Chapter 137

When Feyre walked in, Elain was laughing and Nesta was folding her arms and doing her best to try to look annoyed. If Elain hadn't have known her sister as well as she did, she would have definitely stopped asking about Cassian long before this moment. She did know Nesta, however, and this had pushed her into continuing her line of questioning.

"It's not funny!" Nesta huffed as Feyre approached them.

"What's not funny?" Their youngest sister threw herself down on the couch beside Nesta and began lounging casually.

"Nes is telling me all about Cassian." Elain said helpfully.

"How could she tell you all?" Feyre smirked, "They haven't even fucked yet."

"Feyre!" Elain gasped while Nesta's mouth dropped open and her eyes narrowed.

"Do you mind?" She all but hissed at Feyre who shrugged.

"Not as much as I am sure Cassian does." Feyre brought her feet up to sling them over the side of the couch.

"Could we try being respectful?" Elain asked.

"As if you weren't just interrogating her." Feyre replied, still smirking.

"I was being supportive about it." Elain said, smoothing her dress over her legs. "Just trying to catch up on what I have missed."

"You've not missed much." Feyre told her. "They just sneak around when they think nobody can see them."

"Excuse me." Nesta sniffed. "Don't pretend like I'm not here."

Elain grinned and watched her sisters bicker back and forth. Unlike there had used to be, there was no actual heat behind the words, and nothing but affection in the way they looked at one another. Five years ago she never would have dreamed this was where they would end up.

"Even Elain thinks so!" Feyre's voice caught Elain's attention and she blinked.

"What do I think?" she asked.

"That Nesta and Cassian need to just…"

"Whoa, okay." Elain held up a hand when Feyre looked as if she were going to try and finish the rest of her sentence with select hand gestures. "They need to do whatever it is that they want to do." She laughed and stretched out again in the sun. "Don't rush them. That won't help."

"Well, look at you." Feyre grinned, "Talking like you're an expert…"

"Well, I mean…" Elain gave her a self-satisfied smile, "I have managed something pretty perfect." She watched the way that both Feyre and Nesta's faces lit up with smiles before Nesta looked more closely at her.

"Lucien's letter to Rhys said that he thought you would need to talk to us. Something about your seer ability?" Her elder sister's voice was serious, if a little concerned.

"Oh…" Elain sat up a little straighter. "It's… We did some research in one of the libraries. Every account that we found of the lives of well-known seers seemed to end with them becoming rather unstable."

"In the mind?" Feyre asked, and Elain nodded, her eyes still on Nesta whose own features had turned sharper.

"Are you suggesting that the abilities the Cauldron gave you are going to make you go crazy?"

"No, well… yes… but…" Drawing a slow breath, Elain pushed her hair back from her face. "Lucien was talking about needing an anchor. He thinks that the bond between us will work to enable me to have something to hold on to… so I won't get lost…"

"Will that work?" Nesta turned to Feyre, "We should have brought Amren."

"I don't think we need Amren." Elain said softly, "The Day Court has the biggest and most extensive libraries in Prythian. Ancient knowledge is right here… and Helion knows a lot…"

"What does he say?" Nesta's voice was no-nonsense now and Elain gave a half shrug.

"Things have been rather busy. I've not asked him."

"Elain, this should be your priority." Nesta leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "We need a plan to make sure this doesn't happen."

"We have one." Elain said. "The bond…"

"Is a guess." Nesta said, "We can't afford to guess."

"It doesn't matter." A voice from the doorway said, annoyingly cheery. "All the others ended the same way." Elain resisted an audible sigh as Sorcha strode across the room toward them. "I read all about them when I was doing my training. Each one was lost to madness."

"That won't happen to me." Elain adjusted herself on the couch, trying to hide her irritation.

"Oh, but it will." The priestess' bright eyes focused on her, her expression one of mock sadness, "And then what will happen to the future High Lord?"

"He's not your concern." Surprised at the venom in her own voice, Elain tried to keep her face serene.

