Of Vines and Rivals

1. Puck

“Any last words?” The man’s thick voice reverberated through my bones, the sensation made more painful by the iron coursing through my system and wrapped around my body. I couldn’t believe he tricked me. Me. The self-proclaimed master of trickery and deceit—fooled by common humans.

The moment I tasted the wine, I knew it was laced with iron, the one substance harmful to Fae. It weakened me, neutralizing my magic and allowing the men to bind me in iron chains and drag me to this cliffside.

Now, I was going to die over a simple overreaction.

Well, maybe not an overreaction. But how was I supposed to know the rumor I spread that Henry was sleeping with his wife’s brother held merit? And how was I supposed to know Henry and the brother would admit to their deeds when confronted with the rumor? And how could I have known their wives would tell everyone in town and cause them irrevocable shame? It’s 1643, for goddess’ sake. I assumed humans were over their closed-minded ways.

None of that was my fault. I was simply the instigator. The match that lit the fuse.

Saying as much wouldn’t help me as Henry and the brother—I never did catch his name—dangled me over a cliff. Waves crashed against sharp rocks below, the spray exploding high enough for me to feel the kiss of salt water against my neck. I hoped the rocks would claim me first—at least my death would be quick. Drowning seemed truly dreadful.

“You’ve got to be shitting me,” I grumbled, spouting a new phrase I’d been concocting for this exact situation. Hopefully, Henry and what’s-his-name would repeat it and immortalize me. It would be a better legacy than that goddess-forsaken play that stole my name and the idea of Fae, only to take liberties with everything else. If I ever met that playwright in the afterlife, I would kill him again.

“So long, Puck,” Henry said as he and his lover tossed me over the ledge.

I struggled against my chains, but the iron I’d digested made every movement agonizing. I was too weak to do anything but accept my fate as the air rushed around me. The temperature dipped as I careened closer and closer to the ocean. The scent of salt filled my nostrils and I took one final, deep breath before I plunged into the water between the rock formations. I was always lucky, but I never thought I’d curse my luck for keeping me alive.

I swore, releasing a stream of bubbles as I thrashed in my confines. The iron dragged me deeper until I couldn’t tell up from down. The water churned around me in a cloud of white as my attempts to break free disturbed the deep sea.

My lungs burned. Spots danced before my eyes.

A lone bubble drifted from my lips and I watched as it floated away, along with my hopes of survival. My eyelids grew heavy as I continued to drift toward the bottom of the ocean, but I kept them open—wanting to see everything before death stole my sight. Eventually, the cold of the water was replaced by delicious warmth. It wrapped me in its embrace, promising I was safe.

One more blink. I thought I saw something in the water.

Another, slower blink, and when I opened my eyes, a mane of dark hair floated before me. More bubbles of surprise escaped my lips as a creature with leathery blue skin and sharp pointed teeth kissed me. Kiss might have been an exaggeration. The creature blew air into my mouth, inflating my lungs and allowing me to breathe underwater. The cool water rushed into me, and I laughed. It seemed my luck hadn’t run out yet.

Sensing I still couldn’t move, the creature gingerly wrapped webbed fingers around the one section of my waist that wasn’t covered in iron. It hissed as the chain brushed against the barb that extended from its fingertips, but adjusted slightly and towed me toward the surface.

I couldn’t wait to arrive at the pub tomorrow and see the faces of Henry and his lover as they realized they hadn’t bested me—that Puck of the Spring Court lived to torment and trick for another day.

Instead, the creature dragged me sideways, farther into the ocean and away from the cliffside. I was mildly concerned it was only saving me to drag me to its lair and eat me, but not concerned enough to struggle. I was more curious as to why this underwater creature would save me.

Im a siren, you git, a disembodied male voice resounded in my mind. It was deep and rich and reminded me of the surf crashing against the rocks. You must have encountered our kind in Faerie.

Ah, Faerie. My home realm. A land full of magic and immortal beings that were so dreadfully dull compared to the humans I preferred to spend my time with. There was something about beings who knew their lives were bound to expire that made them infinitely more interesting than those who would live forever.

I hadn’t run into many sirens. They mostly resided in Winter Court as part of the Unseelie Fae alliance, and when I deigned to visit my home realm, I stayed in Spring Court, which was a part of the Seelie Fae alliance. Typically, the two factions of Fae despised each other, yet this male saved me.

Lovely to make your acquaintance, I thought, since it seemed the siren could read my mind. I typically kept my mind guarded from such intrusions, but the iron must have destroyed my shields. He said nothing else as he continued to swim.

When we were just under the surface, he kissed me again and sucked the air from my lungs. With one final shove, he thrust me above the water and onto the shallow sand of an island. I wriggled like a beached whale farther onto the shoreline as the siren dove beneath the waves once again, content to leave me stranded.

