Fair Ones

Chapter 5

She awoke the next morning in a fright. For a moment she forgot where she was, panicked at not being in her own room, but then remembered what had occurred. She recalled what had happened the previous evening…

“Good morning!” A voice said brightly, snapping her out of her thoughts. In her doorway was a faery with a mess of curly hair, of blond and red and brown. Bright feathers were woven into the hair also. He had chocolate brown eyes, and was dressed in bright motley of colors. He wore green and yellow striped pants, and an orange shirt with yellow puffy cuffs. He had the green stone on his forehead that apparently marked the royal faeries here. He said,

 “Since Prince Sin is…busy, I’m to be your chaperone today.”

“Chaperone?” She asked, rubbing her eyes.He nodded, smiling.

“I will show you around our kingdom. These clothes are for you.” He pointed to the pile of folded clothes on the bed. She got out of her bed and picked up the clothes. There was a long green skirt, and a white shirt.

“My name is Fain. And your name is Amy, correct?”

“Yeah… um, can you go outside while I change?” She asked.

Fain covered his eyes with a hand. “I won’t peek.” He spread apart a few fingers to reveal both eyes and grinned. She gave him a stern look. He laughed and said,

” I’m joking! It is my job after all!” She stared at him, confused. He explained, “I am Court Jester to the Seelie King and Queen. Now, get dressed and let’s be on our way!”

After dressing, Fain led her out of the castle and down a path through the woods. They came to a sort of market area, in what was apparently a village. It was packed with faeries, and other creatures. Fain acted as a tour guide and pointed things out to her.

“That’s a gnome.” He said, pointing to a short, hairy man.

          “That’s a troll. It’s best for you to steer clear of them.” He gestured to a mammoth creature, carrying a huge club that looked like a tree.

“Satyrs.” He nodded towards a group of fey with the upper bodies of men, and from the waist down had furry goat legs and hooves. One caught her eye and smiled suggestively. She quickened her pace with Fain.

They walked on and went by a merchant selling jewelry. She examined a necklace he was holding. When he said he’d trade it for a vile of her blood, she decided she should keep walking. She looked up from the necklace…and Fain was gone. She panicked. He couldn’t have gotten too far away. She quickly walked around, trying her best not to make eye contact with the many faeries and other creatures taking her in. She wondered if she could find her way back to the castle, when she was tapped on the arm. She turned. It was the satyr that had smiled at her. He was smiling again, and she noticed he had a handsome face.

“Hello, mortal. Are you enjoying your time in Faery?”

She stammered.”Uh, I guess…”

“I think I can make it more enjoyable. What do you say?”

She blanched.”No, no, I have to find someone…”

“I see the stone on your forehead…Why would a mortal have one, hm?”

“The prince gave it to me this stone, and I’m looking for the court’s jester.”He laughed.”The prince gave you a clown for protection here, mortal? Well, I’m sure the prince wouldn’t mind you having a little fun with me…”

He looked her in the eyes. She suddenly was all too willing to come with him. He led her out of the village toward the woods. They went into the woods and he laid her on her back on the ground. He got on top of her and started to pull up her skirt. He then suddenly froze. He stood up and looked around.

“Whose there!?” He called. Laughter answered. Suddenly Fain appeared, coming from the sky in a swirl of feathers. He had a malicious grin on his face, and looked at the satyr.

”A gentleman doesn’t manipulate a lady like that.”

Roots appeared from the ground, and curled around the satyr, locking him in place.

 Fain continued,” You know what this will mean for you, surely? Assaulting someone under protection of the Court?” The satyr’s eyes grew wide. Fain laughed, and the vines grew tighter. The satyr grimaced in pain as the vines squeezed him. Flowers grew on the vines and the satyr’s head slumped, asleep. Fain then came over to Amy.

“Are you all right? Oh, he was a brute. I lost you in the crowd and panicked, so I turned into a bird to find you. Faery can be a dangerous place, especially for mortals. Did he hurt you?”She snapped out of the trance she was in. She realized how close she got to submitting to the satyr. The full weight of the whole situation dawned on Amy then. She was stuck in Faery, with all kinds of creatures wanting to prey on her, and she had no idea when she would go home, or if she ever would. She tried to stifle a sob, but failed. Fain frowned, shaken by her tears. He patted her head.

”There, there. It’s not as bad as that.”

“I was like, seduced, by a freakin’ goat man! “ She exclaimed.

“Don’t worry, the king and queen will make sure he is punished.”

Amy sighed miserably.”I just wanna go home.”

Fain said,” You might be here awhile…It appears Prince Sin is smitten with you.”

Amy gaped.”What?”

“Yes, I can tell. Why else would he protect you with a gem of the Court? It is a serious declaration. And he may have said a thing or two about you to me…” Fain said with a smile.” It seems you are returning those feelings, am I right?”

Amy blushed and thought about that, and her feelings toward Sin. There was definite attraction there, but she never would have guessed it was reciprocated. She tried to hide a smile, and failed.

“Ah, I knew it! Good luck to you with that. Well, how about we go back to the castle, now, hmm?”She nodded. She then asked,

 “So, faeries can turn into birds?”Fain smiled, and did a twirl, and a bright light consumed him for a moment, and he formed into a large bird. Fain as a bird had bright green and yellow feathers on the wings and body, and a tuft of orange feathers on his head. He flew around Amy and landed on her head and tweeted. He then flew off her head and returned to his faery form

.“Can Sin turn into a bird?”

“All faeries can change form into animals. What we turn into is our choice, and I prefer birds myself."

"Thats...really amazing." Amy declared. Fain smiled and took her hand, and they made their way back to the castle.