Authors Note: Hello everyone and welcome to our first fan fiction! This is the first chapter of many that we hope to do. This story has to do with the Once Upon a Time concept but with a Hunger Games twist. Find use on tumblr by dreams-in-wonder and okkcinthya. You can also check this story out on Wattpad by OnceinaLifetime3.
Opening her eyes all she makes out is pure darkness. She knows her eyes are open, but never the less all she sees is darkness. Not being able to move, the atmosphere feeling like a tight and stuffy small space that makes her gasping for air having trouble to breath, her breathe in short shallow puffs making her head dizzy with every intake. The tight space affects her nerves making her claustrophobic, causing her heart to pound more rapidly in her chest, every heart beat makes her head spin giving her a painful headache, one that does not allow her to think straight.
Her mind races to the last thought in her mind, trying to recall where she is or how she arrived here. Her mind searches fervently for anything that will help her to know where she is. She closes her eyes and tries to get her thoughts organized but fails to smooth out her breathing as her mind wanders with all the horrid possibilities of where she is and how she arrived there. Flashes of memory cross over her mind, but non seeming to help the situation she is in.
She concludes that she has a loss of memory and all she remembers was being grabbed forcefully in a crowd of faces she knows and loves very dearly. She recalls the tears rushing down her face and the split gut wrenching agony she felt as she was taken away from her loved ones. The memory sends anger mixed with despair throughout her entire body, burning her to frustration, asking many questions as to why anyone would do that.
Very cautiously she extends her right arm lightly to feel around her, grasping anything she can in her reach. When her hand comes into contact with a cold wall, sending chills up her spine, giving her a not so good feeling about this place. She begins to panic, flailing her arms anxiously around the wall that encircles her, realizing she is in a glass tube. She fumes with anger, hating the she is trapped like some animal waiting for their impending doom.
Another memory floods back to her, remembering herself being separated from her son, family, and her love as men in grey suits broke in through the windows, shattering glass all over Granny's Diner. Everyone went into a panic, the chilling screams of the citizens filling the town with fear as they were all pulled forcefully with gloved hands and guns pointed towards them to do as they demand, away from their loved ones into a never ending sea of the towns people. Everything seemed to move in slow motion as she watched them all be carried, kicking and shrieking to be let go when they were taken away against their will. In that moment she feels her heart drop to her stomach, not needing to know how she arrived there, but can conclude that something terrible is going to happen to her and everyone in Storybrooke. Everything changing drastically in just mere minutes.
Gathering her thoughts, she hears a loud siren beating in her ears having her hands cover her ears swiftly in a reflex to block the infuriating deafening noise. She is suddenly then jostled as the tube shakes her rising up into the unknown that is waiting for her. She pushes her hands on to the tube to keep her balance, but her hands slide down.
Her palms become slick with sweat from anxious nerves, leaving her no choice but to wipe her hands on her jeans that feel very soft like felt. She can only identify her silhouette in the already pure darkness, her eyes roam the best she can over her body making her eyes hurt from the darkness only noticing that she wears something she does not normally wear.
Her mind wanders wildly with anxiety and makes her nauseous as she envisions that her life and family is endanger. She recollects her life as images of actions she has taken in her life and has done rush past her memory like a whirlwind blowing past her mind. She understands no matter what happens to her it most certainly will not be a pleasant experience.
Her eyes fill with tears that threaten to spill out like a waterfall as she worries and considers of what can happen to her family, since she knows they are in danger. Worry rushes over her like a wave when she remembers her parents, son, and lover could be in the same position as her. She is not able to show that she is fearless because the thought of losing someone she loves or even of losing herself eats her up inside, tearing her apart piece by piece until she is left with nothing but a coward. She shouldn't be frightened, but how can she not be?
She never had a break in Storybrooke, she is the one who has the responsibility of giving everyone their happy endings, she is the savior after all.
She is broken away from her thoughts when a blinding white light hits her face, waking her up from the darkness that haunts her, having her wonder how long she had been in the darkness, making it seem as if she was there for an eternity.
Her eyesight clears up, a cloud seeming to lift away from her, now use to the shining of sunlight glow on her face. She pivots her head to inspect her surroundings, viewing around at evergreen trees enveloping her, the forest seeming to go on forever, growing and growing before her very eyes, allowing her to infer that she is in the Enchanted Forest, having since she has been there before. She looks up into the deep blue sky, dotted with creamy clouds. The trees surrounding the forest green leaves stir lightly from the delicate breeze from the gusts of wind, leaving her shiver in anticipation to feel the flow over her skin, hoping she will be let out of the tube encasing her. Her hands reach up and lay palm first on the icy cold glass, creating a contrast between the hot air in the tube on her body and the frosty bites on her hands.
