It was a gruesome sentence.

Yet somehow... somehow something inside him sparked to life

---

Azriel still felt a spell of numbness as he descended into the grande hall, thoughts errant enough that his feet instinctually led him to the table covered in all sorts of wines and ales. There was one barrel with an imprint of a sun, that he shivered at, knowing to steer clear of. It wouldn't bring anything but trouble, he knew, and he hoped that his friends were wise enough to know it too.

He eyed their glass goblets individually. Amren's was almost dredged, a burgundy shade that hinted towards the kind that was imported from the far east of the continent. The expensive stuff, of course. He expected no less of the new-fae. It was a peculiar taste, so he'd be avoiding that one, too.

Cassian's was a dark hue, an almost black he presumed was Kallias' favourite, the one that had always had his tongue come loose. Azriel turned his nose up at the bottle and looked back towards where Cassian lingered, knowingly he presumed, with his back almost touching Nesta's as he chatted with a general from another court. The drink might've had him spilling his secrets, but it seemed to make Cassian, not bold, confident in himself. Azriel watched closely as Cassian's free hand fell to his side, brushing gently against Nesta's knuckles. Azriel expected her to snap away, to recoil as she often did. Instead, she seemed to lean into the touch, her own fingers stretching out towards his. Her goblet was half-full of the same hue.

"I'd personally recommend this bottle." Came a voice from beside him, and he turned slowly towards the voice, a smile on his face. "If you're struggling to choose." She was teasing him, he knew, because she was gesturing to the very bottle he'd told Cassian, and Rhys, not to touch. They hadn't listened, but he'd warned them none-the-less. "I've heard your friend's are quite fond of it."

"And the headaches that came with it I'm sure-" He stopped short, the words being lost somewhere in his mind as it twisted and lost all trains of thought except the brilliant blue gown that Tahlia donned. It wasn't light blue like the sky in the Day Court, nor was it the deep turquoise of the rivers that flowed through it. Azriel tried, he really did, not to think of how much the colour was a replica of the shade of his syphons.

Tahlia watched him too, for a moment, and something inside him bloomed bright and proud at the blush that crept across her cheeks the longer, and further she looked. Her chestnut eyes paused for a moment when they reached his chest. His tie he realised, and he looked away from her intent stare, bashfully. "Purple?" Azriel didn't dare answer, hells, he barely dared to even breathe until she reached for his hand. He instinctively took a step back, catching a wave of what looked like embarrassment flash across her face before she schooled it into a smile. "I like purple." She nodded. "And it certainly looks good on you."

"I- well- I-" He sighed deeply, cracking his knuckles and tried to start again. "Thank you. You look..." He took a moment longer to take her in, from the slit in the satin that paused half way up her thigh, to the gentle freckle of silver and black that danced around her cowl neckline. "Radiant."

It was impossible for her to have blushed more, but she did anyway, tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear, reaching for a goblet, and pouring herself a glass of that dangerous, bright, crimson wine.

For a moment, he debated offering to dance with her, he could see her watching the couples at irregular intervals, still she watched them all the same. She caught him watching too, to which she smiled, nodding gently in the direction of the music. "Would you care to dance?" When he didn't answer straight away, she continued. "With me. Would you care to dance with me?"

He looked at the hopeful glimmer in her eyes even as her face attempted at keeping neutral. Behind, he watched Varian take Amren's hand in his and guide her to a distant corner, dancing with her in private. He watched the Lords take the Ladies in turn, some dancing much more gracefully than others. Even Cassian had sauntered off, following Nesta, albeit distantly out of one of the balconies. And yet...

And yet, he looked down at Tahlia, who had turned to follow his gaze. He looked at Tahlia, and then down at his hands, taking one step back. "I'm not much of a dancer."

Azriel watched her reaction, or lack thereof closely, trying with little success to read her. It was difficult when she wouldn't turn back to look at him. "I see."

His mouth opened to say more, when Tamlin sauntered into view, and into earshot, though Azriel feared he might've been for a while because a slight smirk tugged at his lips. "Tahlia. Is that some of Helion's wine I see?"

