‘A cigarette is the perfect type of perfect pleasure.
It is exquisite, and it leaves one unsatisfied.
What more can one want?’
-Oscar Wilde, “The Picture of Dorian Gray”
“Miss Fayette, you have another customer,” Leo said.
It had been one full month since Leonardo had seen the Faerie girl. He was once an animal, a dog, but the Faerie’s power turned him into a human. He wanted to be a human because he wanted to stay with his master, a woman named Sierra whom he had grown to love so much that he couldn’t bare to part with her. She was going to go away for a long time, because of her health condition, but she couldn’t bring animals.
But, Sierra rejected him, and Leo had no place to go. So, he went back to the Fayette, hoping to find refuge at least for a little while. Fayette agreed, on one condition; he has to serve her under any circumstances, she is his new ‘master’ from then on. He agreed because he had nothing left to go back to.
Fayette emerged from the back room, carrying a large vial of lord knows what. Most of today’s customers were merely here to buy potions. They were the Fair Folk, or otherwise known as Faeries, who can’t stand iron so they need Fayette’s medicine to lessen it’s pain. An unfortunate side-effect of living in the city.
Her two minions, Hazrael and Kellen, were absent today. Fayette said they were busy with their courts, though Leo wasn’t all too sure what that meant. Their world was a mystery to him. Growing up, the only worlds he knew of were those of dogs and a little of humans. Faeries were out of the question. He was getting used to seeing the Faerie magic though. Fayette could perform almost any wonder, any wish. He watched her restore people’s bodies and minds, rid people of incurable diseases and made people rich and famous.
But, he’s also seen the darker part of mankind. Their greed and desires, selfishness and hatred. Leonardo had watched Fayette take a man’s life because her customer wished for that man to disappear so the wisher could rise to power.
However, he has seen people make progress, too. Fayette’s price is almost always the same; she’ll give you anything you want, at the price of whatever you value the most. This price alone deters people from using her service, so only the most desperate would go to her. The man, for instance, who wanted the other man dead, had lost his job. His job was the most valuable thing to him, and therefore Fayette took it from him. The man he killed was the only person keeping him there, though the wisher thought he was the one keeping him back. Fayette found this heavily amusing.
“As you will soon learn, Leo, humans are rather... Silly creatures. They sort of focus only on one thing and forget that there are alternatives to getting what they want,” she smiled. “But the wishes are all the sweeter when they evaporate like air when they realize that perhaps what they wished for wasn’t really what they wanted at all,”
That didn’t make any sense either, but, Leo decided, perhaps Fayette made no sense at all.
“So, what may I do for you?” She asked her customer, a tall blonde woman with a dirty face and raggy clothes. She had two children, also blonde and grubby. One was a little girl, her hair long and golden, and she had an adorable face despite the grime.
“Please. Our house was burned down and we’ve been on our own for months. My husband died in the fire, and my children are going hungry. Please, I don’t care what happens to me, just please take care of my children. They say you can grant any wish, any dream. I wish for my children to be taken care of like they should be, groomed, fed, happy...” She trailed off, her eyes on the brink of tears.
Fayette smiled gently, almost sadly. “What you ask is not impossible, though I wonder if you can bear it?”
Leo sat on the sofa, watching the scene play out. This one was different, he thought. This one wasn’t acting on selfish needs. She wanted happiness for her children. Can Fayette really grant happiness? Or is she really as she says she is? A Wish Taker, one who takes wishes away from people.
“Please, take care of them,”
“No Mama, we want to stay with you,” the little boy said, holding onto her hand. “We don’t want to leave you,”
“Please honey, this is what’s best for you,” the woman said, her voice a little choked.
“My price for their salvation is that you will no longer be able to see their faces. You will not remember having any children at all, nor will they remember you, that is my price, are you willing to pay it?” Fayette said monotonously.
Even Leo was appalled by Fayette. How could she do that to them? The first unselfish customer he’s ever seen and she wants to take away their family. The little boy and girl cried, “No no! We don’t want to forget Mama!"
“Please...” Leo uttered.
Fayette cast the him an annoyed sidelong glance, but then looked at the children, then back to their mother. “Perhaps I can arrange it so that only you will forget the children,” she said, “But unfortunately, I made this price for a reason. People have often used my power as a get rich quick scheme, and that’s not why I came to your human cities. You don't have any idea how many people have come to me asking for riches and to live the perfect life. You aren't the first to ask this of me, and I'm very certain you will not be the last. "
Leo couldn't believe her. She really wasn't going to give this family any leeway.
