A/N – So I'd like to start by once again thanking everyone who has reviewed this story so far. I feel as though this has essentially just turned into Heir of Fire from Rowan's point of view but I love that book too much to stop. Although as a result of that this chapter has some of the dialogue taken directly from the text. I've tried to use as little as possible but of course everything belongs to Sarah J Maas and I borrow her words out of love.
Let me know if you enjoy it and if there are any particular scenes you'd like to see. I know some of you have already made suggestions (KateWinters97 – I will get to Beltane I promise) and I'll try my best to fit them in.
Thank you for reading.
Chapter Four
Rowan was awake before dawn, dressed and ready for their little adventure. His dreams still lurked behind his lids, dreams of a feral beauty that lay slumbering beneath that fragile human skin. He felt strange this morning, different. Something crackled beneath his skin that was not at all unpleasant, he felt as if something inside of him had loosened.
Rowan rose and walked to meet her by her rooms; he could tell from her scent that she had already stirred so he waited for her return. He shouldered the pack and started walking, choosing to ignore the faint flash of shock in her eyes. They left the fortress behind them and he turned to look at her, as the pieces clicked into place and a plan formed in his mind.
"Shift, and let's go."
"And here I was, thinking we'd become friends." He couldn't help the surprised lifting of his brows; although he knew she was being sarcastic the thought was not as abhorrent today as it should have been. She didn't even blink at the distance they were to travel. She was going to shift today, if he had to break his promise not to bite her again then so be it. The memory of her taste brought a wicked smile to his face and he wanted to run, to push himself to his limits. He wanted her to push those limits too, she had been caged in that mortal shell too long.
"And where are we going?" He felt the muscles in his jaw clench at the reminder of where they were going and why. He could still clearly hear the words of the guard this morning as he was informed that they had discovered another victim. Another Demi-fae had been brutally attacked, murdered while he had been off playing nice at the healers compound. He chose his words carefully, to maximise the impact.
"There was another body - a Demi-fae from a neighbouring fortress. Dumped in the same area, same patterns. I want to go to the nearby town to question the citizens, but…" He trailed off; he'd been about to speak ill of his Queen and how she had allowed her subjects to run wild and unchecked for too long. Still if he wanted her cooperation he would need to be honest with her and play nice. "But I need your help. It'll be easier for the mortals to talk to you."
"Is that a compliment?" He noticed the slight curve of her lips and rolled his eyes at her childish attempts to antagonise him. Rowan knew that she was watching his every movement with those sharp eyes and calculating her next move. Something softened ever so slightly in her face but it vanished as soon as he opened his mouth.
"Shift, or it'll take us twice as long."
"I can't. You know it doesn't work like that." He could hear the petulance in her voice, and he could tell from the way her body was held that she was becoming more irritated with him. Good, he just had to push her a little more. Taunt her in just the right way by dangling the advantages in front of her; making it a competition.
"Don't you want to see how fast you can run?"
"I can't use my other form in Adarlan anyway, so what's the point?" So that was part of it then, she did not want to become dependent on something that she would lose access to as soon as she returned. However a human would not survive easily in the fae realm, surely the creatures that they had already encounter had taught her that much.
"The point is that you're here now, and you haven't properly tested your limits." He hadn't tested them either; he remembered the strength with which she had shoved him off of her when she shifted. She was strong even for a Fae, especially a Demi-Fae but that brief glimpse had not been enough to measure her worth. "The point is, another husk of a body was found, and I consider that to be unacceptable." Rowan watched the words hit home, her silent agreement shimmered in her eyes and he could almost taste victory. Something in his blood flickered in answer to her raging emotions.
He reached out and tugged sharply on her braid, not allowing himself more than the briefest contact with her. "Unless you're still frightened." He took a perverse pleasure in getting under her skin, in knowing that he could get to her just as much as she got to him.
"The only thing that frightens me is how very much I want to throttle you." He watched the violence brewing behind her eyes, the feral glint that took root there but he knew it wasn't directed at him. Not all of it at least. She was practically burning with it and that's what he needed.
