Avery's Story

A strong feeling of despair filled me as someone rushed past. Even worse, I was one loaf of bread lighter.

I rolled my eyes and shed my cloak to reveal a pair of bright, red wings. Every time I disguised myself as a human to indulge myself in marketplace treats, I had to put up with thieves and today was no different. I flew after the thief and found her disappearing down an alley. I reached her in moments. "Got you!" I grabbed her arms and pinned her against the side of a building. The woman glared back at me. The only sign of her fear was the quick rise and fall of her chest with her rapid breathing.

Her face was dirty, her hair pulled into a messy braid falling over her shoulder. Her clothes were tattered, only held together by sloppy, crude stitching. And the despair was coming off her in waves.

"I won't hurt you," I said. "I just want my bread back."

She shook her head and tried to struggle. I tightened my grip. "Look, that was the last loaf from the baker and I've been looking forward to it all week. Give it back and I'll buy you some soup or something." I was being more than reasonable. If I turned her in to the authorities, she would get a public thrashing or worse.

"It's not for me," she said.

I sighed. "Then who is it for? I'll give them the soup."

She clenched her jaw. "Have me arrested if you want, but you aren't getting this bread back."

I stared at the woman with fascination. It had been a long time since I met a human who wasn't scared of me, let alone one who didn't mention my wings. What could be so important?

"Fine." I stepped back. "If you want it that badly, then take it."

She looked wary. "You're not going to call the market guards?"

"What would be the point? You would be long gone before they got here. Go on. Take it."

She nodded and dashed off. I smirked before following at a safe distance.

I followed her through several streets until she stopped suddenly. She knelt down next to a pile of dirty rags. The pile started to move and two dirty children sat up. The woman broke the loaf of bread into two and gave each child a half.

Now it made sense why she wouldn't tell me. Orphaned children were particularly vulnerable in the Kingdom, between black market merchants and workhouses masquerading as orphanages. The crown prince's new bride was working to create better housing for them, but her plans were still a long way from execution.

I approached the trio, my hands held out in submission. The woman stood and immediately put herself between me and the children.

"Relax, I won't hurt them," I said. "Or you."

"What can I do to make you forget you've seen them?"

I knew exactly what she was offering and my chest tightened. "I can help them. And you. I know the prince and princess. They can provide a home for them."

"Why would you help after I stole from you?"

"It was for a good cause. Besides, I know you didn't have a choice. I can sense your despair. But I can help you. All of you."

She hesitated. I spread my wings. The children behind her gasped. "If you try to run, you won't get far," I said.

She clenched her jaw and nodded. I folded my wings back up as the woman grabbed the children's hands. I walked with them to the palace, staying a step off to the side, but keeping them in my line of sight. Slowly, we approached the palace. The woman's mouth fell open with shock. "You're actually taking us to the palace."

I smiled. "Yes."

I flew up to Cinderella's windows to find her at her writing desk, hard at work. She barely resembled the half-starved woman I found imprisoned in her own bedroom over a year ago.

I tapped the glass and she looked up and smiled before hurrying over. "Avery, what a pleasant surprise."

"I need your help, Cinderella."

"Anything at all."

I explained the situation and a moment later, I flew Cinderella down to meet the trio. They all gasped when they saw her and fell to their knees.

"Oh please, none of that. Stand up." She knelt down to look at the kids, smiling. "My name's Cinderella. You want to know a secret?"

They nodded; eyes wide.

Cinderella pointed to a small side entrance only a few feet away. "Right through there is a kind old woman who makes the best chocolate chip cookies in the Kingdom. If you tell her I sent you, she'll give you some."

The children looked to their protector uncertainly.

The woman nodded. "It's okay. You're safe now." Her voice shook as if she could barely believe it. The children ran off and Cinderella smiled. "What's your name?"

The woman bowed her head. "Julia, Your Highness."

"Call me Cinderella, please. The children will be well taken care of, I promise. However, the King and Queen will need some convincing. I can't afford to vouch for you until it's clear the children won't be a nuisance."

Julia shook her head. "No, I'll be fine, Your Highness. All that matters is the children are safe."

"Actually, you'll go with Avery. He'll take care of you."

"What?" Julia looked horrified at the idea.

I grimaced. "Cinderella, can I have a word?"

The princess smiled. "Of course."

I waited until we were out of earshot before I talked. "What are you playing at? You could easily find her a position in the palace."

"Yes, but I won't. You're worrying me, Avery. You've been listless and even more reclusive lately. But I know you can't resist a damsel in distress indebted to you."

"She owes me a loaf of bread. I was going to come back in a week and make her buy me one."

"Well, now she can make you one at your place."

"Cinderella--"

"You're lonely, Avery. And I won't stand for it. You need the company. You act like living with you is horrible torture."

