Chapter Text
The Inner Circle were gathered at the townhouse for dinner when a portal opened in the dining room.
Rhys just dropped his head on the table as Bryce Quinlan popped her head through, much to the delight of his son.
“Hey guys, don’t mind me. I’m just here to collect a package then I’ll be on my way, don’t let me interrupt your meal.”
Rhys groaned, lifting his head to glare, somewhat playfully, at the red head.
It had been two years since she first showed up in Prythian, and she’d visited quite a few times since then. Bringing various members of her family and friends with her. But their relationship still remained antagonistic, although nowadays it was in jest. They realised they were quite similar and became good friends over time. With that being said, she still drove him up the wall at times, much like Nesta. And it was Nesta who Bryce was winking at.
“What package?” he asked, “and what do you know of this, Nesta?”
“Well,” Nesta started but was cut off by Bryce.
“I’ll tell him Nes, just give me a minute.” She leaned back on her side of the portal to tell someone – probably Hunt – that she’d be back soon, then stepped through the portal and closed it.
“Do you remember that wonderful bonding time Nes, Az, and I had in the caves? Well, we learned something about Az that day, so I am here to fulfil a promise I made to him in my head.”
Az looked at her confused before something dawned on him, causing him to-
“Are you blushing Azriel?” Feyre asked, giggling at the sight.
“No,” he grumbled to Feyre before turning to Bryce, “I hope it’s not what I think it is.”
“Oh, but it is!” she laughed, “we’ve finally stabilised our energy source, and everything has been up and running smoothly for almost six months, so we decided it was time for your present!”
It was Azriel’s turn to groan and drop his head on the table.
“Don’t be a fun sucker Az, I’ve been planning this for months!”
“Do you mind cluing the rest of us in,” Cassian said, shooting his mate a questioning look, from the way she was laughing she clearly knew what was going on.
“I’ll do it,” she smiled brightly, something that she does more often now, but still takes the breath from Cassian and her sisters.
“When we were down in the tunnels with Bryce way back when, she showed us how her phone worked. I asked her to let me hear the music she had stored on it. She let us hear all different kinds. They have this music over in her world, club music. It's like intense and makes you want to get drunk and dance. Azriel really liked it.”
“He’s a little club rat at heart and I promised myself back then, after everything we went through and did to each other, if I survived – if Lunathion survived – I'd come back and take him clubbing with me and the gang. So,” she looked between Rhys and Feyre, “can I please take him with me? I promise to bring him back mostly unharmed in a day or two, it really depends on how late we stay up and how bad the hangovers are,” she batted her eyes and tried to look as pleading as possible.
Feyre laughed at Bryce’s pleading and Azriel’s embarrassment, “I don’t know why you’re asking for my permission. I can’t get Az to do anything for me-”
“You refuse to shove someone off a cliff once,” Azriel muttered under his breath.
“-so, it’s really up to him and Rhys,” she continued like he hadn’t spoken, “is anyone else invited, or is this just for Azriel?”
Bryce grinned at him, “oh this one is just for him, it’s his present after all. If this goes well however, you’re all invited next time. Even you, High Lord.”
Rhys rolled his eyes, but really took a moment to look at his friend and spymaster, his brother. Under the embarrassment he could see the intrigue within him, and even though it was uncomfortable at the thought of him literally worlds away without them there to back him up if he needed it, he knew Bryce counted them all as her friends, and she’d give her life in the defence of her friends. With that, he spoke to Bryce in her mind. “ You’ll watch out for him? I know I can be an – what is it you call us, alphaholes? I know I can be an alphahole sometimes, but like you, I just want them all safe.”
“You have my word, Rhysand. He’ll be safe. Why do you think it took so long to organise this? Fury and Lidia promised to stay sober, which means Ruhn is staying sober. They'll be the muscle when we’re in public. We're going to take him to a few clubs and bars, but the real party is being saved for back at mine and Hunt’s place. That way we’re behind my incredibly expensive and extensive warding so we can really let loose. Nothing gets past that warding, and I really do mean nothing.”
“Okay, if he’s up for it then I'm okay with it, and I won’t ruin the plans.”
“Thanks Rhys. It's moments like this that makes me understand what Feyre saw in you.”
Rhys groaned, “and it’s moments like that, that makes me wonder what Hunt saw in you.”
Bryce laughed out loud, “oh Rhys, it was moments exactly like that, that made him fall madly in love with me.”
He rolled his eyes, once again, “I might actually believe you, having met him.”
Cassian cleared his throat, “if you’re quite done with your private conversation,” he trailed off into a laugh when Rhys and Bryce shot him identical glares.
