A/N: This song isn't as long as the others but I believe it has the right message for the chapter. The upbeat version (the one of Lioness: Hidden Treasures) I used for this but the slower version (the one of Back to Black) works too. I would say the songfic part starts after the first section (kinda long, I know but bear with me plz) Oh and kudos to Luteana for reminding me to update because I really suck at it as you have noticed...
Anyway, enjoy!

Best Friends, Right?

By: Amy Winehouse

Keenan hated rush hour almost as much as he loved it.

He loved the way he could blend in. Nobody in the crowd would know he was a king. Nobody would know the troubles of his court that he hid behind his easy smile. Nobody would know about his dysfunctional family, weakened court, the queen who didn't know where he was, or the broken heart he was trying to mend. To everyone else around him, he was just a stranger that's lost in the crowd.

But when dealing with humans, there was always the unexpected and always a test of tolerance. Holding back so that you wouldn't stand out, be passive enough to appear as if you didn't have time for the foolishness around you. You had other things to do.

Keenan rolled his eyes as another New Yorker bumped into him without an apology or excuse me. Simple manners, he thought, shaking his head. He waded his way through trying to get down the street at a human pace. As he moved through the crowd, the faces starting to blur around him, he heard a familiar voice…

Donia struggled to hold her glamour as more and more people surrounded her. She pushed her winter out more so people would take a step or two away but it didn't do but so much. She was use to walking during the day but as the Winter Queen, she was accustomed to more space. She was tempted to call her guard for room but restrained. She didn't want to cause a scene. Humans and their sensitivity, she thought in frustration. She felt her phone ring in her pocket.

"Hello?" she answered with a strained voice. She heard the person chuckle.

"How's rush hour?" Aquil asked her. She scowled at the question.

"Not funny," She said. "You know how I like my space." She stepped around a group of people and quickened her pace, ready to be home.

"Relax. You'll get you to it." Aquil reassured her. "And just to cheer you up, how about we go to a movie tonight? Laugh, eat some popcorn, cuddle a bit." Donia smiled but pushed out more of her winter, as it suddenly got hotter around her. She looked up at the sun, shielding her eyes, wondering why she was feeling like this. The temperature was in the low 70's. She should be fine. Donia shook her head as no answers came to mind and focused back on Aquil.

"That sounds-" She gasped before hissing in pain as she collided into something, burning herself. Keenan jumped back, melting the ice on his arm that left an ugly bruise. They both looked up at the same time and their eyes widened in shock. Both were speechless as sea green met icy blue for the first time in months.

"Donia…Donia, what's going on? Are you okay?" Donia snapped back into reality, tearing her eyes away from Keenan as she heard Aquil's frantic calls from her phone.

"I'm fine. Everything's okay." She told him quickly. "I just wasn't paying attention and crashed. I'll have to call you back."

"Okay." He said reluctantly.

"I'll talk to you soon." She told him before hanging up. She then looked back at the Summer King, who stared at her in disbelief.

"Donia…" Keenan said, the name slipping out of his mouth as a whisper.

"Keenan." She said, equally speechless. They were both frozen on the sidewalk.

When the two finally got over their speechlessness, they decided to talk. They went to the Starbucks that was nearest to them at the moment and, ironically, exactly in between where they both lived. Keenan lived in a nice Brooklyn studio apartment while Donia stayed at the edge of Manhattan, both a half mile from where they currently sat.

It was tense as they walked side-by-side through the streets, each wondering how soon the faeries hidden around them would talk of this. They refused to think of the consequence as Donia picked a table and Keenan got their drinks.

Keenan paid for the coffee, sparing the barista a charming smile. He took a deep breath, composing himself, before turning back to Donia. It didn't help though. He was still struck all the same by the icy queen. Even with the calm, stoic demeanor, she was still stunning to Keenan. Just like the girl in the market. So I wasn't hallucinating, Keenan thought, that was her. She's really here. But while her beauty was breathtaking, he could quickly look past it to see that she was just as surprised as he was. She didn't expect him, which meant that she wasn't looking for him.

Keenan wasn't sure whether or not he was upset about that.

He shook his head to rid the thoughts as he approached the table. He set Donia's ice coffee in front of her before sitting down. Donia sipped at it gingerly as she took in the sight of her ex.

He was tan and beautiful as usual. Yet even as she tried to push it off nonchalantly, she couldn't help the attraction she felt towards him. Despite his many mistakes, Keenan could still make her heart work harder than usual. She leaned back and tried to calm her mind as one question constantly repeated in her head: What the hell is Keenan doing here?

