Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Throw me in the dungeon. Punish me.” 

“Gladly.” 

Azriel flared his wings- protecting Elain from Rhys’ eyeline as she scrambled to wrap a sheet around her body. The first blow hit him like a sledgehammer, but he held his ground. His eyes never straying from hers. His message clear- he had let Rhys ruin them once- he would take the torture over breaking her heart again. 

A sob bubbled up on her lips as another blow landed and he felt a gash open along the side of his torso, wrapping up into his chest. He did not want her to witness this, but Rhys had left him little choice in the matter. Rhys grabbed him and started hauling him from the room, hauling him towards the point where he would be able to winnow him away. He fought against the hold Rhys attempted to put on him. He would fight this- fight to keep the precious love he had found- because he had not fought for them before. And he’d be damned if he let this happen again. 

Elain rose to her feet, sheets wrapped around her before she turned and sprinted for the other wing of the house. Rhys made a move to grab her, keep her from rousing Feyre and he saw red. He grabbed Rhys and slung him across the hallway- maybe he would give him a real reason to toss him in the dungeon. Her footsteps faded, his shadows let him know she was barely holding it together, but she was strong and she knew- she knew what his rebellion could cost him. She had just never believed Rhys might do this to one of his closest confidants. He had known better. 

Another blow hit and he felt his world tilt, a glance at his side let him see another gaping wound. Rhys was pissed enough to kill- but that would be too easy. After all- he had rebelled- and rebellion of this magnitude only had one cure. He slipped into unconsciousness as Rhys slammed his head into the stone wall and he knew no more. 

“No. No I am not being unreasonable- Rhys pulled Azriel FROM MY BED and now he is gone. Missing. Where are they? What pit of hell did he toss him in for daring to love me?” 

“Elain- he would never do that. It must be a misunderstanding. He’d be happy for the two of you-” 

“Oh go fuck yourself, Feyre.” 

Elain stormed from the River House, her dressing gown in place of the sheet she had sprinted from her room in- Truth-Teller in hand. Neither Rhys nor Azriel had returned and while Rhys had told Feyre there was business he needed to attend to in the Hewn City through the bond- they had both seen the blood. Both seen Truth-Teller left on her desk. Both waited until the darkness of midnight began to turn to a soft pink dawn and she had had enough. 

Azriel had rebelled for her. To be with her. And last night she had begged him to stay, begged him to hold her a bit longer- assured him that if Rhys found him this would not happen. She had been wrong- so, so wrong. Now- now she had to hope that others in the Night Court might be able to find him and save him. Save them. 

Elain tumbled through the doorway to the stairwell in the House of Wind- half expecting to be met with a smug Rhysand escorting her back to the River House, but her luck held. She ran for Cassian and Nesta’s room- praying that they were sleeping. She pressed an ear to the oak door and heard nothing- a small blessing. Her hand trembled as she brought it up to knock, at first tentative, and then with all of the franticness that poured through her body. The door was replaced by a chest, but she didn’t notice as she collapsed into Cassian- sobs breaking her again. 

“Elain? Elain…what…who-” 

“Took him. Rhys took him. Please, please Cass, help him.” 

“Who Lainey? Who did Rhys take? Nes- go grab Azriel- it’s going to take the both of us…”

An unrecognizable wail left her lips as she buckled in his arms, gripping him tighter. Azriel. Feyre wouldn’t even say his name. She had all but dismissed her claim as soon as she heard back from Rhys. She felt herself being passed to her sister and her cries only intensified. She had encouraged him to rebel and now this- THIS- had happened. 

“Not in his room. The bed doesn’t look slept in either. Lainey- I know this is hard- but I need you to tell me everything. It’s not the first time Rhys has taken one of us for a solo ‘come to the Mother’ talk. I will do everything I can.” 

She tried to draw a calming breath, tried to get her voice to cooperate. Cassian was Azriel’s best chance, best hope, best friend. Instead- the wails and screams poured out of her- the only sounds she could make as the terror he felt gripped her so thoroughly. HIS TERROR. His terror was breaking through into her body and mind, flowing between them as if she was witnessing his torture in this very room. A searing hot pain spread along her back and she froze- fire. Rhys was torturing him with fire. 

“Told him. To. Throw him in the dungeon. Punish him. Not me. Rhys. Ordered. He rebelled for me, Cass. He rebelled because he loves me. Fire. So much fire.” 

She sank into the vision, the pain pulling her into unconsciousness as the back of her dressing gown melted into her skin. His torture coming across on her body as well. The last thing she heard was a string of curses from Nesta before Cassian took her in his arms, sprinting for the roof and the dawn skies over Velaris. 

