There was an unfamiliar pound on wood that drifted up the stairs, Rhysand threw an arm across the bed only to remember his mate was not sleeping beside him. As the realization went through his veins like ice all the other worries and responsibilities settled in again. Rhys pulled the covers over his head, ready to enjoy a few more hours of sleep, he didn't have to look out the window to know it was too early to get up. Unfortunately for him the pounding persisted and Rhys was forced to pull on pants and go down the stairs, almost tripping twice. By the time he reached the door he knew who it was, Rowan. He pulled it open, prepared to tell him to go fuck off for a few more hours. The first thing Rhys noticed was Rowan's ice coated fist, already raised to knock on the door once more.

"Look Rowan," he began, but his words died in his throat as he met Rowan's eyes. And saw his own desperation, misery, and loneliness reflected there.

He cursed his own sympathy and finished his sentence by saying, "I'll get the others."

Rowan nodded curtly, the only gratitude he would show. Rhys pushed past him, stopping when he looked down at his bare chest, "After I put on a shirt." he looked up at Rowan, attempting a grin, "Wouldn't want to start a riot."

A pained expression passed Rowan's features, and the ice crept higher up his wrist. Rhysand dismissed it and hurried back to his room. When he returned his wings were out and visible, he expected a grand reaction, but Rowan just looked them up and down, his face remaining as unimpressed and disgruntled as ever. Rhys briefly wondered what Aelin was like, and what Rowan was like when he was with her. This was probably a fragment of the male Rowan truly was, so Rhysand forgave the lack of interest and gratitude.

He walked past Rowan who stood silently in the doorway, and with one mighty stroke of his wings took off. Having only the wind in his hair to distract him his thoughts soon went to his own mate, and the panic he had felt from her last night. Feyre had claimed it was nothing, and then shut him out, completely. He had spent hours pacing around his room, heart and mind racing. Rhysand had debated breaking through, he could, but it wouldn't be elegant or stealthy. She wasn't stupid, he had decided, if she needed help she would ask for it. And breaking through- she would hate him for it. Hoping he was right he sent a burst of love down the bond only to have it hit a solid divide.

By the time Rhys arrived, Az was already awake, he stood there at the entrance, arms crossed, shadows pooling at his feet, waiting for him.

He looked in his friend's eyes, and his friend looked back, "Can you wake up Cassian and Mor?" Azriel nodded. "I'll wake up Amren, meet me at the town house." Another nod.

Cassian growled and rubbed his face, from the corner of the room, "Why the fuck are we here? It's too early for this shit." Azriel shot him a look that silently told him to shut up, Mor sighed and Az's head snapped to her, anxiously following her movements.

They all turned their heads to the door when it was opened, Rhysand walked in, his wings gone, hands in his pockets, black hair ruffled from the wind, followed by Amren and Rowan.

Rhys looked at Cassian, "We're going to the court of Nightmares."

Throughout the fifteen minute argument Rowan sat impatiently tapping his fingers, he didn't understand why they were arguing, they had decided this the day before.

Rhysand dragged a hand through his hair, "So, Mor, Azriel, and I go to the court of nightmares, while Cassian and Amren will stay here in case anything goes wrong. Rowan will stay here too," he glanced at him, "make yourself at home." he returned to his gaze to the court meeting each of their eyes, "We'll be back in three hours."

They all nodded in unison.

"Thank you." Rowan said, looking directly at Rhysand. Rhysand nodded at him, in that second Mor and Az had disappeared and in the next Rhysand had to.

He looked, his eyebrows furrowed, towards Cassian, "What did they just do?"

"Winnowing." he replied not bothering to look at him.

Rowan stored that in the vast files of his memories for Fenrys, if he ever saw him again.

Amren and Cassian had left hours ago, leaving Rowan alone in the town house, he couldn't help the ice that coated his finger tips, it had gotten worse over the days. Aelin could be in the middle of some godsdamned forest bleeding to death, his hands began to shake, and if- when, when he found her, what if she was broken? What if he couldn't help her get back on her feet this time? He had refused to let himself think of all the horrible things Cairn could do, what if he had- what if he had made it so she never wanted to be touched again, not even by Rowan... he swallowed down the thoughts, of course if she never wanted him to touch her, he wouldn't, if she never wanted him to look at her again, he wouldn't. But he would never abandon her, the second she was in danger he would be there.

Rowan stood from the near backless chair he had been sitting in, clenching his trembling hands into fists. Cassian had told him, well, ordered him, to stay in the house, but he needed to look for her, he need to escape this body and all the emotions it brought. So flinging a window open with his wind, he shifted to his hawk form and shot through it, his currents carrying him up and up, until his wings brushed the clouds. His keen eyes searched the rocky land, and he flew until the town was just a jagged shadow on the horizon, the sun disappearing behind it making it look like it was on fire, his heart dropped.

