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Chapter Text

Azriel… 

Rhys and Cassian were perched on the sectional couch, goblets of wine in hand. The two of them were both under a soft black blanket, looking thoroughly at ease with one another. We were all growing soft in our old age and vast wealth. It felt just like yesterday when we’d all fought for our survival in the Illyrian camps growing up and becoming brothers.

It was just a few days before the winter solstice and I’d come to the River House to discuss our plans. Usually, we had our annual morning snowball fight up in the mountains and then held a swanky soirée at Rhysand’s place. I needed to know what food to buy and who was going to do what to prepare. 

“You two look comfortable.” I remarked, striding into the room.

“All the girls are out tonight at Rita’s, so it’s just us. They said we couldn’t come.” Cassian said.

“Even Elain?” I asked. She usually wasn’t one for the bar scene. 

“Yes, they dragged her. I bet she’ll be the one to dance on the bar tables.” Rhys said, as he casually took another glass of wine. 

“Do you two want to go out to another bar and get shit faced? We’re sitting in here like a bunch of ninnies.” Cass asked. 

“Hell yes. But what happened to planning the solstice?” I inquired. 

“Usually the girls take care of it and we just show up.” Cass replied. 

“That’s true. Where should we go tonight, Az?” Rhys asked. 

“Roger’s.”

There were a lot of nice bars in Velaris but they were places where you had to have some sort of decorum, all owned by upper class snots. Well technically we were all at the top of the social pecking order but we hadn’t been raised that way. Roger’s was where you went when you wanted to have real fun, like picking up ladies or bar fights. 

In an instant Rhys had changed into his usual club-going clothes, obscenely tight black pants and a purple v-neck shirt, with dress shoes that shined to perfection. Cass just wore his usual sleeveless black muscle shirt, pants, and combat boots. I quickly changed into my black leather jacket with a sweater underneath, trousers, and black pointed-toe boots. We all looked ridiculous, but would definitely attract all sorts of attention from females. 

Rhys grabbed Cass and winnowed them both to the seedy bar, and I winnowed myself there. Roger’s was packed full of Fae of all kinds. Surprisingly, there were a group of drunken Illyrian warriors seated in the back all drinking from a pitcher of beer and cheering for one another like a bunch of morons.

“Brings back memories, huh, Az?” Rhys remarked, as we walked up to the war. 

“Oh, to be young and stupid again.” Cass said. 

Roger the bar owner was an old Fae, perhaps nine hundred, much older than any of us. He had wisps of gray hair tied back in a greasy ponytail at the base of his neck and sharp steely blue eyes that seemed to pierce into yours when he looked you in the eye. 

“Elllo boys. The usual?” He asked, his voice rasping. 

“You got it. Put it on my tab.” Rhys said. Roger passed Rhys and I our usual whisky on the rocks and Cass his pitcher of mead, that tasted just like the piss we’d grown up drinking in the Illyrian camps. 

“I don’t know how you can drink that shit.” I said to Cass. Just smelling it made me want to throw up, because I’d been blackout drunk on the stuff.

“I’m not a fancy pants like you, Azriel.” 

“I can still hold my liquor better than you can, asshole.” 

“Is that a challenge?” 

“You bet.”

Cassian chugged his pitcher down then motioned for another. Soon enough, I could see Cassian was getting drunker than I was. My head was swimming a bit from the whisky, but I was mostly sober and so was Rhys. Usually, we didn’t drink as much because it took the two of us to carry Cass’s sorry ass home when he was drunk beyond belief. For such a big male, he was a fucking lightweight. Even Nesta, as small as she was, could outdrink him. 

“You know, we should go camping in the mountains and hunt for solstice this year like we used to. The girls shouldn’t have to plan anything, it’s not fair that they always have to do it.” Cass slurred.

“That’s actually not a bad idea.” Rhys said, whilst rubbing his chin.

“I’m down. I’ll help you pack up tomorrow.” 

Mor and Amren both loved hunting, and I’m sure Feyre would like it since she’d grown up doing it. Nesta would probably just go along with it for Cassian’s sake and Elain would come if all of us were together. 

Our conversation stopped abruptly when I heard some loud shouting from the back of the bar. Two young females, probably no older than twenty, were surrounded by two of the group of Illyrians. I watched them carefully to see if they were enjoying themselves or not. 

“We’re not interested.” The taller of the two said. She had light brown hair and honey brown eyes, and she reminded me so much of Elain.

“Well, you both were making eyes at us and we could show you a good time.” One of the Illyrians said. He was at least Cass’s height and much bigger than both ladies, likely intimidating to them. 

“No, thanks, we don’t want to do anything other than have a couple drinks tonight.” The smaller girl said, whilst taking a step away from them and grabbing her friend. 

“Let’s go out back, girls. Come on.” 

Rhys, Cass, and I watched them very carefully. When both men forcefully grabbed the girls by their arms and started walking toward the back door, I stood up and walked over to them. Rhys and Cass walked with me, and stood a few feet back in case I needed back up. There was no way I going to allow something to happen these two girls, not in my house. My shadows danced protectively around me, and I strode up to the group of young people. 

“They said they weren’t interested, in case you’re hard of hearing.” I said, mockingly. 

