The Fairy King

Chapter 2

"Deacon, grab its arms," Mercury snapped as he trailed out of the room, May following close behind him with his head ducked down. Deacon gave the girl an apologetic look before taking hold of her wrists and pulling her forward. (Y/N)'s eyebrows furrowed and she began fighting his grip, tugging her wrists back and attempting to push him away. A small, almost sarcastic, sigh escaped Mercury upon hearing the commotion and he clicked his fingers.

"May, deal with the girl, she's being rather difficult," He huffed and all she saw was May flick his wrist and green sparks before her eyes grew heavy once more.

Slowly, (Y/N) pulled her eyes open, letting out a moan of pain. Her head was pounding and her eyes fuzzy but when she went to rub at them, there was a loud clanking and a tug of cold metal on her wrists. As her eyes began to adjust she heard amused laughter from the corner. Her head snapped to the sound and in the corner, she spied a blonde hidden in the shadows, leant against the wall. A white ruffle was positioned around his neck, she noticed, and his clothing was similar to that of a jester as he pushed himself from the wall.

" I wouldn't fight your restraints love, they'll only get tighter. You'll hurt yourself," He advised, approaching her steadily. (Y/N) shot him a glare, watching him carefully " Alright, give me the silent treatment. I'm Taylor. You must be the troublesome girl that I helped pick out. Now, come on. We have to take you to his majesty." Taylor took hold of her arm, his touch gentle and somehow kind, and hoisted her up. it was then she came to the realisation that the room, or rather, corridor she'd been in had changed. Instead of, what she assumed to be, a dungeon, it was a simple bedroom. Not fancy by any means, by more comfortable by far, though she hadn't exactly been placed on the bed. (Y/N) allowed Taylor to escort her out of the room and through the various winding, seemingly, endless halls. He never once tightened his grip or forced her to speed up her pace. He allowed her to take in her new surroundings, which were much more luxurious than she'd seen in a long time. The exact thing it described in her storybook.

"Can I ask you a question, Taylor?" (Y/N) requested quietly, almost too scared to look at him. Taylor peeked over at her, carefully adjusting his grip on (Y/N)s's restraints to make sure he didn't hurt her.

"You just did," He responded with a small, teasingly cocky grin. But she didn't smile. She only raised an eyebrow in reply, slowing her steps until they stopped completely, forcing Taylor to stop with her.

"How is this happening?" She turned to face him, ignoring the ache in her shoulders from her arms being held back. As he turned to her, she noticed a tattoo-like mark near his temple that she hadn't seen before. His ears also seemed to have a slight point at the end. Taylor shook his head, opening his mouth and closing it again, looking oddly fish like.

"I'm - I can't answer that. The Fairy King would have my head," He whispered, before giving a light yank to her shackles and continued on, not bothering to check if her restraints had grown too tight under his pulling, which they had, causing (Y/N) to wince and quicken her walk to keep up. She let out a frustrated groan at the continuous lack of an answer.

After a few more minutes of awkward, tense silence, the pair reached a pair of large, deep red doors. Golden accents made up a picture of two lions, a phoenix, a crab and two angel looking creatures, all clustered around a large Q with a regal crown placed in the centre. Taylor raised his fist and knocked lightly and the doors gradually opened, held open by two soldiers, both of their helmets looking like the head of a medusa-looking creature. It was quite easy to tell that the room was a ballroom. It was enormous and the word grand couldn't scratch the surface of how incredible and grandeur the sight was. Marble flooring was cold enough against (Y/N) sockless feet to send shivers up her spine. The room seemed to hold its own natural glow and it was crowded with people, dancing along to phantom music and laughing amongst themselves. However, when Taylor lead (Y/N) into the ballroom, the laughter died down and soulless eyes watched them. A few women leant to the person beside them and began muttering, clearing a path for Taylor and his prisoner, like Moses, parting the sea. The new path came to reveal the Fairy King, stood at the top of the west staircase, where the central one split, observing the duo with beady eyes, descending the stairs at a leisurely pace. Taylor kneeled, letting go of (Y/N)'s manacles.

"Your majesty, the human you requested," Taylor stated before rising back to his feet. (Y/N) nearly rolled his eyes at how much of a suck up he seemed to be in front of the king.

"Thank you, my darling. Now, shoo," Mercury dismissed Taylor with a sharp jerk of his head, to which Taylor nodded and moved to stand beside Deacon, who was positioned under the stairs. He whispered something to Deacon who rolled his eyes and nodded his head in agreement. (Y/N)'s eyes scanned the room but she never saw May. So her eyes settled on Mercury, glaring daggers at his chiselled face."Oh, my dear, don't give me that look. I saved you."

"You pulled me from my life-"

"Which you were miserable in."

"-And took me away from my family."

"Who was awful to you."

"Maybe so! But I need to go home! Just because my family are terrible people doesn't mean that I don't deserve a chance in my own goddamn life!" She hollered, sick of the constant insistence. Mercury's self-assured smile faded, his eyes narrowed and turned dark.

"Do you know what this is, (Y/N)?" A crystal orb appeared in his hand, floating between his fingers, magically staying floating no matter how much he moved his hand.

"I don't care what that is! I want to go home!"

"Very well. If that's... truly what you want, you may go home," He responded, taking a few steps closer until they were face to face.

"Then get one of your...company to take me out of this place,"(Y/N) sneered, seeing the look of deceit buried in his eyes.

"Gladly. May, why don't you take her shackles off and lead our guest to the exit," The murmurs of the crowd got louder and more concerned with each mention of the 'exit'. (Y/N) looked to the side and nearly jumped out of her skin upon seeing May beside her, eyes shining with worry as they looked to the girl. He walked behind her and she heard a click before the heavy metal fell to the floor. She rolled her shoulders and May carefully took her hand.

"Come this way, miss," May's voice was louder than it had been in the dungeon and he tenderly dragged her towards the door. But instead of going back through the awe-inspiring double doors, like she thought he was going to do, he stopped in front of one of the paintings on the wall. It was one of a large labyrinth, moss and ivy growing over the countless walls and a large tower at the end of it seemed to dwarf the labyrinth with its incredible size. (Y/N) wrenched her wrist from May and spun on her heel, ignoring the fearful looks of the party goers. Mercury was grinning like a madman as he made his way over. Deacon and Taylor looked scared. But not for themselves. For her.

"Alright, Mercury. Funny joke," (Y/N) snapped, folding her sore arms over her chest.

"Oh, you're not as bright as I originally thought, are you?

A gasp sounded throughout the room at the sound of skin colliding with skin. Mercury's head snapped to the side with the impact before he looked back to her with fire in his eyes. His cheek was burning but he didn't falter in his movement as he gripped her throat and brought her closer to him. (Y/N)'s hands shot to the one around her neck, though he'd yet to apply any pressure.

"I was going to give you a week. But clearly, you don't want to help yourself. Three days." The silence in the room was deafening and she felt herself begin to shake a little. "Three days to get out. To get to the exit. Or you stay here forever. Chop, chop."

With that, Mercury threw her backwards and she went toppling through the painting, back colliding with the floor. A soft 'oof' escaped her lips at the impact and she reached up to May, who stood at the window of the painting but it twirled and disappeared. Leaving her alone at the mouth of the labyrinth. With only three days to get out.