel instantly stood up, his hand on the blade on his side, ready to raise it. Cassian gasped for air. His stones shone even brighter than before.

"I may have given you a little too much," I said, shrugging and smiling innocently. "A little more and you would be dead." I turned to Feyre and Rhysand who had surprise plastered on their face. "I can defend myself this way. By giving my enemies too much power. Along with giving my allies just enough power to make them stronger," I explained. Rhysand looked impressed.

Behind me, Cassian was beginning to get back on his feet, groaning from the effort. "I think I'm going to need an extra Siphon the rest of today," he said.

"Your help could be just what we need to win this war, Iris," Rhysand said. "But I would hate to let you on a battlefield with no training. Perhaps… Azriel, would you have time? Amren is busy working with Nesta, but maybe after training with Feyre?" I agreed with Rhysand that I could use training, considering that I had refused further training from my scholars. I didn't know the way of war. But training with Azriel? I swallowed.

Azriel showed no emotion. His hand was still resting on his blade. He looked at his High Lord, silent for a few seconds, and then simply nodded. "Be ready after lunch," he said to me before he walked out of the room.

A/N: To his-read-head and Multicoloredeyedgirl: thank you for the reviews. They mean a lot :)