Umm… yeah, let's just get to it.
Tink managed to recover from her injuries well enough to be let out of the infirmiry within a couple of days. The wedding didn't have to be rescheduled or anything, much ot the relief of the two lovers. Everything was still set to go on the day it was intended to. But there was still one major issue that was really gonna put a damper on the whole situation; Terrence. It didn't take long for him to be found guilty of the crimes he commited after a hasty hearing. Tink and Vidia told Queen Clarion, herself, everything that he had done, and she believed it. She had been monitoring Terrence's behavior for a while, as she did with all fairies, and she had a bed feeling he was preparing to do something horrible.
Action had to be taken against him immediatley. Now Fairies, being a relatively non-violent race, didn't have any death penalties. Their highest form of punishment, however, was considered to be something far worse than death; eternal banishment from Pixie Hollow and removal of the offending fairy or sparrowmans wings.
It was the day before the wedding when the punishment was to be enacted. These events were held in the deepest darkest part of the home tree and were closed to the fairy public. The wing removal process was a very graphic and painful procedure. It wasn't just a matter slicing them off, they could grow back if that was the case. (Okay, I totally made that up, but who gives a shit. It's just a fanfic :) A fairy's wings were rooted deeply into their bodies and had to be ripped out forcibly. The process involved set hooks into the fairy or sparrowmans wings while he or she was held in place. The hooks were attatched to chains that wrapped around a sort of wheel like device that was cranked continuosly until the wings were completely ripped off.
Most fairies didn't mind not being allowed to see this. It was simply too horrific and bloody for some to stomach. But nobody spoke out against it since they knew only really bad fairies or sparrowmen were subjected to it. Usually the queen, her gaurds, some scout talents and the ministry were the only ones who witnesses a de-winging, but for this particular one; Tink and Vidia had been personally invited to view it by the Queen. Vidia, of course, was more than willing to watch the man who had hurt her baby suffer, but Tink was a little skeptical at first. She didn't feel she could handle it. Deep down, she still felt some real sadness over her whole issue with Terrence. He had once been her closest friend, and now she would never see him again. It took a lot of coaxing on Vidias part to get Tink to go. She had to remind her constantly that Terrence was the one who almost killed her just because he couldn't have her, that he would've watched her die without a single shred of remorse. Eventually, Tink decided that Vidia was right, and that she should be there, mainly as a reminder to Terrence that she was still alive and kicking, that he had failed to take her.
On the day of Terrence's banishment, Tink and Vidia arrived early at the wing removal area of the Home Tree. It was a dark, dank room, very much like a dungeon. Vidia looked as calm and collected as ever, but Tink had been pale and shaky that whole morning, and now that it was about to happen, she looked even worse. A group of scout talents stood around them, acting as protection in case something went wrong. They were standing on a sort of walkway that encircled a round wooden platform a few feet below them (or a few inches if you're human sized) In the center of the platform was Terrence. He was on his hands and knees, shakled to the floor. Before him stood Queen Clarion, gazing down at him with a look of utter disdain.
"Terrence," She began in an imperious tone. "You have been found guilty for the rape and attempted murder of a fellow fairy. You have, therefore, been sentenced to eternal banishment from Pixie Hollow preceding the removal of your wings. If there is one thing I will not tolerate in my kingdom; it is the treatment of an innocent fairy in such a way as you have demonstrated! I am disgusted and appalled greatly by what you have done! I never believed it possible of you, Terrence!"
The queen paused there for a moment. Terrence spent the whole time staring angrily at the floor. Vidia looked over at Tink to see that she was just about on the verge of tears, so she wrapped an arm around her and squeezed her tightly to her side. Clarion started speaking again.
"Do you have anything to say for yourself before the sentence is carried out?" She asked him.
Terrence remained silent for a few moments, then slowly began to speak in a raspy voice.
"Your Highness," he croaked. "I swear to you, I wasn't myself when I did what I did. It's that damn drink! It's ruined me! I never would've done that if I had been sober, never! Please forgive me!"
Clarion shook her head.
"Forgivness is not mine to bestow, Terrence." She said sadly. "And whether or not you were yourself on that day, you still did a terrible thing, and now you must pay for it." She then turned to her guards. "Set the hooks."
Two burly sparrowmen approached Terrence, each holding a large iron hook. Tink felt like she was about to pass out. There was no way she could watch this. She buried her face into Vidias shoulder and squeezed her eyes shut. Vidia responded by holding her even tighter. From here, Tink was forced to assume what was happening by listening. All she could hear at the moment was the sound of chains being dragged across the floor. When they stopped, she knew they must've been right next to him. There were a few seconds of silence, then the sicken sound of the hooks being slipped into the paper thin wings. This wasn't necessarily the worst part since fairies didn't feel any pain in their wings, but it was still a grotesque sight to see something stuck in ones wings that shouldn't be there.
Then there was the sound of footsteps heading in two different directions. The sparrowmen were now obviously making their way to the cranks that turned wheels, pulling the chains. There was silence again. Tink knew they had to wait for the Queens order before they began turning the cranks. Tink squeezed her eyes shut as hard as she possibly could and wrapped her arms tighter around Vidia. She seriously considered plugging her ears since the sound of wings being ripped out was supposed to be truly sickening, but Tink realized that if she did that, she wouldn't know when it was over, and that might cause her to look while it was still happening, and she felt that hearing it wouldn't be as bad as seeing it.
