by Grassy Mud<\/p>\n
(mirrors http:\/\/s2b2.livejournal.com\/341670.html<\/a>)<\/p>\n The trees were budding with the beginnings of spring, the snow just melting on the ground. In the trees, the birds sang merry tunes, and the squirrels chittered through the boughs.<\/p>\n Marcus trod through the woods, his boots leaving wet prints in the muddied ground. The young man wore a long tunic, fine trousers, and soft leather boots. Rings adorned his fingers, and his pale neck. The beginnings of a beard covered his chin, and his hair hung to his shoulders in golden locks.<\/p>\n Marcus liked the woods. They were quiet, and peaceful. They didn\u2019t ask impertinent questions, or make unreasonable demands. They were one of the few places that he could truly relax.<\/p>\n Up ahead, the trees parted into a clearing. There was a horse there, white as milk, and a stone well.<\/p>\n The horse glanced up at Marcus as he entered, but soon disregarded him. It shuffled around to the other side of the well, and continued to graze.<\/p>\n \u201cIs there a stray knight about?\u201d Marcus asked<\/p>\n The horse, of course, did not reply.<\/p>\n Marcus glanced around, but the woods were quiet as could be. The wind rustled through the trees, and the horse chewed away at its meal, unconcerned.<\/p>\n Marcus made his way into the clearing, and drew a bucket of water from the well. He sat on the stone edge, drinking from the dipper. It tasted clear, and cool. He licked his lips.<\/p>\n It was at this time that a rose caught Marcus\u2019s eye. It was sprouting, oddly enough, from the inside of the well.<\/p>\n It had a strange sort of blossom, with twin spirals of petals pressed together in one flower. It had no thorns, the stem was thick, and the petals were red as blood.<\/p>\n Marcus reached back behind him, steadying himself with one hand on the edge of the well. His fingers closed about it gently, and he gave a soft tug.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus looked up, and found a stranger staring at him, from the other side of the clearing.<\/p>\n <\/a>The man was dressed in blacks and blues, like a livid bruise. His eyes were icy, and his face was sharp as glass. Marcus straightened, slowly.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m picking a rose,\u201d he explained simply.<\/p>\n The man advanced, and Marcus stood up. He was unarmed, but somehow Marcus was afraid of him.<\/p>\n \u201cI never invited you here,\u201d the man said \u201cYou\u2019re trespassing.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus bristled. \u201cThese are my father\u2019s lands,\u201d he spat. \u201cMine, after his death.\u201d<\/p>\n The man advanced again, and Marcus stepped backwards despite himself. He found the well pressing against his back. Behind him, the horse continued to chew unconcerned.<\/p>\n Marcus scowled. He suddenly felt defiant; staring at the man quite clearly, he reached back to tug at the rose again.<\/p>\n Immediately, the man was upon him.<\/p>\n To Marcus\u2019s great surprise, the man\u2019s lips were pressed against his own, the man\u2019s hands on his shoulders. Marcus\u2019s hand was still about the rose, and his fingers clenched down in surprise. The stranger flinched, and trembled against Marcus\u2019s frame.<\/p>\n Marcus let go of the rose, and shoved the stranger from him. He then nearly fell into the well and spent several minutes flailing to catch his balance. The stranger, for his part, went sprawling on the ground.<\/p>\n \u201cStay back!\u201d Marcus shouted. \u201cDon\u2019t you dare touch me again.\u201d<\/p>\n The man stared at him from the ground. He held up his hands in symbolic surrender, making no move to get up.<\/p>\n Marcus wiped his lips with his spare sleeve. His heart was beating fast, and his face was red.<\/p>\n \u201cWho are you?\u201d he demanded.<\/p>\n \u201cTam Lin,\u201d the stranger replied.<\/p>\n \u201cWhere do you hail from?\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin gestured towards the woods, broadly. It was hardly an answer at all, and Marcus frowned.<\/p>\n Tam Lin stood, cautiously, watching Marcus for any sudden movements or word of displeasure. Marcus gave none, only crossed his arms and scowled.<\/p>\n Oddly enough, there was no imprint in the ground where the man had fallen. He walked over the ground as if he was a shadow, making a wide circle to the white horse. He had no footprints.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you doing in these woods?\u201d Marcus asked, nervously.<\/p>\n \u201cHiding from my Queen.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus laughed suddenly, and Tam Lin looked at him in surprise.