fic - flutter follow up
fandom: the oc
title: Flutter, A Sort of Fairytale, aka Here Be No Dragons - Follow Up
rating: PG
disclaimer: I don't own anything OC related.
author's note: This is a follow up to Flutter that I've been playing with. I have a lot of different ways I can take this and I haven't fully decided yet. But I'm satisfied with this bit so I figured I'd share while I'm doing a posting binge before settling in to write for the night.
Flutter
Ryan smiled at the small girl clinging to her mother's hand. She hid her face in her mother's dress.
"Thank you very much, Wizard. Our flowers are the brightest in the land and it is all thanks to your help," the lady said, bowing to him.
"I am glad to be of service," Ryan replied.
Being the Royal Wizard was more work than he'd expected. People visited the palace frequently to ask for his help. Things did thin out once it was publicized that he did not do dark magic of any kind, but he was busy nonetheless.
Anna and Taylor enjoyed the frequent visitors and he'd noticed that some eligible bachelors returned several times a week even if they weren't there to appeal for his services.
"I will pay Miss Taylor, please accept this rose bush from our gardens with our gratitude," she said.
Ryan was still uncomfortable accepting money for simply for helping people but the Princess insisted. The townspeople had caught on and would give money to Anna or Taylor and give him fine fruit, fabric or plants for their thanks.
He had his own vault in the Princess' treasury with the money the girls collected for him. They were almost apprentices at this point and worked hard to finish their housework so they could help him in the workshop.
"The coast is clear, you are free to go frolic," Anna smiled, joining him behind the small desk.
Ryan smiled. Alex was always waiting for him to join her and his time with her was his favorite time. He nodded his thanks and cleaned up the tables before heading through the garden.
His unicorn was waiting for him in the clearing but Alex was not there. The unicorn whinnied and crouched down for him to climb on.
He did not question.
He didn't sense danger but his wings were buzzing by the time they reached the waterfall.
Alex was sitting with a stranger that had bright iridescent wings with a huge wingspan. But she did not seem afraid and smiled widely at him, waving him over.
"Sire, this is my lover, Ryan," Alex introduced.
Ryan realized that the fairy was royalty in their realm and bowed respectively before Alex pulled him down to sit beside her on the moss.
"It is my pleasure, Ryan. The tales of your magic and kindness have traveled far. I come to ask for your assistance."
"My assistance, sire?" He did not want to offend him and followed Alex's lead in addressing him.
"You may call me Jimmy," the king said.
"How could I help you? I am only part-Fae," Ryan replied.
"I took a mortal lover much like the lovely Alex," he replied. "She had my child but was not willing to care for her. My child is more human than Fae and I think it is time she learned about the mortal life outside of my wood. I would like you to take her in as your apprentice, if you are willing."
Ryan was surprised by his admission. He knew how difficult it was to grow up as a half-blood.
"I would be honored to help you, but I must ask the Princess if she would allow your daughter shelter in her home," Ryan said.
"Will you arrange for me to speak with them? I will make a treaty with them for protection if they will give my daughter a safe home to learn about the mortal world," Jimmy said.
"Of course, sire, that would be very kind of you," Ryan said. "I will arrange a meeting as soon as I return. In the orchard so you will be comfortable."
---------------
Kirsten and Sandy sat on the wooden stools the girls had arranged for them in the orchard around the folding table lined with fruit and fine silver plates.
She'd never considered the fairy world to be similar to theirs enough to have a king but she had seen the importance of this meeting in Ryan's flushed cheeks when he requested it.
Ryan didn't seem to know how to turn someone away that needed help and she did not want to turn away an offer of an ally in the Fae world.
"Here they come," Sandy said, standing up to greet their guests as Ryan escorted Alex and the stranger.
She bowed to the man but he waved his hand to dismiss it. "You do not have to bow to me, my lady, I am grateful that you are willing to see me. Most mortals distrust the Fae."
"Ryan has taught us much and we are honored to meet you," she said, having trouble tearing her eyes away from his shimmering wings.
"Has he told you of my request?" the man asked, sitting down and smiling as he saw the many gifts of fresh fruit.
"You wish to give him an apprentice to mentor, your daughter?" Sandy asked.
"Yes, kind sir, my child. She is only half Fae and while we have raised her to the best we were able, we can only teach her so much about the mortal world and it is not fair to her to never know the life of her other half," he said.
"If Ryan is willing to mentor her, we would be honored to have her in our home," Kirsten said.
The man smiled, nodding. "Thank you. You have my word that your lands and your kingdom will be blessed for your kindness. And if the time ever comes that you need an ally, we would be at your service."
