Chapter Text
Bumble flutters to the next leaves, cutting them off in one swift movement and depositing them into her bag strapped to her waist. It is a nice day. The sun is high in the clear blue sky, a gentle breeze in the air. All is well.
A screech echoes out across the field. The grass begins to tremble, almost as if an earthquake is devastating the earth. Bumble looks around, instinctively searching for a certain little fairy, only to find none. She curses, fluttering her wings to dart above the grass, looking across it. It takes about half a second to discover what is shaking the earth: a herd of unicorns galloping across the field, being led by— no, they're chasing a fairy, judging by their rage-induced screams.
Ah. There is Ciri.
Ciri runs through the tall grass, hopping onto mushroom heads and fallen logs, shooting across a patch of corn marigolds. Her wings carry her up into the air as she reaches the stream.
"Oh, thorns and twigs!" she huffs, glancing back at the largest unicorn leading the herd. "I told you it was an accident! I didn't mean to wake you!" She takes a sharp turn, darting around a tree and spooking a small squirrel emerging from its drey. "Oops, sorry!" she calls back over her shoulder.
Bumble sighs, feeling as if she is aging ten years from the mere sight. This idiot.
She flies towards Ciri, merely flying above the unicorns and then dipping down briefly, snatching Ciri by the armpits and lifting her into the air in one quick movement, flying high enough that they are out of reach from the unicorns at least physically. If they start using their horns, however, that is a different story. "Hey! Let's all calm down and stop for a moment, all of you. I've secured the brat for you, you can stop now."
"Hey!" Ciri struggles, trying to wriggle free from Bumble's grasp. She turns her head, glaring at her. "I was handling the situation perfectly well," she hisses.
"You were running as if you don't have two perfectly functional wings," Bumble says matter-of-fact ly, adjusting her grip on Ciri so she can't escape. "What exactly did you do? Explain."
Ciri takes a breath, wiping her white curls out of her face with an indignant wave of her hand.
"I was collecting herbs," she says with a serious nod, flying a little higher as one of the unicorns below is still trying to catch at her legs. "Well, I was trying to collect herbs, but this fine gentleman..." She gestures down at the unicorn, her wings giving an angry little flutter as she raises even higher. "...was sleeping right on top of the plants. I never meant to wake him up, of course! Or his entire family with their anger-management issues!"
The unicorn gives an angry neigh, scraping the ground with his hoof. "She was trying to tie knots in my mane!"
"I wasn't!" Ciri shouts, spreading her arms. "I have never made fairy-locks in my life! Well... not in a year, at least!"
Bumble reaches toward Ciri, pinching the tip of her ear between her thumb and forefinger and giving it a tug. "Do not insult an already angry herd of unicorns who have magical horns, might I remind you," she says in a hissed whisper, voice firm.
She then releases Ciri's ear. "I can at least confirm I haven't spanked you for that this year. Yet," she says, turning to look at the direction the unicorns and Ciri came from. Her eyes zone in on the plants that the unicorns must have been laid on, flattened against the ground. The unique colour of them tells her that they are, in fact, one of the ingredients they ventured here for. A heavy sigh leaves her as she turns back to the unicorns, hand resting on the hilt of her sword. "She wasn't tying knots in your hair, she was just trying to get the leaves, I can assure you of that. We're tea makers. The leaves you laid upon make the same quality tea as they apparently do beds."
The unicorn snorts, tossing his mane.
"Some insolent fairy tangled my mane two summers ago," he says, looking up at Ciri with narrowed eyes . "I only caught a glimpse of them as they flew away, but... they looked rather like you."
"It wasn't me," Ciri says quickly, crossing her arms and flying a little higher.
"It took two weeks to get every single knot out of my mane!"
Bumble raises an eyebrow, eyes turning to Ciri briefly before returning to the unicorn. "I'm sure I spanked her for it. I highly doubt it was her. We are here to collect herbs for tea, nothing more."
Ciri gasps, turning sharply toward Bumble. "Hey!" she hisses, fluttering closer to glare at her. Her voice lowers to an angry whisper. "You can't tell an entire herd of unicorns about... about that!"
Bumble calmly moves her gaze to Ciri. "You shouldn't be disturbing entire herds of unicorns either, and yet."
"Just tell them to leave me alone!" Ciri whispers urgently.
Bumble clears her throat, lifting a quarter of her sword from her sheath. "If you don't mind, me and Ciri will be on our way. Once again, I can assure you she just wanted the leaves."
The unicorn's gaze moves from Bumble to Ciri (who quickly ducks halfway behind her), then back to Bumble.
He studies them for a moment before nodding slowly. The herd around him settles, the unicorns getting still, their ears slowly relaxing.
"Very well," their leader says. "Let us hope we do not meet under such circumstances again."
Bumble nods once, sheathing her sword once more. "Agreed. Come now, Ciri," she says, gripping Ciri's wrist firmly as she turns, fluttering swiftly away from the unicorns. "We will be discussing this when we get home, little lady."
"The herbs!" Ciri protests, trying to fly in the opposite direction. "We need the herbs!"
"Are you going to pester the unicorns?" Bumble asks, keeping a firm hold on Ciri's wrist even as she pauses, tugging her in front of her.
