Private Tales A King’s Bargain

[Fraeya]

‘Do not tarry when he calls
If he has you in his sights
Your fate is set upon the night’

Fraeya paused and snapped the small journal closed, slipping it inside her pocket. Her eyes went back to the spot in Delun’s study where he’d appeared. Next to the window that lead to the gardens. Lead to the gurgling fountains and calm paths outside. Beside the instrument she’d had hidden in the corner. Next to the shelves where her wares lay from a recent trip to the goblin market.

Errands from Delun of course.

An hour. The Erlking had given her an hour to pack. To be ready.

Fraeya had hoped he wouldn’t call in her bargain for a long time. No, she hoped that he’d forget. But the Erlking didn’t forget. Even after months of dancing together. Months from when she’d taught his son a lesson. She’d changed a lot since then.

She’d met her brother and his wife.

She’d defeated the serpent of Liagin. A fresh scar from the fang still embedded in her right shoulder, the trail of poison snaking up her skin and marring a small part of the Erlking’s tattoo along her neck that sealed her fate months ago.

She’d made allies in a few other courts.

She’d survived a pack of Nagai on a spy mission.

And as much as she’d hate to admit it, the mark the Erlking gave her was as much a curse as a symbol of protection.

Shaking her head, she forced herself to move. To keep packing. And lastly, to write out a quick note to Delun. One of the few fae she trusted and had come to love.

 

[Midir]

The Erlking leaned against the skeleton trunk of a blossom tree. Deep within winter still it looked like an eerie hand stretching out towards the moon which made it gleam white in the eerie way bones picked clean of flesh did. It was one of the many reasons that Midir hated winter. It might be a rather strange thing to learn about the man who would walk through fields of corpses where the shattered remains of children lay without battering an eye. Skeletal lands played right into his image. But his court was Autumn and Autumn meant colour. It meant the that perfect second of balance between life and death he valued so much. The beauty of both.

Winter just stripped all that away.

He toyed with the reins of his horse casually as people passed him by without a second glance. Being one of the most powerful fae in this realm had its upsides and one of them was the strength of his gifts that hid him from sight from all those he desired. Only another monarch of Fraeya would be able to see him standing there as the clock struck the hour on which they were meant to meet.

 

[Fraeya]

Her breath came out in short foggy plumes, the air nice and cold. Scarf was wrapped tightly around her neck, hiding the marks of bargains and secrets. Pack thumped lightly against her back as she walked. She was a tall, lean human short among the fae.

A curios glance or two was thrown her way. Most in this court knew Delun’s changeling by now. She ignored their trailing eyes and swore, picking up her pace as the path lengthened to her tardiness and shortened to her fate.

Rounding a corner and weaving between a pair of brownies she saw him by the hibernating tree. His back was to her. She’d be lying to herself if she said she couldn’t feel the power coiling just beneath the curves of his muscles and flesh under thread. But she couldn’t hesitate. She was already perhaps a second late.

Goblin shit.

Be polite. Be polite.

Throat cleared as she stepped into his sphere of space and gave a shallow bow. “King Midir. I apologize I did not bring a horse.”

She should’ve assumed. His instructions had been very vague. Maybe she could use it to her advantage and waste time for this night.

“Would you like me to return with one?” She remained gazing at his boots, one hand across her chest, bowed slightly at the waste. Blonde wisps feathered across her face in the frigid breeze.

 

[Midir]

Midir half turned to glance over his shoulder at her when she bowed, the sound of her footsteps having betrayed her hesitant yet urgent approach. His expression was varying degrees of disinterest, amused and annoyed. He would let her guess at which emotion related to what specific part of what she had said or done. Eventually he turned and let the reins pass through his fingers idly back and forth.

"One of the stable horses would not be able to keep up," he shrugged in a lazy fashion then, without permission, stepped forward and plucked her from the ground as though she weighed nothing at all to set her down on the horses back. Only a Shuck could keep up with his horse. He thread the reins back over his horses head and then fluidly leapt onto the horses back. The white stallion felt like a giant armchair and made two people upon its back seem normal. With a click he turned the horse and set off at a brisk trot.

 

[Fraeya]

Fraeya nearly swatted away the hands of the Erlking as fingers plucked her upwards. But he was too fast and that probably saved her own life without satisfaction. Her fingers instinctively curled around the snow-white mane.

Back was rigid and stiff, screaming her discomfort at having the Autumn Court King at her back. The line between angry and thrilled blurred like the clouds in the distant horizon. The cold wind on her face a sharp reminder to stay alert.

