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The Supernatural characters belong to Kripke Enterprises and the CW, not me. No money is being made from this story. It is for entertainment only.

The Dark Fae

Chapter 7

Over the River

From Chapter 6

Volundr threw his head up at the faint sound of horns on the wind. He knew their time was short. He looked down at the old man at his feet. "I'm glad I don't have to kill you, Guardian."

"And I'll be glad to see your backs. You are no longer welcome in Elfhame. You are criminals after your deeds this day. Both Queens will issue bounties on your heads."

Volundr tore one of his ribbons loose and tossed it at the old man's feet. "Bind up your stump, old one, before you bleed to death."

Those were the last words either Elf spoke in the land of the Fae. They charged up over the humped back bridge and disappeared into the mist of the River Neith

Chapter 7

Once over the highest point of the hump backed bridge the mist began to thin. The River Neith changed into a fast flowing, clear waterway under a cloud dimpled sky. The thick wooden n planks of the old bridge changed into a flat, paved, county bridge in the human word. The Fae Dragons hooves still rattled but were crisper. They were dancing on a harder surface than the ancient surface of the enchanted Fae portal.

The sudden appearance of two riders dressed in fluttering ribbons of cloth with sheathed swords and quivers full of arrows on their backs was unobserved for the moment. Volundr turned his mount's head and slipped into the woods lining the side of the road. Ólafr followed closely behind.

As Ólafr passed over the end of the human bridge he stopped, dismounted and used an arrow to draw a Elfish symbol into the end of the thick wood railing. To those that could read it the symbol clearly pointed the way to a hidden path to Elfhame. If he or Volundr had to fight their way back to this place at least they could be sure they had found the correct bridge.

Going back into Elfhame at the moment was a death sentence. They would have to make their way in this human world. The door to their own world had been slammed behind them.

It would take extraordinary efforts to gain the favor of either Fae Queen. Volundr was already considering their options. He knew the Unseelie Queen might consider allowing him to return if he would hand over Ólafr to her. He was not ready to pay that price. He was also going to keep an eye on Ólafr to make sure his lover would not offer to sacrifice himself to keep Volundr safe and free.

Ólafr remounted and moved into the woods with the tall Elf just in time to avoid an approaching human car. The foul smelling device passed them by at speed. The driver stared straight ahead, seeing only the road in front of his wheels; however there were two small girls riding in the back of the car who were sharing the side window. They were evidently siblings as a push battle was going on for possession of the glass.

Small hands clutched at the smooth surface as the younger child tried to shove her face closer to the window. The two little girls definitely saw the Elves. Their little mouths became dark circles of surprise. They were immediately swept away but in years to follow the sisters would always remember the fleeting glimpse of strange men in the woods riding on creatures that became more fantastic with the passage of time. The secret became the sister's bond as no one, especially their mother and father, believed what the girls had seen.

The two Elves tuned their mount's heads to the north and slowly rode forward, paralleling the road but dodging among the trees in concealment.

"How will we find Bobby Singer's home?" Ólafr asked his partner.

"I am not completely sure." Volundr replied. "I know we are close to the city of Sioux Falls and that Singer's home is not far outside the city and due west but I don't know how to read the signs. Singer wrote down the name of his home for me." The taller elf pulled a piece of crumpled paper out of his glove and showed it to Ólafr. "I believe we will have to find a guide to take us there."

They continued along the side of the road. Slowly the ground rose in a gentle swell and they found themselves standing at the top of a small hill overlooking the human city of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. From their vantage point they could clearly see how the Sioux River split the city. They saw the falls that gave the city its name but were too far away to hear the falling water.

It was coming on toward evening and there was a chill in the air.

Volundr slid off his ride and stood holding the reins in his hand completely undecided as to what to do next. Ólafr followed his lead. They both heard voices coming from the road and looked up in surprise. There was no snorting and roaring vehicle there. Instead there were two men mounted on light framed, wheeled machines.

Volundr made a snap decision and remounted. Moving up to the roadway he pulled up and blocked the path of the two bicyclists.

The humans were shocked. One slid his bike sideways and the one following crashed to the ground. Volundr smiled and pulled his sword. Ólafr come up on to the roadway and once again followed Volundr's lead.

The two humans raised their hands incapable of thinking of anything else to do. They were being confronted by strange looking men with swords mounted on creatures that were difficult to describe.

Volundr leaned down. "Don't be afraid. We need your help." He held out the crumpled piece of paper. "We need to go here. Can you lead us to this place?"

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Bobby Singer was sitting out on his front porch cleaning a shotgun when a guy on a bike pedaled up the drive and stopped. "You Bobby Singer?"

"Who's asking?" Bobby flipped the shotgun around and held it flat. It wasn't loaded but the guy didn't know that.

"My name's Johnny Daniels but that's not important. I 'm just checking for the weird guys." The bike rider took off his helmet and shook the sweaty hair out of his eyes. "If you're Singer then I got a couple of visitors for you."

