The Virgin and the Fae

“Take off your clothes,” was the first thing he said.

“B-but you promised…” Charlotte began, fearful of what was to come.

“I am not going to rape you.” His voice shook with rage. “Take off your clothes and get in bed and go to sleep.” Each word seemed bitten off and spat at her.

He was furious, Charlotte thought. Why was he suddenly so angry?

Quickly she stripped out of his jacket and jeans, hoping that he would not object to her keeping her underwear on. She let the clothes drop to the floor in a pile before stooping to pick them up.

“Leave them.”

Without pause, she turned and quickly walked towards the bed.

With minimal grace, she pulled the tucked cover and sheet from underneath the mattress before slipping beneath them.

Clutching covers to her chest, she stared nervously at Garrick.

“Go to bed.”

Turning to her side, Charlotte pulled the covers up to her chin and squeezed her eyes shut.

She pulled her knees up, circling into a fetal position.

Garrick stared at the tense curvature of her exposed back. He could see the ridges of her spine now. Locke was right. She did need to eat more, though it wasn’t nearly as severe a problem as he had implied.

Charlotte was attractively thin, he thought. She’d always been tall and willowy, but college had taken its toll on her body. Anxious and over-extended, Charlotte would often skip meals, usually forgetting to eat or deciding that she simply didn’t have the time to spare.

That had been the one good thing about that boy she was usually with. Mark. He would nag her until she ate something, watching her constantly to ensure that she had at least one decent meal a day. If it hadn’t been for the boy, Charlotte might have indeed grown skeletal, like some of the other women he saw in her world. As jealous as Garrick was of Mark’s flirtations, he was grateful.

Garrick watched quietly as Charlotte’s back began to slowly relax until finally she slipped away into sleep.

With a final look, Garrick turned to sit in his armchair facing the fire.

Why wouldn’t she trust him? Why didn’t she understand that he would never truly hurt her?

The idea that she had believed—still believed in spite of his word otherwise—that he would violate her…

He knew the attempted claiming ceremony had been unfortunate, but it had been necessary at the time. But he still thought of how before she had trusted him. Not fully, but there had been an innocence in her eyes that was gone now.

She had had such a naïve conception of the danger he posed to her that she had blindly begun to trust him. Now she knew what a Fae was capable of—she had seen one of the playrooms—and the knowledge tainted her, leaving her wary and mistrustful.

He had hoped that by telling her the story of the Great Battle she might begin to trust him more. She might see that he didn’t wish to conceal anything from her. She might see the power he allowed her to keep.

She spoke of autonomy and believed it stripped from her, but why couldn’t she see that to have kept her virginity was the greatest power he could have given her.

She was a danger to his realm, to his world, as she was and yet he refused to force her. Wasn’t that enough?

Of course it wasn’t just for her sake. Garrick knew that if he forced her she would hate him. Truly hate him. And that, that would be unbearable.

A/N: This is definitely shorter than my usual update. I have mostly finished the next chapter and had planned to post it next, but I felt that a bridge chapter before the next mornings discussions was needed. It allows the story to flow a bit more clearly, I think, though no new information comes through here. Chapter 23 is almost done and I'll post later this week hopefully!

Thanks as always to those who reviewed!!

Amanda88: I have myself in a bit of a corner with the wanting them to sleep together but the necessity of virgin status as a plot point. hopefully I can write myself out of the corner soon! But trust me, I am just as anxious to get there haha

Horny_Virgin: I actually have a weird semblance of an idea of what the competition will involve so we will see how well what makes sense and is exciting and apt in my head translates into writing! But I am trying to come up with a race that is a good..."fit" for Charlotte.....

theapocalypse451: hmm, I really like that comparison. now that you mention it, there are definitely elements in this story that are really beauty and the beast-esque. Thats one of my favorite fairy tales so thank you!!

As always, please please please review!!!