"Yes, he is." Sorcha perched on the armrest of one of the vacant chairs. "As a priestess here, it is my duty to take care of all of his… needs."

Clenching the armrests of her own chair, Elain stared at the blonde faerie. "You need to stay away from my mate." She said carefully. "You can't have him."

Sorcha just smiled at her sweetly. "Why don't you use your little ability and take a look if you can see how that will turn out?" Brushing her long golden hair over her shoulder, she added, "Using the ability hastens the process, did you know?"

"I don't know what you think your role is…" Elain said, working hard to unclench her teeth, "But you might want to recheck it."

"I know exactly what my role is."

"It's not being a tramp." Nesta muttered, rolling her eyes. "Nor is it to try and fuck your way to power."

Elain's eyes widened as she glanced at her elder sister, before looking back to Sorcha who was laughing. "My role is to take care of the Court… and the best way to do that is to ensure that the High Lord has everything he needs."

"Is it?" Feyre asked mildly, "Why don't you go out into the city, or back to one of your temples and actually talk to the faeries who live here? See what they need?" Sorcha made a snorting noise that may have been a laugh. "No? Didn't think so…"

"No, I worked hard to get my place in the palace." Sorcha's sickeningly sweet smile was firmly in place once more.

"On your back or your knees?" Nesta asked scathingly.

Sorcha's smile dropped and she met Nesta's eyes with her chin high. "Whatever Helion preferred."

Elain sat back slowly, not knowing what to say to that. She looked from Nesta to Feyre and back again. Both of her sisters were shaking their heads, but it was Feyre who spoke first. "So you've got a taste for High Lords now?"

Sorcha raised an eyebrow, and let out a sigh. "They're all the same, I'll bet." She stretched in an exaggerated manner, "You've been through two of them…" Blue eyes turned on Feyre, "Tamlin and Rhysand…" She smirked, and Elain noticed Nesta's hand come down on Feyre's shoulder to keep her in place "Ashk has too…" Sorcha's smirk widened "Whatever similarities they all have, I'll bet there are more between father and son…"

"You go anywhere near Lucien, and you will regret it." Elain could feel her temper rising, and she wasn't entirely sure how she was going to control it.

"Doubtful."

"You must not have to be very intelligent to be a priestess…" Nesta sounded thoughtful. "Do you know who you are talking to?" Sorcha flicked her hair over her shoulder again, giving Nesta a dismissive glance. "Feyre is the High Lady of the Night Court."

"You have no power here."

"Hm." Feyre tilted her head, "But Elain does, as the mate of the High Lord's son."

Sorcha's dismissive look moved across Elain. "Only until she loses her mind… and then Lucien needs-"

"-if you make any kind of assumption about what Lucien needs, I will…" Elain clenched her teeth, not sure what she would do. She looked at Nesta to see her sister frowning at the priestess.

"I don't remember inviting you into this conversation. My sisters and I were talking with one another." Nesta got to her feet, her eyes narrowing. Sorcha looked unphased, and Elain wondered how the priestess could feel so confident. Did the blonde know something that gave her some kind of leverage or ensure her security? Perhaps she thought the fact that she had slept with Helion made her untouchable? Perhaps it did. "Stay away from my sister and her mate." Nesta's voice was low and if Elain had have been Sorcha, she would have wet herself and run away.

"No promises." Sorcha bounced to her feet, smiling at them all.

Elain watched with disbelief as the priestess flounced across to the door and disappeared out into the hallway. When she looked back to her sisters, she found both Feyre and Nesta's eyes already on her.

"She is unbelievable." Feyre murmured, "The audacity…"

"She kind of scares me." Elain murmured, and Nesta nodded her head.

"If you're going to stay here," Her elder sister said, "She needs to go."

"Go where?" Elain murmured, "Unless she takes a liking to some other High Lord and decides to follow him home…"

"Maybe you can offload her on Eris." Feyre snickered and Elain saw Nesta grin at the idea for a moment.

"Who knows?" Elain shrugged, "I don't care where she goes, as long as it's not near Lucien."