#gwyn is making azriel crawl for her

[captain-of-the-gwynriel-ship]

Men pay a lot of money to get their name into Gwyn's exclusive black book - enough that, with careful planning, she's putting herself through law school debt-free. Once she's graduated, she can retire the high heels and little black dresses and get to work in the pursuit of justice that she and her sister never received.

Azriel Singer's profile intrigues her, with a smile that never shines in his eyes and a delectable body. But will his attitude get in the way of any future potential?

I am so fortunate to be chosen to write Ch.2 of this fic for the ACOTAR Writing Circle 3 that has been coordinated by the amazing @azrielshadowssing

Part 1 was written by the incredible @hlizr50 and I hope I did this work justice!

Here is the link to Part 2, or read below!

TW: mentions of SA

ONE MONTH LATER

This had been a month from Hell. Gwyn was all but dying as she turned in her final assignment of the semester, thankful that she had somehow found the time to study and work a few extra nights of the week. 

Gwyn had met with Tarquin the day after the disastrous meeting with Azriel. He was sweet and her saving grace over the last month. He didn’t want anything more than what she was used to offering - just a few weekends of fun. She made her rent with some cash to spare just from him alone.

 It was all fine, but Gwyn couldn’t stop herself from venturing to Azriel’s profile, perplexed at what kind of bullshit someone had to go through in order to be such a massive asshole. He was hot, sure, and the kind of rich that would make paying off her college tuition look like a drop in the bucket. Had he been even a little less of dick, she might have milked him for all he was worth. 

So fuck him. 

But still… she couldn’t delete his profile off of her contact list. Couldn’t break that single connection to the man who equally perplexed and infuriated her. 

Gwyn’s phone pinged, bringing her out of her stupor and back to reality. Her group chat with Nesta and Emerie consisted of funny memes, gossip, and the only source of true fun Gwyn had had in ages.

Nesta:

Let's go out tonight to celebrate! 

Gwyn:

I am exhausted, Nesta. Maybe next time?

Gwyn entered her apartment and collapsed on the couch, ready to pass out and allow herself the bliss of sleep. Her phone went off again, and she silently cursed as she read the next message.

Emerie:

Take a nap and then join us! It isn’t everyday that you finish your second year of Law School, let alone in the top five of your class. You are a shoe in for any internship in the country. Take the evening off and just live a little! 

Gwyn thought about it. When was the last time she really spent time with her best friends? Her weekends were filled with being whisked away on private jets to sunny beaches with Tarquin and her week days were jammed with studying and writing paper after paper. She had some money left over, and with this break coming up she could take on more clients than usual to get ahead of her bills. 

Gwyn:

Fine, you win. Now you guys leave me be for the next 6 hours and then we can meet at Rita’s at 9pm? 

Nesta:

YES! Finally!!!! First shot’s on me ;)

Emerie:

WOOOOOOO! 

Emerie:

Ok, love. Get some sleep, because tonight we PARTY!

Gwyn chuckled at their enthusiasm, and it wasn’t long before she set her alarm and passed out- content and excited for the night to come. 

----

Gwyn, Nesta and Emerie strode into the club and headed straight for the bar opposite the dancefloor. 

“Three tequila shots and lime, thanks.” Nesta said, gesturing to the male bartender, Balthazar. She had taken a martial arts class with him when they all attended Velaris University and he always hooked the girls up when they came in. He just smiled and brought them right over, ignoring the guys who seemed to be attempting to flag him down to bring them some beers. Nesta just gave them one of her cold smiles and they shut right up.

“Here you go ladies.” Balthazar crooned as he dropped 4 shots of tequila and a small bowl of limes down in front of them. He smiled at Gwyn kindly and she was alway happy to see a friendly, male face whenever she was here. “I haven’t seen you in a while, Gwyn. Finally crawling out of your den to join us in the land of the drunk and living?”

“If only you knew the half of it. I’m literally bending over backwards to finish this degree. You try finding the time to make the dean’s honors list in Law School, work your ass off, and still look this good in heels after a final’s week from hell.” Gwyn retorted back. 

His gaze dropped to said heels appreciatively. Perhaps it took a moment longer than necessary for his eyes to crawl back up her legs to her smirking features, but Gwyn wasn’t complaining. He just put his hands up in silent surrender and passed out the shots to all of us. 

Nesta held her glass out in a toast. “To the shit we have seen, and the shit to come. At least the booze and company are worth it all.” They all grabbed a lime slice, clinked their shots together, and knocked them back. Gwyn savored the heat of the tequila running down her throat. 

As she slammed her glass down on the bar victoriously, Gwyn could feel someone watching her. Her neck tingled as a gaze- hard and determined- bore into her back. Turning towards the dancefloor, she scanned the room until her eyes landed on a pair of familiar hazel ones. Ones that she had ogled in fascination all month behind the comfort of her phone screen.

Azriel was standing there and staring directly at her. No trepidation. No hint of shyness about him all. 

She couldn’t read his expression from so far away, but she could feel his eyes raking down her body - noticing her tight cobalt outfit. The skirt barely covered her most intimate areas and her crop top wrapped around the curve of her body as though it were tailored just for her. The fabric shimmered under the club lights, giving the illusion of moonlight on an ocean wave.  

His gaze sent electricity sparking up Gwyn’s spine. For the first time in a long time, she felt exposed under his attention. Once Azriel’s eyes met hers again, she remembered the reason they were in this predicament and turned her back to him - deciding to ignore the source of her current vexation for the rest of the night. 

Despite her best efforts to ignore him, Gwyn couldn’t help but feel Azriel’s piercing gaze on her back the entire time. 

She just ordered another round of shots from Balthazar, whose doting attention was not unnoticed. When the shot glasses of vodka arrived, she turned around to see Azriel sitting in a booth on the other side of the club with two people she hadn’t taken notice of before. The man was as large as a tank. His long hair was tied up in a messy bun and Gwyn could spot some black swirling tattoos peeking out from the open buttons of his black dress shirt. 

The woman, sitting on the other side of the long-haired man, was one of the most stunning women Gwyn had ever seen. Surely a model, her golden blonde hair fell in waves around her face and down her back. She was wearing a deep gold top that just barely covered her chest, with chains at the neck and back leaving her tanned skin utterly exposed. Her matching skirt had her shining like a gilded sunset.

“Looks like you have a secret admirer, Gwyn.” Nesta teased from beside her. 

Gwyn scowled in reply, content to follow out her plans to have fun and not think about work for a night. Or for that matter, a pair of hazel eyes that saw entirely too much and a broad muscular form that appeared as though it were carved by a Renaissance artist. Why did he have to be such an asshole? Gwyn hated him for it.

“His friends aren’t so bad to look at, either,” Emerie said. I turned to look at her and found her eying Azriel’s blonde friend with predatory intent. She smiled a little to herself. Although Gwyn was determined not to get any tonight, she wouldn’t stop her friends if they wished to partake in a one-night stand. 

Perhaps it was reckless, but Gwyn couldn’t help but stare Azriel in the eye as she took her shot, not bothering with a chaser. He leaned forward in his seat - his eyes tracking the small drop that seemed to escape Gwyn’s lips and ran down the side of her mouth. She wiped it with her thumb and sucked it off- refusing to let her gaze fall from his. Gwyn just winked at him and turned back to her friends. 

She hoped he felt the same lick of fire creep up her depths and ricochet through her spine. She wondered if the air had gone thick with heat and tension for him as well. But Gwyn didn’t chance another glance over to him. 

This was war, and she was determined to win. 

“Let's go dance.” Was all she said, and her friends followed in tow.

----- 

The dance floor was packed tonight. Rita’s was only a few blocks away from the university, so everyone was trying to make the most of their end of semester celebrations. The girls found their way to the middle of the dance floor and started jumping and swaying with the music. For a while, Gwyn forgot about the pair of hazel eyes that had been watching her all night. 

At some point, Nesta had spotted the man who had come with Azriel, and she left without a further glance at them. 

He was exactly her type: bold, dominant, and from the way he laughed, he was definitely a teddy bear at heart. Gwyn and Emerie started laughing to themselves at how the man’s jaw seemed to drop when he saw Nesta approaching him. When they approached each other, drifting as though attached to some magnetic force, the gaze they shared was so intimate, Gwyn almost looked away - but the liquor in her system had robbed her of that courtesy. 

“How much do you want to bet that Nesta will be waking up in his bed in the morning?” Emerie joked, yelling slightly over the loud music. 

“They are either going to hate each other or be inseparable. Time to start writing the wedding invitations now.” Gwyn yelled back. Both girls fell into a fit of giggles as they casually watched Nesta and man start dancing with each other at the edge of the dancefloor.

A few more songs passed by, and Gwyn was fully entranced by the music and tequila. She hadn’t had enough to be drunk, but she did have just enough to loosen her inhibitions. Maybe that was why she had teased Azriel relentlessly at the bar. Gwyn looked over to Emerie who seemed to be distracted, continuously staring at the blonde woman who had come with Azriel. It seemed the woman was staring at her right back. 

“Go shoot your shot, Em. I will be fine. I was hoping to leave in a few songs anyways.” Gwyn said with teasing encouragement. 

Emerie looked nervous, chewing on her lip as her eyes scanned Gwyn. “Are you sure? What if she isn’t into girls?”

Gwyn just squeezed her arm in gentle encouragement, “You will never know unless you go up to her and ask.” 

Emerie stayed until the end of the song, trying to dance away her nerves. When one song flowed into another, she said, “Ok. I’m going. Are you sure you are gonna get home safe?” Gwyn knew Emerie was just trying to stall the inevitable, so she just laughed in return. “I’ll be fine, Em. Go. I will text you and Nesta when I get home.” It was always their unspoken rule. Every time they went out, they would text the group where they were headed after the club. It also helped that the girls shared their phone locations with each other - just in case. 

Emerie took a deep breath and turned towards the booth where the blonde was sitting, only to find it empty now. Looking around confused, Gwyn couldn’t help but feel bad for Emerie when all of a sudden her friend turned behind her to find the blonde tapping her shoulder. 

“Want to dance?” The blonde said, a warm smile washing over her face as she held out her hand. 

Emerie took it without hesitation, “I would like that.” 

Gwyn waved them off as she continued to dance by herself, just enjoying the flow of the music through her veins. 

She told herself she would stay for two more songs, make sure her friends were ok, and then head home to change into sweats, eat ice cream, and stream Grey’s on Netflix thanks to Nesta sharing her account with Gwyn. 

Midway through the penultimate song, a pair of hands gripped onto Gwyn’s waist. They were rough and felt wrong. The man pulled himself close, trying to dance with Gwyn but she was not in the mood to be manhandled today. 

She tried to turn out of the man’s grip, to shuffle away with a swift turn to the beat, but the guy just squeezed her waist tighter and tighter until she was being pulled against her will. 

Memories flashed through Gwyn’s mind. 

Dancing at a freshman year frat party. Another man’s hands on her waist. Her saying no as he brought her into a spare bedroom and took what he wanted from her. 

Gwyn stood frozen in fear, unable to say anything. She knew self-defense, of course. She had met Nesta and Emerie at a self defense course for women who had been through trauma. But there were too many people around her and she didn’t want to risk hurting anyone else. 

She tried to pry the dude’s fingers off of her waist, but he just leaned in and whispered in her ear, “Want to go home with me tonight, princess? That pretty outfit would look even better on the floor of my bedroom.” 

Gwyn shuddered in absolute disgust. What kind of douche just asks if you want to sleep with him without even introducing himself?

“I’m good, thanks. I was actually just heading out. Have a good night.” Gwyn tried to escape his grasp again, but he just held tighter and started roaming his hands down her sides. 

“Come on, Princess. It will be fun. What do you say?” he said in her other ear. His beer breath bombarded her nose and all but made her gag. Gwyn just about had it with him and was about to damn the consequences, but suddenly those hands were jerked off of her. 

In a startled haze, Gwyn turned only to find Azriel pulling the man off of her by the collar of his shirt. “The lady said she isn’t interested.” Azriel all but growled at the guy. 

The guy stared up at Azriel and balked. Azriel stood a whole head taller than him, and the look on his face would send most people running in the opposite direction. 

Gwyn couldn’t help but think that that look was kinda hot. Couldn’t help but bite her lip as heat swam through her depths, replacing the icy nausea that had made a home there just moments ago. 

The guy just stared between Azriel and Gwyn in shock. He didn’t wait around, sparing her a scoff and leaving. Azriel turned to Gwyn, his dark gaze roaming over her. Looking to see if she was hurt, she realized. 

“Are you ok?” He asked, taking a step towards her. 

That set Gwyn into motion. She took a step back, flicked her hair over her shoulder in fake bravado, and said cooly, “I’m fine. Thanks for the help.” 

She turned over her shoulder and walked right out of the club and into the cool summer breeze. 

----

She was in the middle of texting the girls and calling an uber when the club doors swung open beside her. Azriel walked out the doors in a frantic huff. He turned frantically in place until he noticed her leaning against the brick storefront, then all but ran towards her in a frenzy. 

“What the hell!?” He said in a panicked voice. “Why did you leave? I was looking everywhere for you.” 

Something tickled Gwyn’s nerves. On the one hand, it was sweet that he was looking for her. So at odds with the asshole she had interviewed with last month. On the other hand… “Why? Just cause I am an escort doesn’t mean that you are entitled to my time.”

“I know, but-”

She cut him off before he could give some bullshit excuse. “You made it perfectly clear the last time we met that you wanted nothing to do with me. So what the fuck was all that inside?” She crossed her arms over her chest in frustration. 

Azriel cringed at her comment. He loosed a sigh and looked down. Closing his eyes for a moment, he took in a shaky breath before he opened them to meet hers. “I’m sorry for how I treated you that day. I’ve been going through a rough time. My friends set me up and although their intentions are good, I wasn’t in the right headspace. Would you let me take you somewhere so I can explain?” His eyes were pleading. He actually looked sincere. 

This emotional rollercoaster was taking Gwyn for a loop. She shook her head and scoffed. “I was just groped by a random dude in the club. What makes you think I want to go anywhere with you right now?” 

Azriel’s eyes darkened with rage. He kept it bottled in as he said, “At least let me take you home. Maybe grab some food on the way? I just want to explain. Start over.” 

Gwyn didn’t want to deal with this right now. She was at her wits end and just wanted to go home. “Why do you even care, Azriel? We met once, you were an ass, and life moved on. Just leave me be.”

Gwyn was done. 

She was done with men who thought they were entitled to her because she sold her time and body. But there were still hers. 

Hers to choose who to spend her time with.

Hers to choose when to give it. 

But always her choice. 

Gwyn started to turn to walk down the street and put some distance between her and Azriel, but he grabbed her wrist to stop her. His grip was light and she could easily shake him off if she wanted to but something inside her was telling her to stay. To listen. 

“Please, Gwyn. Just give me a chance to explain. If I can’t convince you to give me a second chance by the time I drop you off at home, you will never hear from me again. You can have anything you want, just- please.” 

Gwyn stared at his eyes, and whatever she saw there made her sigh in resignation. She could ask for anything. A lot of her problems could be fixed with that kind of offer. She pulled out her phone and texted Nesta and Emerie.

Gwyn:

Taking a detour on my way home. Be safe!

She clicked off her phone and looked Azriel in the eyes, “Lead the way then, Singer.”

#gwynriel #acotar #gwynriel supremacy #azriel shadowsinger #gwyneth berdara #azriel x gwyn #azriel #nessian #emorie #gwyn is making azriel crawl for her #he will eat out of the palm of her hand #Gwyn is so hot and azriel is so hot #acotar writing circle 3 #acotar writing circle #this was so fun to write

[azrielwingspan]

A 'TEA' PARTY (AZRIEL X READER)

Summary : The prince of Montesere was a heartthrob with his exceptionally good looks and charismatic words. You were raving about him to the girls but Azriel was having none of it.

Warnings : Nooone

A/N: You guys have no idea how EXCITED I was to write this. This is definitely one of my favourites. Enjoy !

"And he said 'I'll make time for you. Always.' I DIED. LITERALLY DEAD DIED." You said waving your hands animatedly.

The girls oohed and aahed while clutching their drinks. Feyre pretended to swoon, Mor was holding a hand to her heart and Elain went starry eyed. Nesta remained stoic but you could see the hint of a smile gathering at the corner of her lips. You would bet a 100 marks that it was straight out of one of her romance books.

"What's going on ?" heads whipped to the door where Gwyn and Emerie stood holding more snacks.

"Just in time! Get over here. You guys are missing out on top secret information." Mor helped them out with the snacks, sharing a shy look with Emerie.

"The Prince of Montesere is what is going on." Nesta said, a sly smirk on her face.

"Ooo..I've heard he's quite the charmer." Gwyn piped in and everyone nodded their heads enthusiastically.

"We think he has a crush on Y/N." Elaine said making a stupid grin crawl onto your face.

"What the fuck? Details PLEASE." Emerie grabbed the bowl of popcorn placing it on her lap to share with Mor.

A rush of joy consumed you as you looked around the room. All the girls were finally taking some well deserved time off and you were glad that you could spend it with each other.

"Okay." leaning forward as you channeled your inner storyteller. "Sooo...let me just start off by saying he looks DIVINE. Dark hair, dark eyes and don't even get me started on his voice...UGH. I think my ovaries might have exploded."

"Wait hold on." Feyre carried a confused look on her face. "Are we talking about the Prince or our shadowsinger?"

Silence engulfed the room.

Someone snorted and the entire room descended into laughter. Your face heated up. From embarrassment or from laughing you weren't sure of.

"She definitely has a type alright." Nesta said setting off a new round of laughter.

"OKAY LISTEN IN MY DEFENSE---" you shouted over the chaos.

"Don't even try." Mor was clutching her stomach, slightly wincing at the pain.

"OKAY SHUSH. Y/N CONTINUE !" Gwyn came to the rescue and you shot her a grateful smile.

"Anyways as I was saying.." you shot a pointed look at the girls daring them to say something. All of them had shit eating grins on their face.

Emerie and Mor had already finished half the popcorn.

"He showed me around the city and took me to all his favorite spots. It was very---"

"Did you make out?" Emerie interrupted and the girls leaned forward their eyes twinkling in anticipation.

You were about to respond but your face had already betrayed you , turning a scarlet red. Elaine and Mor squealed , almost falling off their seats. Feyre had a wide eyed expression on her face, her drink long forgotten.

"You should have STARTED with that, you idiot !" Emerie shouted, an incredulous look on her face.

"OKAY SHUSH. The most important question. How was it?" Gwyn made everyone settle down again as she awaited your answer.

You'd just opened your mouth to respond when Nesta asked "How big?"

Spluttering in shock, you smacked Nesta's arm. "I didn't sleep with him!" You hissed in a whisper. "We just made out. He is a really good kisser. I'll give him that."

"Tell me what this male is bad at. Why aren't you with him already?" Elain asked taking a sip of her tea.

"Honestly, he's too good to be true but.."