“Shut up Cassian,” Bryce huffed playfully. She then looked at Azriel, “please please please say you’ll come. I've planned the perfect night, and everyone will be there.”
Azriel sighed, he of course wanted to go but there was that small part of his brain that feared he’d get trapped over there, and some of that fear must have shown on his face because Bryce’s eyes widened in understanding.
“Okay, I now realise that springing this on you maybe wasn’t the best idea. So, for some reassurance I’m going to reveal some information that, in the wrong hands, could be very dangerous for me.”
Bryce proceeded to take a seat as everyone stared at her in shock at the direction the conversation was going in.
“So,” she sighed, “I never really told you how I ended up with the horn tattooed on me. Well, it’s a sore subject so bear with me,” she rubbed her face. No matter how long would go by, she’d always feel the pain of losing Danika. Her loss was like a soul wound, and she’s sure if she had made the drop back then, her death would have been her Ordeal.
She told the whole story, from their seemingly random drunken tattoo parlour visit, right up to Micah.
Everyone was stunned, she’d gone through all that and more, and had somehow come out the other end intact.
“Bryce,” Feyre breathed, rising from her seat to pull Bryce up into a hug, “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that, and” she paused, pulling back from the hug to glance at her family, “all of us can sympathise to an extent. Why did you tell us now, or ever for that matter.”
Bryce sniffled, telling this story always hurt, “so you’d understand The Horn. Regardless of my living status, it will always work. A shot of power directly to the tattoo on my back and a portal will open.” She turned to Azriel, “my body could be turned to ash, and it will still work. The horn was repaired, my state of being is irrelevant to that. You'll make it back, but I do understand if you don’t want to come.”
She made her way over to him and crouched in front of him, “you’re my friend, Azriel. I don’t take that lightly, please believe me. If you say no, then I’ll go home and I’ll find a way to bring the party to you. I just wanted you to have this, so if you need me to change the plans, then I'll do that. No one would judge you for that.”
Azriel blinked down at her, still processing all the information, but... friend, she was his friend. He didn’t have many of those, and knew she was the same. There was a kindredness to them that drew them to each other. A deep understanding of each other beyond words. He knew she’d kill to protect him, the same way he now realised he felt about her. It went beyond friendship, almost like his relationship with Rhysand and Cassian.
Bryce watched him go through a realisation and wanting a moment of privacy, she looked to Rhys and said, “we’ll be upstairs,” and with that, she transported them up to one of the bedrooms.
They arrived in pretty much the same position as downstairs; him sitting on the bed, and her kneeling before him. She squeezed his hand, “I said something to cause you to freak out and didn’t want you to have an audience, but whatever it was, I won’t be upset. I promise.”
Azriel squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, relishing in the privacy. He opened his eyes and looked at her. With a shrug he said, “I wasn’t freaking out, I just realised that you’re more than a friend to me. What I feel, it’s similar to what I feel for Rhys and Cassian; it feels like you’re my sister.”
Tears gathered in her eyes, and she rose to press their foreheads together, “I’m honoured, and I feel the same,” she laughed quietly, “you slot right into my heart alongside Ruhn and Danika.”
Azriel felt choked up at the mention of Danika, he knew what she meant to the female before him. With that, he rose, pulling her with him, and dragged her into a hug, “you mention this to anyone, and I’ll deny it.”
She laughed as she squeezed him, “I promise, no one will know the fearsome spymaster is a hugger.”
He pulled back but kept his hands resting on her shoulders, “I’ll come with you. But only if you promise to stay safe. Something tells me you could get wild if you wanted to.”
She smiled sadly back, “the old Bryce did, I’m not sure about this new Bryce but we can find out together.”
And with that, she took his hand and transported him back downstairs.
“You ready to go?” Bryce asked Azriel after staying to chat for another few minutes, “you’ll be getting a change of clothes off Hunt once we get through the portal, Illyrian fighting leathers aren’t entirely fashionable were I’m from, but you’d fit right in with the Aux, wings and all.”
“About the wings,” Rhysand cut in, “won’t he stand out?”
Bryce shrugged, “a little, but we have many winged people and creatures back home, it won’t be too much of an issue. And if it is, his shadows should obscure them, or Ruhn’s will if they don’t.”
“Now that you’re done motherhenning,” Azriel snarked, “we should go.”
Bryce laughed, “eager to get to the music?”
Azriel shrugged but didn’t reply causing Bryce to laugh again. She opened the portal to her home, and it showed Hunt and Syrinx sitting on the couch watching Sunball. He looked up as the portal opened and waved but didn’t chat because he knew he could be there for hours; he’d have time later, when Azriel went home, to talk.
Bryce and Azriel made their way through the portal, and it closed behind them.
