Chapter 13:

Hours later, Diaval and Maleficent laid together under the craggy roof of the ruins as the rain began to pour once more around them. They had leaned back, their wings cushioned their backs from the cold stone wall. After Diaval had finished with her wings, Maleficent had returned the favor and helped him preen his. It was so strange to know that you had run your hands over the same wings hundreds of times, and yet saw them as new at the same time. Afterward, they planned to head back, but the rain cut them short. They always could push through the rain if they needed to, but it would take much more energy. Not exactly something Diaval wanted to learn just after getting his wings.

Their new perch took them higher in the ruins and reminded him fondly of their high cliff perch in the Moors. They were high enough he could almost peer over the walls and into their home. Maleficent's arm tightened around his waist and her head nestled further into his shoulder to stave off the cold wind that had inched its way into their seats. One of her wings was already wrapped around her as the other rested comfortably with his behind them. He leaned forward just enough to extend his wing and wrapped it protectively around her and her own wing. His arm that wrapped around her waist pulled her in just a little tighter to keep their shared warmth from dissipating. She let out a breath of comfort and settled against him once more. When her breath settled back into a smooth pattern, he ran a hand along her cheek in a slight caress before he turned his eyes back toward the Moors.

"You keep staring at the wall, I am sure that you will burn a hole clear through," she mumbled into his shirt.

"You can't burn the thorn wall," he reminded her.

"You did," she said and tilted her head up, "Burned right through the one that I built inside my chest. In comparison, this one would be a child's game."

He met her eyes and tilted his head down to touch their foreheads together. Eyes closed he soaked in everything about the moment. Her scent, the sound of her breaths, the touch of her skin to his. He opened his eyes and gave her a lingering kiss.

"We need to try to head back soon. Aurora will be cross with us if we are late for another dinner," he reminded her and kissed her forehead.

"The rain seems to be stopping," Maleficent scanned the clouds from where she was, but made no move to leave his embrace, "We will make it in plenty of time."

The peaceful moment was shattered when they heard screams from outside of their ruins. They both scrambled from the floor to look around the corner of the ruins. The rain had indeed begun to subside and they were able to see further across the plains. There was a young woman who ran from across the farm fields far to the East. The small farmhouse that usually was a dot in the distance was lit with flames, so were half of the fields. They were calm only moments ago.

The young woman screamed again and tripped before she found her footing and ran again. Maleficent looked behind her to see a few forms. They had a larger build than that of humans, but were very similar. Their hair was black, their torn clothing gray and their skin shined iridescent against the light of the flame behind them.

Maleficent turned to Diaval, "It's the Huldufolk. It looks like they are looking for a new labor force."

"They haven't done that in over a century," he added as he had heard the tales of the dark fairies from Robin.

"And they will not start again under my watch," Maleficent unfurled her wings, "Get the girl away from them. I will deal with her pursuers."

"Be careful," he warned, stretched out his wings and took off into the misting rain. It only took him a few flaps to reach the edge of the fields. He dove directly to the girl and scooped her out of the way as one of the fairies had pounced to catch her along the legs. She squirmed in his arms and screamed into his face as she fought for her life.

"Hey, hey, careful there," Diaval tried to soothe her, "I don't want to drop you. Your extra weight is already throwing me off."

The young woman looked up to see Diaval's face, "Lord Diaval?"

He looked down at her scared face. He recognized her from her short trips to the borders to talk with some of the younger Dark Fey from the last few months. Hw had a few run-ins with her father and a shovel when he was just a raven as well. Of which the lovely girl apologized profusely on her father's behalf on more than one occasion.

"Adrina," he nodded to her and landed back on a ledge of the ruins. He set her on her feet and stabilized her, "What happened?"

"Th-they came from a fog," she uttered and pointed to her farmhouse in the distance, "At first it was just man in a robe. Then a large fog surrounded our crops. Father went to look and he never came back. Then lightning struck our home, fire blazed and I was separated from Mother. Then I saw those Fairies and I ran."

"Is the man in the robe still there?"

"No, no I don't believe so. He walked back towards the Moors as the fire broke."

"Stay here and out of sight," he pointed a finger in her face.

She nodded eagerly and hunched close to the wall.