"I will have our servants prepare a room for her. May I ask her age?" Kirsten asked.
"In mortal years, she is fourteen," the Fae replied. "Alex, will you bring her from the meadow?"
Ryan's sprite nodded respectively and disappeared into the trees.
The man turned to them again and held out a shimmering orb on a velvet pillow. "This is an orb that you can use to contact me if the need arises. My daughter has one as well, so I can keep in touch with her."
Kirsten accepted it and marveled at how weightless it was.
Alex returned with a pretty red-haired girl in one of the silken robes like her own. "This is Kaitlyn."
The girl's wings were like Ryan's had been when she first met him, full of sparkling white feathers. She had inquisitive green eyes and gravitated to her father's side.
"Kaitlyn, the Lady Kirsten and her mate have given permission for you to stay with them," the Fae said.
"But, Father..."
"You must learn the rules of the mortal world so you can decide which life you will fit best in," the Fae said kindly to his daughter.
Kaitlyn nodded even as her eyes filled with tears.
"I will contact you tonight to see how you are doing. Even though you will not be physically with me, I am still with you always," the Fae said.
"Yes, Father," she whispered, hugging him tightly.
Once they separated, the Fae stood and moved aside with Alex as Ryan stepped closer to Kaitlyn and gave her a reassuring smile.
She didn't know how the Fairy King thought he could bless them more than they already were with Ryan's protection.
"If my wife consents, we will consult with Ryan and Alex to arrange a safe haven near the edge of the wood for you to visit with her," Sandy said.
"Of course," Kirsten said, putting an arm around him. He was always much better with the diplomacy than she.
The Fae seemed surprised, but smiled and bowed to them this time. "Thank you. That will be most helpful when we send gifts for our beloved princess," he said. "If you will walk with me a moment, I will pick a clearing and place a gift for your household."
She followed the Fae to the edge of a meadow she hadn't visited before between the orchards and the grain fields.
The Fae spoke several words that were of no language she had ever heard before and she watched in awe as stones floated in from the forest and constructed a fine well. Branches formed a roof and pulley system around a smooth vine. A carved wooden bucket appeared and the Fae King took it in his hands and murmured softly until it was covered in strange symbols. He laced it carefully into the vine.
"The well is filled with the pure water of Alex's pool in her wood. If you drink it, it will give you good health and vitality," The Fae king said. "Kaitlyn, I love you, please be safe and well. Ryan, I hope she will prove to be a good apprentice for you and will learn from your noble example." He turned back to her. "Lady Kirsten, I thank you again for your kindness."
-----------------
Anna nudged Taylor awake when Princess Kirsten returned with Sandy and Ryan from the orchard. "They got her," she whispered, standing up and pulling her drowsy friend with her.
"Ladies, this is Kaitlyn, she's our new guest," Kirsten said.
"Welcome," Anna said.
"I'm Taylor and she's Anna, and you're just so pretty!" Taylor said, clapping her hands in excitement when she saw the girl's wings.
Kaitlyn flushed and ducked closer to Ryan.
"Taylor has wing envy," Anna said, earning a small smile from the girl.
"We have your room all ready, and I know from Ryan that I can't touch your wings," Taylor said, glaring at Anna.
"I'll come with you, it will probably be very strange for you," Ryan said.
"So you lived in the Fairy Kingdom? You've never lived with humans?" Anna asked.
"Only for a few nights. Father has wanted me to learn of my human side and let me watch from the village and stay with a mortal friend he has. So I know very little, but enough to know I should feel strange in the spun web dress," Kaitlyn said.
"Anna is a great seamstress, she has cut out wing flaps in some of her dresses for you," Taylor said.
"That is very nice of you," Kaitlyn said, still staying close to Ryan.
"I will make some especially for you now that you are here," Anna said.
"Dresses of my own? Can I watch you? I have always wanted to know how to sew, some of the girls' dresses are very pretty," Kaitlyn said, her eyes lighting up. She turned to Ryan. "I won't have to be an apprentice all the time, will I?"
"No, Kaitlyn, I think your father wanted you to learn of the human customs more than the magic side, you are part Fae, so the magic will come on its own. Anna and Taylor are fine ladies and surely will teach you well," Ryan said.
Anna was flattered.
"Can you teach me how to hide my wings?" Kaitlyn asked after a moment.
"I will try," Ryan replied. "It is more comfortable to visit town without attention if they are hidden."
Anna was pleased that Kaitlyn was relaxing slightly. She even looked a little hopeful.
