Ben awoke the next morning with a jolt, and a throbbing in his arm that wrapped its way up and wove its way into his chest. Leaning forward with a gasp, at first he seized his chest as he tried to force a clear breath through his lungs, but then he realized the pain was coming from somewhere else entirely…

He looked down at the horizontal line on his right wrist that was two inches long, and had turned black sometime during the night.

“Damn,” he rasped while blinking the tears from his eyes that had come in light of the pain and lack of breath. He wiped at his brow with the crook of his elbow as sweat was already dripping down.

Looking around the inn room, Ben found himself stunned all over again by how comfortable it was.

No one was trying to attack him. No raccoons had come to pilfer his food… And the bed?

Ben shifted his buttocks a little and felt an ache in his body.

“Maybe the comfortable life isn’t for me,” he murmured to himself, right as three loud booming knocks echoed out and, without waiting for a reply, in swooped Daffy.

“Good morning, Man Chop!” she greeted happily.

The nymph had opted to wear a forest green loose dress that morning, though she still wore large yellow earrings that looked like daffodil petals.

In her hands she carried a fully stocked breakfast tray, and Ben’s stomach growled hopefully at the sight.

“How did you sleep?” Daffy asked brightly as she busied herself with setting the tray down on the table and started laying out the fare.

Ben’s nose prickled at the scent of bacon.

He had always wanted to try bacon. He had always remembered with great clarity the smell of the meaty temptation wafting out of the officer’s dining hall… But he himself had never gotten to try any.

Daffy stepped back from the food, and as Ben inched forward, he spotted the vivid red jam dolloped on the plate, beckoning him forward. Beside the cheery condiment sat golden, buttered toast, scrambled eggs still steaming, water poured for him, bananas, blueberries, pears and strawberries mixed together in a separate bowl. The porcelain of the dishes were decorated with delicate rosebuds dotting the rims with a ring of gold inlay…

Ben gulped and cast a wary eye at Daffy. “Am I sharing this with Spidena?”

Daffy perked up excitedly. “Did you two spend the night together? I can go bring her tray here!”

The nymph gushed, looking around the room with unbridled hopefulness until Ben held up his hands. “No… No, no. She slept in her own room, it’s just… Is it really alright that we aren’t paying for all of this…?” Ben moved his hand around vaguely toward the tray.

Not bothering to hide her disappointment over Ben and Spidena’s lack of romantic development, Daffy smoothed the front of her dress before clasping her hands together.

“I was ready to give you the room once you got that nasty seeb out of our hair, but learning now that you are on perhaps one of the greatest adventures of your life? And Obbie and I get to hear all about it first hand? Of course you get to! And now we even have the answer to another one of our problems!”

As she had been speaking, Ben had started casually ebbing closer to the breakfast that was doing all manner of sins to his self control.

“What problem?” Ben reached for the fork, trying not to look desperate as he slipped into the chair facing the door.

“Do you remember how Obbie was saying yesterday he expected more support from Pesch Goldbry for spreading the word about The Fey Way?” Daffy asked as she pulled out the chair across from Ben lowered herself onto the chair's edge, once again surprising him with her gracefulness despite her size.

Ben nodded as he slipped the tines of his fork under the eggs.

“Well, now we can tell everybody about you and Spidena, and soon everyone is going to want to come to hear about it!”

The eggs had almost reached his mouth, but they stopped abruptly, as Ben’s gaze shot back to Daffy.

“Pardon?”

“Who can resist a story about two people on an adventure that no one has ever heard the likes of before! There’s you, with your troubled past and being completely starved of kindness and decency, and Spidena, with her naivety and power? What isn’t involved in this? There’s intrigue, there’s adventure, there’s romance-”

“There’s no romance!” Ben interrupted a little loudly, but Daffy plundered on.

“You have big magic following you around, and I even found out your witch has a pet raven! He scared poor Obbie in the kitchen something awful this morning,” Daffy recalled distractedly, her eyes moving to the side.

Ben laid down his fork, and his hands fell to his lap as they gripped his pants. “You do know that it’s a bad thing if people know where I am, right?”

He also wanted to comment on the number of scathing personal observations she had laid on him, but decided that in exchange for the accommodations she probably could beat him to within an inch of his life and he’d still think he was getting the better end of the deal.

Daffy smiled. “It’ll be rare that we get humans in here. And if we do? Normally they’d wind up remembering this place as a dream. Even that Oleg fellow, he’s going to think they stumbled into some mysterious tavern, drank too much, made themselves sick, and all wandered into the woods again.”

“Then they won’t remember what Spidena and I did?” Ben perked up.

Daffy ducked her head, a tinge of guilt rising in her face. “Well… if he sees you again? He’ll remember you two without a problem. Obbie and I are a little different because we are not born in your world exactly. We exist in between magic, nature, and your world.”

Ben’s shoulders hunched forward. “I guess that’ll be fine. As long as we don’t see Oleg again…”

“There you go!” Daffy cheered brightly. “Now eat up! You look like you’re about to drool all over everything!”

Ben would’ve been embarrassed but the nymph wasn’t wrong.

