*As always, everything except part of the story line belongs to the Queen Sarah J. Maas! I hope you like it. Be warned, this is unbeta-ed so excuse any mistakes.*

Chapter 3: The End

Rowan's POV

Rowan watched as Celaena's body was covered in darkness and everything around him ceased to exist. All he could see was the woman he loved disappear among the dark figures and he felt his heart stop.

"Celaena!" He bellowed so loud that he felt his own bones rattle.

I cannot lose her. I just found her, and I cannot lose her now.

All of the sudden a fire began to appear out of the darkness that surrounded where his Fireheart has been standing. The light began to grow until it finally overtook the Valg princes and it began to take shape.

My god, it cannot be. She could not have possibly-.

The fae prince stood and stared in shock as he watch Celaena stand among the demon princes, a fire among the darkness. He felt many emotions flood through him all at once. Utter relief, joy, amazement and pride were among the strongest. His Fireheart had beaten their hold on her as if they were mere children. He ran towards her and the Valg princes, but the light that was Celaena held up her hand to stop his advancement.

"Rowan, you will go no further. This is my fight and these princes will pay for what they have done. Their blood will flood this land when I am done with them. Go, protect our people," Celaena said in an ethereal voice that sounded nothing like the Celaena he knew. He then realized that her ancestors must have leant her power.

He backed away, reluctant to leave the woman he loved on the battlefield with these monsters, but he had a feeling that Celaena would make good on her promise.

"GO, Rowan," Celaena yelled in her otherworldly voice.

Rowan turned and ran to the nearest solider that dared to go against him, but while he battled he kept his attention on Celaena. His movements were methodical and automatic. Battling was second nature to Rowan. He could fight anything and anyone with his eyes closed. Rowan cut down three more soldiers and he watched as Celaena's fire got brighter and brighter. All of the sudden her fire raged higher than he had ever seen, and he watched in horror as his Fireheart reached the brink of exhaustion, burning the Valg princes where they stood, and lighting up the battlefield.

He watched as Celaena's fire suddenly vanished and she fell to her knees.

Rowan roared in fear and cut down five more soldiers who were standing in his way as he ran towards Celaena. As he made his way to her, he knew that Celaena had burned herself out to defeat the demon princes, and he feared that she may not come back from this fight.

Clutching Celaena to his chest he could barely feel her heart beating in her chest, Rowan roared, his voice filled with agony and fear.

I cannot lose her. She cannot leave me.

Celaena's POV

Celaena smirked as she felt her magic rising and growing within her. Slowly the Valg's nightmare dissolved and was engulfed in flames. Soon Celaena could see that she was still in the middle of the battlefield on her knees and stood up, all the while her fire growing larger and larger.

"You will regret ever threatening me, you foul demons. You will regret the day you ever decided to target me and mine," Celaena said in a rage filled voice.

"You think a little fire will hurt three demon princes, you insolent girl?" One Valg prince hissed.

"I know I can." Celaena said as she continued to build the fire growing inside of her.

She saw Rowan battling soldiers not far from her, but his eyes were on her.

He cares. She realized suddenly. He cares what happens to me.

Suddenly one of the Valg princes advanced with his dark sward raised and Celaena quickly formed her fire shield and held him off. She was done playing with the princes. She could feel her power growing larger than she ever imagined and knew she was reaching her burn out point. It was time she finished this before she was past the point of no return.

"Enjoy oblivion, demons," she said in a strained voice, as she felt her powers pulling at her energy.

With those words, she unleashed the power that could destroy nations if she wanted and watched as her flames engulfed the Valg princes. She reveled in their screams and continued to fuel her fire until she knew they were dead.

She could feel herself losing consciousness, but she couldn't stop her fire. These demons needed to die so that Rowan and all of her friends could live. If she had to die to keep them safe then should would happily do it.

As long as Rowan is safe Celaena thought.

Finally the princes' darkness was swallowed by flames and Celaena felt their evil presence disappear.

Celaena looked over at Rowan and saw his lithe form still cutting down soldiers left and right. As her world started to turn black, Celaena fell to her knees and watched as Rowan saw her and roared in anger. He started running towards her, but she couldn't hold on any longer.

