Faerie Queen
I tried to rise, but then my eyes alighted on a scene
Of faerie creatures dancing by, cavorting 'round their Queen
She'd been out hunting, it was plain, delighted by her prize
And though he was in thrall to her, I knew his gentle eyes
I stood again and shouted
when they drew abreast of me,
"I challenge you,
for you have caught
my husband-soon-to-be!"
They stopped and she stared down at me
the Queen upon her steed.
"I see you have the courage, dear,
but skill is what you need."
Be it carved from the out finest wood
or strung with silver string,
only mortal trust
or faerie dust
can make a fiddle sing!
"We each shall play
and I will say
which fiddle is played best
and if you win
this mortal toy
I'll free without protest."
They handed her a violin
as black as she was fae,
she placed a bow upon the strings
and then began to play
- Faerie Queen, Heather Alexander, watch?v=vbEwUTjKwLU
Maeve shot to her feet, and though she tried to cover her shock, managing with a grace only the fae could accomplish, they'd all seen that moment of surprise and dismay.
"You dare," she snarled, otherworldly beauty twisting into something ugly and feral, hands curling into claws. "To enter my realm, uninvited and armed!"
"You dare!" Tooth shot back, feathers bristling and swords held close and ready, the others close behind her. "To take Jack, and the children!"
Maeve's eyes narrowed, a calculating grin curling the corner of her mouth. "So, Jack comes first, then then children, Guardian?"
Tooth's eyes narrowed, glaring back at the fae queen. Jack tried to inch his way towards the others while Maeve was distracted, but his hopes were shot as her eyes shot to him, pinning him in place for the moment.
"The kids are safe," he called out to the others instead, eying the distance between all of them cautiously. Maeve was standing between them right now, but off to the side...he just might have a clear shot to make it to them, if he timed it right.
"Jack...what did ya do?" Bunny called, and Jack could have brightened at the concern in his voice if he'd dared show weakness.
"Oh, we just made a deal," Maeve answered before Jack could, inspecting her nails gloatingly as the Guardians paled. "It's no wonder you want him back so badly, Toothiana. He is quite...talented. I look forward to discovering more."
"It was a dance for each child, and we finished before you got here," Jack cut in, refusing to allow any other interpretation. "As for the rest..."
"Jack's leaving with us," Tooth said firmly, not taking her eyes off Maeve. Oh, she wanted to, and badly, to check Jack over and be sure he was fine, but she knew better than to let a fae, let alone a fae queen, out of her sight.
"And why should he?" Maeve asked, swaying towards Jack even as he backed towards the Guardians, slowly, trying to keep from making any move that would make her react violently. "I can give you anything you want, Jack," she crooned, invading his space even as he tried to back away, feeling her herding him away from his goal and trying to change that even as reached out to run a sharp nail down the front of his hoodie. "Attention, followers, subjects. Children to play with you, who'll never grow up and stop believing. Anything you can dream of, I can make yours." She either ignored or didn't notice how Jack tried to lean away from her greedy fingers and invasion of his space, continuing in a voice that dropped into a seductive purr. "How perfect you would look, in white furs and silver crown, with sapphires to match your eyes. A proper Winter Prince to stand by a fae queen."
"What is it with spirits trying to get me to join them?" Jack asked, humor and irritation heavy in his voice to cover the quick burst of fear, remembering that first invitation in Antarctica and dozens of hinted insinuations since then, all after he'd finally place he belonged. He backed away as he spoke, towards the other Guardians. "I'm a Guardian, and I'm going home. Find yourself a different toy, like maybe a puppy."
With an inhuman snarl at Jack's refusal, Maeve darted forward, hands flashing. With a deceptively soft chink of metal, a band of silver appeared around Jack's throat and he froze, staff falling from frozen hands.
"NO!" Tooth screamed, hands outstretched towards Jack even as he stumbled, falling into Maeve's clutching hands.
Maeve dragged Jack close, twisting him in her arms until she held him pinned, his back to her chest, the collar forcing him into unwilling compliance. She stroked a possessive hand over Jack's hair, pressing her face into it as she spoke. "He really is quite pretty, isn't he? I can see why you wanted him. Still, too bad. Looks like he's staying with me now."
Jack stood passive under her hands as they stroked down to his waist, offering no resistance to their roaming. Tooth clenched her teeth, hands balled with anger as she stared at the fae queen.
