Dee strolled up to the building; her body held with purpose, yet still, her movements were fluid and seamless. It was more of a hall than an average building, tall and grand; made of wood, yet strangely infused with lines of steel that stopped all but the strongest of faeries from acting out.
Even though the building was so large, there was no life teeming around it. Humans unconsciously avoided the place, and it was no surprise to Dee why. The large congregation of Dark Court fey would be enough to send any human running despite their being unaware of the faeries' presence. Even faeries of other Courts shied away from such a place.
The Dark Court did not bother Dee, however- not much did bother her. Intrigue was a different matter. In her time, Dee had come across a number of Dark Court faeries; she killed a fair number too. But they always had intrigued her. More so than those of the Summer and Winter Courts, Dark fey were always more... interesting.
As she approached the building, Dee could feel as well as see the blatant and obvious stares of those faeries lingering just outside of their Court. It was almost amusing to watch how they looked at her, and the emotions that flowed over their features without them even trying to disguise such things.
Dee paused at the large doors that were the entrance to the home of the Dark Court. A figure had stepped between her and the wooden doors before her fingers could even brush against the wood. A figure that she recognised.
"You," Gabriel growled, his eyes flashing a familiar shade of green.
The Hound clearly did not welcome her presence, regardless of the deal that Dee and his King had made.
"You," she replied simply, her eyes mimicking the gesture.
Silence swallowed the words between them then, and all that was left were the two of them staring at each other in a way that many would consider hostile.
"I'm here to see him," Dee said eventually, breaking the echoing nothingness that had stretched for far too long a time.
"He knows," Gabriel replied, holding out an arm so that Dee could see the instructions plainly inked into his skin.
She had to stop the smirk from rising to her lips. So he's expecting me? Dee thought, also trying to stop her brows from rising. And the written instructions on Gabriel's arm told her that he was to escort her to the Dark King. The Hound did not wait for Dee's response before grudgingly turning and pushing open one of the doors behind him.
Dee stared at his back, and with a blink of her too-large eyes, followed after him. She had to walk quickly, no hard feat for a fey, to match his stride; but she was soon beside him as he led her through the main Hall of the Dark Court. Dee couldn't help but look around at the congregation of faeries that had paused in whatever actions they were partaking in, to watch Gabriel leading a Water faery through the heart of their Court.
They all knew the mystery and oddity surrounding those fey that lived in the water. That was why it was so unexpected that one was walking through their Court willingly. Even more of a surprise was that they could sense that she was more curious than anything; certainly not afraid at least.
"You don't like me," Dee said plainly.
She wasn't offended by it, and it wasn't an accusation. She'd said it as a simple truth and an effort at conversation. An effort that she found that Gabriel was unwilling to return. One that he would not, even if he could, lie in response to. This Water faery could pose a threat to his King; of course he didn't like her.
"I very much would enjoy a chance at fighting you," Dee put forward, her eyes flickering back to the Hound for a moment.
The corner of Gabriel's lips turned upward as he eventually answered, "It would be... Interesting."
She flashed a grin at him, but it didn't linger.
"Too bad Iri's forbidden it."
Dee frowned at him then, a little disappointed that she wasn't going get her wish of creating some sort of disturbance with the Hound.
"Too bad, indeed," she assented.
They came to another set of doors at the end of the long hall. Apparently, whatever meeting she was to have with the Dark King would take place away from the staring eyes of those faeries in the Dark Court. Gabriel didn't knock or wait for anyone to invite them inside; the orders written clearly on his arms negated any necessity for such a thing.
Dee followed the Hound inside the adjoining room and her eyes flickered around the room quickly as she stepped inside. Filled to the brim with extravagantly beautiful and dark furnishings, shadows clung to everything. But that only made the room more eerily beautiful.
In the corner of the room, reclining in a tall, dark and velvety chair she saw him. The faery King that had struck up the meeting that no one could have predicted would actually come to pass. And Dee couldn't help but stare unabashedly at him with those huge, azure eyes.
He wore a silk shirt that remained half open and unbuttoned, revealing most of his chest. And his dark trousers disappeared into even darker knee-high boots. Irial really was stunning; the picture of allure. And definitely as tempting as he had been that day by the water's edge; perhaps, even more so.
Dee didn't fail to notice as Irial's eyes trailed over her, just as hers had over his; and her body unconsciously shifted into a more provocative position. Irial's brows rose at the sight of her slight movement and he gave her an almost tantalising smirk.
The shirt she wore could hardly be referred to as a shirt. Made of thin material that hung around her neck, it dipped just far enough to hide the swell of her breasts. The slightly fringed bottom of it was midriff-baring, dangling down like an arrow that pointed to her navel and flat stomach.