Rising back up, Daffy cast a final smile at him. “Enjoy breakfast, Man Chop!”

Ben paused one last time before diving head first into the meal. “Why do you call me ‘man chop’?”

Daffy laughed, the sound as enchantingly musical as it had been the first day. “Because you are a tasty chop that every magically inclined creature or person is going to be drawn too! Like dogs to a meaty pork chop! Would you prefer I call you Ben chop?”

“No. No, I-”

“Man chop it is!” Daffy chortled again, her finger rising to the air as her wide hips swung out of the room and the door closed behind herself.

Ben’s attention moved to the food in front of him.

Should he have been more worried about the fact that he and Spidena were going to be talked about amongst all kinds of magical creatures in order for the inn to get more business? Absolutely, but…

It was hard to be mad the instant the warm, salty, savory, sizzling bacon touched his tongue. It even crunched with utter perfection.

***

Ben stood in the front hall of the inn, his agitation growing.

“Where the hell is she? We need to go,” he muttered to himself irritably while also checking the clock that sat on the hall table to his right.

Had that been there yesterday?

“Oyy, Man Chop.”

Ben looked up, and he hated that he did so.

Obbie sauntered up to him, his violet eyes drifting over Ben in such a way that made him want to pull his coat over his front to shield himself from such a look.

The fairy scoffed. “Don’t worry Man Chop, I wouldn’t dream of getting seriously tangled up in your….” Obbie slowly waved a hand over Ben as a means of explanation.

“What do you want?” Ben asked stiffly.

“Thought I’d say farewell and give you a warning.”

Ben’s brows furrowed. “A warning?”

Obbie nodded, a rueful smile stretching his mouth. “You better come back and tell me what new disasters you find yourself in. Oh, and spread the word about The Fey Way to everyone you meet. Otherwise I’m inclined to hunt you down and make your life a special flavor of misery only us fairies can manage!” The tone with which Obbie delivered the threat was as light whipped cream, however the unhinged glint in his violet eyes revealed the true intent behind the words.

Ben cleared his throat and nodded while avoiding eye contact.

“Good.” Obbie sniffed and started to turn away.

“Oh, here.” Ben reached into his pocket and held out the item to Obbie who looked over his shoulder, not expecting for his guest to offer him something.

Wearing a look of confusion blended with wariness, Obbie turned, then reached out his own hand, and allowed his guest to drop what he held onto his palm.

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The fairy brought it closer to his face, as though to make sure he was seeing it correctly.

“What is this?”

“A button from my coat,” Ben answered shortly.

“And why… Are you giving this to me?”

“Because fairies like gifts from humans. Sometimes shiny things, sometimes food, but also from clothes and things associated with them.”

Obbie’s look of amusement thinned his lips. “Did you read that somewhere?”

“No. Someone told me.”

“Was that someone that little witch friend of yours?”

“No.”

Obbie’s tongue poked his cheek as he swallowed back a laugh. “Alright then. Thanks.”

“Do you not want it?” Ben asked, starting to feel embarrassed.

“Oh no, no. I will treasure this,” Obbie turned back around, his voice sounding close to a wheeze as he audibly struggled not to laugh. “See you around, Man Chop.”

Ben closed his eyes with a cringe.

He probably just made himself look like an idiot.

Fortunately at that moment, Spidena appeared, distracting him.

“Alright, let’s go,” the witch declared, her wild, wavy black hair half-heartedly pinned away from her face.

Ben raised an eyebrow at her appearance but didn’t say anything as Spidena finished adjusting the strap of her carpet bag, and wrinkled skirts before looking back up.

He noted the dark circles under her eyes, and was about to ask why in the world hadn’t she slept well in such a cozy inn, when Daffy bustled out from the doorway that led to the inn counter.

“Ah! Heading out are you! Well best of luck, and I look forward to hearing about how your relationship blooms!”

Ben opened his mouth in horror while Spidena was far more patient and simply gave a tightlipped smile to the nymph before saying,

“I doubt there will be anything to share, Daffy, but thank you for everything. Will we be appearing back where we first stepped out of the human world?”

Daffy ‘s mouth twisted and her attention lowered as she thought about the question. “We moved again last night so… I think we’re farther north.”

Spidena paled and grew very still. “Farther north… Wouldn’t we be on Callex Earhav’s property then?”

Daffy paused once more, as though counting in her head. “I’d say within half a day’s walk if you keep traveling straight north.”

Ben watched as Spidena struggled not to curse out loud, evidently she liked Daffy too much to reveal her agitation. So she bit back whatever frenzied words of panic she might have shared, and instead proceeded to bid the nymph a final farewell before they exited the inn, and started to move westward.

It wasn’t until they had walked for an hour that Spidena finally exploded. Which was too bad; Ben had enjoyed the quiet.

“FUNGUS!” she cursed. “We’re obviously not heading north right now, right?”

Ben shook his head. “It actually saved us maybe a half moon of travel time getting moved up here, but I admit, we are a little close for comfort to Earhav’s property.”

Spidena made an angry noise then proceeded to stomp loudly through the forest ahead of Ben.

