Every good story begins with an interesting plot, and intriguing characters. And every good fairytale begins with the words...

Once Upon a Time

This story is no exception, though there may be some surprising twists and turns in that it does not simply follow one main character and their personal fairytale, but it weaves together several lives and several tales that all begin from one simple wish.

That wish?

Freedom

And what of the characters? Well that's where our story really begins isn't it...because the characters are not driven by the plot...rather the plot is driven by the characters and their desires. Their wish.

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Once upon a time in a land divided between 7 royal lines, lived 8 troubled princes. There was Alfred, the youngest and most charismatic. He suffered from what many would call the "only child syndrome". The boy was selfish and spoiled so he expected to always get what he wanted without having to lift a finger for it. Perhaps a typical prince in that he was always bored as well.

Then there was Heracles, another lazy prince with a love of cats. In fact it was only cats that he seemed willing to talk to and get along with. Perhaps this could stem from the fact that Heracles was the child of a god. His mother never talked about his father except to say that he was handsome and had swept her off her feet, literally, he had abducted her in the way that gods tended to do, and not once, but several times until she had announced that she was pregnant, then he had never come again. To say that Heracles hated his father for this would be a gross understatement. So yes, the young prince had his own problems as well and not any that he was willing to share with the rest of the world.

Then there was Mathias, an energetic and loud mouthed young man with a love of combat and a tendency to claim responsibility for someone else's victory or noble deeds. This had caused much contention between himself and his men and there were few that would willingly go out on a quest with him any longer. More to the point, there were few that would believe the things he claimed he had seen or done when he returned from a quest with those forced to go with him. They wouldn't even believe the men that had been with him, assuming he had bought them off with untold riches. So Mathias was left to stew in frustration over the fact that no one believed his tales about fairies and elves and mermaids, or rather merman, for he had only seen one and he had been male.

Then there was Berwald, a frenemy of Mathias' with an unfortunate problem of his own. Unlike the other princes who had issues based on personality, Berwald had difficulties based on looks. His eyes were naturally sharp and made more sinister looking by his facial structure which gave off the appearance of a perpetual scowl. It quite pained the gentle prince that everyone always believed he meant them harm or was displeased because they simply couldn't look past the surface of his appearance. And that is what he longed for most, for someone to look past his face and imposing frame to the man underneath, the gentle and loyal man who liked dogs and children, though both were terrified of him, and just wanted a companion to love and be loved in return.

Then there was Antonio, a prince with an unfortunate parentage like Heracles. Antonio was the son of a fine respectable human king...and a demon mother. It was for this reason alone that people treated Antonio warily and always expected him to suddenly turn into the half-demon child that he was by blood. So it was for this reason that Antonio strove to be the most cheerful and upbeat person he could, even to the point that he appeared quite oblivious to the whispers and cold words and signs thrown his way. He wasn't of course. He caught and was stabbed through by all of it, but he tried desperately not to let it get to him, because that was what he feared the most, letting himself be controlled by others unrest and possibly allowing that to turn him into exactly what they feared...and what he feared as well.

Then there was the kingdom where two princes were candidates to inherit from their grandfather. Gilbert was the elder. Very laid back and with the appearance of uncaring about his situation. He was full of himself, even more so than Alfred, and expected everyone to feel the same way, which is what led him to not having many friends, and to the whispers that he would never find a suitable partner in life because no one would ever fall for someone that put themselves above all the rest, and if they did, then they weren't the type of person that was suitable to be a possible queen. As for the younger brother, Ludwig was much more dedicated to his tasks for the kingdom and not full of himself in the least. He knew he had flaws but couldn't figure out how to amend them. He often times appeared strict and perhaps even cruel, but under the surface he was really quite kind and caring, if there was just someone that was willing to put up with his outward attitude long enough to see this.

And last of the royals was the one that hadn't been seen in about two years. Prince Feliks claimed the kingdom to the far far east of the land and had inhabited quite a magnificent palace with all the same flare and pizzazz which he himself carried. His home had been the host of many a grand gala and then his halls had sparkled with freshly shined glass and sparkling crystal and spectacular furnishings and draperies of all colors. But that was two years ago...and this was the present. And at present the palace was closed off, the staff appeared to have disappeared, the ballrooms and halls were dark and dusty. The road to the castle was draped over by thorny blood rose bushes which put off any traveler who was curious about what had happened to the prince. And what had happened to the prince? A curse. Revenge from the woman, the dark fairy, he had spurned. She had turned Feliks into a beast, an indescribable creature that terrified those travelers that braved the path and entered the palace. And for this reason Feliks despaired still the more, for those travelers were hope, hope that always fled. For the fairy had given him a way out of his predicament...that if he could find somebody to love and earn their love in return then the curse would be lifted and all could be as it was again. But with each fleeing traveler Feliks fell deeper into despair, for he only had till his 21st birthday to find this person...and with it being Spring of the new year and his birthday in Summer, that despairing day was fast approaching.