Magic kissed my skin, roving over my body and coating me with the scent of lavender. The iron chains unspooled and landed with a thud on the sand. I stood and stretched my muscles as I scanned the beach for the Fae who saved me.

Sitting on a rock, watching me with interest in her green eyes, was Titania, Queen of the Spring Court and my boss. Her orange-red hair was piled atop her head and encircled by a silver crown inlaid with emeralds the same shade as her ballgown. It was an odd wardrobe choice for a beach, but who was I to judge? Delicate wings protruded from her back, softly fluttering behind her as she assessed me.

I hastily dipped to my knee, bowing my head as low as I could without my back screaming in protest. The iron in my bloodstream still weakened me, but I was much better than when I was wrapped in chains.

Titania’s magic washed over my skin once more, drying my auburn hair and brushing the strands that dipped over my forehead back into some semblance of style. My clothes rippled around me as the drying spell wrung out the salt water until it looked as though I’d never taken the perilous plunge into the ocean.

“Your Majesty,” I murmured, my words thick and my brain sluggish.

Titania clucked her tongue. “The words you’re searching for are ‘thank you.’” Her grating voice made me wince. She had the type of voice that sounded like she was yelling even when she whispered. It clawed at every inch of me and made me want to punch her in the throat.

“Thank you?” I asked, which wasn’t the correct inflection based on the murderous look in her eyes.

“I sent that siren to help you. And now, you are in my debt.”

Debt. There was nothing more serious to Fae than their honor—even a Fae like me who preferred to dance along the line of propriety. My honor was everything.

If I didn’t owe Titania a debt, I would owe one to the siren. I wasn’t sure which was worse, but I had to surmise that the female who employed me would be more favorable than a random Unseelie Fae. Even so, I knew this favor wasn’t going to be easy. Titania was more cunning and cutthroat than most Fae. If she went to the trouble to save my life, then she wanted something big—something all the resources at her disposal couldn’t provide.

“Of course, Your Majesty,” I said, still trying to figure a way out. “How can I repay you?”

Her smile was one of nightmares. It bared her teeth and thinned her lips, twisting her features to show the evil creature that lay beneath. For centuries, since she married the Spring Court king, I said she wasn’t to be trusted, but he was blinded by…something. Goddess knew what because I wouldn’t call this female beautiful and her personality left much to be desired. Her cunt must have been magical to have ensnared Oberon for so many years.

“I require your assistance in Faerie,” she said, flicking an invisible piece of lint from the folds of her dress. “One task. When it’s done, you may return to your liaison duties in the mortal realm, though I’d avoid the village where you previously resided.”

That was my official title: Spring Court Liaison to the Mortal Realm. I was meant to foster positive relations between the witches—humans who had been given magic—and the Fae in our realm. But time moved much slower in Faerie than it did in the mortal realm, so my time was mostly my own. As long as I checked in with the witches once every mortal year, I was doing my job.

“What’s the task, Your Majesty?”

She sneered. “Your agreement first.”

I felt magic simmering between us as Titania prepared to seal the deal. Once I spoke the words, I would be bound to her for the length of one task—which could take lifetimes if the wording she used was vague.

I didn’t have much of a choice.

“I will perform one task in exchange for saving my life,” I spoke carefully. The magic burst between us and wrapped around me like vines. It squeezed gently, stressing the importance of this deal before disappearing and leaving a phantom tether around my wrist.

Titania stood from the rock, straightened her skirts, and beckoned me closer. I winced as I rose from my knees, where I’d been this entire time, genuflecting before her. When I took her arm, she guided me inland until we reached a thatched-roofed house and waited for me to open the door. Instead of a humble home, the doorway emitted periwinkle mist that wafted toward us in beckoning tendrils. It was not a house at all, but a portal between realms.

“After you.”

I sighed, bracing myself. It had been a long time since I stepped foot in Spring Court, and I could have gone ages more.

Resigning myself to my fate, I stepped into the mist and onto a ley line, a magical pathway that moved so quickly that traveling between countries took seconds and traveling through realms took minutes. Doorways that led to different destinations flew by. We passed the one that led to the witches’ headquarters in London, past a new entrance in America, and past the first one in Faerie that led to the forest of Autumn Court.

Finally, we approached a door that only appeared to those who knew of it. It was one I took often—the door to the Spring Court Palace.

“Before we jump,” Titania said, grabbing onto me with talon-sharp nails. “Your task…”

There was a pregnant pause. It felt as though the very magic of the ley line cringed in anticipation.

“You’re going to kill King Oberon. Tonight.”

No.

This was worse than death. I wasn’t a murderer. Sure, I enjoyed the occasional prank, and sure, some had experienced misery at my hands, but not death. Never death.

