Lina: Twisted Fairy Tales Book Two

2: Escape Attempts

“If I could just..” I cursed as I broke off another claw. My finger shook as I held it up for inspection, already bleeding from scrabbling at the window that was somehow, magically, sealed shut. I’d been digging at the plaster below the sill this time. Three days and I still couldn’t manage a full shift. Three days, and this is what I had to show for it. Blood oozed from the sides of my nail where I’d ripped it away from the nailbed. Disgusted, I gripped the throbbing finger and slid down the wall. It didn’t help that my animal claws were attached to the last bone in my fingertips, and melded with my human anatomy in this half-shift to split into a strange human/animal hybrid nail that burst from my fingertips and blended along my human nail beds, so every broken claw I literally felt down to the bone.

“My Lady Laoina?” The same gorgeous Fae woman from the first day walked in with a tray of food and a pitcher of water. My half-shift allowed me the ability to smell the water, but I couldn’t find a way to dig through a blasted window. The Fae woman sniffed delicately. Why do I smell blood?”

“It’s Malina.” I grumbled, ignoring her second question and letting the half-shift absorb back into me.

“Yes Lady.” She answered as she set the tray on a table by the opposite wall before turning back to look at me. I was still holding my throbbing finger, glaring at it grumpily. All at once, the Fae was across the room, her hands cupping mine. “My Lady! What have you done to your hands?” She cried.

I rolled my eyes.

“Gave myself a nail trimming. The hard way.” I remarked sarcastically. Sarcasm that was lost on my maid/prison guard.

“My Lady?” She searched my face questioningly. I sighed.

“Never mind.” I had already given up on asking her for help out of here. Too straight-laced or naive, that one. Of course, she also seemed to hold a healthy dose of respect and fear for our dear abducting leader fairy/elf combination mandman. My jailer tsked and stood, moving to the other side of the room to fetch a pitcher of water and washbasin, pausing only long enough to pull several handkerchiefs from a drawer on her way back to me. I rolled my eyes again. I’ll be fine, in a little while. I commented, as she settled back down in front of me to busily clean the wounds.

“Not if you keep at this, you won’t.” She finally snapped, throwing a bloodied kerchief into the washbasin. “You think me a fool, but I know you are trying to escape. So does the Lord. And if he should find out..” She gripped one of my slowly healing fingers and squeezed it until the wound burst open again and the blood welled out and rolled down my finger. I winced. “..what you’re using these nifty little gifts from your Sire’s blood for? He will prevent you from accessing them. You forget that the magic that runs through your veins, runs through this Realm. And he is in charge of all.” She shoved to her feet, poofy skirts swirling about her dramatically. I gaped after her for a moment.

“Now, your dinner is on the table, I trust you don’t need me to spoon feed you, Highness?” She sneered. My mouth slammed shut and I grinned at her as she looked at me.

“Spice. I like it. Didn’t think you had any backbone to you. Nice to meet your dark side.” I commented. She huffed, bustling her way out the door, grumbling under her breath as I grinned after her like a fool. Eh, maybe my father had too much of an influence on me growing up. Speaking of which..

Forcing myself to my own feet, I casually paced to the door. Maybe my saucy jailer had accidentally forgotten to lock the door when she’d left in such a snit. I wandered over and ried the knob, only to curse when I realized of course she had not been so negligent. Ah well, maybe my spicy nanny would be back. Meanwhile, let’s see what food was on offer..

It was easy to lose track of time here. ‘The Realm’ seemed to function on its own time schedule. Too many hours crammed into very long days or extremely long nights, that made no sense at all. And then time would seem to hop forward suddenly as if to make up for the lag previously. Maybe that was why everyone around me was insane.

It took me a few more days to adjust to what I had begun to refer to as ‘Realm sickness’, and then I started plotting my escape in earnest. First thing would have to be to win everyone’s trust.

