Summary: Sequel to Finding Belle. Its 20 years later in the Kingdom and evil is stirring again.

Disclaimer: I own nothing of the show or the characters.

Rating: T+

Pairing: Belle/Rumpelstiltskin Snow/Charming Emma/August and Henry/OFC Sorsha

TROUBLE IN THE KINGDOM:

ENCHANTED FOREST:

Hoof beats thundered through the trees as a white stallion navigated the dense forest heading towards the border of the Enchanted Forest and where King James and Queen Snow White ruled in peace. Sorsha rode in freedom going to an Inn where she would meet her Huntsman. They had met by accident, by chance, and yet Sorsha kept sneaking out to meet him when she could. What was happening to her? Was she falling love with him? Did people like her fall in love? Sorsha lived half cast in shadows, sealed behind high walls of the Dark Castle where she was practically a princess locked in a tower. Her father kept her contained, or tried to, out of fear for her safety. He couldn't see her power. Her father didn't want to see it. Sorsha understood and that didn't stop her from loving her father, but she loved her freedom too. It killed her to think she would ever have to choose between her family and her freedom.

Then the trees began to thin out with the Inn in sight. Sorsha reined her horse to a halt. When she was near people her heart would stop and her breathing would falter. She was the daughter of the Dark One. No one could know that. Sorsha scanned the horses tethered to the post until she saw the one that her Huntsman rode. A black stallion with a silver mane stood tethered at the end of the post. He was here, he was waiting for her. Nudging her steed foreword Sorsha came out of the tree line. But something stopped her again. What was it? Opening herself up to the magic around her she saw more than a human could. On the other side of the Inn were guards shrouded in the mist and trees. 'A trap!' Sorsha's magic screamed at her. She listened. Pulling on the reigns she guided her horse back into the trees, setting off for home at a hard gallop. There would be another day to see her Huntsman. Looking up through the trees, the sun was fading. It meant her father would be home soon.

"I told you this was not a good plan," Renegade spoke to her knowing that Sorsha could understand.

Sorsha shook her head. Her horse, Renegade, had magically appeared one day when she had been fifteen years old asking for a home. Knowing that she had a knack for understanding the beasts of this world Sorsha readily took him in, much to her father's reluctance, but she had worn him down. "And what would you have suggested?" Sorsha questioned. "I had to get out of there. I want to see the world you told me about." She fired back.

Soon Sorsha was riding through the giant gates of the Dark Castle. She dismounted from her horse and Renegade found his way to the stables. Inside Sorsha tried to sneak up the stairs that led to her wing of the Castle only to be stopped by her mother, Belle, in the entrance hall. "Oh, no." Sorsha skidded to a halt.

"Where have you been?" Belle questioned her daughter. "You've been beyond the gates haven't you?" The mud on Sorsha's boots told her a tale of where her child had been this day, even the leaves coloring Sorsha's mane of auburn crimped hair spoke to it. "Your father will be furious." Belle looked her daughter up and down from head to toe. Sorsha was dressed drastically like her father; Rumpelstiltskin. The skin tight leather pants, the thigh high boots laced up the sides, and the intricate leather vest that was molded to her daughter's torso. She was truly her father's daughter.

"Oh, yes…" Sorsha groaned, "Because it's all about father. What about me?" She demanded. "What about my freedom? I want to see the world and the Dark Castle is not the world. You and father are free to come and go while I remain a prisoner. This place is a tomb to me as much as it is a home." Sorsha hadn't meant for her words to be harsh. She was tired of living like a child in a tower.

"Oh, Sorsha, my darling girl," Belle crossed the hall going to her daughter. "You know why we keep you here. If we lost you," Tears filled Belle's words, "It would kill me and your father." Belle cupped her daughters face and for a moment she saw the scared three year old reflection of Sorsha the day Belle and Rumpelstiltskin had regained their child. At the tender age of three Sorsha had been kidnapped. For the scariest moments in their lives they thought they would never see their beloved child again.

Instantly Sorsha felt guilty for saying all those things to her mother, "I'm sorry mother. I just get so frustrated being here. I want my freedom." She demanded. "You and father can't keep me here forever." It was her nature to be stubborn, to push, to fight for what she wanted. It was her father's nature that she had inherited.