She searched Jack's face frantically, but it was blank and empty. Only his eyes gave away that he was still in there, terrified and disgusted, starting to glaze over as the magic stole him away.
"And such power," Maeve murmured, the arm she'd wrapped around Jack's waist tightening, the other tracing the frost around the collar of his hoodie, ignoring the threatening male Guardians, all her attention on Jack and Tooth. "It's wasted on all of you, really."
Unwilling to use their weapons for fear of hurting Jack even as she continued to croon over her prize, the Guardians hesitated, glancing between themselves as they tried to think of a plan.
Sandy floated higher, symbols flashing by overhead as he glared at Maeve sternly.
She laughed, low and throaty, at whatever Sandy was telling her. "You should know better, Sandman. Once I've placed my collar on someone, spirit or human, I won't just take if off because someone demands I do so," she mocked, laying her cheek on Jack's hair again, rubbing against the soft mass.
Tooth snapped. "Get your hands off my intended!" she demanded, wings buzzing furiously as she fought the urge to try attacking the fae queen, knowing she would hurt Jack, bespelled as he was.
Maeve blinked blankly for a few moments before chuckling. "Your intended?" she questioned, running a hand over Jack's hair as though searching for something. "As I thought – he doesn't wear your feather, O Queen of the Tooth Fairy Armies. You can claim him all you want, but your claim is less valid than mine at the moment. He's mine now."
"We are courting," Tooth countered through gritted teeth. The others stayed back as she fluttered closer to the pair, recognizing the situation for what it was – one they couldn't help with beyond being Tooth's backup. "Jack, keep fighting her! You can't give up!"
"You don't hear her, do you, my pretty one. You want to stay here, with me, as my little pet," Maeve crooned, and it made Tooth nauseous just to hear her.
"Go on now, tell her," the fae queen urged, releasing Jack nudge him forward a step. "Name your queen. Let her know who your heart belongs to."
Forcing back tears, Tooth looked into Jack's eyes, willing him to fight, even as the other Guardians tensed behind her, ready to move at her command and do whatever they had to do to break the spell on Jack.
He faltered, the spell tethering him to Maeve strong, mouth opening and closing as he struggled to fight the spell binding him, and Tooth kept her eyes on his, trying to remember anything that could break the fae queen's spell.
"...Tooth..." Jack said, so quietly they weren't sure if he'd spoken, only sure he'd tried to say something.
"What was that, my little winter spirit? Say it loud, so we can all hear you," Maeve demanded.
"T-Tooth," Jack gasped. "Toothiana."
He stumbled forward, away from Maeve, who clutched at him belatedly, in shock that her ages old spell had broken. Tooth was faster, clutching Jack's outstretched arms and pulling him away from the Unselighe queen and into her arms.
The collar shattered as her arms went around Jack, the magic fading away under her touch. Jack's arms latched around her waist and he pressed against her, hard enough she could feel him shaking, feel his breath panting, too fast and shallow and exhaling mist with each breath over her shoulder.
"She almost had me," he whispered, holding onto Tooth as though she were the only real thing he was sure of. "She was so close, she almost had me, I couldn't...I could hear you, just you, so faintly I wasn't sure."
Behind them, behind the wall the other Guardians had made between the pair and Maeve, Tooth heard Maeve make a sound of disgust.
"True love," she said, as though she were talking about something disgusting the cat had left on the floor. "No wonder it didn't hold."
Tooth pulled Jack a little closer, feeling him turn his head to nuzzle at her neck and breathe out a soft laugh, tickling and cold over her feathers.
"Guess that secret's out, huh?" he said quietly.
"I've been trying to court you for months," Tooth admitted, just as quietly.
There was silence from him at that, before a soft, surprised, reverent "Oh," was breathed. "The others said you were, but..."
She slipped her fingers under his chin, tilting his head up to look at her. His eyes were bright, shining and overflowing with pure, quiet joy and love. With a sudden rush of daring, she laid her lips on his, feeling him start with surprise before melting against her, returning the kiss just as gently and reverently as she'd begun it.
Winding her fingers through hair just as cool and snow-soft as she'd imagined, Toothiana silently rejoiced. Courting was over, her mate won.
They would fly far together.
A/N: Nice thing about AO3, I can control how it looks a little better. Ah well. Bet you all saw this coming. ;) True love conquers all spells.