hearts of metal

lv. good luck

It was a day to forget. Forget the weight bearing down on their shoulders. Forget Maeve and the Valg and the metal bite of a gun and bullet holes.

Tonight was Beltane. She'd spent the earlier part of the day in celebration with her family, but as night descended, her and friends were gathered in a large field at the edge of the woods where a party raged.

Fire burned high atop stacks of wood, the middle one scorching. People were leaping over the smaller fires and cheering each other on.

Aelin watched the flames, their ruby core and citrine edges. An arm slid around her waist, tugging her into a warm body.

"What are you thinking about?" Rowan murmured. His wound had healed quite nicely, and he was eager to join the rest of them tonight instead of being confined to his bed either at their mansion or at his aunt's.

"The fires are pretty, no?" she said.

He raised an eyebrow. "You're a fucking pyro, Ace. Also, please do not jump over them."

"But that's the fun in Beltane!" Fen protested from behind them. The rest of their friends all followed the blonde, in various states of stupor. Dorian and Fen were both shit faced, having gotten into a drinking competition early on.

Chaol only had a few drinks and was keeping a close eye on Dorian, who had already tripped into five different people and almost set his clothes on fire. Connal, similarly, was keeping track of his twin, although Fenrys had fared better than Dorian so far.

Elide and Lys were hanging off of each other, faces flushed. Lys chirped, "yeah, Rowan! Jumping over the fires is good luck!"

Lorcan was stone faced as ever, a few feet behind Elide and ready to catch her if she fell.

"For fucks sake," Rowan muttered.

She smirked up at him. "Be gentle, everyone. You're going to give him gray hairs. Oh, wait," she added innocently, peering up at him.

He flicked her nose. "Don't be a menace."

They settled around some logs, basking in the night and the dim glow of flames.

Two figures soon emerged from the crowd to join them. Aelin recognized Nox and Nehemia, standing to greet them. She immediately rushed over to throw her arms around Nehemia.

"Mia!" she cheered. Once her lips were by Mia's ear, she whispered in Eyllwe, "you sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine, Ae," Mia said back. She certainly looked alright, as Aelin scanned her over. She wore a short, flowy dress in traditional Eyllwe print, with her standard gold jewelry and long braids.

Aelin was sure she had a knife or two tucked somewhere as well. Though not her preferred staff.

"What about me?" Nox added with a pout. The pout didn't last long as his eyes fell on Connal. "Hey, Con."

Connal got up from his log and moved towards Nox. In the process, stepping over Fenrys, who had sprawled out onto the grass for some unknown reason. Perhaps it was the buzz of Beltane or the shot she'd seen him down earlier, but he grabbed Nox's collar and tugged him in for a kiss.

By the time Connal pulled away, Aelin's cheeks hurt from smiling and Nox's were a bright pink underneath the smattering of freckles.

"What was that for?" Nox muttered shyly, sending glances to the rest of them.

"What? I can't kiss my boyfriend?"

She nudged Rowan, whose eyebrows had all but disappeared into his hairline. He recovered a moment later, glancing back at Lorcan. The man just shrugged.

"Umm, boyfriend?" Lys said. Con's expression tightened briefly, but Lys continued in an offended tone, "why the fuck haven't I been introduced?"

Con's lips melted into a slight grin. "Everyone, this is Nox."

Several people called hello. Fen waved, though his face was still buried in the grass.

"Nice to meet some of Connal's friends," Nox said cheerfully.

The two of them settled back down on one of the legs, Con keeping an arm over Nox's shoulder. He also sent a gentle kick to Fen's ribs.

Fenrys finally clambered to his feet with a groan and slumped onto the log beside Con.

Connal sent a questioning glance to Lorcan, then to Rowan. Their opinions mattered most to him, after all. They were practically family.

"I'm glad you're happy," Rowan said. Lorcan only nodded in agreement, and she laughed.

"You two are bad at this," she started, but Rowan squeezed her waist once in warning.

Connal sent his friends a soft smile, before starting up a conversation with Rowan. Her and Lorcan ended up arguing over something mundane. Meanwhile, everyone else had taken to gently interrogating Nox, to which he seemed more excited than worried.

It wasn't until the conversation lulled, the party still loud around them, that Nehemia spoke up. "There's something I have to tell you all," Nehemia said, hands clasped together on her lap. "I have to leave. My family needs me back in Eyllwe." She sent Aelin a meaningful glance, which made her stomach sink.

Silence. Aelin could see tears welling up in Lys' eyes.

"You're leaving?" Fen blurted, before falling silent. A frown tugged his lips down, and Aelin was certain her face mirrored his.

"When?" she asked.

"Two days," Mia said sadly.

Aelin sent her a shaky smile, even as her heart ached. She didn't want to say goodbye to her friend, not when she'd only just found her. "Promise to call?" she said.

Nehemia nodded, though her eyes had a sad gleam. "Of course."

"Well then, I guess we have to make the most of tonight then, don't we?" Aelin said, raising her glass.

The others cheered in response, several arms pulling Nehemia into a hug. The woman only smiled fondly at the lot.

"Let's make this a Beltane for the memories," Mia said, before grabbing one of Aelin's arms.

Aelin, in turn, grabbed Lys' hand, and the three girls moved towards the center of the field where a makeshift dance floor was.

They twirled in dizzying circles with their hands enclasped. By the end of the song, they had practically fallen over themselves in laughter.

"I'm going to get something to eat," Mia told them, after they danced through three more songs.

"Food sounds great," Lys said, hanging onto to Nehemia's arm. The two wandered off, and Aelin was about to follow before a figure jumping over the flames caught her eye. She recognized them from school and waved, before inching towards the fires herself.

"Fireheart," Rowan said, as he appeared from out of the crowd. He immediately frowned as if reading her mind. "No jumping over-"

She ignored what he was saying, grabbed his hand, and broke out into a run. The fire loomed before them, bright and smoking, the smell of it as heavy and cloying as the alcohol surrounding them. Truly a fire hazard.

Without a second thought, she leaped over. The heat nipped at her heels, then she was tumbling onto the grass on the other side. Her heart was racing a mile a minute, but she laughed with the giddy rush of adrenaline.

Rowan followed behind her, somehow managing to land on his feet.

He quickly dropped beside her, where she was strewn across the ground. "Are you okay?"

She only giggled some more. "That was fun. We should do it again."

"No, no more," he told her sternly. "Once was enough."

Aelin only laughed once more, "alright. But even you have to admit, that's good luck."

"Yes, fireheart. Good luck, indeed."