He sighed,stroking Shade's little icey head with a shivering hand. He pulled his hood farther over his head,wondering what the heck he'd just agree'd to. He used his hood to help the little ice creatures made of dragon ice and himself as well hide a bit. He knew that they knew what had just happened,and Shade whimpered softly as Fatespeaker nuzzled his neck in an act to try and take his mind from this situation. He looked up and looked to where the Winter fey where,trying to pay more mind to the arrival's than to the situation at hand. That would be at hand.

Two satyrs padded through the briar-covered gates of the courtyard, holding pale trumpets that looked made of bone. They raised the horns to their lips and blew a keening blast, one that set the Unseelie Court to howling. Atop her throne of ice, Mab watched the procedures with a faint smile.

"Gotcha!" hissed a voice behind him

Jason's tail stiffened at the voice behind him and he dared to look back with the little ice eyes of the little creatures looking as well,Shade's wings shivering with Fatespeaker seeming ready to bare her tiny fangs.

It was Tiaothin, who laughed and danced away. "You're an idiot."

He sighed and forced a half grin with a fang. "Yep.Sure am." He said softly,Fatespeaker huffing in exasperation and Shade shakily going limp in relief on his shoulder in his hoodie. "Eeee-~." He squeaked as Jason gently patted him in a silent apology. "Sorry little buddy." "Rrrr~!" Scraped Fatespeaker as to say 'You better be!'

The Seelie Court finally made its appearance. A line of white horses swept into the courtyard, their hooves floating over the ground, their eyes as blue as the summer sky. Atop saddles made of bark, twigs and flowering vines, elven knights peered down haughtily, elegant in their leafy armor. After the knights came, the standard-bearers, satyrs, and dwarfs bearing the colors of the Summer Court. Then, finally, an elegant carriage pulled up, wreathed in thorns and rosebushes and flanked by two grim-faced trolls who growled and bared their fangs at the crowds of Winter fey. Tiaothin sniffed. "They're being highly paranoid this year," she muttered, as a troll took a swat at a goblin that edged too close. "Wonder who the high-and-mighty noble is, to warrant such security measures?"

The carriage rolled to a stop, the doors were opened and King Oberon, Lord of the Seelie Court, stepped out into the snow. The Unseelie fey gasped and snarled, backing away from the carriage, as the Erlking swept his impassive gaze over the crowd. Oberon looked as imposing as ever: slender, ancient and powerful, his silver hair falling to his waist and his eyes like pale leaves. He wore robes the color of the forest, brown and gold and green, and an antlered crown rested on his brow.


Tiaothin gaped, flattening her ears. "Oberon?" she snarled, as the Erlkings gaze swept the crowd, searching meticulously. "Whats Lord Pointy Ears doing here?"

Oberons piercing stare finally found Jason. His eyes narrowed.

Jason felt Shade and even little Fatespeaker shiver and crawl into the safety of his hoodie as he lowered his head. He felt shiveres travel down his spine and force through the cracks in his body all over.

"Lord Oberon," Mab said in a neutral voice, but it was clear that she, too, was surprised to see her ancient rival. "This is a surprise. To what do we owe the honor of your visit?" Oberon approached the throne, flanked by his two troll bodyguards. The crowd of Unseelie fey parted quickly before him until he stood before the throne. "Lady Mab," the Erlking said, his powerful voice echoing over the courtyard, "I have come to request the dragon, Jason, to the Seelie Court."

Oberon gestured at the carriage, and the trolls reached inside, dragging out two pale Winter sidhe, their arms bound behind their backs with living, writhing vines. "I have brought an exchange, as the rules dictate," Oberon continued, as the trolls pushed the prisoners forward. "I will return to you your own, in exchange for his freedom--"


Mab interrupted. "I'm afraid you misunderstand, Lord Oberon," she rasped with the faintest of smiles. "Your dragon is not a prisoner of the Unseelie, but a willing guest. He came to us on his own, after agreeing with Ash to come here. The dragon is bound by his contract to Prince Ash, and you have no power to demand his return. Once a bargain is made, it must be honored by all."


Oberon stiffened, then slowly turned to Jason again. "Is this true?"

He bowed his head,mentally realizing that it was true since he had come to Ash by his own will...because he had been stupid enough to listen to his emotions. He had made the sick promise of coming back if he survived,and he had...barely. "Yes your honor. It is true." Shade gave a small cry and Fatespeaker grabbed her own little icey snout to stop her own cry from escaping,the sound of the little ice dragon was of a soft but sorrowful wind.

The Erlking shook his head. "Then, I cannot help you. Foolish boy. You have doomed yourself to your fate. So be it." He turned from him, a deserting gesture that spoke louder than any words. "He has made his choice," he announced. "Let us be done with this."
The Erlking didn't look at Jason a second time as he reached the carriage and gestured to his trolls. One of them shoved the Unseelie prisoners back into the carriage, while the other opened the opposite door with a grunt. A tall, regal faery stepped out into the snow. Despite her size, she looked so delicate it seemed she would break at the slightest puff of air. Her limbs were bundles of twigs, held together with woven grass. Fragile white buds grew from her scalp instead of hair. A magnificent mantle covered her shoulders, made of every flower under the sun: lilies, roses, tulips, daffodils, and plants there wasn't a name for. Bees and butterflies flitted around her, and the smell of roses was suddenly overpowering. She stepped forward, and the hoards of Winter fey leaped back at her approach as if she had a disease. However, it wasn't the flower woman all eyes were trained on, but what she held in her hands.


It was a scepter, like kings and queens used to carry, only this one wasn't just some decorated rod. It pulsed with a soft amber glow, as if sunlight clung to the living wood, melting the snow and ice where it touched. The long handle was wrapped in vines, and the carved head of the scepter continuously sprouted flowers, buds, and tiny plants. It left a trail of leaves and petals where the lady passed, and the Winter fey kept their distance, growling, and hissing.