Chapter 552

"And what have you been up to, Petal?" Lucien's arm slid around Elain's waist and she smiled up at him. "You were gone a while…"

"Oh, I didn't think you would notice." She had seen him quite engrossed in a conversation with Tarquin and Thesan before she had left the room with Tisia.

Looking down at her, Lucien's metallic eye clicked and whirred. "Of course I noticed." He replied, "I felt you leave, and I felt the moment you came back through those doors."

"We…" Elain glanced at Tisia beside her, "thought we would go and see Nera."

"Was Eris with her?" Lucien asked, concern flicking across his face.

"Yes."

"Was he… did he…" Russet and gold eyes moved quickly over Elain, and she knew he was wondering about the kind of mood they had found him in. She smiled at her mate, and ran a hand up his arm.

"He was fine." She replied, "Besides, it would not have been us he would have targeted with that anger."

"Anyone could have been caught in it." Lucien murmured, holding her a little more tightly. "I had intended to speak with him myself."

"Perhaps you still should." Elain said, "We have convinced Nera to come and join us all this evening. She should be arriving soon. Eris will obviously be with her. You could find him to speak with him before they arrive, or once they are here…"

"How did you convince her to come back?" Lucien asked, tilting his head. "That sends quite the message…"

"That's the point." Elain grinned. "And that's how. She's not weak…"

"No, that is apparent." He smiled back at her, "I'd wager that's part of why Eris likes her."

"I think you're right."

"She will make a good match for him." Tisia said, "She has a balanced way of seeing things, and she's capable of communicating clearly and not dancing around the issue…"

"I thought it was a skill in Courts to dance around the issue." Elain grinned at her friend who rolled her eyes.

"Yes… but Eris has Courtiers for that. He needs clarity and a clear voice in his ear." Tisia looked back out across the Throne Room, "I'd say he needs a warm heart to keep him grounded too."

"The Autumn Court did not enjoy a kind reputation in the Day Court, did it?" Lucien asked, eyeing Tisia thoughtfully.

"Helion never really sang Beron's praises, no…" Tisia's voice was soft.

"Not surprising." Elain said, figuring Helion had probably had quite a bit to say about Ashk's former husband, and none of it had likely been flattering.

"Eris is not Beron." Lucien put in and Tisia nodded.

"He has made that clear…"

There was a murmur by the doors, growing louder as the doors swung open, and Elain watched silently as Vassa strode into the room, red hair billowing behind her like lively flames. Glancing at the nearby window, Elain blinked. She had not realised that it had grown late enough that Vassa would have returned to her human form, but she smiled a moment later. When she and Tisia had left Nera in her room, they had told her that she should not arrive before the sun had set so that the mortal Queen would be present for her arrival and would not miss the fact that she was unaffected by any nastiness that had been whispered her way.

"Any minute now." Tisia murmured, and Elain had to work hard to keep the grin from her face.

"What have you done?" Lucien asked, and Elain shook her head, leaning against her mate.

"Oh, nothing, love." She said, "We just ensured that when Nera arrives, she looks every bit as suited for a High Lord as she is."