Today has been a very interesting day.

I think.

I'm still wrapping my head around it all. Darien has been nothing but patient, explaining the broad strokes of the Fae Folk as they're called.

Fun fact.

The Fae and the Fae Folk are two entirely different things. Not confusing at all. It's like say jalapeños and cayenne are different kinds of peppers but people still call them peppers regardless.

Okay, maybe that metaphor was too simple.

I'm not very good at this.

I only learned about all this stuff an hour ago.

There's a variety of Fae Folk, some downright nasty and the others borderline harmless. Darien said he'd lend me a book about it.

Oh, there's also the courts. The four main ones are Winter, Autumn, Spring and Summer. And within these four courts are the other courts. An example is the Court of Night which is under the Court of Winter, where coincidently that bitch Odile is from.

Darien a quarter fae while Fallon is half fae. Both of them lived in the Summer Court.

It's nice to know the class system from which your deepest and darkest nightmare reigns supreme. Really keeps a girl on her toes.

In total, the Fae Folk are dangerous and the Fae are even more dangerous and two of my friends just happen to be part Fae.

Great.

I don't know where exactly I took the wrong U-turn in my life but here I am, sitting side by side with Darien as we head over to Fallon's flat.

Darien is staring outside the window, his eyes scanning the dark landscape for something. He keeps his hands tucked around him.

His thoughts are elsewhere. If I could know what he was thinking about.

I wish he would tell me. It would make things a whole lot easier.

It's kinda funny. Darien and I.

We're friends but I wouldn't say we're particularly close.  I think we know each other because of Fallon. We got along but it was cordial. There was no tension, not even a hint of friction.

I don't know why that bothered me so much now.

Whenever I hung out with Fallon, he would be right there. I knew those two were a package deal early on.

I care about him and I think he cares about me but is that all?

Matter of fact, this is the longest we've ever been alone together without Fallon in the room.

The bus came to a jerky stop. Both of us got out. The rain had stopped tonight, leaving only the chill behind.

Darien held my umbrella for me and I put on my scarf.

We walked in silence to Fallon's apartment. All that we could hear was the sound of our footsteps and the sirens in the distance.

How could silence be so loud?

I pressed my arm against Darien's side. Now that I knew that this wasn't some elaborate prank, I felt this fear creep up on me. Anything could be there lurking in the dark and I wouldn't know a single thing about it.

I'm a woman. That's a different type of fear. I've been in situations where I was scared to be alone and I know what it's like to constantly glance over your shoulder on a night like this.

This was different.

Way different.

"Nothing will hurt you," Darien said as if he could read my thoughts.

"You sure?" I cocked my eyebrow.

"Fae Folk don't prey on humans as often as they used to." He glanced behind him. "Of course...there are a few exceptions."

"Wow, so comforting." I nudged. "What's to say some redcap or selkie or whatever-they-want-to-call themselves wouldn't try to drag me away to my doom if I was alone."

Darien tucked his hand in the crook of my elbow and led me away. He picked up his pace.

"They could but nine times out of ten, they won't. Unless they want to face the wrath of the High Fae Courts, they wouldn't." He said, ducking us around a corner. "Some take that risk and you'll get a human who's disappeared under 'mysterious circumstances' or a body fished from the river with unexplained marks."

"So who stops them? The main Courts?" I ask.

"They can't. Not really. They don't like coming here but some will risk crossing over." He answered. We were only two blocks away from Fallon's apartment.

The streetlights flickered briefly before coming back on again. Darien narrowed his eyes at them.

"Who?"

"People like Odile."

He looked different under the lamplight. The yellow fluorescent lights made his features look different. I could see the slight shimmer of his glamour come undone, his rounded ears becoming pointy and the colour of his eyes change into a lighter shade.

It was the subtle changes that made all the differences.

He looked more ethereal. I wanted to reach up and trace the curvature of his ears.

I tore my eyes away, counting the cracks on the sidewalk till we reached Fallon's Bookstore. The lights were out and the sign was turned to 'closed.'

I craned my head up, letting the droplets of rain fall on my face.

The light in Fallon's room was on.

Darien pulled out a space key and unlocked it. He quickly ushered me in, taking a glance outside before shutting the door firmly behind us.

There was only one light and that was from the backroom that had the stairwell leading up to Fallon's Apartment. A sliver of fluorescent light spilt out, casting odd shadows all over the bookstore.

A crack of thunder erupted from outside. I started, accidentally knocking over an old stack of books.

"Shit," I cursed, bending down to pick them up.

I spotted a flurry of movement as I tried to grab a book, followed by a gurgling hiss.

I pulled my hand back and watched as the pile of books suddenly righted themselves. The last book which was underneath one of the tables lifted in the air and fell over on its top.

There was a scuttling sound and another hiss before it was silent again.

"What was—" I took a step back, bumping into Darien.

"Brownies," Darien said casually. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of candy. "They like to clean and they consider it rude when people do their work for them."

"Oh," I said, peaking into the darkness. I raised my hand. "Sorry about that."

One of them made a grumbling sound as they brushed past my foot.

Darien placed the candy on the cashier's counter.

I watched as the candy disappeared into the dark corner of the store, nearly hitting me in the head. That was followed by the scuttling of small feet as they descended on the sugary treat like a pack of piranhas.

I wondered how they looked. Maybe it was in the book that Darien said he'd give me.

"Hey, is this how you guys keep the apartment so clean?" I asked.

Darien didn't answer me but his silence was loud enough. I felt a familiar chill emanate from my chest. It was the same dreadful feeling I got when Odile had tried to kidnap me.

I turned around and Darien was at the front of the store, his eyes scanning the shadows.

Something had followed us. I could feel it. Darien tucked me against his side, a knife in his other hand.

"Go find Fallon," he said, in a hard voice.

I followed his gaze, staring into the darkness. They—whoever they were—had destroyed the streetlights and cut the power.

There was no way I could fight. Both of us knew that.

"Go on, Maria." He placed his hand on the door, his knife flashing in his other hand. "Please."

I squeezed his arm and sprinted up the stairs, screaming out Fallon's name.