Mirror, Mirror, On the Wall

Chapter Thirteen- Three little pigs and the gang of Big Bad Wolves

Rose P.O.V.

Maio unsheathed some daggers faster than my eyes could follow. He aimed one at the man who grabbed me.

"Let her go, werewolf." Maio made it clear that if I wasn't released in two seconds, the werewolf (!) that had attacked me was getting a dagger in between the eyes.

"Hmmm," said the man, breathing down my neck. He sounded like he was smiling. Like he was toying with us. "No, I don't think I will." His voice hardened, no longer sounding like honey."And if you throw that bit of flash at me, I might be able to dodge it, but your friend here won't. Esspecially if I use her as a shield." He gave me a little shake.

Maio growled and lowered his knife, but he didn't put it back in his sheath.

Jasiana stepped forward, her sword casually swinging by her side.

"Bracken," she said disdainfully, and as Maio gave a confused look between her and my captor, I realized that Bracken was our enemy's name. And that Jasiana somehow knew him.

"Care to tell me why you and your men are so far in my father's domain? We must be at least three days travel from the Fall Forests." Her tone was light, but her eyes made her meaning clear: Tell me what I want to know, or I'll kick you into next week.

"Men, Highness? I'm just passing through, traveling by myself." Even I knew Bracken was lying through his teeth. His voice had a tendency for switching between honey and barbed-wire. Jasiana gave him a knowing smile, then she twisted and threw the knife she killed the rabbit with, throwing it fast into the group of trees on our right.

There was a yelp of pain. Seeming to materialize out of then air, a barrel-chested man walked out of the trees, clutching his arm. Blue blood trinkled through his fingers. He growled at the elven princess.

"Careful, your Majesty," warned Bracken. "You seem to forget I have a hostage." The arm around my throat tightened. I squirmed, trying to kick him, but he just laughed.

Jasiana raised an eyebrow. "Please, you do have such little faith in me. I forget nothing, and your man is merely scratched, as I intended. If I was to kill a Were in present company, it would undoubtably be you, who holds my servant in such a degrading manner."

"Your servant, Highness? This wench?" asked Bracken, sounding fakely surprised. "Never! This here girl's a Druid! Elves as prostegious as yourself don't partake in the Slave Trade!"

With a shock, I realized that Bracken didn't know I was human. He knew I wasn't an elf(he was close enough to see that I didn't have pointy ears), and so for some reason he thought I was a Druid. What the heck was a Druid?!

Jasiana sniffed as three more men came out of the woods, surronding us in a circle. Maio shifted until he was back to back with his sister, protecting her as she continued to talk to Bracken.

"Oh course not! This girl is not from the Trade, and I will never employ someone you must buy like cattle! You insult me and my father with such claims!" I had a feeling Jasiana had a plan, talking to Bracken for so long, but I wished she'd go back to throwing daggers. The werewolves around us looked big, buff, and tough. All except one. This werewolf looked about in his mid twenties, wore glasses, and wasn't as muscualr as the rest. He had some kind of remote looking thing in his hands. But that wasn't the weirdest thing. His eyes were blood red (the human kind). When he caught me staring at him, he smiled wickedly and waved the remote. I quickly looked around at the rest of the werewolves. I realized that every werewolf surrounding us had red eyes. They were still all human-looking though, albeit slightly on the hairy side, but I had a feeling they could go wolf at anytime.

"She was found abandoned on the sea shore," lied Jasiana smoothly. She sounded haughty, like Bracken had wounded her pride. "We tested her for magic, and she hasn't one iota of it. We took her in and gave her a roof over her head, and she has been my handmaiden ever since."

"Really." Bracken only sounded half-convinced.

"What do you want here, werewolf? You are trying our patience," growled Maio angrily from behind Jasiana.

I felt Bracken shift his weight as he addressed Jasiana again.

"Princess, you should tell your bodygaurd to mind his manners. After all, we're all civilized here."

Jasiana gave a short, mirthless laugh before replying, coldly, "Answer the question. What do you want?"

Bracken sighed.

"Well, I would say we want everything you have, but that's too much of a cliché. And it's not exactly true. More correctly, we want everything you ARE."

Jasiana swung her sword up and pointed it at a werewolf that had come too close to her. All pretense was gone from her face. Now she looked fierce.

"If you think you will ransom me, maybe you should try and recall what happened last time, Bracken," she spat. Bracken laughed again, and Jasiana's eyes flitted over to him for a split second. She looked ready to attack at a moment's notice.

"Jasiana, you've grown into more of a fighter since when we last met! That's good, actually," Bracken commented seriously. "And what about you, bodygaurd boy?" He asked Maio. "Good with those daggers, eh?"

"Let go of Rose, werewolf, and you'll find out just how good I am!" Maio challenged angrily.

"Rose, huh? That must be you, little Druid. How unusual that you carry a name of the forest." Bracken said, inches from my ear. "More importantly, are you a spitfire fighter like your mistress?"

He realized if he wanted a response he would have to loosen his choke hold on me. He did so, but not before twisting one of my arms behind my back, locking me in place.

"LET GO OF ME!" I yelled, trying fruitlessly to untwist my arm. He yanked it up, causing me to see black spots in my vision as sharp pain traveled up my arm. I cried out.

"None of that, girl, or I'll break your arm."

"Bracken..." Cautioned one of the werewolves.

"Don't worry, Linden. I won't hurt the goods. 'Sides, she can still fight with a broken arm."

"If you're so worried about me being able to fight, why don't you let me go and I'll show you my fighting as I kick your ass!" I retorted, trying to sound braver than I really was. My knees felt like jelly. I didn't know the first thing about fighting! But Jasiana and Maio do, my brain reasoned. They'll get me out of this.

"You are a liitle spitfire!" Exclaimed Bracken happily.

"Let Rose go, werewolf, before I slice you and all your Weres in half!"

"Now, see, that's just rude," Bracken huffed. "I don't go around calling you 'elf', do I, bodygaurd boy?"

"ENOUGH with the small talk, Bracken!" commanded Jasiana." Let her go, or we will attack!"

"No, I don't think you will," said Bracken, as he nodded to the werewolf wearing glasses.

It must have been some kind of signal, because several things happened at once.

The werewolf Bracken nodded to flipped a swith and pushed a few buttons on his remote. Maio charged Bracken, murder in his eyes, and suddenly fell down flat on his face.

"NO!!!!"I screamed. In a frenzy, I stomped on Bracken's foot. Hissing, his grip on me lessened, and I twisted out of his hold and ran to Maio. Sinking to my knees, I grunted as I flipped him over onto his back. I looked up when I heard a loud thump. Lying a few feet away from me was Jasiana. She was lucky she hadn't been impaled by her sword, which was picked up by one of the werewolves. he stepped towards me.

My eyes full of tears, I jumped up and tried to run. Bracken caught me full on, crushing me to his chest.

"You killed them! You killed them!" I cried, pummeling him with my fists, trying to get away from the monster in the form of a man.

"Nerotoxin, spitfire. Weird how it didn't work for you," said Bracken conversationally, like I wasn't trying to kill him with my bare hands. Over my screams, he turned and said, "Maybe try a higher frequency, Sorrel!"

I felt a sharp pain in my head, and the last thing I remember was sinking to the forest floor.