The rider turned and beckoned back down the road. Bobby stood and looked in that direction. He was shocked to see another bike rider leading the two Fae Riders that the Hunters had turned loose outside of Spearfish the previous night.

"You know these guys?" Daniels asked. "They took me and Ron prisoners out by McCafferty Springs and wouldn't turn us loose unless we brought them to you. It's been a long, strange ride."

"Yeah, I know them." Bobby replied. "Sorry. They're foreigners. Sorry if they surprised you."

"They did more than surprise us. And, by the way, I don't know what country they're from but I doubt that it's one on Earth. What the Hell are they riding?" Daniels rested his hands on his handle bars. "If I thought the cops would believe us I'd yell kidnappers but somehow I don't think it would go well."

"You may be right about that Mr. Daniels. It might be best if you and your friend just let this experience go by."

Daniels eyed Singer and Singer's shotgun. "I'll talk it over with Ron but you may be right. I don't know who you are, Singer and I certainly don't know what these guys are but I got a life to get back to and I certainly don't want to be treated like one of those fools who go around talking about being kidnapped by aliens. I don't need that kind of grief."

"You're a smart guy, Daniels." Bobby responded. "I 'd like to invite you and your partner in for a drink or maybe even a ride back into Sioux Falls in my truck but it's up to you."

By this time Daniels' partner, Ron had ridden up beside him and the Fae were close behind. Daniels and his riding partner talked to each other in whispers and Bobby gestured to the Fae.

"Volundr, Ólafr, you want to do something with your animals and come inside? I suggest you put your mounts maybe inside my garage. If might not be the smartest thing to let them wander around outside of the yard."

The two Fae slid off their dragons and both went to work pulling the tack off the animals. Saddles and bridles were removed with well-practiced skill.

"They'll be fine out here, Bobby Singer." Volundr replied. "They have been listening and understand the danger."

"You mean they understand what we say?" Bobby was surprised.

"Of course," the tall Elf grimaced. "They understand more than you think." Holding the tack over one arm the tall Elf smacked his mount on the rump and it moved off to look for forage. "They'll come back when we call."

Both Fae mounted the stairs and dropped their tack on Bobby's porch. Bobby moved in front of his screen door. "I don't know if you can enter the house. There are wards up and devil's traps everywhere."

"We are not demons, Bobby Singer." Volundr smiled. "There is nothing in your house that can harm either of us except certain tools you have that could hurt Ólafr. I assume you still want to ask me questions. If you attempt to harm Ólafr simply because you know how to hurt him, it will not end well."

John Daniels interrupted them. "Mr. Singer, Ron and I are going to bike back to the city. We're fine and we're going to take your advice. We simply met a couple of strangers on the road who were lost. We showed them here and now we're leaving them with you."

Bobby nodded in recognition of the men's decision. "Very well, if you're both comfortable with that I think it's best for all involved."

"I'm not saying I might not maybe come back here in the next couple of days to talk to you." Daniels said. "I've got to see how this whole thing sits with me and I admit I'm curious as hell. I want to know what these guys are and so does Ron. We'll keep quiet for now as it's not smart for lawyers to talk about things like this."

"Well, thank you John and you too Ron," Bobby replied. "I don't know how much I can explain to you but I'm pretty much always here if you want to talk. We appreciate your silence for now. Hold on for a second. Here are some of the Yard business cards. Call anytime you want to talk."

Accepting the cards from Bobby the two men got back on their bikes and drifted down the sloping driveway. Evening was rushing on and they had a few miles to cover to get back to the city.

The two Fae watched the men disappear.

"Is it wise to let them go?" Volundr asked.

"What are you thinking, boy?" Bobby replied. "I don't know if you have lawyers in your world or not but you can't kill these two or send them into your world without creating a lot of problems for me and yourselves. Those guys would definitely be missed by someone. It's better this way. Safer." Bobby pushed the screen open. "Come on, then. Get in."

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Settled in Bobby Singer's kitchen, once again presented with hot cups of the stuff called coffee, Volundr told Bobby what he had done and exactly how screwed he and Ólafr were.

He had snatched away Ólafr from the Unseelie Queen. They had fled Elfhame through a portal without permission, had cut the hand off a gate Guardian and killed one of the Guardian's dogs. This was a pretty hefty list of crimes in the Fae world.

"Sounds like you boys are in a world of trouble" was Bobby's response. "What do you expect me to do for you?"

"A lot of the trouble we are in is due to my desire to fulfill my side of the agreement with you. You want knowledge of the Fae world. I'm willing to give you more than you can imagine, including written knowledge if you will provide us with shelter." Volundr answered.

"Huh," Bobby grunted. "I'll have to give that idea some thought. Tell, me, have you guys eaten anything? Do you eat anything? I've got a beef stew in the crock pot ready to eat. Let's eat and go and sleep on the whole thing tonight. We'll talk again in the morning."

"Yes, we eat." Volundr answered. "And yes, we are tired. It has been a very long day for us. I would appreciate food and a bed. Thank you Bobby Singer."

"Just call me Bobby," the Hunter smiled.