Chapter Eight: Friends

We stared at each other. For a long moment, after I killed the fae man, we just stared assessing what just happened.

His face was buried in the moist dirt, and the back of his dress shirt tore to shreds exposing the burnt flesh. I had done that, caused that. I just killed him.

She was in shock, I was in shock. "I-I-I just..." The stuttering came from me as I tried and failed miserably to wrap my brain around what just happened.

"He's dead." It was an obvious statement, one that we could both plainly see but it was as if she had to declare it out loud to make herself believe it.

I look at my red hands, they stung as if I had put them on hot coals. Flexing my fingers caused me to hiss out in pain.

"I- I'm on probation. T-this will send me back." The fae woman seemed to contemplate something heavily, weighing her options.

"You were just protecting me." A little sigh escaped my mouth, it was a relief that she felt that way, for a moment there I was worried that she thought I had acted out of hand.

She bit her lip before blurting out her inner battle. "I'll say I did it. My father is Duke Bane, they won't think twice about it."

Duke Bane was responsible for a third of Ouizwells riches, his basements are said to be full of coins and gems worth more than the castle. Most of his fortune came from him being of royal descent but there was a good portion that came from being a businessman. Every street you walked down in Ouiswell had a building owned by the famous Duke Bane.

"Are you sure?" The question seemed necessary considering how badly her hands were shaking.

"I'm not letting you go to jail because of this." Her deep voice spoke with determination, she had made up her mind and was sticking with it.

Her small heels dug into the soft dirt making her hobble her way toward me. It was then that I noticed how high-class her gown was, she stood with her shoulders back just further proving her status.

"Your human?" It was astonishment, utter astonishment as she glanced between the dead fae and me. "How is that possible?"

Blisters were beginning to form on my palm causing me to hiss again. "We need to go report this, quickly."

She was still confused but followed behind me out of the woods, the birds began chirping again and I noticed some squirrels chasing each other in the high branches.

"The office is closed by this hour." She addressed her voice still seeming to waver slightly. I should comfort her but I couldn't find it in me to do so. I had just killed a man, a fae man, how foolish could I be? They could have executed me for such treason even if it was to save someone.

Mortals weren't treated the same as Fae, we didn't get the self-defense card when it came to their kind. It was what landed me in prison nearly two years ago.

My sister had been dating a Fae man, one of high status. I started to notice bruises on her small body, one day I caught him striking her and before I could even register what I was doing I had plunged a blade so far into his chest that the tip of it was sticking out on the other side.

It had gone through his heart and he dropped dead at my feet. Considering the circumstances around it, I was only sentenced to prison for eighteen months. This time around I highly doubt that they would be as lenient.

I didn't have to have a vision to see these two men's death, they haunted me all on their own. I was sure to dream about the sound he made as he died tonight if I got any sleep, to begin with.

"Follow me, I'll have someone take you home. Then I can meet you in the morning to report it, attest to seeing him attack you. A witness." It didn't take terribly long to reach the road again. We both stopped once our feet were on solid ground. "Thank you."

"No, thank you. The son of a bitch deserved every bit of it." My eyes glanced down at her tore gown, without thought I removed my thick shawl and positioned it over her shoulders. Her small hands clasp it and pulled it together so that it covered her exposed skin. "Your name?"

Despite being at a loss for breath we started walking to the brothel. Using whatever power Milady granted me drained me to the point of swaying on my feet. "Ayumu. You?"

"Clementine." The name suited her accent as well as her proper attire.

The cold air blew up against my bare arms leaving goosebumps in its wake. My feet were covered in mud, water had soaked through my clothe slippers. My black curls framed my face with wild wisps of hair everywhere. I looked like a disheveled mess, nearly just as bad as Clementine did.

"You know this is one hell of a way for best friends to meet?" Despite the distant memory of that scary power ripping through me and of that man laying lifeless in the dirt, I laughed. A loud booming sound causing Clementine to join in.

"I don't think I've ever met a Fae like you." The thought was just that, a thought voiced out loud, I hadn't expected her to respond but she did.

"My mother was human, there is no ill intent for your kind running in my veins because I share it." It would explain why she was willing to help me out when nearly any other Fae would have turned their nose up at me, even if I had saved them from being defiled. "I find that I prefer Mortals over Fae. Most Fae are so mean and stuck up."

"So how did you do it?" It was the question I wanted to avoid at all costs. When people figured out what I was they normally freak out and disgust replaces their features. Sensing my hesitancy she added quickly. "Tonight is already full of secrets, what's one more to add to the pot?"

"I'm a teller. I've never done that before, but that has to be where the power stemmed from." To her effort, Clementine's expression remained schooled, with no hint of disgust or fright.

"I haven't even established my power that much." The brothel was coming up in the distance and I distinctly noticed the three horses resting under the shed. The warriors were home...

I could perhaps get one of them to carry Clementine back to her estate, a brothel was no place for a woman of her status. A mortal brothel at that.

"Well, it came at a cost." Glancing down at my hands I noticed the blisters starting to swell and fester. My body wasn't made to endure the force of Fae magic, my skin wasn't as tough, and resistant to the burn.

The house wasn't lit up as it normally was before the warriors started staying here, to my understanding The General offered to pay just to keep the house empty of lust-filled men. Not that they would dare come to the brothel with them three there anyways.

Oberon has been having fun with the twins, and Bolt with Zena. Keeping the house loud enough without adding other men into the mix.

"This is it. Wait outside, we don't want your name sullied." She rolled her eyes but obeyed. Lucky for me the women were sleeping and the three warriors were sitting around the kitchen table playing a round of cards.

Bolt noticed me first, jumping up from his chair seeming startled at my appearance. "What the hell happened to you?"

The General was the next out of his seat, eyebrows furrowed and gaze glancing behind me, probably wondering what had chased me in here. "Can one of you run my friend home?"

They seemed to ignore me entirely, instead coming to stand in front of me. The shock from my burnt hands kicked in at the worst possible time. "Hey." Oberon soothed, running his big hands up and down my upper arm.

"Explain what happened?" Bolt demanded as he took in my wild hair, stunned eyes, bare arms, and muddy feet.

It wasn't until The General, The Commander as I had learned today spoke that I told them everything that happened. "Your safe now. Where is he?"