“And who the fuck are you, pretty boy?” The bigger Illyrian said. 

“Leave them alone and let them have their fun, then you won’t have to find out.” I growled, putting myself between the girls and the idiot younglings. 

“You ought to listen to him.” Rhys said. I knew this was gearing up to be a good fight, and I looked forward to it. 

“Fuck you and your little boyfriends. We’ll do whatever the hell we want.”

“You’ll do no such thing in my city.” Rhys hissed. When a fist made contact with my chin, I smiled. It was time. Clearly, these bastards didn’t know who we were and that was fan-fucking-tastic. 

“No magic. Let’s make this a fair fight.” Cass said, before cracking his knuckles for effect.

I dodged the next punch and gripped the young warrior, if he could call himself that, by the throat and slammed him up against the wall as hard as I could. When he slumped to the floor unconscious, the rest of his buddies got up from their seats and jumped into the fray. 

 Just as an Illyrian was about to slam a broken bottle down on me, Cass tackled the guy and knocked him out with a single punch to the temple. Within a matter of a few minutes, we’d dealt with all five trouble makers. The girls we’d been defending had long since left Roger’s, but I was glad that they were safe. 

“Thanks, boys. Those morons have caused trouble the last three days and no one has stood up to em’.”  Roger said. 

“It’s no problem. I don’t know how riff raff like that got into Velaris. I’ll be sure to tell the guards to be more careful about who they let in.” Rhys remarked. 

I heard a familiar gasp from behind me. I had one of the Illyrians by the collar of his shirt held up against a wall, just when our ladies had made their way into the bar. Elain, clad in only her brassiere and a short black skirt, slumped over Nesta’s and Feyre’s houlders while staring with wide brown eyes at me. I let him drop to the floor and he skittered out the front door with the rest of his friends like the little bitch he was. 

“AZ?” Elain stammered. 

“Hi, Elain.” I said, and felt heat rise in my cheeks.

“I knew she would be the drunkest.” Cass muttered. 

“Shut up.” I growled. 

“Can one of you please take her home? She can’t handle her liquor and won’t stop drinking. She needs to go to bed.” Mor whispered, while gesturing at Elain who smiled groggily at the three of us. 

“Let the girl have some fun, you don’t need to mother her.” Amren said, even though she was also drunk off her ass. Although, she always recovered relatively quickly and would probably be sober within minutes. It was something about the fire in her blood that allowed her to do that, burn through the alcohol or whatever drug she took. 

“I’ll take her. I’ll be back soon, look after Cass.” I said. At least his mate was here now to take care of his sorry ass.

Rhys raised an eyebrow at me but I ignored him. It still pissed me off endlessly that he’d banned me from pursuing her, as I suspected from the moment I’d met her that somehow we were mates and the Cauldron had made a mistake. 

I pulled my leather gloves out of my jacket pocket and pulled them on, which I always kept on me because of the cold winter weather or if I had to get my hands dirty. However, Elain was so drunk she couldn’t walk straight which meant that I would have to carry her home. If I so much as touched her beautiful pale skin, I would probably go berserk and do something that I would regret later. After that, I took off my jacket and handed it to Elain to put on so she wouldn’t be cold in the icy air outside, since she was missing her shirt. 

“I’m going to take you home, Elain.” I said, before taking her from her sisters and lifting her carefully. 

“Wha? I’m having fun, Azzzy.” She replied with a drunken giggle. 

“I think you need to get some sleep, Elain.”

With that, I winnowed us back to the River House and walked her up to her bedroom. She’d already fallen asleep in my arms by the time we got to her room and I thanked the gods. Talking to her would’ve been acutely uncomfortable. When I set her on her bed, I tucked her hair behind her ear and covered her with a blanket before I headed back to Roger’s. 

Elain…

I felt like I’d been hit in the face with a brick then put through a meat grinder. After last night, I was never going to drink anything with alcohol in it again. Last night, I’d drank more than done more and rebelled more than I ever had in my life.

Last night, I’d given this gorgeous woman with ebony skin and golden eyes a lap dance then kissed her, just to try it. She’d been a wonderful kisser and I’d enjoyed it immensely, only because I’d imagined her to be Az. When I’d finished with that escapade, I’d danced on the bar top with Mor, Nesta, and Feyre then stripped off most of my clothes. 

Once men and women threw coins at the three of us, we reluctantly got down from the bar and then walked to Roger’s to finish out our night of fun. That’s when I’d seen Az strangling some Illyrian kid, and he carried me home.

I was at least cognizant enough to pretend to be asleep in his arms so we wouldn’t have an awkward conversation. Things between us had been particularly tense since the last Winter Solstice and I knew that both of us had been avoiding the inevitable conversation for a while. 

The Following Morning…

Slowly, I made my way downstairs and found everyone was already packed to go on our little camping trip into the mountains. I looked at the clock in the foyer, it was a little past noon. 

“Good morning, sleeping beauty. About time you woke up.” Cassian remarked, making everyone else laugh. Somehow, he didn’t have a hangover even though he’d been drunker than me last night.

“I already packed your stuff, so we can head out.” Feyre said. 

“Thank you. I meant to do it.” 

“It’s not a problem.” 

With a snap of his fingers, Rhys made our packs disappear. 

