A Court of Glass and Fire

Chapter Seven: Rowan Whitethorn Galathyniys ~ Part Three

Rowan shifted back into Fae form as the old woman cackled again. "Or is it king now? I keep forgetting."

"Prince or king, it doesn't matter," Rowan said, the edge to his voice as sharp as an executioner's axe. "If you truly are the seer you claim to be, I have need of your services."

The old woman hummed. "Let's discuss over tea."

Rowan growled. "We don't have time--"

Elide laid a hand on his arm. "It won't do us any good to aggravate her when we need her help. We're on her schedule, Rowan. She is the one with the information."

She nodded, puttering about as she began brewing the tea. "You would do well to listen to the Lady of Perranth, Rowan Whitethorn. She will keep you from getting ahead of yourself."

Elide's grip on his arm tightened. "How do you--"

"I know many things, child."

She shook her head in amazement. "Who are you?"

"My name is Ycda and despite Lorcan Salvaterre's claims, I am a seer. And before you ask, I do hold the answers you seek, so please make yourselves comfortable while I prepare the tea." There was no threat in her words, but she clearly implied what Elide had said. She was the one with the information. They were on her time. And unfortunately, that meant sitting and waiting for tea.

They found a battered couch amongst the scattered trinkets and sat down on it. While Elide heeded Ycda's words and actually made herself comfortable on the couch, Rowan perched at the edge of the cushions, desperate to get the information and leave. The sooner he found out where his wife was and how to get to her, the better. As soon as he had the information in his grasp, he would go.

"You'll need a better plan than that if you want to make it back to your Fireheart, king," Ycda chuckled.

Rowan sat up ramrod straight. "So you're a seer and you can read minds?"

"I am learned in the art of divination, king. I know the unknown just as well as I know the future," she explained. "Although you like to broadcast your thoughts particularly loudly. I'm not trying to learn your thoughts, but it's almost as if you're telling them to me. This one, on the other hand," she jerked her thumb towards Elide, "keeps hers hidden well. You could learn a thing or two from her."

Rowan frowned, blasting a wall up around his mind to keep the old woman from reading his thoughts again. He preferred to keep his thoughts private, and it unnerved him to think that she had learned them so easily. Like she could just hear what he was thinking. It occurred to him that he ought to be a bit more careful with letting his guard down.

Ycda seemed to be in no hurry to yield over her answers. She made the tea at a much slower pace than Rowan would have liked, sometimes seeming to slow down deliberately as if to teach him a lesson about patience. But Rowan had no time for patience. His wife was missing. He didn't know where she was or if she was even alive. Didn't she understand that? Didn't she understand what was riding on this visit?

Finally, Ycda decided to stop puttering around (or perhaps the tea was coincidentally ready at the same time that she decided she'd had enough of Rowan's scowling) and sat down across from Elide and Rowan after pouring them all steaming cups of tea. "All right," she said. "Now I will answer your questions."

"Do you know what happened to Aelin?"

"I do."

Rowan scowled. "Do you plan on telling us?"

"Perhaps I shall if your manners shape up, king."

He bit his tongue to hold back the frustration. "Fine. Would you please tell us what happened to Aelin?"

"Ah, there we go," the old woman clucked. "Now then. What happened to the Queen of Terrasen was something rare and special indeed. When she was in the iron coffin, she, or some power that took pity on her, was able to open a Wyrdgate to another world."

"Another... world?" Elide repeated in disbelief.

"Yes," Ycda confirmed, her face showing no hint of amusement. She traveled to a place called Prythian, a land divided into seven courts, each ruled by a different High Lord. Beyond that, I do not know."

"How do we go there?" Rowan asked, at the edge of his seat.

Ycda frowned. "You do not."

He snarled. "My wife is in another world. Of course we're going. How do we get there?"

She sighed. "Fae princes," she muttered. "So demanding." Then, louder, she answered, "You open a Wyrdgate."

"Do you know how to do it?" he challenged.

"Yes," she admitted. "But not safely."

"It doesn't matter. We'll be back at midnight. Please. Help us."

~

Hey guys!

This is a short chapter, but I leave for camp very soon and I won't be writing until I get back, so I had to leave you guys with something! This is the first time I've created a character for this universe instead of using Sarah's characters, so I hope I did a good job! If you liked this chapter, click the star and give me a vote!

xoxo,

tessa