She could get through this.

What was one night?

Then she could make her ask. Lips pressed together. And she knew in that moment she looked as inhuman and wild as the whispers during her stay at the White Raven camp.

The changeling let the silence stretch between them. Green eyes on the non-green landscape of winter. She tried everything in her power to keep those inches of distance from closing between her back and his chest.

“Where are we going?”

She couldn’t help it.

 

[Midir]

Midir cared not for the childs thoughts or feelings in their travelling manner. Whether she believed him or not he had not done it to deliberately cause more distress but because Blitzen was one of the fastest of his kind. Blessed by a fae whose affinity had been horses, the creature was a magnificent king among his own kind. One bound of his hooves could take them across the regions of this world as quickly as a heart beat. Of course that kind of speed might kill Freaya so they would go at a more sedate pace.

He blinked at her question as if he had even forgotten she was there.

"To the Winter Palace," he drawled and then clicked his tongue. The white horse leapt forward and in a blur the landscapes begun to change from the corpse like trees of the jungles gripped in winter, to flat grassy planes and mountains, then on again to now warmer forests, lakes, the sea. Impossible legions covered by a horses hooves in hours until soon, on the edge of the sea the horse slowed to a stop. Atop the cliff sat a palace fit for any faiytale book. It glistened like a gem in the brilliant, warm, sunshine and offered unobstructued views out across a jade green sea.

 

[Fraeya]

Fraeya may have given up half an inch in sliding back as Midir's steed wooshed them through the land. Thank the Bilbopin's brownies she hadn't eaten anything before this. The half of her that would always be fae found the ride thrilling. The wild part of her that only wanted to travel like this from now on.

The human part of her wondered if her legs would still support her own weight once she dismounted.

Green eyes stared out beyond the head of the horse. It was...beautiful. Something in her blood called out to the scene before them. And it wasn't the palace even with all its grandeur. It was the simple grassy plain contrasted with the danger of a sudden rocky cliff into an unforgiving sea below.

She'd only been around the borders of Autumn and Winter. Usually on a mission for Delun. She'd never seen this.

Without waiting for the Autumn King's permission or 'help,' Fraeya shifted her weight and dismounted from the white horse, absorbing the drop in a crouch, the impact slightly jarring up her ankles and knees. A hand shot out, hanging onto the horse's side for a moment.

Legs still held, barely. An inch away from falling on her ass. She had to wonder if she'd see Ariel...or Queen Mab. Were there other Winter Court denizens that shared this place with Midir? Then again that didn't seem right. He wouldn't reside in another court. Were they even in winter? A crease between her brows as she tried to place where they were.

Lips remained pressed, though. Perhaps it was better to keep her mouth shut

 

[Midir]

As if the landscape heard her, the rolling green hills and jade green sea beyond shifted. Now red sand lay beneath her feet shifting and sliding, making every step a mission, and the sea was a vibrant contrasting blue. The palace seemed to stay the same however, a shimmering jewel in the alien landscape. Midir grunted and kicked his horse on without a care for whether or not the human still needed it to support herself. She was the one who had chosen to get down.

"Keep up," was the only thing he said as his horse ploughed on.

As they drew closer the landscape changed and manicured lawns replaced the desert sands. Fountains spurted water and roses lined their way to the door. Once they were at the steps Midir dismounted and headed on inside without a backward glance for the horse. No doubt unseen servants would deal with him though none presented themselves whilst Freaya looked on.

 

[Fraeya]

As much as she was disturbed by the landscape, she loved it. Legs wobbled and she had to step back so as not to get a hoof to her foot as the Erlking moved onward. She made a face at the Erlking's retreating back, the wild landscape making her feel less cautious than usual.

Prick.

Booted feet trudged through the sand as Midir traveled a much easier and faster path. Fingers came up and loosened the scarf around her neck. The one that hid the Erlking's mark. She supposed she wouldn't have to worry about hiding it after tonight. The mark would disappear once she and he completed their ends of the bargain.

If she was still breathing by then.

Her sandy prints left small marks upon the manicured lawn. But as she looked behind her, the sandy boot-prints disappeared. And as she looked ahead, Midir disappeared into the palace. Her footsteps paused as she glanced backward once more. Catching the burning sands turn into a dense wood. Shapes and forms moved within the shifting shadows.