"Good girl," he turned and jumped into the air back toward the fields. He met Maleficent in the air as she scanned the fields, "Where are they?"

"They have retreated into the fields," Maleficent said and narrowed her eyes on the rows of corn.

"Will they withdraw to the Moors?" he asked and kept an eye on the rows.

"No, they are too proud to," she hummed and dove down to stand at the outer edge of the crops, "Huldufolk! On whose authority do you have to hunt humans after peace has been brought?!"

Diaval landed next to her and listened for any response. After a few moments, a few heads peeked out from the corn and approached the two.

"Our authority! It's our right!" one of them snarled and snapped their teeth at them.

"It's their right to feel and be safe in their own homestead," Diaval snapped back with a large flick of his wings behind him, "Bring back the girl's parents!"

The one who had talked clicked back into the rows of corn. Two fairies brought forward two humans who were scared, but otherwise unharmed. The Huldufolk pushed the two humans forward and made them trip in front of Diaval and Maleficent. Maleficent lit her hand in green flame to warn the creatures not to try to push their luck.

Diaval leaned down and helped the couple up, "Adrina is safe at the ruins. Go to her and make your way to Perceforest castle."

"Thank you," Adrina's father expressed and helped his wife toward the ruins.

"They would be too weak for the work we had in store," one of the dark fairies scoffed and pointed at the pair.

"Where is your master?" Diaval asked.

"What?" Maleficent asked.

"There was a robed one with them. Adrina said he was the one that started the fog and the lightning that began the fire."

"He is no more our master than you!" they sneered at the two winged protectors.

"And yet you follow him," Maleficent argued back, "How are you on this side of the wall?"

"Magic," one of them snickered as others echoed the word behind him.

"Enough of this!" Maleficent yelled at the dark fairies, "I will not have you take humans into servitude. The time of servants and specie hierarchy is over!"

"So say you, devil!"

On their opposite side of the field was a robed figure. Diaval instantly knew him. It was the same one who visited him for information during his capture. It looked like he got a new ring as it glowed brightly as it gathered its spell. The man chuckled darkly, "I may not be able to kill you, but I can weaken you!"

"Robed one, no!" the Huldufolk screamed behind Maleficent and Diaval.

With not enough time to take to the sky to escape the blast, Diaval wrapped Maleficent in his wings and shielded her completely from the spell. The manic laughter of the robed man nearly drowned out the screams of the Huldufolk as their magic and life force drained from them. Diaval felt the pull at the magic inside of him, but it was nothing compared to the screams that had come from outside of his wings. Maleficent huddled against his chest and shrunk away from the outside. She felt some of her power being pulled, but the majority of the blast went over her.

Once the blast was over, Diaval lifted his head and looked over his shoulder at the man who still held the blue magic around his ring. Diaval looked around them quickly and saw the drained corpses of the dark fairies, but everything else was untouched. He checked down at Maleficent who seemed more worn than what she was only moments ago. She wouldn't do well with another near miss. The rune on her wrist glowed with the blue magic that had seeped in. It too protected her to a point, but not enough.

"You need to get to Ulstead. Can you fly?" Diaval whispered to her and then focused his eyes back on the man.

"If you think that I am going to leave you-"

"Don't make me throw you into the air like I had to do Phillip," he quickly interrupted her. He flashed her a smile, "There is only one of them this time and I know a few more tricks that they don't know I know. Can you fly?"

"Yes."

"Then go. I will be right behind you," he quickly threw out his hand, pulled at the power stored in the ring on his finger and drew a large wall of earth and plant life from the ground in front of the sorcerer. The man yelled and fell back in surprise.

"Right behind me," she ordered him with a short kiss before she took off.

Diaval kept an eye on her disappearing form into the clouds before he looked back at the sorcerer caught in the last of the vines.

"You have learned some new tricks since we last saw one another, little raven. Even grew some wings," the voice chuckled, "I'm impressed."

"As you should be," Diaval got off the ground and patted his hands, "I'm a very impressive sort."

The man finally took note that they were alone, "Where is the devil?"

"Maleficent is already far from your reach," Diaval put out his hands as if to show him that no one else was there, "It's just you and I."