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Now in this vast land there were also some common people struggling with their own issues, as expected, more-so than the royals. And while some of these problems were common for their status in life, there were a few who were also dealing with extra distress brought on by circumstance.

First there was Arthur, a young man that was like a servant in his own household because his father had died and his mother and two brothers refused to do anything. He could leave of course, but on his death bed his father had charged him with the task of caring for his widow and other two sons, especially Peter as he had been just a child of seven at the time of his father's death. And so it was that Arthur had no choice but to honor his father's wishes and care for his family lest he be called ungrateful for all his mother had done and cruel to his brothers. But lately, his family's treatment and expectations of him had been getting more and more ridiculous, and Arthur wanted nothing more than to escape, in any way possible that wouldn't damage his reputation.

Now Arthur lived in a town on the edge of the forest that Feliks' palace resided within, and also within this town was a young baker's apprentice named Toris. Toris was a kind hearted soul that liked nothing more than to put smiles on people's faces by baking wonderful treats. His family had been carpenters as long as he could trace back, so it had come as quite a shock when Toris had decided that the life just wasn't for him. Unlike many father's who forced their son to carry on the trade no matter their own personal wishes, Toris' father had respected his decision and wished him luck in his new chosen path. Toris was grateful for this and he made certain to show his parents by bringing back delicious treats and breads for them each day after work. And things were good, apart from a growing need within Toris for a change, for some adventure. A time or two he had hoped that his instructor might take him with him on a venture to a distant city on a baking competition, but it had yet to happen. So Toris had only to wait, bake, and wish.

And neither of these young men knew about the hidden, nor about the curse, nor about magic as a reality for that matter. But the toy maker in that same town knew about magic, he knew about it, and he cursed it every day. He was not a young man by any means; he had been married, had a child, and had a grandchild. But in his youth he had made a grave mistake. He had believed himself to be in love with a beautiful young woman, but when he had discovered that she dealt in magic and sorcery he believed himself to have fallen under her enchantments. And so he had spurned her and told the evil to get hence. This had been his mistake, for she had not enchanted him in the least and had hoped that maybe he would be the one that was truly meant for her. So with his rejection, she sought revenge on him, and as her master was Rumplestiltskin, she knew exactly what would hurt the most. But she couldn't do it so soon as that, not his child, she would let him have his children. Let him watch them grow up and get married themselves, but the first grandchild, on his or her 16th birthday she would snatch them away. It would be ultimate revenge! And this is why Romulus Vargas cursed magic, because he lost his beautiful young wife and their second child when his daughter was about 3, and after raising her into a beautiful young woman and handing her over into her husband's care, and then caring for her and her unborn child when her husband was killed in a riding accident, and then being helpless to do anything as she died in childbirth...even after all of that, the grandson that he had raised from a baby into a fine young man of 16, was taken away by the sorceress he had spurned so many years ago. And though he searched and searched, he could find no trace of her or Lovino. Until prince Feliks' castle was closed off and whispers started that a strange young woman had been seen in the forest. Then he had believed that the witch had reemerged once more. But what was he to do about it, he was an old man with no strength in fighting left, all he could do was make toys and craft beautiful porcelain dolls. And his dearest created treasure was the little doll he had based off his grandson. The doll was not identical to Lovino, it had a curl to the left side of his lighter auburn brown hair unlike Lovino's which had swept more from the front. And the dolls eyes were a color that closely matched the hair like his own, unlike the hazel-green that Lovino had inherited from his grandmother. But he had still poured so much of his heart, and longing for his grandson to be returned, into the doll, that he considered it almost like a second grandson to him, and he had even named it. Feliciano.

Now there are two types of magic in this world and both work and can manifest in different ways. And good magic has a tendency of making itself at home through the most simple of actions. Actions of love mostly. For the little doll, Feliciano, had been crafted with such love and heart that a small spark of magic had appeared inside of him, which gave him a soul. He could not move, not be even considered alive, but he could stare out at the world around him; he could watch his creator and consider him his grandfather...and love him...and wish...wish to be human so that he could comfort the old man until his actual grandson be found, if that ever would happen. If a doll could cry, he would. He had never known Lovino, having been created about a year after the boy had been stolen and never had a picture of him held up before his porcelain face. But even without knowing him, Feliciano still felt love for him and therefore sadness at his kidnapping. And even though it had been several years since that event, and Lovino would be a young man of about 20 now, these feelings had not diminished, and in fact had grown stronger along with his desire, his wish to be human.

