Tag: the faerie thief

The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 017

The Ruby Queen's Garden (Episode One)With a flash of crimson sleeve, the queen’s arm snaked out and she caught Gwyn by the ear and pinched down tight.

“Don’t think you can escape me, girl,” she whispered. “You belong to the garden, and thus to me.”

Gwyn winced and tried to keep her head even with the queen’s grip. It wasn’t easy, though, with the queen being a few heads shorter than she was.

“W-where are we going?”

The Ruby Queen gave her a look so filled with fury and hate that she nearly made a door back to Lyra’s world then and there. The only thing that stopped her was the certainty that the queen would follow her and drag her back to the garden after she’d destroyed Lyra’s world completely.

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 015

The Ruby Queen's Garden (Episode One)Gwyn landed with a bone rattling thump next to a manicured rose tree cut into the shape of a heart.

She only had enough time to get her bearings—and slip her gloves back on—before something small, reddish-brown, and spiky zoomed past her, missing her nose by the narrowest of margins.

Though it was foolish, she lay in place for a moment to catch her breath and reorient herself to a world dulled by gloves until it had gone barren of all magic.

All magic, of course, but the—

“What are you doing?” the Ruby Queen shrilled, mincing toward her with the grace of a poppy and the teeth of a venus fly trap. She had one of the servants propped up against her shoulder like a parasol and her crown pushed slightly back from her forehead.

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 014

The Ruby Queen's Garden (Episode One)Gwyn wasn’t ready to leave the Otherwhere quite yet, she never was, but the binding pulling her back to the garden was getting stronger now. She rubbed her hand against her ribs where it pinched her. “I guess.”

She reached forward to dive into her window, but Lyra put a hand out to stop her.

“Before you ever go through a door you’ve made, you need to be sure that it can bear you. Put your hands along the edges,” Lyra positioned her hands for her, “and strengthen it first. That’s important.”

“Strengthen it how?” Along with the delight and wonder came a spark of impatience. She’d lived in the garden her whole life, had paid strict attention to everything her parents did when they visited, and she’d witnessed enough of Robin’s pranks to know that magic should be easier than this.

“The same way you created it. Focus. Think. Believe.”Read More


The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 013

The Ruby Queen's Garden (Episode One)“What are you thinking of when you find a door?” Lyra asked, her voice heavy with sleep.

Gwyn stared at the sky some more. A star-man contemplated three rosebushes before reaching out an plucking a rose from the middle bush. The rose melted away into a beautiful princess, and the other two bushes turned into her sisters. They cheered and danced as the ancient curse had been broken. At long last, they were free.

Free.

“I don’t know. Being able to visit with you. Doors to your realm are the only ones I’ve ever been able to find.”

“Hmmm. Well, what are you thinking when you try to summon a door?”

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The Faerie Thief: The Ruby Queen’s Garden 012

TFTcoverGwyn’s first try resulted in a small purple toad.

It blinked up at them with mournful eyes, its shoulders humped over.

“That was a good beginning,” Lyra said, patting her arm. “Most people don’t get anything on their first try. I know I didn’t.”

“What did I do wrong?” Gwyn frowned down at the toad. It was nothing like a door.

“I’ve never conjured a toad like that, so I don’t know.” Lyra leaned over and brushed her fingers across the toad’s brow. Its face relaxed right before it puffed into a golden cloud of magic. “Try again.”

After summoning a pink hatbox, a shoe, five pieces of silver, and an old coat that was mostly patches, Gwyn slumped down. “I’m never going to get this.”

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