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have that in common then,\u201d Marcus said. \u201cBoth of us are harried by unwanted women.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI have to go back soon,\u201d Tam Lin said, warily, \u201cor she\u2019ll come to find me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell there I\u2019m a bit luckier. No lady has a claim on me, not yet at least, so it will only be my father coming to look for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin stared at him, carefully, intently.<\/p>\n \u201cWill you keep my secret?\u201d the man asked.<\/p>\n Marcus glanced at him, puzzled \u201cWhat secret?\u201d<\/p>\n The man gestured towards the well, the rose, and flushed red.<\/p>\n Marcus thought of the heated kiss, and the declaration of an unwanted \u2018queen\u2019. He thought about what that might mean, frowned, and nodded.<\/p>\n Immediately, the man relaxed, and gave a deep bow of thanks.<\/p>\n \u201cI am in your debt.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAre you,\u201d Marcus said. He thought about this. \u201cAre you often in the woods?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n Tam Lin nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cThen meet me here, some other day. I often wander, and would not mind some company.\u201d<\/p>\n The strange man agreed.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n At twilight, music could often be heard in the woods, faint and far off like a half-remembered dream. Strange winds blew, and faces could be caught half-glimpsed through the boughs of the trees.<\/p>\n Tam Lin rode on his milk-white horse, a pale shadow in the night. He rode in a path with no reason, but plenty of rhyme. He rode until he reached a hollow hill, where the music became an echo in time.<\/p>\n The hill had no window, and no door, but Tam Lin entered anyway, and inside the faerie court greeted him.<\/p>\n The court was a palace, and a garden, and an entire world.<\/p>\n The fair folk danced there until their feet bled, laughing and crying at the same time. They flirted, and kissed, and rutted together with little care for who or when. Fights broke out, and were forgotten as soon as they began. Sometimes, someone died, and everyone laughed. Tam Lin was cautious of that sort.<\/p>\n In the center of it all there was a throne, intricate silver and gold. A Queen sat there, fair as first snow. Her hair was pale as starlight, her eyes were flawless pearls, and her dress was made of twilight, studded with the beginnings of stars. Tam Lin made his way to her, cautiously, his hands shaking. Her eyes found him in the crowd, and her whole face lit up.<\/p>\n \u201cMy love!\u201d she said, and swept from her throne.<\/p>\n She gathered him up in kisses, all softness and honey. Tam Lin shuddered at her touch, but she paid him no mind, brushing her fingers over his broad shoulders, and his soft neck.<\/p>\n \u201cSo shy, my love?\u201d she asked \u201cI shall remedy that. Let me touch your heart.\u201d<\/p>\n She reached into his chest, and Tam Lin flinched, and closed his eyes. The Queen\u2019s face went blank, and the hall fell silent.<\/p>\n Like a cat pawing for a fish, she batted at his chest. But there was no fish there, no string, and no heart, and slowly the Queen\u2019s face grew distraught.<\/p>\n \u201cMy love, what have you done?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n Her hands went elsewhere\u2014far lower\u2014 and once again found nothing; only a smooth expanse between his legs. Quickly, her face turned to thorns and anger. This time, her voice emerged in a hiss.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat have you done?\u201d she repeated, and the court turned sour.<\/p>\n Like a swarm of locusts, they descended on him. Hands like claws ripped at his midnight clothes, and he closed his eyes, and waited for it to be over. At the end, Tam Lin\u2019s crime was laid bare, shuddering on the floor. His crime was clear.<\/p>\n He had stripped all pleasure from his body, all lust. He could no longer be toyed with, as the court saw fit. He could no longer be the queen\u2019s personal pet.<\/p>\n Her majesty\u2019s face was a mask of rage.<\/p>\n \u201cAm I so ugly?\u201d she asked. \u201cAs hideous as all that?\u201d<\/p>\n She turned to the crowd, and bellowed out the pronouncement for all to hear.<\/p>\n \u201cTam Lin will not have me, so at Hallows Eve the devils shall have him!\u201d she shrieked. \u201cThey will feast on his bones, and rip his flesh. Let all know what happens to one who scorns me!\u201d<\/p>\n The fair folk, feral and beautiful, howled in delight. Tam Lin, who was just as fair, simply stared blankly into the night.