Her gaze heads down to her leather blue coat buttoned snugly on her and the black felt trousers that are tight on her legs, compacting down on her thighs. Her hair yanks up on her head in a tight pony tail hurting her scalp, moving her hands to rub soothing circles over her scalp to help the pain that surfaces there. Her tongue darts out from her mouth, licking her suddenly dry lips , wishing she had chap stick with her to moisturize her lips.
Her attention pulls toward a glass tube, one like she is in, encasing another person. She realizes she is not alone in this Hell hole. Looking up her eyes wander around the arena, glancing between all the victims with terrified expressions that are there against their will.
Her eyes reach a tube with Regina Mills or by her more famous moniker the Evil Queen. Searching her face, she notices that Regina wears a mask to cover her emotions, but can see the tears pricking on her chocolate brown eyes, filled with acknowledgement to her, as Regina grimaces at her. Regina looks so tiny compared to when she usually does, seeming to look helpless. A tongue darts from the Mayors mouth and licks her lips in anxiety, then bites her lip between her pearly white teeth that seems to almost draw blood, giving Emma a look that could kill.
Emma quickly maneuvers her gaze flicking to the rest of the victims seeing that they are all wearing hunting outfits that people in the Enchanted Forest wear.
Her eyes dart back to Regina, glancing at her outfit that is a muddy – brown long coat and a burgundy red blouse, complimented with dark red lipstick and riding boots. Emma questions how they all were able to put on the outfits or even who put it on them. Regina's dark brown hair sways over her left shoulder in a long messy side braid that confuses her as to how she grew her hair that long since she last has seen her.
Emma's gaze wanders to the left of Regina distinguishing Belle in another tube with a glimmering shimmer in her ocean blue eyes, with so much sadness trapped inside, begging to slip out. She glances down to Belle's clothing and examines her outfit, wearing a blood red hunting outfit with tan riding pants tucked into brown boots. Her hair pulls in an up do with loose brunette tresses covering the sides of her face. Emma's gaze traces back up to Belle's face staring Belle in the eyes, beholding emotions of dolefulness and despair.
Belle's eyes leave Emma's as she gazes to the right of her, staring directly at a glass tube encasing the one and only Rumpelstiltskin.
Rumple has a mask of fierceness, trying not to let his agony and pain slip out. Emma jerks her head to look back at Belle to witness her reaction, to her sorrow Belle let's a sob escape from her lips like a soft whisper and her tears that she tried to hold back flow down her face, caressing her cheeks along the way as she cries, allowing the tears to fall freely.
Rumple glances at Belle, suddenly breaking down, not caring that other people are around to view his true colors, behind a mask that he was trying so hard to conceal. Their gaze so powerful it is too much to bare.
Breaking her eyes away from the melancholy interaction she witnessed between the two, her eyes glimpse around briskly around the arena landing to two other tubes with people that have familiar faces. Emma concludes that one of them is the Thief, Will Scarlet fuming with disgust and anger, cursing under his breath. Emma glances over his body to view his dark grey coat with pointy shoulder pads and dark leather pants.
The other being the fearful Maleficent with a smug snarky appearance and a long purple dress that grazes the ground with purple flats holding her feet, her hair is wrapped inside black horns that she usually wears, her whole demeanor confident and ready to take on anything that crosses her path, since she is someone who can turn into a dragon at any moment. She studies Maleficent's face, running her eyes over the sadden expression in her cloudy eyes.
As she studies Maleficent's heart breaking expression, a tube protrudes from the ground, holding in the Wicked Witch of the West, Zelena. Emma appears shocked to see Zelena there. Wearing a black witch hat covering her face creating a shadow over it that hides her emotions.
Zelena raises her head slowly to take in her surroundings, which shows her fearful expression in her swampy blue eyes. Her wild red curls cover her face like a curtain as she darts her eyes furiously around her, shifting in her tube and clawing at the glass that encases her. She let's out a loud snarl of frustration when she does not succeed in escaping the tube. Emma peeks down at to what Zelena wears, spotting her in an all black outfit, making her seem paler than she already is.
