Shadow Queen - Azriel x oc

↳ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 4 - ᵖʳᵒᵐⁱˢᵉˢ

゜✧*̣̩☽⋆SHADOW QUEEN ✧*̣̩☽⋆゜

𝒫𝓇𝑜𝓂𝒾𝓈𝑒𝓈

Since that night, Laenna and I had forged a bond, a friendship that seemed to defy the odds. We had spent the entire night in deep conversation, and I found myself opening up to her in a way I hadn't with anyone else. She didn't pass judgment on me, but rather, she empathized with my struggles. I had shared with her about my mother tongue, a language that had become a rarity in my life, and about the myriad of other languages I had acquired over the years.

She shared with me the tragic life of being a female Illyrian after listening to my sob story. She was almost 18 years old, and to delay her first period and avoid the Clipping, she was using some illegal herbs. After hearing this, I couldn't help but gaze at her wings. It was heart-wrenching to think that her beautiful, membranous wings would be brutally removed just because she was a woman.

It didn't make any sense, and it infuriated me. It was like ripping off a man's arms just because they could.

Ask males how they would feel about having their wings clipped, along with their dreams—the dreams of becoming someone. Females were reduced to objects without them, an identifier of their culture. That tale is getting old. See how many now volunteer.

What was more unfair was that because High Lords were men, Generals were men and camp leaders were, as I think you guessed it... men, nobody fought for Illyrian women's rights. They had to do everything they said and endure the pain of being a woman.

I hated that. And I hated that I couldn't do anything unless I wanted the High Lord to have my head. Or unleash a battle on women.

"It is so frustrating," I huffed while sipping my tea. Laenna was at her tiny desk sewing a new dress. In the little time I'd known her, she had shown her true talent. But she was selfless and wouldn't acknowledge it. Her dresses were gorgeous. The money she got from her art helped her to get by; it didn't allow her a life of luxury, but she didn't care about those things. She just wanted to sew.

"You could beat the High Lord, but first, start with Lord Devon. A punch to the face would serve him well. Knock him down from his high horse."

"Many men would, too." Ah, the precious bonding over women's hate for misogynistic men.

I had encountered Daemati before, but if the rumours were true, the High Lord was an exceptionally powerful one. The thought of someone entering my mind filled me with fear and made me want to run away from Prythian. He could quickly get inside my mind without me noticing and find things I've tried to keep hidden deep in the shadows of my consciousness, like the weapon that can kill me, which could take me down faster than I could understand what was happening. If he knew about it, others would soon find out, too. Even if I could win a physical fight, I'd lose a mental one, and my deepest secrets would be exposed. I can't take that risk.

"Is it too much to ask men to look at us as more than breeding machines?"

"Oh, Laenna, those men are a dying breed," I said, pinching her cheek. She pulled her face away.

"Or a breed in the making," she sighed.

"May the Cauldron hear your prayer," I said, raising my cup and siping.

She lifted her gaze from the fabric on her lap and the needle she was trying to thread and looked at me seriously. "Speaking of, do you have a mate? A four-thousand-and-something exotic beauty like you can't be unmated."

I couldn't help but cackle.

A mate. I'd done many things in my years roaming these lands, but finding my mate wasn't one of them. I'd been with men—a few women. Some stories were more tragic than others, and I wish I could forget some. Unfortunately, no one had been my mate; they had not even come close.

That was the reason for—in my mind—the ache I felt in my chest for as long as I could remember. The anguish produced by thinking I would never meet my mate. Maybe they had already met someone else. Perhaps I would never meet them because they had di—No. I refused to believe that. But many things, many people, have come and gone throughout my life. What if they were human?

I'm not.

"That's where you're wrong. I don't even think I want one." That was a complete and absolute lie. "I haven't had the greatest experience with men."

"Their loss then."

"I'm certain that someone out there will adore you like a queen, worship the ground you walk on, and be willing to do anything to bring a smile to your face." She offered me a hopeful smile.

That's a promise.

゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜

Hi. I haven't asked you about your opinions of her. I find it quite exotic. The "s" sound lulls you a little, and I imagine Azriel saying it, and it just... wow.

See you in the next chapter

Love,

𝓛𝓲𝓪