Before she closed her eyes, possibly for the last time, she saw Rowan fall to his knees beside her and felt him clutch her to his chest.

I finally get to feel his arms around me. She thought as she finally succumbed to the darkness.

Rowan's POV

After Celaena defeated the demon princes, the army of soldiers and skin walkers fled. Their strongest allies had been defeated, there was no reason to stay behind and get slaughtered. However, Rowan felt as if he could chase down the whole army of cowards and slaughter them himself.

He carried an unresponsive Celaena in his arms as he walked to the tavern where he could tend to his Fireheart in private. He was fairly sure the stupid girl had almost burned her magic out and he could strangle her if she wasn't in such a critical condition. He had TOLD her not to sacrifice herself, but the damn woman had no idea what it would do to him and a whole kingdom of people if she died.

With a furrowed brow and worried look in his eyes, Rowan entered the tavern and climbed the stairs to his room. Celaena remained unresponsive.

Rowan entered his small room and gently laid Celaena onto his bed, which took up most of the room. He grabbed a cold cloth, dragged a chair over beside his bed, and wiped Celaena's forehead and face. She had soldiers blood all over her face, and Rowan couldn't bear to see blood on her, even if it wasn't hers.

"You stupid, stupid woman. When you wake up I will put you through the worst training session yet. You will learn never to worry me again," Rowan said gently as he finished cleaning her face.

Celaena needed magic so Rowan reached over to grab her hand and he immediately felt how cold and drained she was. He immediately cursed. It was worse than he thought. She had almost no magic left, and she needed some soon or she would surely die. Her breathing had slowed and her skin had taken on an ashen tone that scared Rowan more than he would like to admit.

He took her hand and started pouring magic into her body. This is only the second time he had ever shared his magic with anyone, and he knew what this meant. He would always feel connected to Celaena no matter what. In the back of his mind, Rowan was satisfied with the connection. The battle had made him realize how much he needed Celaena in his life. She was his equal and Rowan loved her.

Rowan dropped Celaena's hand in shock, but quickly picked it up and started transferring magic again.

I love her? Rowan asked himself. Of course I love her. How could I not?

Soon Rowan began to feel the effects of his magic sharing and he laid Celaena's hand back onto the bed. He would rest and continue tomorrow. Rowan was reluctant to sleep, but he knew that he needed to restore the magic he just gave to Celaena or else he could not help her.

Rowan climbed into the bed beside his Fireheart and laid a think arm around her waist. He mentally reason that he only did this so that he could feel if Celaena moved or stopped breathing while he was asleep, but deep down he knew he just wanted to hold her in his arms. He wanted to assure himself that this wasn't a dream and that she was really there in his arms and alive.

He briefly tightened his arm around her waist and closed his eyes. Sleep took him and his lasts conscious thoughts were of his Fireheart.

Celaena's POV

Celaena opened her eyes and realized that she laid on the cold ground. She sat up and looked around, but she could hardly make out anything because of the dense darkness, but she knew that she was not in Erilea. This place felt different. It felt strange.

Shadows moved in the darkness, almost indiscernible to most eyes, but Celaena's assassin's eyes caught their movement. Slowly the shadows began to form shapes, and Celaena could tell that they were humans.

Celaena stood slowly and prepared to fight.

"Do not be afraid. We are not here to hurt you," A strong female voice said.

"Who are you?" Celaena asked warily. And where am I?

"I am no one, simply a guide of sorts. And you are in the in-between."

"A guide? The in-between? What the hell are you talking about?" Celaena didn't voice her next question. Can you hear my thoughts?

"I am your guide to the afterlife. You have found yourself in the in-between, an existence between life and death. A crossroads if you will. And yes, I can hear your thoughts. All guides can hear thoughts. Now, I have a question for you. Which will you choose?" The mysterious shadow woman asked in a formal tone.

"Choose? What do you mean, which will I choose," Celaena asked, not sure she wanted the answer.

"Will you choose to live and live the rest of your life with the fae prince or will you choose to continue on this road and rejoin with those you love: your father and mother…Sam…Nehemia, all of them. You are given a rare chance to choose which path to take. You must have pleased the gods, little one."