"It is." She replied quietly. Simply. Tamlin hummed, and Azriel, though uncomfortable, refused to leave her side, wishing for some semblance of privacy. "Would you like some?" As she turned, her hair fell about her shoulders, revealing the very same pink scar he'd caught a glimpse of in the armoury those days ago.

Had it only been days ago? Perhaps weeks, though days seemed to fade into each other these days. The gash had been deeper than his first, brief inspection had led him to believe, longer too. It started from her neck, too close to an artery for Azriel's comfort. It dragged down, down under her dress-

"Perhaps I'll take you up on that offer later, once we've had the honour of having the Autumn Court's presence. Now, I'd like to dance."

"Then go and dance." Azriel found himself growling tightly.

Tamlin only looked at him with amusement, raising an eyebrow. "As much as I'm sure your company is... wonderful, Spymaster, I was actually offering a dance to Tahlia." Still, she only spared Azriel a brief glance. "Come, we have much to talk about."

Azriel watched, body on edge as Tamlin whisked Tahlia away, her dress flowing gracefully behind her as he took her waste, guiding her through the slow tempo of the dance.

His shadows billowed from his shoulders, some reaching desperately forward, some gathering around his ears, alerting him of a presence behind him. "Well that was painful to watch."

"And here I thought you delighted in our misery." Azriel waited for Eris to stand beside him before conversing further. "Why are you here?"

"I had an invite."

"I believe it was your father that the invitation extended to."

He snorted, but there was a strange sharpness to his expression that didn't match. "My father is busy with affairs he does not seem to think I am worthy of. I understand, from whispers on the wind, that it was him you intended to interrogate with the pretty face over there." Eris nodded to Tahlia's direction. Her face was solemn, taking in whatever it was that Tamlin was pouring into her ears.

"Would he remember her?" A dark chill slithered down his spine. He was glad Beron had not come. They hadn't thought that through. They would've put her in danger for that information. No, they hadn't thought that through at all.

"My father? I doubt it. He's an old bat- many apologies. He remembers a little girl not- well..." Eris looked at her again and Azriel felt his hands twitch at his side. "Her." He paused, mulling over his information. "He's barely spoken about that day. I think I might've been the only soul he's entrusted that information with. Of course... there was a bit of that special wine involved, too." Azriel had only just noticed the faint bruising on Eris' cheek. The spies that linked both the Night Court and Eris had worked quickly, sharing the information necessary if, as expected, Beron weren't to make an appearance.

"Do you know where it is?"

"No." Azriel's heart sank, watching his family from afar, knowing once again, a war was coming. One, he didn't think, they could quite comprehend the capacity of. He huffed and began to turn to find Rhysand, reluctantly tearing his eyes away from the dancefloor.  "I don't know where it is, Spymaster. I do, however, know where it will be on the Summer Solstice."

"That doesn't give us enough time. Any time-"

"It is the only information worthy of your time. If you do not want it, then I will spare my breath and see if the lovely Day girl has enough energy left to spare me a dance." Azriel grabbed his arm, and he could feel the bones groan beneath the force. "It is unwise to use such force against a High Lord's heir, fool." He spat.

"Tell me."

Eris grinned broadly, it faded a little as Azriel's grip tightened further. "Ask nicely."

"Eris." Mor growled, marching across the floor from where she had been laughing at Viviane's side. "Azriel, stop causing a scene."

"Fine." Eris said. "On the Summer Solstice, you will find-" He paused, turning a disdainful curl of his lip towards Tamlin, who drew closer, Tahlia not far behind. "What it is you are looking for, exactly where you took it from."

The small crowd turned to face Tahlia who nodded once after brief hesitation. "Luring us to a battlefield. How clever."

"Now, if you don't mind, I intend on getting very drunk." Eris clapped his hands, reaching for the Day wine, and taking it away with him as he made his way across the room, far away from all of them. The whole bottle. It still made Azriel cringe at the thought, and he watched him take one large mouthful before he could watch no more.

The rest of the crowd dispersed slowly, Azriel did everything in his power to look away as Tamlin gave Tahlia a long, lingering look as he turned to leave the hall.

Mor stopped briefly, turning back to Azriel. "Oh," She laughed, placing a hand into the small bag she'd brought with her. "I forgot to give you these."