“Are we ready?” He asked. 

The next moment, all of us were whisked away by a strong gust of magic. He’d winnowed all of us to a sunlit glade at the base of two mountains. We stood in several inches of snow and an endless pine forest laid ahead of us, with its floor covered in thick brush.

“Where are we, Rhys? I thought we were going to the cabin.” Feyre asked, and she was as bewildered as the rest of us were. 

“We used to hunt here as children. It’s the best place in Prythian for stag.” Azriel replied. 

While he was preoccupied with talking to everyone, I looked Az over. He wore a long grey button up coat, thick wool pants, a black tunic, his usual boots, and truth teller at his waist. In the sunlight, his golden brown skin looked magnificent and I tried not to let my eyes linger for too long.

“Feyre and I will share a tent, Cass and Nesta, Amren and Mor as well. I suppose that leaves Azriel and Elain? The tents are too small for three to sleep in.” Feyre said, her face turning light pink. Rhys looked like he was constipated but said nothing.

“That’s fine.” I quipped. This was going to be a very long few days. 

“Just to let you know, we’re going to have a hunting competition after the snowball fight tomorrow. All of us are participating in the hunt and the annual Illyrian snowball fight. Your tent mate will also be your partner for both events. Whichever team wins gets a prize.” Cassian announced. 

All of the ladies, including myself groaned, and all the boys whooped. They were all overgrown man-children and now expected us to participate in their tomfoolery. 

“I thought we were supposed to enjoy the solstice.” Amren muttered. 

“It will be fun, Amren. We’ll make the Illyrian babies cry when they lose.” Mor said, patting the older woman on the shoulder. 

“I would pay to see that.” Amren responded, and a hint of a smile appeared on her face. 

We spent the day setting up camp and getting a fire going. For just a few days, our crew brought things they didn’t need and that took up too much space. Cassian, for example, brought a spiked mace. I didn’t see how it would be useful for a hunting competition, but who knew what the hell roamed these woods at night. 

After we’d all had a dinner of venison steak and grilled vegetables and our fair share of alcohol, I headed to our tent. I hadn’t said a word to Az the whole night but had caught him gazing at me a time or two.

I crawled into my tent and onto our shared mat, before pulling the fur blanket over myself. Despite the fact that I wore a thick fur lined cloak, mittens, a wool hat, heavy pants, and socks, I was freezing so much that my teeth chattered. I would murder whoever came up with this camping idea if I had to spend the night like this. It must be below zero here. While the Illyrians were used to this sort of cold, I most certainly was not.

 I laid there for a very long time, before I heard someone open the tent door and step inside. I’d let my mind drift to unmentionable fantasies involving Azriel while I tried to fall asleep.

“Hi, it’s just me.” Az said. 

“Oh, hi.”

Az took a moment to look around the tent, as if he were looking for another sleeping bag. 

“I could’ve sworn I’d packed my sleeping bag.” He whispered, more to himself than me.

“Sorry, you can have the blanket if you want.” 

“No, I’m fine. You look like you're freezing.

“I am. I’m not used to this.” 

“It was like this in the Illyrian camps when I was growing up. We all used to huddle together to keep warm as kids. If you want… I could move closer to help keep you warm.” He slowly said, unsure of himself. 

“I’m sorry you went through that. I’d be grateful for any warmth at this point, since we can’t light a fire in here.”

Az stepped over me, and then laid down behind me. He folded his wings close to his body since we were in such close proximity. I laid on my side with my back facing against him. When I felt one of his gloved hands lightly settle on my waist and his chest against my back, I exhaled and snuggled closer. Az was like a space heater, and soon I was warm enough to drift into a deep sleep.

Azriel…

I was thoroughly well and fucked, this girl would be the death of me. Elain slept soundly next to me and her shivering had all but stopped. We were in the perfect position so that I could touch and pleasure her, like I’d wanted to do for so long now; since we’d met when she was a human. 

My hand rested just inches from her small but perky breasts, and her ass was tucked perfectly against my crotch. But I wouldn’t and couldn’t do anything about it. So, I just laid there next to her and waited until the sun rose. 

Elain… 

I awoke at sunrise the next morning to the sound of someone banging very loudly on a pan with a spoon, seething with anger. Az was already awake and had vacated our tent sometime before I woke up. I adjusted my clothes and fixed my hair, before heading out into the chilly morning. 

Cassian, in all his shirtless tattooed glory, stood on top of an overturned tree banging the pot with impunity.

“Gooood morning, Campers. It’s time for breakfast and then the fun will begin.” He howled. 

That fucker was going down, even if I had to drown him in snowballs and kill a stag with my bare hands. As if sensing my anger, Rhysand came up behind Cassian without a sound. The next moment, Rhys carefully opened the back of his trousers and dumped a handful of ice down the back of his pants causing him to scream bloody murder. Az joined in on the fun and tackled the shocked general to the ground, and soon enough the three of them were wrestling in the snow like a bunch of savages. 

All of the women in our camp watched the show for a few seconds, including me, before getting the first pick of the breakfast that Cassian had made. Each of us made sure to take more than our fair share, so there was only just enough for the three Illyrian babies. They’d dragged us out here for solstice and now they would pay for it dearly.  We’d all taken our place by the fire. I sat next to Mor, Feyre, and Amren on a log, while Nesta got stuck sitting next to Cass and the other two idiots. 