Silence follwed a few seconds more. It was torture waiting for it to happen. Tink just wanted it to be over with so she could get back to savoring the moment before her wedding tomorrow. Then, finally, Clarions voice rang out again.
"Remove them."
Then came the sound of cranks turning and chains being dragged along the floor. Tink was now humming as cheeful a song as she could to herself. It was all she could do to drown out the noise around her. After a while, the sound of the chains scraping along the floor soon stopped, a sign that they were now suspended in the air and that the hooks were now being tugged. Tink hummed louder, knowing that the horrific screams of pain were just seconds away. Vidia could sense Tinks voice begining to crack, and she could feel warm tears on her shoulder. She kissed Tink on the top of her head and rocked her back and forth.
Then, a gut renching sound filled the room, very much like paper being ripped. Then came the screaming.
"FUCK ME!" Terrence cried out in a voice that shook the walls.
Tink was suddenly very grateful that Vidia was standing next to her, cause if she wasn't, she surely would've collapsed. The only noises that she could hear now were Terrence's shrieks and screams, as well as that sickening paper ripping sound. It was terrifying. Tink was starting to wish she'd never came. She kept trying to remind herself that Terrence deserved this, but it was still scaring the3 crap out of her.
The screaming and ripping noises continued for at least five minutes before finally the loudest ripping sound of all rand through the room, as well as the splattering sound of blood. Tink knew it was over now, but she decided to keep her eyes shut until Terrence stopped shrieking, and that went on for another five minutes. When it finally stopped, Tink slowly pulled herself away from Vidia and opened her eyes. Her vision was blurred a bit by a mixture of tears and the strain of squeezing her eyes shut so tightly. When it cleared, she could easily make out a group of Clarions guards and Nurse Talents gathered around Terrence's whimpering and crouching form. On his back were two bloody gashes where his wings used to be. The Nurse Talents were mending the wounds so Terrence would bleed out.
Tink was so focused on what was happening to Terrence that she jumped a bit when she felt Vidias hand wrap around her own.
"You okay, sweetie?" Vidia asked kindly.
Tink couldn't find her voice, so she just nodded. Gazing back down at Terrence, she saw that he had now been removed from his shackles and was standing very wobbly on his feet. He was ghost white and shaking worse than Tink was. A nurse talent quickly looked him over to see if he good enough to walk. She then turned to Clarion and gave her a curt nod. The Queen stepped forward.
"Now, leave Pixie Hollow and never return. If you try to get back in, Scout Talents will be given permission to shoot you on sight with their poisoned arrows." She said sternly.
Two Scout Talents grabbed Terrence by both his arms and hauled him towards the exit, his feet dragging behind him. from the exit, a blinding white light shone, indicating the beautiful day outside. As he passed by Tink and Vidia, he turned to look at them. His expression was one of absolute anger and hatred, and Tink found that she couldn't bare to look him in the eye, so she turned away. Vidia, on the other hand, mouthed the words "fuck you" and shot him a nasty smirk. When Tink turned around again, she caught the tail end of Terrence brown boots sliding out into the blinding daylight, and then he was gone.
Tink looked over at the Queen, who was now gliding over to them. Her expression, which had been cold and hard for most of that day, was now kind and sympathetic.
"Are you okay, my dear?" She asked Tink in a motherly tone.
Now Tink felt she could speak coherently.
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm just a bit shaky right now."
Clarions brow furrowed a bit and she put a hand to her chin.
"Perhaps you shouldn't have come to this after all. Maybe it was too much for you?" She said kindly.
"No, really, I'm fine, Your Highness." Tink said assuredly. "I'm just glad he's gone."
The Queen smiled a bit.
"Yes he is, dear, and I assure you; he will never be able to harm you again."
Tink gave a weak smile of her own and nodded.
"I know." She said quietly.
"Now," Clarion began. "I think you two should go off and get some rest. You have a wonderful ahead of you tomorrow, and soon this whole thing will be just a bad memory."
"Thank you, Your Highness." Tink said as she and Vidia curtsied.
The two fairies then turned and exited the tree through the same area where Terrence was dragged out. It was now late afternoon and the area outside the Home Tree was packed with fairies who had gathered to watch Terrence be hauled away. The crowd was starting to disperse now since Terrence no longer in sight. Vidia wrapped an arm around Tink and held her close.
"You want to go back to my place and take a nap or something?" She asked.
Tink shook her head. She didn't feel tired at all.
"Actually, Vid, I just want to go somewhere private with you." She said soothingly.
"Like, back home or something?" Vidia asked.
"No, somewhere outside, where it's peaceful and quiet. It's such a beautiful day, and I want to share it with you." Tink replied.
Vidia thought for a moment, then smiled a bit.
"I know a good place." She said. "I haven't been to it in a long time, but I'm pretty sure I'm still the only one who knows about it. C'mon, I'll show you."
Vidia grabbed Tink by the hand and took off into the deep dark forest area of Pixie Hollow. Away from the hustle and bustle of the other pixies. Seperated from it all.
Alright, that's all for now. Seriously, I know some of that stuff is hard to buy, like fairies having such a brutal punishment and all, but hey, fanfics can get away with small discrepencies like that. That's what makes them fun to write! Besides, I like adding darker, more adult elements to kids stories. It makes them more interesting! See you next chapter, which I promise will be a real mind blower!