"He isn't a certain someone." Feyre finished for you, eyes softening in understanding. You'd never told the girls about your infatuation with Azriel but they knew. Somehow, they just knew.

You didn't bother denying it and just shrugged nonchalantly. A wave of understanding passed through the room. Almost everyone had been in a similar position before. Sometimes your soul craved another's so violently, it made you blind to anyone else.

"Well..it was fun while it lasted." you said breaking the silence.

"For two days." Emerie laughed softly.

"You should tell Az---" Mor was interrupted by the opening of the door. Seven pairs of eyes focused on Azriel as he stood at the door , looking sheepish.

"Look who's hereeee." Feyre said playfully, a blush rising on Azriels cheeks as he bowed his head.

"Rhys wanted me to grab a book." he muttered softly, edging towards the wall and trying to ignore the six pairs of eyes with a mischievous twinkle in their eyes.

You were just utterly mortified. Did he hear everything?

I put up a sound barrier. Wouldn't want the Illyrian babies snooping around. Feyre's voice echoed in your mind.

You shot her a grateful smile which immediately fell as she shot you a wink. Oh no. She was upto something.

"Az, tell Rhys I'll be there as soon as Y/N finishes telling us about her Prince."

Both you and Azriel stiffened, his back still facing you. Emerie dissolved into a fit of laughter that she was trying to hide behind her palm. Nesta's eyes twinkled at the prospect of messing with Azriel.

"I can't believe you're going to be a princess, Y/N !" Elain played along. You swiped a hand across your throat repeatedly, indicating at them to cut it off.

"He basically professed his love to you already. I don't know what you're waiting for." Nesta said looking like she was ready to plan the imaginary wedding if she had to.

Azriels shadows were growing a little agitated, rapidly bouncing off bookshelves trying to find the damned book.

"If he had wings, I'm sure he would have the biggest---" Mor cut off , finishing her sentence by widening her eyes and looking down.

Emerie choked on her tea, making it go up her nose. Mor rapidly hit her on the back trying to help and stop laughing at the same time. In her urgency to move, she'd knocked over the tea pot spilling hot tea over Gwyn's leggings.

Gwyn stumbled out of her seat fanning her hands at her legs like it would help. Elain grabbed the jug of water and threw it on Gwyn's leggings soaking the carpet beneath her. Feyre who had been about to fill a glass with water for Emerie stared at her empty hand where the jug had been.

Nesta watched the entire scene unfold before her eyes with mild interest , sipping on her tea.

You just stared, absolutely and completely horrified by the turn of events.

A tendril of shadow made its way over to you and tucked a strand of hair that had fallen in front of your eyes behind your ear. You shivered from the sudden coolness and turned your head towards Azriel.

Wearing a cool mask of indifference, he walked out of the room pretending like nothing ever happened.

A/N: AHHHH, this entire thing made me feel some type of way.

Please take a min to leave a comment and let me know if you liked it as much as I did !!

#azriel #azriel acotar #azriel fanfic #azriel shadowsinger #azriel x reader #azriel x y/n #acotar series #azriel x you #a court of thorns and roses #acotar #acomaf #azriel imagine #acotar azriel #shadowsinger x reader #azriel spymaster #azriel fic #elain archeron #nesta archeron #feyre archeron #gwyneth berdara #emerie of illyria #mor acotar #acosf #azriel x female!reader

[moonlightazriel]

The family we choose /// Azriel X F!Reader

Summary: It has always been Azriel and Aiden against the world, but what will happen when the new school years begin and his son talks about this amazing teacher every day?

Warnings: None, just fluff cuz why not?

Word Count: 3,1K

Notes: Fucking finally, this has been sitting on my drafts for a while and i love this idea.

Main Masterlist

“DADDY!” Aiden yelled, raising from his spot beside Feyre and rushing to get to him, he lowered to his level and waited for the little boy, he threw himself into his father’s arms, and Azriel wrapped his arms around him, giving him a tight squeeze. 

“Hey, buddy! How was school?” His son rushed back to the table, Feyre, Nyx, and a lot of art supplies were waiting for him, he grabbed a piece of paper and ran back to him to show him the drawing.

“Miss Y/L asked us to draw our family.” Azriel looked closely at the figures, the 6-year-old had done a great job, he could see himself, Cassian, Nesta with a huge pregnant belly, Rhys, Feyre, Nyx, Mor, Emerie, Gwyn, Elain, and Lucien.  

“That’s a beautiful drawing, you have a lot of talent.” He complimented.

“Aunt Feyre helped me make this drawing so I could give it to Miss Y/L, I really hope she likes it.” The flower bouquet was painted on a piece of parchment paper, Feyre had done the drawing but Aiden had painted it. 

“She’s going to love it Den, but why don’t you and Nyx play in the garden while the adults talk?” Feyre suggested as she started to gather the supplies from the table, Aiden looked at Azriel and he nodded, the two boys happily smiled and started to rush outside. “He really loves this teacher.” She said and Azriel got to her side, helping her clean. 

“Did he start with the never-ending rant about how amazing and beautiful she is?” She nodded. “You don’t think he’s projecting the feeling he had for his mother on her, do you?”

“Well, I can’t say for sure Az, Nyx likes her too, a lot, sometimes feels like he likes her more than me.” She giggled, rolling her eyes. “Maybe she’s just a really good teacher and there’s nothing to do with his mom.” Azriel nodded.

He had met Laurie in an Illyrian camp 10 years ago, and it was love at first sight, they lived like a happy couple until she met her mate, and decided that it was a good idea to leave Azriel with their 1-year-old son. 3 years ago, the news of her death reached him in Velaris, it was a tough blow that he wasn’t expecting but he slowly got over it, he had to, for his son. Ever since he does everything he can to make sure that his son is happy, and focused his life on him, even if his family tried to tell him that he should live his life too.

“She’s all he talks about ever since they started the school year, you have no idea how many times he asked if he could pick “Aunt Elain’s beautiful flowers”  to give them to her.” Feyre looked at him and smiled. 

“Let him be Az, it’s probably just a phase.” He nodded.

“Thanks for everything Fey, you’re amazing.” He said giving her a quick hug and kissing her temple.

“Get your hands off my High Lady.” Rhysand spoke with a smile on his face from the doorway. Azriel stepped back with his hands in the air. 

“I’m already on my way, don’t need to get all overprotective.” Rhys playfully slapped his back while he walked outside to get Aiden. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

“Do you want to eat something?” Azriel asked his son as they walked around Velaris.

“My belly is full Daddy, Miss Y/L brought us the best cookies in the world, she made them.” The toddler happily spoke. “She said that she will teach us how to make them, she’s so nice, I really like her.”

“That’s awesome buddy, you just have to be careful around the fire.” He warned his son.

“Yes Daddy, cuz the fire hurts if we get too close.” He repeated the words Azriel had told him ever since Aiden started to crawl, his son was perfect, and he didn’t want him to be marked like he was, he didn’t need any scars on his perfect brown skin.

Aiden was a copy of him, with the same eyes, the same hair color, the same skin tone, and huge wings behind his back, and even if he could understand his father’s shadows just as perfectly as Azriel did, he had none, at least not yet. 

The two kept walking until they reached the townhouse, Rhys knew how Azriel loved that house and decided to give it to him as a gift, it was good enough for him and Aiden and he was happy that his brother made him the owner, he took good care of that house. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Azriel brushed his wet hair, spraying some perfume on his neck and chest as he got ready for the school meeting, the teachers requested to talk about the student's progress and how the parents could help with their learning. Aiden was already ready, playing in the living room as he readied himself, a simple black shirt, pants, boots, and truth-teller strapped on his thigh, his siphons glowed as he looked at himself in the mirror once again. 

His son was really excited for him to meet his teacher finally, and even Azriel was curious, Aiden had practically dragged him across the street towards the school, the little boy was rambling all the way, and when he saw his cousin, he left Azriel behind to go play with Nyx.

“Someone is super happy.” Rhys said as Az approached him, the two kids were running around now.

“You have no idea.” He replied looking around, the kids were running and most parents just waited for the reunion, Azriel tried to spot who he thought was Miss Y/L, in his mind, he was looking for an old, kind fae, with white hair and granny coats, weren’t all teachers like that after all?

Faes started to come to the parents to lead them to the classrooms, they followed a male as he guided the way, the classroom was decorated with flowers, and kids' drawings, books, and toys were all over the place, and in the corner, in the front part of the classroom a female stood, she was beautiful, her hair was in a braid behind her back, she was wearing a long dress, and she had the prettiest smile in the world, she looked at Azriel and he swore he could see the world shining brighter as she looked at him, she couldn’t be…..

“Miss Y/L!” Aiden yelled, running past them and jumping in the female's arms, she lifted him from the ground, laughing with him.

“Hi Den, did you bring your daddy as I asked?” She spoke, her voice was calm and airy, and hearing her talk made Azriel feel like he was walking on clouds.

“Yup!” The toddler proudly nodded and pointed at Azriel who still stood in the doorway. “Daddy, this is Miss Y/L.” He happily said as the female walked closer to him. 

Of course, everyone in Velaris knew who the Spymaster was, but it was something entirely different seeing him in person for the first time, the tall male was absolutely breathtaking, he was wearing the simplest clothes on earth and yet he looked perfect, the cobalt gems adorning his body, to contain his powers, glowed as he looked her up and down. 

Y/N felt her cheeks getting hot as she approached the male, his eyes still glued to hers, she could feel the sparks of electricity as she held his gaze, extending a hand in his direction.

“I’m Y/N.” She managed to say, her voice more steady than she expected, good!

“Azriel. I’ve heard a lot about you.” The male chuckled and Y/N felt her knees go weak at the sound.

“Oh, i could say the same about you, little Aiden here loves his father more than anything else.” The little boy held his father’s hand while he blushed. “What about you take your Daddy to your seat and we’ll talk more later?” She lowered to Den’s level and he nodded, pulling his father to the empty seat in front of her desk. She went to greet other parents that arrived in the classroom. 

“I wasn’t expecting that AT ALL.” Rhysand spoke as Azriel approached him, Nyx and Aiden sat side by side in class, he smiled at that, loving how close the cousins were like they saw each other as brothers the same way their parents did.

“What?” Rhys gave him a knowing look and he rolled his eyes.

“That she would be this pretty, guess I was expecting an old lady.” Azriel scoffed.

“Don’t let Feyre hear you, or you might sleep on the couch tonight.” Rhysand laughed and the two males looked at her while she spoke about the class progress. One by one, the parents approached her to speak about their children, they were the last ones in the classroom when she came to speak with them.

“High Lord!” She bowed a little. “Thank you two for coming in today. The boys are absolutely wonderful, they’re the top ones in class, but I’m afraid that they have some trouble with maths, I’ve been giving them extra exercises but maybe you two could keep an eye on that, and see why they’re struggling with that.” 

“Of course, do you teach privately?” Rhysand asked, saying that she could teach a thing or two to Azriel in his mind, Azriel slightly shoved the High Lord and Rhysand suppressed a laugh.

“I do! If you need me just contact the school and they will let me know.” She smiled at them, and Azriel felt his chest fill with warmth with that.

“Thanks, Y/N.” He said, and the two said their goodbyes leaving her behind.

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Azriel rushed through the school corridors, opening the door to the nurse’s office, he almost fell to his knees as he spotted Y/N sitting in the corner, Aiden was in her lap, he was holding his little arm, and his cheeks were red from crying, his head was resting against her chest and she had her cheek pressed against his forehead, whispering a song to calm him down. The way his son grabbed her like she was the only person that could keep him safe, made Azriel’s heart bleed, the two turned their head to him.

“He fell while playing in the garden, the healer said that his arm just hurts cuz he fell on top of it, it’s not broken, and he’ll be okay. He’s just scared.” Azriel kneeled in front of them, and Den’s puffy red eyes locked with his, he grabbed his son, cradling him to his chest, kissing the top of his head. She still looked worried, like she was about to cry, the only people that worried that much about his son, were his family. 

“Thank you so much for always taking care of him.” His voice was shaken, and the shadows around him still moved frantically, assessing Aiden for any injuries she could not be aware of.

“There’s nothing to thank me for, Aiden is a special boy, it’s my pleasure to take care of him.” She said gently, rubbing the toddler's back, Aiden was already sleeping in his father’s arms.

“No modesty please, let me pay you a coffee, I insist.” Azriel didn’t know why, but he wanted her to understand how much he appreciated her for all her care for his son. He could see that she was inclined to accept, so he talked again. “Meet me tomorrow morning at the Oak Alcove, by the Rainbow. At 9!” He said, thanking her once more, grabbing his son’s backpack, and leaving without waiting for an answer, he just hoped she would show up. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Y/N walked between the tables trying to spot the Shadowsinger, she was wearing a simple dress, and she rubbed her sweaty hands in the soft fabric for the third time, she gave another look around before she saw a hand raised in the air, Azriel was wearing leather clothes, the breath got caught in her throat as she looked at him, absolutely beautiful.

“You came.” He smiled at her, getting up to pull the chair for her, she sat, thanking him. She didn’t know if it was just a coincidence, but the Oak Alcove was her favorite coffee shop in Velaris, the soft breeze from the Sidra, the smell of flowers, the soft music, it was a magical place. 

“I did.” She laughed. “ It’s not often that I get to go to my favorite coffee shop for free.” She joked. 

“And here was i, thinking we would split the bill.” He rested a hand on his heart, pretending to be hurt and she liked that, everyone just saw him as a serious and stoic male, which was intimidating, but the way he smiled, a sight that she was sure wasn’t often people saw, made her heart melt. 

Azriel was a pleasant male, the way he softly spoke, his wide knowledge of everything, his passion for literature, he was really much more than the eyes could see. The time flew as they got to know each other better, now she understood why Aiden loved him so much, the Shadowsinger was sweet, gentle, wonderful, her heart skipped a beat every 5 seconds, and she tried to stop blushing like a little girl every time he smiled in her direction.

“This was fun.” She said after he stated that he should leave, he had plans with his son. 

“It was.” He got closer to her as they walked away. He walked her to her house, not far away from the coffee shop. “I was hoping we could do it again if it’s okay for you.” Her heart came to a stop in her chest.

“I would love to, Azriel. See you around.” The way she spoke his name, it was a sweet melody.

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

“She’s wonderful.” He said, stretching his wings, the glass of liquor dancing in between his fingers, Rhysand smiled and Cassian entered the office. 

“What’s happening?” Rhys served him a glass as well.

“Azzie here is in love with Den’s teacher.” Cassian whispered a “NO WAY!” shuffling his onyx hair, making Azriel growl at him.

“I’m not in love with her.” He sipped on his drink. “Yet!” The trio laughed. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

Azriel knew he was wrapped around her fingers when he kept going to the school every day, just to see her smile, just like his son, he would bring her flowers, he would take her out, after suffering because of Laurie, he was ready to open his heart again, especially for someone like her, she was perfect for him and he was ready to take their relationship to the next level. 

“Where are you going daddy?” Aiden asked as Azriel fixed his tie in the mirror.

“I’m going out with Mrs.Y/L, you like her, right?” He pulled his son closer.

“Yes, she’s amazing.”

“Would you like it if she was Daddy’s girlfriend?” His little eyebrows furred and he looked confused.

“Will she be my mommy?” The words shattered his heart and he swallowed the lump in his throat, feeling his eyes burn, he knew Aiden probably missed his mother, he noticed how he would look to Feyre when Nyx called her mommy, Azriel knew he wanted, craved that too, and broke his heart not be able to give that to his son.

“Maybe in the future buddy, if she wants to.” His son nodded and Azriel fixed his hair, he dropped Den in the River House before meeting Y/N for dinner, the bouquet Elain prepared for him was almost slipping from his shaking fingers, Y/n was already there waiting for him, she smiled, getting up to greet him with a quick kiss, they shared their first kiss after their fifth date, and he couldn’t keep his hands to himself ever since, her lips were sweet and she fitted so perfectly against him, she was made for him. 

“I want to ask you something.” Azriel had been building up the courage all night, Y/N dropped her spoon, her lips smudged with chocolate and he smiled at her, she was beautiful. “Will you be my girlfriend?” She almost jumped from her seat as she shook her head agreeing, he took her home that night, where they made love until sunrise. 

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

“Mrs. Mommy I need help.” Aiden’s voice sounded from somewhere behind her and she immediately turned around, seeing him shaking the glitter off his tiny fingers. Az had mentioned what happened between him and Den’s mom, and how he knew his son wanted a  mother, she just didn’t expect that.

“Hi Den, what do you need?” He showed her his fingers glued together.

“My fingers are sticky.” She guided him to the sink.

“Let’s wash it then.” She said, then releasing the kids to their break. Azriel showed up like he did almost every day, he was holding a cup of coffee and some cookies for her.

“Hey love, what’s wrong?” He kissed her cheek and closed the door.

“Aiden called me mommy today. Mrs.Mommy to be precise.” She giggled a little.

“Shit.” Azriel didn’t want to pressure her to assume a motherly role to Den, but he also couldn’t exactly control these kinds of things. “I can talk to him if you want, tell him that you’re not his mom. He’ll understand.”

“I just don’t want him to be confused, I don’t know.” He hugged her. “I love him, just as much as I love you. Maybe tell him not to do it at school? Cuz the principal is already fuming that we’re dating.” He smiled.

“Maybe she’s jealous.” He joked and she laughed, she loved them really much. And her heart clenched hearing Den call her mommy. Maybe they could make this whole thing work.

⋆˙⟡☾𖤓☽ ⟡˙⋆

“You can’t catch me.” Aiden smirked, as Cassian chased him and Nyx, they were at a picnic with the inner circle, and Y/N was more than welcomed among them, they really liked her, she was getting really close to Feyre, the two were watching as the general pretended to be slower than the children. Den rushed to her, jumping on her lap and hiding from Cassian, while Azriel watched from afar. She looked at him, and it was like the whole world had come to a stop, she was the only thing holding him on earth, he had always assumed he was just lucky to have found someone so similar to him, and now he understood that it wasn’t luck, she was perfect for him because she was made for him, his mate, his equal, the love of his life. 

She blinked too overwhelmed as she explored the newly found bond between them, she had suspected for a while that he might be her mate, she had hoped and she had prayed to the Mother that she was right, and there it was, glowing like a thousand suns, the mating bond tying them to each other for the eternity, finally everything was complete for them. 

#azriel shadowsinger #acotar #azriel #sarahjmaas #azriel x reader #shadowsinger #azriel x y/n #night court #velaris #moonlightazriel #azriel spymaster #azriel acotar #a court of thorns and roses #acotar fanfiction #acomaf

[sweetcarolina-24]

Shut Her Up*

Kinktober Day 9: Bondage

Gwynriel x Reader

kinktober masterlist

a/n: I am unfortunately sick, so I'm watching Game of Thrones while I write. I looove Gwynriel so I'm really excited for this one.

cw: poly, bondage, 69, oral(f receiving), fingering, blackmail lol. also sort of a dark, out of character gwyn

You work with Gwyn in the library, but you two don't get along. You bicker constantly. Azriel notices you being rude to her one day and decides that the best way to get the two of you to make up is to bring you both to bed. But since he is protective of his mate, and you were being rude to her, he will not make this easy for you.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

Gwyn had a smirk on her pretty little face, her teal eyes wandering down your body.