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n \u201cTam Lin?\u201d Marcus called out. \u201cAre you here?\u201d<\/p>\n He wandered through the woods, aimlessly, calling out the name.<\/p>\n The man appeared, as if from the shadows. He led his milky-white horse behind him, and moved silently as a breeze.<\/p>\n Marcus gave a start, but nodded in a friendly enough fashion. In his hand was a bottle, and he held it out in parley.<\/p>\n Tam Lin\u2019s face showed his surprise, but he took the bottle. In fact, the bottle was open and in the man\u2019s hand before Marcus could blink, and he was drinking deep. He gave four great gulps before the nobleman stopped him.<\/p>\n \u201cSteady!\u201d Marcus said. \u201cWe have all day!\u201d<\/p>\n Tam wiped his mouth, and bobbed his head in apology. His hands were shaking as handed the bottle back, but Marcus smiled wryly, and took a more leisurely mouthful.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is the occasion?\u201d Tam Lin asked.<\/p>\n Marcus laughed, sour. \u201cLady Blackwood.\u201d<\/p>\n An eyebrow was raised.<\/p>\n \u201cLady Blackwood,\u201d Marcus repeated. \u201cShe is of noble birth, had impeccable manners, is objectively beautiful, and I still want nothing to do with her. She is like a lump of stone to me, for all I care about her\u201d<\/p>\n He sighed, and slumped down against a tree. Tam Lin settled down beside him.<\/p>\n \u201cI think there\u2019s something wrong with me, quite frankly,\u201d Marcus said.<\/p>\n Tam Lin\u2019s mouth twitched and he disagreed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s yours like?\u201d Marcus asked. \u201cYour lady-love? Your \u2018queen\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin\u2019s face turned bitter and he looked away. \u201cShe is not my love,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Marcus nodded, understanding.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy don\u2019t you leave,\u201d he asked, \u201cif you do not love her?\u201d<\/p>\n Tam laughed and shrugged helplessly. \u201cI cannot.\u201d<\/p>\n They sat there for a while, in melancholy silence.<\/p>\n \u201cYou kissed me,\u201d Marcus said. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin flushed and became suddenly enamored with the sight of his own shoes.<\/p>\n \u201cI am greatly sorry for that. I misunderstood.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus swirled the bottle, thinking.<\/p>\n \u201cPerhaps I am like you,\u201d he mused.<\/p>\n Tam Lin gave him a questioning look.<\/p>\n \u201cA lover of men,\u201d Marcus clarified. \u201cPerhaps that is why none of the women please me.\u201d<\/p>\n Such conversations were foreign to Tam Lin, who had been so far from mortal flesh. He simply stared at Marcus, puzzled.<\/p>\n Eventually, the nobleman made his way back to the castle, and Tam Lin was somewhat sadder for the loss in company.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The next week, Marcus came back with another bottle, and complaints about a Lady Greenwood. This time, Tam Lin invited him for a stroll through the woods, and both of them soon began to enjoy themselves.<\/p>\n He showed Marcus paths that he had never seen before, and strange tricks. Tam Lin could catch a fox and not have it bite him. He could call a bird, and have it come to him. Every now and then, he would fade away into the shadows when Marcus wasn\u2019t looking. Marcus only had to call though, and the man would be there again, right by his side, as always.<\/p>\n It became clear enough, to both of them, that it was not entirely friendship between them.<\/p>\n Perhaps they were lonely, or perhaps there was a genuine spark.<\/p>\n Whatever the reason, laughter soon turned to touches, and touches turned to kisses. Often, they found themselves by the well where they met, nuzzling and exchanging affection. It seemed traditional somehow, as Tam Lin never returned any affection except by the well.<\/p>\n They both knew it wasn\u2019t something that could last.<\/p>\n They enjoyed their time while they could.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n \u201cIt would be nice,\u201d Marcus murmured one day, \u201cif I could just have an heir with you.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin didn\u2019t respond, but instead stared at the sky.<\/p>\n The two of them were lying on the ground, among the first leaves of autumn. Tam Lin had grown melancholy, when he saw the first leaves fall. The strange man slowly reached over, and combed the hair out of Marcus\u2019s face.<\/p>\n \u201cDo you really want one?\u201d He asked. \u201cA child?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus was silent for a long time.