A Throne Of Fangs And Ice

1

*Luna's POV*

Waking up in my small cabin up on the mountain is something I cherish more and more every single day. To be up here all by myself without the commotion, without having to be around people all the time... it's nice. You would think after losing everyone I've ever loved that I would hate being alone, but I guess I've gotten used to it. Plus, at least I know if I'm alone, there's no one to lose but myself. 

My little house has a mind of its own, just like the House Of Wind does according to the stories I've heard whenever I've been in town. Sensing I'm awake, the house starts the beginnings of my morning routine. Running a hot bath for me to start. I stripped off my sleep shorts and a shirt that's too long on my short figure and just a bit too big for me. I don't even remember where I got it, but I love it. No matter how many times I've washed it, a scent lingers on it that I cannot get over. I wish I could just candles of that scent so I could smell it all the time but I haven't been able to recreate it. 

I stepped into the large tub steaming with hot water, submerging myself in the water for a moment before coming back up for air and beginning to wash my hair and body. I was thorough, always have been when it comes to things like this. I take pride in my looks and personal hygiene. I don't like to stink or look like a mess. Maybe that's just cause of how I was raised. My mother always told me that I was an absolute beauty and to always make sure I was properly clean and presentable. When I was little, I remember her scrubbing me so much that my skin would turn bright red. Over the years as I got older and since she's passed away, I don't scrub that hard. But I do make sure that I'm clean before leaving the tub. 

Finally, time for food. After getting dressed, i made my way into my kitchen where I began preparing a scrambler. Fried potatoes, cut up sausage, and scrambled eggs all mixed together. I always have leftovers that go in the fridge and get reheated later. I watched the Illyrian men air train out my window as I cooked. I've learned only 2 names, mostly from my abilities but it doesn't help that these two are out there every single morning for hours. What a sight to behold too. Both of them are absolutely gorgeous. One, he has dark blonde maybe light brown longer hair, just below his shoulders that he ties into a bun. He's built very like a tank, his muscles glistening with sweat in the morning sunlight today. He's the brute for sure. Not my type, but I can admire a beautiful man either way. Now the other one... oooof. He's my type in every way. Short black hair, his face sculpted to perfection, black swirly tattoos that scale from the top of his check, over his shoulders and up his neck. Not entirely, but I can see it. His body isn't as muscular as the other man's but he's definitely strong. Even from this distance, his eyes are a golden hazel color and something about them just makes me feel at peace. Makes me feel safe whenever I see him out there training. Even if he doesn't even know I exist. 

Cassian, he's the brute one. Azriel is the other. I've grown attached to seeing these men outside my window every morning. I feel like I know them even though I know we've never even met before. My abilities make it hard to be around other people. While I can control them, sometimes things slip through. One of my biggest abilities is being able to read thoughts. I've learned over the years with forest animals mostly and with my parents before they passed, how to control it so the thoughts dont just slip into my mind without me asking for them. I was always told by my father that I can't tell anyone about it or I could be kidnapped and used or even killed. So I don't talk about it. Another ability, I can shapeshift into a wolf at will. A wolf that's bigger than your normal one but not taller than an average sized person for example. That one is a favorite cause it's easy to just shift and run off into the woods when I need to just get away from my own mind. I did it alot in my teenage years. The amount of times my parents pushed me this way and that way when it came to my abilities, I just needed to get away from it all and let my anger out. So I would shift and just go out in the woods where they couldn't find me. Not once did they ever see me in my wolf form so they never knew what I looked like. It was easy to hide at that point. 

Knocking on my door startled me. I hadn't realized I had finished my breakfast while being stuck in my own damn thoughts. I approached my door and used one of my other abilities to sense the emotion off whoever was at my door. Worry and a hint of comedy. Interesting. I opened the door and what do you know, Cassian and Azriel. Shirtless. And standing at my door. 

"I'm so sorry to disrupt your morning, miss. But my brother got hurt and I saw your cabin up here and thought maybe we could get him fixed up real quick before heading back home. Would that be okay?" Azriel asked in the most intoxicating voice I've ever heard. I simply nodded and stepped aside to allow them inside. 

"Oh come on, we didn't have to bother the little lady. I could have made it back just fine, Az. You know it!" Cassian began arguing with Azriel. 

"Oh shut up and just take the loss. I won that fight and you were stupid enough to try throwing one last punch. I caught it and knocked you off your feet. You landed on your ass also bending your damn wings to the point you couldn't fly. Just shut up and let me figure out how to fix them so we can go home." Azriel chuckled and began inspecting Cassian's wings. 

"Sorry about this, my name is Cassian and this is my brother Azriel. You have a lovely home up here, had Azriel not noticed you in the window earlier, we would have had to walk all the way back home with my wings all fucked up and then hear Rhys laugh about it." Cassian said and shot me a warm smile. Azriel looked up from Cassian's wings and smiled as well. 

"It's nice to meet you both, I'm Luna. I'll admit, I've been watching you two train every morning for a long time now. Seeing the way you fight in the air is fascinating." I said and stepped closer to them. 

"Oh yeah? Like what you see?" Cassian flirted. Very obviously at that. Azriel slapped his arm. 

"Ignore him, he likes to flirt with anything breathing." Azriel said with a barely noticeable shake of his head. 

"It's fine, honestly. I grew up around alot of people just like him. At least he seems to know where to keep his hands." I said the last part quietly but they both heard it and I could see both of them tense up. The room grew quiet for awhile until Azriel finally spoke. 

"Could you lend me a hand? I need this part of his wing to be held correctly so I can wrap it and it'll heal the right way without anything needing to be rebroke." Azriel asked and I stepped even closer. I very carefully held where he had said to. 

"Like this?" I asked, he reached his own hand to mine, showing me exactly where to hold the wing before smiling nodding in approval. His hands.. they're so scarred. In a weird way though, the scars suit him. But I can only imagine the pain he went through for those. Carefully, Azriel wrapped this wing tightly so it wouldn't rebreak as he flew. Then we moved to the other wing and did the same thing. 

"Alright, you should be good to fly. Why don't you test it real quick before we go?" Azriel said and nodded his head towards the door. Cassian nodded and headed out the door, a loud boom of his wings and a rush of wind indicating he had taken flight. 

"I'd just like to sincerely apologize for ruining your morning. But I also want to thank you for being so kind and allowing us to come in your home to get him fixed up. I know who you are, I wouldn't have blamed you if you shut the door in our faces." He said as he ran his fingers through his hair, shadows swirling around the curves of his ears. 

"What? How... How do you know me? I never go in town. Haven't for a long time now." I asked, my heart pounding in my chest. Anxiety and panic ripping through me. 

"Hey, calm down. I'm of no threat to you. I will never be a danger to you. I know you, because I knew your parents. Your father helped train me when I first showed up at the Illyrian training camp. And your mom, she always had a warm smile for me any time she came by to give your father lunch. You don't remember the times your father brought you to the camp and you used to watch us training? I dont know if you watched everyone, but I remember always seeing you there whenever I was training. You were like my own personal cheerleader." He said, leaning against the back of my couch. 

"No.. I don't remember much from my childhood. I remember being at the camp, yes. But I don't remember much else. I lost alot of friends from there during the war. I... I may have erased those memories.." I said, then immediately regretting it since that's another one of my abilities that I wasn't supposed to talk about. 

"Wait.. did you say you erased your own memories?" Cassian asked as he walked back inside and turned to face me.