If you'd known being rude to her in front of the Shadowsinger would land you in this position, you would do it more often.

Azriel's shadows were confining your hands above your head, tying them to the bed. Your legs were spread apart, the shadows attaching them to the lower bedposts.

"She looks so pretty like this," Gwyn smirked, trailing her hand down your body. You shivered. "Look how aroused she is.”

"Yes," Azriel agreed. "Do you like being confined like this, y/n?"

"Yes," you gasped, nodding desperately. He grinned, stroking your cheek.

He held his scarred fingers to your mouth. You opened, letting him slip them inside. You licked and sucked on the pads of his fingers until he was satisfied.

He withdrew them and brought them between your legs. You gasped as he slipped them inside.

Gwyn lowered her mouth to your breast, taking one into her mouth. You let out a loud moan as Azriel curved his fingers, hitting that spot inside of you.

He chuckled lowly as you writhed against the restraints, your moans loud and undignified.

"Shut her up, Gwyn," Azriel instructed.

Gwyn was all too happy to oblige. She crawled up to the top of the bed and threw one leg over you. She lowered herself onto your face and you began dragging your tongue through her folds.

Her moans were so pretty as she cupped her breasts in her hands, riding your face. You lapped at her clit, making her whimper.

You halted in your movements completely when you felt Azriel's cock slide inside of you. But Gwyn reached a hand back to pinch your nipple, telling you to continue working her.

The strokes of your tongue were less graceful now that the male was slamming in and out of you.

Azriel began rubbing your clit, making you whine against Gwyn's core. Neither of you were cumming without his permission.

There was no way for you to ask. Your hands and legs were both tied up, and your mouth was on Gwyn. You just hoped he would be kind.

Maybe if you got Gwyn closer to the edge, he'd give you both permission. You began sucking her clit into your mouth brutally, making her cry out, tears welling in her eyes above you.

"Az, Az," she panted. "Can I cum, please?"

"Go ahead, Gwyn," he said, careful not to say your name.

You whined at that, but Gwyn came apart on top of you. She moaned loudly, squeezing her breasts as she rode your face into an orgasm. When she came down, she went to get off of you.

"No," Azriel commanded. "Turn around. Pleasure each other for me."

Gwyn turned herself around, keeping her core on your mouth. She bent down, licking at your clit. Azriel was still slamming into you.

"Gwyn, you may cum whenever you'd like," he granted her. "Y/n, you will wait until I say so."

You whined again, and Azriel smacked the side of your thigh. You moaned as his cock found that perfect angle inside of you.

You couldn't think of anything except your desire to cum. Gwyn had another orgasm on your mouth, and you licked up her release. Then, you nipped at her clit out of jealousy.

"Ow!" she exclaimed. "Azzy, she bit me!"

"Be nice, y/n," he warned you. "Or you won't cum at all."

You whimpered, feeling the coil in your stomach growing so tight, it was threatening to snap.

"She's getting close," Azriel observed, speaking to Gwyn.

Gwyn sneered, landing a harsh smack to your clit. You cried out, trying to close your legs, but you were unable to.

Gwyn went right back to licking and sucking on your clit again. You'd stopped your work on hers, but it still rest just above your face. The smell of her release made you envious.

Az groaned as he released inside of you. You moaned, tugging at your bonds desperately.

He pulled out for just a second, which made you whine. Gwyn stopped her work on you to put her mouth on him until he was hard again.

When he was hard again, he slid right back into you, and Gwyn went back to lapping at your folds.

"Please," you whimpered, your hips bucking.

"Should we let her?" Azriel asked Gwyn. Gwyn lifted her face, causing that coil to disappear.

"I don't know," she sighed. "She's been so mean to me."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," you begged, tears falling from your eyes. "Please, Gwyn. I won't be mean anymore. Please."

"I've been nothing but kind to you," Gwyn said.

That was a lie, but you didn't dare accuse her of lying in front of her mate, who would always take her word over yours.

"Should I be kind now?" she teased, her fingers rubbing circles on your clit.

"Please, please," you sobbed, hips bucking.

"Take the blame for losing Merrill's paperwork, and you can cum," she decided.

"But I didn't--"

"Did I ask if you did or not?" she snapped. "You will take the blame, or we will keep torturing you. And Az here has so much more in store for you if you refuse."

"Fine, fine," you cried, that coil in your stomach tightening again. "I'll take the blame. Please let me cum."

"Take pity on her, Gwyn," Azriel said to his mate, his cock finding that angle again.

"Okay, y/n," she said. "You may cum."

The coil snapped as soon as her tongue flicked your clit again.

Your moans were so loud, the whole House likely heard you. But you didn't care.

Gwyn kept sucking on those nerves through your orgasm as you ripped against the bonds, unsuccessfully, screaming your pleasure.

Azriel was laughing darkly as he kept fucking into you. You were a mess, tears of pleasure streaming down your blissed out face.

When you came down, the shadows released you. But you were too tired to sit up. Gwyn landed another smack to your clit.

"Ow! What was that for?" you shrieked, jolting upright.

"I felt like it," she grinned.

‧͙⁺˚*･༓☾　　☽༓･*˚⁺‧͙

#gwynriel #gwyneth berdara #azriel x gwyn #gwyn acosf #azriel acotar #acotar #acotar smut #gwynriel x reader #gwyn x reader #azriel x you #mean dom! azriel #azriel x reader #azriel shadowsinger #gxg smut #poly!gwynriel x reader

[ann-writes-universes]

Momento Mori (AzrielxReader)

A/N: Weather has me down, Here’s some Az angst :,)

Warnings: Angst.

W/C: 1.8k

He had been so distant since the end of the war. Different since life had slowed down a bit and there wasn't the ever present feeling of impending doom. At first, you had given him space - he had asked for it after all - chalked it up to shell shock, a deep rooted fear that it wasn't really over. Being alone had been hard, waiting for your mate to finally crawl into your ever cold bed and just hold you like he had for the past ten years. 

You waited on that night where he would come to you for comfort, and not Elain or Gwyn or a glass of whiskey that never really seemed to empty. The night where he would crawl into your shared bed and find solace in your arms, in your presence, even if just for a moment. 

That night didnt come, and after six months you began to feel as though it would never come. 

“Does- does Rhys talk to you about things?” You had asked Feyre one day in the kitchen. You were drying the dishes as she washed them. A task that magic could have easily finished but one the two of you had found some semblance of normalcy in since the war. She had stopped scrubbing the plate she held and turned her gaze to you with a cocked brow. 

“Well yes we talk about things (Y/N), but what do you mean?”

“I mean awful, terrible things.” 

“Has- has Azriel said something to you?” She questioned, turning the water up to ward off any unwanted listeners lurking about the house. You frantically shook your head ‘no’ and kept drying the same bowl you had been for the past five minutes. 

“Not in that way I just…he won’t tell me what's going on in his head. He hasn't since.”

“Since Hybern?”

“Yeah. Yeah, since Hybern.” You muttered, finally setting the bowl down. Feyre sighed and dried her own hands before grasping your forearms. Turning your body to face her she searched your features with a soft smile.

“The war was tough on us all. He watched you nearly die, I am sure it's not on purpose.” 

“Feyre. He shut off the bond. I can't feel him.” You whispered, beginning to feel misty eyed and soft. She frowned and pulled you into her body, letting your tears soak her shoulder and hair. You were mumbling nonsense into her shoulder, anger, hurt, and confusion echoed from the senseless words and she just nodded in understanding. 

“Whats going on?” His voice cut like a knife through the kitchen, slicing through the sound of your sobs and the water that was still running. Feyre stilled as she made eye contact with him, not allowing your head to leave her shoulder. You hadn't even felt that familiar tug on the bond that signified he had even come home. That fact alone had your gut wrenching and your heart dropping further into your chest. 

“Nothing.” You mumbled, gently pushing Feyre away so you could turn to face the stone cold face of your mate. He took in the tear stained cheeks, the red rim of your eyes, and he cocked his head. There was nothing there, no warmth, no concern, just an empty plane. 

Granted, Azriel was a hard male to read. But never for you. No- never once had he been hard to read for you. 

Glancing between the two of you Feyre waited until you nodded to make her quiet exit, turning the sink off as she left. Azriel leaned against the wall, watching you as you put dishes away, your back turned away from him. 

“Nice to see you home.” You muttered, closing a cabernet. He huffed and shifted in his place, running a hand through his hair. 

“What is that supposed to even mean?” You turned to face him, leaning backwards on your arms against the counter. “Exactly what I said. Nothing else.” 

His mouth formed a hard line and he nodded curtly. Turning towards the door he made to leave.

“Thats all I get?” You urged, possibly louder than you had intended. He froze in the doorway, a hand resting on its frame. His shoulders squared and he turned his head to look at you. “Seven words is all I get? I havent seen you in weeks Azriel.” You whispered, searching his eyes for any semblance of a reaction to your words.

And yet there was nothing. 

No hurt, no pain, no remorse- nothing. 

“I have been busy (y/n).” 

“No shit.” You scoffed, crossing your arms across your chest. He turned to face you fully then, his brows set in a crease so deep you were sure it was giving him a headache. 

“What do you want from me? I still have to work. I still have to go out and do my job. Not all of us get to stay home all day and play housewife with the High Lady.” He spit, and his words were laced with so much venom that you flinched. You couldn't even form a rebuttal; you were so astounded by his tone. 

You two had had spats over the years but never had he raised his voice at you, never had he tried to hurt you with his words. What did you want from him? 

What did you want from him?

Him.

You wanted him back. 

“I want to know why it feels like I am sitting by your grave BEGGING for the gods to give you back - and yet… And yet here you are in front of me Azriel.” Your voice was a harsh whisper, those damned tears itching to spill again. It shook and wavered, not at all as strong as you intended for it to be.

“I dont know.” Was all he offered in reply. His arms were crossed and his shoulders were squared, wings pulled in tight. 

“You dont know?”

“No. I dont.”

You nodded, a sharp frown overtaking your features. You pushed off of the counter, and moved towards the door. Your approach had him skidding backwards, a reaction that made you visibly take a step back. 

Sucking in a breath you glanced at him wide eyed. Azriel looked away, a muscle in his jaw ticking. 

“Well when you figure it out, feel free to find me I guess.” 

And with a final glance at the love of your life you pushed past him and left the kitchen.  

⥈

He had never wanted to hurt you. Had never wanted to see you that visibly upset with him. The utter defeat in the words you spoke as you left him there carved out a hole in his demeanor. Knocked him right off the rung he had been perched on so precariously for the past six months. 

The shadowsinger had been walking a fine line of losing his mind and keeping it together and that little discussion had pushed him utterly over the edge. 

He had tried stroking the bond hours after you left, only to find a cold and empty plane on the other side. A feeling he now knew you had been getting used to for the last half of the year.  

Perched on the roof of the house of wind he watched as the sun sank below the mountain range and the stars you so dearly loved began to paint the sky. 

For the first time in twenty years of knowing you he wondered what you were doing. 

Wondered because he was not privy to the information for the first time in two decades. This knowledge left him feeling cold somehow, emptier than he had ever been. 

It was a Sunday and usually on Sunday nights you were curled up in front of the hearth with a book in hand, smiling gently at him as he urged you to pay attention to him for ‘just two seconds please’. You would always let him have his way, would set the book down and play with his hair or read whatever tale it was aloud to him. 

Sundays had always been his favorites. 

And yet he hadn't spent a sunday at home with you in damn near 183 days. The war with Hybern had left him torn between two lives. The utterly broken and destroyed part of him that existed long before you had, when he was just a kid fighting a battle they were never really supposed to win. And the other half of him was a man who had fought tirelessly to protect the people he loved. This war had left him changed, cold. His nights were fitful and restless, often ending in nightmares and dreams so foul that he would watch the sun rise and set a few times before he thought of sleeping again. 

He hadn't wanted you to see that. 

Azriel had wanted to be strong for you when the war ended. Had wanted to be able to be your pillar of comfort and solace on the nights when you couldn't sleep, and yet he couldn't even console himself. 

He had failed you by doing what he thought was best for you. Had shut you out in an attempt to keep you blind to the horrors he had been facing, when all you wanted was for him to let you in. 

He tugged on the bond again.

No reply. Not even a whisper of a reply. 

The shadow singer laid down on the hard clay and stared at the sky. Wondering what you were doing on a Sunday night, utterly alone as he had made you. 

⥈

Pacing. 

Back and forth, back and forth. 

Pacing.

Thats what you were doing on a Sunday night, utterly alone as he had made you. 

You had felt the bond grow taut, not once, but twice and had not deigned a reply. You were angry, confused at best. Groveling had never been a habit of yours, and the spymaster knew as much. 

This was his mess to fix, his wrong to right because you had tried. You had been trying for months. Tried to seduce, to speak, to hold, to console. And nothing had been returned. Not a hint of emotion nor reaction other than an impassive gaze here or there. 

Glancing at the clock you sighed, two AM. The river house had gone to sleep several hours before, and not a peep was heard throughout her halls. One glance and the warm blaze of the fireplace was extinguished and you were padding upstairs to your room. 

You crawled into the familiar chill of your sheets and rolled to face the open window. Distantly the lights in the house of wind glowed with ever bright liveliness. You watched them until your eyes grew too heavy to stay open. 

And you waited.

Waited for the bed to dip and him to wrap his arms around you and beg you to listen to him for just two seconds.

But the dip never came, and no arms circled around you as you drifted into sleep. 

There was nothing but the twinkling of lights and the gentle sounds of the sidra humming you a lullaby. The only comfort you had known in 133 days. 

Nothing but twinkling lights and a gentle hum.

TAGS:

@brekkershadowsinger @piceous21 @younxii @momlo @morelovemorepeacemoretattoo-blog @highladyofillyria @crimsonandwhiteprincess @purplevitagen @isthataknuck

#azriel x you #acotar smut #acotar x reader #azriel acotar #azriel spymaster #lucien x reader #azriel x reader #acotar fanfiction #acotar fanart #acomaf #helion x reader #helionacotar #eris vanserra #helion acotar #night court #sjmaas #ACOTAR #a court of thorns and roses #acotar fic #smut #fluff #angst #annwritesacotar #annwrites #annwritesarchangel #acotar #azriel angst #azriel x reader angst

[gwyns]

Gwyn will randomly crawl all over Azriel at every opportunity. Randomly jumps on his back, or sits on his lap, and he doesn’t mind it at all. I headcanon that Azriel will actually be the clingy one. He’s a touched starved baby.

oh my god absolutely. like from someone else's perspective it would seem gwyn is the clingy one but whenever she tries to remove herself from az before he's ready, she'll hear a slight whine from him. that's the only time he ever truly whines. he just wants her close, to soak up her presence and the feel of her every chance he gets and gwyn loves being near him but she enjoys making him feel happy and loved even more

ps he's totally the little spoon in bed and he also enjoys it when he lays his head on gwyn's chest and she gently runs her fingers through it while humming softly

#acotar #gwyneth berdara #azriel #gwynriel #asks #anonymous

[thesistersarcheron]

Pairing: Gwynriel Rating: T Word Count: ~2k Summary: When Azriel finds himself in a Summer Court hospital, the Night Court sends their only available agent to extract him before his diplomatic visit can turn into an international incident: the wife he didn't know he had.

Read this fic on AO3 here. For @headcanonheadcase - thanks for the prompt!

Adriata’s medical clinic was too breezy to offer any sense of comfort or privacy, and Azriel Shadowsinger was still groggy, still annoyed, and still shaking off the feeling of yet another Summer Court building crumbling while he was trapped inside, when he heard the voice filter through the wide-open windows in his room.

“Where is my husband?!”

His shadows stirred weakly, looking just as dizzy and disoriented as he felt. The nurse at his bedside, who had rolled her eyes when he attempted to glare off her pointless fussing—it was just a routine head wound, nothing life threatening—pushed out a heavy breath through her nostrils.

Azriel cut his eyes toward her again, making sure to infuse the look with all the bothersome-and-noncompliant-patient energy he could muster.

The voice cut in again, musical despite the furious indignation coloring it. “Let me see him!”

The nurse rolled her eyes again and shoved the miniature faelight she had been flashing in his eyes into an oversized pocket. 

“Night Court heathens,” she huffed beneath her breath as she turned for the door. “Never get a moment’s peace when they’re—”

The door swung open, and the nurse threw up the hand that had been reaching for the doorknob with a shriek.

The female in the doorway jumped, copper hair streaming and blue fabric seeming to float on the breeze kicked up by her frantic movements, but she was not deterred.

Wide, teal eyes met his. “Azriel darling! There you are! I’ve been looking for you.”

Those words… Familiar, as if he’d heard them somewhere, but he couldn’t place them.

The shadows curled obscenely in response in spite of their master’s confusion. Azriel blinked at them, and then blinked at Gwyn Berdara, and then blinked at the nurse who was clutching her chest.

“What?” he asked stupidly, the lights in the room beginning to sear into his eyeballs as the shadows abandoned him and crawled for the doorway.

“I came as soon as I heard,” Gwyn said. She hustled into the room on graceful legs, but her robes bunched strangely at her shoulders, her hips where they usually flowed over her gentle curves. It wasn’t until she was at his bedside, standing between his knees and pressing a concerned hand to his forehead in a way that made his heart stutter, that he heard the creak of the leather armor she was wearing beneath her priestess’s robes. “Thank the Mother you’re unharmed. I was worried you’d make me a widow before we had a chance to celebrate our first anniversary.”

Azriel reeled. He thought back, and, with crystal clarity, he could remember everything up to the deafening, dust-coated moments following the collapse. Everything, including the teasing jabs Gwyn had taken at him during their last late-night training session for being the only single male amongst his brothers.

He must have been moving fast to have managed to court and marry to her in those few chaotic moments that had escaped his memory. He’d been stuck planning how to ask her to join him for dinner for nearly a year.

 “Anniversary?” he said, once again stupidly.

His shadows tittered, and worry too genuine to be fully faked creased Gwyn’s forehead as her brow furrowed.

One of the shadows slipped away from the rest that clung to the hem of her robes, abandoning whatever pleasant distraction it found there, and curled around his ear to share its secrets.

Oh.

He watched Gwyn watch him as his shadow whispered to him, telling stories of Cassian and Nesta and urgent secret missions plotted in palace made of moonstone, and he was impressed.

Finally, he caught on to the expectant gleam in her eye behind the concern of a devoted wife. It was a look that told him he needed to play along—and quick, if the nurse kept staring at them so blatantly while the drama unfolded.

“What anniversary?” He doubled down with ease, raising a single brow at the Valkyrie—because that’s what she was in this moment, he realized, not a priestess or a librarian or a wife, but a Valkyrie intent on completing her mission. 

And Az had to give it to Gwyn. She did not falter or blanch or show any sign that she had been caught in a lie.