<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d he said, \u201cI suppose I do. But it\u2019s a lost cause, isn\u2019t it? Even if I find a woman I get along with\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n He sighed, and buried his face into Tam Lin\u2019s chest.<\/p>\n \u201cI could never go through with it,\u201d Marcus confided. \u201cMy poor wife would have a barren bed.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin was silent.<\/p>\n Then, slowly, he stood up, and brought Marcus to his feet as well.<\/p>\n He walked over to the well, and pulled the rose from its cracks.<\/p>\n Marcus stared at him as he proffered the flower.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d he confided.<\/p>\n Marcus swallowed, the gravity of the situation pressing down on him. But he took the rose.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d he responded.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you truly want a child,\u201d Tam Lin said, \u201cplace it by your bed tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus nodded, though he barely understood.<\/p>\n In the distance, the first crow of night began to call. Tam Lin glanced that way and his face became pained.<\/p>\n He took Marcus\u2019s face in his hands and gave him a deep kiss.<\/p>\n \u201cI treasure these days together,\u201d he said, \u201cand would not give anything for them.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n That night, when the moon rose into the sky, Marcus obeyed the orders Tam Lin had given him.<\/p>\n He found a small glass vase, and put the rose on the window sill, nearest his bedside. The scent of the rose was heavy, and more musky than sweet.<\/p>\n He got into bed, and rolled over to face it, feeling ridiculous. He breathed in the scent in deeply.<\/p>\n In his mind\u2019s eye he saw Tam Lin\u2019s piercing eyes looming over him. He could picture each inch of the man\u2019s skin, each ripple of flesh and muscle under the twilight clothes. He hadn\u2019t been lying when he said he loved the man. He felt it to his core. And more than that, he felt heat rush into his blood, as he imagined things they had done, and some things they had never done.<\/p>\n Marcus\u2019s hand slowly traveled downwards, slipping under his blanket. He grasped himself in his fist, and felt his length.<\/p>\n His hand moved up and down roughly. He spat on it surreptitiously, and then continued. The sensation became infinitely more pleasurable, and soon he was generating his own liquid to smooth the exercise. He sighed, and hummed into the empty room. The musky smell of the rose wrapped around him, and at and impulse he plucked it from its vase, and pressed it to his lips.<\/p>\n The petals were soft, and smooth, and the bud-like spirals were tight and warm.<\/p>\n He licked it, and found it oddly pleasurable.<\/p>\n His pace increased, and he began to suckle and lap at the rose\u2019s smooth petals. Something like sap, sweet and strangely salty, leaked from the blossom. His fingers tightened around the rose\u2019s shaft, and his other hand tightened around his own.<\/p>\n Marcus\u2019s speed increased again, and his back began to arch. He sucked on the rose in earnest, feeling the slick nectar trickle down his throat. The musky scent was intoxicating, and the vision of Tam Lin was so sharp that he could practically hear the man\u2019s breath. He wondered, belatedly, if this rose inspired hallucinations.<\/p>\n He came quickly, and hard, splattering all over his fist. He suddenly felt great globs of sap come loose, and trickle down his throat. He started to cough, but changed his mind and swallowed. One last flare of pleasure went through his system, and then the vision of Tam Lin began to fade.<\/p>\n Marcus slumped, spent, on the bed. He closed his eyes, and curled in on himself.<\/p>\n The scent lulled him to sleep. He soon had only the deepest of dreams.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n As the leaves turned gold and red, Marcus began to feel queasy and spent more and more time indoors. This in turn made him perpetually restless, and the servants often gossiped that they say the young nobleman staring out the window for hours on end, looking into the woods.<\/p>\n If anyone asked, Marcus would claim he felt fine. But he was pale, and his father gave him stern looks every time he tried to go outside.<\/p>\n Marcus tried to be patient. He took up reading, and waited for the illness to settle. He called for his father, and the servants went running like the place was on fire, frightened that master was about to collapse. When the earl came, though, his son was simply sitting in a chair, examining a tomb of linage. He looked up, somewhat nervous, and pointed to a portrait, on the far end.