“I understand, that must get annoying. If you really are a Faerie, you must be immortal, too. I can only imagine the amount of human folly you’ve seen,” the woman then said. “And I also understand that most Faeries don’t like being around humans, otherwise we’d see a lot more of your kind. Not many are willing to help us, and for that I am grateful,”
Fayette once again smirked slightly. “Oh, there are Faerie folk everywhere, you just have to know how to see them. And I have seen a lot of human folly, so much that it makes me wonder what I’m really doing here? Why don’t I go back to the Dark Court? But then I remember what got me here in the first place, and that is what makes me stay.”
The woman strode forward, and placed a single coin on the table.
Fayette’s face split into a wry grin. Her eyes looked up to the woman. “You know too much, girl. Just who exactly are you?”
The woman gave her a quizzical look. “Isn’t that what everybody does? Offer you coins?”
“Nobody’s done that in almost three hundred years,”
“Huh… back when I was a little girl, my grandmother always told me that if I ever needed help from the Faerie child in the city, to always bring a coin as an offering,”
“Your grandmother… your family has been in this city a long time,” Fayette answered, and for a moment, just a split moment, Leo thought he saw pain in Fayette‘s eyes. But just as he thought he saw it, it was gone.
She stood up. “My price is your children’s memory of you, are you willing to pay it?”
The woman bit into her lip, and hesitantly nodded. “Please, take care of my children…”
The children wailed as Fayette stood up, grabbing a jar from her table. The woman gave her children one last hug, kissing both of their cheeks and promising them that it would be okay. That Mommy will love them no matter what.
Fayette pulled a handful of scarlet dust from the jar, and blew into it, scattering it all over the family. Within a few seconds, they were passed out on the floor, asleep.
“Hazrael, Kellen,” she stated.
Leo watched in slight fright as the two Faerie boys materialized out of strange substances; Kellen appearing from a thick maroon blob that bubbled up from the floor, while Hazrael appeared from a thin, filmy pale blue liquid that dripped from the ceiling. Hazrael brushed his golden locks from his eyes, shuddering slightly and shaking like a dog would after it got wet. Kellen mimicked him, and he stretched out like a cat on the carpet. Did they always appear like this? Leo wondered, or was it only because Fayette summoned them?
“Yes, Young Miss?” Kellen asked.
“I want Hazrael to take the two children to the Bright Court. Tell Dearka that I specifically want these two well taken care of, fed, clothed, the works,” Fayette stated, motioning towards the sleeping humans.
“Oh? You don’t usually make that sort of specifics, what brought this on?” Hazrael said, looking at the children. He wrinkled his nose slightly, probably disgusted with how dirty they were.
Fayette didn’t answer, she merely toyed with the coin that the woman had given her. The offering. Leo’s mind spun at that. All it took was a simple coin offering to please Fayette? Did Hazrael and Kellen know?
“Can I go with Hazrael?” Leo then asked.
Fayette shrugged, still preoccupied with her coin. “I don’t care, do whatever the hell you want,”
Hazrael gave the boy an odd look, but picked up the little boy, slinging him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“Well, if you want to come with me, then lets go. You take the little girl. Also, I’m not responsible if you get hurt or anything. Bright Court or not, not all humans are safe with the Court Faeries,” he said.
Leo nodded, a picked up the little girl. He heard Hazrael give an irritated sigh, and opened a small portal that looked similar to the way he came in. “Hurry up,” he growled. “I hate using this way,”
The Bright Court was a beautiful place. The court was located in a field, the grass a lush green and the sky an amazing blue. The air smelled of flowers and honey, and there was always music in the air. Beautiful Faeries of all sorts were gathered in the field, some chatting and mingling, others dancing and others eating.
“Whatever you do, if anybody offers you food, don’t take it. Never take food offered by a Faerie,” Hazrael murmured in his ear.
Leo swallowed, and nodded. He followed the troll-nymph through the Faeries. He felt so at ease here, like he could just forget his worries and live peacefully here.
He was startled by a woman stepping in front of him, a tray in her hands. Her hair was a dark green, almost black and she had long, pointed ears and beautiful golden eyes. Her skin was a soft golden color, like she spent many days out in the sun. She smiled at him gently.
“Aren’t you the handsome man,” she said. “Would you like some food?”
Heeding Hazrael’s warning, Leonardo quickly shook his head.
“Oh…” she looked disheartened, sticking out her lower-lip. But then her eyes brightened and she grinned. “Well… what’s your name?”
She pressed closer to him, her large golden eyes captivating. He took a step backwards, holding on tightly to the little girl. “Lllleo, Leonardo,” he stuttered out.
“Leo, then, will you dance with me?” she batted her long lashes. “Just put down the little girl and--”
“Back off, Rusalki, he’s with me,” Hazrael growled. He grabbed Leo by the collar of his shirt and dragged him off.