As for Lovino, the young man was just one of several children that the sorceress, who with her connection to Feliks can be classified as a dark fairy, checked in on every now and again. Nor was he the only one that she kept locked away in a tall tower in one of the many hidden sections of Feliks' forest. But he was the only one that she wished she could kill whenever she came to see him. Never had she thought that a boy could be so frustrating and demanding. None of her other local charges behaved this way, granted one of them was now a swan so he couldn't exactly humanly argue.

Matthew was a child that her master Rumplestiltskin had acquired through his strange agreement with young women that claimed to spin straw into gold. Why anyone would ever make such a claim was beyond her but it appeared to happen quite often, because over the years Rumplestiltskin had acquired several children and hidden them in several different places. The two that she looked after apart from her own acquisition of Lovino were Matthew and Tino. Matthew was the one currently living as a swan, but when he had been born he had been the older royal brother of Prince Alfred. She sort of felt bad for the poor boy but her master's spells were the only ones she couldn't seem to break, and Rumplestiltskin had died by his own temper just the year before. So Matthew was stuck as a swan, but she did take pity and visit him as often as she could. Then there was Tino. Tino was from a royal line that no longer existed due to troubling circumstances that have nothing to do with the fairytale. Tino was hidden in a normal house and free to come and go as he wished, except for the magical barrier that prevented him from getting more than 100 feet away. So perhaps free wasn't exactly the right word. But he had his little companion dog and the other animals who could pass through the barrier. And he also had his sewing. With nothing much else to do, Tino had quickly taken up the pastime of sewing and spinning. It was about the only thing that he asked of Maleficent, more thread or yarn and cloth to embroider.

It is easily imaginable then that these three captives also wished for freedom from their mundane circumstances. As did Maleficent's other captive child, though his by consent, Kiku. Kiku, unlike her other charges, was not human. He was actually a forest spirit that belonged far away in a distant land. A kitsune, a creature that appeared as a fox for the majority of their lives, and on the rare occasion that they were human, they still sported fox ears and tail and their teeth were slightly sharper. The skulk that Kiku belonged to was one of the most well known around by all the spirits of the forest, and even some of the humans in the nearby village. It's leader was an ancient kitsune named Yao who had never found the right mate so he had no descendants of his own. What he did have were orphans or runaways from other skulks that he had taken in and raised from the time they were kits. Kiku was just one of 6 and not the oldest either. And it was the youngest of them that caused him to be in his current predicament. The littlest member of the skulk had made a grave mistake several years ago when the sorceress Maleficent had been in the area. He had stolen too close to her as she was resting in their forest by a small stream one day and with some investigation he had discovered that her cloak sparkled and shimmered on its own from the magic contained within it, and he had wanted it. So he had stolen the cloak without even thinking of the consequences. But the consequences had followed him, for Maleficent had placed tracking magic on her cloak should something like this ever happen. She had arrived at the skulk and demanded that the cloak and its thief be returned to her. Fearing for his little skulk brother's safety Kiku had offered to take his place instead. Maleficent had admired the kitsune's selflessness and had agreed and taken him away. She treated him the kindest out of all her charges and let him have the most freedom because she knew that he would not steal off and so long as he had his special garden to remind him of home he was happy. At least that's the way it had been, but now after several years of living under Maleficent's clutches, even Kiku longed for freedom and hoped that maybe soon it would present itself.

And lastly in this kingdom were the magical creatures, who unlike Kiku, had actually been born and raised there. But the only kind of true importance for the sake of our story is the mermaids. Now while prince Mathias did lie about many things, he had told the absolute truth about meeting a merman. What he did not know however was that this particular merman was a prince like him. Prince Lukas was the elder son of the aging king of the merfolk that called the sea of the particular kingdom their home. Lukas was a peculiar boy who didn't like talking very much and preferred to spend time wondering about the world he only had knowledge of, the world of the humans. So it was that one particular day he had gone into a secret cove and hoisted himself up on the rocks to look over at the magnificent castle high above him, and the little village that lay just below. And that is where Mathias had come upon him. And though Lukas had quickly dove back into the pool and out to sea again, he had still come back up before leaving entirely and had watched the awestruck young man standing on the rocks watching him in turn, and he had decided that, maybe someday, they would meet again.

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And so these are the characters whose wishes and choices will drive the plot of our tale. One could argue that the plot is in truth directed by Maleficent and her sister and it is indeed true that they had a large part to play in it, but even their actions and choices would not have come to be were it not for eight princes, four humans, a kitsune, a swan, a merman, a doll, and a single shared wish...

Freedom