Dresden stood tall and regal as he looked smugly around the room at the showing. It was a huge turnout, with every single creature in the vicinity turning up to see what Ryder would do. They expected to watch a death occur here today, but that wasn’t going to happen. We wanted them to take our word that Ryder wasn’t like his father, but to the Fae, actions were a lot louder. I understood where they were coming from, even if I wanted to strangle them all since the lives of our children depended on unfreezing that Tree. Danu had said that I was on the right track, but she’d be interfering if she told us exactly how to achieve it.
I watched Elijah and his people. They stood with Silas, who nodded to me when he noticed my eyes on him. I nodded back, as to not offend him. His people seemed impressed at this, and he smiled and mouthed ‘thank you’ to me. I mouthed ‘blow me’ back, which caused him to throw his head back and bark with laughter.
Elijah watched me with a keen eye. “You too,” I said, and smiled. He didn’t seem to think it funny, but he did however move his hand to his crotch and mouthed ‘you first’.
“Did he just ask you to touch him?” Ryder asked as he leaned over and whispered in my ear.
“No, he told me to blow him first,” I whispered back and then grabbed Ryder’s hand as he started to stand. “Calm down. I’m mending bridges, and making new friends. No one is getting blow jobs tonight, unless it’s you of course, but you’ll have to earn it first, Fairy.”
“I could make you,” he replied hungrily, his timbre vibrating with untold pleasure in it.
“You could, but I’d like it,” I retorted and noticed the entire place was staring at us, hopefully not reading our lips. “Time to get this show going,” I whispered.
“By all means, Princess,” he growled and as I stood, he stood with me. “Tatiana, Dresden,” Ryder said as I slowly nodded my head in subtle acknowledgement as he started the show.
“Why were we summoned here, by you?” Dresden sneered.
“It has been brought to our attention that you’ve aided our enemies, the Mages,” Ryder said, his voice raising enough so the entire room could hear him clearly. I watched as the pair didn’t even bother to hide their smugness as Ryder slowly continued, giving them just enough time to appease the room of their guilt. “If this information is correct, you’ve committed a crime against Faery.”
“We’ve committed no crime against Faery, only aided an enemy to remove a threat,” Tatiana hissed with an ugly smile.
“And which threat would that be exactly, Tatiana?” I asked as I felt myself floating, and as I looked down to the floor, I was. Not by much, but I was! Now was not the time to discover new powers. “Danu!”
“Yes?” she asked as she moved out from behind Elijah and stepped forward.
“I’m floating; make it stop before someone notices it!”
My feet touched the ground as Tatiana started her speech.
“The people of Faery are tired of you and your strumpet, King, and most have openly acknowledged that you, Ryder, are the spitting image of your father, in looks and in deeds! You demanded this tart at her birth and you have her fully under your influence, and she’s my own niece! My heart bleeds to think of the things you’ve done to her—”
“Call Synthia a strumpet again, and I’ll forget my purpose and feed the Sluagh your entrails,” Ryder warned with venom dripping from his lips.
“See! He is no better than his sire! He threatens my husband with eternal death, and more. Will you allow him to continue to threaten us with those vile creatures of the Sluagh? Or will you stand with us, the Light Fae, and take arms against him? I say it ends here! The Mages have promised to leave us in peace if they can have the Horde! No longer would we have to live in fear, or take orders from their kind!” Tatiana shouted as her husband nodded his head vigorously beside her.
“We have given this world no reason to fear us. I stand here as the King of the Horde, asking you to admit the charges against you, not by myself, but with the other Heirs of this world, who accuse you of these crimes. I have not raised arms against anyone here, Tatiana, so you’d call them to arms on false pretenses?” Ryder said calmly.
“Do not take your anger out on my wife!” Dresden growled, and narrowed his eyes smugly. He watched Ryder closely, planning the best way to bring out the beast, of this I was sure. He wanted him to be the creature, because this assembly would fear it.
“Seriously, Dresden?” I asked, and shook my head. “Enough with your overly dramatic games; facts are what will be used here. Isn’t it a fact that you idiots have been allowing the Mages to use your lands, and to travel through them with a guarantee of safe passage? Answer the charges, because that is why you are here. Not to plan some half-assed coup,” I asked and watched as Dresden turned all but purple with rage.
“Yes, and I did so for everyone here, to depose the Horde King! It is my lands, and my right to allow any who ask my permission to pass through them!”
“So you willingly allowed them into Faery via the path through the Light Lands?” Ryder continued for me as he took over. I’d given him enough time to calm the beast that had to be rattling his cage.