“Okay, Hunt show Azriel to the guest room so he can change, and I’ll get everyone else down from Ruhn and Lidia’s.”
She puttered about pouring drinks while everyone else arrived, eagerly awaiting Azriel’s big reveal, and no amount of mental imagining could prepare her for the sight of the sourly shadowsinger wearing jeans and one of Hunt’s altered band tees. She laughed in delight as she rushed over to him, “good lord Azriel, we’ll need to fight the ladies off with a stick when we’re out.”
Azriel blushed, “shut up,” he muttered.
“No, seriously. I need to remember to take pictures to show your lot, they’ll be shocked!”
Azriel glared at the mention of these pictures of hers. He'd learned more about her phone over the years since she first showed up, and he didn’t know if he wanted them immortalised for all to see.
“Don’t look so mad, you’ll want them to remember this night, believe me. Come on, have a drink and relax will you. You’re not working tonight, there’s no spying to be done, no fights to be had, just fun.”
Azriel sighed, he’d never really had time to let go except the snowball fight he and his brothers had every year. Maybe this would be good for him? He'd been slowly getting closer to Gwyn and even she said he needed to relax more.
“Fine,” his shoulders dropped, “I’m sure I will eventually come to appreciate them.”
“Oh, you will. I know I will,” she squeezed his arm as she dragged him over to the couch to leave him with Ruhn, Hunt, Tharion, Ithan, Dec, Flynn, and Sathia, as she and Lidia gathered the drinks.
“He looks a little wound up,” Lidia whispered as they were standing in the kitchen.
“Yeah, no shit. I think he takes like one day a year off from his super-secret shadow spying. This will be good for him,” she whispered back, shooting a concerned look to their visitor.
Lidia spotted the look; it was a look she’d seen on Bryce’s face many times before. Although, it was usually aimed at Ruhn or Hunt, or even her, “aww Bryce you little softy, you love him.”
Bryce shot her a wry smile, “he’s annoying like that, kind of like Ruhn. You can’t help it, you’ll all feel the same after this night is over.”
Lidia laughed, but looked closer at Azriel. She watched how well he seemed to fit in with them, “I think you might be on to something there. You might struggle to get the boys to let him go back home tomorrow.”
Bryce laughed brightly, “I’m glad I told Rhys it might be two days then, we might need an extra day to peel Tharion off him.”
The boys all heard the tail end of the conversation, “you talking about me, Legs?” Tharion smirked.
“Yeah, about the state of your hair,” Bryce shot back.
“Hey!” Tharion grumbled, “my hair is perfect, as always. Ask my wonderful wife.”
Sathia rolled her eyes, “your head is big enough already, any bigger and you won’t fit through the door.”
Azriel sat back and observed the groups dynamic. They weren’t much different from his group back home, lifestyles and worlds aside. He felt comfortable with them, which was a shock. Sure, he knew them all having met them at one point or another, but never all together, and he’d never fit in anywhere so quickly in his long life. He glanced at Bryce and blushed when he realised she had been watching him. She smiled gently and winked at him; he smiled back. He was glad he decided to let go of his fears to come, he knew he’d enjoy himself.
After several more drinks and with a good buzz going, Bryce stood and addressed the room, “okay guys let’s go. We’ve got VIP access to many clubs and bars to put to use tonight. Baxian has unfortunately been pulled into some work, but he said he’d be with us in a blink if we need backup...or if he needs a break,” she laughed at the thought of him finding their drunken group less stressful than his angelic work.
The group cheered and whooped as they stood, gathering phones and wallets before heading to the door.
They were in the last club of the night, before the after party back home. Everyone was on the dance floor, and Azriel, having been educated on the many ways to dance over the night was currently sandwiched between Tharion (who was an especially good and dedicated teacher) and Bryce as they gyrated and swung themselves around to a song about getting low. Hunt was in front of them, dancing with Fury and Juniper. Declan, Flynn, Sathia, and Ithan were next to them doing a hilarious dance that they had seemingly spent a lot of time choreographing specifically for this moment. Ruhn and Lidia were close by, casually leaning on the bar as they sipped their non-alcoholic drinks. Azriel knew they only appeared casual; they were actually keeping an eye on the drunken group.
They'd danced to fun songs that made you want to do silly dances, songs that made you want to jump and throw your head back and forward, and songs that made you want to just wrap your arms around each other and enjoy the night. Azriel felt more thankful to Bryce as the night went on; he'd never had this much fun in his life. He felt like he’d really connected with Bryce’s friends and family. He felt like he could call them his friends now – not just Bryce’s friends who were friendly with him. Speaking of Bryce, he gripped her hips tightly for a moment to signal her, then spun her to face him. She went with the movement, reaching her hands up to grip his shoulders.
