“My generation, the one born after the battle, was told that the Queen of the Banished grew resentful of Queen Mab. That Mab had allowed you to generously rule over the people of the Outerlands but it wasn’t enough for you. We were told that you hated Mab for her power and beauty, so mad with envy you set off down a path of treason. Your greed and selfishness knew no bounds as you thrusted your people into a battle against the Queen who gave you everything. In the end, you lost and in an act of supreme mercy Mab spared your life. You were then sent to live out the rest of your life in a cell. To repent for your treason against the generous Queen of the Unseelie.” Golden eyes seemed to soften at whatever he saw in my expression, “Macha, she rewrote history and painted you the villain. The older fae know the truth but are too fearful to speak out against her and the younger ones don’t know any better. Mab acts like a saint to the public and hides her cruelty behind closed doors these days. She’s even allowing some of the banished back into her Kingdom. ”

Anger like a raging tide swept through me at the version of the battle she had spun but I wasn’t surprised. So while I was angry, I also felt relief like a cooling balm slither down my spine. It was almost too much to hope for but maybe my people were waiting for me to come back to them. They were old enough and some had been there to know that that story wasn’t true. Except, just as quickly as that thought sprung up another one squashed it like a Gnome. Why wouldn’t they believe the story that Mab spread throughout Tir Na Nog? I hadn’t bothered to tell them the real reason we needed to make a stand against her, why she needed to be stopped. How ironic was it that by sheltering my people from the harshness of the world, they were now at the mercy of Mab and her vicious lies. Heading happily back into her kingdom like Pixies to the slaughter.

“Well, nobody ever accused the cunt of being stupid.” I laughed bitterly, white knuckling the thin knife and taking another large sip of sugared ale. The taste of pure sugar coupled with the tang of alcohol managed to dull the sharp edge of self-pity wedged under my heart. 

“Macha, there’s still a lot of fae out there who know the truth.” Dani gently tried to reassure me. 

I pinned her to the booth with a hard stare, “Really and what’s that? A very vague sentence of ‘She’s an evil tyrant that needs to be killed’ before taking the troops out to battle? I wonder which one they’ll believe more because I know who I’d believe.” And wasn’t it sad, that it wasn’t me. 

Puck was quick to add, “A good amount of your people are still around, they’re just scattered throughout the Outerlands. I’m sure if you got them all together and told them what you kept from them they’d be willing to fight with you against Mab.” 

“Because it was so easy getting them to follow me the first time. Why not do it again? Only this time, I have to admit all the things that I actively kept from them. Yay me.” I snapped with a healthy dose of sarcasm before downing the rest of my sugared ale. 

“Then start with us.” 

I raised a brow, “I don’t trust you, Babes. Sure, you want Mab out of power but so do a lot of people. Thanks for the history lesson though, you can go.”

Puck’s mouth hung open like he was shocked that I was dismissing him so quickly, “No-no. You can’t do that. You need me.” 

Muscles tensing, I had the thin blue knife hovering a few inches away from his heart before he finished his sentence. “I can do whatever I want. I don’t need you.” 

“Let’s all just take a deep breath-

“I know fae from all over. I have connections inside both the Unseelie and Seelie Courts. I’d be able to give you insider information.” 

The blue knife pressed against his tunic, “And why, would I believe a Seelie?”

“You stabbed Commander Cillian and declared war but the Unseelie aren’t mobilizing. He hasn’t told Mab.” Puck rushed out leaning as far away from the knife as he could get.

“You what!” Dani shouted.

I willed the knife back to me and eyed him, “How do you know that?” Why didn’t he tell?

“Because,” He said, shoulders slumping in relief. “I have someone uniquely positioned in his and Mab’s inner circle that trusts me.” 

Twirling the knife end over end above my palm, I thought about what Puck was offering. Insider knowledge on Mab and Oberons moves throughout the upcoming war. Not that I was expecting trouble from Oberon or even for him to involve himself in the war but...it never hurt to be cautious. The offer was a tempting one but none of it explained how he knew someone that high up in the Unseelie Court or how he got them to trust him. 

“How do you have their trust?”

“I’m the youngest son of...a noble Seelie family. I’ve been going between the courts since I was born and have known him for just as long. He’s a good friend, more like a brother really.” 

Skeptical, I asked, “Does this friend know you plan to give me the information he passes to you?” 

Puck nodded, “Yes, it was his idea.”

“And why does he want to help me?” 

“For the same reason, I do. From what our parents told us, Mab is a cruel tyrant and you’re the only one strong enough to rip her off the throne.” 

I cracked a smile at that. While I failed last time because of the mindset I went into battle with. I was physically strong enough to take her down but she’d take me with her. As long as that cunt died though, nothing else really mattered. Perhaps everything in Tir Na Nog would be better off if we killed each other. Woah, where did that come from? 

“Alright.”

Puck and Dani shared a look before parroting back, “Aright?” 

My grin grew until pointed teeth flashed at them, “Alright, you can stay and help me defeat Mab with your insider information. But only if we make a deal.”

“A deal?” He asked hesitantly.

“ I don’t have time to hold your hand until I can trust you, so yea. In exchange for your truthful information, I will allow you to stay. However if you break this deal in anyway, your life is mine. Deal?” 

Dani’s pink eyes grew wide, “Macha, he’s still a kid isn’t that deal a little...steep?”

“Nope.” I immediately responded, popping the P. “I think it’s incredibly fair. I could end up with another iron stake in my chest for trusting his information, why shouldn’t he face the same risk? He wants to actively pick a side during a war? Let him. From here on out, his decisions won’t get any easier.” 

“Deal.” 

Snapping my gaze from Dani to Puck, I soaked in the rush of power flowing through my veins at his acceptance. Golden eyes glowed with the binding magick tying us into the deal, my blue ones likely shining just as bright. 

Laughing, I announced, “Oh, I love it when they accept.”

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Hhhhhhmmmm, what do you guys think? Is Macha really the villian Mab’s painted her out to be? How long do you think Macha will last until her ‘I haven’t changed’ mask cracks? Who was that solider that Macha thought she knew? And more importantly can Puck be trusted even after the deal?

Don’t forget to comment if you enjoyed the chapter! But if not, silent readers I appreciate you too! I myself am a silent reader, lmao. 

Smooches, Verbage💋