She could understand and even appreciate why he chose this place as his winter retreat. Even as she tried to keep her thoughts from reflecting on the dream she'd had a few weeks ago. She didn't know who deserved her ire more. The Erlking. His son. Or Queen Mab. With one final breath of relative freedom, she trudged inside the palace, hoping the King had forgotten about her entirely.

 

[Midir]

"Miss?" A tiny voice piped up from the foot of the stairs that curled up into the second and third floors above. A tiny fae with skin was black as soot and eyes that glowed like dying embers fiddled with the rags of her burning dress that seemed in a constant state of rematerializing and burning away.

"His Majesty told me to show you to your room so you could..." her eyes ran over the tall woman but the distaste was clear. "Freshen up," something the genii clearly thought Fraeya needed to do. Without waiting for an answer she spun on dainty heels and then started her climb up the stairs, leaving sooty footprints behind.

The genii lead the human to the top floor of the palace and then along three doors where she stopped and pushed it open. Inside was a modest suite but the view more than made up for it. The crescent juliet balcony offered a place to sit and enjoy the unending views of the ocean.

"A bath is ready for you, and fresh clothes are waiting," and with that she shut the door behind her and vanished.

 

[Fraeya]

Nope NOPE nope.

Fraeya rolled her eyes the moment the door was closed. The Erlking could make it a whole lot easier on himself if he just minded his own damn business and went about his night. She was pretty sure 'spending the night with him' would count if they were under the same roof. She was well versed in fae-politics and how important wording was.

There was still time for her to stoke the fires of his disinterest, though.

And what, now she wasn't cleaned-up enough for the king?! From the fae male who enjoyed walking across fields of dead children and other humans slaid from the hunt. Maybe this partially explained why Lorcan was the way he was.

Well, she wasn't Lorcan.

Fraeya locked the door. Then wedged a chair under the knob. Then dragged a heavier-than-it-looked desk to push in front of the wedged chair. Short of pulling the bed over, that was all she had to work with. She had no disillusion that it would actually keep the Erlking out but at least she'd hear him or one of his coming.

Going to the balcony, she threw the doors to the sea wide open and stood out there. A breeze whipping against her skin and clothes. A lean of challenge against the railing that separated her from the death below.

'Fraeya,' Geralt said solemnly as he stared up at her. The brownie's bright red-beard well-kept. Long, pointed ears studded with varying jewelry. Nothing flashy - all simple. 'You will have a choice to make. I know you don't believe you are who we say you are. But know that we are with you.'

As the sea air tickled the back of her throat, she fingered the acorn in her pocket absently then turned to take a look at this bath and change of clothes situation.

 

[Midir]

The clothing was perhaps the strangest. When a king ordered someone to bathe and dress, especially a human woman when she was alone in the Erlkings palace, they might have expected scanty or pleasing clothing. What was actually laid out however were the softest leathers Fraeya probably would have ever come across in a deep forest green that would blend in well with the forests. Riding boots, even an assortment of knives that would fit into carefully made sheaths in the jacket and trousers.

Whether she chose to bathe and get dressed mattered little to the Erlking. He did not check when a good hour later he rapped against the door.

"Are you ready?"

 

[Fraeya]

Shit.

His voice. He'd hear the scurrying of feet and the tell-tale screech of furniture on flooring as it was cleared from the door. Fraeya finally pulled the door open, green eyes that matched the leathers traveling upward to a face who had ruled many a millenia.

The scent of the citrus and spice soap clung to her skin and still damp, drying blonde waves that were, for once, unbound and hanging past her shoulders. The Erlking's mark of their bargain on display around her neck, that vein of poison from the Serpent of Liadan disrupting a small portion of the intricate ink. Perhaps he'd wished she'd died in those pits, instead.

She had all the knives tucked away, including her own bone dagger and some of the trinkets from the brownie leaders.

"Are you ready?"

"For what?"

 

[Midir]

Midir's frost bitten blue gaze ran over her slowly in a critical manner. It was hard to tell what his summary was aside from the downward turn of his lips when his eyes snagged on the blemish on his mark. His gaze became colder, darker, before returning to hers.

"The Hunt," he replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. One final flick of his eyes over her and then he turned his back on her and strode down the corridor. He didn't turn to see if she followed. He was the Erlking and if she didn't, she would wish she had done so willingly as the tingling from her mark no doubt warned her.

He didn't take her outside to begin with though. Instead he made his way to a library in which sat a large table that could have sat 12 around it. Covering half the surface of the marbled wood was maps of the Dawn Court.