“What if we did men versus women in the snowball fight? I want revenge on these bastards.” Mor asked, excitedly. 

“We’d have to annihilate them, or else they’ll brag for the next hundred years.” I said. Nesta schooched close to Mor and we whispered amongst ourselves. The Bat boys watched us suspiciously. 

“There’s five of us and three of them. I think the odds are fair enough. What do you 

think about it, Amren?” Feyre added. 

“After the General woke us up like that, he’s going down.” Amren flashed us all a maniacal smile and her strange eyes flashed silver. 

“I’ll tell them about our idea.” I said. I walked up to the three of them and smiled my sweetest smile.

“Hello, Elain, how are you? Do you need anything?” Rhys asked. His face was a mask of a perfect gentleman. 

“I’m upset, actually. I thought this vacation was supposed to be fun, but Cassian pissed us all off when he woke us up this early by banging the pan. The ladies and I have made a decision. We want to team up with one another in the snowball fight.” 

Rhys turned pale, then looked around me at the other girls. All of them flipped him off simultaneously, and his eyes widened. 

“Are you sure you want to do that? It might be more fair if we…” 

“Are you afraid you’ll lose, Cousin?” Morrigan shouted at him. His mask slipped then, his face turning hard.

“I’m afraid you will end up hurt, when you lose. We won’t go easy on you.” He hissed, 

“I wouldn’t expect any less.” I said, and strode back to my log.

“The competition begins in fifteen minutes. Be ready. No magic and no weapons allowed. We’re allowed to go into the forest to hide but capture is allowed. If you get hit with more than five snowballs, you’re out.” Rhys snarled.

The five of us took off through the woods, dodging low hanging bushes and tendrils. Mor and Nesta took the lead, since they were in the best shape because of all their training. Once we were deep enough into the woods and well enough away to strategize, we hid ourselves in the mouth of a cave.

 “We need to split up into groups and hunt each one of them individually, because we’ll never be able to take on all three. Feyre and Mor, you’ll hunt Rhys. He might show mercy because Feyre is his mate and Mor his cousin. Elain, you’ll go with Nesta to hunt Cassian. I will hunt Azriel, since he’ll be the hardest to track. If you get caught, whistle as loudly as you can and someone will come for you.” Amren said. 

Amren slunk out of the cave first, scenting the air for any sign of Illyrian stink. When she found nothing, she motioned for us to join her. Nesta and I took off at a dead run, in the opposite direction of everyone else. 

“Where do you think he went?” I asked Nesta. She knew her mate better than anyone, except his brothers. 

“Well, we haven’t found any foot prints so he’s probably sitting in a tree somewhere waiting to strike. The others probably are too.” 

The next moment, Nesta was hit in the chest with a snowball. She’d been right, they had gone to the trees. They were a bunch of cowards. Cassian landed in a crouch in front of us like a predator and Nesta looked at me. I knew what that look meant. RUN. 

The two of us took off in opposite directions, as he couldn’t chase us both down. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me toward the deep snow piles by the frozen river, where I might find safety and have good ammo. I heard a screech a moment later, and saw Cassian carrying his wriggling mate into the air. When the coast cleared, I would have to rescue my sister. 

I ducked behind a snow pile and looked at the frozen river. The ice looked pretty thin, and I knew exactly what I could do to get everyone to come running in this direction so we could capture the Illyrians. Thinking quickly,  I hefted a boulder into the water. It broke the ice with a loud crunch. 

“HELP! Please! Help!” I shrieked as loudly and convincingly as I possibly could, whilst hiding behind a massive snow pile. Then, I went silent to see if my plan would work. 

A few seconds later, all three Illyrians appeared not ten feet from where I was hiding looking completely panicked. They hovered over the ice, knowing it was too thin for them to walk on. I doused myself in river water, enough so it chilled me to the bone and made me shiver. I was careful not to make any noise. If I could keep them here just a little longer, everyone else could capture them and we would win. 

“Oh shit. Do you think it’s possible that she fell in?” Rhys said, looking down at the hole in the ice. 

“Well, I’m not just going to stay here and find out.” Azriel said.

I crawled along behind the snow banks, where I was sure they couldn’t see me, then slowly inched my way to a break in the ice and laid down beside the river just within their line of sight. I closed my eyes and forced myself to gasp for air, trying to remember what it had been like to come out of the Cauldron and I put on the best performance of my life. 

“There!” Cassian yelled. 

All three of the idiots barreled toward me, completely convinced by my acting that I was barely alive. Az was the first to get to me and he lifted me out of the freezing snow, before covering me with his own cloak. 

“Are you okay? Are you hurt? ” He asked, softly. I coughed up a mouthful of water for dramatic effect, and he rolled me onto my side so I didn’t choke. 

Feyre, Mor, and Nesta emerged the next moment from the bushes and sprinted at the three warriors. All three of them got hit at once with massive snowballs and they cursed simultaneously. 

“Stop, Elain is hurt!” Rhys said, holding a hand up for them to pause. Even the mind reader was fooled by my deception. 

“What?!” Nesta yelled and sprinted toward us, the other two hot on her heels. 

