Alchemy of Love

The Plan

I stared up at the non-human who I very much believed to be a human. He was as evil as any that I’d ever met. “What do you mean you’re going to capture a unicorn? Are you trying to create a magical petting zoo or something?” My wings were getting tired as I tried to keep off the flooring again. I didn’t like being shaken. The raven-haired man still held the cage aloft and I didn’t trust him to not shake me.

“Petting zoo? I do not intend to do create such pointless activities. I only need the dust of the unicorn’s horn, but Nicon, I will have to end up taking all of your blood.”

Wait, what? My wings stopped of their own accord and I fell into a heap at the bottom of the trap. I knew this man was trouble but I had no idea he planned to kill me. I dropped the troublesome sweet that had been my downfall and let it roll to the corner of my prison. “You can’t do that,” I whispered.

Simon’s hazel eyes met mine. There was no empathy there. No caring for other beings. He truly intended to murder me. “It is necessary, Nicon. It is not a personal grudge against you, though I will take pleasure in it, I will admit. As I would to any death of your evil species.”

I hugged my dainty knees to my chest as I stared at him. The way he said it was all so cold. “You can’t be that smart if you’re planning to catch a unicorn at dusk. They don’t come out until morning. You’re not seriously going to make us stay the night out here, are you?” I swallowed the rocks in my throat. It was far too dangerous to stay out here.

“Are you afraid?” Simon chuckled. Not a sound of mirth but one of scorn. “I’ll set up a circle around us to keep away predators.”

“Won’t that stop your unicorn, too? What’s wrong with sleeping in a bed? It’s bad enough you kidnapped me, and you already admitted you’re going to murder me. Can’t you at least let me rest?”

Simon stared at me for a long moment. His lips lost their curl of derision and he put a hand to his chin as he studied me. “Perhaps you are right, Nicon. My April would be most cross at me if I didn’t at least treat you with dignity before I sacrifice you.”

“That’s another thing, why do you even want me? What does my death possibly do for you?” I glared up at him as the tears stung the corners of my eyes. I didn’t want to die. I didn’t want this alchemist thing to take my blood or touch one scale on my wings.

Simon picked up the cage and walked with me away from the area. I wasn’t sure if I felt better or worse that we were leaving the forest. If I had stayed maybe there would have been a chance of my people chancing upon us. But then again I didn’t want any of them caught by this mad-man either. Far better for me to go than anybody actually useful.

I thought he had forgotten my question as we walked deeper out of the forest. “Your lifeblood will bring back my April. That and a few other ingredients. I will not lie to you, fairy. The only reason I’m giving you any sort of positive treatment is thanks for this gift you’ll be handing over willingly or not.”

I shuddered. “Why do I have to die?” I whispered.

“It’s just the way of the world, Nicon.” He came to a small cottage and pulled out a key before opening it.

As soon as the door opened I smelled it. Maybe he wasn’t sensitive enough to the smell, but I was. Death and the already proceeding musk of decay hovered in the air like the aroma of a graveyard. I covered my mouth so I wouldn’t gag. I didn’t even want to look at the figure on the bed. Unfortunately, Simon didn’t give me a choice. My tiny cage was hung up on a hook far off the floor and above the woman. Not only could I not get away from seeing her, but I’d have no respite from the odor.

“That should be good enough for the night,” Simon observed as he studied my cage. “Tomorrow we shall catch the unicorn and I will get all my ingredients ready to go. Then it will all be a matter of waiting for the moon to give us our greatest chance.”

“We’re going to wait?” I whispered. I couldn’t help as my eyes went to the bed again. I stared without seeing at the lump there. How insane was this guy? “Won’t that mean your spell will fail?”

“Not with the lifeblood of a fairy, especially such a young fairy. I really lucked out. Are you comfortable enough given the surroundings?”

“No,” I growled as I glared at him. I didn’t know if I should shout in rage or crumble in on myself and mourn the fact that I was stuck with a murderer. “You want me to sleep on a hard floor,” I held up a hand as I ticked my points off one by one. “You’ve put me under metal distress by telling me you’re going to kill me,” I ticked another finger, “and you want me to sleep above your dearly deceased, and I’m sorry but I can’t take this smell.”

Simon’s eyes darkened. It reminded me of when golden lightning bolts would streak across the dark sky. Never a good sign for me. I trembled as he grabbed my cage and I skidded as he thrust me under his arm. I yelped as I fell against the iron bars and they singed my wings and body. My leg got trapped in-between two of the bars and my yelps became screams as my skin cooked. No matter how I moved I couldn’t right myself. This was it, I was going to die like a bug in one of those magical cages.

My world turned upside down as he righted the cage and set me down on a desk with a loud thump. My foot was still stuck and the pain vibrated through me so much to the point that my screams turned into sobs. “Please, mercy,” I begged.

The darkness faded out of his eyes in an instant. He opened the cage and pulled me out of where I was trapped and set me on the cold floor. It felt soothing against my cooked flesh. “I didn’t see you get hurt, Nicon, I’m sorry.”

Despite the haze of pain, despite the tears that rolled down my cheeks I turned and stared at him. Had the thing actually said sorry? “If you were sorry you would let me go,” I demanded. “Why would you care I’m hurt when you’re going to just kill me anyway? What’s the point?”

Simon didn’t answer as he opened various drawers. I tensed as he pulled out a knife and I scurried back. I didn’t scurry back enough to touch the bars but enough to put some distance between me and this not so gentle giant. Instead of using the knight on me he pulled out some strange fabric from one of his other drawers and started to cut it. When he was done he held the tiny rectangle up and leaned down before slipping it through my bars. “Here, I don’t know how it will work for a pillow, but if you like it I’ll make you a bed with it too, then work on making a cover for you. I never wanted to hurt you, but I need to kill you.”

He looked over at her then. The man stared at her figure for a long time, his eyes searching. I knew better than to interfere and I just observed him and bided my time. I pulled the thing he had called a pillow to me and cuddled my cheek against it. Was this wool from a sheep? It was so soft and fuzzy. He had already gone back to making what I presumed the rest of my bedding but his eyes would flicker over to her more than once.

It was at that moment that I saw him soften that I realized what I must do. If I wanted to live, if I wanted a chance to survive this ordeal there could only be one solution. I didn’t know how I would do it just yet, but I knew without a doubt I would make that man fall in love with me. If he looked at me like that, if he softened toward me like that, there would be no way he could ever go through with killing me. All I had to do was make myself more important than the one he had lost. And I already had one advantage, I wasn’t dead.