They stared at each other, neither knowing what to say to the other, both still shocked.

"So…" Keenan trailed off. They stayed in awkward silence more a few more moments before Donia finally spoke.

"Keenan, what are you doing here?" Donia asked. He sighed as the real conversation started.

"My court needed me to be closer to them. But it was still better for me to be away from Aislinn so I chose to come to New York. It's only moments from my court but far enough for me to breathe." He said. "Speaking of which, why are you here? Last time I checked, the Winter Court seemed pretty solid in Huntsville."

"My court needed a change of scenery." She answered. "I wanted to move for my own reason. The court didn't protest."

"Oh…okay." He said before looking away. Another awkward silence ensued as they both tried to figure out what to say next. Keenan heard Donia sighed exasperatedly and turned back to her.

"Keenan, what are we going to do?" She said. "The courts will eventually hear of this and we can't just avoid each other. Not with the alliance still being worked out. How will it look if we dodge each other while we live in the same city?"

"I don't know." Keenan said, wishing that it wasn't so complicated. Not only did they represent themselves but their entire court. Any type of hostility show between them could easily start a war for both courts. But Keenan couldn't help but worry about what would happen if he did see Donia. Could they truly work together if they had to?

"Can we work together?" he asked her. "Can we honestly work with each other without it getting personal?"

"I can." She said with a slightly indignant tone. Keenan resisted rolling his eyes. Stay calm, he told himself. He's sure that it's just one of her many references to a time he screwed up their relationship.

"Well, I guess I can too." He said reluctantly. "I mean we were friends before all this happened."

"True." She said despite thinking of how much their relationship had changed since. "We were best friends."

"Best friends." He said with a far away look, his mind wandering off to his memories. Before it could wander off too far, Donia cleared her throat to get his attention.

"You should know that I'm seeing someone." She told him. He raised an eyebrow.

"Really," He said. She nodded.

"His name is Aquil…he's of my court." She told him. Keenan's thoughts immediately went back to the day he saw her in the market and knew whom she was talking about. He nodded, grimaced inwardly but couldn't help but feel a little relieved. The same level of temptation that would've been there is now gone. At least for now.

"Well that's a relief, considering that I have someone too." Donia's face only fell the smallest bit but other than that stay expressionless as she nodded. "So…"

"We'll meet once a week-maybe Wednesdays-here and discuss anything we need to discuss." Donia told him, strictly business. Keenan nodded.

"Wednesdays it is." He said before chuckling a bit. "Just like it was when we were friends."

"Yep," Donia agreed, not realizing until that moment that Wednesdays were always the days they met. "Best friends…"

1 month later…

"No!" Donia exclaimed. "No, no, no…just no." Keenan rolled his eyes as he looked over the contract again. The Starbucks was empty and closed since it was nighttime. They were at a table in the back with small lamp on the tale as their only light. Neither Donia nor Keenan had his or her glamour up and could be heard by anyone passing by.

Therefore they didn't have to limit themselves as far as their screaming matches.

"What is wrong with it now?" Keenan asked exasperated.

"You're letting the Summer Court traditions overlap Winter's again!"

"It's in the springtime!" He exclaimed. "Most of your fey will be hiding inside by that time."

"Do not demean my court in that manner." Donia said steely, her mouth in a hard line. Keenan scowled as he lifted his hands in frustration.

"What do you actually want to change, Donia? We've been here for two hours and it's the exact same. Something on your side has to change. You have too much!" Keenan yelled.

"And you take too much!" Donia shouted. Keenan growled in frustration, running his fingers through his hair. Despite the how much he loved Donia; sometimes he couldn't help but hate her. Or at least her resentment. But then again, he's pretty sure she hated him too.

I can't wait to get away from you
Unsurprisingly you hate me too
We only communicate when we need to fight
But we are best friends, right?

"You're killing me here, Don." He told her tiredly. She scoffed.

"If only, if only." She replied. He glared at her from across the table.

"Stop it."

"Nothing started." Donia said coolly. His sunlight flared and a hot wind blew through the shop. He hated it when she did this, already knowing what was on her mind.

"Will you get over yourself already?" He asked exasperatedly.

"Why? You never have." She snapped.

"Oh really? Like all the crap you've done that I had to be responsible for? Stop acting like you're the only victim!"

"And you're a victim?"

"Yes! I've been a victim for nine centuries!"

"And what was I?"

"Apparently, collateral damage." Donia's jaw dropped at the insult. Keenan's eyes widen at the fact that he even said that. "I didn't-" He didn't get a chance to finish as she immediately shot some ice at him. He dodged most of it but some hit the side of his arm.