<\/p>\n \u201cFather,\u201d he asked, \u201cThis family is raven-haired, as are the portraits before it. But after, the earls and duchesses of this region are all golden-haired. Why is that?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus\u2019s father frowned, but answered the question graciously.<\/p>\n \u201cEarl Laird,\u201d he said. \u201cThe man died, all too early. They said it was heartbreak. His only son went riding into the woods one day, and never came back.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHis only son?\u201d<\/p>\n The Earl nodded, solemnly.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter Liard died, the land passed to our family, many generations ago. Likewise, if you pass, or have no heir, the line will likewise pass to your cousin.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus paid little heed to this gentle chastisement. He stared at the portrait, and sucked on his knuckle.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat was the son\u2019s name?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n The Earl scratched his hair, and shook his head.<\/p>\n \u201cI hardly remember. I think it was\u2026 Tom Line? Something akin to that.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus was pale as a sheet. He was leaning on the table, his knuckles white.<\/p>\n \u201cMarcus,\u201d his father demanded, \u201cwhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus opened his mouth to reply, but couldn\u2019t speak. Instead, he promptly toppled over. The world went black before he even hit the floor.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n The whispers were fierce, and unrelenting, like the hissing of snakes. Marcus attempted to ignore them at first, tried to roll over and go back to sleep. It proved impossible, and he got up. His feet were shaky, and he wore nothing but a nightgown shift. The smooth bulge in his belly was now impossible to ignore.<\/p>\n The doctor and his father were discussing matters in the next room, varying between disbelief, shock, and anger. His father seemed to be blaming the doctor, the doctor seemed to be terrified, and both of them were utterly baffled.<\/p>\n They looked up when Marcus came into the room. He tried to stand tall, and not look as tired as he felt.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat is it, Father?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n His father stepped forward, looking decidedly green.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are with child.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus stared at him for a moment, and then suddenly he began to laugh. It was a strange sound and seemed to vary greatly in tone. Neither the Earl nor the doctor could tell if it was mirth, madness, or joy. But Marcus was smiling, and it didn\u2019t seem he would stop any time soon.<\/p>\n \u201cYes,\u201d he said. \u201cYes I am. I met a faerie in the woods, and he seems to have impregnated me.\u201d<\/p>\n The Earl\u2019s face morphed between disbelief, understanding, shock, rage, and illness.<\/p>\n Later, when he had a clearer eye on the matter, Marcus would marvel that his father did not simply keel over from shock on the spot. As it was, the Earl turned white, then red, then green, and then a pale sort of purple. He made a choking sound, and took deep breaths.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ll find you a wife at once,\u201d he said, strangled. \u201cSomeone who can keep the matter quiet.\u201d<\/p>\n He turned to the doctor. \u201cSir, you will be compensated for your discretion. I trust we can keep this from going beyond these walls.\u201d<\/p>\n He turned, and found Marcus was striding back into his room.<\/p>\n \u201cMarcus. Marcus, where are you going?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWell, Father, I think I\u2019m going to get dressed. Then I\u2019m going to find the sire of my child.\u201d<\/p>\n Once again, there are few fathers who would welcome such a pronouncement.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Marcus rode over the green fields as if on the wind itself. He wore a green cloak that billowed out behind him, and he couldn\u2019t keep the light from his face. He held one arm to his belly every now and then, and laughed loudly into the wind. When the trees loomed up around him, he began to shout immediately.<\/p>\n \u201cTam Lin!\u201d he shouted. \u201cTam Lin!\u201d<\/p>\n He thundered through the woods, crowing for all to hear, sending great clouds of crows from the trees, until he arrived at the well. He dismounted his horse, and spun about like a giddy child.<\/p>\n \u201cTam Lin!