Fic: The Teind on All Hallows' Eve (2/3)

[jedisapphire]

Part I

"You've been speaking to him again."

Adair's tone was accusing. Sam fought not to flinch, but his beating wings gave him away.

"I don't see why not," he said. "Dean's nice. There's no reason not to talk to him."

"Dean. So now you're on first name terms with a mortal. This is bad."

"Why is it bad? He's not tried to kill me. He's not tried to enslave me. He just wants to learn more about us."

"You're an idiot," Adair said brusquely. "Mortals never want to learn more about us, Sam. Especially not mortals like your Dean. You need to stay away from him." He leaned closer to Sam, lowering his voice, even though nobody would have heard him over the sound of the singing. "Don't go back and see him again. Swear to me, Sam."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because he's different. Maybe most mortals want to hurt most fairies but Dean doesn't want to hurt me. I know he doesn't."

Adair shook his head. "At least promise me you'll be careful."

"I'll be careful."

Careful included conjuring little rainbows and starbursts that made Dean laugh, right?

Sam had been there for the better part of half an hour, and Dean hadn't raised any difficult subjects. He seemed to be on a mission to make Sam trust him, because he'd had more milk waiting, along with shortbread and honeyed wine, and they'd spent the time lying flat on their backs next to Dean's tent while Sam pointed out as many constellations as they could see through the trees.

After Sam showed Dean a few of them, he dropped his arm and said, "Go ahead. I know you're dying to ask."

"I don't want you to run away."

"I won't."

"Is there any way to save someone the fairies have taken?"

"There are legends of times when it happened. Not often - maybe not more than four or five times in the entire history of dealings between mortals and the Unseelie. But it has happened."

"Can I do it?"

"That depends. Do you love the person you lost?"

"More than anything in the world."

Sam wondered what that must feel like, to love, to be loved, more than anything in the world. He couldn't remember if anyone had loved him as a mortal, but obviously nobody had loved him enough to try to save him.

"Sam?" Dean asked.

"If that's true, you have a chance."

Dean let out a long breath. "All right. What do I do?"

"I don't know the details. I'll have to ask someone."

"Will you get in trouble for that?"

Sam shrugged. "Not if I'm careful. I can ask Adair. He's my friend. He'll probably tell me off, but he won't give me away to Queen Mab or Black Annis."

"Adair's a good friend?"

"Adair's my only friend. I've not been an elf very long." Sam stared up at the sky. "Do you think my friends and family didn't like me? When I was a mortal, I mean?"

"Why would you say that?"

"Nobody ever came for me. After Black Annis wiped my memory, when she was… turning me, it was horrible. It's painful, and… I… I couldn't remember anymore, I couldn't remember if I even had a family or friends but I hoped someone would rescue me. Nobody did, though. Black Annis said nobody cared enough to try."

"You know Black Annis was lying to you, right? Messing with your mind?"

"But what if she was telling the truth?"

"Sam." Dean rolled onto his stomach to look Sam in the eye. "Listen to me. You have a family, OK? Trust me. You have a family. Wherever they are, they're worried sick about you, and all they want is to get you back."

"You can't know that."

"I do." Dean patted his shoulder, mortal warmth seeping into Sam's body. "You believe me?"

Amazingly, Sam did.

By the time Sam left, after promising Dean he'd return the next day - or around two hours later in mortal time - his mind was made up.

He knew who Dean had to be looking for. The mortal woman who'd been brought to the Unseelie court was the only mortal Sam had seen in months. Sam knew from experience that Queen Mab let mortals spend several days in a cell without food or water to make them desperate enough to eat the first piece of fairy bread they were given. If he was lucky, the woman was still in her cell.

If Queen Mab had fed her - or, worse, Black Annis had started her work - the woman's soul was more than half claimed already. But if she was still in her cell, still unfed, Sam could get her out.

He went through his duties that day in a daze, barely hearing anything that was said in court. Once or twice he caught Adair looking at him suspiciously, but his friend didn't say anything until they were filing out. Normally they'd be dismissed immediately after the queen left, but today the captain was telling them what they'd be doing on All Hallows' Eve. The Queen's guard always trooped at the slightest provocation, so it wasn't anything any of them hadn't heard a hundred times before.

When they were finally told they could go, Adair caught up to Sam before he could slip away.

"You have that look," he said, pulling Sam aside. "Like you're going to do something stupid."

"Maybe I am."

"Don't. Whatever that mortal told you, it isn't worth it."

"You didn't hear him! He sounded so sad - he really misses her. He must love her, or he wouldn't be risking his life in the fairy wood."

"What are you talking about?"

"The woman they brought in that day - the mortal. Dean's looking for someone he lost. What?" Sam said irritably when Adair looked at him like he was a particularly slow child. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"You think Dean's looking for Linda?"

"You know her name?"

"I heard the prison guards talking," Adair said impatiently. "That's not the point. Look - you know that can't be true. They only brought Linda here a few days ago, and you've been seeing the mortal in the wood for months now."