“I’m most definitely not hurt.” I said with a wicked grin, and threw a snowball directly into Azriel’s face before lurching myself away from him with a speed that I’d never known I was capable of before. He caught up to me within seconds, and tackled me into a snowbank. 

Thanks to my plan, the other ladies managed to douse the boys with a barrage of snowballs before they too were caught and pinned to the ground. Only Amren and Mor had escaped. I was amused when Nesta tried to bite Cassian, as he’d pinned her arms and legs to the ground. In response, he obscenely thrust his hips into hers and that quieted her down. Rhys sat on his mate like she was a chair, as she’d just given up. Azriel had me pinned down on my back, with my arms above my head. He didn’t make eye contact while he pinned me, and only scanned the horizon for threats.  

Amren and Mor were our only hopes now. I’d counted, and each of them had been pelted with four snowballs. 

“We need to get them out of here before the other two come back.” Rhys ordered. As if by some miracle, three more snowballs sailed out from the bushes and hit each of their targets. 

“That’s five.” Nesta said, proudly. 

“Fuck.” The Bat Boys said in perfect unison, as if they’d all had the exact same 

thought. 

“You’re an evil fucking genius, Elain.” Cassian muttered, as he helped Nesta to her feet. 

“Thank you.” I said, sweetly. 

As we walked back to camp, the three Illyrians grumbled amongst themselves about how I’d cheated. There hadn’t been a rule against it, but I probably would not be able to do it again next year. 

Azriel… 

When I’d come into our tent late after chit chatting and drinking with my friends most of the night, Elain had cocooned herself in our blanket like a burrito and was shivering violently. Since the clever little trick that she’d pulled by the river this morning, she hadn’t been able to get warm and I’d been worried that she was in the beginning stages of hypothermia. Her acting had been phenomenal and I’d wondered, the moment she’d popped up and hit me with that first snowball, if she would make a good spy. Her docility and sweetness were an excellent disguise. 

The snowball fight hadn’t ended by the river, even though the girls had won the game. We’d continued to throw snowballs at one another without rules or teams for the rest of the day, and were too tired for a hunt. We’d all decided to go hunting tomorrow morning with our tent mates, as planned to see who could get the biggest or any stag. 

“Azriel, are you awake too?” She asked, as I moved closer to her.

“Yes, you should try to sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow.” I suggested. At least when she slept, I didn’t have to converse with her and worry about her confronting me about what had happened last solstice.

“I’ve been meaning to ask. When you said almost kissing me was a mistake, did you mean it?” She asked.

 That question hit me like a one-two punch. If I lied to her about it and said yes, then would hate me forever and the rest of our trip would be awkward. If I told her no, then I would be in direct defiance of Rhysand’s orders. I’d defied direct orders from him only once, and I had not done it again. Although, he’d let me share a tent with the woman I’d fallen for but been told not to pursue. Did he really think I had that much self control? I could not force myself, no matter the circumstances, to lie to her about it. 

“No, I didn’t. The whole situation is just very… complicated, with you having a mate.” 

“Mates are just biology, Az. I don’t feel anything for him.” 

“I understand.”

“Were you actually going to jump into that river today if Cass hadn’t spotted me?”

“Yes.”

“You could’ve died.”

“I know. It’s a good thing he saw you when he did.” I said, slowly. 

“Can I kiss you?” She asked. She’d turned around to face me then, our faces just inches apart. Her breath was slow and steady, her lips parted slightly. I touched the side of her face, hands still gloved. I could feel the heat of it even through the thin leather. 

“Yes.” I breathed, my resolve finally snapping. 

She pressed her soft lips to mine for just a few precious moments, and I let my fingers tangle into her hair. When we pulled apart, she looked at me with an expression I’d never seen before and I felt it then, a string tugging in the center of my chest. I just knew that she felt it too. How could it be?   

Elain… 

“Good morning, El.” Feyre said, as she roasted a few rabbits she’d caught earlier over our fire. 

“Morning.” I said, and I plopped down next to Nesta on the log by the fire. She held a steaming cup of black coffee in her hands and wordlessly handed me one. I noticed that she glared at Cassian like she wanted to strangle him. He, in turn, sat next to Az and Rhys and they were all laughing hysterically about something. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

“My husband is an asshole.” She grumbled.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Well, we were going at it last night and I pleasured him. Everything was great, until he refused to return the favor.” She said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Cassian turned to look our way then, his face turning red, and so did everyone else.

“Was he sick?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. There had to be a logical explanation. From her stories, particularly ones I did not want to hear, he was very giving in bed. 

“He probably couldn’t get it up.” Rhys said, with a wicked grin.

“He said I didn’t deserve it, after having cheated in the snowball fight yesterday.” Nesta continued. 

Rhys clapped his hand on the back of his brother’s head and Cassian growled at him in response. We had not cheated yesterday, and I’d been the one to deceive them, not her. 

“I’m sure Azriel would be willing to help you, Nes. He’s very well known throughout the Night Court for his skills as a lover.” Feyre said.

“What do you say, shadowsinger? Want to fool around?” Nesta asked, beckoning him with a long, thin finger. 