No, she only squared her shoulders and stiffened her lip and looked him square in the eye as she said, in a steely voice that sent shivers down his spine and into his wings,

“Sweetheart, I’ve been worried sick, and that’s all you have to say? That you’ve forgotten it’s our anniversary?” Gwyn paused, and Azriel’s stomach flipped as the steel disappeared and tears, actual tears, welled up in her eyes instead. She stared at him for a long moment, and then her face crumpled, too. “Oh, Cauldron help us. No, no, you would never. You’ve had the day marked in your calendar for months, now.” 

Gwyn swallowed hard, sniffling and tearing her eyes away, as if she couldn’t bear to let him witness her pain. As if she knew that he, as her husband, would hate to see it.

And truth be told, Azriel did. Gwyn wasn’t the best liar—something they would have to work on—but she was laying it on thick enough that his heart panged when she swiped the cuff of her robes over her cheeks to catch her falling tears.

After she spent a moment pretending to collect herself, and after he spent a moment crossing his arms tightly over his chest to keep from reaching out to her, Gwyn said in a quavering voice, “Tell me, who is High Lady of the Night Court?”

“High Lady? There’s no such thing.” Azriel infused as much incredulity as he could into those two words and then bent, peering around Gwyn to the nurse whose eyes were still locked on him, her mouth wide open. “Nurse, are you sure this female wasn’t in the barracks when they fell? She’s clearly suffering from some sort of delusion.”

The nurse opened her mouth, but Gwyn snapped into action with an urgency Azriel appreciated.

“You don’t even recognize me?” Her voice turned shrill, panicked, and she turned away with a choked sound. “Not even from the library?” 

She was gathering his belongings from the small table beside his cot and shoving them into his arms before he even had time to make his eyes go wide, feigning a dawning awareness of his connection to the flustered whirlwind in front of him. 

“The Night Court is home to the best mind-healers,” Gwyn told the nurse in a voice that would not have been out of place in a war tent. “I must get him home. Now.” 

“Why, I—” The nurse sputtered. “This is the best hospital in all the seasonal courts. I’m sure our—”

“No,” Gwyn said, sharp as Truth-Teller’s razor edge. “Our High Lord would not look kindly upon another court’s daemati attempting to breach his shadowsinger’s mind. We must leave.”

Azriel would have winced at the way the nurse began to quake when Gwyn played the Rhys card—still, after all Rhys had done for Summer during the war—if he weren’t discovering just how easily he could become addicted to the unbending will that straightened her spine once she had come to the decision to play it.

And soon enough, Azriel was on his feet, following Gwyn down the hall at a clipped pace, past a small legion of harried nurses and doctors who stopped their work to stare at them with unabashed curiosity. Eventually, with a surreptitious glance backward once they exited into an empty stretch of hallway, she led him into a series of service corridors that she must have memorized before she was sent into the Summer Court to find him.

“Wards went up around the city the moment the barracks came down,” she muttered to him as they entered a dimly-lit stairwell, thick with humid summer air. “Don’t bother trying to winnow. We’ll have to make it through the city and to one of the passageways to Winter before we try.”

“Shouldn’t be difficult,” Azriel assured her, ignoring the pleasant swell of emotion beneath his breast as he watched that brilliant sheet of red hair sway with every step. Pride. That’s all it was—professional pride at seeing one of the novices he’d trained become so adept at strategizing her way out of a tight spot. Maybe a bit of lingering dizziness, too. “Why the cloak and dagger act, wife?”

Gwyn glanced over her shoulder at him with a small, suddenly bashful grin tugging at her lips, and Azriel was forced to stop lying to himself. 

“A Summer Court building falls while a Night Court diplomat is inside and you think you’re not the first suspect?” A trilling laugh drew more of his shadows to her. “Everyone else was too easily recognizable, so I had to pretend to be your wife in order to get in to see you. Who knows what Tarquin would have done if the High Lord and Lady showed up instead.“ She laughed again. “Cassian sends his apologies, by the way.”

“Maybe Varian needs to keep an eye on the exercises his recruits are running. A building can only take so many tidal waves thrown at its foundation by Summer Court hotheads before it collapses.”

“A likely story,” Gwyn said, shrugging a nonchalant shoulder as Azriel chuckled. “Exactly what I’d expect a spymaster to say.”

“It’s true.”

“Oh, I’m sure.”

Staircase after staircase, they made quick work of vacating the hospital. Finally, the stairs ended, the ground leveling out beneath them, and sunlight seeped in below the crack of a door.

Gwyn reached for it, ready to push it open, but—

Maybe it was the heat that was making his head swim, or maybe it was the scent of her—ink and leather and river breezes and something sweet that was all Gwyn—filling the tight, warm space at the bottom of the stairs. Either way, Azriel acted on impulse, and his hand hand circled one of her wrists before he knew what he was doing.

Gwyn froze.

“Shadowsinger…” Slowly, she turned, teal eyes turned dark by the low light looking from the gentle grip he kept on her wrist and up to his eyes. A belated sense of shame overcame him at the sight of his scarred hand on her pretty blue robes, and just for a moment, he felt bad about tainting her with his touch… But Gwyn didn’t brush him off. She didn’t use his grip to wrench him forward and snap his elbow in two. 

No. Gwyn’s brow lifted, and her gaze was open, inquisitive, when she asked, “What are you doing?”

Azriel stroked his thumb over that soft fabric, imagining what the skin beneath her robes and the leather cuff under his hand must feel like.

Behave, one of the shadows hissed at him.

“I’m showing my gratitude.” The words fell out of his mouth before he could think twice. Gwyn’s lips parted, and Azriel full attention fell on her full lower lip. He licked his own. “To my pretty wife.” 

Gwyn swallowed, and Azriel didn’t think the sweet flush on her cheeks was entirely caused by the summer heat.

“And how are you going to do that?” she asked, her voice little more than a whisper.

Azriel dropped his hand from her wrist to her long, elegant fingers, twining his own among them. “I’m going to kiss you, if you’ll let me.”

Gods, how long had he wanted to try? How many training sessions had he been knocked on his ass by the mere sight of her throwing his daggers with deadly precision into her targets? How many nights had her musical laughter trickled out of the House’s library where she and Emerie and Nesta lounged and into his head? 

A second or an hour passed, and all he could hear was the pounding of two hearts.

A nervous giggle broke through the silence, and Gwyn lifted her head, a delicious smile on her mouth. 

Gods, if only she knew half the things he could imagine doing to thank her if she had truly been his wife.

Her hand squeezed his. “Okay.”

“Okay,” Azriel Shadowsinger breathed, and slowly, gently, mindful not to move too quickly in the dark, he bent his head and slanted his lips across hers. 

#gwynriel #gwyn #azriel #gwyneth berdara #azriel shadowsinger #acotar #a court of thorns and roses fic #a court of thorns and roses #my fics #move fast keep quiet

[dawneternal]

✨ A Court of Mischief and Matchmaking ✨

Summary: Feyre, the meddling matchmaker, devises a plan to speed up the numerous budding romances in the Night Court. A mischievous human game called 'spin the bottle'

Meant to be silly and fun. Includes a few crack ships.

Post Azriel bonus chapter. Pro-gwyriel and pro-lucien undertones. And pro-the-batboys-have-kissed-at-least-once-before

Rating: Just kissing

Word Count: 4k

Ao3 link

Feyre, ever the observant busybody, had been watching the interactions at family dinners with extra care for a while now. She had noticed a great many things while doing so. She also knew that Rhys, who rarely turned off the spying instincts in his brain, had noticed these things as well. But he did nothing but store them away in case they became important later.

Feyre was not as content to stay idle. Her observations stirred a restlessness within her, a desire to stick her hands into the situation and help. Not necessarily to interfere, but to grant momentum to anything that was already in motion.

Elain, who had once been growing bolder in her interactions with Azriel, had abruptly become quiet in his presence. She still conversed with everyone else, but carefully kept her gaze away from his. Gwyn, however, snuck small glances at the shadowsinger quite frequently, growing in number with every family dinner she attended.

Emerie looked for Mor at every chance, though she hid her disappointment well when the blonde was absent. But Feyre still noticed the slight droop to her wings and the dampened glimmer in her eyes.

The longing in Lucien's own eyes had never ceased, though he had learned that giving Elain any focused attention would only lead to rejection and embarrassment. Feyre could almost see the wilting bond between them, and the golden possibility of happiness if it was allowed to bloom.

Rhysand noticed his mate's expression as she watched it all. The determination, glints of sadness and hope. He smiled to himself, wondering when she would present a plan to him.

And sure enough, after dinner one night, she crawled into his lap as he sat at work in his study, looping her arms around his neck.

"I have a bit of a plan," She said, watching his face while he read the paper in his hand.

"What is that, my love?" He asked, running his fingers over her back with his free hand.

"I want to nudge fate a little bit. Just push it along if I can."

"Is that so?"

"I know you know what I'm talking about," she grumbled, grasping his chin and turning his gaze toward her. He relented, smiling down at her with happy violet eyes.

"Tell me your plan, matchmaker." He hummed, resting his forehead against hers.

"I want to play spin the bottle," She said firmly. Rhys's eyebrows shot upwards as he pulled back to look at her.

"And risk having to kiss any of the others?"

"It's a risk I'm willing to take," Feyre laughed, "imagine the mischief and tell me it doesn't sound fun."

He had, already. And he agreed with her. But that would not stop his desire to tease.

"Wouldn't it trigger your territorial tendencies to watch me kiss someone else?" He asked her with a sly smile.

"You're the possessive one," Feyre scoffed, "I'm wondering if you can handle it."

"As long as you make it up to me," Rhys whispered, caressing the bridge of his nose along her cheekbone.

Feyre knew this was his permission and agreement to play along. The matchmaker inside her glowed and began plotting with new fervor.

***

"We're going to play a game tonight," Feyre announced to the group, "One that I remembered from the human lands."

It was a rare night when the entire family was all together. Mor had returned from the continent, Lucien had returned to check in, and all three Valkyries had managed to attend. Feyre had waited for a night like this patiently. Nyx laid down after dinner with no fuss, as if he knew his mother's intentions.

Then they had all settled in the living room, a fire in the hearth and various drinks in their hands. Feyre had drawn the furniture in a little closer together, forming a misshapen oval. If anyone had noticed, they hadn't said a thing.

"What game?" Nesta asked, suspiciously, squinting at her sister.

"Spin the bottle," Feyre crossed her arms and looked back at her sister in challenge. She was met with a few laughs throughout the room.

"Oh, we have spin the bottle here, too," Mor snorted, holding her stomach as she laughed.

"But no bottle," Lucien noted, hoping this may deter the shenanigans.

Mor only held up a finger, then grabbed her wine bottle and held it to her lips, downing it in a most unladylike fashion. She set it on the floor in the middle of their circle and slumped back in her chair, wiping the wine from her lip with one hand and pointing at Feyre with the other.

"High Lady goes first," Mor grinned.

"Everyone has to agree first," Rhys said, chuckling at his cousin's eagerness. "Though I'm not above using a High Lord's command. We all know how I enjoy giving Feyre what she wants."

He looked around the room, met with a chorus of reluctant and eager agreements. Cassian and Mor seemed to be the most enthusiastic, as was typical for most proposed games and festivities. Even Gwyn nodded, though she blushed bright pink and fidgeted in her chair. Azriel, though, said nothing. He sat back in his chair with his arms crossed, absolutely glowering at his brother.

"What's the matter, Az?" Rhysand grinned at this brother, "A bit out of practice?"

Feyre cringed, but Rhysand had struck the right cord. Something flashed in Azriel's eyes and he gritted out a "fine."

Amren, however, grabbed her wine glass and retreated to the bay window.

"I'm not playing," she scowled, curling up against a pile of plush pillows. There were a few sad sounds, but no one pushed her. Her Summer Court lover was not here, tonight, and she would have nothing to do with the rest of them. A High Lord's command only seemed to work on her about half the time anyways.

"Alright then," Feyre grinned and leaned down to spin the empty wine bottle, "let the game begin."

They all watched in silence as the bottle spun around and around, rattling against the floorboards, and slowed to a stop, pointing at Lucien.

Feyre and Lucien looked at each other, something akin to displeasure mirrored on their faces. This, of course, was noted with guffaws and cheers from their audience. Feyre did not look at Rhys, knowing exactly what he would say into her mind if she did. Her own words, mimicked back to her; 'It's a risk I'm willing to take.'

So Feyre swallowed her pride and met Lucien in the middle of the circle. Lucien wasted no time, bringing his hand to her cheek and meeting her lips to get it over with. Not much longer than a peck, there was no semblance of spark passed between them. At one point, human Feyre may have jumped at the chance to kiss him. But now that he was involved with her sister, all of that desire had died.

They pulled apart, looking at each other for a moment before both shrugged and returned to their seats. Cassian and Nesta cheered and Mor was laughing again. Rhys's eyes twinkled at her as she turned to sit back down, clearly amused. She snuck a quick glance at her sister and found Elain's face flushed, but her expression was unreadable.

"Your turn," she flashed Rhys a smug grin as she returned to her spot curled up beside him.

Rhysand sighed and spun the bottle. Feyre noted Gwyn's pale face and wondered if she would refuse to kiss the High Lord if it landed on her. To Gwyn's apparent relief, the bottle pointed at Cassian.

Cassian grinned, pulling his arm from around Nesta's shoulder to beckon him. Rhys swaggered across to Cassian with a matching smirk. He stood to the side of the loveseat so as not to block Feyre's view. Hands tangling in Cassian's hair, he leaned in and kissed him. It was certainly not as shy as Feyre and Lucien's had been, quite the opposite. Passionate and almost sloppy, deepening with every second they pulled each other closer. And Cassian's hand slid over Rhys's jaw with an ease and familiarity that made Feyre wonder how often this had happened in the past 500 years.

Very aware of the reactions that had spread throughout the room, they grinned after pulling away. Like the show-offs they were. Rhysand cleared his throat and straightened his shirt, and Cassian merely slid his arm back around his mate's shoulder, meeting her bewildered look with a smug smile.

Feyre wrinkled her nose as she noted the gleam in her sister's smouldering eyes that hinted at her arousal. Amren snorted at the scene from her corner. Feyre's eyebrows raised as her mate turned back toward her, and he flashed her a look that said I'll explain later.

"Gwyn," Rhys gestured to her as he took his seat, arm draping over Feyre's legs.

Gwyn paled again, but swallowed hard and spun the bottle, albeit a bit feebly. Feyre thought she saw the quickest of glances towards Azriel as she did so. Feyre eyed the shadowsinger from her peripheral. He was stoic as always, though one shadow near his ankle was trying to tug away from him, toward the priestess. As if he could barely keep it contained. Interesting.

Gwyn's spin landed on Nesta, and Mor gave a particularly loud cheer. Gwyn's giggling smile was infectious, her bubbling laughter pulling smiles from the whole group's faces, even Amren.

Nesta grinned back at her and crossed the circle before Gwyn could move. She grasped Gwyn's face in both hands and gave her a short but loving kiss, adding a peck to the tip of her nose and forehead. Feyre's heart warmed at the affection they held for each other, deepened by their experiences in the Blood Rite. Nesta's friends were the best thing to come out of her move to the house of wind, and Feyre took no credit for it. Nesta had done it all on her own. Emerie and Gwyn exchanged giggling looks and elbowed each other as Nesta sauntered away.

Emerie was next and she quickly sobered upon realizing. She reached for the bottle and spun, sighing as she waited for it to reveal her fate. The bottle stopped, pointing at Mor, and half the room held their breath.

Mor, slightly tipsy from finishing the bottle, smiled at Emerie with wine-red lips and went to meet her in the middle. It was the most nervous the other Valkyries had ever seen Emerie. She was notoriously unshakable. Her only weakness, apparently, was pretty blondes in low cut dresses.

Mor slid one hand into Emerie's curls and met her lips. It was shy to start, but quickly grew heated as they pulled each other closer, heads tilting to deepen the kiss. Mor grasped Emerie's waist as Emerie's own hand settled on Mor's neck, thumb sweeping across her jaw. Cassian whistled, but they didn't seem to hear it. As their kiss-turned-make-out began to go on just a bit too long, Mor's hand starting to reach below Emerie's waist, Rhysand cleared his throat loudly.

They jumped apart, breathing heavy, looking at each other with glazed eyes. Mor broke into a smile and Emerie laughed as they reluctantly let each other go. Gwyn's eyebrows waggled back and forth as Emerie returned to her seat. Rhys flashed Feyre a look, and in her mind asked is this what you were hoping for? She ignored him, tossing her hair over her shoulder. But she was smiling, too.

They all glanced at Nesta, who looked as if she had hoped no one would realize it was her turn. She scoffed and rolled her eyes, uncrossing her arms to reach for the bottle. Feyre knew better, of course. Her sister enjoyed this sort of game. She saw it as a challenge.

Feyre saw it in her eyes, that glimmer of determination as the bottle landed on Rhys. Rhys blinked, lifting his gaze to Nesta to see what she would do. She gave him a sly smile, the challenger showing through. So, Rhys gathered his own resolve and rose to meet her.

Feyre had gone through the game in her mind earlier that day, knowing who she hoped would be paired, and who she hoped would manage to stay away from each other. Somehow, she had not considered this possibility. Either her sister would devour her mate whole (and not in a good way), or the other way around and there would be no Nesta left at the end. This may not end well.

What Feyre had not expected, was for Rhysand to grab Nesta's face gently in his hands and press a soft, deep kiss to her mouth. But she knew right away why he had done it. Nesta was not expecting the tender, coaxing kiss that he gave her. She had expected him to fight, had grabbed the collar of his shirt in her fists in anticipation of something cruel and bruising.

So when his lips met hers so gently, dragging her into the depths of his night-kissed affection, she lost herself for a moment. Just a moment. The room was full of wide eyes and baited breaths as the pair pulled apart, waiting to see what the fallout would be.

Nesta stared at him through her lashes in a way that revealed the girl in her, slowly unravelling her fingers from the fabric of his shirt. Rhysand smiled back at her, real kindness in it as if to bring her back to herself gradually. It spread into a sly grin, and Nesta blushed, finally realizing that Rhys had won.

She tossed her head in response, not noticing the jealousy that took over her mate's face. Cassian was not very jealous as a general rule. But apparently Rhysand, who Cassian looked up to so much, was one of the few that posed a true threat in the warrior's mind.

"I suppose I can see it," She said, her voice a little unsteady as she waved a dismissive hand toward Feyre.

Of course, Rhysand was absolutely delighted with himself. This was a boost to his ego that he certainly had not needed. When the others were sure that a brawl had been avoided, they burst into howling laughter. Nesta was above it all, looking down her nose at the rabble with her arms crossed once again. Cassian tucked her closer into his side, eyes ablaze.

Then he realized that it was his turn, and he could seize the opportunity to make Nesta jealous in turn. He all but jumped to give the bottle a spin.

The bottle, ironically, pointed to Nesta. Feyre, who had felt Rhys power flicker, looked up at him. He gave her the tiniest of smiles back.