"We don't know when they took her. Maybe they've been holding her somewhere else. It has to be Linda. Who else is there?"

"Sam, listen to me. Don't do this. It's not worth the risk."

"Yes, it is. Dean's a good man and he doesn't deserve to spend his life missing her. If I can save her for him, I'm going to do it."

Sam's blood was thundering in his ears.

It had taken longer than he'd expected to give Adair the slip. He was going to be late for Dean - but it would only be a few minutes in Dean's time, and he'd have Linda, so Dean couldn't be too angry with him.

The prison was in the lower levels of Queen Mab's palace. Mortals couldn't see it at all - it existed only in fairy time, raising its buttresses and turrets over what, in the human world, was a large abandoned field. The palace was guarded with countless spells to keep mortals out.

There were no wards against fairies. Queen Mab probably hadn't imagined she'd ever need them. Every fairy lived in fear of her sceptre. So did Sam, most of the time. He didn't know where he was finding the courage to do something that, if he was caught, would bring the wrath of the queen, and probably of Black Annis as well, down on him.

But he remembered Dean's sad eyes and gripped his lance tighter. He had to try.

Sam saw two guards standing in front of a door and knew that must be it.

He straightened, willing himself to look as though he knew what he was doing, as though he had a reason to be here.

He walked confidently down the passage. One of the guards stepped forward to stop him a few yards from the cell.

"What do you want?"

"Queen's orders. I'm here to take the prisoner to Black Annis." Sam held out the sheet of onionskin paper on which he'd forged Black Annis's signature. As he'd hoped, neither of the guards looked at it very closely. "Can she walk?"

"Oh, she'll walk." The guard looked Sam up and down. "She was feisty when they brought her in but she's learned to be quiet. I don't think you'll have any trouble."

He drew back the bolt and opened the cell door.

"Get up!" he snapped. "Your honeymoon's over."

Linda, if that was her name, looked weak. Her cheeks were hollow, her eyes sunken. She was clutching the wall for support.

Sam took hold of her arm.

"Come on," he said coldly. "We shouldn't keep Black Annis waiting."

"Please," Linda begged as he dragged her down the corridor. "Please, please, just let me go. I won't tell anyone, I won't - please! I have a daughter!"

"Be quiet." Sam glared at her. "You don't want Black Annis to hear you've been making noise, believe me."

The woman paled, but she went silent. Sam was sorry to scare her, but he couldn't give himself away before they were even outside the palace, and he couldn't risk her pleading drawing anybody's attention.

As soon as they exited the palace, Sam made straight for the stables. He'd left Belladonna, his powerful brown destrier, tied to the stable wall.

Linda paled when she saw the horse. Sam lifted her easily onto Belladonna's back and leapt on behind her. The horse was too well trained to make any noise. When Sam's heels touched her flanks lightly, she stepped over the cobblestones as softly as a whisper of wind, making her way to the arched gate.

"Sam," a familiar voice said before he reached the gate. "Don't do this."

Adair was standing in the shadows.

"I have to," Sam said. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to do anything! You're one of us, now, Sam. You're an elf and a Queen's guard. Your duty is to Queen Mab and the Unseelie court."

"Please," begged the woman. "Please let me go."

Adair stepped right into Sam's path, his lance raised. Sam heard movement behind him. He turned Belladonna and saw several guards emerging from the shadows around the stables.

They'd been waiting.

It was a trap.

He spun to face Adair. "You betrayed me!"

"I didn't betray you, Sam. You betrayed us. You betrayed the queen and the Unseelie. Give her back, let us take her back to her cell, and we can forget this happened. Everyone makes mistakes."

Sam gauged the distance to the gate. He would never make it in time.

"Please," the woman whimpered.

Sam made up his mind. He leapt off Belladonna's back, dragging the woman down with him. The horse reared. Adair backed away, startled.

Sam ran for the gate. He pushed Linda through it, away from Queen Mab's palace, into mortal time, just as something caught him around the legs and made him fall.

The last he saw of Linda, she was running as fast as her human legs could take her.

"Poor Sam," crooned Black Annis. "Poor, poor Sam."

Sam groaned.

He didn't know how long he'd been in Black Annis's dungeon. It felt like weeks, but it was probably just a few days. He'd spent most of it suspended by his wrists from the ceiling, his toes just barely touching the floor. The manacles around his wrists were pure iron, burning his skin. But that was nothing compared to the pain of everything else.

"So what do you think, Sam? Have you learnt your lesson?"

When Sam didn't say anything, she tapped his chest with a finger. Lines of fire shot from her touch, through his bones. Sam would have screamed if he'd still had the strength.

"I asked you a question. Have you learnt your lesson?"

"Yes," Sam gasped. "Yes."

"Do you know what happens to elves who disobey the orders of Queen Mab?"

"Yes."

"Good. Then I have nothing more to say to you."

She snapped her fingers. The manacles loosened abruptly. Sam fell to his knees without the support.

"Whenever you feel like walking, you can go," said Black Annis. "And remember, Sam: if I ever see you in my dungeon again, I'm not going to be as nice."

