Chapter Text
A lone rider gallops through the forest, the beat of the stallion's hooves muddled slightly by the doughy dampness of the mossy ground. The first brushstrokes of pink and orange peek over the horizon, but the beauty is lost on the rider and his steed as they dip in and out of a chilly morning mist, their destination close at hand. At last they come across it - a small lake, almost a pond, hidden by a canopy of weeping willows.
Honeyed light laps lazily through the water, a dissipating fog trying futilely to contain it. The rider stills his horse at a dip in the shore and slides off with ease, giving the stallion an affectionate pat before casting his gaze towards the surrounding embankment. He is black of hair and stands with an air of strength and confidence, a bow clutched in his hands while a sword hangs at his hip. He listens to the song of the stillness around him, the soliloquy of the life around the lake as it sings to itself. The hum of a dragonfly as its wings beat against a stalk... the plop of the water as the fish begin to feast... the--
There. A branch breaks behind him. Blinding fast he turns, bow pointed up and at the ready, before the sound dies in the mist.
A unicorn watches him from under a willow.
She shimmers in the dawn, her skin luminous like a pearl. Her mane is the color of lilac petals, her eyes a deep violet pool. On her forehead protrudes a spiraling cone, both beautiful and savage, a graceful crown with a violent promise. She eyes him wearily.
He smirks. "I knew you would be here."
Did you?
A twitch of a single finger upon his bow is the only indication that he is startled. Though she had not moved her mouth, the unicorn had replied. The insects and birds around the lake did not pause, and his horse did not jump, so he knows she must have spoken to him in his head.
Did I scare you, Prince al Ghul?
Damian al Ghul's eyes narrow. "TT"
Her head tilts and she studies him. If you wanted my horn, I do not doubt I would be dead now. Why are you here?
The Prince sighs and the bow slips to his side. He looks irritably at his feet. "I knew you would be here. Grandfather has been hunting you in the East, but when I was young my mother told me stories of magic here, in the West. Not of demons and hellfire, but of life and healing. I knew it had to be you."
Her voice in his head this time was one of a sorrow and anger so deep he felt his heart hurt.
Your Grandfather has taken my kind, kidnapped and hidden them away where I cannot go. I can feel them calling to me. Is that why you are here?
Thoughts of the miracle waters underneath his Grandfather's castle crossed Damian's mind, but he forces them away. He would not be ashamed of what his Grandfather has done, he tells himself. That was for the greater good. But when he tries to meet the unicorn's eyes again, he finds he cannot.
"I'm not my Grandfather. I just wanted to know I was right."
She stills, then inches closer to him. His black steed eyes her incredulously but does not startle. Damian feels her in his mind, in his heart, a strange little warmth that pokes and prods and tests him. He wonders briefly what she sees.
I feel kindness in you. I don't understand. Are you not here to take me?
"No," the Prince whispers, his heart beating in his ears. No one had ever called him kind before. "You have no quarrel with me."
A roar tears through the morning sky, a bellow of fire and rage. Damian and the unicorn and the stallion all jump at the same time, the steed kicking and running away as the unicorn turns wildly, eyes feral and scared. Damian recovers quickly, but he knows what made such a beastly sound. There was only one thing that it could be. In this moment, Damian hates his Grandfather. He reaches towards the unicorn but she rears up, flaring her nostrils.
He reaches for her again. "Come with me! Hurry!"
Her voice is full of accusation and betrayal.
I will not go with you, you false Prince. Not without a fight.
He looks up then, at eyes so clouded with fury they looked to be black as night. She bares her teeth as the roar sounds in the air, closer now, more urgent. The air around them turns warm.
"You must trust me. He is coming!"
She shakes her head. No - not just her head. Her whole body is shaking. Damian falters. "Please trust me!"
The unicorn rears up again and turns away, her hooves kicking at the ground for speed. She tries to breach the willows when an unearthly light penetrates the trees and overtakes the sky. Damian curses under his breath and launches himself in front of the unicorn, sword in hand. The unicorn startles behind him as they both look up at what enters the clearing.
Standing impossibly tall on two cloven hooves, skin red with the heat of the eternal flames that lick every inch of his winged body, is the demon.
The Demonhead, Damian thinks.
The red bull, the unicorn whispers in his mind. How much you must hate me, to bring the red bull.
"No!" Damian cries, but the sound of his voice is overtaken by the laugh of victory from the demon in front of them, looking down at the last unicorn with glee.
"You have found her for me, prince of the night," the demon smiles. "What a wonderful gift."
Damian throws down his sword, anger rising at the demon's words. "She is not yours to have. Grandfather does not need her. She stays here with me." Before he finishes his statement, his fingers release the hidden pouch from his belt and the pouch releases from his fingers. He realizes not what he is doing until after the pouch arcs behind him and splatters on the unicorn.
After a moment the demon's smile falters. His horned head swings about, his eyes suddenly searching.
"Where has she gone, boy? What have you done with her?"
Damian sneers as the demon's eyes turn blind.
"I cannot see her, boy! Where is she?!"
Damian picks up his sword, holding it in front of him as he steadily backs up. He only stops when he feels something at his feet behind him.
"If you can't find her, Demon, it is no fault of mine."
The demon roars again, over and over. This time they are cries of anger and frustration. He turns back, his eyes searching the forest behind him, and the Prince does not relax his stance until the demon's roars are far away and silence fills the lake once more. A shivering at his feet causes Damian to turn then, and he kneels instantly, looking at the creature before him.
A young woman lies where the unicorn once stood, remnants of the potion from the pouch puddled around her.
Her body is naked and shaking, Damian is unsure of whether from the sudden cold left in the air by the demon's exit or from the newness of her form. She shimmers in the sunlight, her skin luminous like a pearl. Her long hair brushes against her bare back, the color of lilac petals. On her forehead - where her horn used to be - is now an enchanted gem, as red as the demon it protects her from. Damian blushes at her nakedness, his eyes searching out her pert breasts before he can help it. He looks away politely, his fingers unclasping the cloak around his neck and tucking it around her.
She awakens with a fright at his touch, her eyes deep pools of violet starlight, and throws the cape off of her shoulders as she tries in vain to stand up and run away. Her legs shake as she takes her first step, and she holds her hands out to catch herself as she falls. Damian is up in an instant, catching her and lifting her effortlessly in his arms.
She looks down at her hands, alarmed at her form, and raises them to her eyes in shock. She sees Damian looking down at her.
"What have you done to me?" she cries hoarsely. She flinches in pain and her hands flutter at her throat. Her eyes fill with a look that tears at Damian's heart, and it breaks as they flood with moisture and sadness. "What have you done to me?"
Damian kneels down with her in his arms, reaching for his cloak and covering her again. He buries his face at the top of her head and ignores the tear that slips down his cheek when she jumps at his touch.
"I'm sorry," he whispers, rocking back and forth with her craddled in his lap. He thinks of his Grandfather now, of the anger he will feel. He thinks of his mother, of her disappointment.
Last, he thinks of the miracle, the woman, sobbing in his arms. The first being in his life to speak of him as kind, and the betrayal he has brought upon her. And he knows when he is given the choice, which one he will choose.
He hugs her closer, whispering to calm both of them down.
"I'm so sorry."