Celaena immediately froze with the mention of Sam and Nehemia. Just their names were enough to cause Celaena to double over in pain and loss. Sam. Nehemia. I could see them again. I could finally be with Sam without the king of assassin's hanging over our heads.

"You must choose quickly, little one. Lingering in the in-between is ill advised."

"I cannot make a decision like this so quickly. Life and death should not be so easily dismissed."

The shadow woman seemed to glide forward.

"If you value life and death so much, then why do you so readily jump as the chance to die, when you have so much to live for?" The woman asked curiously.

Celaena balked and started at the woman's shadow in shock. She didn't know how to answer such a question. Celaena had always felt as if she had nothing to live for. She barely remembered her family, glimpses of her mother, father, and Arobryn, and she as far as she can remember she was either an assassin to an abusive man or a slave in the salt mines. Until now, she never stop to question if she had anything to live for because her answer had always been no. Now, Celaena stopped to think and realized that maybe she did have something to live for.

"I thought guides couldn't influence decisions their charges make," Celaena said curiously.

"I am not like most guides, little one."

Celaena scoffed. Of course she would get the special type of otherworldly guide that broke the rules. Celaena quickly returned back to her contemplating, distracted by her unique guide.

"You have only a few moments, child. Choose quickly or you will remain in the in-between forever."

Celaena's mind whirled as she thought about Sam, her parents, Nehemia, and then Rowan. She always came back to Rowan in the end. Rowan had become her mentor and eventually the man she loved. The thought of being without him made Celaena sick, and then she thought about her duties. She was a queen. She had a kingdom to save and rule, and she had a demented king to kill. She couldn't leave her people behind, and she couldn't leave Rowan. She wanted to spend the rest of her long life with Rowan, not matter how hard life would become or the trials she might face. As long as she had Rowan by her side, she felt as if she could be the queen her people needed.

She just hoped Rowan felt the same way.

"I have made my decision. I want to live. For my people and for Rowan. Please, send me back. Send me home," Celaena said with strength and determination.

The shadow woman seemed to smile.

"I am so proud of you, little one. You are a strong woman and you should never forget that. Be the queen our kingdom needs and protect our people. But most of all, be happy, Fireheart." Suddenly the shadow woman disappeared, and I caught a glimpse of her face.

I felt myself begin to fall, but I couldn't react.

The shadow woman…It couldn't be.

The shadow woman looked just like Celaena remembered her. Her mother. Celaena almost cried as the opportunity just missed to hug her mother once more, but she felt herself returning to her own world. She closed her eyes, and prayed she woke up with Rowan by her side.

Rowan's POV

Rowan immediately awoke when he felt Celaena jerk awake, gasping his name.

"Fireheart, I am here. Calm down." He grabbed her shoulder and watched with anxious eyes as she tried to catch her breath. He could see tears began to fill her eyes and his heart dropped.

"Oh Fireheart. Shh. You are okay. I am here, and it will be okay," Rowan said as he pulled her to him. Her head tucked under his chin. She felt good in his arms, but one of these days he hoped she would be in his arms because she felt the urge to be there, not due to her unconscious or crying state.

"Rowan, I – I -, "She groused out.

"You need to sleep, Celaena. You almost burned out your magic, and I need you to get well so I can yell at you for being so foolish," Rowan tried to say jokingly, but it came out demanding.

"Rowan, I am so sorry. I wa-wanted you safe, and I th-thought the only way to do that was to use as much of my magic as I could. I just wanted you and my friend's safe," Celaena tried so say as her cries continued.

Rowan's heart softened and he realized she was apologizing for not listening to him, but he knew she only meant she was sorry for going against his request, not the fact that she saved her friends and him.

"Celaena, you have to be more careful, you could have easily died yesterday. I thought you had died. You can't- I can't-." Rowan stuttered nervously. He wanted to tell her that he loved her and that she couldn't do that to him again. He couldn't go through that agony of thinking she was dead again.

"Fireheart, you have to promise me that you will never be so foolish again. I cannot allow you to put yourself in danger again because I-," Rowan stopped. He couldn't bring himself to tell her he loved her, not because he doubted his feelings, but because he didn't know how she would react.

