Dancing on Strings

Once Upon a Fairy King

Mai woke, choking and coughing, face down on the grass, cold in the moonlight as she shoved to her hands and knees and wretched, dry heaving as her hand flew to her stomach that was no longer hurting.

"Oh good, you woke up."

Her eyes widened and she whirled around to see Griffin – no – The Black Rabbit sat a few feet away, leaning back on his hands, looking towards the dream palace.

"What happened?" she choked, tears blinding her. "I... I thought I—"

"Relax," he said, tilting his head to the side, "There wasn't enough poison in that tea to kill you." His mouth twisted in a sneer as he looked away. "Trust me, Griffin wouldn't have let that happen. You're fine. Well mostly fine."

Mai gaped at him. "You poisoned me?" she hissed.

"Just a little," he grinned.

"Why?!"

"Oh that's your father's fault."

"What?"

He let out a snapping laugh, staring at her. "That arrogant whore thought he could just – what? – waltz into my camp and do what he likes?" he said, a hysterical edge to his voice. "What? Because he's a king?"

"Yes, because he's a king," Mai hissed. "What's he going to find?"

"Find? Please, there's nothing to find. You think his tiny little brain can comprehend the bigger picture of what's happening? That his guards will just walk in and find something incriminating like a princess tied up under the stage? You heard the fortune-teller; they're not on that plain of existence anymore. This is so far out of the king's control and yet he just assumes he can do what he likes? Assumes he can fix things? All that man can do is break things so he should just go back to what he's good at and have more pointless offspring that serve as nothing but distraction until someone simply makes them disappear."

Mai stared at him, taking in the words and, more than that, the tone of voice. The seething anger that sounded too personal.

"Why... are you so mad at my father?" she muttered.

The Black Rabbit looked at her, then smiled. "Because he's gone into my camp and didn't say please," he said simply. "Now, four out of twelve princesses are gone. And since you're here..."

He reached for her and Mai kicked him.

The heel of her foot drove square into his jaw, hard enough that his teeth could have cracked and he let out a snarl of pain, gripping his face as she scrambled away, stumbling to get to her feet, wrenching her dress out of the way and she tumbled forwards, running for the swan boat that was drifting towards her.

A hand locked around her ankle and wrenched so hard she felt something in her leg give way as the force knocked her to the ground again, slamming face first onto the grass, the wind flying from her chest and leaving her empty and unable to draw in air.

"That hurt, Princess," The Black Rabbit growled, suddenly kneeling over her, one hand locking in her hair as the other grabbed both her wrists and clamped them behind her back, pinning her to the floor. "I think this face has been damaged enough without you adding to it."

"Let go of me!" Mai snarled, not that she expected him to do so as she tossed and writhed under him.

The Black Rabbit just laughed.

"And here Griffin was joking about not getting you beneath him again," he whispered, leaning down so his lips were mere centimetres from Mai's ear, breath warm. "Won't he be happy to feel those lovely hips swaying under him?" he muttered, gently pressing his lips to Mai's neck.