Beyond the Gateway (Cranksepticeye)

Twenty-six

"I only need to know two things," the Fennrys Wolf growled, stalking back and forth in front of the other Jade. "Where do you want me, and how do I kill whatever needs killing?"
"Well, that's just it, Fenn," Ethan tried to explain. "The answers to your questions are: we don't know, and we don't know."
The Wolf rolled his eyes at that and retreated to perch on the back of a bench. The thirteen Jade had gathered after daybreak and a successful night's hunting at Ethan's request in a tucked-away bit of the park that offered enough seclusion for the Guard to assemble without the police thinking they were some sort of gang.
"By now, all of you have been made aware of the possibility that someone is trying to wake the Wild Hunt, right?" Ethan looked from face to face. "The likeliest suspect, of course, is Queen Mabh, although a visit from one of her Storm Hags seemed to indicate that it may have been a mistake on Mabh's part to release the kelpie into this realm. Or maybe she's had a change of heart."
"Mabh doesn't have a heart," Ghost said quietly.
"Good point," Aaneel agreed. "I can't help but think that she'd just laugh and kick her feet with glee if such a thing were to come to pass."
"Well . . . whatever game she's playing," Ethan said, "we've got more pieces on the board to worry about than just the Queen of Air and Darkness."
Maddox snorted. "I'll say. Tell 'em whom we stumbled across, Eth."
ethan took a deep breath and said, "The stolen child." The circle of changelings stared blankly at him, as if he'd suddenly spoken in an incomprehensible language.
"Auberon's son?" Ethan prompted. "The lost prince. The reason the Gates were shut. The reason for us. I know where he is."
"Who is he?" Aaneel asked.
"He's . . . seventeen," Ethan said. "An actor. Sweet. Happy. And up until - well, up until I told him - he had absolutely no idea of what he is. Let alone who."
"How is that even possible?" Bellamy glanced back and forth between Ethan and Maddox. Beside him, his sister's brow was creased in a frown.
"He's been kept hidden with the help of a powerful tailsman," Ethan explained.
"Does Auberon know?" Beni asked.
"I didn't tell him-"
"Don't." The interjection came from Cait.
"Why the hell not?" the Fennrys Wolf snapped, his pale eyes fierce.
Cait ignored him. "The poor boy! If Auberon finds out about him, he'll want him back. The Unseelie Court is such a cold and joyless place.
"Cait's right, Ethan." Camina agreed, the frown still shadowing her brow. Her eyes were troubled. "Don't tell him."
"Have you two gone insane?" the Wolf asked, pulling out a thin-bladed dagger from his boot and testing the sharpness of the edge against his thumb. "It's the king's bloody kid. Unless you've all forgotten, we serve at the pleasure of the king."
"We've never had much choice in the matter," Cait said, her cheeks coloring with emotion.
The Wolf scoffed at that. "We might not like it much, but that's the way it is. Serve or die. I say let the bastard take him. Maybe it will end the nonsense of guarding this damnable Gate. And then we can all go home."
"Home, Fenn?" Maddox suddenly rounded on him. "What is that exactly? Where is it? And when? We've none of us homes now but this. This here and this now. We had our homes taken from us." He turned to face the rest of the Guard. "I've seen this boy, and he belongs in this realm. Would you have the Faerie king take him away from everything he has ever known?" He turned back to Fennrys Wolf. "Would you honestly wish our fate upon him?"
There was a murmur among the circle of Jade, and Fennrys spun the knife in his hand and returned it to his boot. "All right, all right," he said. "It wasn't a serious suggestion. Bunch of whining-"
"Shut up, Fenn," Godwyn said, fixing the muttering Jade with a warning stare.
"But what about the king?" Selene asked. "He'll take his son back to the Otherworld, whether he wills it or no."
"He hasn't yet," Maddox said. "Auberon knows about him - he already went to the theater where he works and spoke to him - but he's still here."
"Why?" Bellamy asked.
"Because he probably wants to make the boy think that it's his own decision when he does finally go," Aaneel said.