Azriel let out a deep, melodious laugh. I looked down into my cup of coffee and could feel heat rising in my cheeks. We kissed last night and if he was so well known throughout Prythian for his skills in bed, how many people had he been with?

“I appreciate the offer, but I think your mate would kill me for it.” He replied, with a flirtatious wink. 

“I could always give it a go. Girls know what girls like, isn’t that right, Elain?” Mor said, suggestively. 

I put my head in my hands. I’d made out with that woman at Rita’s and I don’t think any of the girls would ever let me live it down. The worst part was, I liked it. Before anyone could question me about it, Cassian grabbed Nesta by the wrist and began pulling her toward their tent. 

“Come on.” He huffed. 

“Don’t scream too loud, Nesta. You’ll scare all the deer away!” Rhys called. 

“We’d better get going before it gets too late. We’ll meet back here at sundown. Don’t get lost. Remember, the biggest stag gets the prize.” Feyre said, to all of us. 

Az and I both got our archery gear from the pile, then headed off in opposite directions from everyone else to hunt for deer. We walked through the forest for three or four hours, in companionable silence scanning for our prey. Feyre had taught me how to shoot a bow a few months and I’d proven to be quite good at it, so I felt confident in my ability to hit a moving target. If I didn’t, I was sure that Az was a master and would hit our mark. 

“There.” Azriel whispered, as we came up on a ridge. He stilled and gestured downward. 

A beautiful brown stag with at least an eight point rack, stood at the bottom of the hill. Slowly, I took out an arrow and aimed it at the deer’s heart. Az just watched as I aimed, his arms crossed over his chest. I’d never killed an animal before and felt my heart thump rapidly in my chest, as I kept my arrow trained on it. It went against my better nature to kill such a gorgeous creature, but it seemed as if Az wasn’t going to do it so I had to.

I gritted my teeth and then let my arrow fly. It struck its target dead in the heart and the stag collapsed.  I can’t believe Feyre had done this all the time to keep us fed. 

“Good shot.” Az mused, as we walked down to where the deer laid. 

“It’s still breathing. Want to do the honors?” I said, as I watched the deer’s labored breathing. It was actively dying and needed to be put out of its misery. 

“Yes.” 

Az pulled truth teller from its scabbard and swiftly stabbed it in the neck, killing it instantly. After that, he pulled out a pair of elbow length plastic gloves from his pack that I’d seen Madja wear for particularly messy medical procedures. 

“Do you want field dress or shall I?” He asked, an amused smile playing at his lips. He already knew what the answer was going to be. 

“I’ll let you handle that. I’m not sure how to do it.” I usually left whenever Feyre gutted her kills, for good reason. 

“I figured that. I’m going to need you to hold its legs open for me, while I make the cuts though.”

Az took a massive hunting knife from his pack, bigger than truth teller and expertly sliced a hole around its anus then pulled out the organ. After that, he carefully sliced through its skin and muscle, exposing its entire abdominal cavity, then cut in some very specific sections inside the deer to loosen the organs. Surprisingly, the sight and smell of the guts didn’t bother me much. 

That was until he reached his entire forearm into the innards and a pool of blood poured out, nearly soaking my boots and turning the snow red. A cold sweat broke out all over my body afterwards and I felt nauseous. The pool of blood reminded me of when Feyre had nearly died giving birth to Nyx. 

When the guts plopped out onto the ground with a disgusting squelch, I bolted away from the carcass and began to throw up my breakfast and lunch into a nearby bush. A few moments later, I felt Az holding back my hair and patting my upper back.

“Are you okay?” Azriel asked.

“Yeah, sorry. The blood reminded me of when Feyre almost died.” 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know you would have a reaction to it.” 

“I’m fine now, nothing left to throw up.” 

“Let’s hope it was worth the struggle.”

Az smiled, and shouldered the heavy two hundred pound deer like it weighed nothing. We headed back to camp, moving at a less leisurely pace this time so we could back before sundown as Feyre had said.

“So is it true that you’re a good lover like everyone says?” I asked, thinking absentmindedly of the kiss that we’d shared last night.

“You’ll have to find out, sweetheart.” He replied, but said nothing further. 

Chapter Text

Azriel…

“Do you think she’s alright?” I asked, as we sat around the bonfire. 

Almost everyone except Nesta and Cass had gone to bed, as we were all the late night owls of the family. Nesta sat next to Cassian with her head resting on his shoulder, leaning into his side for warmth in this chilly night air while I sat in the log opposite them. Cassian looked at me like I’d grown a third head and it was probably because I shared my worries about as much as I dyed my hair pink. 

“You can always go check on her, dude. She’s in your tent.” He replied, casually.

Elain had gone to bed particularly early, complaining that she wasn’t feeling well. She’d even looked especially pale and I wondered if she was coming down with a cold. 

“I’m going to go do that. Goodnight!” 

With that, I got up from my spot and headed toward our tent. When I got into our tent, I saw that Elain laid on her side curled with her slender legs drawn up to her chest. She only wore a thin white nightgown and had shed her other clothes. It didn’t make much sense given that the temperature outside was frigid. 

“How are you feeling?” 

“I’m having the worst cramps and I feel feverish. I think I’m going to start my period.”