He only then belatedly remembered that he had wanted to ask Daffy if there was anything that could be done about Spidena’s impractical footwear…

“The one good thing is that most magical creatures want to avoid his land, so it probably means we’re less likely to have beasts flocking to us, right?”

Spidena paused her aggressive stalking long enough to slide her mossy glare over to her travel companion. “There’s that military training. Gods… I still can’t get over that! You are by far one of the least organized and regimented people I have ever met! How were you in the military?!”

Any inkling of good feeling Ben had garnered from his time at The Fey Way dissipated in the warming morning as Spidena launched her atrocious manners on him.

“I imagine different situations bring out different sides to people. For example, there i your awful self at this moment, and then there is the sweet as honey version of you to Daffy.”

Spidena’s hands found her hips.

Ben ignored this and continued walking.

“I’ll have you know I didn’t get to sleep a wink thanks to you!”

He didn’t bother asking her why this was. He knew asking would only prompt more exasperation.

“Come on. We didn’t get any food to take with us from the inn, so we better keep an eye along the way—if we’re lucky, we can make good time and maybe then I can hunt a rabbit for dinner.”

Ben continued trundling through the rough forest growth not bothering to listen for or care about whether Spidena was following behind him.

Back when he’d been in the army, no one would wait or adjust their pace for another soldier. Even if they were in your unit. You either kept up, or you died.

And it wasn’t that you were executed because of it, no. You died because you were then treated as a weak expendable human shield that was then sent as a front line to the most dangerous of places.

Ben’s memories drew his attention away from his present, swarming his mind vividly with images of walking shoulder to shoulder with the members of his unit. The places they’d seen, the way they’re legs had screamed after they’d tripped and faltered after walking throughout the night and into the evening of the next day. Blisters rendering their feet stinging, pulsating lumps of flesh that happened to be attached to the rest of them. But it didn’t matter. Complaining did nothing but bring about punishment.

“You’re as sour as lemons this morning.” Spidena’s voice seemed to come from a far off place, but he didn’t hear anything of importance in her words, and so Ben didn’t bother responding.

“What’s curdling your milk?” the witch pressed, finally forcing Ben to free up a sliver of mind to respond to her as his memories continued to plague him.

“I’m fine. You’re the one who won’t stop complaining even though you made us late leaving.”

“I had to work all night to weave a spell-potion! Because of all the problems we’ll face. Because you didn’t mention that you’re a bloody dodder!”

Halting in his tracks, Ben swung round to stare down Spidena, the heat of the day had already made sweat dapple his forehead. “You spouted off a warning about accepting the price for my order when we first met back at your shop. But you didn’t mention a single thing about how it could go badly if I were a dodder.”

“Because dodders already know! Dodders are… Not rare persay. But a dodder that doesn’t know what to stay away from…? It makes no sense!” She paused only briefly in her tirade. “But of course. I get the one dodder that was sold into the military and survived!” Spidena paused, her hands finding her hips. “Honestly, the only unit where it would make sense that you’d know nothing and have lived this long would have been the—”

Spidena stopped talking. Her eyes rounding.

It felt like a stone dropped in Ben’s stomach.

She’d figured it out.

Wind rustled the fresh leaves above them, and the very same wind cooled the sweat on Ben’s brow drawing him fully back to the moment, away from his former life.

Somewhere above a raven called… Probably Wolf…

“You were a Hound.”

Ben felt his face flush and sickness churn his stomach.

His jaw flexed.

At first he could see the thunderous rage welling up in Spidena’s gaze, but as she stared into his own eyes, he noticed the way it shifted. He didn’t know why, or what she saw in him that made it so, but suddenly she backed up a step with her powerful emotions somewhat steadier, but no less potent.

“You… hunted down magical folk… Revealed their hiding places when they’d done nothing wrong… And let the king’s army–”

Ben turned away from her and stalked on.

“Do you know how many people you killed because you led the army to them? How many lives you ruined? Beings like Daffy! You would’ve snuffed out her inn, reported it, and then she’d be locked up in some nobleman’s glass case!”

Ben didn’t answer; he only continued marching through the woods, he tried to focus on the rhythm of his steps and making them loud enough that he could focus on that instead of Spidena’s voice.

“Don’t you feel anything? For anyone? Or do you only care about yourself?!”

Ben’s gut turned to iron. It weighed him down, making him want to stop and fight against the nasty image Spidena was painting of him.

He wanted to tell her why the hell wouldn’t he feel something? But he had had no idea what he was being trained for at the ripe age of seven. He had no idea of the truth. Not for years! And even when he located the magical folk when he was ordered to… He had thought they’d been given a fine or imprisoned for illegal magic use in the human world. Hardly something all that awful.

It wasn’t until his beloved commander had drank his way through an impressive amount of a beautiful amber liquor held in the fanciest decanter Ben had ever laid eyes on—he had initially thought it’d been made by fairies it was so beautiful… The way the crystal cast rainbows in different specs no matter what way you moved your head—But it had been that night he’d learned the truth.

And it had changed his life, making it even worse than it was to begin with.