\u201d he shouted.<\/p>\n Slowly, from the shadows, the dark figure resolved itself. Tam Lin\u2019s icy eyes appeared, tired and haggard. When he saw Marcus, he smiled despite himself, and stumbled forward to meet him.<\/p>\n Marcus clutched him in a great hug, and laughed loudly.<\/p>\n \u201cIt worked!\u201d he crowed \u201cIt worked! I have your child, you madman. You magical fey madman!\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin clutched him close. \u201cI\u2019m glad,\u201d he said \u201cI\u2019m glad.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou shall move in with us in the palace!\u201d Marcus said. \u201cYou, me, the child: all of us together! A proper family. Your queen can go hang herself!\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin looked up at him, his eyes broken.<\/p>\n \u201cMarcus,\u201d he said, \u201cI can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n The grin splintered.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat do you mean?\u201d Marcus asked. \u201cOf course you can. My father can make whatever arrangements he likes, to minimize the scandal, but I shall have you.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMarcus, I cannot leave the forest. And after tonight, you will not see me again.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus stared at him. His heart began to crack.<\/p>\n \u201cNo,\u201d he said. \u201cNo, no. No, no, no.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the queen, Marcus,\u201d Tam Lin tried to explain. \u201cShe keeps me here, and tonight she will\u2026”<\/p>\n He stopped, and shivered, and choked. Then his face resolved itself, and he looked up at Marcus, his eyes full of pain, and of love.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery seventh Hallow\u2019s Eve,\u201d he explained, \u201cthe Queen pays a tithe to hell. I defied her, wouldn\u2019t love her like she demanded, and this is my price.\u201d<\/p>\n He took Marcus by the arms.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is my price, Marcus. And if it meant loving you, having a child with you, then it is one I will gladly pay.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus stared at him, his eyes pouring tears.<\/p>\n \u201cYou are a faerie, then.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cBut\u2026 you were human, weren\u2019t you?\u201d he asked, pleading. \u201cYou were the son of Earl Laird.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin drew back. Then he closed his eyes and nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cI went hunting,\u201d he said faintly. \u201cI went hunting, and fell from my horse. I rested on a hollow hill. When I woke, I was in the Queen\u2019s court. She healed me, taught me magic, and gave me immortality.\u201d He opened his eyes, and they were full of pain. \u201cShe hasn\u2019t let me go since.\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus\u2019s hands were trembling, but his gaze was iron. \u201cWhen is the tithe paid?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe ride at the witching hour, across Miles Cross.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThen I will be there.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMarcus\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo. Tam Lin, you listen to me. You are my love. My one and only, and that should be enough for any magic, even a queen\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n He stared at Tam Lin, and wouldn\u2019t break the gaze.<\/p>\n \u201cI will be there,\u201d he repeated.<\/p>\n \u201cShe won\u2019t make it easy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin closed his eyes.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen we ride by, you must find me, and you must pull me down from my horse. Then you must hold onto me, no matter what happens, until dawn\u2019s light. Do you understand?\u201d<\/p>\n Marcus nodded. Tam Lin kissed him. Despite everything either of them said, it felt like goodbye.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n It was cold that night.<\/p>\n Marcus stood at Miles Cross, his legs growing stiff in the dark. He wrapped his cloak around his shoulders, and tried to suppress the chattering of his teeth.<\/p>\n The wind whipped around him, taunting him. Marcus glanced at the moon and tried to judge how close it was to the witching hour.<\/p>\n He had spoken bold words during the day, but in the dark he could think of a thousand things that could go wrong.<\/p>\n What if he did not know his love in the dark? What if he was standing in the wrong crossroads? What if he fell asleep and the faeries passed him by?