Just do it. Tell her. A voice in Rowan's head seemed to say.

He pulled away and took Celaena's chin between his thumb and finger and turned her head towards him. He wanted to see her eyes when he finally told her how he felt.

"Fireheart, yesterday was one of the scariest days of my life because I thought you had died. I watched you become engulfed in the Valg demons darkness and I felt my heart stop. Then you rose like a light in the dark and illuminated the battlefield with your flames. You astonished me at your sheer power, and then all of the sudden your light was gone, you were lying so still on the ground, and suddenly my world stopped turning and I couldn't look away from your body on the ground. That is when I realized-"Rowan stopped once again but not because of fear, but he cause of the look in Celaena's eyes. He saw a sliver of happiness and anticipation. Rowan's heart soared.

"That is when I realized that I love you. That is when I realized that I want you by my side for as long as we live and I want to face every battle, adventure, and journey together. I don't want to spend another moment on this earth without you or without you knowing that I love you."

Rowan held his breath and waited for Celaena to say something and as he looking into her teary eyes he saw that he might not be the only one feeling their connection.

Celaena's POV

"That is when I realized that I love you."

Celaena felt her heart beat speed up and the tears she had been crying before renewed. She had never felt so content and happy then she was in that moment. Waking up in Rowan's arms had been a dream come true, but looking into his forest green eyes as he spilled his heart out was that of fairytales. She will never forget the love in his eyes as he told her that he wanted to spend every moment of his life with her. She was so afraid of what Rowan might say when she woke up, but she never imagined he would tell her he loved her.

"Fireheart, please say something," Rowan whispered with a look of pain in his eyes.

Celaena wanted make him suffer a little longer because wanted payback for all of his hurtful words yesterday, but she then realized that he hadn't mean to hurt her. He only wanted to push her and show her that she had this amazing power. The only way to bring that power to the surface was through anger, but Rowan never expected Celaena to get hurt like she did. She knew that now.

"It's a good thing you say that because then it would have been really embarrassing if you didn't return my feelings because I love you too, Rowan Whitethorn. Loving me won't be easy because I am impulsive, rash, and reckless, but it will all be bearable because I love you."

Rowan looked as if he was about fall over.

"You-You love me too?"

"Yes you irresistible fool, I love you."

Then the most amazing thing happened. Rowan smiled.

In the time Celaena had been training with Rowan she had never seen him smile and she was at a loss for words at how drastically it changed his look. His eyes seemed to light up and his whole appearance looked brighter. If Celaena didn't love him already, that smile would have done her in.

"Fireheart," Rowan whispered and pulled her tightly against him. "You have just made me the happiest fae in the kingdom."

"Don't you mean fae bastard," Celaena replied with a smirk.

Rowan pulled far enough away from her to see her face and when he saw the spark of mischief in her eyes he growled and lunged at her.

Celaena's eyes widened ever so slightly as they both fell back onto Rowan's bed. Now Celaena lay under a scowling fae warrior and she cannot say that it was a bad place to be.

"Care to repeat that, Fireheart?"

"Whatever do you mean, darling," Celaena asked, batting her eyelashes with a small smile.

Rowan leaned closer to her until their noses almost touched.

"You silly little wench. You are lucky that I love you." Rowan said in a serious tone.

Celaena's heart will never be used to Rowan saying that because her heart skipped a beat yet again.

"And I love you."

Suddenly they both realized how close they were and the air between them filled with tension.

"Rowan," Celaena whispered in a breathy voice.

"Celaena," Rowan growled back, his voice rough and tense.

Celaena is still unsure who started the kiss, but all of the sudden Rowan's warm and soft lips were on her pliant ones and they were kissing. She had never felt anything like it before. Sure, she has kissed men before, but Rowan was different. He was more.

Celaena moaned as Rowan nipped at her bottom lip and he moaned in response.

"Rowan, please don't stop," Celaena breathily murmured.

"Never, Fireheart," Rowan whispered back.

And they didn't stop. Rowan showed Celaena how much he loved her, and Celaena allowed herself to feel loved and love in return.

The End