“You having fun, Azzie?” she shouted over the music. Her face was flush with exertion and joy, it caused Azriel to smile brightly seeing her like that.
“Yes, thank you for convincing me to come. It's been one of the best nights of my life.”
Bryce’s face softened, and she pulled him in for a hug, “I’m so glad I met you Azriel, it has been a joy.”
Azriel clutched her tightly, “the joy has been mine.” He felt his throat tighten with the emotions swirling in him, whether it the alcohol – he was quite drunk – or just being here with them, he suddenly felt the urge to hug them all. Choosing to go with it, he spun Bryce and himself around and grabbed Tharion for a hug.
Laughing, Tharion clutched the duo tightly, “aww Az, you getting to the emotional drunk stage of the night? Don't worry we all get there eventually.”
Azriel just grinned as he pulled back and headed for the next closest person; Hunt.
He hugged everyone, and they all hugged him back just as tightly as he clutched them. Spinning once more to find Bryce. She was watching him with Hunt, grins bright on their faces. Losing himself in the night, he dragged them to him, “more dancing!”
Bryce and Hunt cheered and dragged him over to the rest of the group to dance the night away.
Long after the partying finished; the house was almost trashed, and the group were sprawled across Bryce and Hunt’s apartment. Azriel took a wander to the roof, alone for the first time in what seemed like a very long time, he watched the stars as he contemplated Bryce and her little rag-tag group. Much like his own family back home, they were picked up somewhere along the way. All with their own tragic backstory that made him feel a little less like an outsider.
He'd been up there for close to an hour before Bryce and Hunt appeared causing Azriel to smile, “I knew someone would eventually make their way up here.”
“We wanted to give you some space, tonight was a lot,” Hunt chuckled as they made their way over to sit on the ledge with him. Bryce now sandwiched between Hunt and Azriel.
“It was, but not in a bad way,” Azriel said, still staring up at the stars.
Bryce grabbed his hand and squeezed it, “we’re glad you had a good time, and just think, next time we’re bringing everyone from Prythian.”
Azriel threw his head back and laughed, “you better make sure you’re prepared for Cassian. He'll try and steal all your guns.”
Hunt snorted, “we’d need to lock down the Aux when he’s here.”
They drifted off into silence before Azriel looked down almost shyly, “is this where...” he trailed off, knowing Bryce would understand what he was trying to ask.
Her smile dimmed as she peaked over the ledge, reaching out to clutch Hunt’s hand, “yeah,” she whispered, “it seems so long ago but yes, this is where I sat that night.”
Azriel leaned in close, pushing her into Hunt so they were all smooshed together clutching each others hands, “I’m so fucking happy you didn’t,” he whispered gruffly, pressing his forehead to the side of her head for a second.
“Me too,” Hunt whispered, sounding choked up.
“Aww you guys,” Bryce coo’d trying to brighten the mood, “I have a feeling if Juniper never showed up, something else would have stopped me. It wasn’t my time. I was supposed to live to do all those magnificent things we did.”
Hunt bumped her shoulder with his, “have you told Az your catchphrase?”
“Through love, all is possible,” Azriel whispered, “it’s a good catchphrase.”
Bryce hummed, watching him, “something tells me you didn’t bring all that up just because.”
He shrugged, “it’s something I contemplated once or twice myself. I never got as close as you though. I think a part of me was worried that I wouldn’t have my own Juniper who’d race across a city to stop me,” he shrugged again, bashfully this time, “but I've learned over the years that I have many.”
Hunt reached across to clasp his shoulder, “we’d race across the worlds to get you, man.”
“I know,” he smiled gently, “I’d do the same for all of you.”
“On to brighter things as this is supposed to be a fun night,” Bryce clapped her hands, turning her full attention to Azriel, “tell me about Gwyn.”
His eyes widened as a flush spread across his face, “how do you know about Gwyn?”
“Pu-lease!” she scoffed, “me and Nesta are like this,” she crossed her fingers and held them up, “she’s been gossiping about you two every time I visit.”
Lidia found them the next morning. They were still on the roof, but they were curled up against the wall. Hunt and Azriel leaning on each other, and Bryce curled up between Hunt’s legs. She snapped a few photos before gently waking them up.
“Coffee and breakfast is on its way, Ruhn’s waiting for the delivery downstairs. Everyone else is in the living room, come on.”
Azriel stood and stretched. He'd have breakfast then maybe he’d stay a little longer. Ruhn had offered to give him a tour of the Aux facility, and Bryce insisted he had to see at least one otter before he went home.
He couldn’t wait to tell everyone about his trip.