The Wolves in the Woods

Their Only Source of Light

In someone's darkest hour your simple act of kindness may imitate the sunrise, and to sad eyes you become their only source of light.

— Richelle E. Goodrich

***

Hope is found for those who are trapped in the akuma's labyrinth.

***

             "Well now," Cyprian mused, a faint mirth in his tone. "Would you look at that?"

The three Fae observed from their perch atop the building as the guardians with rosebushes for heads patrolled the area around the labyrinth. Cyprian summoned his blossoms to discreetly count the total number of guardians. It was a mite challenging given how big the gathered crowd was. But large swathes of people weren't anything new for the millennia-old Wood Fae.

"One, two..." he counted. Then he gasped, eyes wide with a hand hovering over his mouth. "Oh my." Levante looked up.

"How many did you count?" the ventolín asked. Cyprian's surprise didn't let up even as his hand slid down.

"There's at least twenty of those things playing security guard on the outside," the Wood Fae answered. Levante's eyes widened. Cyprian opened his hand, allowing several flowers to bloom out of his hand. "Twenty on the outside..." he peered closely at the number of trumpet-shaped flowers sprouting from his hand.

"And ten on the inside."

Levante whistled.

"Wow..." the ventolín said, amazed. "What's her damage?" The blossoms in Cyprian's hand withered as he cut off the magic, summoning back his subordinates.

"Much more than regular therapy can cover," the Wood Fae said, a grim look on his face. "That betrayal was the last straw."

Betrayal... that seemed to be a common thing among the humans, the Fae mused. From lifelong friends sabotaging each other for a grand prize to longtime lovers suddenly falling out of love from infidelity. There seemed to be no shortage of backstabbing in the human world. Even the Fae themselves had much experience being on the wrong end of a human's treachery. But of course, such traitors were always swiftly punished in one way or another.

Karma always came to collect her debt, after all.

"..."

"Something on your mind, Mireya?"

Mireya sat down on the edge of the building, her feet dangling in the air. Her trademark smile was absent from her face. Her arms were folded across her chest. The Water Fae's eyes were hidden behind her bangs although her two companions could see the whirling rage. Mireya finally spoke after a while.

"I am thinking..." she said. "... of how I'm going to punish that little brat."

"..."

The Wood and Wind Fae slowly stepped back.

"Should I pluck out her eyeballs?" Mireya mused out loud. "Or should I cut off her tongue?" Classic punishments, yes, but there was one little detail she couldn't quite avoid. "Both would be good," she flicked her hand, droplets of water forming into a group of familiar people, "But how would it affect her parents?" She looked down, a sadness creeping its way forward. "They had nothing to do with this..."

"Hmm..." Cyprian hummed. "That is quite a dilemma." He opened his hand again. This time, the petals formed the image of a young boy aged fifteen. Cyprian turned the little figure in his hand, a smile making its way across his face.