I opened my mouth to implore her to ask anything else of me. I would scrub chamber pots. I would sit at the foot of her bed like a dog. Fuck, I would be her slave if it didnt mean killing the king. Before I could plead my case, she jumped through the portal door, leaving me to follow in her lavender-scented wake.

We landed in a gray hallway made of stone. One of the advantages of having earth magic was the ability to manipulate rock—hence the grand stone palace of the Spring Court. Colorful throw rugs were the only cushion against the hard ground, and elaborate tapestries attempted to make the atmosphere feel homey, though the sinister scenes they depicted gave the opposite effect.

Titania left me, flocked by a gaggle of lady’s maids so she had an alibi to the crime I was forced to commit. My steps were somber as I walked down the hall toward the king’s private chambers. Guards tipped their heads in acknowledgment as I passed them, having no reason to expect foul play. I’d been to Oberon’s rooms before to debrief him on the state of affairs in the mortal realm. This was nothing out of the ordinary.

When I reached his office, I released a heavy breath and opened the door, casting magic to silence the click of the knob and the creak of the hinges. Magical orbs lit the cluttered space, illuminating bookshelves crammed with tomes and scrolls containing the history of the Spring Court. I wasn’t sure there was a time when Oberon wasn’t king. He’d been alive for so long—longer than most. It hurt to think of a realm without him.

Just do it and you can return to the mortal realm. You’ll never have to come back here.

Oberon sat behind an oak desk in the center of the room. His head was braced against his hand as he snored softly, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth. He was a large Fae with broad shoulders that threatened to burst the seams of his embroidered tunic, but his belly had grown soft. His head was shaved, but he wore his small horns proudly, the short stubs thick and black.

I silently closed the door and toed closer, summoning a dagger from thin air and steering clear of the iron blade. My knuckles whitened around its wooden handle. Another deep breath as I walked behind Oberon. He didn’t so much as stir when I held the dagger aloft.

“Goddess forgive me.”

I drew the blade across Oberon’s throat. He gasped awake at the pain, straightening in surprise. His blue eyes went wide as he turned to me, blood pouring down his fine tunic. He choked, the red liquid spilling from his lips as he opened and closed his mouth.

“I’m sorry.”

I liked Oberon. He was a bit flighty, but he ran our court well. The biggest mistake he made was letting a snake into his bed, and he paid for it with his life.

He stared accusingly before slumping over the arm of his chair with one last gurgle.

I banished the dagger back into the ether and used magic to cleanse my hands. Schooling my features into a mask of neutrality, I straightened my tunic and walked back out the door.

“Seize him!” Titania screeched.

Guards teleported in, brandishing magic and iron weapons. I spun, desperately searching for a way out, but they closed ranks and encased me in a small circle.

You’ve got to be shitting me.

Damn, that’s a good phrase.

I lifted my hands, surrendering. I knew my limits, and fighting against a dozen trained guards wasn’t something I’d survive. Eternity in prison? That I could do. I knew how to make the best out of a bad situation. Even if they put me to death, I’d have parting words; I owed it to my fellow Fae to leave them with some final insight. No, I wouldn’t go out like some panicked, cornered animal.

Titania pushed her way into the center of the room, a satisfied smirk gracing her pig-ugly face. Maybe if she wasn’t such a bitch, she would have been prettier, but her personality tainted any looks she might have had.

“I charge you with high treason and the murder of King Oberon.” She didn’t even try to look upset about her husband’s death. “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Why did people about to kill you always ask that question? Of course, I did. I had lifetimes of words to say.

“I aim to please, Your Majesty.” I sketched a bow.

A few of the soldiers exchanged glances, picking up on the meaning of my words. It was enough to spread a seed of doubt and get the rumor mill churning. If the goddess was merciful, Titania’s reign would be questioned. I wouldn’t be alive to see it, but I could rest easy knowing I took her down with me.

Titania chuckled. “I was going to sentence you to death,” she mused. I didn’t like the evil glint in her eyes; it was so dark it overshadowed those I’d seen in the demon realm. Magic gathered, the cloying scent of lavender choking me and making me sputter.

“I sentence you to a lifetime of servitude,” Titania intoned, her voice steeped in ritual and power. Bands of magic sank beneath my skin and into my muscles, traveling toward my heart. “From this day forward, your life is mine to command. Your wants will be my wants. Your will is my will.”

The magic sped up my neck and reached for my mind. I thrashed against its invisible binds, but it was no use. I wasn’t strong enough to fight. My vision blackened around the edges until all I could see was Titania. All I could hear was her heartbeat, as though it was my own.

She smiled. I echoed the statement, her glee making me feel effervescent, even as some distant part of me fought the motion.

“You belong to me, Puck of Spring Court.”