Rowaelin Hogwarts AU (Throne of Glass)

Hogwarts AU (Part 14)

Aelin felt the warm wine pool in her belly, slowly seeping into her bloodstream. It was a warm, lazy, and blissful feeling. Fenrys' knee was just brushing hers on the shaggy blanket they had plopped down on seemingly hours ago. She couldn't remember it moving there. Maybe she had moved...

"It sucks you lost the match... I think we should have had a rematch. It's not your fault you're a good chaser, and, apparently, a good seeker." Fenrys slurred, the room of requirement was silent except for his honeyed voice- sweet, but thick and deep. She could hear his lips part with each syllable. 

Ever since the Ansel had told her- shrieked at her- that they had lost, she had changed the subject every time Quidditch came up. It left her feeling sickly and not because of Ansel's scolding. But the nettled wine made her not care, "Yeah... I don't know what I was thinking when I caught the snitch. I know- I knew, it was a foul. But I just wanted to win so gosh-damn-fucking badly."

Her eyelids felt like lead, she let them droop over her irises. Aelin shifted and stretched, her head falling back, arching her spine forwards. 

Fenrys was following the curve of her body. His eyes had always been dark and striking, like molasses that his pupils melted into, but tonight she swore she could see bronze fog bubbling up, the same color as his tied back hair. 

It must have been the firelight. 

"Any reason why?" he took a swig of the bottle they had been sharing, coating his lips in indigo when he pulled it away, "Or just regular Ashryver competitiveness?" 

Her eyes tumbled down his throat and chest, to the stack of books she had collected them to bring back to the common room from the shelves encompassing them, "A little more than that."

He didn't have to say anything to urge her. His attentive stare, now on her eyes despite the wine cloud that floated over both of them, told her that he cared and wanted to know more. 

"Don't tell anyone," she leaned forward, so she could smell the sweetness in his puffs of breath, "please." 

"I won't," he promised. 

"Aedion..." Just saying his name made her want to throw up, break out of the castle, and sprint back home to him. 

"He left to see his mum, who's really, really ill," her waterline began to flood. "And his only request before he left was that I won the match against Hufflepuff- you. So when he came back we could win the cup together."

Tears threatened to overflow and streak her mascara. 

"And I failed him."

Calloused finger pads pattered up Aelin's arm, then ran down to her hand knotted in the blanket.

"Lin, you didn't fail him," he murmured, he had leaned closer to hold her hand. "Or at least you losing the match didn't fail him, you worrying about it so much is failing him..."

She tilted her head up, only now realizing their noses were close to bumping, "What?" 

"Aedion didn't ask that of you because he wanted to win the cup, again. He asked you because he wanted to keep you preoccupied and fool you into thinking you were helping him.  He asked for it because he didn't want you to hurt and worry."

Aelin said nothing.

"Apparently he fooled you too well-"

"No," Aelin cut him off, "I fooled myself," she gazed at the spines of the books behind Aedion, not even bothering to read the titles. The gaps she had left were magically filled. "I knew what he was trying to do."