"You must have loved your punishments to face them all over again, raven."

"I am more than what I was then," he ran forward and shifted his hands into talons as he clawed at the robe.

"Thanks to you, I got a new trinket," the man spun out of his way and pulled at the magic from his ring to grab Diaval around the throat. He pulled him from the ground and hissed at the cuts that Diaval made with his talons, but didn't loosen his grip, "It has more to it than before."

Diaval felt his windpipe begin to close under the grasp of his capture. He would not do this to Maleficent again. He wouldn't be caught like an... an animal. He called out to the only thing that came to mind. One of his claws turned back into a hand and reached out into the air.

"You think that reaching for something will bring it to you?" the robed one laughed.

There was suddenly a handle in Diaval's hand. He let go of the man's arm to swing the shovel into the head. The iron-headed shovel connected with the man's head with a loud clang and hiss. The man couldn't duck in time and fell unconscious with the vicious hit. Diaval dropped to his feet, coughing and gasping for air. He stumbled and then steadied himself with the shovel in hand. He took a few deep breaths and looked at the tool.

"Yeah, I do," he answered the man's question, shook the shovel a little as if to congratulate it on saving his life and tossed it to the ground over the robed one. Then, there is was again. The slight hiss.

Diaval knelt down and pulled the sleeve up that was now over the shovel. The iron handle of the shovel laid just over the skin, the skin now hissing from the connection. Diaval took the shovel off and turned the robed figure over. He uncovered the hood and there was a Redcap underneath. No wonder that he couldn't find his figure in the crowds of humans, or his distinct walk... he was a Dark Folk.

Diaval felt someone behind him and without thought, took the new ring from the Redcap and took to the sky. Just as he flew up a string of fire blew underneath him. He turned back to see another robed figure who watched him in the sky, a pendant swinging around his neck. He shook his head as he definitely knew he was outmatched at this point should the Redcap awaken. He took off into the clouds and out of sight of the sorcerers down below.

He broke through the top of the clouds and looked frantically for Maleficent. She was riding a current of air about a mile ahead. She searched the clouds for him as well and he saw her shoulders relax a bit in relief when she finally caught sight of him. He flew quickly to her and looked her over, "Are you okay?"

"Am I?" she took his face in her hands and pulled his chin up to look at his neck, "What happened?"

"I got another ring," he produced the trinket.

She sighed heavily and looked at him square in the eyes, "What do care of a ring? What gave you these marks?"

"A Redcap," he said with a bite on his tongue, "I will explain on the way back."

As they rode some of the current back, he felt a pull at his arm as Maleficent seemed to be waning in energy. Her hand sought his as she felt herself falling lower.

"Let's fly lower," he offered just in case she may need to land quickly. They both flew through the clouds and looked down at the thorn wall just below them. Diaval kept a close eye on her should she falter, but his eyes were drawn to something in the woods on the Moor side of the line. Movement, quick, but uniformed pushed through the trees. He lowered them both to a large oak tree and placed her on a branch, "I will be right-"

"No, you will be going nowhere without me," she growled and he knew an order when he heard one.

He sighed, "We have to stay in cover."

They both left the tree and headed straight into the thorn wall where she let the branches engulf them and hide their forms. They looked through the branches toward the direction of footfalls. Then they saw it. A small force of Dark Folk marched through the Moors toward Ulstead. The troop itself was small, but there were beings that could tear down anything they came upon. At the front was one robed figure who scanned the Moors ahead of him to deem it worthy to cross. The creatures stayed to the shadows and would continue to do so until night fell.

"We need to get home," Diaval whispered and looked back at Maleficent who nodded heavily. His brows furrowed in worry and they walked out of the thorns, "Just how much did that spell take from you?"

"I just need rest," she assured him and patted him on his chest, "I can rest when we get back and after I heal you."

He didn't put up an argument as he could almost feel her frustration and anger. Instead of agreeing with her, he said nothing, picked her up in his arms and jumped into the air.

"You may not be able to carry me yet," she noted as he dropped a little in altitude in the sky. He just figured out to fly with only his own weight earlier in the day. Her arms wrapped around his neck as he held her tighter.

"I have carried you through worse," he muttered and pushed his wings toward Ulstead at a steady pace.