Emma breaks her eyes away from Zelena, trying to gather her thoughts that are jumbling inside of her head. She can't imagine or figure out what will happen next.
Emma hears a noise coming from the other direction, causing her to jerk her head towards it, making her wince in pain at the feeling in her neck. Her hand rubs against her neck soothing the pain as she stares at another tube coming up from the ground. Realizing who is in the tube her eyes widen in shock, roaming her eyes over the tube as it stops emerging from the ground.
Her heart seems to stop beating in her chest and she has trouble breathing, telling herself to breath in and out, in and out, but it doesn't seem to help her. She screeches in her head 'No, no it can't be him, please oh God no.'
Emma's piercing green emerald eyes prick with tears, moving her hand out to reach for her love, but only comes into contact with the icy cold tube wall that mocks her by trapping her away from him. Her lip trembles as she attempts to not let a tear escapes, but fails miserably when her eyes meet his across the arena, meeting a look that has a loud sob escape from her quivering lips. She studies his face, memorizing each and every curve sliding her gaze over his entire body.
He wears a long leather black coat with tight leather pants, complimented with knee high boots and dark black eyeliner. She shakes her head from side to side, of course he has on eyeliner. Her eyes are then caught on a shimmering glimmer on his left hand and notices his hook is as shiny as ever, almost like it is brand new. Emma's memory still wiped from how they arrived, only remembering being taken to this horrible nightmare.
She rips her eyes away from the man she loves' hook and moves back up to reach his eyes gazing back at her with so much passion and worry it breaks her heart. She tries to read his face, searching as to what he can be thinking. He tries to hide his anguish, she can tell which makes her desperately want to cry even more. Why is this happening? Why are they trapped in these tubes like some science experiment? She questions to herself. Her thoughts are then halted when what is hopefully the last tube comes out of the ground.
Emma recognizes that the man encased in the tube is Robin Hood and she watches him looking tired and confused. She gazes over his body to examine him wearing a brown coat with a forest green shirt inside and tan trousers that look to be comfortable to wear. He snaps his eyes gaping around the arena seeming to search for something or someone until he stops his search and gazes into someone else's eyes.
Emma piers over to where he gazes and sees Regina peering back at him with teary eyes and a quivering lip. Her heart breaks at this moment between the couple, knowing how it feels to have someone you love trapped somewhere you know will not end well. Robin's eyes rake over Regina's face, trying to memorize each and every detail of her, taking her in as much as he can, his overwhelming gaze fills Regina with so many emotions of love and sadness. They both look relieved knowing that they are some what safe. A tear escapes from Regina running softly down her cheek, causing Robin to look worried and having him reach out for Regina, but can not wipe away the tears that fall down her face. They look at each other with so much love that it blinds her, causing Emma to rip her eyes away to another tube that emerges from the ground, aggravating Emma because she thought Robin was the last victim.
Emma searches over the other victims face to see the fairy she met in Neverland named Tinkerbell. Emma's gaze rakes over her outfit seeing that she wears a light green poofy dress that reaches above her knees. She glances back over to her face and notices her cloudy dark green eyes filled with sorrow as she joins the rest of the victims. Her hair pulled up in a bun on top of her head with stray curls resting on the sides of her head.
Her attention is grabbed when a loud siren goes off, creating fear in the atmosphere and every tribute to panic in their tube. In the middle of the arena, the ground opens up making the victims scared as to what can be found in the depths of the ground, creating more panic when they can't see what is coming up. A tent filled abundantly with supplies and tools emerges from the ground, stopping when it reaches its destination. The siren grows louder by the second causing anger to fume through all of the tributes when it won't stop, voicing in their displeasure for the loud noise, scraping against the glass tubes. The siren then suddenly stops with a loud bang, creating silence throughout the entire forest, not even a bird can be heard.
A large screen pops up from the sky, making everyone wonder and question how that is possible. When a pale faced women appears on the screen showing a exaggerated smile which makes everyone enraged by how she can be so happy at a time like this. Her voice booms throughout the entire forest seeming to echo off of a wall surrounding them as she speaks with great joy from her high pitched nasally voice that annoys all of the victims. Her eyes gander over all of the tributes, her scrutiny so powerful it makes them look any where except her eyes, making Emma want to punch her in the face. Emma takes in the lady's appearance judging the way she appears. Everyone quiets down to listen to this horrid woman as she speaks. She takes a deep breath and announces joyfully, "Hello, my lucky ten tributes. Welcome to the first annual Hunger Games!"