"You think because I let my Court have a holiday the work of the Hunt is not done?" he sounded cruelly amused.

 

[Fraeya]

To her credit, she didn't balk or shy away from his gaze. Growing up Autumn Court didn't lend itself to fearing easily. Though human and a changeling, even the abuse she'd learned to take before Delun, she was an Autumn Court member through and through.

It sang even in her human blood.

"I'd think you'd know of all members of your court I would know that the most."

Mouth snapped closed at her own loose lips.

"Your highness," she tacked on. She didn't know what a holiday was. Delun kept her very busy and when she wasn't with protecting the book and maintaining The Lists, she had other duties to attend to. Other missions from the male standing before her. And the few days she'd taken to find her brother hadn't felt like a holiday. She didn't even know if she'd ever had one or even how to spend one.

New riding boots barely made a sound on the polished floor as she walked around the head of the table to the other side, eyes studying the maps. All...dawn? She wondered why, why not Night Court? Hands clasped behind her back to keep her fingers from fidgeting.

Finally, her eyes lifted.

Again, she wondered why he bothered to be in her presence. "I'm sure whatever you have for me I can handle so you can take tonight for yourself."

 

[Midir]

Midir afforded her a cool, measured glance, then seemed to dismiss her words as not worth retorting to as he turned his attentions back to the maps. His hair was braided back off his face and the light streaming in from the coloured glass windows painted a mosaic across his features. He looked younger, here, than he did back in the Autumn Court where the day to day challenges of rulership weighted on him. This place allowed him to focus on the work he deemed the most important.

"Dawn is not a place for little humans to run about in alone," he mused and then slid a book over to her. It was one she had likely never seen before, a private list, that Delun had been personally in charge of. "Besides," he straightened and peered down at her, his eyes drifting back across to the poison that marred his mark.

"Our deal was for a night with me. Would you prefer, little dove, that I dress you in silks and invite you to my bedchamber instead?"

 

[Fraeya]

Only King Midir could insult her one moment and then make her traitorous heart beat a hair faster the next while also clothed in offense. A swath of emotioned flickered across her face as she stared at him, thankful for the table that stood between them. She knew the rumors of what he did to the women he bedded and NO. THANK. YOU.

Fingers curled into fists at her sides.

Everyone always underestimated her. And she supposed because she wasn't fae they always would. Good, she would continue to use it to her advantage.

"I think you know the answer to that," she ground out, fingers finally uncurling and going for the book, flipping the cover open.

There was a quiet snicker from the corner by the fireplace and as she turned she thought she caught a flash of blue skin before seeing...nothing. It was the king before her that drew her attention back. With one hand bracing her on the table, she peered closer at the book.

"I can survive more than you think," she muttered, knowing Delun would be giving her a look at her impoliteness right about now.

 

[Midir]

"Which is why you're ever here in the first place," he replied with a pleased note to his tone, as though she had somehow said exactly what he wanted her to. Midir glanced up and a coy smile lifted the corner of his lips, and then his smile and his gaze dropped once more to the pieces of paper in front of them. He selected one then turned it round so she could see it.

"Dawn is a hard Court to try and police. The chaos... some of these fae are ironically the ones that cause the biggest stability in the world. In the same breath the can commit a great evil and also cause a great good in the world," he explained in a lecturing manner. "But they walk a fine line and when they tip," he motioned to the book in her hands.

There was only one name.

"You're the bait."

 

[Fraeya]

For a moment, she was worried she'd see Isiel's name on that piece of paper. But it was even worse. Her mouth became suddenly dry.

She'd rather go up against the wild kelpies than this.

Green eyes snapped up to his own. "There are a whole lot easier ways to kill me, you know. The Crochan Weaver. Really?!" Fingers lifted and brushed across that line of poison on her neck, absently. Gods he was mad. This being was known to lure in high fae...anything to her hutt. And those who entered never made it out.

No, those who ventured too close to her house never made it out.

"Do you have a plan?"

 

[Midir]

Midir's lips curved into a sly smile.

"Of course."

She most certainly wasn't going to like it but the Erlking cared little for that. What he cared about was that she managed to distract the creature enough that Midir could get close. That was the problem with powerful fae, it was hard to go unseen. The Weaver would sense him if he drew too closer and she would disappear her hut and it would take him another few years to track her down again.

"You're going to steal something. I don't really care what, but she needs to believe you're just a thief. Then I'll be able to get close."