"Bastard!" Dona yelled before stomping out the door. Keenan shook his head before crying out in frustration. It had been month and they barely had a meeting where Keenan didn't go home with a sore throat and nothing done. Keenan sighed with fatigue as he watched Donia storm down the street before looking down at the growing bruise on his arm.

"So much for best friends." He mumbled.

You're too good at pretending you don't care
There's enough resentment in the air
You don't want me in the flat when you're home at night
But we are best friends, right?

Donia stormed out the coffee shop, leaving ice trails behind her. Stupid Keenan with his stupid court. She almost let out a yell of frustration. Collateral damage? He hadn't even seen the damage she could create. But she knew he only said that because she pushed him to that point. But he knew better than to test her boundaries with her court. Or she thought she did. He knew her better than anyone else.

You're Stephanie and I'm Paulette
You know what all my faces mean

She thought after centuries of being around each other, they would be able to find some kind of common ground. But it was always wishful thinking when it came to their relationship. If only they could forget everything. If only he wasn't such an ass….but they we so passed if only's.

And it's easy to smoke it up, forget
Everything that happened in between

She walked passed her only guard, Evan, without slowing down. Evan quickened his pace so that he was keeping up with her. The cold wind that surrounded her bit at his skin but he was use to it. He knew to expect this kind of temperament from her after every meeting with Keenan. It reminded him of when Keenan would visit her cottage when she was a winter girl. Only this time she could do a lot more damage.

"Careful, my queen. You might cause a blizzard at this rate." Evan told her calmly. "And I believe home is the other way." Donia slowed down and took a deep breath, trying to control her temper. She looked behind her. She grimaced as she saw icicles hanging from street lamps and ice trails on sidewalk. She noticed that there were no humans out. That for now, New York was quiet.

"I don't want to go home." Donia said, turning to Evan. "If I go home like this, Aquil will worry. And the last thing I need for him to do or say right now is 'I told you those meeting were a bad idea.' It's not my fault that Keenan can't accept the fact that he's not a victim."

"Well…" Evan trailed off. Donia narrowed her eyes as Evan shrugged. "He kind of is. He was slave to a curse for 900 years. He's trying to rebuild his court's strength and balance it out with yours. That kind of imbalance is not easily fixed."

"I know that, Evan." Donia snapped. "But I refuse to let him overpower my court." Evan placed his hands on her shoulder and gave her a calm look. She relaxed her glare and retracted the ice and snow from the street back into her.

"You're not going to win like this." Evan said. She raised her eyebrow at him. He pointed back towards the Starbucks. "Going back and forth with him about the past. It's not going to help you move forward with this alliance." Donia turned away from him and started walking back to her apartment. Evan walked beside her silently.

Nicki's right when he says I can't win
So I don't wanna tell you anything

She knew he was right. It wasn't helping anyone that she and Keenan couldn't stop arguing but she hated talking to anyone about because they didn't understand: their past was intertwined with everything they did. It was their relationship, their courts, how they go to this point, and why. It was almost everything…

But even in her resentment for Keenan, she knew she couldn't leave it at that. They still needed to work out the details of the treaty. One monkey don't show no show, she thought, remembering hearing the saying in Atlanta. A little crude for her taste but true all the same. She couldn't pause the progression of her court. She sighed as she pulled out her phone.

We'll meet tomorrow, she typed quickly. A few seconds later she got his response

Ok, he sent.

Donia looked at the Starbucks only last time as she passed it and let out a sigh, not even sure she wanted to know how Keenan was feeling.

So much for best friends, she thought.

I can't even think about how you feel inside
But we are best friends, right?

The next meeting started off awkwardly as Keenan handed her iced coffee and took a sip of his own. They were silent with only the occasional question or comment. Keenan leaned back with an impatient sigh, not being able to talk the tension much longer.

"Can we talk about our disaster of a meeting now?" Keenan asked. Donia scowled.

"Sure, Keenan." Donia said. His name sounded like something offensive coming from her. He narrowed his eyes at her. He really hated it when she said his name like that. "Let's talk. What did go wrong last time?"

I don't like the way you say my nam

"Hmm, I don't know. Maybe it's the fact that you want to my court to compromise without your court having to do anything. It's an alliance, fifty-fifty in other words, not a consent to rule. Oh, and you blame me when I try to point that out." Keenan shot back. Donia scoffed but felt the sting of his words all the same.