The group let out a collective groan, having been subjected to the couple's displays countless times. Gwyn raised her hand in a preemptive measure, shielding herself from any obscene thing about to happen.

Nesta gave him a warning look, but Cassian did not hesitate to pounce on her, wrapping his arms around Nesta and devouring her with the same fervor he applied to battle. For all Nesta's airs of irritation and impatience, she smiled against his lips as she kissed him back. When they pulled apart, unprompted for once, she was flushed and beaming. No one could hold a candle to her warrior, after all. All of Cassian's jealousy seemed to have washed away.

Next in rotation was Mor, who grinned and stretched her arms above her head, as if to prepare. She spun the bottle with a flick of her wrist, eyes never moving as it whirled around.

And landed on Azriel.

Her eyes snapped up to his, hints of anxiety on both of their features. And of course, the anxiety of the group rippled back toward them, nearly palpable. It annoyed Azriel as hit him like a wave. Like they all thought he would fall apart the second she touched him. Mor looked at him like she was contemplating whether to turn him down. But she saw the twitch of his jaw and understood.

Mor stood and made her way to him, dropping down on his lap as he looked up at her. His hand wrapped around her waist as if on instinct, as if he had thought about what to do in this moment countless times. As usual, his shadows hurried away to hide from Mor's glowing aura. Inside, Azriel was bracing to laugh it off as the others had. Make it a joke, something lighthearted.

But the way she looked at him, eyes glimmering as if she were holding back tears, stirred the deep well of emotions in his chest. She threaded her fingers through his curls, brushing her thumb over his temple as she kissed him. Tenderly, he pulled her in tighter. But there was no longing in their kiss, as the others may have expected. There was an undertone of sadness.

Mor pulled away, resting her forehead against his as her hand slid down to hold his face. Then they locked eyes, something invisible passing between them as they held each other. Feyre blushed a little, feeling like she was peering in on something she shouldn't be. It seemed to be a shared sentiment, everyone but shamless Amren averting their gaze. Feyre did notice that Elain had been looking anywhere else since the moment Mor had stood up. And Gwyn looked as though she was holding her breath. Nothing like jealousy or animosity anywhere on her face, she was only waiting to see what would happen.

When Mor finally untangled herself from him and Feyre could read his face, she found...gratitude? Then she understood, something twisting in her heart at the bittersweetness of it. Mor had been saying goodbye. To whatever had been growing and wilting between them in a perpetual cycle for centuries now. She felt her mate squeeze her hand and she looked at him to see the gleam of a single tear at the corner of his eye.

The tension lifted as Mor returned to her chair and they all realized Elain was next. Elain was sometimes a wild card to Feyre, who had not known if Elain would love or hate this game. But she hadn't turned it down, despite her apparent discomfort when Azriel had chosen the chair next to hers before the game had been proposed.

But right now, Elain had a bit of mischief hiding behind her smile. She gave the bottle a spin and sat back, waiting.

The room was in uproar when it came to a stop on Cassian.

"Did he put a magnet in that thing or something?" Lucien muttered, earning another wave of laughter.

But Elain took the challenge. And it was not the shadowsinger she looked at before making her way to Cassian, nor her mate who was expertly masking any emotion he felt. It was Nesta she glanced at, something haughty in it that insinuated revenge.

Cassian did not have time to react before Elain grabbed the collar of his shirt and hauled him toward her. Her usual temperament was nowhere to be seen, some sly vixen replacing the proper lady. Elain kissed him hard, so hard it pushed him backwards, her lips working against his feverishly. Cassian tried to meet her pace but she had taken him off guard.

She finished her display by pulling his bottom lip between her teeth and releasing his shirt to let him slump back on the couch. Nesta looked at her sister incredulously, too surprised to show any anger. Whatever it was that existed between Elain and Nesta had been leveled, that was certain. Nesta saw her sisters demand for what it was. Don't underestimate me again.

Cassian was still silent with bewilderment, his eyes a little glazed over. Her kiss may have held a message for Nesta, but Elain also reveled in the chance to shake Cassian up a little bit. Rhys broke the stunned silence, howling in laughter at his brother's surprise. It was not very often that Cassian was bested in such a way. He had not expected anything like it from demure Elain. Especially not in front of her mate and the shadowsinger. Which Rhys figured was likely why she'd agreed to play the game in the first place.

Feyre whipped her head toward them, remembering that they existed. Azriel showed nothing, but Feyre figured he may still be sorting through anything that Mor's gesture had brought up inside him. But Lucien...Lucien kept his expression neutral but she could tell he was positively boiling under the surface.  She could sense the power coursing through his blood as he tried to keep it in check. Cassian was too distracted to consider Lucien, the typically cordial redhead currently plotting his violent demise.

"Spy master," Rhysand said, easing the attention away from Elain and her mate, "your turn."

Azriel sighed, but did as he was told. He seemed as eager to get this over with as Lucien had been. The room stilled for a moment as the bottle landed between Lucien and Feyre's chairs, pointing straight at Amren on the window seat, half-asleep with an empty wine glass in hand. She realized they all stared at her and shook herself awake.

"I'm not playing," She snapped, curling into herself further.

"Come on, Amren," Rhys goaded. Someone began a chant of her name and soon they were all cheering and coaxing.

Azriel stood in the center, grinning at her, holding out a hand. Perhaps he should have been scared, but there was not anyone else he particularly wanted to kiss. Certainly not during a game in front of a jeering audience. This, at least, could be entertaining.

Amren flipped them off, but set her wineglass on the floor and stepped inside the circle of chairs and sofas. As soon as she was within distance, Azriel snatched her around the waist and dipped her low, pressing his lips to hers in an admittedly very romantic and passionate kiss. It lingered for the perfect amount of time. Long enough for her to process the gesture but not long enough to elicit a punishment from her. He pulled her upright again and let her go, grinning in anticipation of her response.

"Very well, shadowsinger," Amren sniffed and smoothed her dress.

The cheers, laughter, and whistling erupted again, the loudest of the night. Spin the bottle was not typically a game with a winner, but somehow Azriel had bested them all. Despite the dramatic displays of Rhysand and Elain, the spark between Mor and Emerie, the emotion of Mor's goodbye, Azriel had undoubtedly received the highest praise of anyone. Not only had Amren refrained from ripping him to shreds, but gave him a near-compliment and looked a bit dizzy. Of course, that would be going straight to Azriel's head.

Feyre peeked at Gwyn once more. She and Emerie were laughing heartily, but Gwyn's face was flushed, eyes glittering in such a way that the matchmaker wondered if Gwyn would be picturing herself in Amren's place.

There was one more turn to anticipate, tonight. Though everyone knew, including Lucien, that nothing would top Azriel's turn. Azriel wooing Amren would go down in history, now a part of the lore of the inner circle.

Lucien gave the bottle it's last spin, looking a little tired as he waited for it to stop. And then-

"No, absolutely not." Lucien held up his hand as the bottle pointed toward Cassian. Mor was doubled over with laughter and Nesta had to wipe tears from her eyes. Cassian tried to look offended, but was not even effectively holding back his own giggles.

"Game over," Lucien declared as he caught Elain stifling a laugh. He picked up the bottle and tossed it in the trash. The raucous laughter continued, Gwyn and Emerie clutching each other for support. Even Azriel laughed with the rest of them, the tips of his ears turning pink with mirth.

Feyre, quite pleased with herself and the results of her plan, did not argue Lucien. Several courses had been set as a result of her meddling. And she was already planning the next step.

#acotar #a court of thorns and roses #rhysand #cassian #azriel #valkyries #nesta #elain #feyre #feysand #nessian #elucien #gwynriel #fanfic #fanfiction #spin the bottle #acotar fanfic #acotar fanfiction

[highladyofterrasen7]

Gwyn getting dating advice

Gwyn: Feyre I need dating advice

Feyre: Throw a shoe at him when he saves you from your crazy fiancé

Gwyn: Nesta I need dating advice

Nesta: Make him hate you, insult his family and court and dick, then make him come crawling back

Gwyn: Mor I need dating advice

Mor: Sleep with his friend, be gay, but don’t tell him

Gwyn: Amren I need dating advice

Amren: Bond over love of jewellery and ancient artefacts, then steal one

Gwyn: Aelin I need dating advice

Aelin: Train with him, tell him you hate him, then wear lingerie in front of him

Gwyn: Lysandra I need dating advice

Lysandra: Make a secret plan with his cousin that involves you pretending to be her, and then have that plan involve you sleeping with him, as he still believes you to be his cousin and married

Gwyn: Elide I need dating advice

Elide: Make him tear up his shirts for you and get reeeaaallly pissed at him, then go on an adventure together to save your queen

Gwyn: Manon I need dating advice

Manon: Threaten to drink his blood and eat his heart, then do some freaky shit

Gwyn: Yrene I need dating advice

Yrene: Tell him you’ll heal him, even when you hate him, then ask if his dick still works, in front of his sort-of-ex

Gwyn: Bryce I need dating advice

Bryce: Work to solve your friends’ murder with him, parade in you house practically naked, then offer to sell yourself into slavery for him

Gwyn: Lidia I need dating advice

Lidia: Be a rebel contact. Don’t tell him who you are, make him trust you, mind fuck- literally, and turn out to be his sworn enemy

Azriel: Hey, Gwyn

Gwyn: *throws shoe and rips of clothes to reveal lingerie* ihateyouandyourstupidfriendsyourstupidbigdickandstupidcourtisleptwithyourfriendbutimsecretlygayilikejewlleryandimgonnastealfromyouimsecretlyyourcousinandwehavetosleeptogetherletsgosaveourqueenbutyouhavetotearupyourshirtsformeiwanttodrinkyourbloodanddofreakyshitdoesyourdickstillworkiwouldsellmyselfintoslaveryforyouandiamsecretlyyourworseenemy *deep breath*

Az: Did you get dating advice from the others?

Gwyn: *nods*

*signature exasperated az sigh*

Let me know if I forgot anyone

I should do one where az gets advice from the guys, tho they all did the: be grumpy, but have a heart of gold

#sarah j maas #acotar #throne of glass #feyre archeron #feysand #dorian havilliard #rhysand #bryce quinlan #quinlar #manon blackbeak #manorian #elide lochan #elorcan #lidia cervos #ruhnlidia #mor acotar #nesta archeron #nessian #gwyn acotar #gwynriel #azriel #lysandra #lysaedion

[witchybitchy222]

Azriel x Reader | Satisfaction Part 3

Alright y’all here it is! The third and final part to satisfaction! I hope you all like it! I know I asked in part 2 and some of you said smut from Az’s POV buttt it just didn’t flow well that way. I’m sorry! Send me any requests you have and as always, thanks for the support! 🫶🏻

WARNINGS: smut, oral both female and male receiving, rough sex, mentions of blood, 18+

——————————————————————————

It was already bright as you opened your eyes, the first rays of the early morning sun were breaking over the mountains and streaming in through your curtains. You sat up with a stretch, rubbing the sleep from your eyes and the events of the night before came rushing back to you.

You’d told Azriel, no not just Azriel, the entire inner circle, that you fantasized about him. And not just that, you were also about 90% sure you’d called him pretty before he left your room.

You threw yourself back on the pillows with a groan, swearing you were never drinking again. Embarrassed wasn’t a strong enough word for how you were feeling right now.

You picked yourself up and got dressed. You were brushing your teeth and desperately trying not to think about how you were going to have to face Azriel in less than an hour, when there was a knock at your door.

You froze in place, your anxious brain telling you it must be Azriel there to tell you to stay far, far away from him.

“Y/N! Open up!” Nesta’s voice flowed in, muffled through the wooden door.

You sighed, pulling the door open for your friend.

“Hey, Cass sent me to see if you were coming to training, or if you were too hungover.”

“Don’t act all friendly like I’ll just forget you made me spill a huge secret last night.” You accused, plopping down on your bed as Nesta followed you inside.

Your friend sighed and sat down next to you.

“Don’t be mad at me, there’s no way he doesn’t know you’re into him. I mean, neither of you are exactly subtle about it.”

“Neither of us?” You asked, eyebrows furrowing

“Oh don’t act like the two of you haven’t been dancing around the subject for ages now. Hells, I’ve only been here a few years and I see it.”

“Azriel isn’t interested in me Nes. And that’s okay. I just really hope I didn’t ruin our friendship over something so stupid.” Nesta put an arm around your shoulder.

“If you honestly think he doesn’t feel the same then I’m sorry. But you know Az! Even if he isn’t into you at all, he’d never make it weird. Azriel is nothing if not a kind male. He’d take you aside and let you know he isn’t interested but still wants to be friends. I mean, that’s what he did with Gwyn.” She shrugged.

Your head shot up, “Gwyn had a thing for Azriel??”

“Uh, yeah. Massive crush. But after some self- reflection she realized she was only interested in him because he was the first male to show her kindness after her attack.”

You sat in silence for a moment. Maybe Nesta was right. Azriel was kind. And what’s the worst that could happen? You’d already embarrassed yourself, it couldn’t get much more humiliating than this.

You took a deep breath, asked your friend to braid your hair, and put on your leathers.

You found Azriel first thing, nervously asking if you could talk to him before everyone got started. He gave you a short nod and followed you to the edge of the roof.

“So,” you sighed, wringing your hands. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry about how I acted last night… it was totally not okay to say all of that… stuff… and I’m sorry if I totally creeped you out.”

You made yourself stop fidgeting and bring your eyes to Azriel’s face.

His head was slightly tilted to one side, the only indication of confusion in his stoic demeanor. You mentally cringed at yourself for what felt like the millionth time today, wishing you’d just crawled back into bed this morning.

You started to stutter out another apology when Azriel’s mouth twisted into a smirk.

“Y/N, there’s no need to apologize. It was a game. You were drunk.” He shrugged, turning back toward the ring. “Oh” he started, looking at you over his shoulder, smirk still firmly in place “by the way, I don’t think you’re creepy in the slightest.” The shadowsinger shot you a wink before joining Cassian in stretching.

You were left momentarily stunned. Was Azriel… flirting with you? Holy shit…. It was so on.

You took a moment to collect yourself before leading your group of priestesses in their warm up stretches. You’d worn an oversized jacket to the training ring this morning, the early chill keeping it cool until the sun fully crested over the mountains. Feeling Azriel’s eyes on you from across the roof, you shed your jacket, stretching in the early morning sun, leaving you in your tight scoop neck tank top, the curve of your breasts exposed, and your Illyrian leather pants, daggers strapped to each thigh, material clinging to every curve. You looked over your shoulder at the shadowsinger and shot him a grin.

This game was fun. And you were good at it, your confidence soaring each time you felt Azriel’s eyes on you as you trained. You made sure to bend over more than necessary, giving him a view of your ass each time, winking when you caught him staring. For nearly 45 minutes you kept half your attention on your teaching and the other half on teasing Azriel.

As you wrapped up your defense lesson for the day, Cassian jogged across the ring, waving at you as he approached.

“Hey!” He called, “you still wanna do that self defense demonstration?”

You nodded, eyes sliding to Azriel, an idea forming. “For sure! Tell Az I need him to be my partner.”

“Alright” Cassian grinned as he situated the priestesses around the center ring.

You squared up with Azriel, a smirk on your face.

“Okay,” you clapped, turning to the crowd, “I know it can be intimidating when you’re attacked by a male twice your size” you gestured at the shadowsinger, “but just remember to calm your mind, sometimes being smaller is an advantage.”

You walked back to Azriel, placing your back against his now bare chest, making sure to wiggle your backside against him as he situated his arms around you. He leaned down and growled in your ear “your teasing isn’t funny, Y/N. You have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.” His voice was silky smooth, quiet breath sending shivers down your spine as you took in his words. It was hard to concentrate as you moved through the motions, and the demonstration passed in a daze.

You were grabbing a drink of water and calming your nerves as the priestesses filed out. “Up for a round?” Azriel asked, twirling truth teller in his hand as he smirked at you.

“You’re on, shadowsinger.” You winked, grabbing the daggers from your thighs.

He lunged for you immediately, striking with grace and precision, leaving you only seconds to dodge. You danced around each other, slashing and spinning in a deadly dance, evenly matched until you managed to catch him off guard. He knew you favored your right hand, so you led with it, making to swipe for his throat, while your left hand jabbed at his ribs, dagger hilt-first, landing a blow in precisely the right spot to knock the breath from his lungs. Quick as a cat, your leg shot out, sweeping him off his feet, but as tricky as you’d been, he was just as good, slashing out with truth teller and landing a shallow cut across your exposed chest before pinning you down underneath him.

You were both breathing hard as he stared down at you from above, your daggers still gripped in your hands as he pinned your wrists on either side of your head, his knees settling around your hips.

The look he was giving you was more intense than the fighting that had just taken place, so you were more than shocked when his lips met yours in barely a brush.

You gasped, staring up at him in shock before lifting your head and catching his lips again. He groaned as he leaned into you, kissing you harder. Your lips opened for him, letting him taste you. It was like your brain had short-circuited and all you could think of was him.

You started to lift your arms, wanting to reach up and pull him closer, but quickly realized your wrists were still pinned down. You whined in frustration and he pulled away, chuckling at you.

“I want to touch you.” You breathed, and he let out a groan “you’re gonna be the death of me.” Azriel’s eyes scanned your face before settling on the now healing cut across your chest. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as if he’d just noticed his knife had actually made contact.

He brought his eyes back to yours before leaning down and kissing your jaw, down your neck to the scratch his blade had made before dragging his tongue across it, licking up the blood as his eyes bore into yours. You let out an unabashed moan as arousal began to pool in your core, imagining his tongue all over your body.

He released your wrists and you immediately dropped your daggers, hands flying to his hair to pull him back in for a kiss.

Shadows enveloped you and a moment later your back was hitting the soft surface of what must’ve been Azriel’s bed.

He sat back and looked at you, “is this okay?” He asked, and you grinned in response, locking your legs around his waist and pulling him against you again.

He laughed and went back to kissing your neck, his hands wandering up and down the curves of your sides. You threw your head back to give him better access as you drug your hands down his chest, feeling every inch of defined muscles.

Azriel’s hands slid under your top and you sat up, pulling it over your head and exposing your breasts to him.

He stared for a moment, rough hands lightly tracing your chest and torso. You grabbed his wrist, bringing his palm to your mouth and planting a kiss in the middle, hoping to erase any hesitation. He gave you a small smile before dipping his head down and attaching his mouth to your right breast, licking and sucking on your nipple. You moaned at the sensation, his hand squeezing your other breast before switching.

Azriel kissed down your body, stopping at your hip bones to lick and suck marks on the sensitive spots. He pulled down your pants, underwear leaving with them, and groaned at the sight of how wet you’d gotten.

His big hands gripped your thighs, slowly spreading them apart, kissing up each side and stopping just before your core. You wiggled your hips, trying to get him to move closer. He took one finger and drug it up through your folds, bringing it to his mouth and sucking off the juices with a moan. You could’ve come undone at the sight.

Azriel spread your legs wider and dove in. Attaching his mouth to your aching pussy, licking and sucking like a man starved. Your back arched off the bed, hands shooting to his hair to pull him impossibly closer, eyes rolling back in your head.

