Shadow Queen - Azriel x oc

↳ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 7 - ᶠⁱʳˢᵗ ᵇˡᵉᵉᵈ

゜✧*̣̩☽⋆SHADOW QUEEN ✧*̣̩☽⋆゜
𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒻𝒾𝓇𝓈𝓉 𝒷𝓁𝑒𝑒𝒹

How different could a female Illyrian's body be from a human's? They were stronger; that was a no-brainer.

Maybe if I mixed the herbs and made something similar to a contraceptive potion that prevented a woman from bleeding altogether- I should've paid more attention to what past women in my life told me they did. I knew why I hadn't. It wouldn't work on me. My cycle was different. I was different.

I also knew it was near impossible to stop the Mother's cycle, nature's cycle, but I might be able to delay it long enough for her to find a way out of here. That was another thing I knew would be difficult.

It would be easier to start a revolution. But changing one war camp's norms didn't mean the others would follow; if anything, there would be more resistance. And women were untrained, clipped, or too young. They didn't stand a chance against the warriors—all because of what they didn't have between their legs.

Laenna had gone out to take the measurements of the woman who had ordered five dresses. She had thought that I wouldn't notice another thing either. But the skip in her step told me she was hiding something. I got her to confess with a few sweet words. Today was her birthday. Saddened that she'd tried to hide it, I tried making it up to her. I was staying at her house. The little cosy cabin was far away from the training grounds so that we wouldn't be molested but close enough to be near everything and move around safely.

So, I decided to cook something special for her when she returned—a little Dhaenish delight—simple but delicious. The scent of chocolate and strawberries filled the small kitchen as I nursed a cup of tea and read all I could about a different set of herbs.

Her initial plan was good. She was mixing the wrong kind of herbs.

"I think I got it," my eyes skimmed the page, confirming my thoughts. Well, that was quick.

Could it work?

It wouldn't hurt to try. But it would hurt me more if she got clipped because it didn't.

I could always take her with me to my 𝒽𝑜𝓂𝑒. I know that my little shadows would adore her creations—and her. I wouldn't want to witness the fights over the dresses, however. I could already hear the screams. She would have to teach them how to make them themselves, which was a good idea.

My happiness was fleeting, for the shadows I had sent after Laenna copied her voice, "Get away from me!" That wasn't good.

She was in trouble; if I couldn't infer that from her words, her voice told me enough.

I dropped everything carelessly and bolted for the door. Nearly ripping it off its hinges, I shadow-jumped. I couldn't fail her. Not again.

"Let me go!"

"Shut up."

I heard clues of a struggle. Someone was dragging her somewhere, but I couldn't figure out why. My shadows didn't give me a clear picture of what was happening, but they were heading towards the centre of the camp. There, tall posts with chains stood as high as the trees.

No.

No.

No.

"Take your hands off her, or I'll cut them off you." I reached them, and unfortunately for me—or them—the place was crowded.

As soon as I saw Laenna, I sensed something was terribly wrong. Her once radiant face was now distorted with distress, and her hair was dishevelled as if she had been in a struggle. But the dark stain on the lower part of her dress confirmed my suspicions. As I approached her, the dried tears on her cheeks only added to her already pitiful state. In that moment, I could feel the shadows within me stirring, ready to leap into action and protect her from whatever had caused her such anguish.