She ran. Like a deer, swift and light on her feet. She ran with purpose, the kind of fast pace you only keep when you know that survival is on the line. Dodging trees and plants, racing through the twisting unpredictable part of the Nevernever known as the Briars.
You could be sure to find every single monster-under-your-bed, demon-of-your-nightmare type of creature lurking somewhere in the Briars, but what was after her was something that would make any one of those creatures flee in panic.
The area surrounding her was silent, but she knew that it was there, watching her, waiting in amusement for the moment when she would trip on a vine, or fall to the ground from exhaustion. And then it would be upon her.
He was alone. An unusual set of circumstances for Robin Goodfellow, Puck, as he was known to most. First he'd been with Meghan, Grimalkin, and Ironhorse, trying to find the Scepter of the Seasons, stolen by the Iron Fey. Then he'd been with Meghan and Ash, trying to find the false king of the Iron Fey. And then he'd been with ice boy again, with Grimalkin, the Wolf, and Ariella, trying to earn Ash a soul. But there wasn't a need for him with any of those people now. His closest friends were gone. Ariella had died, giving Ash the chance to be with Meghan, and now Meghan and Ash were married and didn't need or want him around anymore.
Puck sighed. Funny, how it could still hurt, even after he'd already resigned himself to the fact that Meghan had chosen Ash. He looked up at his surroundings. The Briars were close, he knew. He could be sure to find something to fight in there. It might feel good to hit something.
Before he could make a decision however, something came bursting out of the line of trees in front of him, colliding with Puck and knocking them both onto the ground. It took him a moment to focus but when he did he realized that the thing was a girl, a fey, but it was impossible to tell from which court. She had long brown hair, not the traditional white blonde of Summer or the black of Winter, and there were no bursts of cold air, nor any sudden warmth.
Her violet eyes focused on his bright green ones, and for a moment, they stayed there. He smirked, and with that, she leapt to her feet and whirled around, searching through the trees she'd just appeared from. Seeming to find nothing, she turned back around and began to quickly walk away in the opposite direction. "Wait!" Puck grabbed her wrist. "Are you alright?"
She stared past him, still searching the forest, before saying, "Fine". "What're doing in the Briars? Were you lost?" This time, she turned her complete attention to him before answering, "In a manner of speaking". He regarded her for a moment, sweeping his eyes up and down the length of her, and then said, "What's your name?"
She paused for a moment, seeming to consider whether or not to give him her true name. "Aeryina", she finally said, "And you?" Puck raised his eyebrows, surprised. It wasn't often that someone had to ask for his name; his signature smirk had become something of a legend in and of itself. "Puck."
Finished the Iron Knight, was heartbroken about Puck being alone, was immediately on the computer writing an alternate ending. That's pretty much how this story came about. Yeah, I hate it when my favorite characters end up either dying or alone so I'm constantly writing different endings.