"I never pestered anyone," Ciri huffs, rolling her eyes. "It's not my fault he decided to wake up in a mood." She glances over Bumble's shoulder, toward the clearing, frowning. "We really should go back. The Moonbeam Burnet only flowers on the seventh day after a full moon. If we don't collect it now, we will have to wait another month."
Bumble places one finger under Ciri's chin, tilting her head toward her again and up slightly. "Are you going to pester the unicorns, little girl?"
Ciri crosses her arms over her chest, narrowing her eyes at Bumble. "I have never pestered any unicorns."
Bumble sighs, lowering her hand. "That is a blatant lie. We may go back to collect more if you promise you'll stay out from under their hooves. Meaning no stealing the leaves they're sleeping on, and no insulting them. Understood?"
"I have never insulted a unicorn in my life."
"You declared the entire herd has anger-management issues."
"Well, they do. Didn't you see how they basically tried to eat me?" She shakes her head, letting out an exasperated sigh. "Unicorns are so dramatic. Come, let's go before they decide to go back to sleep."
"If I hear a single peep out of a unicorn because of you, I'll put you over my knee in the moment." Bumble says as if it is simply another fact of life, turning and flying back towards the Moonbeam Burnet.
"I— What— Hey, Bumble!" Ciri hisses, flying after her. "You can't just say things like that," she whispers, glancing back towards the unicorns, now grazing at the edge of the meadow. "Also, they are just rude little horses. It's not my fault if they decide to complain."
"I'll be doing much more than say it if needed," Bumble replies, fluttering down towards the flowers to start collecting them once again. "Just what did you think you were doing, removing leaves from underneath a sleeping unicorn? You're lucky they weren't aggressive and only chased you. They could have seriously hurt you with their magic."
"Nah." Ciri waves a hand, landing beside Bumble. Carefully, she begins searching for the freshest flowers. "They are just too dramatic."
"Ciri."
"Bumble."
"I'm sure we can find an isolated space if you need a bit of help behaving until we get home, Ciri." Bumble says, hand pointedly resting on her vine belt wrapped around her waist.
Ciri's hand stills on the stem of a flower. For a moment, she simply stares at the Moonbeam Burnet's small, crimson petals. "Um." She swallows hard, her gaze flicking to Bumble's belt. "No, thank you. That won't be necessary."
Bumble hums, hand straying from her belt and returning to picking the flowers. "Let me know if you change your mind."
"Yeah, yeah." Ciri rolls her eyes, picking a few leaves and placing them into a small jar. "We should go to the waterfall after this. I heard in the village that they sometimes find Silverbell Root there."
"I believe I heard something about that too. It's certainly worth investigating," Bumble replies, fluttering up to one of the higher flowers. "Once we're done here, we'll head over."
***
The sun is high in the sky, with only a few fluffy clouds casting shadows as Ciri and Bumble fly over the treetops towards the hillside. The waterfall rushes down from the base of an ancient oak tree, nestled among green bushes and vibrant yellow dandelions.
"There!" Ciri shouts, pointing to a pale blue patch at the foot of the waterfall.
"Remember, be careful to not get your wings wet," Bumble calls out as they fly down to the bottom of the waterfall, stopping just short of the delicate flowers. "And I mean it. Incredibly careful, Ciri."
"Yes, yes," Ciri sighs, landing on the rocks next to the water. She crouches down, carefully folding her wings, and rummages through the little jars and boxes in her bag until she finds an empty one. "I think we need mostly the petals," she says. "Maybe a few leaves."
"Get plenty of both. There is a fairy in Thistle Burrow who wants to trade for them," Bumble says, taking out her own jars and starting to collect them. "We need the petals for our own purposes, but the leaves, not so much."
Ciri nods. "Cool! Well, we could experiment with the leaves too, actually." She raises a small leaf to her face, examining it closely before taking a small bite. "I read that they can have a hallucinogenic effect when fresh enough."
Bumble places down the jars safely beside her feet and takes a step towards Ciri, firmly gripping her shoulder and turning her to face away from her, bringing her hand down squarely on the seat of her pants four times. "That, thankfully, is a myth. You didn't know that, however, and took that chance."
"Hey!" Ciri exclaims, her wings fluttering fast as she jumps away. "But no. See, I read this book that said it's believed to be a myth, but apparently, if you manage to find the leaves when they are exactly fresh enough-" She leans down to pluck another small leaf.
Bumble surges forward, reaching for Ciri's wrist. Ciri successfully dodges, and then successfully trips over her own bag and tips it over, all of her things spreading across the dirt. Pouches, jars, silk, some loose berries that must have fallen out from their binding which will definitely have left a stain in her bag. All normal things…
…Except for one.
Bumble zones in on what appears to be a... Sharp white rock? It shimmers faintly under the light.
"Ciri, what is that?" Bumble asks.
Ciri flaps her wings, trying to find her balance.
"Um..."
Bumble gently grips Ciri's arm, steadying her, before returning her attention to the shimmering rock. "What is it? I don't recognise it."
"Nothing," Ciri says quickly.
Bumble hums, getting down onto one knee beside the rock and reaching out a hand. "It doesn't look like nothing."
Ciri lunges forward. "Wait, no, don't touch it with bare hands—"
It's too late. The instant her finger touches the rock, there is a flash, and everything goes dark.
