Chapter 86

Adriata was like nothing Elain had ever seen before. The city wound up around the mountain, the red roofs of every building shining bright in the glorious sunshine, and Elain's eyes followed the gulls as they swirled overhead, crying out their apparent enjoyment of the day. The harbour below was full of that many ships she lost count after a quick glance, and she didn't think she'd ever felt a breeze as warm as the one pulling strands of her hair from her loose braid.

The soft chuckle from Lucien beside her made Elain turn her eyes on him and he smiled widely. "Is this what you imagined?"

"I didn't know what to imagine, really." She replied, shifting closer to Lucien when several faeries in guard uniforms came their way. Lucien took her hand, and she felt herself relax a little.

"Tarquin's men." He gave her a wink and she noticed that he was still smiling.

"You like him?"

"I do."

"Why?" It wasn't as if she had any opinion the other way, she didn't' really know anything about Tarquin, but she was interested in what would make Lucien like the High Lord.

"Well… he's… young…" Lucien mused, "and… I like his… ideals. He wants a world in which the High Fae and Lesser Fae work side by side…"

Elain thought of Jesminda, and immediately understood Lucien's approval of Tarquin's ideal. Of course he would agree with that. In a world in which Lesser Fae were valued alongside High Fae she wouldn't have been put to death because he had loved her. "I see." She murmured.

She saw Lucien cast a glance at her before they were swept up in the movement of the guards taking them up into the city and, before too long, Elain found herself looking up at the High Lord of the Sumemr Court. Tarquin was handsome, and she found her eyes following him around the room as he moved. He greeted them amicably, and she nodded and smiled politely when he told her that she had free reign of his court, able to wander and choose which flowers she would like to include in her book, just as every other High Lord so far had promised.

Allowed to have free reign for the rest of the afternoon, Elain had begun to wander. She had found herself down on a small beach, while Lucien had disappeared with Tarquin to have their conversations about the courts and the kinds of things Rhys was interested in for his reports. Wandering along the sand, Elain collected shells and other interesting things she found. It would be nice, she thought, to explore a place like this with Lucien, when they had the time and space, and no demands upon their time.

Stopping by the water, Elain allowed her gaze to move across the horizon. If she were to walk into the ocean and just swim, where would she end up? Elain knew that she wasn't the greatest swimmer, she had never had cause to learn, but she still wondered. Who would she be if she just disappeared into the ocean and never resurfaced. Lucien would miss her, and she would miss him. She knew this.

Pulling her dress up to her knees, Elain tucked her skirts around her as she strode into the shallow waves. The water was cool against her skin, and she was surprised at how powerful the waves were against her. She loved the feel of this, the smell of it, and she wondered if there were some kind of ocean flower she might include in her book. Making a mental note to ask Tarquin, Elain decided to just enjoy the water for as long as she could.

It was later that afternoon, when Lucien found her. By this point, Elain was wandering the hills along the edge of the city, her shoes off and held loosely in her hand as she tried to take as much of the landscape in as she could.

"Do you like it here?" he asked, striding toward her, his shirt open in the heat and his usual embroidered jacket tucked over his arm. Elain nodded, smiling at him as he drew nearer.

"It is so warm and pleasant. I can't imagine a day one wakes up and decided to put off the day's chores for tomorrow because the weather is not favourable."

"The enemy of procrastination." Lucien nodded his understanding, "I agree…"

"How do faeries here get anything done?" She asked, smiling up at him when he reached her. Lucien pressed a kiss to her forehead and Elain felt her heart skip a beat.

"Well, I am guessing most of them have actual jobs to do." He told her, "Unlike us… we are free to wander and explore at our pleasure."

"I suppose that is true…"

"Which do you prefer?" he asked as they began to walk, side by side, along the shore. "Summer or Winter?"

"That's a bit unfair." She replied, smiling nonetheless. "But… I would have to say that I prefer the beauty of Winter."

"I like that you're wearing rather less bulky clothing here." He grinned and Elain pushed at him. Lucien made a surprised sound as he stumbled into a wave sliding across wet sand and he looked at her in surprise. "Have you sketched any flowers for the Summer court yet?" he asked her, sliding an arm around her shoulders and Elain shook her head.

"I was planning to ask Tarquin if there are any ocean flowers that he thought I should draw, or any that are his favourites. Every other High Lord has suggested a favourite, and I think that it has become a rather important part of what I have for each court. Do you think that he has a favourite?"

"I would say that he does."

"Do you think everyone does?" Elain chewed her lip, wondering, for the first time, if maybe she had been expecting something from people that they perhaps hadn't always considered. It had seemed obvious to her that everyone would have an opinion, or a favourite. But, maybe they didn't.

"I… I guess not." Lucien replied, hesitantly.

"…what's yours?" she asked him, coming to a stop on the sand, and Lucien turned to face her.

"My favourite flower?" he asked, a light frown appearing on his face, and Elain nodded, her eyes trained on him.

Gold and Russet eyes met hers for a moment and he smiled, "I really like Dahlias, actually." He said softly and Elain smiled at him.

"I have those…" she flipped through her book until she found the flowers she had drawn when in the Autumn Court, and she passed the book to him. Lucien's metallic eye clicked and whirred as he looked at the book, and she watched as his lips quirked in a smile.

"You've gotten really good, haven't you?" he asked, glancing at her, before looking back to the book.

"That was so long ago…"

"You're still good." He smiled at her, "The Dahlias look wonderful." He bit his lip before continuing, "Did you see them in all the different colours?"

"I saw a few."

"Do you think you might be able to grow them in your garden?"

"If I had come seeds…" She tilted her head, "I could try."

"My mother would probably get you some if asked…"

Elain wrapped an arm around Lucien's waist, smiling up at him. "If you want a Dahlia garden, I'll grow you one." She laughed as he bent to press a kiss to her forehead.

"Perfect mate." He murmured.