A Court of Light and Fire (ACOTAR)

Chapter Eleven

TW: nausea, fainting, Azriel?

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Days later, Celeste sat at the dining table alone, the sound of silence the only comfort surrounding her.

The others had gone to visit Amren about their plans for the upcoming war. Celeste did not want to think of the possibility of what that entailed, of the family she may lose if the time came, so she wove that crack of dread together with scones and cream instead.

A headache had bloomed since their departure, but Celeste ignored the throbbing pain in her skull. She needed a good nap and tea from Madja, and she would be better by morning. Nothing she hadn't handled before, and certainly not the worst pain she had faced before.

But the tonic did not help, and Madja's words became a blur when she sat Celeste down with her on the couch. The woman's mouth moved, but Celeste could only stare at the healer she was sure was speaking another language.

'I feel nauseous,' she told the woman. She made out the sound of a click and steps, but Celeste did not register what it might be. Not as her vision tunnelled, her stomach roiled, and her body slumped forward into the healer's arms.

More voices filled the air - a female to her left, a deeper one to her right - but the words that rose in her throat did not seem to meet their ears as her eyelids began to flutter.

'I can't breathe,' she told them. A high-pitched ringing thrummed in her ears, and a soft sob slipped from her lips as her arms were moved, her jacket unzipped from her frame. The cool air was welcome upon her skin, but it did nothing to lull the incessant pulsing at her temples, to wash away the heaviness that swept through her torso, her limbs.

'Lie her down,' a male voice spoke, and her vision was filled with a bright sapphire light filling the air. Strong hands gripped her shoulders, the light moving to her side, and the moment her head touched the cushion-

Quiet.

Her mind was quiet, her body heavy with rest, as though she had just awoken from a deep night of slumber. A cold hand pressed against her forehead, the previous pressure their dissipating as the crashing waves in her stomach settled at shore. Her throat did not feel thick any longer, her ears clearing along the way. Her eyes remained closed, but the voices around her grew clearer as she settled back into her body.

'Mmm,' she hummed, letting a bubble of laughter rise in her throat. She couldn't help but laugh - she felt so light now, so free from whatever had overwhelmed her senses that she may as well have been floating in the clouds, high above in the sky with the light as her only keeper. 'I feel better now.'

She cracked an eyelid open to find Azriel to her right, his shadows resting above her as though providing a barrier between Celeste and the rest of the world. His siphons were glowing against her forehead - where the chill had been coming from - and his brows twitched, furrowing together as he knelt by the couch to her side.

'What happened?' He didn't take his eyes off Celeste as she watched the strand of light around her ring finger unravel itself to twirl with one of the Illyrian's shadows. As soon as they wove around one another, a series of other light rays came into existence, moving to a rhythm only they could hear as they spun in perfect timing with the darkness.

'I don't know,' Madja answered, and her hands began poking and prodding at the girl once more. 'She complained of a headache, and then-'

A pit of dread swelled up in Celeste's stomach. 'Check on Nesta and Elain.' Her eyes locked with the shadowsinger's, and she ignored the wave of dizziness that followed as she pushed herself to sit up on the couch. 'Something is wrong with them.'

'Cassian is with them now,' Azriel's hand was delicate on her shoulder, as though he were afraid to send the girl back into the dizziness again. 'We came here straight from our meeting as soon as we sensed something was off.'

Celeste glanced at Madja, as though the healer would be the one to help her. Instead, the woman said, 'Your sisters are well and being watched over. You need to look after yourself now, Celeste.'

Celeste wanted to object. She so desperately wanted to rise on her feet, push their too-delicate palms away and run up the stairs to where her sisters remained tucked away. But the tiredness had crept back into her bones now, and it was all she could do to let Azriel's palm guide her back to lay on the couch without falling off the furniture entirely.

'Stay with her, boy,' Madja told Azriel after Celeste apparently successfully passed a series of her other investigations. 'I'll be back later to do a follow up.'

'Thank you, Madja.' Azriel finally looked away from the girl. 'Truly.'

The woman's eyes shifted into a knowing glance Celeste could not quite place, an old hand squeezing the Illyrian's shoulder as she rose. 'Summon me if you need anything.'

Celeste's eyes were closed again before she could see the healer leaving.

The only sound in the room aside from the silence was that of Azriel's breathing, soft and shallow by her ear. 'You can sit next to me, if you want.' She peaked one eye open to glance at the male, still sitting on the floor beside her. 'On the actual furniture, I mean. I don't bite.'

'Unless you ask me to,' they both said in time, eyes locking as they laughed at their mocking of Cassian, which had become a sort of running joke in the family. She had heard the tale of his first words to Feyre many times over, having asked Cassian to repeat them any chance he got, and never ceased to laugh any less each time.

Even through her hazy vision, she could have sworn Azriel's cheeks tinged red as he looked away and nodded. She sat up to make room for the male on the other end of the couch, and he sat right by the edge, ankles seemingly tied together and wings tucked so tightly into his back she thought they might just disappear. As though he were trying to create as much space between the pair as possible.

Weirdo.

She leaned her head back onto the cushion lining the back of the couch, watching as their small rays of light and darkness continued to twirl in perfect harmony. 'Are they normally this... playful?' She knew Azriel was watching the scene before them just as curiously as she was from her side. He shook his head.

'They usually hide nearby, and only come out if they have to tell me something.' The male shook his head again. 'They have never appeared so... energetic.'

Celeste hummed in response, letting the minutes of comfortable silence pass by before her mind became lost to the wariness once more.

'Azriel?' She slurred as her eyelids grew heavy enough that it took all of her effort to keep them from glueing shut. She turned her body to face the male, tucking her knees into her chest and resting her cheek on the pillows. He turned his torso to face her slightly in response. 'My light rays told me they really like dancing with your shadows, and want to see them more often.'

'Celeste?' A soft smile lifted Azriel's lips as he chuckled, and his eyes sparkled so brightly when they locked with hers that her heart squeezed to the point of physical pain as that bubble of light burst in her chest at the way they glistened.

'I think that's something we can certainly arrange.'

'A play date for our little followers,' she laughed, letting her eyes drift closed at last as her favourite strands of light and shadow wrapped around her ring finger once more.

'Something of the sort, Lightsinger.'

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A/N:

Smashing out another chapter😎

No need for farewells on this one, I'll be back with another one soon😎

But p.s. thanks for reading🤍