Author's Note: This is my first foray in this fandom. I don't usually like songfics...I feel like mixing lyrics into a story is disruptive. So I'd recommend you just listen to the song while you read, but I still scattered the lyrics in too if that's your preference. I just don't think reading them works nearly as well as listening to them.
The song is "Venus" by Sleeping At Last.
Rhysand dared to fly to the Spring Court for Calanmai.
When he emerged from Under the Mountain to stare at the endlessly starry night sky, he felt as if he had slipped free, however briefly, from the shackles of Amarantha's curse. He was still a prisoner, still a slave, but for one night一for one night only, he could taste the open skies again.
He unfurled his wings slowly, stretching them to their full width with a quiet groan of bliss. Keeping them hidden for all these years had been its own brand of torture.
He leapt into the cool air, and if he wobbled a little, at least no one was around to see it.
In spite of the shaky start, Rhysand couldn't keep the grin off his face as he soared through the sky. It had been so long. He rolled lazily onto his back as he flew, gazing up at the constellations that had been so long denied him.
The night sky once ruled my imagination
Now I turn the dials with careful calculation
After a while, I thought I'd never find you
I convinced myself that I would never find you
He had told Amarantha he was going to look for spies, but that thought was furthest from his mind. Though he was looking for someone. His mysterious dream woman, the human who had somehow made her way into Prythian. The woman who, until recently, he had thought was merely a figment of his imagination.
A distant glow dimmed the light of the stars and Rhysand rolled again, so that he was flying upright. He hadn't noticed when he crossed the border of the Spring Court. The cheerful glow of the Calanmai bonfires beckoned to him.
When suddenly I saw you
He landed a good distance from the fires, not wanting to be noticed. Wrapping himself in darkness, he slid closer, merely one more flickering shadow in the night. His eyes darted through the crowd, hunting for anyone who stood out. It一wasn't easy. Faeries of all types had come out to the biggest Calanmai celebration in Prythian. Everyone knew Amarantha's deadline was approaching, and that this could be the last Calanmai they were free to celebrate.
Or perhaps they came for a chance at being chosen by the High Lord of Spring for the rite. Rhysand's mouth twisted into a grimace.
"Get your hands off me," a feminine voice barked angrily.
Rhysand slid around a tree, concealed in the shadows of its trunk as he leaned against the rough bark and took in the scene that was playing out in front of him.
Three vicious-looking picts, already slightly drunk, had surrounded their victim, ushering her steadily away from the crowds. It was clear that the males had come to Fire Night with only one thing in mind. The female, small and partly concealed by a cloak, was hissing and fighting like a wildcat, though no one else paid any attention to her protests.
Rhysand caught a glimpse of her face and familiarity hit him like a bolt between the eyes.
At first I thought you were a constellation
I made a map of your stars, then I had a revelation
He was frozen, invisible, as he stared at her. Her. The woman from his dreams.
You're as beautiful as endless
You're the universe I'm helpless in
An astronomer at my best
When I throw away the measurements
The picts were dead. They didn't know it yet, but Rhysand was already coldly calculating how it would happen. But first一
He was barely aware of moving, but just as one of the picts shoved the woman hard, hard enough to knock her to the ground一Rhysand was there.
She was real and in his arms and Rhysand was staggered.
He let none of it show on his face, only gently helped her to her feet before curling an arm protectively around her shoulders. "There you are," he purred. "I've been looking for you."
Like a telescope
I will pull you so close
'Til no space lies in between
Flicking his eyes to the picts, he could tell that they recognized him for what he truly was. "Thank you for finding her for me," he drawled with a smirk, relishing the fear on their faces as they beheld the Lord of Nightmares.
When they continued to gape in terror, Rhysand bared his teeth at them and snapped, "Enjoy the Rite." It was clearly a dismissal from a High Lord, one that promised bodily harm if they didn't obey quickly enough to suit him, and their instincts took over as they scuttled back and disappeared into the milling crowds. Rhysand marked them as they left一later, he would be seeing them again.
The female slid out from under his arm and he instantly missed the gentle warmth of her, the way her body had settled against his. Then she turned to face him and he got his first true look at the mortal who had been haunting him for so long. It was all he could do to keep from beaming at her like a child.
And suddenly I see you
Suddenly I see you
She was small and thin, for a human, and一beautiful. Pale with a sprinkling of freckles across her nose, and her warm brown hair shone with strands of gold from the firelight. But it was her eyes that entranced him. They weren't the deep blue of the midnight sky, nor the brilliant blue of a sunny day, but something in between. And they sparkled with defiant starlight.
He is the most beautiful man I've ever seen.
And she had no mental shields whatsoever. He could have laughed in delight, something he hadn't done in a very long time, but it was clear that unlike himself, she had had no heraldic dreams to lead her to him. She had no idea who he was, and he doubted laughing at her would make a very good first impression. And oh how he wanted to impress her. Still, he couldn't fully hide his amusement.
