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“Hello, Feyre darling.”
Rhysand strolled into her bedroom at the night court with ease with that arrogant smirk and a devilish glint in his eyes. He sat on the foot of the bed with all the grace of a dancer. Feyre sat up straight and leaned her head against the headrest.
Her hands itched to wipe that insufferable grin from his face but she settled for an eye roll, best not to pummel him to the ground in his court she thought to herself with disgust.
“What do you want Rhys.” She bit out through clenched teeth.
Rhys chuckled, “Aw, not feeling up to share eh darling?” He ploughed on before she could retort, “Very well, we have lessons to get to, dear Feyre. Wouldn’t want you to sit about idly while you’re here now do we?”
Feyre crossed her arms, but spoke in a quiet voice, almost as if she was scared of what his reaction will be,“Can we skip the reading and all today? I’m not feeling well.”
Rhys was by her side in an instant, a hand on her forehead. Feyre recoiled at his touch causing Rhys to stiffen, he immediately drew his hand back and looked at her with worry shining in his eyes. She rolled her eyes and sighed exasperatedly and nodded. She felt more than saw Rhys’s shoulders slump with relief. He touched her forehead gently and Feyre felt shivers slither down her spine.
Rhys hissed frowning, “Darling it seems that you might have a fever. Your head is as hot as the sun.”
“I thought fae didn’t-” before she could get her sentence a blinding bolt of pain shot through her and she groaned, clutching her stomach.
“Feyre! Darling, look at me!” Rhys’s voice was rising with every word, fear laced in them. When she didn’t listen to him he held her chin and gathered her into his arms but she couldn’t bring herself to care for the pain was now climbing in intensity.
It felt as if the pain was a snake coiled around her body, suffocating her, constricting her bones and squeezing the life out of her. She curled herself into a ball in his arms and Rhys was at once walking-no winnowing.
“Is this the part where you’re going to kill me?” She said through wheezing breaths only to regret opening her mouth because it seemed to have agitated the pain and now she was being transported under the mountain.
Rhys’s responses were drowned out by her groans and screams.
Nightmares and memories blurred together and Rhys was at once Amarantha carrying her away to be spiked on the wall, breaking her neck as she was about to reach Rhys to help him up from the floor.
Amarantha looked at her corpse and spat in her face before saying, “You’re a worm, undeserving of love from anyone. No one will miss you Feyre. I’m just doing everyone a favour.” Feyre breathed in, feeling peace wash over her and everything went black.
“Darling, please wake up, you’re fine-you’re safe”
She opened her eyes to find Rhys holding her hand and stroking her hair and then everything went black.
~
Feyre opened her eyes, disoriented as she looked around her surroundings she realised that she was in her bed in the night court, with the covers around her shoulders.
What surprised her most was the person sitting beside her, Feyre's cheeks felt warm as the memories of the pain flooded her. Swallowing her pride, Feyre looked towards the high lord.
On seeing her awake Rhys smiled weakly and pushed back a strand of errant hair.
“ So we figured out what happened. Your fae cycle started. Considering your reaction I’m thinking that this was the first time it happened since you became a fae ”
Oh. Oh.
realisation dawned on her and she could feel her cheeks heat from embarrassment. Rhys showed no sign of shyness or judgement as helped her sit up on the bed.
She realised that her clothes were different and before she could accuse him he raised his hands in surrender, “I didn’t do anything. After I took you to a healer and she explained why you passed out from the pain. I had Nuala and Cerridwen help you into a fresh set of clothes, the other one was soiled and apparently, you were half awake because Nuala told me that you refused to be changed into clothes by other people because you are not, and I quote, “A holier than thou jackass like Rhysand.”
he ended with an amused glance towards her before giving her a mug from conjured thin air. “It’s a tonic that reduces the pain. The healer said to drink it whenever you feel the pain coming on.” She nodded gratefully and drank the tonic greedily only to spit it on Rhyand’s face, he stared at her in shock and started to apologise, “Oh gods! Fuck I am so sorry! The taste- it was so- repulsive! that I-” her ramblings were cut off by the sight of Rhys laughing.
Peals of laughter, silvery and melodious filled the room and she was shell shocked to find the fearsome, cruel all-powerful High Lord of the night court clutching his stomach in laughter with a tonic shining on his face and his shirt wet but she had no time to remark at his laughing as the pain returned and she groaned making Rhys sober up immediately.
He cleared his throat, self consciously,
“Ok that’s it I’m going to take care of you. I’ll be at your beck and call all week. No guest of mine will ever have to feel discomfort and pain in my court while I’m around”
Feyre bit out through the pain, “Don’t you have better things to do than helping a lady get through her cycle.”
Rhys replied smoothly, not missing a beat, “Of course not! Darling-” she fell back onto the pillows and closed her eyes letting Rhys talk while she drifted off to sleep.
If she had tried to stay awake a little longer she would’ve heard Rhys whisper a promise to the stars and her. “There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you Feyre. Absolutely nothing. I will go to the ends of the universe if you ask me to. Too bad you don’t know that yet, my darling.”
He pushed her hair back from her face taking the mug from her clenched hands before kissing her forehead.
He backed away from her and started walking but he didn’t want to leave her alone so he opted to sit in the chair next to the bed and said to the silent room,
“My beautiful, strong, selfless mate, I will always be yours, even if you don’t want to be mine”