"A Redcap? Are you sure?" Robin asked as Diaval was looked over by Maleficent back at their pod in the sanctuary.

"As sure as I knew it was the same one who beat me," Diaval nodded and pointed to the ring now in Robin's hand, "Stole that one from him, too."

"After he almost choked you to death," Maleficent growled.

"That means that they have a way to make more focus tools- or have a stash of them," Robin hummed and spun the ring in his hand.

Maleficent sighed heavily and looked at Diaval, "I will have to heal your whole neck. My claiming mark with it."

"That just means a new one, yes?"

"Not if you're dead!" she hissed and hit him upside the head before she began to heal his neck.

"You aren't back to full strength yet, don't worry about healing me, your magic in my blood will do that for me," he tried to push her hand away, but she only shushed him and put her hand out again, "Okay, so that will have to wait after you are doing being mad at me."

"That may take a while," she added as her magic flowed all around his neck, "You told me that you would be right behind me."

"And, for lack of better judgment on my part for this, I will argue that I was," he stared at the top of her head as she didn't look up at him as she worked on his neck, "I promise that I made sure that I was going to follow you back. They were not going to catch me again."

"I wish you would stop risking your well being," she growled in frustration, "I do not wish to lose my mate so quickly."

"And you will not," he caught her hands before she withdrew them. It made her eyes raise to his, "I needed to get you out. Give you enough of a head start. Another robed one was there, right behind him, because they were ready to take you."

"And just what are you two doing?" Aurora asked as she burst into the small pod, Phillip and Prince John just behind her.

"I am healing your feather-headed father once more," Maleficent leaned back from Diaval to turn to Aurora, "It isn't quite dusk. We were on our way to dinner as planned."

"One that is now going to grow cold," Aurora put her hands on her hips, "What happened?"

"They are attacking outside of the Moors," Diaval reported and sat up with a rub of his hand over his entire neck. He felt the complete healing and frowned as he knew the mark under his ear was gone as well.

"What?"

"A group of Huldufolk attacked a small farming homestead at the edge of the Moors and Perceforest. Tried to take the family that lived there," Diaval explained and eyed Maleficent, "We stopped them, but it was a trap to get your mother out and unprotected. A robed one came upon us and used the draining spell. Drained the Huldufolk in an attempt to drain her enough to take her. Would have possibly worked if not for Lickspittle's charm and yours truly."

"If that had worked out so well, why would she need to heal you?" she asked with a tilt of her head.

"He gave me enough time to escape another draining attempt," Maleficent relented that point at least and took a deep breath, "He faced one of his captures and was injured in the process."

"He got another ring," Robin added on and showed them the ring.

"I could care less about a ring!" she fumed.

Phillip put a hand at her back and stepped forward to try and calm her. He looked at them both, "Anything else?"

"We saw something on the fly back," Maleficent frowned, "They are coming in force. A small one, but filled with ogres, goblins, Redcaps and bogeys. They are heading here."

Phillip pinched his nose to think, "How long?"

"At least a day, unless they use magic. I doubt that they will attack in the day, so we best be on our guard the next few nights. Be sure we are ready," Maleficent explained.

"And I think I know why the Dark Folk are following them," Diaval looked at the royals, "One of the robed ones are a Dark Folk- a Redcap. He was the one who had beat me before. Redcaps don't usually care for magic all that much. Like to use their brute strength. This one is no exception. My thoughts are that he persuaded the other Dark Folk to follow these men to extinguish the rest."

"The rest?" John spoke up

"Of the humans," Maleficent answered, "As much as it is said that I loath humanity, multiply that by hundred times over and it will reveal how much the Dark Folk truly despise humans. They think you have no rights to what you do have and will do everything in their power to make sure you have no standing in the Moors or anywhere. This peace treaty and blended kingdoms threaten all that they know. All that they want."

"If they win, not only will the sorcerers rule, but these Dark Ones will have free reign to enslave or kill any and all humans," Robin concluded, "And not only humans but Moor Folk as well. No fairy will be safe again."

"I'm afraid it may be so," Diaval added.

"Then we prepare for battle," Phillip nodded in his decision, "Diaval, Maleficent, I have something I need to show you."