Dee's skirt hung from her wide hips, so long that it brushed the floor. The material glistened like cascading water, almost as if it was made of it; that is, aside from one long slit that parted it, following the pale blue skin of her right leg to mid thigh.
Irial's eyes flashed to Gabriel for a moment before settling back on the Water faerie once again. The Hound at her side merely rolled his eyes before reluctantly turning and leaving the room, closing the door behind him.
He hadn't wanted to leave; but Irial had commanded him to do so once he had escorted the water faery to him. That didn't stop him from waiting directly outside of the door in case he was needed though.
There was a silence that grew following the absence of the Hound, but it wasn't awkward. It merely stood between the two fey as Dee waited for the Dark King to speak.
"Well;" he started, his voice smooth.
"I didn't expect to see you again... so soon," Irial added, unable to leave off the end of the sentence; unable to lie.
"And yet you were expecting me," Dee returned, a small smile gracing her beautiful features.
"Naturally," he answered as his own smirk grew.
"And one wonders how that is..." she said, blinking her luscious lashes at him.
"You may not technically be one of my fey, but many others are."
"Hm," was the only response that Dee gave to that admission.
So instead, Irial said, "You are very brave to come here; alone."
"You told me I'd be welcome in your Court, remember?"
"Ah, but I did warn you that it could be dangerous also. And you don't even seem to be attempting to be cautious."
Dee paused, considering the Dark King for a moment.
"Well, it's not really reckless endangerment if you know that you can get out alright."
How bold, he thought. Irial opened his mouth to respond, but Dee continued before he could speak.
"But it wouldn't be any fun without at least a slight element of danger, would it?"
"No; I daresay not," Irial replied, dark shadows flickering in his eyes.
"So, Dark King-" she started after a moment's silence.
"Perhaps it would be better if you called me Iri," he interrupted, cutting her words short slightly.
Dee blinked, one of her eyebrows rising as she stared at him.
"First name terms with the Dark King?" she murmured, testing the words on her tongue.
"Well, we are connected in far stronger ways."
"True," she admitted quietly.
"I think that a name may not matter so much between us now."
"Alright Iri; so now that you have me here, what is it that you intend for us to... discuss," Dee asked, her lips turning upward into a smirk.
Irial's own, wicked smile crossed his face at that. So, so bold, he thought tasting some of the emotion that she let free from the wall she'd barred them behind. He found himself once more sure that speaking with Dee at the water's edge would not be something he regretted- even if she did turn out to be simply a Water fey with Hounds' eyes.
"I think that I would like to know more about you."
"Really? And why would you want to know something like that?" she replied coyly.
The shadows in his eyes seemed to dance then. Her persistent, falsely-demure questionings were as just another game to him; one that he was enjoying playing.
"Maybe I'm curious," Irial finally answered, the half-truth slipping easily from his lips.
One of her eyebrows rose, but the Dark King mentioned nothing of it.
"Why don't you take a seat?" Irial continued, gesturing to a chair on his right.
Dee merely smiled slightly as she stepped toward the chair and settled herself lightly into it. She seemed to sink so gracefully into the chair, swiftly folding one long and slender leg over the other. And she didn't fail to notice how the Dark King's eyes lingered on the skin that the slit in her skirt revealed.
"So, am I to understand, Iri, that you are only interested in my being here so that you can discover what traits I've inherited from my mixed parentage?" Dee asked.
There was something in her voice as she'd said that put Irial on notice; if he gave the wrong answer, then she might just be prepared to walk away then and there. Fey cannot lie; but, fortunately for Irial, he did not need to lie to provide the answer that Dee wished to hear. Or that he was almost certain that she wanted him to reply with.
"It's not the only reason," he said simply.
Dee's expression remained the same for a moment, her emotions once again hidden away; giving the Dark King no indication as to her reaction to his words. Until her eyes seemed to flash that bright and familiar green colour, only for a second, and an almost satisfied smirk settled on her face.
"Well then, I can see that this meeting could possibly turn out quite positively for both of us," she replied eventually, a tone of almost-amusement in her voice.
"What is it that you want to know about me exactly?"
Irial was curious as to how readily the fey was prepared to reveal information about herself to a regent not technically her own, but he held the surprise back from his expression. Water fey were curious and unpredictable. One never could tell what they would or would not say or do.
"Perhaps we should begin with things that you know you inherited from your mother; and then move on to your... other traits."
Dee blinked and nodded.
"That way you can confirm for me if I inherited those things from my father or not," she put in, eagerness fringing the edges of her voice.
Irial paused for a moment before asking, "You really know nothing about Hounds?"
The faery's brow creased slightly into a frown as she replied, "Like I said, I'd never met one before your Gabriel. And my kind aren't exactly good at noticing things about the other fey they meet just before they kill them."