Her limbs feel strange. Her body feels strange. She can't see. What happened?
Ciri stares, frozen for a moment, as Bumble disappears, her bag falling to the ground.
She lurches forward, her heart hammering, eyes darting over the scattered things on the ground as she pushes Bumble's bag aside...
A small bumblebee crawls out from beneath one of the bag's straps.
Ciri sits back onto her heels, both hands coming up to cover her mouth. Her eyes are wide, her cheeks flushed—-and then, slowly, quietly, she begins to giggle.
Bumble steps forward, looking down at her limbs as she crawls. Her... Black, fuzzy limbs? She lifts one leg in front of her face.
What the thorn.
A loud, high pitched sound jerks her out of her shock. Is that giggling? She raises her head as much as she can, observing a much bigger than she remembered Ciri giggling at whatever the thorn just happened to her. Giggling! When she gets her hands on her...
She flutters her wings, which she apparently still has despite whatever form she has taken, lifting into the air and fluttering (is she making that buzzing sound?) around Ciri's head, stopping in front of her face to glare at her.
"What the— Are you—" Ciri bites her lip, trying not to laugh.
Her shoulders shake.
Her face twitches.
She clamps both hands over her mouth, and she tries, really tries not to laugh—-then she doubles over, laughing so hard her wings shake behind her.
"You are a bumblebee!" she wheezes. "Oh, thorns and twigs, Bumble, you are literally a bumblebee!"
Bumble clumsily jerks backwards to avoid being headbutted, only to lose control and fly into Ciri's head, clinging to her hair. A bumblebee?! She tries to speak and finds she can't, furiously flapping her wings instead to get this brat's attention (being very careful with her butt which surely has a stinger attached). Whatever that rock was turned her into a bumblebee! This is ridiculous!
"I'm sorry!" Ciri wipes a tear away from her eyes. Raising a gentle hand, she waits until Bumble climbs onto her palm, then carefully places her down onto a rock. "I'm sorry," she repeats, taking a deep breath to calm herself a bit. Looking around, she takes a tulip petal and carefully lifts up the small white rock. "I think it's the tip of a unicorn horn," she explains. "I found it between the flowers. I guess one of them is about to shed."
She lowers the rock and wraps it into the petal. "I wanted to examine it a bit. I didn't know..." She hesitates, glancing at Bumble. "I didn't know it would do this."
Bumble's horror grows with each revelation, mind swirling with all of the things that could have gone wrong. This girl...
She vibrates with rage and concern, an instinct she apparently has now, to portray these thoughts and feelings.
"I'm sorry," Ciri sighs. "Maybe you should go back to the unicorns? I'm sure they can change you back."
Bumble buzzes up to Ciri, landing on her shoulder and staring in the direction of the unicorns, hoping to get her thoughts across.
Ciri groans, stepping back. "I don't want to go. Those horses hate me."
Bumble vibrates beside Ciri's ear aggressively.
"But... but..." Ciri shifts her weight, wringing her fingers. "Come on, Bumble..."
Bumble climbs down Ciri's arm, crawling onto hands and perching on them, staring at her.
"Maybe you could just stay like this?" Ciri suggests.
Bumble begins to angrily vibrate again.
"This is a fascinating scientific opportunity!" Ciri goes on, turning her hand to examine Bumble. "A fairy turned into a bumblebee! We should study you."
Bumble topples off Ciri's hand, using the opportunity to buzz over to her own bag, laid discarded on the ground. She lands in front of it, crawling inside and finding her hairbrush which she keeps in case Ciri needs a specific kind of attention. Now in position, she waits for Ciri to look at her and observe the clear threat.
Ciri opens the bag, peering inside. She lets out a long sigh as she spots Bumble sitting on the handle of the hairbrush.
"You know, I could just lock you in a jar," she huffs.
Bumble buzzes furiously.
"I would feed you," Ciri adds, with a small edge of desperation in her voice now.
Buzz. Buzz. BUZZ.
Ciri pouts, letting her head fall back for a moment. "But the unicorns will hate me," she mumbles.
BUZZ!
Ciri lets out a long, suffering sigh, her wings drooping.
"Oh, for flaming forests... Fine. Fine. We can go." She crouches down, quickly repacking her overturned bag.
If Bumble could sigh in relief, she would. Instead she buzzes out of her bag, landing on Ciri's shoulder.
"It's your fault if they trample me to death," Ciri murmurs, yanking up her backpack before leaning down to pick up Bumble's bag as well.
Bumble buzzes beside her ear, hoping to come across as livid as she is.
Ciri just rolls her eyes, rising into the air.
Within a few minutes, the duo approach the herd of unicorns once again. Heads turn to them one by one until a more familiar face approaches; the leader. He snorts and digs his hoof at the ground. "It's you," he says with slight distaste. "Where is your more responsible friend?"
"Um." Ciri lands on a rock, letting her wings fold respectfully behind her. "Sorry for disturbing you and your mighty herd again, sir," she says carefully.
The unicorn huffs. "And what is the reason for the disturbance this time?"
Ciri shifts her weight. "You know, the thing is..." She reaches into her pocket and takes out the wrapped horn tip. "The thing is, sir, that my responsible friend..." From the corner of her eye, she glances at Bumble, taking a small step aside. "...decided to steal this from you."
