A Court of Games and Fate

Unnecessary Weight

          The library within the House of Wind- the fancy name for the home they were currently residing in- was certainly no modest place. The ornate room was probably the most similar to the corridors of the palace Under the Mountain that Andromeda had spent the last eighteen years prancing about. It was because of this fact that most of the last few days had been filled with her getting lost in the rows upon rows of books. Between the library and the areas of the home that had open archways to the outside air, Andromeda was able to remain in her own little world.

          Despite everybody telling him that he could take more time to process and adjust, her father was adamant about getting back to work and caught up on the last fifty years of the happenings within his Court. Everybody knew that he was hiding within the work, Andromeda especially, but nobody could stop his efforts. With the meetings between him, Amren, and Mor, she had barely seen her father outside of their late-night talks in the library. Neither one of them was getting much sleep lately and the dark circles under their eyes made it very clear. Neither one of them bothered to call too much attention to their state, at least outside of the worrying glances her father shot her way.

          Andromeda was vaguely aware of the inner circle members coming and going from the house, but given that most of her time was spent in random hiding spots, she did not have to bother with forcing conversation with them. Every so often, when lounging in the sunlight to ease her anxieties or hiding out in a random corner of the library, Andromeda was excited to catch a solo shadow from Azriel snaking around in whatever corner or crevice was close by. The whisps were not a pest, the opposite more like, though she did wonder how the Court's Spymaster managed to sneak around with the friendly tendrils constantly off their leash. Either way, it was a delight to have some sort of friend, even if she was not going to think too long about the fact she was now finding friends in the shadows. At one point in time, her closest friend was either Eris or whatever maid had been assigned to her. Then it was Eris and her father. Feyre for a mere moment, if one could call their time together in the dungeons bonding time. What better way to round out her lively social life than with shadows she couldn't even understand?

          Tonight was the same as the last few with Andromeda having snuck into the library to curl up with a book. The book was her third one this week, with this one describing Illyrian culture and customs. As interested as she was to learn more about the culture that was so prevalent in her new family, her eyes were drooping more and more. In response, Andromeda found herself standing up to pace around in a circle. If her eyes closed for too long, she knew she would be transported back to that night. Andromeda had grown to fear sleep during the last week.

          "If you're looking for exercise, there is a nice training room just a few floors up," her father's smooth voice halted her pacing. "It even has a great opening to the top of the mountain. Nice for stargazing."

          Andromeda offered a smile at his suggestion. One of many within the last few days. Her father didn't bother hiding his fear of her recluse nature, but he also seemed to refuse to push her into doing anything right now. Instead, it was little comments like this. Or plates of food left outside of her bedroom. Or having Mor try to check in on her in the morning during breakfast.

          "Why exercise the body when I can exercise the mind?" Andromeda responded. Neither one of their voices held their typical timber, nor their eyes showing the usual sparkle.

          In the quieter moments, Andromeda almost found herself fearing that the two were better off Under the Mountain. At least there they could sleep a full night and the scariest thing was her mother. Now... there was so much more to deal with.