"Talk to your father," Belle counseled. "He will listen; I'll make sure of it." She smiled then trying to lighten the mood between them. Belle knew the fear her husband had in regards to their daughter. He didn't want to see her hurt or taken from them again. "But, don't fight him or argue."

"I don't argue." Sorsha defended with a smile knowing full well that she did. It was what she and her father had in common the most. "And I don't fight. I passionately state my position."

Belle shook her head laughing lightly. "You should get changed before your father gets home." Even as the words left her mouth the enchanted doors opened once again with Rumpelstiltskin striding through them in his usual confident stride. Seeing that stride took her breath away. Rumpelstiltskin never ceased to make her heart beat faster with love whenever he walked into a room.

Rumpelstiltskin saw his wife and his daughter in the receiving hall. His daughter looked like she had been out in the enchanted forest riding. The leaves tangled in her hair, the mud on her boots. If he could he would work up the anger at her defiance of him once again, but today, he couldn't. He knew for months that being locked away was taking its toll on Sorsha. She longed for freedom. She longed to see the world. Sorsha was truly like her mother Belle. "You've been out in the forest today haven't you?" There was no anger in his voice, no hurt at her betrayal of his rules.

Sorsha stepped away form her mother and lowered her head, "Yes," She wasn't going to try to lie. Her father would sense the deception. It was just who he was. "But I…"

Rumpelstiltskin held up his hand cutting off whatever she was going to say. "Sorsha, these rules are in place for a good reason and it is the only reason you have been safe this long." He spoke. "But, I know that these rules are killing you." Sorsha looked at him surprised.

"Father…" Sorsha felt a small well of hope blossom inside of her. "You mean you'll let me go?" Her father said nothing for a moment. Instead he opened his arms offering her a hug. "Oh father." Sorsha went to him and wrapped her arms around him. His arms closed around her in return.

Belle smiled at the sight of her husband and her daughter. It made her heart swell with pride and with love. This was her family and she loved them. Looking to her husband Belle mouthed, "Thank you." He smirked at her as he usually did. The two of them together always staggered her. They were so alike.

Rumpelstiltskin stepped back from Sorsha, "Now, I do have a condition or two for these new boundaries." He waited for Sorsha to start to protest, but she did not. "You can't go beyond the Enchanted Forest that surrounds the estate. The mountains and the lake are free for you to explore."

"I understand." Sorsha smiled. She was getting what she wanted without arguing, without fighting. "I never stray beyond the border of the Enchanted Forest anyway." She said. Her mother said not to fight or argue and she wasn't. She was getting what she wanted. "Renegade argues with me and always turns back when we reach the Inn."

"Renegade? The horse argues with you?" Rumpelstiltskin gazed at his daughter. He knew she could talk to the beasts of this earth as easily as she talked to another human being. It was part of her magic, powers that she had yet to use to full effect. She truly was his child and that fact amazed him everyday he watched her growing in her mother's stomach, to being born, to growing here in the land where her magic could flourish. He and Belle had created the perfect child.

"Yes," Sorsha admitted, her cheeks turning red with embarrassment. "He's my only friend. Well, him and the werewolves that live in the forest." She should stop talking now by the look her father was giving her.

"Werewolves?" Rumpelstiltskin asked knowing that Red and her sons lived in the forest between the Dark Castle and the Inn. They were sort of guardians for Sorsha ever since she had been saved from her abduction. That would be a day he would never forget; the day his child had been taken from him. It had been Bae all over again and it had nearly destroyed him.

"Ok, this discussion is finished." Belle chimed in gaining looks from her husband and daughter. "Sorsha has her freedom and you have your peace of mind she will not stray beyond the borders." Rumpelstiltskin nodded.

"Yes, your mother's right. You have you want." Rumpelstiltskin kissed his child on her forehead, "Now, you really must change. We have guests arriving soon."

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" Sorsha questioned looking down at her chosen attire for the day. She wore a woven leather vest that hugged her slim torso and lean waist like a second skin or dark chocolate brown feeding down in a pair of leather pants that was separated by a belt. Her boots were black leather wrapped around her thighs and laced up the sides. The dark color of her clothing made her already pale skin seem even paler. But the vest could not hide the dusting of gold in the center of her chest, over the swell of her breasts. The color almost looked like the rising of the morning sun.