Azriel landed with a thump in the dungeon cell. Not in the Hewn City. Not in Windhaven. No, no this dungeon was foreign. And as he felt a hand on his shoulder, he tried to find the energy to attack- but all it did was hurt his body more. 

“Easy. Easy, Az. I got you. I hate the condition you’re in- but it’s damn good to see a friendly face.” 

He froze. Pain flooded him as his back was healed from the burns and Rhys hauled him to his feet. He eyed him carefully. He was thin- too thin. His clothing in tatters, but as he studied the dungeon he realized that even if this was the beginning of a psychotic break- it was better to believe he had allies. 

“Who did this to you?” 

“You. You did. For defying you for…Elain. I rebelled against your order to stay away from her.” 

“Shit. That would be Koschei’s doppelganger- he kept me alive to keep the illusion strong. How are Feyre? And Nyx? I felt…I felt how close they came to death. Az- I’ve been here for nearly a year.” 

Azriel studied him carefully. His sunken cheeks, hollow eyes- his normally slim body emaciated- his standard suit hanging off his frame. His shadows swirled around Rhys- it felt like his High Lord, but so had the male that had spent hours torturing him. It would be exquisite torture for Rhys to play with his mind this way, but normally he could tell when someone was manipulating his mind. He had an important decision to make- trust what was in front of him or attack. 

“You never ordered me to stay away from Elain?” 

“No. She made it clear she doesn’t want Lucien- why would I keep the both of you from happiness…”

Azriel shook- rage flooding his veins. He looked at the door in front of him and then over at Rhys- if this was psychosis- he would descend into it to get back to Elain. To protect her from what Koschei had planted in their court. As the presence next to him solidified- their combined powers funneled into the door, bypassing the magical wards- exploding it from its hinges. Rhys tossed him a sword, a grim smile on his face as his wings materialized- something he had not seen in months. 

“Slaughter our way out?” 

“There’s no other way.” 

“Give me something- Lainey. Tell me how to get to him.” 

Cassian paced the room. After he had gotten Elain to safety- he had returned to bring Nesta, Feyre, and Nyx to the safe house. Something was monumentally wrong and while Mor and Amren were away on official court business and his best friends had disappeared- their protection fell solely to him. He was not sure how compromised they were, but he knew his friends would never forgive him if their loves were hurt because he acted rashly. 

“Feyre- go over it again. Tell me again.” 

“She said that Rhys tore Azriel out of her bed- threatened to haul him away to a dungeon. It didn’t make sense to me why Rhys would do that, but I saw the blood, the drag marks. After she ran- I searched and Cass…” 

“Tell me you’ve blocked him out- he doesn’t know where you are.” 

“As soon as I heard back from Mor that they weren’t in the Hewn City. But what…what is this?” 

Elain’s fingernails clawed into his skin- her eyes white but her breathing finally relaxed. He assumed that that meant whatever was happening to Azriel had stopped for the time being. He grabbed her hands and she squeezed them. Her mouth working, but no sounds came out. She had screamed herself hoarse hours ago, the evidence of Azriel’s torture appearing on her body. He had never seen anything like it, never heard of this kind of…bond. Bond was the only word that made sense. 

“Doppelganger- Rhys. Koschei got to Rhys. Az, Az, Az.”

“Elain listen to me- I shut him out. We’re safe. Find them. Find them so that we can save them.” 

“Hurts. So. Bad. I can’t feel-fighting. They’re fighting.” 

“Don’t you ever fucking listen and obey?” 

“Your spoiled ass should thank me for how often I rebel against your orders.” Azriel tossed Rhys’ arm over his shoulders and began walking their way towards the treeline. They'd cleared the dungeon. The doppelganger gone- having likely long abandoned the post when Koschei realized that they had escaped. The others were mere canon fodder- but it had been enough to severely deplete the both of them. Azriel’s siphons guttered- the blue light fading. 

“Can you fly?” 

“Not far, but hopefully far enough that we can hunker down until my shadows can tell me where the fuck we are.” 

“Az- thank you.” 

“Any version of you ever tells me to stay away from Elain again- I will kill you.” 

A nod of the head and Azriel, lifted Rhys taking off into the midday sky, looking for some place to hide- where they could rest before they could make their way home. A snowcovered mountain peak caught his eyes and although it was not ideal- it also meant that Koschei’s men were unlikely to try to find them there. He estimated it had taken them 3 hours to clear the dungeon and they would need a minimum of 6 before Rhys could fly, even longer before he could winnow. 