High Fae females experienced menstrual cycles less often than human women, usually twice a year,  but they were much more intense. Some females would be bedridden for days at a time because of their symptoms. As far as I know, Elain hadn’t yet had hers as a fae which was unfortunate because the first was usually the worst. Without medicine, there was little to do about her pain. However, I’d read many years ago that orgasms and massage helped immensely. I'd learned that information in case Mor had ever needed help, but had never dared to offer it. 

“Do you want me to help you?” I asked, quietly. I couldn’t believe I was asking it, because it was beyond inappropriate. 

“How? I’ll be alright, I’m just in a lot of pain.”

“I read that orgasms and massage sometimes help. Is that something that you would be interested in?”

I could tell even in the low lamplight in our tent that her face turned crimson red, and she was embarrassed. Gods, I was stupid even for asking. 

“W-Would you actually do that?” She stammered.

“Only if you want me too. Where are you hurting the most?” 

“My lower abdomen and my lower back.” 

“Can I help you?” 

“Yes.” 

“Can you please uncurl your legs? If I do anything that you don’t like, please tell me to stop right away.” 

I laid down behind her tucking my wings in close and placed a gloved hand on her tiny waist, to let her get used to my touch. 

Elain…

Az ran his fingers up and down my ribcage to my hip a few times, then back up. He squeezed my hip just slightly, before letting his hand drift toward my lower abdomen. Slowly, he began to knead the muscles there and worked on the spot where it hurt the most, bading my uterus to relax. When I let out a breathless sigh, he shifted slightly closer to me. 

“Does that feel good?” He whispered.

“It feels wonderful.” 

He kept at it for quite a while, until the cramps eased just slightly. When he stopped, I almost wanted to cry.

“Do you want to turn on your belly and spread your legs just a little?”

Spread my legs? I hadn’t done much of anything since my time with Greyson, and even that hadn’t amounted to much more than intimate touching and my going down on him. I trusted Az though, and that he wouldn’t do anything to make me uncomfortable. 

“O-okay.” I laid down on my stomach for him and separated my legs just a little. 

 “May I lift the back of your nightgown?” He asked, likely so he could access me more easily. 

I felt my heart begin to thrum in my chest. If I’d already begun to bleed, which was what it seemed like, I was afraid that he would see it and the thought of it was mortifying. 

“I, uh, not right now.” I quipped.

“Alright. You could always put on your pants if you’re worried about modesty.” He replied, soothingly.

“I’ll do that then.” I got up and rummaged through my pack until I found a pair of thin black leggings that would be comfortable, which I put on while Az had his eyes closed. After that, I settled back down on my stomach and waited.

“Am I good to lift your nightgown now?” 

“Yes, thank you.”

Azriel…

She was truly the most beautiful creature I’d ever laid eyes on, and made me rock hard in her prone position. Her long golden brown hair was loose and she’d pulled it over her shoulder so that it was out of the way, and her head rested comfortably in the crux of her arm; a vision of serenity. 

Slowly, as if I were unwrapping a delectable treat, I pushed her nightgown up and pushed it to the middle of her back. As expected, the skin on her back was as pale as the moon and utterly flawless like the rest of her. I smoothed a hand down her spine and let it settle at the small of her back, to let her know I was about to start touching her again. The black of my glove was a stark contrast against her white skin. I’d kept them on to avoid touching her directly, so I could avoid sullying her. She didn’t seem to mind, because she didn’t say anything about it. 

Her breath hitched as I started massaging her lower back, and she went lax. 

“Thank you so much.” She breathed. 

“It’s not a problem. 

When I felt the time was right, I let my hands drift down to her ample rump and continued my kneading. The glutes always held a lot of tension and I fully expected to turn her body to putty by the end of our time together. 

“Is this okay?” I asked, to make sure she was comfortable with what I was doing. 

“Yes.”   

Elain…

It seemed as if all the stress I’d been carrying in my body since I came to Prythian was melting away, under Azriel’s assured touches. However, I had a gut feeling that if we continued any further than we might be found out by everyone else. It already took everything in me not to moan and writhe. Who knew how they would react?

“Az, can you stop?” I asked. 

He took his hands off me immediately and I sat up. His usually emotionless face was contorted in worry and his brows were furrowed. 

“Are you okay? Did I make you feel unsafe?” He asked, his hands resting stiffly in his lap.

In the time I’d known Azriel, he’d confessed that his father had been nothing but a brute to his family. He always tried not to scare or hurt anyone that he was close to, as the thought of being like his father in any way ate him alive. 

“No, I just don’t think it’s a good idea to continue here.Can you winnow us somewhere a bit more private and comfortable? We can come back in the morning before anyone realizes we’re gone.” 

“Of course.” 

Azriel grabbed my hand and the next moment we were enveloped in shadow. Seconds later, we reappeared in a large darkened bedroom. I could make out the outline of a huge bed and a plethora of swords hanging from the walls glinted in the moonlight.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“It’s just my apartment in Velaris. I don’t use it that much. No one can come in here unless I let them in, even Rhys.” 

“Thank you.”

Azriel removed his heavy cloak, and scabbard at his waist before setting it on his bed. He paused, before taking off his leather gloves. There was no reason to keep them on since it wasn’t cold here. 

“Would you like to continue? I’ll also go get you some pain medicine which should help.” He asked, and gestured at the large bed.