<\/p>\n He tried not to think of them, and tried to bear the cold.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n In the hazy darkness, a sound like distant thunder rumbled through the night.<\/p>\n Marcus, his joints half-frozen, his eyes heavy with sleep, tried to listen.<\/p>\n There was a sound like bells, and laughter, and singing. A sound like hooves, and music, and whooping bellows.<\/p>\n Marcus forced his eyes open just as the first horse came.<\/p>\n A cascade of light burst into the night, nearly blinding him. Hooves bore down, and Marcus shrieked and lunged out of the way. Laughter echoed around him, strange eyes and faces peered down as a stampede of horses rushed through the night.<\/p>\n The riders were masked, each of them identical and featureless.<\/p>\n A black horse thundered by Marcus, nearly crushing him, then a brown. A milky-white horse barreled down on him, its rider masked the same as all the rest. Marcus reached up, and he grabbed Tam Lin.<\/p>\n Immediately, there was a shriek of rage. Marcus and the masked man went tumbling into the night, off the road and into the ditch. Marcus clutched at the masked man\u2019s arm, not letting go for the life of him. He held the man close, and didn\u2019t let go. In the distance, he could hear the shriek of the Queen, like glass on stone: the unbridled fury.<\/p>\n Slowly, the thunder of hooves faded into the night. The light dwindled down into darkness once again, and Marcus breathed heavily, and ragged.<\/p>\n At his chest, the captured faerie trembled. Marcus slowly pulled the mask off the man\u2019s head, and peered into the man\u2019s face.<\/p>\n Tam Lin stared back.<\/p>\n They both collapsed into laughter, into tears. They rolled about in the grass like giddy hounds, clutching at each other all the while.<\/p>\n \u201cI told you!\u201d Marcus said \u201cI told you we could do it!\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin opened his mouth to reply, but something happened, and something became very, very wrong.<\/p>\n Tam Lin\u2019s face began to change, to morph. The features shifted, and became unfamiliar. His face split, and churned, and a stranger stared back at him.<\/p>\n Marcus recoiled with a cry, thrusting the stranger from him. But the stranger grasped him tight, and wouldn\u2019t let him go. The eyes were frightened, pleading.<\/p>\n You must hold onto me, no matter what happens, until dawn\u2019s light.<\/i><\/p>\n Marcus was still.<\/p>\n The stranger stared at him, mute as the grave, eyes pleading. Their hands clutched in the night.<\/p>\n \u201cI know it is you,\u201d Marcus said. \u201cI trust that it is you.\u201d<\/p>\n He pressed his forehead to Tam Lin\u2019s. He kissed him, despite the strange face.<\/p>\n Above them, looming in the night, stood the Queen of the Faeries, her face a mask of rage, her hand a claw of spite. She gestured, and everything turned about.<\/p>\n Suddenly in Marcus\u2019s arms there was not a man, but an adder. It hissed, and its scaly flesh heaved and curled about, trying to escape. Its fangs flashed, dripping poison and death.<\/p>\n Marcus clutched at it and curled himself around its coils. He wrestled it to the ground, feeling the muscle writhe underneath him. The animal was slick and as easy to grasp as the wind, but Marcus dug deep, and clasped his arms so tight that he couldn\u2019t breathe.<\/p>\n The Queen gestured again, and there was a massive wolf, roaring and snarling in the night. It threw Marcus off, and pinned him to the ground, breath hot and heavy over his body. It snarled and roared, but Marcus clutched at its neck, buried his face in its shoulder, and refused to let go.<\/p>\n Then the wolf shrank, and became a cat, wriggling away in the night. But Marcus clutched tight even with the change and didn\u2019t let the little creature go. The cat writhed, and clawed at his eyes, leaving long bloody scratches upon his face. Marcus held on.<\/p>\n Then heat began to seep through the cat\u2019s fur, like water through a leaky barrel.<\/p>\n The feline swelled, and horns burst from its brow. A spaded tail lashed about Marcus\u2019s legs, and clawed hands pressed at his shoulders. A demon\u2019s visage stared down at him, grinning malevolently.<\/p>\n The demon in his grasp burned brighter, and brighter, until Marcus had to close his eyes against the light. His arms began to sizzle with the heat, and pain raged through his body. But he only pressed closer.<\/p>\n He leaned forward, and he kissed the demonic maw.<\/p>\n Above them, the Queen\u2019s furious eyes stared down at them. Her fury burned bright.<\/p>\n Then, as suddenly as it had begun, it was over.