You're always looking for someone to blame

"This coming from a king who lost and advisor, gained the dark court as an enemy, almost lost his queen, and ran out on his court." She snapped. Keenan gave her a wounded look at her words. A wave of guilt ran through Donia, knowing she was playing unfair, but she plowed through. "If it came to track records, I've always made better choices-"

"All except for one." He said, looking her in the eye, challenging her. Donia swallowed uneasily, knowing which mistake he was referring to.

The moment she said yes to him.

"Donia, I hate that I hurt you but I am so over being punished for it." Keenan told her. "Despite all my mistakes, I am still the Summer King and I will not tolerate any more disrespect, not even from you." He stood and placed a twenty-dollar bill on the table. "Have your guards contact me when you're ready to discuss the treaty." Donia watched him as he walked away from her without a second glance, feeling speechless and guilty.

You want me to suffer just cause you were born white
But we are best friends, right?

"Serves her right," Asta said that night when Keenan told her what happened. "I never liked her anyway."

"You would've liked her in the first place." Keenan reminded her. She shrugged as she sat down in his lap.

"I'm not a fan of ex girlfriends." She said. Don't I know it, he thought, thinking back to the fight he and Asta had when he told her about Donia being in New York. It was one of the worst fights he ever had with someone but he could understand. Asta met him when he was first trying to get over Donia and was depressed. She coaxed him out of it but to have one of his most infamous exes in town made her anxious. Especially when considering everything, Donia and Keenan have gone through.

"Well, all things considered, I'm glad you can stop coming home all upset because she can't let go off her issues." Asta said. Keenan shook his head

"It's not that." He told her. Asta looked at him confused.

"Than what is it?" she asked. He opened his mouth to try and make her understand but he knew that she wouldn't. It's not something easily understood. He didn't even comprehend it fully. But he knew enough to know that he had to do something.

"I don't know." He told her before kissing her sweetly. He slid her off his lap, kissing her temple one last time. "I'll be back. I have to go discuss this with someone." He gave her a parting smile and left out into the cool night.

You're Stephanie and I'm Paulette
You know what all my faces mea

He ran nonstop until he was standing right in front of the Starbucks right between where he and Donia lived. He leaned on the streetlamp as he watched Donia lean back with her eyes closed on the steps right outside of it.

"How did I know you were going to show up?" She asked, her voice no louder than a whisper. She sat up and opened her eyes, the icy blues piercing right through him. He took a deep breath as he crossed the street and sat next to her.

"Because we know each other well." He said. "Almost too well." She nodded in agreement. They were quiet for a moment before Donia broke their silence.

It's easy to smoke it up and forget
Everything that happened in between

"We suck at being best friends." Donia said. Keenan burst out laughing and Donia laughed with him. He leaned back, feeling more relaxed beside her than he had in a long time.

"Yeah," he said. "When did we become so bad?"

"Somewhere between the first summer girl after me and the fifth, I believe." Donia told him.

"Ashley and Raquel." She gave him a pointed look. "What? I actually try to remember their names. They are part of my court." Donia shrugged as she back beside him.

"So what now?" Donia asked. "Being friends doesn't work. We know each other to well to keep it strictly business…what are we going to do?" They were quiet for a long time.

"You know, when I found out that you were turning into a faerie, it was the worst news I ever got." Keenan told her. Donia tilted her head slightly at the confession. "I couldn't help but think that out friendship was over-this was before I fell in love with you and hoped that you were the Summer Queen. It's just…I enjoyed being friends with you. You reminded me that I wasn't just a king. I was more than that." He laughed softly before shaking his head. "I have no idea why I never told you that."

I had love for you when I was 4
And there's no one I want to smoke with more

"Maybe we were trying to recreate the friendship we use to have." Donia whispered. "And then with it…"

"…came all our issues." Keenan finished. Donia nodded. "So let's start over."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm saying I know you too well and you know me too well. And I really miss being you're friend." He looked her in the eyes. "And I'm sorry for what I said earlier. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"You never do." Donia said, not in a mean way. It was just the truth. "And I guess my court could pull back on some things. Even if they don't want to, they will." Keenan cracked a smile. Donia saw it and rolled her eyes, a smile playing on the edge of her lips. "Don't get use to it." she said.

Someday I'll buy the Rizla and you get the dro

Keenan put his hands up in surrender, savoring the sound of Donia's laughter. He looked back at her in the eye once more. Her eyes caught the moonlight and he could see images of a starry night sky with a full, pale moon, shining over a snowy field. It was so peaceful…

Because we are best friends, right, right, right?

Because we are best friends, right?

"Best friends, right?" Donia said quietly. Keenan snapped back to reality and saw Donia holding out her hand. He made sure his heat was in check before accepting her hand.

"Best friends," he agreed.

Because we are best friends, right?