𝒜 𝒞𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓉 𝑜𝒻 𝑅𝑒𝓈𝒾𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓃𝒸𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒮𝒸𝒶𝓇𝓈 | ᴀᴢʀɪᴇʟ

Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Arwen refused to acknowledge anybody that morning. She hadn't the patience to listen to them question and prod her. It was the same things every day, and her lack of sleep, taunted by the same nightmare each night, only cut her temper shorter. But she sat at the table in the casual dining space, because if she hadn't come out, Cassian would have stormed into her room an hour ago and dragged her out of bed by her ankles.

Out of your room. That was the order he gave her each day, and really, the only one she listened to. Partially because she wanted to listen to him, partially because he was the only one that dared lay a hand on her and would actually go through with his threat.

Azriel laid a plate, decked with an assortment of breakfast foods in front of her. "You've lost weight," he said. Arwen looked at it, then into the near distance. Nothing about it looked appetising. "Arwen—" he dropped to a crouch beside her chair— "eat."

Rhysand watched the exchange from where he stood on the other side of the table, arms crossed and braced on the back of a chair. Feyre had made an appearance earlier but left for something Arwen didn't listen to. Cassian hadn't made a show yet and neither had Mor.

They did the same thing every day. And she told them the same thing every day; she ate when she was hungry. That morning, she wasn't.

Snow was beginning to fall across the mountaintops. It would drape the city in white, but not for weeks to come. Arwen hadn't made the journey down into the city yet and probably wouldn't gather the energy to for some time. Rhysand's birthday was a nearing celebration, Winter Solstice close by.

She did want to buy him something. Didn't know what, but the urge lay in her. Winter Solstice, however, she didn't want even to begin thinking about. If Feyre's sisters agreed to join, then they too would be present. Arwen hadn't met them yet, each party secluded in their respective residence.

Azriel looked up at her through his dark lashes as he crouched next to her chair. "Tell me what you will eat," he said quietly, his voice so low and flat that she had to repeat in her mind to understand. "Please."

"Aren't you sick of doing this?" she asked, the words croaking and weaker than she intended. "I take care of myself."

Azriel gave a slow shake of his head. "No, Arwen. I'm not."

"If she won't eat, she won't eat," a new feminine voice drawled. Amren sauntered into the open room, her eyes dull and sheer boredom painted her expression. Azriel sent a glare in her direction. "She'll starve and then she'll learn."

Arwen wasn't sure whether to appreciate the support or feel belittled. Rhysand moved his lips into an empty smile. "Amren, how lovely to see you."

"The pleasure is all yours. We were supposed to work on that proposal yesterday, Rhys, but you blew me off. Do I need to remind you that we're on a tight schedule? And you, Azriel, have about three piles of stacked reports to get through. Today." The small female huffed and rolled her eyes. "You'd think I'm the one running this entire court. Forget that; I am."

Cassian strolled in, the drooping of his eyes almost amusing as Arwen guessed that he had just been victim of Amren's scolding moments prior. Azriel rose back to height, placing a hand on the back of her chair.

Rhysand rubbed at his forehead like he had a pounding headache. "I'll come down now."

"The reports can wait," Azriel growled.

Amren returned the glare he had sent her. "They've been waiting over two weeks." Arwen had been wondering why she'd been seeing so much of him. He had been avoiding work.