My cramps had already begun to act up again, and I stiffly walked over to the bed. Thank the gods that we had a comfortable bed now, instead of a freezing cold tent and a sleeping bag. 

Azriel returned a few minutes later, with pain pills in hand, a glass of water, and gods he had pads too. My face turned beat red, and I accepted all three items sheepishly.

“Thanks. Did you winnow to the store to get these?” I asked, whilst gesturing at the pads.

“I used to bring women here sometimes in my younger days, and they would sometimes need them. It’s better to be prepared than not.” He replied, matter of factly.

“Oh.” 

I tried not to let the fact that he’d brought others here for less than innocent reasons bother me, and I settled myself on top of the covers.

“Back to what we were doing?” I asked.

Azriel’s eyes sparkled mischievously and he sat down on the bed next to me. Without hesitation, I moved closer to him and kissed him. He licked along my bottom lip and wound his fingers through my hair, before flipping us so I laid flat on my back and he was on top. 

Azriel’s … 

She keened as I kissed then lightly nipped at her neck, hard enough to leave a little bit of a red mark. Before I got too carried away with kissing her, I sat up on my knees and looked down at Elain who laid comfortably under me. I did have a job to do, and snogging certainly wasn’t going to relieve her cramps. 

“I still would like to relieve your cramps if you’re still okay with that.” 

“That would be great since the pain medication hasn’t kicked in yet.” 

I got off her and sat back against the pillows and headboard, with my legs stretched out in a v-position so she could rest between them. I’d found that sitting behind females when you touched them gave easy access to all the essentials and it made them feel safer. 

Elain got the idea and took a seat between my legs, with her back leaning up against my chest. Once she’d adjusted herself, I ran my hands down her bare arms a few times to warm them. She had goosebumps because it was fairly cool in my room. Thinking quickly, I flicked my wrist and a small fire ignited in the hearth. 

After that, I started to massage her belly again until I felt all the tension leave her body.

“More?” I whispered, whilst wrapping my fingertips around the bottom hem of her nightgown.

She nodded her permission and then let me pull off her nightgown. I didn't dare take off her pants, at least not yet. To say that she looked like a goddess naked would be an understatement.

As I’d expected, she was very slender, even more so than her sisters. Her skin was so pale that in the firelight I could see the veins that extended from the middle of her chest to her small but high set  breasts. 

Slowly, I stroked her waist and then let my hands rest on the underside of her boobs, testing their weight. I kneaded them gently and lightly pinched her nipples until they were erect. When the pace of her breathing changed and got a little faster, I smiled to myself and kept teasing her a bit.

“Azriel…” She growled, irritated.

I knew exactly what she wanted, but I decided to play dumb and keep playing with her fantastic tits. 

“Yes, Elain? What do you need?”

“You know what I need.” 

“A little bossy are we?” 

I squeezed her nipples a little harder, and she yelped in pain. I’d forgotten just for a moment that during their periods, female breasts were incredibly sensitive. Mother, I was such an idiot. 

To distract her from the pain, I slipped one of my hands down and cupped her between her legs. She felt incredibly warm there, and slightly swollen. All the sudden, she went very still and I worried that I’d made her uncomfortable. 

“Is this okay?” I asked, about to take my hand off her. 

“Yes, please just give me more.”

Not wanting to waste anymore time, I rubbed her slowly up and down. When she started to rut up against my hand, I quickly located the little bundle of nerves that always seemed to help females have mind blowing orgasms. Cass had named it the pleasure button, and the moniker wasn’t inaccurate.

I circled my finger over it slowly at first and then began to increase the speed. Elain became more desperate by the moment, and started moaning loudly to the point where she was almost screaming. Thinking quickly as to not to wake the neighbors, I clamped a hand over her mouth and began to rub her faster. 

Elain…

My heart thundered in my chest as I felt pressure building in my lower abdomen, and I practically screeched into Azriel’s hand as he kept at it. Sensing I was about to come for him, he covered my mouth even tighter and increased the pressure on my clitoris just a little. It was all I needed to push me over the edge emotionally and physically. 

As I felt the pleasurable spasms become stronger by the moment, I practically gushed into my panties and Azriel kept at it until my orgasm finally stopped. I hadn’t realized it earlier, but I’d started crying somewhere in the middle of it all which quickly escalated into sobbing when I came down from the high. 

Azriel turned me around to face him as he realized what was happening. He looked absolutely horrified.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have covered your mouth, because you couldn’t tell me to stop. I’m so sorry…” He started, looking disgusted at himself. 

“I’m great, really. You didn’t do anything wrong.” 

He embraced me then, and slowly rubbed my back in slow soothing circles until I’d calmed down. 

“Is there a reason why you started crying if I didn’t make you uncomfortable?” Azriel asked, as I pulled my nightgown back on. 

“I haven’t had any experience like that, where all the tension just left my body. That’s probably why I reacted that way.” 

“Did it help with your cramps?”

“Yes, I feel so much better. Thanks for that, Az.” 

“The pleasure is all mine, Elain.” 

“Oh, and I definitely think that the rumors are true about your being a fantastic lover.” 

Azriel smiled at that and gave me a kiss, before we turned in for the night, of what would likely be many more.