He slid a finger inside you, curling and pumping it inside, hitting just the right spot that had you grinding down on his face, wanting more. He quickly inserted a second finger, nipping at your clit and making you see stars. Soon you were coming, grinding onto his mouth as his fingers pumped you through until your legs stopped shaking and you collapsed on the bed, breathing hard.

Azriel slunk up your body, planting a hungry kiss on your lips. You kissed him back with fervor, wrapping your legs around his waist and using your thighs to flip him over.

You sat up on top of him, admiring how sinfully beautiful he looked, eyes lidded with lust, full lips swollen, and wings splayed behind him.

You slid off of him, hands working to remove his pants. He lifted his hips and his cock finally sprang free. You practically salivated at the sight. Feeling no shame in how wet you got just by looking at him. He was big, thick and long, and pulsing with arousal, precum resting at the tip.

Azriel made to sit up and you gently pushed him down, sliding your body down until your mouth was poised above his cock. “It’s my turn to taste you.” You stared into his eyes as you wrapped your mouth around him, taking him in all the way to the back of your throat, gagging on the length of him. He let out a delightful moan as the tip hit the back of your throat, your hand wrapping around what wouldn’t fit inside you.

You began to move, sucking and stroking in time, swirling your tongue around the tip before taking as much of him as you could back down your throat. His hands flew to your hair, tugging at it as his hips began to thrust up into your mouth.

Your eyes were watering when he gently pulled you off, breathing heavy as you wiped the spit and precum from your mouth, licking your lips to get a taste of him. “I want to cum inside you.” He looked into your eyes before switching your positions.

Azriel lined himself up with your dripping sex, slowly pushing in, both of you moaning at the feeling. Your pussy stretched to accommodate every inch of his thick cock, filling you to the brim.

Your eyes rolled back in your head as he bottomed out, the tip of him hitting you in just the right way. You thought you’d been completely blissed out until he started moving, slowly at first and then quicker with each thrust, pushing into you hard enough to make the bed rock. Your nails raked at his shoulders as you moaned uncontrollably.

Azriel leaned down, mouth attaching to the spot between your neck and shoulder, biting and sucking enough to bruise. You lifted one hand up, lightly running your fingers along the edge of his wing. His hips stuttered and he growled into your shoulder.

In an instant he was pulling out of you, you didn’t even have time to whine at the lost contact before he flipped you over and slammed into you from behind.

You let out a scream as he grabbed your braid, wrapping it around his hand and pulling your head back as he relentlessly fucked into you. His other hand came around to rub your clit and you were thrown into a mind-blowing orgasm. You were shaking and crying as Azriel continued to fuck you.

Your pussy clenched around him and he came undone quickly after you, pumping his cum inside you before pulling out and collapsing on the bed next to you.

You both laid there for moment, staring at each other in shock and catching your breath.

“Wow.” Azriel breathed, looking at you like you were the most incredible thing he’d ever seen. You could only nod in agreement.

“Y/N…” he reached out, letting his hand fall to the open space between you, eyebrows furrowing.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” You grabbed his hand, placing it on your cheek.

“Nothing could be wrong after that.” He laughed, “it’s just, I feel like I should let you know that as amazing as that was… I don’t want this to just be sex. I have… deeper feelings for you. And if you don’t feel the same that’s okay and I’ll respect your boundaries, but if sex is all this is to you I think we should stop here. It would be hard enough to keep myself away from you now, let alone if we do this again.”

You were stunned. Only this morning had you even let yourself think this male MIGHT be attracted to you, and here he was saying he had feelings for you? You felt like the luckiest female alive.

You smiled at him. “I have feelings for you too… I think we should see where this goes.” He grinned back and pulled you to his chest.

You lay there for a while, Azriel’s hand in your hair, the other wrapped around your waist as you listened to his heartbeat.

“So,” he began, the smirk evident in his voice, “did I cure your sexual frustration?”

You laughed, having completely forgotten about Ian and your crappy date. “I can honestly say I and 100% satisfied.”

——————————————————————————

Taglist: @chaoticpizzalawyerbiscuit @ruler-of-hades @cosmic-whispers @brekkershadowsinger @azriel-luvr @humanpersonlasttimeichecked @thesillyyogourt @a-little-disguised @hanasakr @morrie-rose @lahoete @orangecomfortfoods @safetypinxtales

@articulatecrow

#a court of thorns and roses #acotar #witchybitchy222 #mine #azriel x reader #send me asks #azriel #azriel x female reader #acotar x reader

[miss-shawdowsinger]

Soothing Darkness - Azriel X reader fanfic

Chapter 11

Summary: the family dinner didn't exactly go to plan at Y/N gets jealous of Elain and Azriel

Warnings: SMUT 🥵!! Please so not read unless you are over 18!

AN: 🥵🥵🥵 so this happened! Please let me know what you think! I don't know how good I am at writing SMUT ❤️ strap in guys it's gonna be a bumpy ride!

Chapter 1

---

You had all of five minutes to get ready and be at the training rings. Somehow you managed to pull on your leathers and tie your hair back into a messy ponytail in record time. However, as you made it to the rings, Cassian waited with his arms folded over his chest.

“You’re late” he scowled as he tilted his head to one side.

“I’m two minutes late” you rolled your eyes at the clock at the side of the ring.

“Two minutes could make a big difference on the battlefield” Cassian raised his brow as he looked down at you. “Oh, and here is another late one” he gestured back to the door. You turned to find Azriel stepping out into the rings. “What a coincidence” Cassian almost whispered as the spymaster approached you both.

Azriel’s face was near unreadable except for the small tug at the side of his mouth when he saw you. His hair was neatly out of his face and he looked pristine as always in his usual training attire. He came to stand beside you as Cassian shook his head at the both of you. Your cheeks turned a light shade of pink and you bit your bottom lip slightly, not daring to look at either of the Illyrians.

“Did you manage to get enough sleep Az? You looked tired when you got in last night” Cassian smirked.

“Thanks for your concern Cass. I had plenty” Azriel’s deep voice laced with smugness. You wanted to run and hide from this convocation.

“Then why so tense?” Cassian smiled wickedly as Azriel’s face turned dark. He clenched his fists into tight ball, turning his knuckles white.

“I’m going to go warm up” you stepped in pulling the two Illyrians attention to you. Cassian nodded his dismissal as you backed away from them and into the training ring. That was one convocation you could do without today.

~~

Training had been intense. Cassian had put you all through your paces as he assembled an assault course for you to do. It had been a mix of climbing, crawling, fighting with swords or fists all whilst being timed. Your lungs were on fire as you tackled the course with ferocious energy. Making sure your mind was blank, you let your body do all the work. Muscle memory was your friend and you were the fourth quickest out of the group. Nesta, Emerie and Gwyn coming in the top three.

As you finished at training your body was a trembling mess as sweat dripped from you. The heat from the spring sun did nothing to help cool you down as you sat gulping water. “Nice work today” Nesta came to sit beside you.

“Thanks” you said between breaths. She sniffed the air around you.

“You smell of…..” she paused.

“Sweat? I’m absolutely drenched, I think I’m going to go take a bath instead of joining you at lunch. I’ll just grab something at the bakery” you smiled, pushing yourself up from the floor.

“That’s not what I….never mind” she shrugged. “Remember to meet at Fayre’s house tonight” she narrowed her eyes. “Don’t forget”.

“I won’t forget. No one will be there to pick me up from the bakery anyway” you held both your hands up in innocence before heading into the house for a much deserved bath.

~~

You paused outside the gate to the High Lord and Lady’s ‘house’. It was not a house at all. It was a huge estate with a beautiful, in bloom, garden. It looked like something out of one of your fairy tale stories. Taking a deep breath, you shakily opened the gate and stepped onto the grounds. All day you had been worried about tonight. You had already met everybody but this was a whole different situation.

At the end of the day, you had raided your wardrobe in your little apartment above the bakery. There wasn’t a lot of options, but you wanted to look presentable. You ended up wearing a simple emerald green dress that you have had for years. Nesta had given you the address before you left that morning. The street was full of huge houses but none of them compared to this one.

You approached the front door and knocked quietly. Your stomach flipped as you waited for someone to let you in. There was shuffling coming from inside as you watched a figure approach the door through the frosted glass. The door swung open to reveal the beautiful blonde fae wearing a red dress which left little to the imagination.

“Y/N, so glad you didn’t bail on us” Mor hugged you. “Come in, you look lovely” she politely looked at you up and down as you stepped inside. The foyer was huge, with painted pictured hung on the walls. Each painting was more stunning and detailed from the last. You could hear loud convocation and laughter from the room that Mor was leading you too.

The dining room was bright and warm. It was very grandly decorated but still looked homely. All eyes landed on you as Mor led you through the door. Your heart momentarily stopped as you gained everyone’s attention. “Hi everyone” your voice squeaked out.

“So glad you came Y/N” Fayre stood from her seat and passed you a glass of wine as the chatter continued.

“Thank you for inviting me” you smiled shyly.

“I honestly was 50/50 on if you would come at all or hide in your bakery” Nesta joined your side, clinking her glass against yours.

“Have I ever let you down before?” you raised your brow at her.

“Starfall, you ran off somewhere” she tilted her head. Your cheeks flashed pink at the memory.

“I’m surprised you can still stand after this morning” Cassian shouted from his seat. “You looked like you were going to pass out after training”.

“You’ll have to do better then that” you smirked.

“I’m sure Az can think of something” Cassian raised his glass gesturing to the seat opposite him. Azriel was sat casually with one ankle resting on his knee, a whiskey in his hands. Your eyes widened at Cassian’s comment in front of the whole group. “Any training techniques come to mind, Az?” Cassian smirked.

Azriel’s grip tightened slightly on his glass before taking a long sip. His hazel eyes finally landed on you. “I can think of a few things” his voice was painfully low and then a smile appeared on his lips before he took another long sip. Your knees nearly gave way as his eyes never left yours. Images of this morning flashed through your head. You had to steady your breathing as Azriel gave you a knowing look.

“Oh don’t be so cruel, you are supposed to be training her not trying to kill her” Mor thankfully interrupted before anything else was said.

“Take a seat girl” Amren pointed to a space beside her on the opposite side of the room. You moved across the room to sit beside her as convocations began flowing again. Mor and Nesta came over to join you as the four of you chatted by the small fire.

“Y/N, if you ever want a proper training session, then come to me” Mor poured you another wine.

“Is that so Morrigan?” Cassian interrupted. “You think you could train her better?”.

“Not better. Just smarter” she winked at you.

“Play nicely children” Amren tutted as Mor and Cassian scowled at one another.

You settled into the group of people surrounding you quite easily. It helped that you were already close with Nesta, Cassian and Azriel but everyone else was so welcoming. Amren was the only one out of the group you couldn’t quite figure out. She had been pleasant, but you didn’t want to find yourself on her bad side.

Elain appeared in the doorway and your chest tightened slightly. How could you have forgotten about Elain? She wore a pretty light blue dress and her hair was perfectly braided. Her eyes scanned the room before landing on Azriel. You looked between the two of them out of instinct. She smiled a bright, blushing smile at the Illyrian. “Dinner is ready” she announced to the room gesturing for people to take their seats at the dinning table.

Everyone seemed to move at once to take their seats at the table. You followed closely behind, taking the last empty chair next to Mor. Azriel was sat opposite you as Elain slipped gracefully into the chair next to him. You swallowed hard, focusing your gaze on your plate instead of the two opposite you.

“I made your favourite for desert” you listened as Elain spoke softly to Azriel.

“Thank you” he smiled sweetly at her. You could feel your blood pumping hot through your body as you listened to their convocation.

Elain hadn’t even acknowledged you as the evening went on, which irritated you more than it should have. Instead she only spoke to Azriel, listing all the new plants she had tended too in the garden as you ate quietly. “After dinner we should take a talk and I’ll show you. They look lovely in the moonlight” she placed a soft hand over his. You fought to swallow your food as your throat constricted. Azriel just nodded in response, knocking the wind right out of you.

After that you tried to ignore their convocation entirely. Cassian was challenging Mor and winding Amren up about something or other, all whilst getting scolded by Nesta. That seemed more like something you would enjoy listening too. No matter how hard you tried to focus on the others surrounding the large dining room table, your attention kept on being brought back to Elain and Azriel. The two of them enjoying their own quiet convocation whilst you sat in silence. The only saving grace was she was no longer touching him.

“Welcome to family dinner Y/N” Fayre pulled your attention from the chaos surrounding you. She had come to sit beside you at the head of the table.

“Is it always like this?” you shyly smiled. Hiding the fact that you were about ready to sneak out the door without anyone watching.

“Some dinners are more dignified than others but yes. Most of them end up like this” she laughed as she looked around the table. Rhys was sat at the other end of the table trying to keep the peace between Cassian and Amren. He looked utterly hopeless as Amren threatened to cut off Cassian’s manhood.

You thanked the mother for Fayre. She spoke to you for the rest of the meal, taking your attention away from her sister and Azriel. She asked about the bakery and even offered for you work at the house if business didn’t pick up soon. “The last thing I want is for you to go out of business” she smiled sweetly at you.

Once the meal came to an end, Elain excused herself, pulling Azriel up to join her for that walk in her garden. You didn’t lift your eyes from your empty plate as he stood to follow her out, though your heart sank in your chest as you saw them leave the room.

How stupid could you have been? Elain was beautiful and Azriel deserved someone like her. Someone sweet and caring. You had flirted and you had kissed but nothing was set in stone. He was free to go with any female he wanted. Your feelings had gotten way too deep and you needed space to get over them.

“Y/N” Cassian elbowed you as you walked to take a seat on the sofa. His voice low in understanding. “Nesta and I are going to head back soon. Do you want me to get Rhys to bring you up to the house with us?” his soft eyes met yours and he held both your shoulders to look at him. You paused, looking between Cassian, Rhys and the door that Azriel had just walked through with Elain.

“I think I might stay at my apartment tonight” you said softly. “I think it’s time that I move back but thank you, for everything”. Cassian’s brow furrowed but he nodded as he pulled you into his chest in a brief hug.

You needed to leave before Azriel and Elain got back so you quickly said your goodbyes. Nesta argued with you to no avail. “Just one night and then you come back” Nesta finally gave in.

“I’ll see you in the morning” you smiled, hiding the tears that began to form. You couldn’t have walked out the house quicker. Your mind began spiralling as you walked down the quiet streets, lit only by a couple of streetlights and the moon. Even if there wasn’t anything going on between Azriel and Elain, she definitely liked him. The way she looked at him was all you needed to see to know exactly how she feels.

Azriel hadn’t indicated that he was against her advances either. He went on a moonlit walk through her garden and barely spoke to you all night. Your chest heaved with a heavy sigh. How could you have let yourself get so drawn to him?

~~

The walk from Fayre’s house was only a brisk twenty minutes. You fished inside your coat pocket as you reached the front door to the bakery. A small thud sounded behind you making you jump and drop your keys. You quickly swiped them up from the floor before turning around. Azriel had just landed on the cobbled streets behind you.

“What are you doing?” his deep voice almost growled as he came to stand in front of you. He towered over you, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“What does it look like? I’m going home” you couldn’t meet his eyes. You spun back around and unlocked the door. Azriel’s arm quickly blocked you from walking through the door.

“You live at the house of wind” his shadows began to curl around his neck. No doubt Rhys or Fayre had filled him in on your plans to move back into your apartment tonight.

“I was a temporary guest” you shook your head. “I think it’s time I move back” you shoved past his outstretched arm and into the bakery.

Azriel, to your surprise followed you in through the door. His wings barely making it through the doorframe. He shut the door behind him and calmly turned to you. “Why now?” his voice was soft as he moved through the room, closing the gap between you. You took a step away from him and he froze in place. Hurt flashed across his face making you want to rush to him but you stayed in place.

“I just think that it’s time for me to move back. It’s been months since….” you trailed off not daring to think about the attack.

“But why tonight? What changed?” he looked at you with pleading eyes, waiting for an answer. “Y/N” his voice was deeply soothing as he said your name. You felt some sort of pull, like the one last night and you finally dared to look up at him. His hazel eyes met yours.

“I know that what we have done is just harmless flirting and there isn’t anything more to it” you said it to protect your feelings but you knew it was a lie. His eyes widened slightly, but you carried on. “But seeing you with Elain tonight got under my skin” you admitted.

“You got jealous?” Azriel smirked.

“It doesn’t mean anything” you blurted out quickly. Trying to salvage any dignity you might have left.

“No?” he asked. “Just harmless flirting, there isn’t anything else to it. That’s what you believe?” he repeated the words back to you as he slowly began to approach you again. His shadows reached out to you but you shied away.

“Exactly” your voice was barely above a whisper as your back found the wall behind you. Azriel stepped closer until he was barely an inch away from you. Your heart began racing as he towered over you.

“I don’t believe you” Azriel’s deep voice whispered into your ear. His hot breath sending shivers down the bare skin of your neck. “I told Elain on our walk that I wasn’t interested. I thought that may be kinder then in front of everyone. I tried to get your attention all night but you barely looked at me” he growled. “Now I know why” he paused, taking his hand to tilt your chin up. You couldn’t escape his eyes now. “Tell me it doesn’t mean anything and I will leave”.

You couldn’t believe how wrong you had been. He had spoken to Elain in private, like a kind male would. Did you expect him to announce to the whole room, to their family that he wasn’t interested? Of course not. You were an idiot. And now you had told him that what you both shared didn’t mean anything. His eyes still held yours waiting for your answer.

“I can’t” you whimpered.

“You can’t what?”

“I can’t tell you that it doesn’t mean anything….” your back was pushed up tightly against the wall, tears threatening to roll down your cheeks. “Because it does. This isn’t just harmless flirting to me”.

That was all Azriel needed to here. His lips were on yours as soon as the words left your mouth. It wasn’t like the kiss you had shared this morning, it was full of want and need. He pushed his whole body up against yours as his hand moved from your chin to your neck, angling you to deepen the kiss. His other hand wondered down your body, caressing your hips and pulling you as close to him as you could be.

His kiss tasted perfect on your tongue, you wanted more, needed more. He left your mouth to trail kisses along your jaw and down your neck. You angled your head allowing him better access. Heat flushed through your body as he nipped at the sensitive skin on your collarbone before pressing his lips back into yours.

He leaned down slightly to pick you up. Wrapping both of your legs around his waist as he pressed you back up against the wall. The dress you wore was hitched up around your waist showing your laced underwear off. You could feel his arousal through his trousers as he held you in place and kissed you hungrily. Every inch of your body screamed out for him. He backed you both from the wall and carried you up the stairs to your apartment. His arms held you tightly against him as he effortlessly made it up the stairs.