-----------------
title: Flutter, A Sort of Fairytale, aka Here Be No Dragons - Follow Up
rating: PG
disclaimer: I don't own anything OC related.
author's note: This is a follow up to Flutter that I've been playing with. I have a lot of different ways I can take this and I haven't fully decided yet. But I'm satisfied with this bit so I figured I'd share while I'm doing a posting binge before settling in to write for the night.
Flutter
Ryan smiled at the small girl clinging to her mother's hand. She hid her face in her mother's dress.
"Thank you very much, Wizard. Our flowers are the brightest in the land and it is all thanks to your help," the lady said, bowing to him.
"I am glad to be of service," Ryan replied.
Being the Royal Wizard was more work than he'd expected. People visited the palace frequently to ask for his help. Things did thin out once it was publicized that he did not do dark magic of any kind, but he was busy nonetheless.
Anna and Taylor enjoyed the frequent visitors and he'd noticed that some eligible bachelors returned several times a week even if they weren't there to appeal for his services.
"I will pay Miss Taylor, please accept this rose bush from our gardens with our gratitude," she said.
Ryan was still uncomfortable accepting money for simply for helping people but the Princess insisted. The townspeople had caught on and would give money to Anna or Taylor and give him fine fruit, fabric or plants for their thanks.
He had his own vault in the Princess' treasury with the money the girls collected for him. They were almost apprentices at this point and worked hard to finish their housework so they could help him in the workshop.
"The coast is clear, you are free to go frolic," Anna smiled, joining him behind the small desk.
Ryan smiled. Alex was always waiting for him to join her and his time with her was his favorite time. He nodded his thanks and cleaned up the tables before heading through the garden.
His unicorn was waiting for him in the clearing but Alex was not there. The unicorn whinnied and crouched down for him to climb on.
He did not question.
He didn't sense danger but his wings were buzzing by the time they reached the waterfall.
Alex was sitting with a stranger that had bright iridescent wings with a huge wingspan. But she did not seem afraid and smiled widely at him, waving him over.
"Sire, this is my lover, Ryan," Alex introduced.
Ryan realized that the fairy was royalty in their realm and bowed respectively before Alex pulled him down to sit beside her on the moss.
"It is my pleasure, Ryan. The tales of your magic and kindness have traveled far. I come to ask for your assistance."
"My assistance, sire?" He did not want to offend him and followed Alex's lead in addressing him.
"You may call me Jimmy," the king said.
"How could I help you? I am only part-Fae," Ryan replied.
"I took a mortal lover much like the lovely Alex," he replied. "She had my child but was not willing to care for her. My child is more human than Fae and I think it is time she learned about the mortal life outside of my wood. I would like you to take her in as your apprentice, if you are willing."
Ryan was surprised by his admission. He knew how difficult it was to grow up as a half-blood.
"I would be honored to help you, but I must ask the Princess if she would allow your daughter shelter in her home," Ryan said.
"Will you arrange for me to speak with them? I will make a treaty with them for protection if they will give my daughter a safe home to learn about the mortal world," Jimmy said.
"Of course, sire, that would be very kind of you," Ryan said. "I will arrange a meeting as soon as I return. In the orchard so you will be comfortable."
---------------
Kirsten and Sandy sat on the wooden stools the girls had arranged for them in the orchard around the folding table lined with fruit and fine silver plates.
She'd never considered the fairy world to be similar to theirs enough to have a king but she had seen the importance of this meeting in Ryan's flushed cheeks when he requested it.
Ryan didn't seem to know how to turn someone away that needed help and she did not want to turn away an offer of an ally in the Fae world.
"Here they come," Sandy said, standing up to greet their guests as Ryan escorted Alex and the stranger.
She bowed to the man but he waved his hand to dismiss it. "You do not have to bow to me, my lady, I am grateful that you are willing to see me. Most mortals distrust the Fae."
"Ryan has taught us much and we are honored to meet you," she said, having trouble tearing her eyes away from his shimmering wings.
"Has he told you of my request?" the man asked, sitting down and smiling as he saw the many gifts of fresh fruit.
"You wish to give him an apprentice to mentor, your daughter?" Sandy asked.
"Yes, kind sir, my child. She is only half Fae and while we have raised her to the best we were able, we can only teach her so much about the mortal world and it is not fair to her to never know the life of her other half," he said.
"If Ryan is willing to mentor her, we would be honored to have her in our home," Kirsten said.
The man smiled, nodding. "Thank you. You have my word that your lands and your kingdom will be blessed for your kindness. And if the time ever comes that you need an ally, we would be at your service."