Carefully, she folds back the petals from the horn, holding it up for the unicorn to see.
Bumble buzzes furiously, turning her body to stare at Ciri in utter shock. Meanwhile, the unicorn simply stares blankly at the horn fragment. "Stole? It is the same to us as your own hoof shavings are to you. We do not care for it," he says flippantly, tail swishing in irritation. "Is there anything else you have to say?"
Ciri swallows. "It turned her into a bumblebee, sir."
"Ah," the unicorn says, finally looking at Bumble. "I thought you just had a pet bee. You want me to turn her back, I presume?"
"If you would be so kind, sir." Ciri nods.
The unicorn sighs. "Fine. Bee, onto the ground," he says.
Bumble buzzes off Ciri's shoulder, landing on the ground a few feet away from her. The unicorn lowers his head, pointing his horn at Bumble. A burst of light shoots out of his horn, hitting Bumble directly.
Everything goes dark again.
When Bumble opens her eyes, she looks down, finding her normal, fairy legs. Her hands. Her belt wrapped securely around her waist.
She closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and stands.
Ciri adjusts her backpack with a yank, already backing away. "Thank you," she says hurriedly, nodding to the unicorn. "We will be forever grateful for your assistance."
The unicorn nods once in acknowledgement. Meanwhile...
"Ciri..." Bumble says, turning slowly towards Ciri. "Where exactly do you think you're going, little girl?"
Ciri lets out a tiny squeak, backing away fast. She stumbles over a root, falling backwards, her arms flailing for a moment before her wings catch her and lift her into the air.
"Everything turned out fine, didn't it?"
"That is not the point. Now," Bumble says, calmly taking a step towards her. "Are we doing this the easy way, or the hard way?"
"Maybe we shouldn't do this at all?" Ciri suggests, quickly shooting up into the air and darting behind the nearest unicorn. "It's been a hard day for everyone, after all!"
Bumble flutters her wings, raising into the air. "Little girl," she says, flying slowly toward her. The unicorn covering Ciri moves aside, removing her protection.
"Hey!" Ciri exclaims, giving the unicorn an offended look.
Bumble lunges forward, gripping Ciri's arm and lowering her to the ground despite her thrashing. She then sits on a nearby rock, tossing Ciri over her knee and wrapping an arm around securely her waist. Ciri's pants and underwear are tugged down in one quick movement and Bumble removes her belt, manages to fold it in half (somehow) and snaps it cleanly across the middle of Ciri's bottom.
Ciri kicks out, trying to get her legs under herself, trying to wriggle off Bumble's legs, trying to stand up. "Bumble! Let go!"
Bumble simply readjusts Ciri, pulling her back into place and pinning her legs with her own. She gently moves her wings out of the way before snapping the belt down again with a crack, just below the first.
"Bumble!" Ciri hisses, flinching. "You can't do this here! Fuck-"
"You have your safeword if you need it," Bumble responds calmly, snapping the belt down once, twice, thrice in quick succession.
"Bumble!" Ciri squirms, trying to keep her voice low despite her outrage. "You are yourself again! That's good news! We should be celebrating instead!"
"I am celebrating," Bumble says flatly, bringing the belt down across Ciri's sit spots.
Ciri turns her head back as much as she can, glaring at Bumble. "This is the strangest definition of celebrating I have ever heard."
Bumble holds the eye contact with Ciri as she brings the belt down again, hard.
Ciri yelps, turning back towards the ground. Tall grass surrounds them, and there are flowers, vernal grass, knapweed, hawkbit and red clover... but probably not enough to hide them from the unicorns. Ciri raises a hand, burying her face into her palm.
"Little girl," Bumble starts, bringing the belt down again. "You do not pick up dangerous objects without telling me. You do not keep them without telling me."
Crack.
"And you certainly do not tell lies to avoid consequences. You do not walk up to the unicorns you stole from, and tell them I did it."
Crack.
"They said they don't care about it!"
"And that was extremely lucky. You didn't know how they would react when you lied and told them it was me, to get them off your back."
Bumble brings the belt down several times in quick succession, layering them on top of each other.
"It was dangerous. It was naughty. And this is just a taster of what you're going to get when we're home."
"I didn't lie," Ciri protests, letting out a small whimper.
"You did."
Bumble brings down the belt once more and then pauses, draping it across the small of Ciri's back. She runs her hand over her bottom, skin hot from the belting. "And after we're done, you will tell them the truth, and then apologize for lying."
"No," Ciri huffs, lifting her chin.
Bumble raises her hand and brings it down again with a sound smack. "Yes, Ciri. And we will stay here until you're ready." She says, picking up the belt again. She runs it across Ciri's skin before bringing it down again, settling into a steady rhythm. She starts from the top of Ciri's bottom, methodically going down to her thighs, and then returning to the top again. Pink blooms, shifting to a darker hue as the belting progresses.
Ciri flinches, kicking out and slapping her palm against Bumble's leg. "All right," she snaps. "All right! You can stop!"
Bumble simply brings the belt down again. "All right what? Are you going to tell them the truth and apologize?"
Ciri grunts, staring at the ground.
