[center][img=http://oi44.tinypic.com/8yvs7m.jpg][/center]
From his perch, Alden watched the uninvited visitors begin to heckle his girl. A deep frown etched his brows; that didn’t seem like a very fair response when [i]they[/i] had been the ones to alarm [i]her[/i]. An apology seemed more in order than laughs at her expense. Politeness, he was learning, was a characteristic deeply ingrained in the faeries, but not in the humans. The older, wiser ones seemed to have a better grasp of it, but not this generation. The girls, he observed, seemed to be the ones most interested in exploiting his target’s mishap. None of the four possessed features as graceful as hers, and he pondered whether or not their behavior stemmed from envy. 

When his target went on the move again, he lifted himself from the plank and flew after her once more, keeping towards the floor of the boardwalk this time. He tried to watch her, but it became harder and harder as the boardwalk filled up again with people. She began to cry, that much he gathered before he finally had to fly down by the water to avoid human detection. More likely than not, if he was noticed, he would be mistaken for a dragonfly or some other large insect. ‘Faerie’ was not the first thing that came to most peoples’ minds when they saw a mysterious flying creature, especially in the darkness. But discovery was death for him and his people; he had to play it safe. With a soft sigh, Alden dipped his fingers into the ocean below him. A tiny ripple the size of a shoe string followed him until he pulled his hand back and glanced up at the boards above him. Through them, he heard the footfall of his new friend come to a stop. Carefully, he ascended once more and peaked from behind the wooden cover of railing. Somehow, in the few minutes since he’d left her from his sight, she had managed to become even more shaken up. There was something she was missing when she dug in her wallet, he could tell. It set him up perfectly; he would swoop in and offer her whatever she needed. The only obstacle was that he was the size of a knick-knack, and there were too many people nearby for him to grow. Thoughtfully peering about, Alden weighed his options. Twenty yards up, he could see where the walk branched off into stairs that led down to a boating dock. Not ideal, but it was worth a shot. Diving back under the walk, he zipped over to the dock as fast as his delicate wings would let him. To his delight, the dock was completely desolate, minus a few beer bottles and cigarette-butts. Before that gave to change, Alden transformed into an even 6’0.

When he was able to catch up to his new friend again, he found her imploring a starchily-dressed man for money. The man, trenchantly speaking into his phone, flippantly brushed her off with a shake of his head. It went without saying that human and faerie currency were not the same. A few times in his life, he had seen the occasional gnome or troll proudly flash an unidentifiable coin they had somehow come upon, but they were a rare thing; he certainly didn’t have the five cents that what she was seeking. He wasn’t about to let that get in the way of taking the golden opportunity to finally talk to her though. With only a moment’s hesitation, he cut in front of her. 

“Hello! My name is Alden.” He greeted her with a wide smile, but it dulled when he realized that was as far as he had scripted. “I, uh, couldn’t help but notice that you seem t-to, um, be in a bit of peril.” Tripping over his words definitely had not been how he pictured his introduction going, yet that was exactly how it played out. His cheeks began to warm, and his smile faded into an apologetic grin. “Might I be of any assistance?” 

[center][img=http://oi58.tinypic.com/16lejhd.jpg][/center]
Hazel’s body bunched up; a wince hissed from behind her teeth as she realized that she had cut Hale off too close, and he was about to barrel into her tiny body. Seconds before he hit her, he somehow managed to veer out of the way, and was rewarded by a tumble off to her side. From behind the arms she had raised to shield herself, she saw him make harsh contact with the earth. Her anger at his brutality was momentarily forgotten, replaced by guilty concern. 

“Sorry, Hale! Sorry!” She rushed over to him, but he was on his feet before she could be of any assistance. Not that she had expected him to welcome her help anyway. 

The fury he met her with restored her own anger, and she crossed her arms defiantly to her chest. However, she quickly realized that anything she wanted to say would only end in a yelling match and would lead them nowhere. She was opposed to fighting on the worst of terms anyway—that was Hale’s thing. Anger, resentment, cruelty: all did not belong in the forest. Hale was tainting the air with his hate; she refused to do the same. So, while he said his piece, she gathered herself. 

“I’ll escort you out,” She responded softly when he turned his back to leave. In silence, she trailed behind him until she could think of something useful to say to the man who had betrayed her trust and spilt blood in her forest. 

“That faerie will be caught and dealt with by the Seelie Court. You know that the Unseelie are not welcome in the forest. Why didn’t you just come to me, Hale? This could have all been avoided.” Hazel trotted a bit until she was able to fall in step at his side. Taking only a second to breathe, she continued before he could cut in with a snarky remark. “You know the treaty just as well as I do. I have done nothing but honor it all these years. The Unseelie are banned, and I give you regular updates on activities and populations. Why can’t you give me the same courtesy by honoring my one stipulation: you do not hunt on my grounds. If this happens again, I will have no choice but to enlist boggarts and spriggans to ward off any foreign visitors. Please, don’t make it come to that; I don’t want violence.”

Just ahead, she could see the trees thinning back into the city. She prepared to take her leave, but before she left said, “You have a beautiful soul, Hale. I hope that one day you find a way to conquer your darkness so that you can see it too.” 

With Sinis in tow, she doubled-back for home. The forest still sang, but its tune was dull and monochrome. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but she suddenly felt like an intruder. Of course—a faerie had fallen under her watch; she had failed at her one and only duty as guardian. She blinked at the moisture in her eyes and wondered how long she would receive the cold shoulder before she was forgiven for her grievous error.