<\/p>\n Tam Lin was in his grasp, whole and unharmed, shivering and naked as the day he was born. Marcus was not burned, or scoured by claws. His knuckles were white from clutching, and he had bitten his tongue at some point in the night.<\/p>\n Both of them glanced up at assembly of faeries circled around them, and at the Queen at their head. She peered down at them, and she sighed a long, deep, tired sigh.<\/p>\n Then, as one, the assembled faeries turned, and disappeared into the night.<\/p>\n The two of them were left shivering, cold in the dark.<\/p>\n \u201cAre you all right?\u201d Tam Lin asked.<\/p>\n Marcus nodded, barely able to speak.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was all illusions, wasn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n Tam Lin nodded and Marcus smiled.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew you would never hurt me,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Marcus was suddenly aware of how very naked his lover was, and of the fact that they were entwined on the ground, with the raven-haired man straddling him. And despite (or perhaps because of) the still-racing beat of his heart, he found himself pleased by this fact.<\/p>\n It did not take Tam Lin long to notice this.<\/p>\n He snorted and then kissed Marcus. Their bodies quickly entwined on the grass, the heat of their sweat making child\u2019s play of the night\u2019s chill. Tam Lin\u2019s body was hot now, and alive, and soft, and hard, and slippery, and firm.<\/p>\n Marcus grabbed Tam Lin\u2019s naked thighs and pressed them around him. He licked his lips, and then thought better and set about kissing Tam Lin\u2019s neck instead, soft laps and nibbles mixed in-between.<\/p>\n Marcus was still dressed, and this problem was quickly resolved. His clothes were discarded, leaving the smooth moon-like expanse of his belly to press between them.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re beautiful,\u201d Tam Lin told him.<\/p>\n Marcus replied in kind.<\/p>\n Both of them were stiff with lust, and pressed against each other. Their bellies quickly became slick with sweat and arousal, and it felt glorious.<\/p>\n \u201cHave you ever done this before?\u201d Tam Lin asked.<\/p>\n Marcus shook his head, his face flushed, and Tam Lin nodded.<\/p>\n \u201cThen I\u2019ll be the woman,\u201d he said, and brought his hand to his own entrance.<\/p>\n Fascinated, Marcus watched as Tan Lin pressed himself on his own fingers, knuckle-deep, barely even pausing. The man moaned, and pressed deeper still, spreading his fingers wide inside his body.<\/p>\n Marcus grasped his lover\u2019s hips, and felt as the raven-haired man bobbed up and down, trembling and moaning.<\/p>\n After a thousand heartbeats, two thousand, Tam Lin ceased his ministrations and pulled out his hand. He shifted backwards, and adjusted his position. He smiled.<\/p>\n Then Marcus howled and gasped as he was enfolded with mind-numbing pleasure, and immediately came.<\/p>\n As the white faded from his eyes, Marcus felt head rush to his face. He could hear his partner muffling laughter, and mumbled something half-insulting without really meaning it. As with nearly anything in these hours, Tam Lin\u2019s response was to kiss him.<\/p>\n His fey lover patiently rubbed palms across his chest, his thighs. Fingers pressed and teased, and Tam Lin\u2019s tongue lapped at his neck, and his still-lustful member pressed against Marcus\u2019s own.<\/p>\n Marcus felt self-conscious at first, but quickly lost himself in the pleasure. And all too soon, they were back to where they left off, and Tam Lin was pressing down on him.<\/p>\n Marcus gasped, and bit his lip.<\/p>\n \u201cI love you,\u201d he mumbled.<\/p>\n Tam Lin responded in kind.<\/p>\n Their bodies moved together in the moonlight, back and forth as one. Kisses were traded, and vows were spoken. As the pleasure built, both of their backs arched in ecstasy, and their shouts mingled in the night.<\/p>\n When it was over, they lay entwined in the dewy grass, with Marcus\u2019s green cloak spread over them. They slept, arms grasping each other, heads resting on shoulders.<\/p>\n They opened their eyes just as the dawn peered over the horizon.<\/p>\n For the first time in a series of many, many such instances, Marcus woke to find Tam Lin\u2019s smiling face greeting him. And in the dawn light they kissed.<\/p>\n Then the two men slowly stood up and began to walk home.<\/p>\n Tam Lin\u2019s feet left soft imprints in the grass behind him, the dew stirring at the touch of his feet.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Read this piece’s entry on the Shousetsu Bang*Bang wiki.<\/a><\/p>\n
\nIt was one such day, hiding away in the library, that Marcus found the old family portraits.<\/p>\n