Bumble adds another stripe to her canvas, the red and pink merging into one.
"Ow!" Ciri flinches, reaching back to rub at her stinging bottom. "All right, yes!"
Bumble lets Ciri do so, releasing her from the leg lock and returning her belt to her waist. She helps Ciri stand, pulling her into a quick embrace.
"I hate this," Ciri mumbles.
Bumble steps back, pulling up Ciri's pants before she can even to attempt to herself. "It is all entirely deserved. Now, march, young lady." She says, turning Ciri around in the direction of the unicorns.
"Ugh." Ciri takes a step, then stops. "Look, they are grazing so peacefully. Wouldn't it be so very rude to disturb them?"
"You're right. We can resume while they finish grazing." Bumble says, beginning to undo her belt.
Ciri rolls her eyes and steps around Bumble. She approaches the leader of the unicorns, stopping a few feet away.
"Um, sir," she says, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. "My friend Bumble insists I disturb you again."
Bumble follows behind Ciri, folding her arms as she stands just behind and slightly to her side.
The unicorn leader practically rolls his eyes as he tilts his head down to gaze upon Ciri yet again. "Ah. You, again," he says mildly.
"Yes." Ciri nods, clasping her hands together behind her back. "I was thinking about that piece of unicorn horn, sir. We are tea-makers, you know, but I also like to study and experiment with magical items. Would you mind maybe telling me a bit about your horns?"
Before the unicorn can answer, Bumble speaks up. "You were actually going to tell them something, little fairy. Did you forget?" she asks, tone sharpening.
Slowly, Ciri turns towards Bumble. "Oh. Was I?"
Bumble slowly raises her eyebrow.
Ciri sighs, rolling her eyes.
"I took that piece of horn," she says, turning back towards the unicorn. "Sorry."
The unicorn lowers his head so he is snout to face with Ciri, huffing in her face. "Lies aren't appreciated, little fairy. Do be careful. You are lucky we care not for our horn pieces."
"The horn you have shed still seems to have magical properties, though," Ciri says. "How long does that last?"
"Well—" The unicorn starts, and yet again, Bumble butts in.
"No, Ciri, I do not want you to mess with these things further. They are too dangerous."
Ciri gives her a displeased look. "The mighty unicorn leader was about to speak, Bumb."
"And I am putting an end to this conversation," Bumble declares, gripping Ciri's wrist and turning around, beginning to drag her away from the unicorns.
"Wait, wait," Ciri exclaims, digging her heels into the ground. She turns back to the unicorn. "Mr. Unicorn, please. Your kind is so amazing, I swear, you are the best. But so rare to come across. Could we maybe talk some more later?"
Bumble pauses to land several smacks on Ciri's bottom, stunning the unicorn into silence before he can respond. "Let's go, young lady," she says, fluttering into the air with a huff and dragging Ciri along with her.
Ciri yelps and clings to Bumble's arm as they fly away. Twisting around, she waves at the unicorns. "Goodbye, my mighty unicorn friends!"
***
The sun is low in the sky as Bumble and Ciri arrive home—or at least where they are currently staying. Bumble opens the door, gesturing for Ciri to step inside. "In. You will put your bags down and go into the corner while I put everything away."
Ciri stops on the threshold. "What?"
"You heard me," Bumble says, firmly but not unkindly prying Ciri's bags from her hands and taking them. "You will stand with your nose in the corner and arms behind your back and you will wait until I call you over."
"But— Bumble—"
"Now, little one."
"I don't want to, though."
Bumble steps inside the doorway and puts all the bags down carefully, then reaches back through the doorway and grips Ciri's wrist, firmly pulling her inside and closing the door behind her. "You'll be going into this corner, with or without my help. Do you need me to walk you?"
Ciri tries to dig her heels into the floor, glancing towards the corner before looking back at Bumble. "No."
"Then go to the corner. You will wait until I'm ready for you and while you're there you can think about exactly why you are there." Bumble says, placing her hand on Ciri's lower back and gently pressing her forward.
"Buuumble!"
"I'll help you, then." Bumble says, walking towards the corner and guiding Ciri with her palm on her back.
Ciri glares at the corner where the walls met, the polished wooden panels gleaming softly in the sunlight. Her heart hammers in her throat. "Come on, Bumble..."
Bumble firmly guides Ciri into the corner, patting her back once and then taking her wrists, folding them behind her back under her wings. "I know corner time is hard for you and that is exactly why we are doing it. It won't take me long to put everything away," she says, placing her hands on Ciri's shoulders. "You will stay here in this position until I call you over for your spanking. What is your colour for that?"
"You are evil," Ciri hisses.
"That is not a colour."
"Wicked."
"You've lost your pants privileges," Bumble says, pulling Ciri's pants down in one easy motion, leaving her underwear in place. "Colour?"
"Vicious!" Ciri yelps, her hands flailing as she reaches for her pants.
Bumble swats Ciri's hands away, gripping her wrists and returning them behind her back. "Ciri," she says, voice lowering.
Ciri takes a deep breath, biting her lip for a moment. "Green," she mutters, letting her forehead fall against the wall.
"Good girl," Bumble murmurs, patting her wrist. "Head up, please."
Ciri stays still. "I can't."
Bumble lands four quick smacks on the seat of Ciri's underwear.