"He's not going anywhere!" Ethan snarled, surprising himself by the vehemence of his reaction. The one place Ethan did not want Jack, he realized, was the Otherworld. He didn't want Jack living his life among the Fair Folk, constantly exposed to their casual cruelty, their capriciousness and selfish nature. Ethan did not want Jack to learn what it was to be like them, to become one of them. Especially not if he was still stuck in the mortal realm. Because, no matter what Fennrys might think, Ethan was not so convinced the Auberon would reopen the Gates and allow free passage between the realms if Jack were to return with him - he too much enjoyed the tight control he had wielded ever since their closure.
Ethan took a deep breath. "Look, Auberon's in for a surprise if he thinks the boy will meekly put his head down and fall into step."
Beside him, Maddox chuckled. "I'll say."
"Even if he thinks what he is doing is for Jack's own good." Ethan muttered to himself.
"And why would it be that?" asked Aaneel.
Ethan heasitated; it was just a theory he had been mulling, but - as he'd told Jack - he didn't beleive in coincidences. "I don't think it's just a happenstance that the Wild Hunt is stirring at the same time as the king's son makes a sudden appearance. Queen Mabh has her spies in this realm. And she holds a pretty serious grudge against Auberon. What if she caught wind somehow that Jack was alive - that he's living in New York, but Mabh doesn't know where. Well, what's the easiest way to eliminate one person in a crowd?"
"Eliminate the crowd," Beni said grimly. "That's harsh."
"Not to mention messy," Bryan agreed.
"Mabh likes a good bloodbath every now and then. She hasn't had much opportunity to wreak havoc since Auberon locked her away. Now here is a perfect opportunity for a little fun and a lot of revenge."
"It's certainly not beyond the realm of possibility." Godwyn said.
"Seems like your little actor is in a world of trouble, kid," Fennrys laughed.
"Maybe we could stand a guard around him." Percival suggested.
"We're going to have our hands full as it is," the Wolf protested. "Especially if the Wild Hunt comes to pass."
"But we're supposed to be watching out for people," Percival said, bristling. "Keeping them safe. And none of this is his fault."
"Perry's right," Aaneel said, rubbing his chin. Then he turned back to the rest of the changelings. His next words were as good as orders. "We are a poor excuse for guardians if we sacrifice the few for the sake of many in the course of our duties. The boy is blameless. He should be kept safe, is at all possible." He turned to Ethan. "Hide him again, Ethan. And hide him well."
"Where?" Ethan asked. "How?"
Aaneel thought about it for a ling moment. The rest of the Jade stood by patiently and waited until he spoke. "Take him to the Green. He'll be safe there. He can hide out until the threat of the Hunt has passed, and then it will be up to him to decide if he wants to go with Auberon. And if he doesn't, then we'll at least time to figure out a way to keep him hidden permanently."
Ethan frowned but nodded. Aaneel was right. "I'll need passage."
"I can set you up," Cait volunteered immediately. She flipped open the top flap on her leather messenger bag and began rummaging through its depths. "I have enough payment for two safe passages. I was going to go there myself for my next birthday but, really? The last time I went, I didn't have such a very good time."
"Why not?" Maddox asked. "I've never been, but I heard it's something else."
Beside Cait, Selene laughed. "One of the waiters there is an overfriendly garden gnome. Wouldn't leave her alone."
"The little fiend." Cait muttered and blushed crimson.
"He kept trying to look up her skirt and lick her ankles!"
"So anyway . . . " Cait glared at Selene as he handed over a red suede pouch jingling with coins. "Here you go."
"Thank you, Cait," Ethan said.
"Don't mention it." She smiled. "But do me a favor: if you happen to see a gnome in a floppy orange hat carrying a tray of drinks about while you're there? . . . Trip him."
"Just for you."

Back at his apartment, Ethan grabbed several hours of restless sleep, forcing himself to stay in bed long enough to recharge his weary muscles.
When he got up, he took a long, hot shower, only to find a surprise awaiting him. He saw, written in steam on his bathroom mirror, a time and place - instructions from Mabh on when and where he would have to deliver Lucky to her minions, the Storm Hags. Wiping the mirror clear, he shaved and changed his shirt three times, trying to decide on something that - if he was honest with himself - he thought Jack would like. Then he set out to find his wayward Faerie prince.