She walked out of the room.

Sam managed to drag himself to the wall and collapsed against it.

There wasn't a mark on him, other than the bloody welts the manacles had left on his wrists. But his entire body hurt. He knew there was no way he could walk. He tried fluttering his wings, but he couldn't even move them, leave alone lift himself with them.

He had to go, though. He couldn't still be here when Black Annis came back.

Sam clutched at the rough stone wall, using it to haul himself to his feet. He had to go somewhere - but where? He didn't have the strength to get far. He didn't want to go back to his room, he didn't even want tothink about seeing Adair -

Dean must have left, he realized with a pang. Linda must have found her way to him. They must be long gone.

But there was nowhere else for Sam to go, and he still liked the wood. And maybe there was a little part of him that hoped Dean was still there, that he hadn't simple forgotten about Sam and gone to be with Linda.

It took the last of Sam's energy to get to the wood and step into mortal time.

As soon as he did, someone was there, shouting at him.

"What the hell, Sam? Where have you been? You told me you'd be back in two hours - two hours! Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting for you?"

"Dean?" Sam mumbled.

"Do you have any idea how worried I've been?"

"Sorry."

"I'm - hey, what's wrong?" Dean's hands were on him, as warm as ever. "Sam, what happened?"

"I - Black Annis. She -"

"Never mind. You can tell me about it later. Come on, come here. Sit down." Dean helped him walk the few paces to his tent and lowered him to the ground next to the ashes of his fire. "What do elves need when they're hurt? Does human medicine work?"

"No… just… just wait. It'll… go."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"All right." Dean dropped to the ground next to Sam, pulling Sam's head down onto his shoulder. Then he hissed. "Your wrists - what happened?"

"Iron."

Sam tried to hide his hands under his tunic, not wanting Dean to see, but Dean tutted at him and pulled his hands free.

"OK, let's just sit here until you feel a bit better." It took Dean a moment to figure out how to work around Sam's wings, but then he got one arm around Sam's waist and slid the other hand into his hair. "Oh, hey, look," he said, pushing Sam's hair back. "You do have pointy ears."

Sam smiled and shut his eyes.

He opened them again a few minutes later, when he felt the welts on his wrists healing and some of his strength coming back. He tried to flutter his wings, but apparently he didn't have that much strength back because all he managed was a pathetic little twitch.

"Take it easy," Dean admonished.

"I heal faster in mortal time. Because it's slower."

"Sure, but still. Take it easy."

"Did you find Linda?"

"Linda?"

"I… I released her. That's why…" Sam shrugged.

"Wait, you mean Linda Hoffman? The woman who disappeared two days ago?"

"I… I suppose so. I thought… Wasn't she the one you wanted to free?"

"I'm happy she's free, sure, but she's not the one I'm here for, Sam. Is that why they did this to you? Because you set Linda free?" He didn't wait for Sam's nod before he said, "You poor kid. Linda made her way home all right. I didn't know that was you."

"Then…" Sam hesitated. He didn't know if he could do it again, risk freeing someone else, risk another week in Black Annis's dungeon, but… Dean looked so warm and gentle. Nobody had looked at him like that in all his life in the Unseelie court. He could do it for Dean. "Who is it?"

"You're thinking of doing it again, aren't you, and maybe getting yourself killed this time." Dean shook his head. "Idiot."

Sam flushed, pulling away. "I'm sorry. I suppose I should have asked you but I thought - and anyway, I'm glad Linda's free. She said she had a daughter. You're right, though. I'm stupid. I just -"

"Hey." Dean reached out and grabbed his shoulders. "Listen to me, Sam. That's not what I meant."

"You don't have to lie."

"Sam." Dean gave his shoulders a squeeze. "Listen to me. I'm here for you. You're my brother. OK? You're my little brother. You've been missing around two months in mortal time. I've been looking for you, I've found you and now I'm going to free you."

Sam felt joy bubbling up in him as soon as he had overcome his initial disbelief. Why would Dean lie about this? He had to be telling the truth. That meant Sam had someone - he had a brother - and his brother was Dean and Dean cared and Dean wanted him and Dean was here.

"Hey," Dean said, laughing. "I'm glad you're happy, but calm down."

Sam realized his wings were fluttering in his excitement, beating hard enough to lift him off the ground if Dean weren't anchoring him. He blushed.

"Sorry."

"Don't be. I told you, I'm glad you're happy I'm your brother. So tell me, how do I get you out?"

Sam's spirits fell. "You can't. Queen Mab claimed my soul."

"Yeah, well, I claimed it first. You said it's been done before, right? You were going to ask your friend Adair." Something in Sam's expression must have given away his thoughts, because Dean said, "What? What happened?"

"Adair was the one who betrayed me to the guards when I freed Linda. I can't - he's not my friend. I only thought he was."

"Sam." Sam found himself being hugged. "It's going to be all right, I promise. I'm going to get you away from Queen Mab and Black Annis and Adair and all of them, OK? It's going to be you and me, just like it's always been. I promise."

Part III