“I’m a duchess in Her Majesty’s court.” Shrunk in an airport chapter 7 by Louka31

“What’s a duchess?”

The Hippie Chick (or perhaps more accurately, the Fairy) rolled her eyes. “I forget your people lack a proper monarchal system.”

She paused. “A baroness presides over a substantial district. Many of these sit in a county under a countess. These counties are in provinces led by duchesses. Distinct and separate peoples are spread out in many provinces each under a Queen. And then the Queens of Peoples have a Queen of their own, the Empress.”

As she said this, you noticed you were leaving Earth for this realm of hers. She was out of her hippie chick clothes. Now she wore a white tunic with colorful patterns on the edges of the tunic cloth. She had pale skin, bright blue eyes and blonde hair that passed her shoulders.

Winking, she said, “I won’t be angry if you pull my hair. In fact, I encourage you to cling to it for the ride,” saying these words as she set you on her right shoulder.

As she walked out of her house, into the streets and to the palace, you actually managed to secure yourself for the otherwise-bumpy ride rather easily by following her “advice”.

“What’s your name, duchess?”

“Oh!” She said absentmindedly, “It’s Leila.”

Leila wasn’t really thinking of you so much as the fairy who be manhandling you.

The Queen would decree the handover of the little guy as a reward for the services of her favorite. Who would that be? That upwardly mobile baroness? Sherry, Leila’s protege, who was made a Countess for being the best of the Queen’s Sheriffs? As the gap between realms had increased over the centuries, catching wild humans as new pets came to require the strongest magic to bridge the gap between realms.

What’s more Sherry had subordinates but no real sidekick. The competition among fairy women was too toxic for that. But a little cutie that Sherry could keep in a pouch as she went out and abroad? Sherry would loooove that!

But then Leila frowned—perhaps the Queen had requested the urgent capture of a wild human, to be rendered tiny, for her Special Project. Hopefully that wouldn’t end in bitter defeat!

Leila stood in the front row of the audience of ladies before the Queen. You’re put off by how the Queen and her ladies ignore your presence after what has been done to you. And then she speaks!