Two Fae Youngsters

Chapter 2

All the characters belong to Sarah J Maas and her Throne of Glass series.  Some lines are taken directly from the book Heir of Fire.

  For the past week Celaena had been traveling with Gavriel and Rowan through the mountains. Apparently people were so tired of Maeve that they had kicked her into some mountainous forest. As for the two faes they were mostly quiet and Celaena hoped that they would remain that way as they had tested her patience enough in the city to make her doubt her ability to maintain a conversation with them without punching them in the face.  They used to camp every night in the middle of nowhere, she called it so because all she  had seen since leaving the city was rocks and trees. Also it seemed like the faes were bent on freezing to death as at the mention of fire both of them had shut her off by saying that a fire would attract too much attention and they can't afford that as some skinwalkers were on the loose and then they went on with their usual blah, blah ,blah…on how dangerous these skinwalkers were but she didn't care to listen.
     It was finally at the sight of a fortress that Celaena let out a sigh of relief . 
"Is this where the queen has summoned me?", Questioned Celaena. 
"Yes.", Responded the two warriors in unison.
Celaena controlled an urge to roll her eyeballs and retorted , " Lemme guess your fae ego prevented  you from telling me this when I had asked about the duration of our piss poor journey earlier this morning. "
They just shot her an angry glance but didn't deign to reply and the thought of at last being able to get rid of them was so comforting that Celaena couldn't care less.
As they neared the fortress,  its worn walls came into focus, a glimpse at the fortress was enough to tell her that it was ancient but well kept . It radiated pure magic which unnerved her but she kept her features neutral after all she couldn't let these faes sense her fear. 
   As soon as they dismounted their mares Rowan and Gavriel rushed towards the gate and Celaena followed closely.  The sentries who were greeting them just received a passing glance from the two males. Gods, the arrogance and ignorance of these immortal faes . How do people even manage to stay around them? wondered Celaena .
   She kept silent as she took in every detail,  every exit , every weakness.  They led her into the dim interior of the main building , up a narrow set of stone stairs into what looked like a small office.  
    It wasn't the carved oak furniture,  or the faded drapes that made her stop dead . It was the dark haired woman seated behind the desk . Maeve , the Queen of the Fae .
Her aunt. 
And then came the name which she had dreaded for ten years. 
"Hello , Aelin Galathynius. ".
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 Celaena knew running wasn't an option because she was too well aware of the fact that Rowan and Gavriel were leaning against the door, guarding the only exit.
"Aelin Galathynius is dead" was her only reply to the queen. 
Maeve smiled, revealing her little canines.  "Let us not bother with lies."
It wasn't a lie. That girl ,the princess had died in the river a decade ago and Celaena had shut any part of her that survived in a dark gloomy corner of her mind .
     While Maeve was assessing her from head to toe, Celaena realised that all the legends that claimed that the Queen of faedom was a nightmare made into flesh were indeed true.  Maeve was a raven haired beauty with onyx eyes so dark and depthless that they made Celaena's skin crawl. And the idea of Maeve leaving her court and sitting behind this worn old desk in a half rotted place like this just to see her ,didn't sit right with Celaena but she pushed all those terrible thoughts aside before bowing low to the queen. For Nehemia she reminded herself. 
    'I suppose with a proper bath , you'll look a good deal like your mother." 
Another jab she knew but instead of falling prey to terror and pain, she countered "Had I known who I would be meeting, I might have begged my escorts for time to freshen up."
  "I am afraid I must bear the blame for the pressing pace, " Maeve said  "though I suppose they could have at least found you a pool to bathe in along the way but I can't blame them either. Gavriel here is one of my most loyal blood sworn warriors who never gives me any chance to complain" ,she continued "and this is Prince Rowan Whitethorn, a descendent of Mora , he is my nephew of sorts and an extremely distant relative of yours. Twenty years ago his parents faded, he has been living in Doranelle and training with my most trusted warriors ever since." 
   Celaena made a mental note of the fact that Gavriel was a warrior forged through centuries as she had assumed but even Rowan had been training here with people like Gavriel for 2 decades now which meant he could also pose a considerable threat. Besides he was a prince from Mora's bloodline that had to mean that he had some very powerful magic.
  " Through these years I have come across quite strange tales about you, your scars and steel seem to prove them right. Like the one of a girl with Ashryver eyes being spotted with the Lord of North in a wagon…"
"Enough" Celaena interrupted "I am well aware of my personal history. " She couldn't afford letting Rowan and Gavriel know about her time in Endovier. "I am an assassin, yes and that's all..."
" Let's not beat about the bush,  if you want answers about the keys, you will get them but not here, not now. " said Maeve " because you haven't earned them yet " Maeve added as if sensing the upcoming question.
Celaena had heard myths about Maeve being able to communicate with spirits which seemed true as Maeve knew about the keys but the idea of Elena or Nehemia telling Maeve about it was very unsettling so she decided to deal with it later. "Tell me then how am I supposed to earn them?"
"You will come to Doranelle and get your answers there but I don't permit mortals or half breed to enter my realm unless they prove themselves worthy.  You shall only enter Doranelle when Prince Rowan and Gavriel decide that you have mastered your gift till then Rowan will train you here and although Gavriel is here to investigate a series of killings but he would also oversee your training. And unless both of them deem your training complete, you won't set a foot in Doranelle. " The disdain with which Maeve said half breeds made Celaena hate her even more.
Although she had dealt with many things - witches, demons ,kings - training with Rowan in magic on the contrary might not be as difficult but could take weeks, months or even years .
 " What I need to know isn't something that can wait…"
"You want answers regarding the keys, heir of Terrasen? Then they shall be waiting for you in Doranelle.  The rest is up to you ." Shot Maeve.
"Truthfully " blurted Celaena. " You would answer all my questions Truthfully ."
Maeve smiled. "You haven't forgotten all our ways, then." When Celaena didn't answer,  the queen of fae added " I will truthfully answer all your questions about the keys."
It was then that Celaena met the queen's stare . "You swear you'll tell me what I need to know?"
"I don't break my promises. And I have the feeling that you are unlike your mother in that regard, too."
Bitch. Bitch Celaena wanted to hiss. Had it not been for the fact that Maeve was there during the valg wars and had had the keys in her possession once,  Celaena wouldn't have given a second thought to walking straight out of the door after insulting this arrogant bitch.
"To what end?" Celaena asked softly but her voice was filled with rage. " You want me to train only so I can make a spectacle of my talents?"
" I wish you to become who you were born to be. To become queen. "