He circled the mountains- looking for a rocky outcropping- somewhere that they could defend, but also rest. They desperately needed to rest. He felt a gentle caress on his mental walls and he gave Rhys a confused stare- but his friend was barely conscious in his arms. He opened it- barely enough for the presence to be with him- his senses overwhelmed by Feyre who only shoved her view of Elain into his mind. His wings faltered for a moment as he saw the damage- saw what had somehow passed to her and he then pushed an image back. Rhys in his arms- the mountains and three words ‘stay with Cassian’. The connection severed and he went into a freefall- aiming for the only cave opening he had seen and hoping it would be a safe haven for them. 

He placed Rhys at the mouth of the cave- sending his shadows ahead as scouts- his eyes aimed at the horizon. He would be snowblind in minutes if this cave was not an option. The first shadows returned- empty- abandoned and he waited. When the final one hit him, they all had the same news. It would be frigid, but they would be safe and as he dragged his friend and High Lord into the cave, he drew on his legendary resolve. He would stay awake, Rhys would rest and when he awoke- then and only then- would he finally rest. 

****************

Azriel stood in the mouth of the cave- Rhys a pace ahead of him- his shadows and Rhys’ mind scouting the world around them. He had gathered enough to confirm that they were in the heart of the continent. Days of flight away from Prythian and even further from Velaris. He stretched his wings and Rhys did the same. Feyre had not contacted him again, but he could feel the stress and strain in his body that was not his own. Rhys had alluded to the same- the tension in their bodies moved them to leave sooner than, perhaps, they should. 

His siphons glowed the faintest blue- his powers only just starting to replenish. What little food he could find, he had forced Rhys to eat- the small portions safe enough in his malnourished state. Rhys still looked unwell, but the glint had returned to his eyes and that was enough- it had to be enough for now. 

“Once we’re in Prythian- I am confident I can get us back to Velaris.” 

“So until then- we fly and camp. Scavenge for food along the way. I can go longer without.” 

“How can you trust me?” 

“Either you are really you or I’ve gone crazy. Either gets me home to Lainey. We should go, nightfall is chasing us.” 

The days passed- they flew through the night, camped during the day. Rhys explained how Koschei had captured him and replaced him with the doppelganger. What the doppelganger actually was and how it was able to fool all of them so well. How he had worked against the door to his cell for months, but had realized that his powers alone were not enough. He listened. He ordered his shadows to scout for them and a few shadows, a few shadows he ordered to Elain. They loved her as much as he did. 

On the fourth night, the Prythian came into view on the horizon, the coastline beckoning to them- guiding them home. They landed on the beaches with quiet flutters of their wings and Azriel let out a shaky breath. One look at Rhys let him know he felt it too- pain. So much pain. Being away from these lands had, apparently, dampened down what passed into their bodies. As they both gathered themselves, his shadows pummeled him- Tamlin. Tamlin was nearby. 

“Townhouse.” 

“Not the safehouse?” 

“I want Cassian to put eyes on you before we go to them. I think you understand why.” 

Rhys grabbed his arm and the world stretched and contracted around them before they stepped out into the Townhouse garden. His shadows poured around them, bringing food, water, and after several minutes the sounds of another Illyrian. Cassian landed with a thud and roared over to the two of them, gathering the both of them in a strong hug. His hands cupped Azriel’s cheeks, studying him and then a sigh of relief. As Cassian cupped Rhys’ face next his eyes hardened for a moment before he nodded, more to himself than to them. 

“Tell me something only you know about me- both of you.” 

“You always hated my mother’s artichoke soup.” 

“Teddy bear.” 

“Oh thank fuck. Feyre and Nyx are fine- a bit unsettled, but fine. Elain…” 

“Just take me to her.” 

He rebelled for her. She was worth it and now- now this had happened. She lost her grip on reality as she followed the path she felt, weaving herself closer to him. Walking the line between the future and the present. She finally lashed herself onto him, onto his being and she pulled, pulled up her psychic shields around him. Koschei could not find them, could not get to them- as long as she stood watch. As long as she stood in his way. 

She felt the moment he set foot back in Prythian and her mind nearly buckled with relief. Close. He was so close. She willed herself to stay with him, her mind following his body as he made his way back to Velaris. She felt him relax at another presence. Cassian. It could only be Cassian. She kept her consciousness with them, the barest recognition that her body was trying to force her to sleep- force her to rest, but she refused. He had rebelled for her- for a chance at love. He had to make it home in one piece. 

A blip. Azriel disappeared from this world and then stepped back into it. Close. Impossibly close. Her consciousness rushed away from him and back into her body. She felt hands holding her, sweat wiped from her brow and as the door slammed open- her eyes sprang open and locked with his. Her love. Her rebel. As exhaustion overtook her, his arms hauled her into his body- a firm kiss pressed against her lips. 

“I’m not…I’m not worth this.” 

“Oh Lainey- you’re worth so much more.”