He gave her what he hoped was a friendly smile. "What's a mortal woman doing here on Fire Night?" he asked casually. Or tried to. From the way she shivered and the dark direction her thoughts turned, he had spent far too long Under the Mountain to remember what genuine friendliness sounded like. Not that he was displeased that she found him一seductive.
He tried a few more questions, anything to have a reason to keep talking to her, and she seemed inclined to answer in spite of her trepidation.
I was a billion little pieces
'Til you pulled me into focus
Astronomy in reverse
It was me who was discovered
She was lying to him. Rhysand didn't blame her, not really. To her, he was just another strange faerie, albeit a beautiful one, who was showing an unusual interest in her.
He slipped his hands into his pockets, trying to look non-threatening as he sauntered closer to her, but her fear was only growing.
Have I traded three monsters for something far worse?
Rhysand froze, his smirk locked desperately in place. The last thing he wanted was for this woman, this innocent, beautiful, strong mortal, who he had seen overcome so many tribulations and who had somehow had made her way into Prythian against all odds一the very last thing he wanted was for her to see him as a monster.
Even if he sometimes did monstrous things. Frequently, under Amarantha's yoke. And he was, admittedly, 'far worse' than those picts in many ways. He didn't let it bother him, usually. He was doing what had to be done.
But more than anything, he didn't want to be a monster to her.
His smile had turned feral but he forced a chuckle. "You're welcome. For saving you," he added, at her confused frown.
She was still backing away from him like a frightened deer, skittish, ready to dance off into the flickering firelight at any moment. He prowled closer, unable to help himself, calling her out on the lies she continued to give him. She froze under his predatory gaze, but her eyes darted, looking for an escape, for a familiar face.
If only he could get her away from this crowd, away from the public eyes that required him to maintain this dark persona. Perhaps then, they could have a real conversation.
He slid one hand free from a pocket and offered her his arm as he dismissed her story about waiting for some friends. "May I escort you somewhere in the meantime?" he asked politely. Take it, he urged. Let me protect you.
For a moment, he thought she might be swayed. But then一
"No," she said, eyes wide, sounding a little dazed by her own answer.
Rhysand stood frozen for another long moment, arm still extended uselessly, before he admitted that he had run out of reasons to continue talking to her. At least, none that wouldn't either destroy his Lord of Nightmares persona, or ruin his chances of ever befriending this woman. Now that he knew she was in the Spring Court, for some bizarre reason that she refused to divulge, he could find her again.
He stepped back at last, allowing her some space. "Enjoy the Rite, then. Try to stay out of trouble." He would be taking care of those delinquent picts, but there were plenty of others that would take vile pleasure in abusing a human, especially a human woman, if they found her roaming around this particular celebration.
As he turned to go, forcing his shoulders to remain loose, his steps casual, she called out to him.
"So you're not part of the Spring Court?"
A billion little pieces (Like a telescope)
You pulled me into focus (I will pull you so close)
Astronomy in reverse ('til no space lies in between)
Rhysand reversed course, returning to her side so quickly that he was surprised she didn't flee in terror right then. Apparently his willingness to walk away had reassured her somewhat, because she stood her ground.
He smiled at her approvingly, but couldn't help asking the mocking question, "Do I look like I'm part of the Spring Court?" If nothing else, the lack of a damned mask should have made that obvious. Rhysand scoffed, "No, I'm not a part of the noble Spring Court." Tamlin the bloody coward. "And glad of it."
"Why are you here then?" Her fear had almost entirely faded, replaced with curiosity.
Rhysand wished he could keep talking to her, to have that real conversation he craved, but一people were beginning to notice. Even if they didn't recognize him as the High Lord of the Night Court, they still knew he was High Fae, and some lesser creature was daring to speak very boldly to him. Forgive me, my dearest dream lady.
He let his face slide into the arrogant, cruel smirk that he wore so often Under the Mountain. "Because all of the monsters have been let out of their cages tonight, no matter what court they belong to," he purred, loudly enough that those who had circled closer to see what was happening flinched and hastily drew back. "So I may roam where I wish until the dawn."
She just一stared at him. A hunter staring down a predator, one who understood that to look away was to become prey. And this woman was no one's prey. "Enjoy the Rite," was all she said, but there was no fear in her tone.
Then suddenly I see you
Suddenly I see you
And then she turned her back on him, impressing him yet again with her bravery, as she skillfully lost herself in the crowd.
He didn't even know her name, but it didn't matter. She was real. She was real.
Some cold, abandoned part of his heart began to stir. That part which had been locked away since the day 49 years ago when Amarantha trapped him Under the Mountain一a part of himself that he had almost forgotten existed.
It had awakened, and began to dream.