Chapter Text
“Does anyone…” The dandelion sprite whispered out - her drooping petals covering her shy features, “Have a long stick or something?”
The odd-ball group of creatures all stared at the pointy beetle unseelie scout, all waiting for another of the group to approach the crimson shelled soldier – all the while the storm continued to trap them in the hollowed-out nest of roots that offered some protection from the elements.
But would it protect them from being in the close quarters of a member of the ruthless Unseelie court?
“Is he…dead?” The tortoise began, she warily considered the prone beetle but not moving any closer even though the river tortoise would be three times his size.
“No – the unseelie are tough as nails.” The toad croaked out – the warty creature crept closer, pointedly standing between the still unseelie soldier and his tortoise friend as a spongy wall lest the creature leapt up at them, “Like co*ckroaches.”
“I have only really seen them lose against a human…” The opossum added as she attempted to settle her babies – making sure they did not decide to wonder to close, “And the human was covered in scratches and blood – brought to madness from the attack too.”
“Even then, Ma said she saw them spirit away a human babe once…” It was Jake who grimly said – gnomes were certainly more friendly with humans than the rest of the fairy creatures so offered empathy to the large creatures they shared the world with.
“To do what with?” Fin asked – pulling his pearl tipped pin as he bravely stepped forward only to be pulled back by the older pot-bellied gnome.
“To eat them of course.” Jake reminded his impulsive brother in a low hiss – the low warning in his tone, if they could eat a human baby then a young gnome would be no trouble.
“Or to take the humans place…” Fern muttered darkly – making his brothers and the other members of the hollow full of roots turn to the gnome, “I heard that a swarm of them could shapeshift into a human shape.”
The poor dandelion sprite reached up to her crown of white petals and pulled it down to hide her face – instinctively trying to look like a normal plant to hide from the very real threat that stumbled in their safe space.
“…” Prismo considered the injured unseelie court member – his own curiosity overwhelmed his unease at being near the other. His entire life he had heard stories of how terrifying and cruel the unseelie faeries were – loyal subjects of Queen Mab, living for causing mischief and torment to the humans and other creatures alike.
Every bad thing that happened in the Seelie Court was blamed on the queen and her minions, the winter bound queen was jealous of Queen Titianna’s and King Oberon’s kingdoms of summer, spring, and autumn.
The eon old feud was a little deeper than that petty jealousy – rumour has it that King Oberon had a fondness for another woman than his shining wife and queen, the other woman being the widowed Queen Mab.
Imagine – the king of the fairies being seduced by the dark fay queen.
But that was only a rumour - Orbo loved to run his mouth about it when drunk on honey and nectar, hopefully the hobgoblin had enough sense to keep his mouth shut around the royal court. Prismo was not one to blab about what those outside the court thought or said about the Seelie court but it would be wise for them to keep it to themselves – who knew if another fay creature, one more patriotic than Prismo himself was listening and eager to wag his tongue to the court.
But the red shelled scout…he was not what Prismo had come to mind when he thought of the illusive and shadowy villains of the forest.
He was certainly smaller than what he imagined, the beetle was shorter than himself – but perhaps his slightly more insect-like and barbed legs made it appear he was shorter.
“Is he a faerie?” Fern asked the moth winged fairy curiously – snapping the moth winged wish fairy out of his own thoughts.
“Yes…and no.” Prismo offered a non-answer, he did not really know – the unseelie were as similar as they were not, the others continued their chatting as the rosy maple moth winged fairy considered the others slow rise and fall of his labored breaths.
“What should we do?” The tortoise muttered.
“I say we throw him out – let the rain take him.” The toad hummed while a few nodded in agreement.
“We can’t do that!” The tortoise exclaimed – aghast.
“They eat babies!” The Opossum hissed
“Or steal them.” Fern unhelpfully added to the increased tensions – before his brothers could shush him.
“But…” The tortoise continued as she considered the beetle, “He is too injured to try anything.”
“And what would stop more of them from looking for him after the rain ends?” Jake added to the others argument in not throwing out the beetle, “If they find him outside – more unseelie may prowl the undergrowth.”