He kicked open the door and didn’t hesitate as he made his was towards your bed. Azriel laid you down gently and hovered over you kissing you with each breath he took. You reached up to him, undoing the buttons on his shirt. He broke from the kiss to kneel between your legs taking the shirt off over his wings. His muscled torso now exposed to you. Your cheeks flushed as he beheld you below him. Your dress hitched up to show your black laced underwear. A growl reminted from his chest as he slowly, gently moved his hands up both your legs. He teasingly worked from your knee, using featherlight touches, down the inside of your thigh. You shuddered as he ghosted over your core and then began to push your dress further up your body.

He removed the dress over your head until you were left only in your underwear. You let out a shaky breath as he hooked his fingers under the waistband of your underwear and bent down to place a kiss on your hip. Ever so slowly he pulled the lace fabric down your legs until you ware bare to him. You didn’t have time to think or hide from him as he grazed a finger down your centre. Coating his finger in your arousal before slowly circling the small bundle of nerves. You breathed in a sharp breath at the pleasure that flooded through you at just a simple touch from him.

Your hips bucked up to meet more friction but he took his finger away. Instead wrapping his arms around both of your thighs and replacing his finger with his tongue. You couldn’t suppress the moan you had been holding any longer as he slowly moved his tongue up and down your core. His warm breath at your centre sent shivers up your spine. “Finally, I’ve been waiting too long to hear you moan for me” he roared between your legs. His tongue dipped in and out of you as he moved one of his hands to massage your breast. Tension was building up in your lower stomach as Azriel explored you with his mouth. You threw your head back in pure pleasure as he began sucking on the small bundle of nerves.

With his free hand he lined up the tip of his finger with your entrance before slowly pushing it inside of you. He moved the finger slowly in and out of you as you grabbed onto the bedsheets. “Azriel” you moaned his name. He growled as he added another finger, working you as the tension grew with each thrust of his hand and flick of his tongue.

Your whole body tensed as you reached your peak. Pleasure pulsated through your body as you moaned out to him. Azriel kept a steady rhythm as his fingers still moved in and out of you. Riding out your orgasm. He kissed your clit and you twitched under his warm touch. “Sensitive?” his voice was animalistic as he rose back to his knees before you.

Yes, you were sensitive but you wanted more. So much more. If that was the best orgasm you had ever had what could the rest of him do. You got on your knees in front of him and kissed him, tasting yourself on his lips. You reached out for his belt, unbuckling it then undoing his trousers. His eyes met yours briefly and you nodded.

Azriel stood from the bed and dropped his trousers. You swallowed hard at the size of him, he was beautiful. Every inch of him was toned as if he had been carved by a god. Slowly he climbed back over you, lowering you down onto the bed. He kissed you passionately as he hovered over you. One of your hands got lost in his black hair whilst the other snaked between your two bodies. You slowly traced your fingertip up his muscled thigh until you found his member. He moaned deeply as your hand softly rubbed at the velvety soft skin.

He pushed himself forward, covering himself with your arousal before you helped line him up to your entrance. An inch at a time, he pushed himself slowly into you. You gasped as he stretched you. Each inch he waited for you to adjust before carrying on until he was fully buried deeply into you. Then, he began to move. Slowly at first, teasing you as he kissed up your neck. Then he began to quicken his pace. Thrusting into you with force as you moaned underneath him. Your legs began to shake as you could feel the tension building again in your stomach.

Azriel was hitting the precise spots you needed him too with each thrust of his hips. “Good girl” he praised as you arched your back into him. The new angle made everything hit even better as you tensed around him. You could feel the heat rising through your body as a burst of pleasure filled you and something snapped within you. The snap took your breath away, filling your body and soul with ecstasy. Azriel moaned as he also reached his climax, his thrusts into you became sloppy as he rode you both out.

He pulled out of you and laid next to you before pulling your body tightly towards him. You rested your head on his chest as his arms wrapped tightly around you. Your legs tangled with each others. The two of you laid there for a moment, catching your breath and coming down from your climax. Your bodies were covered with sweat as you held one another tightly.

“Thank the mother for no interruptions” Azriel smirked as he kissed your brow. You burst out laughing as he cocooned you in his wings.

Chapter 12

#acotar #acotar fandom #acotar fanfiction #azriel #azriel x reader #azriel x you #batboys #cassian

[lunainfortuna]

Ohhh. Funny 'cause I was thinking about writing a post about Sangravah and woho, it's now the current subject.

I'm done with tiptoeing around it.

When a gwynriel talks about this situation or when someone portrays in art, it's never about Gwyn's sa. It's all about Azriel saving her; 'cause no matter what you say, he saved her. And this is something big and meaningful.

Their history is linked through a moment where he showed up and helped her. She was in the worst moment of her fucking life and he was her escape; her light. As other characters have been in MANY other times.

Feyre was hurt after Amarantha's abuse and Rhys helped her. Everyone remembers that. Talks about that. Nesta was getting into the caldron and Cassian screamed for her, crawled for her. Everyone knows that and remembers that.

ACOTAR is full of plotlines of salvation and help.

Gwyn was suffering. Her rape is not romanticized, not good or beautiful. And Azriel showing up is something else; it's never a bad thing. So fuck you guys for making people feel guilty for portraying or talking or whatever in this scene.

#fandom bs #gwynriel #gwyneth berdara #pro gwynriel #azriel x gwyn #gwynriel supremacy #pro gwyneth berdara

[sadiegirl2021]

Over 10k hits!! Unimaginable

In honour of this milestone, here are some Gwynlain friendship snippets from the story so far:

Chapter Two:

Gwyn, ever the big sister at heart, reassured her, "Well, just make sure he treats you with respect, and know you can stop at any time. Do you have protection?"

Elain's innocence shone through in her response. "Protection? Like a dagger?"

Gwyn couldn't help but laugh at the misunderstanding. "No, Elain, contraceptive tea! Nesta drinks it daily. Have you not heard of it? Didn't you and Graysen protect yourselves?"

Elain looked a bit sheepish and replied, "No, I mean, we were going to get married, so there wouldn't have been any reason to. I suppose I got lucky. Nyx might have had a cousin." She snickered.

Chapter Four:

She half-crawled toward Elain's room, reaching it through their shared living space.

"Elain?" She reached for the bed, patting around for a body. Nesta would kill her if anything happened. "Elain?" She tried again, in a raspy whisper.

"Stop screaming," Elain whimpered out.

Thank the gods, Gwyn thought. She crawled under the covers to lie beside Elain.

"Why are you wet?" Elain moaned.

"I was hoping you could tell me!" She laughed weakly.

"I don't even remember leaving the club. My head hurts so much! How did Nesta do this every night for months?" It sounded like she was almost crying.

Gwyn gathered her against her for a hug. "I think the trick is to keep drinking."

"I'm never drinking again," Elain exclaimed.

Chapter Six:

"So, you and Baz!? Sorry again for the interruption. But in fairness, I did knock!”

Elain blushed, her cheeks tinged with a rosy hue as she slammed her head into the pillow. "I don’t know what happened! I was helping him put lotion on, and the next thing I know, I’m pinned against the wall asking him to kiss me," she mumbled, “It was ridiculously hot!”

"Sounds like it! You’re drinking your tea, right?"

Elain rolled her eyes, "Yes, every day, mom!" She playfully hit Gwyn in the face with the pillow.

“Hey, I can’t help it! You’re like my little sister. I want to make sure you’re safe. And if Balthazar does anything to hurt you, tell me straight away. I’m well-trained in kicking the shit out of Illyrians,” Gwyn boasted.

Elain leapt over to grab her into a suffocating hug. “Thank you.”

Chapter Nine:

Elain smiled, "So, you and Azriel then..." she teased, a playful glint in her eyes.

Gwyn rolled her eyes, feigning annoyance. "We're not talking about that either!"

"You don’t even know what I was going to ask!" Elain teased, nudging her playfully.

"Read your book," Gwyn shot back, grabbing a novel and shoving it into Elain’s hands. She laughed.

Chapter Sixteen:

Gwyn laughed. "Elain, I'm pretty sure if you wore a potato sack, Lucien would still think you’re the most beautiful female that ever existed."

"You don’t know that…I might not even be his type," Elain sighed. She’d never seen him with any other females, but she was sure there had to be broken hearts all over Prythian considering how handsome he was. Maybe he preferred different hair colours, darker skin, brighter eyes. She sometimes felt a bit ordinary with her brown hair and brown eyes. Sure, they had a mating bond but it didn’t mean he found her attractive.

“Trust me, you’re every male’s type!” Gwyn raised an eyebrow, knocking Elain from her thoughts with a blush.

“Well, I’m all out of potato sacks, so help me pick a dress,” Elain joked. Gwyn laughed at that.

Chapter Twenty-Three:

Gwyn pushed into her room the second Lucien was gone, shouting “Tell me everything!”

How far down the hallway would he hear them? Maybe he’d winnowed… did it matter if he heard anything she said?

“Nothing happened. We really just fell asleep together, and then talked for a bit,” she told Gwyn.

She rolled her eyes, “Really? You just had a casual little nap with your mate?”

“I swear! We’re trying the whole friends thing for a while.”

Gwyn laughed, “Good luck with that. You know he’s obsessed with you, right? The mating bond messes males up way more than females.”

#Gwynlain friendship #Gwynriel #pro gwynriel #elucien #pro elucien #Elthazar for 5 seconds #eris vanserra #pro eris vanserra #Grandfather Eris #eris x oc #acotar #acotar fanfiction #ao3 #ao3 fanfic

[goddess-in-heaven-and-hell]

Gwynriel Week 2023 - Day 1: Series of Firsts

Look who crawled out of their cave and into the sunlight for the first time in months. Seriously, I thought I had forgotten how to form sentences and string them together, but here we are. I just can’t let Gwynriel week pass without doing something. 

So here is an angsty, fluff and slightly smutty one-shot for our favourites. (I feel like I’ve changed my usual writing style for this, but I hope you don’t mind too much.)

@gwynrielweeksoffical

Word count: around 2500 

Warnings: non-explicit smut (?) 

The first time they held hands, Azriel found truth.

It was after a particularly grueling training session. Rain came pouring from the sky cold and heavy, making his leathers stick uncomfortably to every inch of skin. His wings got heavier by the minute too and he had to remind himself time and time again to not let them drop and slouch all over the floor. But even if the sun had shone and Cassian would have started to dance the gavotte in a tutu, his mood wouldn’t have been any better.

He probably was too caught up in his head over the mission. He probably gave out commands a little too harshly, let the females run a little too many rounds. It didn’t help as well that his shadows were constantly commenting Gwyn’s improvement instead of figuring out a plan like he ordered them too. He never snapped at his Shadows, but that day, he came close to it.

When training ended Azriel made his way across the ring in record time, wanting to sort out his thoughts without any company. But he didn’t get very far at all.

“Hey, Shadowsinger!”

Closing his eyes in a desperate attempt to gain patience, Azriel came to a halt. A beaming priestess caught up to him in no time, neither the cold nor the rain seemed to bother her.

Right in front of him, she held out her hand expectantly. “I would appreciate it very much if that little deal of ours was fulfilled immediately. I kicked ass today, the combination included.”

Azriel signed, his breath a white cloud in front of his face. “You did?”

Gwyn nodded solemnly. “Indeed. And I am sure you saw, or at least your Shadows did. So, hand me the treats I was promised.”

“You know that I have better things to do than to monitor you constantly?”, Azriel bit out. He regretted the words the second they left his tongue – not only because they weren’t true, but also because they were the reason that beautiful smile on her face began to dim.

“Well, yes.”, she lowered the hand that was previously outstretched and cradled it to her stomach, “I just figured you’d might-“

“Gwyn.”, he cut her off, “can we talk about this some other day?”

His Shadows immediately started to scold him. Now he had definitely driven her away, he had been unnecessarily cold and made her so uncomfortable that she’d surely end this conversation.

But instead of retreating, Gwyn drew together her brows, little pearls of rain cascading down her nose in the process. “Are you okay, Az?”

She asked the question like no one had ever done before. Rhys usually asked with the tone of the High Lord, wanting to know if his mental state is good enough to lead the spy network. Nesta asked sarcastically over a shared dinner. Elain asked timidly, like the answer might scare her and she’d rather not know.

Gwyn’s question had been genuine, laced with the concern of a close friend and the fearlessness of something more. Her softly spoken words were music to his ears, a symphony he wanted to replay in his mind over and over again.

So, instead of just sidestepping the truth or lie, he confessed. “I’m not.”

Gwyn gave him a sad smile, her curious gaze searching his face for answers, silently encouraging him to go on. “I think I haven’t been okay for a long time.”

It was then, when it happened. Gwyn slowly reached out her hand and intertwined her dainty fingers with his. Squeezing lightly, she told him, “Well, if you are in need of a patient listener, you know where to find me.”

Azriel bit his lip, nodding. He was suddenly too shy to even look at her, so instead his eyes wandered to the ground and then to their hands. He couldn’t find words to describe how much that little sentence meant to him. Because he knew – with Gwyn, he wouldn’t have to hold back, he could be brutally honest and yet wouldn’t face judgement.

The silences stretched on while they stood in the empty training ring, connected by their hands, until Gwyn broke it. “I could also tell you that I’m a good advice giver, but that would be a stretch.”

The Shadowsinger cracked his first smile of the week, which in turn caused Gwyn to smile as well. The night, he indeed sought her out, cutting his heart out for her to see and inspect.

He had hoped she would find it worthy.

She had never seen something so beautiful.

---

The first time they kissed, Azriel found hope.

He planned every little detail about the date with unwavering precision. He knew the exact minute more people than usual crowded the center of Velaris, knew when the musicians start to play, what to wear, which flowers to present her with… but he forgot to set his own head straight.

He stumbled over his words the second he saw her descend the stairs in a beautiful green dress. What was meant to be a compliment came out in a jumbled sentence, causing Gwyn to suppress a smile. That smile didn’t help his nerves either.

During their dinner, overlooking the lit-up streets of Velaris, Gwyn chattered away freely while Azriel pondered over every word, every sentiment he wanted to share with her. Conversation was usually easy with Gwyn, but the weight of calling this their official ‘date’ threw all comfort he felt with her overboard.

He kept checking if she was comfortable, if she wanted more food or drink, if she was too warm or too cold, if the amount of people surrounding them bothered her.

When they made their way home, arms interlinked and strolling through the cobblestone streets, Azriel was certain he fucked up for good, and that he didn’t deserve to exchange another word with her.

“You’re brooding.”

His head snapped to the side, facing a wide-smiling Gwyn.

“I was fairly certain my company would keep you from overthinking your work, but it appears I overestimated my dazzling personality.”, she drew her voice out teasingly, baiting him to answer.

Azriel signed, stopped in his tracks and turned Gwyn to face him. He might as well use this opportunity to explain himself to her, that’s what she deserved.

“I’m incredibly sorry, Gwyn. I know this wasn’t the date you expected. I just couldn’t help my nerves.”, he confessed, his voice low and audible just for Gwyn. “Thank you anyways for agreeing to this. I hope it wasn’t a complete waste of time.”

Being done with the best explanation he could muster, he searched Gwyn’s features for any sign of annoyance or sadness. To his surprise, he only found confusion.

“Wait a second.”, Gwyn crossed her arms in front of her chest, “Do you mean to tell me that you barely spoke on this date because you were nervous?”

Now it was his turn to furrow his brows in confusion. “Yes?”

Gwyn burst out into giggles. “I can’t believe it. The infamous Shadowsinger, who fought in more wars than I can even name, who has years and years of dating experience, was nervous to take out a little priestess from the library?”

She didn’t get it, still smiling at the apparent silliness of his nerves. Because she didn’t know that he had been envisioning this date from the moment she first talked to him in training. That he looked at his brothers and their mates and wished with all of his heart that he could have what they had with her. That he would protect her with his life if he needed to.

“Gwyn, do you even know how big of a deal this is for me?”, he asked, his voice quivering just slightly with all the pent up emotions now bubbling to the surface. Gwyn’s smile froze. “You aren’t just another date to me. If I messed this up, then we wouldn’t just lose the opportunity of being together, but maybe our friendship too. And that’s something I can’t live without.”

He looked to the ground, suddenly unable to face the female he fell hopelessly in love with. “But it appears that I have to now.”

Suddenly, he felt a warm hand gently cupping his cheek, lifting his head. “Az.”

He covered her hand with his, desperately trying to memorize her touch, but still not meeting her eyes.

“Azriel, please look at me.”, Gwyn’s voice held nothing of her previous lightness, “Who ever said that you messed this up?”

The Shadowsinger found the courage to look at her now, if only to find out if she was joking or not. But Gwyn just looked sad, like she accidentally stepped on a puppy’s tail.

“This was the best date I’ve ever been on. I’ve gotten the most beautiful flowers, a flight over Velaris, a romantic dinner, and a male that clearly went out of his way to make this a memorable day for me.”, she swallowed, her eyes turning a bit glassy, “I genuinely thought something was bothering you, that you changed your mind about us being together, but were too polite to say something. Never in a million years would I have guessed that you were nervous.”

It was like the weight of a whole mountain fell from his chest at her words. He couldn’t even reply.

Gwyn smiled lightly, taking another step in his direction so that they stood chest to chest. “Az, may I kiss you?”

He only mustered a nod, completely overwhelmed by this sudden change of direction. And then, there was only the feeling of her lips on his. Gwyn kissed him gently but firmly, and he all but melted into her. Thankfully, he had enough presence of mind to engulf her into his arms as she sank into his body. This was more than he ever expected, more than he deserved, but he drank up every ounce of attention she gave him, every brush of her lips to his, every inch of her body pressed to him.

After the kiss ended, they still held each other close, foreheads touching.

“Don’t ever feel like you need to impress me in order for me to like you. You are all I’ve ever wanted.”, Gwyn whispered, and Azriel would be damned if her words didn’t break his heart and mend it all at the same time.

---

The first time they slept together, Azriel found religion.

They had been moving slowly, Gwyn’s reactions dictating every move, touch and inch of skin revealed to each other. It was a process of up and down. On some nights, Gwyn would be too insecure, too shy to even share a deep kiss, so they would end up cuddling on the sofa in front of the fireplace, with Azriel stroking her hair softly and whispering to each other. Other nights were a blur of passion, with clothing almost ripped off and carefree smiles of encouragement.

He knew what a big deal it was for Gwyn to show him her body completely. The first time she let her gown slide from her shoulders and onto a forgotten pile on the floor, Azriel couldn’t find the strength to take his eyes off her for one second. Her lithe body was toned with ropes of hard-earned muscle, skin so flawless he itched to reach out and feel its perfection under his fingertips. She let him do exactly that for the entirety of the night, quivering in his arms from his skilled fingers and coming back again and again for more.

Azriel would spend hours with his mouth between her legs, making her find release over and over again and getting drunk on the taste of her. He never felt more cocky then when he saw Gwyn’s thighs shake from the intensity of her orgasm, hearing her call his name like a prayer. Azriel knew that he’d never want another female in his bed, or by his side, ever again.

If he felt elated when he got to please her, he was positively ecstatic when she started to explore his body on her own accord. Her fingertips traced over every dip and curve of muscle and the ridges of his scars, coaxing out moans and sounds from his lips that he didn’t even know he could produce. He wasn’t above pleading, not with her, and it gave Gwyn the extra push she needed to take him into her hands.