“Oh poo, Haz, you always get the good ones,” the Faerie girl pouted. “That one’s especially cute,”
Hazrael raised a lip at the girl, but said nothing more. When they were far enough away, Hazrael shot the boy a dark look. “I thought I told you to be careful,”
“I was!” Leo said indignantly. “I didn’t take any of the food!”
The Faerie boy gave an irritated sigh. “I should’ve phrased that better. Never take anything offered by a Faerie. Never join us in the revelries, otherwise you end up staying forever. Or if you do manage to leave, you’ll always be dreaming of that day, and you’ll forever be trying to find a way to get back,” he stated, weaving through the Faerie dancers.
“But people accept things from Fayette all the time,” Leo protested.
“Well, look where it lands them. These children are going to be raised by Faeries, while their mother is left with the horrid memory of giving her children away, to lead supposedly happy lives. Their lives will be a sort of drunken daze, they will barely realize that time is flowing, and when they finally reach adult hood they’ll probably be booted out into the human world, with no idea who they are or where they’re really from,” Hazrael snarled. “They’ll still think that they’re children and they’ll probably end up in the loony bin for believing in Faeries,”
Leo’s eyes widened. Was that what really happens when the Faeries take children? To the changelings? Leo swallowed, suddenly feeling sick. He was sentencing these children to hell.
“Hazrael!” a voice boomed, knocking Leo from his brooding.
“King Dearka,” Hazrael bowed slightly, and quickly Leo stumbled to follow suit.
“Oh? Who’s this? What’ve you got here?” the man asked.
King Dearka was an impressive figure indeed. With scarlet hair that could make fires jealous, and smoldering golden eyes, he seemed to be the embodiment of heat. His skin was a warm tan, and was tall and muscular in physique. He was adorned in a dark gold tunic with a golden robe, and a golden crown sat atop his head. His long scarlet hair was brought into a small ponytail, and was extremely curly. He sat on a throne that looked like gnarled white roots of a massive oak tree that shadowed over the entire field. Beautiful Faeries of all sorts flocked around him. A couple of girls toyed with his hair, twirling the curls in their long fingers.
Hazrael looked all but amused, and he merely glanced over his shoulder.
“That’s Fayette’s newest minion, Leonardo,” he said dully.
“Really?” King Dearka’s thick brows rose slightly. “How’d that happen?”
“I was once a dog, your majesty,” Leo answered quietly. “And I loved my master so much, I couldn’t bear to part with her. I asked Miss Fayette to turn me into a human so I could be with her. But, she wanted a pet, not a lover, and she rejected me. Having nowhere to go, I went back to Fayette, and there I stay,” his cheeks flared and his heart still ached with the memory of that day.
The king of the Bright Court smiled gently. “I see. Well, what have you got there? A couple more kids?”
Hazrael nodded. “Yes, your majesty. And little Fayette says that she wants these ones especially taken care of, food, clothing, the entire works,” the ambassador said coolly.
“Is that what she says? Well, I’ll make sure that these little ones are well provided for,” he said, staring at the children with a certain affection in his eyes, like a father looking at his little ones. Then, his head snapped over to two Faeries who were lounging around in the grass at the base of the tree.
“Koku, Haku, take these two to the guest chambers, get them new clothes and some food,” Dearka said, his voice full of command.
Leo and Hazrael handed off the children to the two Faeries when the rose from the grass, their movements elegant, like they were dancing. One winked at Leo, and danced off with her brother.
“Well, anything else besides that?” Dearka asked.
Hazrael shook his head. “Not that I know of. Do you want to leave her a message, since I’m here?” he then asked.
Dearka thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No, if I think of anything later, I’ll be sure to let you know. Who knows? I might actually drop by and visit her some time, we hardly ever see the youngest around here,”
Hazrael shrugged. “Well, she was born a Dark Court Faerie, she’ll naturally gravitate towards the shadows,”
“True, true,” Dearka nodded, stroking his chin. “Well, give her our love will you? It’s been a pleasure meeting you, Leonardo. I hope you’ll visit, too,”
Leo nodded. “Of course your majesty,” he put up a fake smile.
Hazrael snorted, and steered the boy away. They wove through the crowds, and Leo saw the Rusalki girl again, she gave him a soft smile as she twirled around with the others.
“Hazrael, Fayette did something… odd today,” Leo said as he caught up to stride with the man.
“That’s not unusual, she’s always doing something odd, even for a Faerie child,”
“I mean something… different. The children’s mother offered Fayette a coin, just a plain silver quarter, and suddenly Fayette was willing to do what the woman wanted. She still did the price, I think, but it was as if Fayette’s world suddenly revolved around that offering,” Leo said, looking up at Faerie man. “Like she was given a great treasure,”
Hazrael stopped. They were at the outskirts of the Bright Court, his sapphire eyes looking at the boy with surprised eyes.