“More?!” The dandelion sprite squeaked out – looking ready to root herself into the ground as she trembled.
“One injured is better than a swarm of them trying to find him.” Jake continued, “That is bad news for us…”
“He is quite similar to a fairy…” It was Fin that made that observation – turning his attention to the still silent Prismo.
“I suppose.” Fern agreed, turning his own attention to the fairy in question.
“Perhaps Mr. Fairy would be able to see to the other – if the wounds can be patched up?”
“What?” Prismo asked – realizing once again the hollows attention was back on him.
“I mean…you are a fairy.” The Tortoise said “Surely you know magic…or something.”
“Not healing magic!” Prismo exclaimed – flaring out his wings out, “I am not that type of fairy!”
“But you know a thing or two about wings.” Jake gestured to the displayed pink and yellow scaled wings and then to the group, “We don’t have wings.”
“I ate a funky mushroom and afterwards I thought I had wings…” The toad rumbled out, “But I found out I didn’t quite quickly.”
“The faster he is fixed up the faster he can leave us alone.” The Opossum said, warming up to the idea of trying to get the other in better health to leave them quicker.
“…” Prismo turned to the injured beetle scout – sensing that he had been selected unwillingly to be the one to attempt to help the other.
“Don’t worry buddy – we will be right behind ya.” Jake promised.
Prismo stood awkwardly a few steps away from the prone beetle scarab – shooting a backwards glance to the others in the hollow all keeping their distance away from them as he approached the entrance carefully.
“…” Prismo frowned at the thumbs up the pot-bellied gnome gave him – not really giving him confidence at all, wishing he had the others pearl headed pin as a sword to defend himself but the smaller creatures moved away before he could pitifully ask for the weapon.
Prismo turned back to the heavily breathing beetle, the others armored body shifted slightly as he breathed – the soft unprotected red and pinkish hued flesh of the other was revealed. Perhaps one of the few indications that while the unseelie were more insectoid in nature they were not fully bug-like. It seemed at close quarters the mysterious unseelie was quite close in body structure to their lighter and brighter alternatives.
Prismo considered the others quite plain wings, how they shimmered like plates of amber or even fresh sap – moving forward to attempt to remove one of the long rose thorns in the veined membrane, moving as carefully as he could as he kept his cool as he kept an eye on the others masked features.
Prismo was able to get a hold of the thorn, pulling it out slowly in an empathic wince before placing it beside him, thankfully the others wing did not bleed that much – the wish fairy only froze for a moment as the other shivered and whimpered but still out cold.
After the other settled again – Prismo reached forward to the deeper one, to at least remove the sharp thorns from the others armored chest.
Prismo could not stop a curious glance to the others strong, broad looking shell plated chest – unable to decide if it was separate armour like the royal guards of the Seelie court wore, the hardened plates made from the hard shells of the various seed pod that lay split on the forest ground or exoskeleton like an insect.
The red mask of the other remained still, with barbed horns at its crown – the jagged cut outs for the other’s eyes remained blackened out and closed to the rosy moth fairy’s wary glances.
“Okay…this is okay.” Prismo muttered mostly to himself as he continued to remove the thorns – this was perhaps the closest he has ever been with another fairy like the other, due to the long running feud both Seelie and the unseelie despised the other.
“Just one more…” Prismo reassured himself as he reached for the broken thorn that cut through the others unarmored waist, the others waist was quite thin with the proportions like the connecting segment of a wasp to its striped abdomen – certainly the unseelie court members proportions looked as though warped in a fun mirror of the Seelie's own but Prismo could make sense of the parts of the others body.
“Almost…” Prismo got his hand around broken end, the other must have been flung hard against the thorn bush – it was really a miracle that he pulled himself off the thorn covered stem to even stumble to where they were.
Prismo was about to pull it free – so engrossed in his forced task, he did not see the burning ember like orbs of light fill the others eye holes in his crimson mask. Swirling and burning like a sudden forest fire caused by lightning, so quick to burn out of control – they flicked to the others arm, narrowing to pinpricks as he still struggled to focus on who he assumed was an attacker or even a thief.
