Jason subtly ,but gently,squeezed Ash's hand. He tried to force the white out of his scales but it wouldn't leave the edges.

"If you see them, by order of Queen Mab, they are not to be harmed!" bellowed the knight. "Capture them, or report their whereabouts to any guard, and you will be greatly rewarded. Failure to do so invites the queens wrath upon your head. Spread the word, for tomorrow we march to war!" The knights spurred their mounts into action and galloped off, amid the roars of the Unseelie crowd. Ash looked deep in thought, his eyes narrowed to gray slits. "Rowan isnt dead," he breathed, and it was impossible to tell if he was pleased with this news or not. "At least, not yet. This will make things considerably more difficult." A question suddenly sprang to his mind. "Why would Summer want the Scepter?" He asked. "Did you see who took it?"

"It wasn't summer." Jason said softly,nodding that he saw who had taken it. Sleepy little Shade peaked his head out with a confused soft warble but Jason stroked his head till he slunk back in and fell asleep again. "Poor thing...he felt so bad when he couldn't help." He whispered.

"Wait...it wasn't Summer?" He stared at him blankly for a moment. Out of everyone in the Winter Court, Ash was the only one to actually see the Iron fey. "Are you sure?" he murmured after a few seconds. "Why? Why would the Iron fey steal the scepter? How did they even get inside?"

"I don't know,why they would or how they got in." He shrugged faintly. "Before I killed him, (insert name I can't spell here) said he was following the orders of the new iron king." Shade's little head popped out at the mention of the past events and looked up with guilt and worry at Jason. "Shhh...it's fine,you tried your best." He whispered,stroking Shade jr's little head before the icey dragon slid back into the pocket.

Ash frowned. "We cant go to Summer, then. We're going to the Iron Real. The gates will be guarded," he muttered, looking past him into the street, "and I dont trust the regular trods if Rowan knows were out here." He paused, thinking, then sighed. "There is one more place we can go," he said, feeling bad for Jason

"Ash?" Jason said softly,looking with one hazel eye and one purple eye to the ice prince.

He glanced at Jason, and he suddenly realized how close they were. Their faces were just inches apart and he felt his heartbeat quicken. Quickly, he turned away. "Come on," he whispered and there may or may not have been a tremor in his voice

He stayed close. "Where are we going to go?" He asked softly,tail in close as well as his wings.

"Were not going far, but we have to hurry. The Market keeps its own hours, and if we dont reach it in time, it will disappear." A wild howl rang out of the darkness, and he looked back at the crowd. The Winter fey had gone back to their partying as if nothing had happened, but there was a meaner, desperate edge to their revels now, as if the promise of war had only whetted their appetite for blood. A pair of redcaps and a hag squabbled over the body of the dead goblin. Ash bit his lip and debated over something internally before he took his hand and pulled him on, into the shadows. They fled through the city, keeping to the shadows and darkness, somehow avoiding the mobs in the street. At one point, they very nearly tripped over a redcap exiting a hole in the wall. The creature snarled an insult, but then its beady eyes widened in recognition and it turned to shout a warning instead. Ash gestured sharply, and an ice dagger thunked into the creatures open mouth, silencing it forever.

They reached a circular courtyard on the banks of a huge underground lake, mist writhing off the water to drift along the ground. Colorful booths and tents stood empty as they passed through, flapping in the breeze like a dead, abandoned carnival. An enormous white tree stood in the very center, bearing fruit that looked like human heads. A narrow door was embedded in the thick trunk, and Ash quickened his pace as they approached. "The Market is through here," he explained, pulling him behind the tree as an ogre lumbered past, its steps slow and ponderous. "Now, listen. Whatever you see in there, dont buy anything, dont offer anything, and dont accept anything, no matter how much you want it. The vendors will try to make a deal with you--ignore them. Keep silent, and keep your eyes on me. Got it?"