I was silent. Taking care of Julia would feel wonderful. More than anything I loved protecting and caring for someone until their despair went away. But I dealt in debts. And Julia wasn't indebted to me enough to justify forcing her to live with me.

Cinderella crossed her arms and arched an eyebrow. "You saved my life and I'll never forget it. But that debt was settled. I took those kids in because you asked me to. Which means you're in debt to me. And you can pay that back by taking care of Julia."

I rolled my eyes. "You've clearly taken well to your new authority. I'm sure His Highness is thrilled with that."

Cinderella grinned. "He does like dominant women. Now pay your debt." With that, she turned to the palace, clearly done with the conversation.

I went back to Julia who was looked ready to bolt. The despair was rolling off her in waves. What could she possibly think, suddenly at the mercy of a strange man, and one she had stolen from at that?

Without a word, I put my arm around her waist and pulled her up against me. She stiffened and looked around, trying to find help. "Relax," I murmured. "I promised the princess I would look after you and I will. Grab my waist."

"What?"

I grinned. "The quickest way to go home is flying. Now grab my waist."

She wrapped her arms around me. I fluttered my wings and we lifted off. Julia gasped and I smiled, enjoying the feeling of her clinging to me despite myself.

It didn't take long for us to reach my castle in the forest on the outskirts of the Kingdom. I flew through an open window and set her down. She stumbled back, breathing hard. "That was..."

"Exhilarating? Beautiful? Magical?"

"Nauseating."

"Fair enough." I looked around, trying to think of what to do next. Julia needed sleep, but first, she needed a hearty meal. "Make yourself comfortable. I'll get you something to eat and drink."

Julia looked around the bedroom, taking in the canopy bed covered in a decorated quilt, the soft rug covering the floor, and the nearby sofa. "Is this your bedroom?"

"It is."

She looked at the window.

"Don't think about running. We're in the middle of the woods. You would never make it into town on foot and even if you tried, I would find you and bring you right back here." She flushed. "Make yourself comfortable. I'll get you some food and tea." I turned and left the room.

I tried to push away my irritation. I was used to humans being scared of me. I made them offers they couldn't refuse, after all. But they always cooperated because they needed me and my magic. But Julia was different. She never made a deal with me. She didn't want anything from me and was only there because Cinderella had ordered it. I didn't blame her for wanting to escape. But I wasn't sure how to convince her I meant no harm.

I returned with a bowl of soup and a pot of tea. Julia was pacing the room. She stopped and turned to look at me, arms crossed.

"Sit down. Eat." I set the food down on a small side table near the sofa.

"I'm not hungry."

"You're starving, quite literally." I gestured towards her gaunt frame. She shook her head and clenched her jaw defiantly.

Anger flared up in me and I strode over to her and grabbed her arm. Pulling her around, I pushed her onto the sofa and leaned over her to grab the table and slide it in front of her. "Eat," I growled.

"No."

I glared at her before picking up the spoon and taking a bite of the soup and a sip of the tea. "See? It's not poisoned."

Julia started to eat the soup. "Thank you."

"It's no trouble." I sighed. Hopefully, when she trusted me to not kill her, she would be a little less difficult.

"I don't understand why you're helping me," she said. "I mean, you can just put me back on the street. I can take care of myself."

"Yeah, I can see you do a great job at that."

"I managed."

"You don't have to manage anymore. I'm going to take care of you now."

"What do you want from me?" There was a tremble in her voice. She put up a good show, but underneath her bluster, she was afraid.

I knelt next to her and put a hand on her arm. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promised Cinderella I would protect you and I always keep my promises. Do you think she would have entrusted you to me if I was a bad person?"

She shrugged. "I guess not." She didn't seem convinced.

"I know it'll take some time for you to trust me and that's fine. But this will be a lot easier if you give me the benefit of the doubt."

"I'll try."

Well, that was a start. I left her to eat while I prepared a room for her. It was the bedroom adjoining mine, complete with a canopy bed, a dresser, bookshelf, and even a small reading nook. It would be perfect for helping her recover from being on the streets. For good measure, I added a food and drink cart that would magically replenish itself. I stocked the dresser with comfortable nightgowns and gorgeous dresses that most noblewomen could only dream about. I smiled, admiring my work. Even under the strange circumstances, I felt pleasure taking care of someone again.

I came back to find she had finished the food and tea. "Your room is ready."

Her brow furrowed. "I'm not..." Her eyes traveled to the bed. I shook my head.

"I only sleep with women who are willing. Just because I'm not human doesn't mean I'm a monster."

She flushed. "Your wings don't bother me. In my experience, most men, human or not, are not as generous as you."

"I'm curious. Why don't you care about my wings? You're the first human I've met who wasn't at least a little curious."