"But, Bumbleee..." Ciri throws her head back. "Do you see these walls? This is torture. It's so boring I'm going to die. It's-"
Bumble lands another sharp smack. "That's enough, little girl. You will think about the danger you put yourself in today while I get everything ready. You won't be bored, because you'll be reflecting. Am I understood?"
Ciri grits her teeth. "Yes."
"Good. If you move, you will be getting extra." Bumble says, lingering for a moment before finally stepping away, retrieving the bags from the doorway and bringing them to their makeshift storage room to sort.
***
Bumble places two glasses of water and some snacks on the table in front of the couch, then laying her belt across the armrest. She sits down, gaze moving to Ciri fidgeting in the corner.
"Ciri. Come here, please."
Ciri closes her eyes, takes a moment to collect herself, then turns around.
"So, Bumb, my dear friend and business partner," she starts, her wings fluttering, "I did some pondering, and after careful consideration, I have reached a rather interesting conclusion. I think you might be... overreacting. Just a little."
Bumble slowly raises an eyebrow and crooks a finger at Ciri. "Come."
"No, no." Ciri raises a hand. "I understand. I truly do. Safety, caution, responsibility. All very admirable qualities. Very important. Very wonderful. Amazing, one could say." She nods, waggling her finger. "But! Look around, my dear Bumble. Look at me. Look at yourself. Look at the walls of this nice room. This nice inn. This whole nice tree. We are all safe. Amazingly safe. Perhaps the safest people in the entire world! Nothing bad happened. Not even a tiny little bad thing."
"Do not make me come get you," Bumble crooks her finger again, remaining unfazed from the speech."Come here."
"But think about it! Bumble! How many fairies can say that they have experienced being a bumblebee? You got new perspectives! Literally. You saw the world from a whole new angle. This was a learning experience! Amazing! Wonderful! Exceptional!"
Bumble stands and calmly crosses the room, putting a hand on Ciri's shoulder and drawing her forward, not giving her a chance to pull her pants up. She swats her hands away when she tries to pull them up in a panic.
"Over to the couch, now."
"Bumble!" Ciri stomps her feet, trying to get free. "Don't be unreasonable!"
Bumble catches Ciri just as she trips over her pants and falls forward, wrapping an arm around her middle and righting her. "That's enough, Ciri. You are going to hurt yourself," she says, dragging her towards the couch.
"You are going to hurt me," Ciri huffs.
"I am going to spank you," Bumble corrects, sitting down and bending Ciri over her knee. "Not hurt you. What could have hurt you is that unicorn horn."
"It didn't hurt me," Ciri grumbles. "I wasn't the one who just grabbed it so very recklessly."
"It could have hurt you," Bumble says, smoothing Ciri's wings down. "You took it and put it in your bag. One bump could have set it off, and who knows what that could have led to."
Ciri cranes her neck, glancing back at Bumble. "Do you think it would have turned me into a cloud? Like a cirrus?" Her eyes widen. "Because that would have been amazing."
"It could have exploded. You don't know how unstable it was, Ciri," Bumble says, resting her hand on the small of Ciri's back. "I could have gotten hurt because I didn't know what it was, but you clearly had an inkling and decided to take it anyways."
Ciri rolls her eyes, turning forward again. "It's not my fault you touched it."
Bumble lands a sharp swat on Ciri's bottom.
"Who took it?"
"The unicorns didn't need it anymore..."
"That's not the point and you know that very well," Bumble says firmly, resting her hand on the small of her back again. "It was dangerous. You didn't know what it was capable of. You could have gotten hurt, or worse."
"That is kind of the point, though," Ciri says. "I didn't know what it was capable of. That's exactly why I wanted to take it and study it."
"Was that safe?"
"I was careful."
"You dropped your bag and it fell on the ground. You're lucky it didn't evaporate us then and there."
Ciri pushes herself up to her elbows, tilting her head thoughtfully. "Do you think it could have evaporated us?"
"I do, Ciri. I think it could have seriously injured or killed us," Bumble lands another swat. "And we haven't gone over you taking a herb from underneath a sleeping unicorn."
"You act like I decide where unicorns sleep."
"You decide whether to steal from them while they are sleeping on it."
Smack.
"Stealing?" Ciri kicks out. "We were collecting herbs!"
"They were sleeping on top of them, Ciri," Bumble lands another smack. "And they chased you. They may have hurt you if I hadn't stepped in."
"Everything turned out fine in the end," Ciri grumbles, burying her face into the dark green canvas of the couch. "I dare say we are friends with the unicorns now." Her voice comes out muffled. "How many fairies do you know who can say they have unicorn friends?"
"I don't think they'd agree." Bumble says, settling into a firm, steady rhythm with her hand across Ciri's bottom.
"Bumble." Ciri squirms, but her voice remains calm, even patient, as if she were explaining something obvious. "We make tea. We make some of the most unique, most peculiar teas. We collect dangerous ingredients all the time. Why are you so upset now? This was a fine day." She grunts quietly, flinching. "A very nice day, I would say."
"Because the danger was completely optional. You could have woken the unicorn nicely and asked for the herbs or waited for them to wake, rather than sneakily take something from underneath them," Bumble lectures, hand landing on the curve of Ciri's bottom. "Which led them to think you were doing something like tying knots in their hair. Because you were being sneaky."