“A simple coin, you say?”
Leo nodded. Hazrael suddenly smirked. “Well... this is interesting,”
Hazrael lead him back to the portal to Fayette’s building. “Go right ahead inside, I’ll be back in a little bit,” Hazrael said, his face split into a sinister grin.
Leo stumbled inside, and once he was in the back room again, the portal closed with a dull pop.
Kellen and Leonardo watched Fayette in mild amusement sort through piggy banks, most of them not even shaped like pigs. Some were dogs, some where cats, hell she even had one shaped like a kangaroo. She was still putting coins in the banks ever since she bumped the table when she transformed Leo, shattering about a dozen of them.
She didn’t really seem to mind, but it was taking a long time. Fortunately, business was slow today, so she wasn’t interrupted by clients.
“One, two, three…” she counted quietly under her breath as she dropped in various coins into a bank in the shape of a koala.
Kellen was stretched out on the couch, his chin resting on the arm of the sofa as he watched her drop the coins in, a little tink echoed in the room each time a coin was dropped. Leo was sitting at the table, eating a hamburger, his own eyes watching her in slight wonder.
“Young Miss, why do you have some many coins?” Kellen asked.
She didn’t answer him until she put the last of a pile of coins into a bank, then she reached over and pulled anther glass animal towards her, and started to fill it up. “Back when the humans still had some class, they would offer me coins for my service. But that was over three hundred years ago,” her violet eyes were concentrated on the container, this one in the shape of a red-panda.
“I thought you didn’t accept offerings,” Kellen replied,
Fayette didn’t change her focus. “Well, obviously I had to stop taking the offerings because… I’ve been running out of room here,” she motioned around her with a single hand, the other grabbing another handful of coins and dropping them into the little slot one by one. "That, and people stopped offering me coins and started giving me other crap, like that sofa you're sitting on,"
“I see… but why would people give you coins?” Kellen then asked.
She didn’t answer that one at all.
The door opened, and in dashed Hazrael, carrying a bag full of lord knows what.
Fayette’s head immediately snapped up at him, violet eyes curios as he dropped the bag in front of her. It jingled slightly as it thumped against the hardwood floor. Her eyes looked at the bag, but she didn’t peer inside. She merely looked up at Hazrael, his chest heaving up and down.
“Apparently Leo told you about the offering the woman made earlier today,” she said coolly. Though Leo saw a certain sparkle in her eyes, the look of a person just handed a huge amount of cash, like a druggie that was just handed heroine.
When Fayette went to grab the bag, Hazrael swung his foot around it and pulled the bag back. “Ah-ah!” he grinned. “First you got to tell me what happened between you and King Lucius,”
She glared at him, and cussed.
“That’s not very nice, Miss Fayette,” Kellen snickered. “That’s no way for a young lady to speak,”
“I can’t believe you’re still hung up about that,” she grumbled. “Give me the bag, Hazrael,” she then looked up at him.
He shook his head, his grin broadening, large canines overlapping his lips.
“Nope. Not until you tell me what happened,”
She heaved a heavy sigh. “You’re really hung up about this, aren’t you?”
“Its been bugging me for weeks,”
“Well, prepare to be disappointed,” Fayette muttered. “Lucius and I got in a spat because I didn’t want to stay so near his court. He didn’t like me living in a town with all of these humans,”
He glared at her. “You’re lying,”
“No really. That’s the beginning and the end of it,”
“But what about the middle?”
“That, my friend, is worth a helluva lot more coins,” she stood up, took the bag from him, and went into the back room. Hazrael glanced at Kellen, who was staring at the ceiling, playing with glamour. He wrote his name in pale green neon lights, and drew little flowers.
“Do you know the story between Fayette and Lucius?” Hazrael asked the drow.
Kellen cast him a sidelong glance. “It isn’t my place to say. Mostly because, well, I don’t know the full story either. All I know is based off of rumors, King Lucius wouldn’t tell me either,” he grinned mischievously.
“Well, what are the rumors?” Hazrael asked, taking a seat across from Leo, whom was now drinking a soda.
“One rumor is that Fayette once had a love affair with Lucius, but when he took up another woman she grew jealous and angry,” Kellen answered. “Another theory is the same as the Lucius one, but with Dearka instead. I personally think it’s neither,” he sat up, rubbing the back of his neck and yawning. “Well. We’ll never know. Neither of them seem to want to talk about it,”
Hazrael cussed under his breath.
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