CHAPTER TWO

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          THE FIRST THING WILLOW SAW WAS A WHITE CEILING, COVERED IN SILVER PAINTED STARS. The strong scent of jasmine and lavender clung to the air and a soft breeze fluttered over her face as she blinked her eyes open. The woman lay there, frozen, wondering if this was the afterlife. If there even was an afterlife. Willow had no idea.

Her body felt heavy as if her bones were made out of stone and her throat felt like dry and raw. It was disorientating to feel such comfort at her back as she sunk deep into the plush softness of a mattress. 

The pain that had haunted her in the Illyrian camp had gone, currently no trace of it left. Willow swallowed and grimaced at the uncomfortable feeling and turned her head slowly, taking in the bedchamber she was in. It was warm, fire lit in the fireplace to her left and the sound of crackling wood filled the quiet space. 

There were large windows and she could see the sky darkening, some far away stars like little specks in the distance. The bed she laid in was massive and soft, adorned by many quilts of cream and ivory. There was a door to her right, slightly ajar and she guessed it led to a bathing chamber, the floor made out of white marble. The rest of the room was neatly decorated, with dark wooden armoires and a plush maroon chair in the corner.

It was grander then she had ever seen, the bedroom was larger than her living room back home. The dark haired woman pushed herself onto her elbows and glanced down at herself. Ripping the sheets away from her body, she clenched her jaw and she felt a bout of anxiety creep through her veins. The dress she had been wearing before was gone, instead she wore a pair of black linnen pants and a large cream sweater. Lifting the fabric, she saw the bandages around her waist and a small patch of dark red blood seeping through.

"You're awake."

Willow snapped her head toward the foot of the bed and met a pair of blue-grey eyes. The Fae woman was beautiful and her golden brown hair rested along her shoulders in neat waves. There was nothing ominous in her gaze as she smiled kindly at Willow, but she still wore Night Court colours, just as she was now dressed in.

"Where am I?" asked Willow, her voice coming out weaker than she would have liked. "Who are you?"

The female's lips quirked a bit higher and she rested her hands in front of her as she glanced out the window for a moment. "My name is Feyre and you're in a city of ours, in The Night Court."

Willow blinked at that and pushed herself back against the headboard, taking the sheets with her as if to shield herself from prying eyes.

"What is your name?" asked Feyre, and she felt a familiar sense of dread coming from the unknown Fae woman. "You do not have to be afraid, you are safe here."

"This is The Night Court." muttered Willow, meeting her curious gaze. "Nowhere is safe."

Feyre pursed her lips, but not in anger and Willow saw the dip of her eyebrows at her words. The golden haired female felt ashamed at the revelation and gave her a soft smile. "This is the safest place for you to be. I can assure you that no one is going to harm you while you're here. You have my word."

The woman rubbed her arms and pulled her knees towards herself, winching as her side stung but it subsided in only a dull ache. Perhaps this place wasn't as bad as the stories had said. Willow was still alive and they had taken care of her wounds, the Fae of The Night Court from her stories would have never done that for a stranger.

Pulling her lip between her teeth and deciding that Feyre wasn't going to hurt her, she uttered, "Willow. My name is Willow."

Feyre's smile brightened. "Welcome, Willow. Would you like to come and eat with me?"

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THE REST OF THE HOME FELT COSY AND WARM AND FILLED WITH PAINTINGS AND RUGS THAT COVERED DARK WOODEN FLOOR BOARDS. The Town House, as Feyre had called it had plenty of bedrooms as they walked the landing towards a staircase that led to a lower level. The foyer was decorated with an ornate red carpet, wood paneled walls and artworks like the upstairs had been. There were bookshelves built into every wall and as they entered the right room, a dining hall with a long, cherrywood table big enough for ten people, did Willow close her mouth from her gawking.

The table was filled with a variety of all sorts of food. The smell hit her hard and her mouth almost watered at the scent. Her stomach rumbled loudly and Feyre frowned at her.

"When was the last time you had something to eat?" 

"I am not sure." said Willow honestly as she sat down at the table after Feyre had done. "The days kind of bled together sometimes."

"Be careful," warned Feyre as she took hold of her fork. "don't eat to quickly or you'll get sick."

Willow offered her a weak smile as she glanced at the plate in front of her. Different colour vegetables were laid out neatly, steamed potatoes and pieces of juicy meat covered the marble of her plate. It smelt so good and she wanted to inhale all of it. What if it was poisoned? What if they didn't want to get their hands dirty trying to rid themselves of her? It was a stupid thought, why heal her just to kill her again.

"It is not poisoned." promised Feyre, and Willow was inclined to believe her at the genuineness.

The brunette pricked her fork in a piece of potato covered in gravy and took a small bite. Cauldron, boil me. It tasted so good and she felt Feyre's eyes on her when she gobbled it all down without a shame in the world. Willow ignored her warning and her stomach hurt but she couldn't stop eating. Feyre pressed her lips together to keep herself from smiling as she ate her own food in silence.

It had been a long time since she had a proper meal or anything home cooked. Doubt kept gnawing at her. Here she was, in a strange court, one of which she had only heard stories of death and torture. Glancing around the room again, Willow couldn't imagine any shackles on the walls or blood splattering the floor as others were being hurt. It was homey.

