Page 66 of Fairies Don't Fall

I nodded and handed her another piece of cheese. “We’ll have to see if he can be bought or bribed. This is a good place to hide. Good thinking. We’re close enough to the food, but far enough from the music so we don’t have to dance ourselves to death.”

“You’re really the death fairy. You’re scarier than Slaughter.” She stared at me with big eyes, puzzled, sad, overwhelmed. Like I’d felt so many times at court functions when I was supposed to be able to lead those I couldn’t hope to understand.

I hugged my knees, balancing the plate on top of them. Nothing looked particularly appetizing. Pizza would be so much better. “Thanks? No, I’m not the death fairy anymore. I was. I really was, but these days I’m just a dull, midnight fairy.”

Her bottom lip trembled. “I want to go home.”

“Okay. I’ll just…” Then I remembered the goblin’s warnings about war in Singsong. I couldn’t take Ruin somewhere she wouldn’t be safe. “Actually, right now isn’t a great time to travel.”

Her eyes widened and then narrowed. “Why not? Are you going to keep me here as your pet? Really? Are you going to get an expensive collar for me? I deserve expensive.”

I rolled my eyes and elbowed her. “I’m not going to make you my pet. That would be more ridiculous than stealing an owl egg.”

“You told them to take me away, your pet.”

“That’s the communication style around here.” I eyed her and then sighed. “Fine. I was definitely a death-fairy and when I’m feeling like that, I can get kind of intense and lacking in awareness of other people’s feelings. But I’m fine now. And super sensitive.”

She rolled her eyes. “What about Max?”

“What about him?”

She elbowed me with her sharp poky side daggers. “Don’t evade. I’m freaking out here. The fairies don’t like wolves, and they like Slaughter least of all. He’s your consort? They’re freaking out. Everyone is freaking out, and you just disappeared. And all these people are at the fairy ball, like it’s never going to end. Where were you?”

I shrugged. “I was sulking mostly, and then I was healing Max, and then I was sleeping, and then I was trying to negotiate with Slaughter. He does not negotiate well. It’s astonishing that Vervain was able to get him to ally with us. Astonishing.”

She snorted. “Astonishing? No, it finally all makes sense, his whole weird fairy thing. I didn’t get it until I saw the death-fairy. You’re scarier than Slaughter. How could he resist you?”

I stared at her and then fed her another piece of cheese while I nibbled on a flower petal tart. Was that what it was? Did I somehow seduce Slaughter with my psychotic nature? How perfect was that? Not at all, considering I was finished with the death fairy. Done. “Pizza is better,” I finally said.

She nodded. “Fairyland is great to visit, but I want to go home.” She looked at me with big, longing eyes.

“Don’t look at me like that. I’m a psychotic death-fairy. I can’t be manipulated by puppy-dog looks.”

She batted her lashes at me. “Seriously though, I’m worried about the other kids. If they aren’t strong enough to fight…And if they are, they’ll be dragged into one faction or another. Max needs to go back to Singsong and fix this.”

“He’s my consort now.” I didn’t say that he was mine, that he belonged to me and with me, but I felt it. Possession. I wanted to find him and chain him to something until he realized his place, and it was with me, not Vervain, not anyone or anything else in any other world. Mine. I was as possessive and cranky as a toddler without a nap, because Vervain had stolen my consort.

“And you’re his mate,” she reminded me, like I could forget. “I heard you. Consort-mate. That means you have dual rulership of Fairyland and Song. Besides which, the fairies there are your responsibility. You messed with them hard core. You can’t just abandon them now!”

I fed her another piece of cheese. She made a good point. The fairies in the werewolf caverns in Song were there because of me, but they’d all exiled themselves in the first place. How much power did I really have over them? How much responsibility? “I’m not sure that’s going to work.”

The idea of having more responsibility than all of Fairyland was slightly overwhelming. Was I going to have a heart attack? It felt like it.

“Why not?” she asked with her mouth full.

“I need to take care of Fairyland full time. Besides which, Slaughter is impossible to negotiate with.”

“Bribe him with affection and flattery.”

I raised a brow at her. She made it sound so obvious and simple. “Affection and flattery? What do you know about negotiating with monsters?”

“I’ve seen enough wolves smitten by their mates. Beneath the terrifying monster and infernal magic is just another wolf who sees you as his moon.” She smiled at me blandly and took another piece of cheese. “The flowers are weird, but the cheese is good. I’m not going to ask what kind it is.”

“Fairyland cheese. Grows on trees.”

“Horrifying. Please let me go home.” She batted her big eyes at me.

I frowned at her. “I’m not letting you go without protection.”

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