"I will have our servants prepare a room for her. May I ask her age?" Kirsten asked.
"In mortal years, she is fourteen," the Fae replied. "Alex, will you bring her from the meadow?"
Ryan's sprite nodded respectively and disappeared into the trees.
The man turned to them again and held out a shimmering orb on a velvet pillow. "This is an orb that you can use to contact me if the need arises. My daughter has one as well, so I can keep in touch with her."
Kirsten accepted it and marveled at how weightless it was.
Alex returned with a pretty red-haired girl in one of the silken robes like her own. "This is Kaitlyn."
The girl's wings were like Ryan's had been when she first met him, full of sparkling white feathers. She had inquisitive green eyes and gravitated to her father's side.
"Kaitlyn, the Lady Kirsten and her mate have given permission for you to stay with them," the Fae said.
"But, Father..."
"You must learn the rules of the mortal world so you can decide which life you will fit best in," the Fae said kindly to his daughter.
Kaitlyn nodded even as her eyes filled with tears.
"I will contact you tonight to see how you are doing. Even though you will not be physically with me, I am still with you always," the Fae said.
"Yes, Father," she whispered, hugging him tightly.
Once they separated, the Fae stood and moved aside with Alex as Ryan stepped closer to Kaitlyn and gave her a reassuring smile.
She didn't know how the Fairy King thought he could bless them more than they already were with Ryan's protection.
"If my wife consents, we will consult with Ryan and Alex to arrange a safe haven near the edge of the wood for you to visit with her," Sandy said.
"Of course," Kirsten said, putting an arm around him. He was always much better with the diplomacy than she.
The Fae seemed surprised, but smiled and bowed to them this time. "Thank you. That will be most helpful when we send gifts for our beloved princess," he said. "If you will walk with me a moment, I will pick a clearing and place a gift for your household."
She followed the Fae to the edge of a meadow she hadn't visited before between the orchards and the grain fields.
The Fae spoke several words that were of no language she had ever heard before and she watched in awe as stones floated in from the forest and constructed a fine well. Branches formed a roof and pulley system around a smooth vine. A carved wooden bucket appeared and the Fae King took it in his hands and murmured softly until it was covered in strange symbols. He laced it carefully into the vine.
"The well is filled with the pure water of Alex's pool in her wood. If you drink it, it will give you good health and vitality," The Fae king said. "Kaitlyn, I love you, please be safe and well. Ryan, I hope she will prove to be a good apprentice for you and will learn from your noble example." He turned back to her. "Lady Kirsten, I thank you again for your kindness."
-----------------
Anna nudged Taylor awake when Princess Kirsten returned with Sandy and Ryan from the orchard. "They got her," she whispered, standing up and pulling her drowsy friend with her.
"Ladies, this is Kaitlyn, she's our new guest," Kirsten said.
"Welcome," Anna said.
"I'm Taylor and she's Anna, and you're just so pretty!" Taylor said, clapping her hands in excitement when she saw the girl's wings.
Kaitlyn flushed and ducked closer to Ryan.
"Taylor has wing envy," Anna said, earning a small smile from the girl.
"We have your room all ready, and I know from Ryan that I can't touch your wings," Taylor said, glaring at Anna.
"I'll come with you, it will probably be very strange for you," Ryan said.
"So you lived in the Fairy Kingdom? You've never lived with humans?" Anna asked.
"Only for a few nights. Father has wanted me to learn of my human side and let me watch from the village and stay with a mortal friend he has. So I know very little, but enough to know I should feel strange in the spun web dress," Kaitlyn said.
"Anna is a great seamstress, she has cut out wing flaps in some of her dresses for you," Taylor said.
"That is very nice of you," Kaitlyn said, still staying close to Ryan.
"I will make some especially for you now that you are here," Anna said.
"Dresses of my own? Can I watch you? I have always wanted to know how to sew, some of the girls' dresses are very pretty," Kaitlyn said, her eyes lighting up. She turned to Ryan. "I won't have to be an apprentice all the time, will I?"
"No, Kaitlyn, I think your father wanted you to learn of the human customs more than the magic side, you are part Fae, so the magic will come on its own. Anna and Taylor are fine ladies and surely will teach you well," Ryan said.
Anna was flattered.
"Can you teach me how to hide my wings?" Kaitlyn asked after a moment.
"I will try," Ryan replied. "It is more comfortable to visit town without attention if they are hidden."
Anna was pleased that Kaitlyn was relaxing slightly. She even looked a little hopeful.
-----------------