He held his hand out cautiously as she released the item. Items. Two, soft, thin gloves that matched the deep purple tie. The same shade that had matched the sky as he watched Tahlia look at it with those soft, round eyes. He snorted, silently thanking Mor as she winked and crept away.

Azriel tried them on, marvelling at the gentle fabric against his skin. He hadn't caught which direction Tahlia had left. Cassian and Nesta were now inside, conversing almost normally with Rhys and Feyre, so Azriel ventured outside, his shadows gently prodding at his back.

Naturally, they had led him to her, just as they had on so many occasions. As he had been every time before. He was glad. He stood quietly at her side, looking down at her as she watched the stars burn in silence. The night air was warm enough to be comfortable even if his blood was positively burning in his veins.

Only, she wasn't watching the stars, not really. Her eyes were glazed over in that crisp shade of white that told him she was far away. He tried once, to place his hand over hers, withdrawing marginally before trying again. The fabric at his fingertips brushed over her knuckles, and she gasped, being dragged from a vision. She gasped his name.

He shuddered mildly.

Unsavoury thoughts. Very, very unsavoury thoughts were stirring in his mind. He tried not to, really he did...

He'd tried in the armoury too, what good had that done him then?

Tahlia's eyes found where his fingers were intertwining with hers, and she flexed against the material. "You do not have to hide from me, Shadowsinger." As if in response, his shadows hovered over their hands. He did not watch them. He did not take his eyes from her at all. "And you should certainly not sneak up on a female alone in the dark."

"Or?" It came out as barely a whisper, and he could feel his heart thudding heavily in his chest.

She released a soft, brief laugh, shaking her head. "Or... I fear it might be a blade thrown at your head next time."

"And I might just steal it from you, losing it in a distant land." He teased as she turned to him, her head lifting up to face him. He was much taller than her. It made him grin, only to lose it a moment later when her free hand slithered up his chest.

She toyed with the material of his tie lightly and shrugged. "I know exactly where it is." He tried to raise an eyebrow, but found himself doing nothing other than staring at her in awe. Tahlia tugged harshly at his tie until Azriel was down at her lever, and her lips grazed his ear. "I believe," She whispered, and where he found his blood travelling south quick enough that his head swam. "It's lodged in the throat of a Hybern spy."

It was a gruesome sentence. Yet somehow... somehow something inside him sparked to life with... pride? Glee? He couldn't tell but it felt masochistic and-

Exciting. She was dangerous.

She was dangerous just like him.

He could feel himself thrumming to life, grabbing her hips and turning her so her back was pressed against the cold marble of the balcony. One hand kept its hold on his tie, the other grabbed onto his shoulder tightly as he leant over her.

Azriel could feel Tahlia's breath against his lips, sweetened by the smell of that damned wine. Perhaps she was more intoxicating than that could ever be. Should he be as wary of her as he was of that? He shook the thought away, using the back of his gloved knuckles to brush against the bare skin of her neck.

Brushing away the hair that hid the scar. She tensed in his arms, and his hand on her waist tightened as he leaned in, breathing in the scent that lingered against her neck. Her. It was just her. He could hear clearly her heavy breathes as he took in the scent of wild rose.

Azriel paused. Not hesitant, he took a calming breath to steady his mind, gently caressing his lips against the tip of her scar. "You do not have to hide from me, Seer." He purred, though hypocritical he might be, he wanted to know every inch of her.

There was a quiet groan that fell from her lips as instead of his lips, he caressed the damaged skin with his tongue, starting at where he could reach the bottom of her neck, up to where the mark finished. Where he could feel her pulse positively wild against her skin.

He leant back, watching her eyes darken as she pulled his tie tighter, pulling him forward until their noses were caressing and his eyes were fluttering shut.

His jaw clenched as she pried at the gloves. Azriel shook his head once, then again when she did not stop. "No." He muttered, his breaths still coming quickly. "No."

"Please." She whimpered.

"No." He said again, quiet and forceful. "You can have all of me, when I have all of you." His hands brushed down the bare skin of her back and let himself smirk when she shivered. "There's a party going on inside."

"And what if I don't want to go back?"

"Do you wish to be alone?" He knew what answer he wanted to hear whether it was selfish or not.

"I wish," Tahlia hummed lightly, pulling herself onto her toes to line herself with his ear again. "To fly."