World of Dreamers (TOG/ACOTAR crossover)

Chapter 18

Rayah hated walking and she hated snow. She wished she was somewhere with warm fires and mugs filled with steaming hot chocolate; somewhere wrapped in a wool blanket watching the snow fall, but not letting the cold touch her skin; somewhere they weren't marching to their potential death. It isn't really that much to ask in the grand scheme of things, she thought. I could have asked for more powerful magic that could blast the Valg and Maeve to hell with one thought. 

Puffs of frozen air left her mouth as she pressed forward, trying not to die before the fighting even began. Had she known how much she would have to walk, she wouldn't have come on this blasted trip. 

But you're going to help people, a part of her brain told her. They need you. 

I don't care, the other half of her mind responded. It's so damn cold that I don't care about anything else right now but returning the feeling to my frozen toes. 

"Rayah?" someone called. The girl whipped her head up, dragging herself from her muddled thoughts. Her cheeks stung as the wind whipped her hair into her face. If her hair didn't stop getting in her face, she was actually going to cut it all off. She turned so the wind was to her back and looked for who had called her name. Unfortunately, another gust of wind started up and she got a mouthful of her own hair. 

Rowan chuckled and moved over to her, helping her pull her hair back as her hands were too frozen to function properly. "We'll be stopping in a few hours for the night," he said, expertly braiding her hair as they walked. 

"Thank the Gods," she muttered. 

Aelin snorted from Rowan's side. "Is the cold not treating you so well?" 

"No! I'm freezing and I can't feel my toes and I think I'm developing a deadly case of pneumonia and I might be dying. But that's okay. Don't worry about me! Let's just keep walking," She said exasperatedly. Aelin laughed. 

"I agree. It's colder than cold out here," Aelin said. "It's almost as cold as Lorcan's heart." 

"I heard that!" A voice called from a few feet ahead. 

A devilish smirk spread across the Queen's face and she turned to Rayah, her eyes glittering. "It's true. Lorcan didn't even have the decency to wish me happy birthday." 

Rowan turned to her, raising an eyebrow. "It's your birthday?" 

Again, that devilish smirk, "No. I'm still a teenager for a few days unfortunately." 

"You'll be twenty right?" Rayah asked. It was crazy to think how much she had been through and survived in her limited years on earth. Rayah had been alive for more than a century and hadn't done nearly as much as Aelin. Sure, she'd survived her fair share of family reunions, but even those dreaded occasions couldn't compare to the Queen's experiences. 

Aelin nodded, a flicker of sadness crossing her face. "In four days." They fell silent for a moment, the only sound coming from the crunching of their boots on the snow. 

They had been marching toward the boarders of Terrasen for almost a day now, and not much had happened. They didn't stop for lunch, trying to make the best time possible, and just ate as they walked, trudging through two feet of snow. Soldiers around her talked and laughed, none of them thinking about what was to come. Maybe it was better like that. Maybe it was better to distract yourself and forget about the war, if only for a moment. Rayah herself tried to avoid thinking about what would go down in the next few days, but failed. Every time she had a free second, she was thinking about the war. 

According to Edna, as long as they kept up their pace, they would reach the boarder of Terrasen tomorrow, right as Maeve's armies showed up. Erawan's armies bought them time, pushing Maeve's armies farther and farther from Ornyth, but eventually, Maeve's army overwhelm Erawan's. Eventually, they were going to have to face the Valg Queen.