Divided (Throne of Glass and A Court of Thorns and Roses Crossover)

Chapter 43

Aidan's muscles groaned as she changed positions on the bed. It was warm, and she pulled the blanket up closer to her face before lazily opening her eyes. The room was simple, decorated with dark purples and blues. From the position she laid in she could see a couple doors and a table, but it didn't look lived in. 

A snore tore through the room, and Aidan's eyes snapped to the huge Illyrian beast slumped in the chair beside the bed. For once, his Siphons weren't glowing, and the shadows that usually wrapped themselves around him were nowhere to be found. Azriel looked much younger when he was sleeping. 

There was a glass of water on the table beside her, but she couldn't reach it without straining her worn out muscles. Taking one of the smaller pillows from the bed, she whipped it at the male sleeping beside her. 

He jumped to his feet instantly, a blade slicing through the pillow. Stuffing floated to the floor, and Aidan burst out laughing.

"Sorry to disturb you, but I can't quite reach the water," Aidan huffed, reaching toward it again. 

Automatically, Azriel held the glass out to her and retook his seat. 

"How are you feeling?" he asked, voice slightly cracking. 

"Fine, I guess. I'm sore," Aidan shrugged, sipping the water. "What happened?"

"Well, you winnowed in Maeve's castle, which is impossible, saved me, Feyre, Rhys, and Tamlin, and almost burned out right in front of me. I thought you were going to die." 

Aidan peered at him, "Haven't you heard? I'm damn near impossible to kill."

Azriel just looked at her, his throat bobbing up and down. Aidan looked around the room again. 

"Where are we?" 

"We're in Rhys' house on top of the Hewn City. I thought it would be quieter here for you to recover," Azriel answered, quietly. 

Aidan's stomach growled and she said, "Oh. How long have I been asleep?"

"About three days. Rhys, Feyre, and Mor were able to winnow us back to Velaris. They have Tamlin locked up," Azriel explained. "Mor winnowed us here."

Aidan looked down at her arm where a dark hand-shaped bruise still marked her skin. 

Azriel noticed and growled, "I'll kill him."

She looked at him seriously for a second and then replied, "I'm hungry."

Some of the tension in his shoulders disappeared as he said, "I'll go get you something."

Aidan shook her head and threw back the sheets, "I want to look around anyway."

"Fine," Azriel said, smiling down at her. "I'm going to have to carry you though."

She shrieked as Azriel pulled her up out of the bed and into his chest and laughed as he started to carry her out of the room. 

"I can walk you know," Aidan laughed. "My legs aren't broken."

"But why would I let my savior walk?" Azriel answered, starting down the stairs. Aidan caught a glimpse of his wing and remembered what had happened in Maeve's castle. 

Reaching for it, she asked, "How's your wing?" 

When she touched it, he shivered and hoarsely said, "Fine. Feyre healed it when we returned to Velaris." 

"Oh," Aidan breathed. "That's good."

Azriel hopped down the last step and walked quickly towards a door. When they arrived in the medium-sized kitchen, he sat her down on a stool beside the island. 

"So, what do you want to eat?" he said, opening up the nearest cupboard. 

"Do you know how to cook?" Aidan countered.

Azriel threw a mischievous grin over his shoulder and continued ruffling through the cupboard. Aidan hopped down off of the stool and came up behind him, reaching up and closing the cupboard. 

"Why don't you sit down, and I'll find us something to eat," Aidan suggested, and Azriel half-turned to look at her. 

"Do you know how to cook? You've lived in a castle your whole life," Azriel asked. 

"I basically didn't leave my bedroom for ten years, Az. I read every book in Rifthold twice, including the cookbooks," Aidan laughed. 

"Fine. It better be edible though," he grumbled, taking her vacated seat and watching as she collected different things from various cabinets. 

"Do you know where the saucepan is?" Aidan asked, rummaging through one of the cabinets on the opposite side of the island. 

"Try that one," Azriel said, pointing to a different one. And of course, he was right. 

"What are you making?" he asked when she started cutting some carrots.

"An omelette."

"What's an omelette?" Azriel asked, puzzled at the word. 

"You know, an egg with vegetables and meat in it?" 

"We don't have 'omelettes' here," he answered. 

Waving her knife in his direction, she said, "Then you are sorely missing out."

Azriel was quiet for a moment before saying, "I've been missing out on a lot of things."

Aidan flipped the egg in the pan and let it set for a minute for adding some diced ham and vegetables. She slid it out on a plate and pushed it towards him, and he stiffened. 

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Are you allergic to eggs?"

"No, it's...," he started. "Well, it's, umm, here in Prythian when a female offers a male food, it's to signify that she accepts a mating bond."

"Well then," she said, putting a fork in the omelette and taking a bite herself. 

A little bit of light went out of Azriel's eyes as he watched the fork lift to her mouth. She put the plate in one hand and walked around the island to where he sat, putting another mouthful on the fork before stopping right beside him. 

"Open your mouth," she whispered, and he obliged automatically. 

She placed the bite gently in it, removed the fork, and waited for him to chew it.

"Wow, this is really good," he said, smiling. 

"I accept you as my mate, Azriel," she said and kissed him gently. 

He took her face in his hands and deepened the kiss, taking the plate from her hand and setting it on the island before pulling her onto his lap. 

Aidan pulled away and asked, "How long did you know we were mates?"

"Starfall. When you asked me to dance," he whispered, putting his forehead against hers. 

Aidan hit his chest, "But that was months ago!" 

"I know. I didn't want to scare you away," he sighed. 

"And all the times you said you couldn't hurt me?" she asked. "You couldn't hurt me even if you wanted to!"

Aidan's eyes widened, "That's why I could use the Siphon. It was a part of you, and you're a part of me."

Azriel nodded and said, "From now until the end of time."

"Until the end of time," Aidan whispered and pulled his face back down to hers. 

Hey guys! Not much action in this chapter, but I thought it was cute, and I needed a filler chapter! Thanks for reading, commenting, and voting! I really appreciate it. I might get to another chapter tonight, but we're staying in Prythian for now!

My current goal is to finish this Thursday night, so we'll so how it goes!