“Soooo.. Spicy.. You don’t mind if I call you that, do you? Since you won’t tell me your name?” I was hanging half off the bed/mattress thing upside down by choice this time while I spoke to my Warden Maid. Well my head and shoulders were anyway. It was a sure way to get on her nerves since it was so ‘unladylike’. She sighed and put her sewing in her lap.

“My Lady can call me whatever she wants. As I’ve already stated, names have power..”

“In the Realm.. Yes I know.” I finished for her, mimicking her with a tsk. “Spice is a good name for you.” I grumbled under my breath.

“My Lady?” She feigned ignorance, but I was certain she’d understood me. Blast the Fae senses, even better than a Shifters, it seemed.

“Where’s your crazy master? I mean Lord? And how long do I have to stay cooped up in this room? I’ve never been a chicken, but if that’s what you’re looking for..” With a shove, I righted myself and pulled at the threads that held my body together. With a squawk and a flap of wings, I was a white hen in the middle of the once fancy gown that had been forced upon me. I battled my way out of the neckline, with an impatient series of squawks, then settled down in the middle of the ridiculously fluffy layers.

My jailer merely sighed and picked up her sewing again, used to my antics by now. I fluffed up my feathers, wondering if I should push the joke any further. With a defeated cluck, I jumped from the bed with a flap of wings while tugging at the threads of my being again. It was easier letting them reweave my human form, I was more familiar with it.

“Get it? Cooped up? Chicken coop? Yes? No? I flapped my bare arms, but my patiently stitching guard ignored me. I groaned and plopped down on the bed with a sigh, crossing one leg over the other and propping an elbow on my knee to watch her. “Don’t you at least have any books I can read?” I whined. Alright, so it may not have seemed like I was gaining any trust, but surely I was breaking my newfound guardian in, right? She continued to sew, ignoring me.

“Do you intend to get redressed?” She finally questioned me calmly.

“Do you intend to ask your almighty Lord and Master for some form of entertainment for me so I can stop trying to amuse myself?” I shot back. She quirked a brow at me.

“No, for I am to be your entertainment.” She responded.

“Oh yippee.” I muttered.

“My Lady?”

“Then no, for the foreseeable future, I may just have to entertain myself by walking around nude. I’m afraid you’re failing miserably at your job of entertainment. Not even a reaction at my chicken coop joke or even a slight offense at my nudity.” I crossed my arms and examined my nails. Out of the corner of my eyes, I noticed my jailer raise her eyebrows.

“Does my Lady wish me to also parade around without clothes?” She looked horrified. For a moment, I gaped, trying to figure out how she’d come to that conclusion. And I would have found it hilarious, if the door hadn’t popped open at that precise moment. I closed my eyes, flooded with immediate regret.

The door slammed closed again, angrily, and the room fell silent. I was raised not to fear or feel shame at nudity. When you have Shifter abilities, ending up naked just.. Happens.. Sometimes. But I was also taught not to let others take advantage. Just because I was nude, didn’t mean I was worth less. Or that my body was for sale.

I still had control.

“What is the meaning of this?” Hissed the Fae King. I opened my eyes and smiled brightly.

“‘This’ as in a certain object, generally in the context of being present or pointed out, or are we referring more to a choice between two different things, as in a situation?” I questioned drolly. The Fae King smiled, approaching the bed slowly. Unfortunately, I didn't see how sinister the smile truly was until he slammed a hand against my shoulder, pinning me to the bed.

“Clever little Vixen, playing with my words.” His nose slid down the side of my neck and I slammed a knee in his groin. Or attempted to. He was across the room in a blink, marching back towards me, wings buzzing as he straightened a cuff on his tunic. His wings were what really drew my attention, even as he began to talk. So once again, I missed half of it. “..and I expect you to comport yourself as such. You are this Realm’s next Queen, after all, and I won’t have you trouncing around naked.” His eyes lit up as he looked at me, an eager expression on his face. “Unless of course, you never intend to leave the bedroom.” Then his expression soured again. “However, I will not have others viewing what is mine, what is between us…” My mind, so easily distracted, was stuck on something else.

“Queen?!” I sputtered. “Of the Fae?!”