"You're not the first fairy I've met."

I was dying to know more. Fairies were rare and generally kept to themselves. They usually didn't reveal themselves to humans without some sort of purpose. I bit down on the questions I wanted to ask. I could tell by her pallor she was exhausted. She needed to rest and recover. Not endure an interrogation.

I led her to her room. She looked around with disbelieving eyes before giving me a small smile. "Thank you. This all looks wonderful."

"Rest well, Julia." I shut the door behind me, leaving her to rest.

***

Over time, Julia relaxed around me. Once it became clear I wasn't going to hurt her, she even started to seek me out for company. Under my care, she grew strong and healthy. Just having her around was enough to lift my mood. Cinderella was right. I did miss having someone to dote on. Taking care of Julia and easing her despair gave me purpose again. She still didn't tell me about her past and I didn't ask.

She started a small vegetable garden outside for something to do. One day, I visited her while she was harvesting carrots. She smiled when she saw me. 'Hey. Are you going into town?" She nodded at the traveling cloak I used to hide my wings.

"I was actually hoping I could take you with me. There's a tavern near the marketplace. Their food is awful but the beer is cold and they have live music every night." I felt nervous for some reason, as if I had never taken a woman out before. Of course, this was the first time taking out a woman who didn't owe me anything.

"Aren't you afraid I'll run away?" She asked, biting her lip.

"Do you still want to?"

She shook her head. "Honestly, I'm happier here than I've ever felt before in my life."

I smiled. "You have no idea how happy that makes me." I waved my hands and a traveling cloak appeared around her shoulders. She snuggled into it, smiling. "Shall we?"

She nodded. "Can we please walk at least part of the way, though? I don't want to get sick like last time."

I inclined my head. "As you wish."

While we walked, she linked her arm through mine. I could feel myself smiling like an idiot the whole time.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Anything."

"You once told me you make deals with people and they repay their debt to you by living with you for a while. What does that mean exactly?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. I would take care of them and let them stay with me. Sometimes they would sleep in one of my guestrooms, sometimes they would sleep in my bed. And in exchange, I would grant them their wish."

"I just don't get what you get out of it."

"I enjoy taking care of people. Nothing gives me greater satisfaction than easing someone's despair and making them feel happy and healthy." I smiled. "Quite honestly, I owe you. You let me take care of you after all."

She snorted. "You have a funny way of collecting debts."

"Perhaps, but it works for me."

She stopped walking suddenly. How would you make me repay you if I owed you something?"

"You don't owe me anything."

She shrugged. "You say that, but I feel like I do. Now please, just tell me. And don't say taking care of me is a favor for you."

I sighed. I wished she could see she didn't owe me anything. But humans never understood the pleasure I got from taking care of someone. "Fine," I said. "I would ask you to tell me about your past."

She bit her lip. "What do you want to know?"

"Tell me about when you met that other fairy."

She crossed her arms at and looked down. She started walking again, almost as if she was running away from the conversation. "It was a long time ago."

"Tell me about it."

"He was a fairy who dealt in debts, like you. My parents made a deal with him when I was a child. We had a farm on the outskirts of the Kingdom but that year the crop was bad. We didn't have enough to feed ourselves, let alone enough to sell at the market. So, they made a deal with this fairy who promised us crops to eat and sell. He wanted half of our profit in return. Halved profits was better than nothing, so they agreed and we had a bountiful harvest. But after we sold it, he came back and said he wanted everything. He was the one who made the crops after all. Why should we get half of his money?" She swallowed. "T-they refused, of course. They begged him to take half and they would give him half the next year. They told him they needed the money to take care of me and make sure I was fed and clothed all winter. But the fairy wouldn't listen. He killed them and took everything anyway. I've been on the streets ever since."

I felt my hands clenched in anger from listening to her story. Some fairies were greedy and vicious. I did my best to stay away from them when possible. "I'm so sorry," I said. "That never should have happened to you." No wonder it took her so long to trust me.

"It's okay," she said. "It was a long time ago so it doesn't hurt as much now. Besides, you've shown me fairies can be good as well." She smiled at me.

The tavern was nice and peaceful. We sat down at a table in the corner and a barmaid came by to take our order. Julia was shy and fidgeted a little as she mumbled out her order. "What's wrong?" I asked after the barmaid went away.

"It's nothing," she said. "I've just never been welcome inside a tavern before. Or any other sort of business establishment."

I reached out to grab her hand. "I'm sorry," I said. "We can leave if you want?" The last thing I wanted was to make her feel uncomfortable.

She shook her head. "No. This is nice. It just takes some getting used to."

We got our drinks and she slowly relaxed after a pint of beer. A bard started playing a flute and some people started to dance. Julia giggled as she watched the drunken patrons trip over themselves while trying to stay on beat.