And then, for the first time in centuries, Rowan's wings failed him.

He plummeted down his wind frantically pushing against him, tumbling him in the air, he pulled up and shifted just before hitting the ground. And then everything else failed him too, his legs collapsed, his hearing dimmed into nothing, and his sight just vanished. Then like a switch at been turned on, he saw a fragile and distinctly feminine neck on crisp white sheets, pale skin stretched over bone, peppered with black and purple, small bleeding cuts, and shriveled red skin that looked like melted wax. There was a flash and he saw tanned fingers clutch the same sheets, intertwining with golden hair. And then it washed through him, jasmine and embers, pain and misery, fear and hopelessness, and blood, so much blood. Through centuries of beaten, rotten, burning corpses nothing had ever smelt so horrible to Rowan, and he already knew that in five hundred years he would wake up covered in sweat, bile in his throat, smelling that scent. He had no body to move, no mouth to roar or scream as unfamiliar lips were brought to the horribly unrecognizable neck of his beloved, a curtain of blond hair obscuring the male's face. Fight, he begged her, Fight, Burn- Human, she was in her human form, he realized, with all his essence all the power he had honed over his life he commanded her to shift, but she didn't, and he could do nothing as the mouth parted, revealing sharp ivory white fangs that pierced the paper thin skin of his mate. Then it went black. And like the switch had been turned back on, his eyes focused and he saw the star splattered skies that had once given him so much hope.

"Where is he? How could you have lost him, Cassian?" Mor asked frantically, staring at him with wide disbelieving eyes.

Cassian stared back, throwing his arms in the air, "I told him to stay here! I'm not babysitting some grumpy fae bastard."

"I'm sure he'll come back, did you find anything?" Amren asked, leaning against the town house's wall while examining her nails.

Rhysand sighed, drawing his hands from his pockets and biting his inner cheek, "No, nothing."

Amren looked at him, and for more his benefit than hers she said, "He's not going to like that."

The high lord looked away, "I have another lead, to soften the blow."

They all looked at him expectantly, so he continued, "Feyre mentioned a new woman in the Spring Court, called Celaena-"

"The girl's name is Aelin." Mor near snapped.

Rhys smiled sadly, "I know, but there's a chance. I doubt it's her, Feyre would have said more if there was anything unusual about 'Celaena's' situation."

Rowan was on his knees one hand tearing up mud and grass from the earth, the other clutched to his chest. He was mildly aware of the small tornado that circled him, and the sound of thunder- if it weren't for the pure horror, rage, and deafening sadness that destroyed every thought and memory he would have recognized how little magic he was using to conjure the storm circling him. But all he recognized was the scent that hung in the air, that he felt repulsed to breath in, a male's scent, filled with lust, but at the core, cut grass and spring flowers.

Rowan gasped for air, he rather fight a hundred wars, take a hundred arrows for her, spend a hundred years apart than have her endure that. He didn't know how that had happened how he saw what he saw, he didn't care, he knew it was real, couldn't explain why, he just knew. A shudder racked his broken frame, it was happening right now, and he wasn't there to help her, and she may be too weak and broken to help herself. Rowan would kill that male, he would kill him slowly, or he would help Aelin kill him, whatever she wanted- but the male would pay. Rowan needed to get to her, he need to get to her now, she could be minutes away or she could be months away, but like a lifeline that cut through the raging storm around him, he felt a bond- he didn't know which of the three it was, but he knew it would lead to her.

Rowan swallowed down the rising bile and shifted, the wind slowing, and rising with him as he flew, pushing him forward, faster than he had ever flown before, following the pull in his heart.

Mor shifted her furious gaze from Cassian to Rhysand, "It's been hours."

Azriel, who leaned against a wall between them flickered his eyes to the Highlord, "I can go look for him."

Rhysand hesitated, staring blankly at the window, before turning to him, "That would be good."

The shadow encased male pushed off the wall, nodding, and slipped out the door.

Az returned an hour later, finding them in the same position he had left them, his hair was wildly ruffled and his shadows hugged tightly to him, the way they formed when he was on edge.

Before any of them could as much as move he proclaimed, "Rowan has left the Night Court, flying in the direction of the Spring Court."

He crossed his arms, "He left a very large and considerable crater of destroyed land in the countryside."

"Why did he leave?" Rhysand cut in, bracing his hands on a table.

Azriel pursed his lips, shadows hugging him closer, "I'm not certain-"

He swallowed, "but there are rumors that Feyre has been kidnapped from the Spring Court."

Ugh, hope you like it. (I don't) sorry this took so long, I had exams… And sorry about not uploading for so long here, Fanfic was not working for me, :(