Chapter Text
Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius, mate and King-Consort of Queen Aelin Ashryver Whitethorn Galathynius of Terassen, can’t find his wife. When he woke up, Aelin’s side of the bed was empty and cold. When he checked the dining hall if she was already having breakfast, without him, - which seemed like the most likely explanation, because Aelin eats all the time - she wasn’t there. The same with every other room in the palace, as well as the stables, and Rowan couldn’t even find her scent in the Oakwald forest. More than a little worried, he is now flying back from the Oakwald towards the palace to find Aedion. Even if Aedion doesn’t know where she is, the protective cousin would at least be a considerable help in finding her.
Ever since Erawan and the valg had been defeated, the Ashryver prince and his wife Lysandra would normally stay at their mansion in Caraverre to continue rebuilding that part of the kingdom as the Lord and Lady of the territory. But a few times a year they would stay a couple of nights in the castle, particularly when Aelin would host a fabulous dinner or even a ball with the excuse that they should celebrate for being alive. However, Rowan knew the real reason was because his Queen and the Lady of Caraverre loved dressing up, eating delicious foods and dancing throughout the whole night.
The Lord and Lady of Perranth is a different story. The valg was defeated five years ago, and during the first two years Lorcan and Elide had stayed in Perranth, mostly in their mansion doing things Rowan would like not to think about. They married the third year, and Rowan still can’t thank Elide enough for getting to see Lorcan in a fabulous tuxedo in Terrassen’s colors, with flowers in his jack pocket, upon Elide’s request. After the wedding, their honeymoon that was supposed to be a month according to human traditions, had extended to two years and seems to still be going. They haven’t once come to the castle as wedded yet, not that Aelin minds. the Queen finds much pleasure in traveling across the kingdom to visit her friend and the citizens in Perranth. And the rebuilding of Perranth has gone smoothly and well, so Rowan can’t really blame the newly wed pair for wanting to stay behind their closed bedroom doors so often.
Rowan flies through the palace gates, shifting into his fae body when he’s still in the air. It’d be more time convenient if he kept his hawk form and flew through the palace, but Aelin has set up a strict no bird inside the walls-rule for him, mainly so that he won’t scare any servants. She doesn’t seem to realize that his huge Fae body and canines can be pretty frightening as well.
After knocking once on Aedion’s and Lysandra’s suite, he decides that he’s been polite enough and opens the door and strides in without waiting for an answer. Whether they are decent or not is no priority of Rowan’s with their Queen currently missing.
Luckily, they both are at least covered with a comforter, although Rowan doubts that there are any clothes underneath.
“What the hell?” Aedion exclaims upon seeing Rowan entering the room unannounced, and pulls up the duvet so that it covers Lysandra’s body even more, confirming Rowan’s suspicions of their nudity.
“Have you seen Aelin?” Rowan asks with an urgency in his voice that he knows the prince recognizes.
“Not since last night, why?” Aedion answers suspiciously.
“She was gone when I woke up. Neither she or her scent is anywhere inside the palace, the stables, or even in the Oakwald. Wherever she is, her scent shouldn’t just have disappeared. I should able to scent where she’s been. Someone or something is hiding it.” With the mating bond, the carranam bond, the blood oath, and the fact that he spends every single night breathing in her scent, Rowan should have no problem tracking her, even if the traces are a night old. And even if he can’t trace her scent, he’s always been able to feel where her magic is. Something is not right.
”Can’t you guys, like... feel anything through the blood oath?” Lysandra sits up on the bed, clutching the bed sheets around her.
Rowan sighs. “Unfortunately, it doesn’t work like that. But if she’s in any danger, she should be able to notify us by tugging on the blood oath. Although that only works if she’s conscious.”
”Well, I hardly believe anyone would be able to get our Queen unconscious without anyone noticing,” Lysandra muses. “So she’s probably conscious, and she hasn’t tugged on the bond. My theory is that she simply doesn’t need any of you territorial fae bastards knowing where she is at the moment,” she concludes.
”That Aelin herself has covered her tracks doesn’t make me any less concerned,” Rowan answers. “God knows what she’s up to.”
They are quiet for a few moments, then Aedion finally says, “alright, King-Consort. What do you want to do?”
Rowan is the second in command, so when Aelin’s gone, all decisions are his to make.
”I’m not resting until I’m certain she’s not in danger. Let’s check with the rest of the court present at the palace, and I’ll notify a few of the guards that I know can keep their mouths shut. Keep it quiet from anyone else, we don’t need the whole palace going crazy, at least not yet. If there’s still no development by midday, we call in the lords and ladies from all the different territories,” Rowan orders in an autocratic voice that he rarely uses, before flying out their bedroom window.
The quickest way to Fenry’s suite is by flying in the window, since he managed to convince Aelin of giving him the highest quarter in one of the towers. Rowan just hopes Fenrys doesn’t have a female with him in there, because in that case their naked bodies definitely won’t be covered in sheets, like Aedion’s and Lysandra’s. He’d most likely walk in on Fenrys and his mistress being in the middle of the act, which is a sight Rowan never wants to see.
It must be Rowan’s lucky day, because Fenrys is alone and decent, already strapping on weapons on his body, when Rowan comes flying in. In all of the centuries that they have known each other, Rowan has never seen the white wolf up at this hour when it isn’t needed. He almost hopes that it is because he knows something about Aelin.