The beetle scout grabbed the fairy’s wrist with a precise snap of his once limp second arm and clawed hand that was once pulled to his waist like a praying mantis posed in wait.
“AHHHHH!” Prismo could not help the started scream that escaped him – the beetle unseelie court member let out a low hiss as he was becoming more aware of his surroundings and what exactly he grabbed. The other occupants of the hollow cowered in fear besides the 3 gnomes that leapt forward to assist the trapped fairy from the others clutches – Fern had lifted a pebble above his head and looked ready to bludgeon the would-be attacker to death.
“You…” The unnamed scout began, voice low and dangerous – whatever he was going to say to the moth fairy was cut short by the other swinging his own fist into the unseelie’s masked face out of sheer fight instinct.
The beetle fell backwards, instinctively clutching his masked face and to protect it from further hits – but thankfully letting go of the moth fairy who scurried backwards once the others hand let go. Prismo’s wings were fully outstretched to make him seem a lot bigger than he was, the pink and yellow bright coloured covered wings of his did not have false eyes but they were certainly striking as a warning to all.
Prismo shook his hand with a wince, hurting himself in the process of the punch – he was not made for fighting and if the other retaliated in kind he would perhaps risk taking to flight to get away from him.
The beetle spat out some dark clicks and hisses – obviously insulting the rosy moth fairy with how the gnome Jake tutted and reprimanded the prone beetle,
“Hey – there are kids here!” Jake exclaimed out – annoyed.
“This has nothing to do with you, vermin….” The beetle spat out – his mask cracked open revealing a surprisingly round face with big yellow eyes that were watering badly, the others revealed face did not match his threatening exterior and deep voice.
“That’s what you look like under the mask?” Prismo could not help but mutter out loud – staring a little wide eyed at the crimson beetle. The unseelie scout scowled at that comment before snapping his mask closed once more.
“Wait – I didn’t mean it in a bad way.” Prismo stuttered out quickly – sensing he offended the other, “You kind of looked…cute.”
“…” The beetle stared at the other, the beat of silence filled the hollow as the moth realized exactly what he said with widening eyes,
“Not that I think you are cute!” Prismo continued with a flush – digging whatever hole he was standing in even deeper
“…” The beetle pulled himself up with great difficulty – his own hand finding the remaining thorn as he considered the quickly healing wounds and the thorns already pulled out on the ground.
“But I’m sure other unseelie court members think so…” Prismo continued, “I’m sure you are very handsome for unseelie standards…”
“You pulled out the thorns?” The beetle cut off the others embarrassed ramblings.
“Well, yeah…” Prismo muttered and then offered a half-smile, “Your welcome.”
“Foolish fairy…” The beetle muttered annoyed, “I did not need or want your assistance!”
Prismo’s smile fell at that cutting response.
“Oh, and you would have been fine being left as a pin cushion.” It was Jake that snapped out – indignant at how ungrateful the other was, “I’m sure we can put the thorns back where we pulled them from!”
“We can still throw him outside.” Mr. Toad muttered, “He can’t stop all of us…”
“…” The tortoise frowned of her toad companion’s statement.
The red-shelled scout looked vaguely alarmed at the threat – going to rip out the remaining thorn and to brandish it as a weapon if he needed too against the creatures of the undergrowth and the incredibly out of place rosy maple moth fairy that was looking between the angry mob and the lone unseelie scout.
The rising tensions were cut by the bright flash of lightening and the booming thunder that followed, the tall tree they sort shelter in the storm, the constant barrage of rain proved too much against the muddy shelf just supported by the nest of roots above them.
The droplets of rain and then clumps of mud was the only warning they had – the red beetle scout sensing the danger first had darted forward, barely able to use his wings to assist in his momentum, roughly pulling the rosy moth fairy with him as the entrance filled in with the crumbling mud shelf.
The red scarab realized quickly he was still holding the others arm – promptly dropped the fairy, turning his attention to back to the entrance, now sealed by mud and rocks.
“Of course…” The beetle sneered – all the while the creatures of the undergrowth let out various sounds of panic and alarm, the opossum babies were crying out even though they had night vision.
TBC? - please leave a comment and kudos if you liked.