"Indeed," Irial answered quietly.
"Before I begin; I would ask that nothing I say leaves this room without my permission?" Dee found herself asking when the silent contemplativeness that Irial had almost lapsed into lasted just a little too long.
"Likewise," the Dark King answered, bowing his head to her.
An almost-smile played on her lips as Dee took a deep breath before speaking again.
"I'm a Siren."
"A Siren?" Irial questioned, his brow furrowing slightly.
"Like the Greek myth."
"I'm aware of what you meant; however, I do recall the Sirens in the myth to have been described as rather less..."
Dee smiled at that, understanding what the Dark King meant as he gestured at her with his hand.
"Most of us are a lot more attractive than the humans give us credit for... Their perceptions are always a little... distorted," she finished, waving off what the humans referred to her kind as.
"Anyway; being a Siren effectively makes me the Water fey equivalent of a Gancanagh. Both males and females are attracted to me; entranced by my voice particularly. The slight difference, however, is that I'm only addictive to human males."
Irial's brows rose slightly, but he said nothing, allowing her to continue.
"Apart from that, you are quite aware of the other things that I inherited from my mother; being able to find you anywhere after a simple kiss, using the water to my advantage," she finished abruptly almost, and on that last point, she refused to elaborate.
"I can only satiate my hunger through touch; something I know that I do not share with my mother and her family."
There, she paused, as if waiting for Irial to confirm or deny her suspicion that that came from her father.
"A feature you do share with the Hunt."
Dee's eyes flashed green at the information, prompting Irial to continue, "As is the way that your eyes shine green."
"I've always wondered about that, you know... Hm," she finished lightly, her tone musing.
A silence stretched between them, and the female faery seemed to be lost in her thoughts. Her fingers tapped gentlyat her knee where she had crossed her arms over herself.
"Anything else, my dear?" Irial asked, causing her eyes to flicker back to his.
And, only for a moment, he saw an emotion in her eyes that she tried so hard to mask away. Only for a moment, he felt an emotion slip free to him. She's nervous? Irial thought, almost confused at the sudden change in the faery before him.
"I inspire a number of emotions in both humans and fey alike..." Dee said, before pausing.
"Hounds inspire fear in all; I suspect the other emotions you arouse are inherited from your mother."
Dee didn't fail to notice the word he'd used to describe the emotions that she brought out in both mortals and fey alike. So she didn't even try to hold back the smirk from her lips.
"So am I right in assuming that Hounds can collect the emotions they stir as well?" she asked.
Irial paused, one brow rising as he looked at the faery before him.
"That, my dear, is not something a Hound can do," he replied, numerous thoughts running through his mind at once.
Dee frowned, her brow creasing as she turned her eyes away from him. Clearly, her ability to collect emotions had not been passed down by her mother either.
"There must be a purpose to your ability to collect emotions," Irial mused, trying to entice an answer from her.
"I... Well," she paused, smiling slightly to herself.
"I have been known to use them as an aphrodisiac."
Irial's eyes sparked at the comment, but he said nothing.
"Otherwise, I've found no real use for them," Dee finished eventually.
"You know, Dee, I think we may be able to help each other."
"Oh?" Dee asked, her frown less prominent as she leaned forward, intrigued.
"The Dark Court can help you understand the Hound side of your heritage; if you agree to help us."
Dee tilted her head at Irial.
"And this 'help'; what exactly would it entail me doing?"
Irial's wicked smile came to his lips, marking him as all too alluring and dangerous.
"Oh, I can think of a number of things."
Dee paused, running her tongue over her bottom lip, wetting the skin there in a way that many would consider seductive.
"I can't stay here..." she warned.
"Perhaps just become a friend to the Dark Court- a very good friend, mind. Stay under our protection for your services."
Dee smirked.
"My services?"
Irial couldn't help but chuckle at his own choice of words; and the fact that Dee really did have no idea what she was getting herself in for. And how readily she was flirting with danger in all of its forms; both with him and his Court.
"I'll consider your offer... Until next time, Iri," she answered eventually.
And with that, Dee unfolded her legs, stood and left the room with a surprising swiftness and grace. Irial couldn't help but watch the sway of her hips as she disappeared; and he couldn't help but notice the small smirk that she flashed his way over her shoulder before the door closed behind her again.
Author's Note: Hi guys, if you're reading this, well I'm glad 'cus it means that you bothered to get to the end, which hopefully means that you like it... Anyways, I appear to be rambling. Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up, I did warn you about my awful updating record. :/ But, the good news is that I keep getting more and more ideas for this story (bad news is that all these bits are for later in the story :/).
So, anyway, I hope you liked it, and please do let me know what you think! :)
Kit xx