”Morning, Rowan. Try not to drop any feathers on my floor, it was just cleaned,” Fenrys greets when Rowan shifts.
”Have you seen Aelin?”
Just like Aedion, Fenrys hears the urgency when Rowan voices the question, and turns completely serious.
”I saw her last at dinner last night. Has something happened?”
“That’s what we’re trying to figure out. Both Aelin and her scent has disappeared from the palace grounds and I couldn't get a whiff of it in the Oakwald either,” Rowan explains.
”I’ll see if my wolf can pick up on anything amiss,” Fenrys declares, and then shifts.
Rowan likes this about Fenrys, that it’s always easy with him when there is a problem and he’s given a command. Centuries of working side by side as Meave’s blood sworn must be what honed their disciplined warriors’ minds, but Rowan knows that it’s their love and faith in Aelin that truly makes their court like no other.
”Good, but keep this quiet,” Rowan orders before shifting and flying out the window again.
Rowan knows that Aedion will first go to Ren, his best friend since childhood and brother in a way, so Rowan will check with a few of the palace guards.
Ren Allsbrook, Lord of Allsbrook, spends a considerable amount of his time at the palace instead of staying at his mansion in his territory. The Allsbrook territory recovered very quickly after the valg, so the Lord now spends most of his time helping Aelin rebuilding Orynth to its former glory, as well as traveling to Arran to help Lord Darrow. As far as Rowan’s concerned Ren is still unmarried, but he often hears Aelin gossiping about different ladies that she sees the Lord with, speculating about who is taken to his bed and who might be a potential partner.
Rowan starts with the two guards currently posted at the castle gates, Merrin and Piatrik, the ones that he trusts the most. It isn’t that Rowan believes that any of the other guards is not trustworthy, only that he knows that these two are two of the best and can keep their mouths shut if anyone would ask about the queen.
”Morning’, your Highness,” they both greet once Rowan has shifted into his fae form.
”I suppose you haven’t seen my wife recently?” Rowan skips the pleasantries, not to come of as unpleasant, but simply because it’s more time convenient that way. And if Aelin truly is in danger, every second could count.
”Not during our shift,” Merrin informs.
“When did your shift start?”
”At sunrise, why?” Piatrik answers.
”Who had the night shift?” Rowan ignores their question.
“Audren and Gwen. Prince, is there anything we should be aware of? You look concerned?”
”The Queen is missing,” Rowan continues to tell them everything he knows, as well as to keep an extra eye out, and to keep their mouths shut until further notice.
Rowan tracks down Audren and Gwen next. He’s spent a lot of time training Audren, so he easily picks up her scent. Audren is human, but from some unknown ancestor she has inherited the ability to wield ice. It isn’t much, but with Rowan’s help she has learned to use what little magic she has as a weapon. Gwen has no magical powers, but she makes up for it by being a formidable sword wielder.
At first Audren’s scent leads Rowan to the armory, but then he picks up a stronger one in the direction of the guards’ dining room. Aelin has many times made it a point that the guards and the servants and anyone else helping in the castle is welcome in the main dining hall, but unfortunately not many has taken her up on the offer. Rowan’s theory is that most of them simply aren’t comfortable being so casual with their queen, whom the serve and protect.
Luckily for Rowan, both of the females that he’s seeking are in the dining room. He quickly walks up to them and asks, “Audren and Gwen, may I have a word?” Which causes more than a few glances their way. Although, Rowan couldn’t blame them, it isn’t often that the second in command has such an urgent issue that he shows up during their breakfast.
The two females silently follows him as he makes his way out of the dining room and down a few stone corridors, looking for a place without eavesdroppers. After more turns than were probably necessary, he finally comes to a stop.
“I suppose that neither of you saw the Queen during your shift?”
”No,” they answer in unison, concern alighting their features.
“Did you come across anything unusual during your shift?” Rowan asks. “Saw something? Heard anything? No detail is too small.”
”I don’t think so…” Gwen answers thoughtfully.
“No more than the usual flap of wings or hissing of wind. A servant came with a snack once, but we came across no other living soul.”
Rowan takes a moment to process the information, but finds nothing useful for his hunt to find Aelin.
“Thank you, you may go back to your breakfast,” he dismisses them.
“Your Highness, is there anything we should know about?” Gwen asks before turning to go.
“No. Not at the moment, no.”
He doesn’t need any more folks than necessary knowing about his Queen’s disappearance. The guards at the palace gates knows, and that’s enough for now.
Rowan starts walking in the direction of his and Aelin’s suite to pace there instead of out in the open in a random hallway. He’s still rather calm, because there is currently no indication that Aelin has been exposed to threat. The most likely explanation to Aelin’s disappearance is that she’s in the middle of some grand scheme of hers, and that she doesn’t want anyone to know about it or disturb her, or possibly stop her. However, Rowan knows he won’t be able to rest until he knows for certain that his mate is safe, and very soon that calm will disappear. Those primal fae instincts haven’t made much of an appearance yet, but if he doesn’t learn where his mate is soon, he’ll turn into a territorial fae bastard - as Aelin likes to call him - and become a force to be reckoned with.