"Do you want to dance?" I asked. Nerves fluttered in my stomach again. I had danced with countless women before. But it still felt different with Julia. Everything felt different with her.

She blushed. "A-are you sure? I've never danced before. I'll probably step on your feet."

I nodded at a couple who just fell down, laughing. "Then we'll be in good company. Come on."

She took my hand and followed me out to the dancefloor. She was unsteady on her feet and she leaned into me, giggling. I grinned and held her close as we started to sway to a much slower beat than the cheerful music was playing. I closed my eyes. This felt so good. In fact, it felt perfect.

***

After a few hours in the tavern, we flew back to my castle. Both of us were a little tipsy. She was giggly because of it. She buried her face in my neck as we flew. I had to admit I enjoyed it.

We landed safely in her room again. She giggled as her feet touched the floor and she held me tighter to keep her balance. Her lips brushed against my neck and I sucked in my breath as a thrill of pleasure hit me from the innocent touch.

She looked up at me, her face slightly flushed. "Did you like that?"

"You know I did, love," I said. "But it's not a good idea. You're tipsy and not thinking right."

She giggled. "I'm not that tipsy." She kissed my neck again, making me groan.

"You're playing a very dangerous game," I growled.

"I like a little danger," she said. "Come on. I want you. Please?"

I groaned and finally gave into my instincts. She was so enticing. I wanted to make her mine. I grabbed her arms and with one quick motion, I pinned her to the bed with her arms above her head. My wings fanned out to cover us both in a little cocoon. "Are you sure you want this, love?"" I asked as I pinned both of her wrists with one of my hands. I trailed my other hand down her body, over her breasts, her stomach, and down to her hip. I loved the way her curves felt under my touch. "Are you sure you want me to claim you as my own with my cock inside you? I pressed my hips against hers so she could feel my erection. "Are you sure you want me to thrust inside you over and over until I spend my seed deep inside you?"

"Yes," she gasped. Her eyes glazed over with desire. "Please. Please yes."

I chuckled. "Very well." I lowered my lips to hers and claimed her mouth with my own. She moaned. I licked her bottom lip, demanding entry and she immediately yielded, opening her mouth to let me explore it with my tongue.

I sighed softly. My hand traveled up to her breast, which was pushing against the bodice of her dress with every breath. I cupped her breast over her dress and my thumb brushed against her soft, creamy skin right above the neckline. I broke off from her mouth to trail kisses down her skin. She gasped as my lips touched her neck, just above her pulse point. My tongue darted out to taste her and she shook with pleasure. I chuckled. "I'm only getting warmed up and you're already writhing for me."

She whimpered in response.

I slid my hand from her breast down to her skirt and slowly lifted it up. I bunched it up around her waist to expose her bare pussy underneath. "So naughty to go out in public without anything on underneath your skirt."

She giggled in response.

Her pussy was wet with desire. I parted her slick folds to get at the little bud underneath. She gasped and bucked her hips, wanting more. I slipped one finger inside her and then another. She moaned in response. I thrust my fingers inside her faster and faster. She started to shake as her desire built up inside her. Right before she was about to go over the edge, I withdrew my fingers. She moaned in frustration. I chuckled. "Not yet," I whispered. "Trust me, it'll make your release that much sweeter."

I moved down her body. My wings trailed down over her skin as I did so. She gave little shivers in response. I stopped when my mouth was hovering over her sweet little pussy. I flicked my tongue over her sensitive little bud and she shrieked. I chuckled. "You taste wonderful, my love," I said before grabbing her to hold her still and licking her clit again. I flicked my tongue over her clit, faster and faster. Her shaking grew violent from the pleasure but I held her still as I continued to torment her. Right before she climaxed, I pulled back. She whimpered. "Please. I want you. Please."

I chuckled. "I know, love. You have me." I unbuttoned my pants and pulled out my thick, hard cock. Her eyes darkened with lust at the sight of it. I positioned it at her entrance and slowly pushed it in, filling her up. She moaned and shut her eyes as I slowly worked myself through her, over and over. I closed my eyes as the pleasure sent shocks of lightning through me. She felt so amazing. I groaned. "Fuck," I whispered.

She moaned and I grabbed her hips with my hands as I thrust faster and faster inside her, getting lost in the pleasure. I let out a shaky gasp as I came myself before collapsing next to her on the bed. I pulled her into my arms. She was still trembling from the force of the orgasm. "That was..."

"I know," I whispered. I held her tighter. "I don't think I want to give you up. How would like to stay here? Permanently."

"Are you sure you want me around permanently?"

I grinned. "I would like nothing more."

She snuggled up even closer to me. "Then I'm yours," she said. "Forever."