"It's not my fault they believe in those stereotypes! Like every fairy would want to tie their mane into knots." She snorts, then wiggles a bit, taking a deep breath. "You can stop this nonsense now, Bumb."
"We are nowhere near done, Ciri." Bumble says, upping the tempo a bit.
Ciri squeezes her eyes shut for a moment. "This is unreasonable," she murmurs.
Bumble hums in response, pausing to hook her fingers into Ciri's underwear, pulling them down to mid thigh. She then resumes her tempo, starting at the top of each cheek and moving down to her upper thighs, then restarting from the top again.
"Bumble!"
"Ciri," Bumble replies, not pausing for a second.
"Are you upset about the bumblebee thing?" She wriggles, her breathing becoming more laboured. "Because honestly, you were a very impressive bumblebee! Nothing to be embarrassed about. You were almost as cute as a real bumblebee!"
"I'm upset that you needlessly put both of us in danger, firebug. You put yourself in danger, and then both of us." Bumble punctuates the last three words with three sharp smacks to Ciri's sit-spots.
"A small danger," Ciri grumbles.
"A big danger. You could have died," Bumble says, landing a few harder swats.
Ciri grunts, slapping a palm against the couch. "All right, all right! I understand. You can stop now."
Bumble tilts Ciri forward, focusing exclusively on her sit-spots for a bit. "We aren't done yet, firebug. You've got the belt after this too."
Ciri goes completely still, her eyes widening. "What?"
"Are you grasping the severity of the situation now, Ciri?"
"Yes," Ciri says quickly. "I understand. Very clearly. Extremely clearly. We can stop discussing it now."
"Hm," Bumble hums, letting her hand rest on Ciri's bum, rubbing slowly. "Then we'll move onto the belt. Up, and over the arm of the couch," she says, patting her bottom.
Ciri lets out a long, suffering sigh. "Bumble..."
Bumble gives Ciri another swat. "Up."
Ciri huffs. "You know, the unicorns were more reasonable than you."
Bumble hums, reaching for the belt laid across the armrest. "I can give you swats that don't count until you're ready to get up," she says, doubling it over in her hand.
"…A thousand acres of rotting fungi," Ciri grumbles, pushing herself up. She shoots Bumble an angry look, stretching out and rearranging her wings before stepping over to the arm of the couch.
She folds her arms and lifts her chin, glaring at the opposite wall.
Bumble rises as well, grasping Ciri's shoulders and turning her to face the arm of the couch, hand sliding down to her back and guiding her over the arm of the couch, ignoring any and all resistance.
"Do you want to tell me why we are here?"
Ciri rolls her eyes. "No."
Bumble smooths Ciri's wings out of the way, holding the belt by the buckle and tapping the doubled over vine against her bottom. "Ciri..."
"Because you disliked being a bumblebee?"
Bumble brings the belt down solidly across the middle of Ciri's bottom.
Ciri flinches. She stares at the fabric of the couch, her fingers tightening around the corner of a pillow. "Ow— Bumble. Come on. It was a small problem that got solved."
"Tell me why we are here." Bumble says, resting the belt back on Ciri's bottom.
"Just... the unicorns..." Ciri squirms, sighing deeply. "I might have made the unicorns angry."
"Right," the belt comes down again, lower. "Was that avoidable?"
Ciri grunts softly. "Probably."
The belt snaps down once again, catching Ciri's upper thigh.
"Buuumble!"
"It was probably avoidable?" Bumble asks, bringing the belt down again. "Or most definitely avoidable?"
Ciri yanks the pillow into her face. "Please, Bumble-"
Bumble rests one hand on the small of Ciri's back, rubbing her thumb back and forth. With her other hand, she brings the belt down squarely across her upper thighs. "Well?"
"Most probably avoidable," Ciri murmurs, gasping for air.
"Most definitely avoidable, firebug," Bumble says, bringing the belt down across the top of Ciri's bottom, restarting the circuit. "And what about the unicorn horn?"
"Shouldn't have taken it without asking," Ciri mumbles, barely audible. "But... it was just a horn tip."
"And yet it had the power to change me into a bee," Bumble pauses, running her hand over Ciri's bottom gently. "We don't know what else it could have done. You should have at the very least told me about it before picking it up, or asked the unicorns about it. Asked how dangerous it was. But, instead, you risked both of our lives."
"I..." Ciri swallows, her fingers tightening around the pillow. "I... I mean, I..." She shakes her head quickly. "Sorry. I knew it could be dangerous, but... you know how secretive unicorns are. It was such a great opportunity to get to know their magic a bit better."
"I understand that. But you need to talk to me, firebug. Your bag fell on the ground and it fell out," Bumble starts, taking her hand away and snapping the belt down again. "It wasn't secure. It wasn't safe. What could have happened if it had a power fluctuation in that moment?"
Ciri exhales slowly. "I know," she mumbles. "I know."
"And after all that…" Snap. "You lied to them. You blamed it on me."
Ciri squeezes her eyes shut, her whole body rocking forward. Her wings twitch, and she needs a moment before she can fold them back against her shoulders.
"I'm sorry," she whispers.