Months had passed from the moment they started to explore the sexual side of their relationship, to when she finally slid onto him. Both of their bodies were already covered with a fine sheen of sweat, chests heaving and eyes lit-up. Azriel held her close on his lap, not leaving an inch between them as he guided her onto his hardness, pausing here and there to let her adjust. He littered kisses on her face, her neck and her collarbones in silent encouragement. But Gwyn didn’t need to be encouraged, an expression of pure bliss on her face as she sank onto him completely.

Azriel bit back his groan and the urge to move immediately, letting her decide how she wanted to go about this. Gwyn paused, seeking his gaze and then breaking out into the biggest smile he’d ever seen her wear. He couldn’t help his answering grin, thrusting up lightly and making her screech out a laugh. When she started moving on him however, all laughter was fast forgotten and replaced by need.

Azriel had his faire share of sex, but never was it like this. Never did it feel like his soul was searching for another, never did he want to please so badly. With Gwyn, every single thing felt ten times more intense, more purposeful.

He was sure he found his purpose in life when falling in love with her. And he was going to make sure she knew every second for the rest of her life.

#gwynriel #Azriel #gwyneth berdara #gwynrielweeks2023 #gwynriel appreciation #acotar #gwyn x azriel #azriel x gwyn #gwynriel weeks 2023

[elliemarchetti]

The Snake and the Wolf

Chapter 3 - Hounds

The plot took over this story, as did the POV changes. I hope @erisweek2023 readers are ready for a complete detachement from the canonical events of the book, because the moment of Nesta's escape has arrived.

Prologue | Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 4

Words: 1.281

Nesta didn’t know how she got to the stony coast of the Night Court. One moment she was walking down the steps of the House of Wind and the next she was running away from Velaris, crushed by guilt and fear of what Rhysand might do to her. She gave away his secret, she gave back to Feyre what had been taken from her, and now she no longer had a home. Her mind raced to Gwyn and Emerie, to what might happen to them, since Cassian and Azriel knew they were her closest friends. She had to find a way to make them escape, to warn them to get to safety, because Nesta knew that the High Lord would try to enter their minds to see if they had any idea of her whereabouts. She hadn’t told Feyre that her first pregnancy would also be her last just because she had a good heart, but deep down they all knew she deserved to go to her death with her pride intact, like she already did to free them all. Furthermore, there was probably a solution to the problem. Considering how they took the fact that Feyre possessed a drop of everyone’s powers, Nesta doubted that the High Lords would’ve ever agreed to bring her back to life again, but maybe another Death-God resided somewhere, trapped in a mountain or a tree, and Rhysand could’ve sold his black soul to save his Mate. Nesta wondered if she would’ve done it in his place, given the chance, but didn’t like the answer she found within her, so she resumed her walk, going further and further south, with the sand under her bare feet and the now cold water lapping at her ankles with the rhythmic motion of the waves. She’d never been to the seaside before. If the situation had been different, she would’ve tried swimming, and then she would’ve found a house and wrote to Elain how beautiful it was, and how she had nothing to fear, unlike when she was thrown into the Cauldron, but the situation was no different and there were no villages in sight, so Nesta’s only hope was to reach a Court willing to help her before Rhysand tracked her down. In the library, she had read countless books that explained how to defend herself from the powers of a daemati, but since she hadn’t met any other beside her sister’s husband, she didn’t know if she was using those techniques well or if even a child could’ve destroyed her mind with just a snap of the fingers. Another incentive to keep up the pace, until her knees gave in and her vision went blurry from exhaustion. Before the Valkyries, before she rediscovered the joy of having purpose and friends, she would’ve gladly accepted the oblivion, better than the one provided by alcohol, but now she realized she had reasons to live, places to explore and lessons to learn. Allowing herself the luxury of dreaming, Nesta would’ve liked to visit the Autumn Court first, that enchanted and colourful place described in the novels she had shared with the House. She was sorry she had to leave it behind, even if it was depressing to say that her first, true friend in the Night Court hadn’t been a person but the darkness inside a building. Maybe, in honour of that bond, she would’ve indulged its desire to delve deeper into her powers, now that she didn't have to endure the pressures of the Inner Circle, or maybe she would’ve not, her life as Fae full of possibilities, if only she managed to survive and crawl out of the niche in the rocks where she had taken refuge for the night.

She though she would’ve woke up because of the humidity, or the pangs of hunger and thirst, but she discovered to her amazement that it was something wet touching her hand that shook her from her torpor. Even opening her eyes, caked by the salty air, cost her immense effort, but the cries of the creature managed to completely steal her from her dreamless sleep. The dog, clearly a hound of some sort, had a long and slender body, his ribs almost protruding from how thin it was, but it was its muzzle that struck her, so elongated and elegant, and at the same time almost grotesque, with those big eyes and short ears hanging down at the sides of its small head. It was the strangest beast she’d ever seen, yet something in her desired to reach out to pet it, to seek some comfort in its short gray fur. It must’ve been an excellent hunter, judging by its long sharp teeth, but it was also very playful, seeing how happily it wiggled its tail while she scratched its belly. Nesta had always wanted a pet, not necessarily a dog, perhaps a cat or a bunny would’ve sufficed, but her mother always forbade it, and her father never bothered to get her one, despite the huge numbers of requests. It wasn’t noble enough to take care of something else beside themselves, and when they fell from grace, it was too much, yet Nesta knew she had it in her to be a trainer, perhaps a little soft-hearted if all puppies had the same expression as the creature she was snuggling at the moment, but always attentive to her pet’s needs.

“Where is your owner? Are you lost?” she asked as if it could answer, her voice hoarse after more than a whole day of not using it. It had been a meaningless question, to which she certainly hadn’t expected to receive a reply, but the dog stood up on his long legs and ran out of the niche, into the sunlight flooding the dark beach. Nesta followed with great difficulty, but the beast didn’t move any more, as if it was waiting for her to catch up. They went on like this for hours,  the dog advancing and Nesta dragging herself through the sand to reach him, until the sun almost completed its descent arc and another dog barked in the distance. Nesta knew they couldn’t have moved too far, not with her in those conditions, but all those animals could mean only that she’d reached a town, and the larger the settlement, the more the possibilities of someone offering asylum to a dying young female, at least for a few hours. Her bones ached even more at the thought of a soft bed, and her stomach growled as she pictured every kind of food known to both men and Fae, but although she was almost certain the sun had burned the exposed skin on her arms, the worst torture had been the dryness in her mouth, which made it difficult to even swallow the little saliva she had left. At some point, when imagination and reality began to merge, she heard someone call her name, and a male figure appeared at the horizon, the burning red of the sun the same shade as his hair. The glorious hallucination approached her at a brisk pace, one dog at its heels and the other trotting alongside, satisfied with its distressed discovery. A pair of muscular arms, thinner than Cassian’s but no less strong, caught her before she could fall to the ground again, and Nesta could’ve sworn the smell of burnt wood, fresh apples and sweet cinnamon engulfed her as it used to do when her maids cooked her favourite treats.

“I found you,” murmured a familiar voice, full of concern and apprehension, its owner’s face buried in her matted hair. “I’m here, and we’re going home.”

#erisweek2023 #eris vanserra #nesta archeron #i'm going to name his dogs #at least a couple of them #so if you want to suggest some names you're more than welcome #neris #although this is a little nesta centric #think of this as something similar to a interlude in an album #you may think it doesn't fit the theme #but the theme is all over it #furthermore i wanted an excuse to write about eris in the sunset #i may expand the concept in another story #after this fast paced thing i need something full of long descriptions #i want to be the tolkien of acotar fanfiction #so basically be back to write things aimed only at my personal taste #not that this is popular #sorry for the rant #but it's kind of late here and i had a really full day

[sirendeepity]

[ Multicharacter; part iii ]

A/N: I planned to publish this on Friday and drop a completely unrelated one-shot, like, four hours ago, but apparently said one-shot didn't magically write itself (rude.) So yeah, I think the writing high is going down. You'll never see me again. Anyway, this is the infamous dramatic version I went for to close this little adventure of sorts, and I sincerely hope it will make you sad. Enjoy <3

T/W: mention of injuries, blood, loss;

W/C: 2.2k

Rhysand had come and gone and come again, and would make his way back to Velaris in moments. To maintain some semblance of order in the city while Feyre tended to the injured, he’d said. The shocks had been so violent they’d caused trouble there too, although not as severe. There had been a couple more aftershocks, but they were getting far and few in between. A good sign, he had to remember himself. Something to hold on to.

Not long after the second shock, they had found Gwyn. Or rather, she had found them, crawling out of a little hole between a boulder and a collapsed column while using a hand to keep a scrap of fabric pressed to her forehead. She had all but cracked her skull open, and Cassian had no idea how she could even stay upright, let alone be lucid enough to talk to them, telling them who she’d seen where before the ceiling rained down on them so they would know where to look first while searching for the missing priestesses.

As soon as Feyre was done patching her up, Gwyn had cleaned the blood from her freckled face and tied back her matted hair—the red strands even darker now—, and was up and about, helping other injured priestesses. Azriel had kept close to her, leaving her side only when she’d purposefully stomped as far away as she could. Even then, his shadows had kept circling like vultures. There was not a breath Gwyn could draw that Az was not aware of. Even if he was three levels lower—or something close to it. It was hard to make that distinction when the entire thing had collapsed onto itself and the third level was also the fourth and the fifth. Cassian and Azriel had brought down faery lights to scatter around, a small blessing against the dense blackness of the pit. The lowest levels were fully blocked, but Cassian remembered Nesta telling him about some unspoken rule between the priestesses that kept them well away. It did use to host Bryaxis, once upon a time, and Cassian could very much see why they would steer clear from the shadows.

Cassian and Azriel wasted no time worrying about what-ifs. The majority of the priestesses had already been found and carried away, left in the hands of those better equipped to take care of them, but a couple of names were still missing from the list. Nesta was among them. Emerie, too. Cassian had felt like the biggest piece of shit ever when he felt angry and disappointed every time they found someone who wasn’t her. Because his Nesta was still down there, somewhere, scared and hurt and alone and he kept wasting time with other—

“Cass,” Azriel called, a scarred finger pointing downward. “Look, there’s something.”

Cassian squinted, but couldn’t make out anything. Catching his eye again, Azriel monitored for him to let his siphons darken, the lights turning a faint red and blue color.

Then, he saw it. Behind a collapsed column almost entirely pressed against the wall, was a wildly fluttering light. It was a flimsy thing, really, and was off more often than it was on, but it was there. Despite everything, that tiny light refused to turn off entirely. As if it had a purpose, a reason.

Cassian landed as close as he could, careful not to upset the red blocks, not knowing what was supporting them or what they were supporting back. He couldn’t see much past his nose, so he called magic into every siphon on his person, washing the space around him in red light.

And came face to face with yet another obstructed way. The stone was coated in some dark substance, its sickly sweet scent stenching the air around them. Azriel grazed the surface, fingers coming back black. Even his shadows seemed uneasy at being close to it.

Cassian shared a look with his brother, dread crawling up his spine. Something was wrong. With the House, something was wrong with the House.

Cassian reached for the bond, that priceless golden thread tethering him to Nesta. He’d kept it pulled tight to the point of breaking, not daring to let it—let her—go half an inch. Now he wanted to grab the thing with both hands and pull so hard he’d drag her out of whatever hole she’d fallen into.

Where are you, Nes?

[ *** ]

“You have to do it.”

Nesta weakly shook her head, as she’d done every time Emerie had tried to coax her into her plan. They were completely cut off from the rest of the library, the bubble of space even smaller than when she’d first found it. If Nesta tried to stand, she had to bend her head all the way to the side to fit. And that wasn’t even the worst of it.

“Nesta.”

“No.”

The worst was that during one of the last shocks, a large stone had fallen over the boulder already blocking Emerie’s left wing, with another piece of wall leaning on it. There was no way of moving one or the other without risking that pathetic excuse of a ceiling to crush them both.

Following Emerie’s advice, she’d tried to call her silver flames to her, and Nesta wondered why she hadn’t thought of it before. She’d quickly learned why, when the realization of just how doomed they were had hit her like a hammer, her body tuning liquid as she slumped to the ground.

“Nes.” Emerie’s voice was hoarse, as if those three letters cost her more energy than she had left to give. “There is no getting out of this, and you know it.”

Nesta looked, truly looked, at her friend’s tired face. Dust and dried blood crusted her cheeks, her hair, her neck. There was a furrow to her brow, and her eyes were shut closed. She must be in so much pain.

“Not that much, really.”

Nesta must’ve said that last part out loud, then.

“You can’t move your wing.”

“I haven’t been able to for quite some time now.”

She was not talking about that specific moment, the situation they were quite literally stuck in.

“They’re a nuisance on a good day,” Emerie murmured, eyelids fluttering open.

“Emerie,” Nesta tried to catch her attention, but her friends went on undeterred.

“Not to mention the chronic nerve pain, and the muscle pain, and-”

“Em.”

“-the constant reminder of what I’ll never get back.”

Emerie didn’t meet her eyes, staring straight ahead and blinking against tears.

A lump got stuck in Nesta’s throat, and she had to swallow to work past it. She placed a hand on her friend’s cheek, whispering, “Em, look at me.”

She didn’t. Or maybe couldn’t.

Nesta lowered herself until their foreheads touched, and closed her eyes as tremors seized Emerie’s body.

“Please,” her whispers turned into a plea. “Please, Nesta. Please.”

Nesta was crying as she reached down, looking for the knife she knew Emerie always kept in her right boot. She could see the hilt in her palm, her knuckles turning whites as she gripped it tightly, yet she couldn’t feel it. She couldn’t feel the clothes on her, clinging to her body from sweat and blood and dirt. Couldn’t feel her lungs expand in a slow, steady rhythm. She couldn’t feel that tug, that light inside her chest, that sense of wrongness that screamed at her to stop, stop, stop!

She couldn’t feel a single thought inside her head, couldn’t hear a single sound past the ringing in her ears.

She must’ve told Emerie to bite down on something, or maybe not a word had left her mouth and the female had made that decision by herself.

Nesta blinked, and time seemed to slow as she pressed the blade against the leathery surface of the wing, and the skin gave way.

[ *** ]

Cassian couldn’t hold her closer if he tried. Azriel had already winnowed away with a passed-out Emerie bleeding all over him, leaving Cassian alone with Nesta. He’d led her out of that gods-forsaken cavity, hands trembling against the need to wrap his arms around her and squeeze until their bodies became one and the same. Instead, he had just allowed himself to hold her close to his chest, basking in the very material and real feeling of her body pressed against his, before swooping her off the ground and carrying her to safety.

When he landed, Cassian realized Azriel hadn’t made it far before healers had jumped on Emerie, tending to her bleeding—missing—wing.

Still in his arms, Cassian felt Nesta inhale sharply and looked down to see her blink madly. Her dirty fingers dug into his arms, breaths becoming shallow and skin turning an even paler, waxy shade.

“Oh, gods,” she breathed. Reality had caught up to her.

Cassian tried to pull her away, intent on finding a quiet, private corner for the two of them, somewhere he could properly tend to his mate. He didn’t make it a step before she slumped against him. He lowered them to the ground, murmuring into her ear as she helplessly whispered, “What have I done, what have I done, what have I-”

“Nesta,” Cassian tried to call her attention to him, going as far as grabbing her chin to turn her head away. She couldn’t even get down a full breath, and tears had begun to freely spill down her cheeks, leaving tracks.

“She’s going to hate me,” she said. “She’s going to hate me forever.”

Her voice broke on that last word, and his heart broke with it.

“She won’t, Nes-”

“She’ll never forgive me!” Her voice rose, and her sobs rocked through her body like a physical blow. Gwyn reached them, kneeling in front of them and combing Nesta’s flyaway locks away from her temples.

“I knew it was a bad idea but I listened to her anyway and now- Now-” She choked. Coughed.

“It’s going to be okay, Nes,” Cassian cleared his throat. He chose to overlook the way Nesta curled against herself, trying to make herself smaller, tinier. Less space she took up, less ruination she would cause.

From the corner of his eye, Cassian could see Gwyn nodding encouragingly at his words. She grabbed Nesta’s hand in hers, bringing them close to her mouth, uncaring of the stains on her skin.

Nesta took a couple of shaky breaths, swallowed, and then said, “I should’ve known better.”

“She told you to do it, Nesta. Didn’t she?”

“She was in pain! Desperate! She would’ve told me anything to make it stop.” Nesta tried to free her hands, to hide them when no one could see the consequences of her actions, but Gwyn held on tightly. Cassian felt Nesta’s pain as his own. It was unbearable.

“You better not say that once she wakes, or Emerie is going to tear you a new one.” Gwyn’s attempt at lightheartedness worked only in part. Nesta didn’t say anything back, but tension still lined her features. She just closed her eyes and leaned her head back against his chest.

“We’ll be alright,” Gwyn murmured against their tied hands, then repeating the words again and again and again. Like a prayer. Like a plea.

Cassian kept idly stroking her hair, her back, her legs, until she went limp in his arms, exhaustion finally taking hold of his mate’s body. The Invoking Stone Gwyn had placed between their closed hands had helped with that, too.

[ *** ]

Nesta woke to a throbbing head and the intense desire to throw up, guts and all. She kept her eyes closed, basking in the warmth and softness surrounding her. Muffled sounds came from somewhere, but she chose to focus instead on the steady thump-thump-thump right by her ear. If there was one thing Nesta Archeron knew, it was that right there, she belonged. Right there, safe between her mate’s arms, she was at peace.

“Hey.” His voice rumbled through his chest, the words ricocheting against his ribs.

Nesta peeled her tongue from the roof of her mouth, swallowing thickly. “Hey.”

She opened her eyes, blinking at the sudden brightness. It was gone a moment later, when one of Cassian’s wings extended to block out the light. Nesta’s heart dropped at the sight. It all came crashing down on her, much like the library did.

Cassian’s hold tightened slightly around her. “We’ll be alright,” he whispered into her hair.

Nesta closed her fists, and something inside her hand dug into her skin. She opened her palm to a blue stone, a faint light coming from its core. Healing light, she realized. Gwyn.

Nesta gasped, tears brimming her eyes.

“We’ll be alright,” Cassian repeated, his finger moving over her spine.

“Will we?” She muttered.

Her response came a second later. Not from Cassian’s lips, but in the form of a jeweled egg-shaped object appearing at her feet.

It missed one little leg, some of the gems had fallen off, and there was a deep dent on one side. Still, it opened for Nesta when she gently touched a fingertip on it. Music poured out of it in a much lower volume, the melodies turning distorted and off-key at times and skipping between notes at others. There was no stopping the tears that fell past her chin as Nesta held the Symphonia close to her heart, and as the music slowly died down, she said her farewell.

“We’ll be alright.”

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TAGS: @lady-winter-sunrise

#dee writes #house of memories #acotar fanfiction #nessian #nesta archeron #cassian #emerie #gwyneth berdara