Willow swallowed and put her fork down carefully, taking in a deep breath. This was all a trick, a cruel trick to get her to talk before they'd torture her to death. Though, she was quite sure that Feyre wouldn't be the one to pick up the shackles.

"I know what this is." uttered Willow, eyes cascaded at the dark wood of the table. "They send in a female to make me comfortable, offer me good food and heal my wounds. That way I owe you, am I right?"

Feyre frowned and set her own fork down, meeting her dark eyes. "You couldn't be more wrong, Willow."

"Then why?" she tried, her distrust overpowering her emotions. Willow hadn't been able to trust anyone for a very long time. It didn't make any sense to her why strangers would safe her from such a situation, not many would. "Why get me out of there, it must have been such a hassle to do so. I don't understand."

"We are not monsters." said Feyre sadly as she leaned forwards in her seat. "I know that this court is perceived that way by others, but it is far from the truth. You're lucky Azriel heard the screams or they'd never would have found you. There are still many horrors within this court, but we are trying to eliminate them one by one. You did not deserve the treatment you got in those mountains, Willow. They would have saved anyone that didn't want to be there."

Willow ground her teeth together as she took in her words, averting her gaze toward the wall in front of her. The woman blinked back her tears as she furrowed her brows, confused.

"What court are you from?" wondered Feyre, her voice so gentle it almost made her uncomfortable at the sound of it. 

"Winter," she muttered.

"It's beautiful there." said Feyre, resting her elbows on the table as she thought of the court covered in snow and ice. "Would you like for us to send word to your family that you are safe?"

At that Willow snapped her gaze toward the Fae and shook her head ferociously as she pushed her chair back in a hurry. The screech of it echoed throughout the room and Feyre sat frozen, unreadable expression on her face as she watched Willow get to her feet. 

Willow felt it then, the sparks of electricity at her fingers and the female before her glanced at her hands. There was no alarm on her face as she took in the lighting that now shot up her arms but merely interest.

"You are safe here." she repeated. "No one is going to harm you."

The brunette felt embarrassed as she tried to shake her magic away. It often reacted to her emotions and she had yet to control it.

"Sorry," apologised Willow, watching the last of the lighting disappear. "it happens sometimes."

"It's quite alright." said Feyre, reaching out to take her hand in her own. "Do not worry. We will not be sending any messages out if you do not want us to. If you want to talk about it i've been told i'm a great listener."

"I don't want to go back." confessed Willow, slowly retaking her seat at the table. "They will kill me if I show my face there."

"What happened?"

"Uh," Willow tried to gather her thoughts and pulled her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment. "my father is a general in Kallias' army and he's not often home. He resents me, always has. I think it is perhaps I look so much like my mother and it has never really been the same since she passed. My father is very traditional and has tried to marry me off for decades. When I kept refusing potential suitors he grew sick off me and threw me out of the house."

"I am so sorry, Willow." Feyre reached for her hand once more and the brunette now noticed the black ink on her arm, flowers, swirls and leaves pressed on her skin. "Have you been without a home?"

"Only for a short while." she nodded. "I found a small house not too far away from my childhood home. It had been empty for a few years but it was rough and old. The windows were broken and it was freezing."

"I know what that is like." began Feyre. "I too had to leave a home to live in another. Food was scarce and it was always cold, despite the fire me and my sisters managed. I just couldn't imagine having to go through that alone."

"You're not from here?" frowned Willow, tilting her head to the side.

"No," said Feyre. "I was a human before."

"You're The High Lady of The Night Court?" blinked Willow, having heard the story vaguely a few years prior. "You're the one who defeated Amarantha and got turned into High Fae?"

"I am." nodded the female. "But none of that is important. Willow, I would really like for you to tell me how you got here and what happened at that camp. We'd like to stop this from ever happening again."

Willow picked at the skin on her thumb and furrowed her eyebrows. "I guess my father couldn't accept the fact that I would not obey him, despite the fact he got rid of me. Male ego I presume."

"He sold you off?" faltered Feyre, blinking away her disgust. 

"Hm," she hummed, wrapping her arms around herself for comfort. "he said he knew some Illyrians and that it was important that I'd go there. Said that Roman was in search of a wife and that there weren't many Illyrian woman left to choose from. Got a pretty sum for it i'd imagine."

Feyre listened to her with a deep crease between her brows, knowing what it was like to live with a troubled family but the thought of her own father doing this to her was appalling.

"That was that. I had no say in it and I didn't even have time to protest before I was taken away." Willow bit the inside of her cheek and took a deep breath.

"Oh, Willow." muttered Feyre, still holding onto her hand. "I am so sorry you had to go through that. Fae males can be so cruel and their customs regarding females are very outdated."

"Unfortunately," shrugged Willow. "I really thought I wasn't going to get out of it alive."

"Did -" Feyre paused, trying to find the right words. "did they ...?"

"No," Willow shook her head quickly. "I was to be saved for the wedding. They didn't actively hurt me, but they were mean. I wasn't allowed to leave the tents and I had guards watching me always. One of them always looked at me as if he could do whatever he wanted with me and I just got so mad. I don't know what came over me." She glanced at her hands then, where the lighting had appeared. "One moment they were standing there and the next everything was on fire."

"You had every right to defend yourself, do not doubt that."

Willow believed her and offered her a small smile, nodding her head.

this isn't proofread or edited. so excited for next chapter !!