"Hone it - the anger." He spoke softly, like he would to a skittish animal, trying to coax her into actually listening to him for once. Aelin's face contorted slightly at his cunning but he kept his face passive. Talking her through it, trying to let her know that it was ok to be angry, to be hateful and to use those emotions for herself. After all he had spent centuries trapped within those same dark emotions.
He watched the emotions play across her face, she was too easy to read. He could see the fear in her eyes and the loathing and bitter disappointment. He had seen that same expression on himself far too many times to not be able to identify them in others but she kept all of her emotions so close to the surface. She would have to learn to conceal them if she were to survive at court with all of it's political machinations.
"This will not end well." The softness of her voice ran along his nerves like a flame over oil, he could hear the note of warning in it. She had no faith in her ability to control herself, her power, but he knew that she could that she was doing so unconsciously every second. He refused to give in to her fear even as he spiraled down into himself in preparation to combat anything she might throw at him.
Rowan could tell the exact moment she gave herself over to those emotions, felt the hesitation vanish like smoke. The light of her transformation almost blinded him but he refused to look away. His chest swelled with triumph and he grinned, challenging her to try and keep up with him. He moved swiftly to pull on her silky hair again, anticipating how she would move to intercept him and darting to her other side. He pinched her side then moved back to his original position all before she could react.
Rowan could feel his blood pounding, with the exhilaration of it. His eyes traced along the delicate points of her ears where they peeked out from her hair and he had to clamp down hard on the need to dart forward and run his fingers down them. It had been a long time since he'd been able to be this relaxed, he wondered if she'd be able to keep up with him. Aelin crossed her arms in one of her typical displays of petulance but he wasn't going to settle for that today. He darted to the left, so intent on hitting his target again that he didn't have time to react as she spun out the way, slammed her elbow down forcefully and them smacked him around the back of his head.
He froze completely in shock. She'd just smacked him around the head? He'd expected her to go for a punch not to smack him around the head like an errant child. He watched the satisfied smirk spread across her face, and took in the suddenly elongated canines behind those pretty red lips. Rowan bared his teeth right back; she was going to pay for that.
"Oh, you'd better run now." He lunged at her but she shot away from him and into the trees at surprising speed. She was adjusting better this time, he chased after her at an easy pace. He watched in awe as she darted through the trees, already going swifter and her footing surer. He allowed his instincts to guide him in his pursuit of her and marveled at the way she moved; how easily she seemed to sense him near her.
Then she was going even faster and he could taste her delight as it crackled through her and she reveled in the speed. He decided that he had given her enough time to adjust and increased his pace. Aelin only ran faster, expertly dodging the trees as if she had been doing this her whole life. There was something like pride settling in his chest as she threw herself forward. Her cries of excitement rang out clear as a bell in the silence of the forest and he wanted to shout in answer.
Aelin's excitement was contagious, he could feel his magic reaching out to her wanting to play with that fire of hers but he held it back. Instead he increased his speed and lunged for her but she whirled away from him in a fluid movement and he could easily understand how she had been known as a fearsome assassin. There was the slightest softness in her features but it was her eyes that gave away her emotions. They sparkled in the morning sunlight, the blue glowed like crystal and the gold shimmered with pleasure.
They raced together through the trees. It had been decades since Rowan had been this close to anyone but the other members of Maeve's inner circle. There were very few fae who could even keep up with him, who he could think of as an equal. The idea of her being his equal should have been laughable but he knew deep down that her power was vast enough and her strength deep enough. It was what made his magic sing, a force as deep and powerful as his to war with.
At this speed she was no more than a golden blur at his side, a light in the darkness for him to follow. For the first time in so very long Rowan allowed himself to just take pleasure in the simple contentment of not being alone. The darkness in his soul lifted ever so slightly and without even knowing that it was happening Rowan allowed the first real smile in centuries to grace his face.