 

[Fraeya]

"Is it too late to take the silks and bedding option?" A quiet snort as she very purposefully didn't meet his gaze even as some of the humor she never meant to share with Midir slipped out. Delun would be pissed at the King if he lost Fraeya. Not particularly because her favorite fae would miss her but moreso because he'd miss the work she managed to accomplish.

Did that mean she trusted King Midir?

Goblin shit no.

But a bargain was a bargain.

Rumor had it the Weaver was blind and her sense of smell wasn't like a typical fae or human. But her hearing was excellent. Perhaps Fraeya had a chance. And Fraeya was pretty sure he'd promised that no harm would come to her or those she deemed protected for the night they spent together. Did that mean if she got harmed this bargain would be null and void?

She chewed on her lower lip for a moment.

Harmed or not it didn't matter. This is what the Erlking wanted her to do and turning down a king wasn't a healthy option. Especially not if that meant she wouldn't get to cash in on what she really wanted.

And wouldn't Jace just be laughing his ass off now?

Look who would be the thief now.

Turning another page of the book, she spotted a map. Finger traced the line to a black dot she assumed was the Weaver's location. "So when do we leave? And any knowledge you'd care to share to better my odds at surviving this?" This time her vibrant green eyes did lift to meet his and didn't shy away. If these were her last moments alive she was going to hold his own green eyes.

 

[Midir]

Glacial eyes rose - as did his brows - at Fraeya's attempt at a joke. It was probably a good thing she decidedly didn't look at him for his expression was not one of amusement in the slightest. When the Erlking asked for someone to do something, the did it. Dead or alive Midir had ways and his patience was a slim thing eroded by years of dealing with courtier politics when he had wanted to Hunt. Pure luck or wisdom, whatever it was, Fraeya's next question saved her from a much harsher response than the one she got.

Which was a few pieces of paper thrown in her direction. They landed with a satisfying slap atop the table.

"Despite her years, this is all the information there is on her. Known weaknesses, preferences," he shrugged a shoulder and watched her quietly. Like a wolf watching its prey step into its trap. "You're going to have to rely on your own wits. I won't be too far away, but it will take me time to get closer. To undo her wards. Your mission, remember, is to distract her."

 

[Fraeya]

And the changeling didn't look away. Not smart to look away from predators. And she had a feeling she was lucky she'd kneed Lorcan in the balls because if she ever did that to Midir she imagined it would be the last thing she ever did.

She did finally look down, to study what he'd thrown across the table at her. Memorizing the information. Just like she thought. The Weaver was blind. Could still sense power. Perhaps that's why Midir could never get close. The creature's sense of smell was off, Fraeya didn't know what that meant.

She supposed she would find out.

Tucking the map in her pocket, her shoulders straightened stiffly. "Right. Steal something and distract her. Try not to die or Delun won't forgive you. Let's just get this over with. Do you have a horse I can use?"

And she had to wonder, was this what Midir was like on vacation?

 

[Midir]

Midir's face spasmed into a rare bit of honest emotion; a grimace. The last time Delun had been mad with him it had lasted over 50 years. The scribe had still done his job, of course, perhaps even more diligently than before. But there had been... an undercurrent. Something that had made even the Erlking's skin crawl. He would never forgive him if something happened to Fraeya, he'd put too much time into making her the perfect assistant.

The grimace lasted the barest of seconds and then it was gone.

"We won't need horses," he replied flatly and then held out a hand towards her. "You're going to have to trust me."

 

[Fraeya]

She couldn't stop staring as she saw something almost human flicker across his face. Was that an honest show of his feelings? He always wore a mask of stone. Or a mask of cruelty. A mask of disinterest. But he-

What.

His words interrupted her moment of incredulity. He wanted her to close the distance between them and hold his hand. Honestly, facing the Weaver seemed like a cake-walk compared to what he wanted her to do now.

You're going to have to trust me.

Really?!

An audible swallow. She reminded herself she didn't have a choice. And if she lived after this and Queen Mab visited her dreams to torture her with this moment, so help the Winter Court. Shoulders sagged in mild defeat even as she tried to keep the mask of fearlessness up as she stepped toward him. Her pace similar to what she'd experienced on her way to meeting Midir from Delun's estate. Quick to slow.

Fraeya stared at the outstretched hand then eyes lifted to his glacial expression.

She was Autumn Court through and through. "I fear death less than I trust you." And with that, she'd place her palm into his own.