Fireheart: A "Throne of Glass" Fanfiction

Chapter 5

Aelin overlooked the armies that were trained for war a week after the retreat, milling about and preparing their minds to accept death.

Manon walked up to her, not bothering to avoid making sounds.

"You knew?" Aelin asked, not taking her eyes off the army, her hands locked over her stomach. Over her child.

"I smelled it instantly." Manon confirmed.

"Rowan says its a girl. He figured it out when he tasted my blood last night." Manon smirked.

"And here I was thinking that Ironteeth mating was brutal. Even we rarely draw blood. Well, not anymore, anyway."

"Its not brutal. Just... Intense. Scratches, surface level bites. Its how we claim each other. The scent is for Fae and Witches, the marks are for Mortals. If you can't smell his claim, you can see it." Aelin said. Indeed, Manon could see the many sets of twin wounds on Aelin Galathynius' shoulders and neck.

"He has claimed you many times, it would seem."

"Shut up." Aelin said with a smirk.

"Be glad the lords have seemingly forgotten what those marks say. It isn't very... Queenly."

"I think the world is still too scared of me to let me hear such things."

"Then the world is wiser than it was a decade ago."

"If other nations called me a whore, what will you do?"

"I would help you slice their throats, Queen of Flames. I imagine King Dorian would concur." Manon said.

"A bit extreme for name-calling."

"You saved their sorry asses, you and Yrene. We all helped, yes, but you and her were the heroes of that story."

"Give yourself some credit. You and the Thirteen. I didn't build the damn statue for nothing, and I didn't include you in it for nothing. You belong right along side Yrene and I."

"Two queens and a hero. Thats all it took to show Erawan the error of his ways."

"That and thousands of Mortals, Witches, and Fae. Not to mention horses, aeries, and wyverns."

"All of them fought because we fought. Three women with shattered families. Three women with one hell of a grudge against the Valg King."

"Three women with the skill and power to make gods tremble."

"Maeve thought herself a goddess. Her skull decorates your throne room. Erawan thought himself a god. His stain remains on your balcony."

"To my great annoyance."

"But thats all he is now. An annoyance. A pesky, but otherwise powerless stain. No power, no influence. It doesn't whisper evil, it doesn't weaken magic. It clearly has done nothing to your love. And Maeve is nothing but a burnt scrap of bone. Soon, I imagine you will add whatever remains of Aya and the Lords of Fenharrow to your collection. Trophies and warnings."

"Yes. But for now, I remain off the battlefield." Manon blinked and looked at her.

"Never thought I'd hear you say that. Motherhood has already changed you, Queen."

"Not forever. Rowan and I have agreed. With Yrene, we can risk a little more. If she can kill the Valg King, she can get me through the horrors of Fae births. If I still want it, we will have a second and third. After the third, no more. The child I have will be my heir to the throne. My secondborn will rule Melisande. My thirdborn will rule Fenbarrow. Of course, by then, those lands will have new names. The Galathynius line shall run strong in three nations, to never again be wiped out."