Bumble waits until Ciri's wings are out of the way before bringing the belt down clearly across her sit-spots. "I know. Almost done." She says, falling silent as she brings the belt down again, and again, and again. Her hand stays on Ciri's lower back, holding her in place.
Ciri lets out a strained sound, her legs twitching, her wings struggling to stay still. She squeezes the pillow, trying to focus on the fabric of the couch in front of her nose, on the cool floorboards beneath her toes, or the ragged rhythm of her own breathing—anything except the pain.
"I'm sorry," she repeats.
The belt falls and falls, landing sharply across already tender skin, from the top to the bottom, biting into soft thigh. Bumble keeps a careful eye on Ciri's wings, ready to pause if one strays too far. The need never arises, not before Ciri's shoulders are shaking with muffled sobs. Only then does she lower the belt onto the coffee table, smoothing her hand up and down Ciri's back. "All done, firebug."
Ciri whimpers into the pillow softly. Her voice is tired and pained, with only a tiny edge of complaint now. She wipes at her eyes with the heel of her hand.
"Hurts," she mutters.
Bumble pats Ciri's shoulder. "I know. Stand up so I can give you a hug."
"I can't move."
Bumble grasps Ciri's shoulder and guides her to her feet, pulling her into an embrace. "There, I've got you now."
"Mhm." Ciri lets herself be hugged, resting her head on Bumble's shoulder. "Ugh."
Bumble threads her fingers through Ciri's curls, scratching at her scalp. "You deserved every single one of those," she murmurs.
Ciri rolls her eyes, stepping back to pull up her trousers.
"History will remember you as the fairy who stood in the way of some of the greatest scientific breakthroughs of our century."
"Or the fairy who saved another young fairy from doom," Bumble retorts, picking up a glass of water and handing it to Ciri. "Drink."
"Thank you." Ciri takes the glass, flopping down onto the couch. She makes a pained grimace, trying to find a more comfortable position. She takes a small sip. "I'm sorry," she adds, glancing away. "I'm sorry that I... I shouldn't have laughed when you turned. I was actually worried, too."
Bumble sits down beside her, taking a glass as well and sipping from it. "I appreciate the apology, Ciri. I know you weren't being mean or malicious."
Ciri pulls up her knees, sitting cross-legged on the couch, letting her wings fall behind her. She wraps both her hands around the glass.
"I might have gotten a bit... carried away."
Bumble raises an eyebrow. "A bit?"
Ciri stares at her glass, swallowing.
She nods.
"A bit."
"I think more than a bit, little one," Bumble says, tweaking Ciri's ear.
"Ow!" Ciri leans away, out of Bumble's reach. "All right! Maybe more than a bit. I promise I won't laugh the next time you turn into a bumblebee."
"Hopefully there won't be a next time," Bumble says, resting her elbow on her knees with her chin resting in her palm. "Right, Ciri?"
"Right..." Ciri murmurs, tilting her head thoughtfully.
"Do you want to go back over my knee?"
Ciri shakes her head quickly. "Ew. No." She stares down at her glass for a moment, the corner of her mouth twitching. "I was... I was only thinking that it was something incredible. Seriously. I have never even read about anything like this happening before."
"It is quite the discovery," Bumble murmurs, holding her chin in thought. "If we did revisit the area in search of a horn piece, we would have to do some research before. And we would be incredibly careful," she says, turning to look at Ciri.
"Of course." Ciri nods solemnly. "We wouldn't want you to stay as a bumblebee forever, would we?" She drinks the last of her water and sets the glass down on the small table. Raising her arms above her head, she stretches, the tips of her wings fluttering. "We should prepare the herbs we collected," she adds, yawning as she stands. "The sky is very clear. If we are lucky, we can start drying the Moonbeam Burnets by moonlight."
"I won't be turning into a bee again, Ciri," Bumble says, placing her glass beside Ciri's and rising, scratching idly at the base of her horns that sprout from her head. "But yes, we should get to work. The herbs we collected today are in excellent condition. Though," she folds her arms, "go get a snack first. You just got spanked. You need energy."
***
The only things left from the cake Ciri ate are the crumbs on a small plate at the corner of the counter. The kitchen table is empty and clean: in the middle lies an open chest, from which Ciri takes out a wide glass jar.
"This will be just right for the stems," she says. "Should we use the cedar or the oak tray for drying the petals?"
"Oak will be best for these petals," Bumble says, taking out the oak tray and placing it on the table. "I was thinking we could do a special blend of the Moonbeam Burnets and the Starsilk leaves, though perhaps with an addition of something else."
"Oh, that would be lovely," Ciri says, reaching for their notebook. "Moonbeam Burnet has such a gentle sweetness. It would create a beautiful balance with the Starsilk. We could add..." She leafs through the notebook. "Black strawberry? Spicy squill? Scarlet Winterberry?" She furrows her brow. "No, we won't find any this time of year. Moose Valley walnut? Or perhaps... cinnamon?" She lowers the notebook, glancing at the petals. She carefully brushes one of the leaves with a fingertip. "We should also make some more of the Rainy Afternoon blend. That's always very popular."
"And it happens to be one of your favourites," Bumble chuckles and tilts the notebook towards herself, letting out a hum. "Alright. Let's get started before the day gets away from us."