Rumpelstiltskin smirked, "It's not lady like." He pointed out casting his gaze towards his beautiful wife. Belle was clothed in a long soft blue gown with a modest v-neck trimmed in a dark blue with a belt of gold and silver gracing her delicate hips. Long bell sleeves fell around her wrist's to complete the dress. "You, my darling Belle, look beautiful." Then he turned back to Sorsha and with a flourish of his hands he let his magic swirl around her changing her clothes from leather to a dark plum color to play against her delicate skin. The dress matched the one Belle wore. "There," Rumpelstiltskin tucked a stray curl behind his daughters right ear and conjured red and blue rose buds to grace her now curly mass of auburn curls. "As beautiful as you mother."

"Rumpelstiltskin, who could possibly be coming here?" Belle asked stepping to her husband and her daughter.

"Yeah," Sorsha said, "The only people who come here are those poor unfortunate souls who want to make a deal with you." Her father glared at her, but without the anger. She smirked at him putting her hands behind her back looking as innocent as she could.

"The King and Queen are calling in my debt." Rumpelstiltskin answered keeping his smirk in place for his daughter. In his haste to find Sorsha, he had gone to King James and Queen Snow White for their help in finding the people who abducted her. That help had served him well as his daughter had been found and safely returned to them. And now he had a debt to pay. "They need our help like we needed theirs."

"Then, we pay our debt." Belle smiled knowing that this day would have come sooner or later. The king and queen had been good to them in helping them get their daughter back. "When do they arrive?" She asked stepping to her daughter, cupping Sorsha's cheek.

"Shortly," Rumpelstiltskin looked out the door, up the path to where horses were coming through the gates. Here was the moment he had been dreading for years; paying his debt.

Sorsha stood to her father's right as her mother stood to his left. There she saw the horses that had been at the Inn. Shock radiated through her entire body upon seeing the black stallion with the retinue; the horse of her Huntsman. What was he doing here? Quickly he she schooled her features behind a mask of welcome that she had often seen her father use. It would help to keep her secret for a little while longer. Sorsha tried to look demure and contrite.

Rumpelstiltskin stepped away from his wife and daughter to greet the King and Queen. "Your Majesty's welcome to the Dark Castle." Without mocking, without his usual flare for the dramatic Rumpelstiltskin offered up a polite, courtly bow as was custom in the kingdom and a show of respect.

James dismounted from his horse going to Rumpelstiltskin, "Thank you for the welcome." As a sign of affection James patted Rumpelstiltskin on the shoulder and then motioned to Snow, Emma, and Henry as the came closer. "We wouldn't have come here if it wasn't important." James clarified. "We need your help."

"Really dearie, just my help?" Rumpelstiltskin asked falling back on old antagonistic habits. The king just chuckled. In the twenty years since returning to their home he and the King, along with the Queen, had struck an odd friendship due in large part to Belle. His life had been forever changed the day he met Belle, the day he fell in love with her, and the day they welcomed their daughter into the world.

"Those details to be discussed later," Snow said coming to her husband's side. "Rumpelstiltskin, you haven't changed." He looked the same as the day they had come home; the same gold skin, the same crimped hair, the same eerie amber eyes, and the same penchant for leather. All of it was pure Rumpelstiltskin.

"Neither have you, your majesty." Belle said coming to stand next to her love. "We're honored that you're here. Please accept our hospitality. You must stay here tonight" She smiled and Snow agreed. "It's good to see you my friend." Snow smiled in return pulling Belle in for a tight hug

Sorsha stood fighting back her shock at the sight of her Huntsman standing next to the Queen. He was here. He was standing just feet from her. Sorsha felt as if her heart was going to beat from her chest just at the sight of him. If she wasn't careful then her father would catch on. He kept glancing at her as he spoke to the King. What was she going to do? Could she run for the stables, get Renegade, and escape? Could she stand here staring at him and not give the game away? Sorsha was trapped.

Henry stood next to his grandmother and his mother seeing the face of the woman he had been expecting to see this morning at the Inn before his family had tracked him there. She had been meeting him there or the past few years. Always she referred to herself as the Sorceress just as he claimed to be the Huntsman. Henry never expected that his Sorceress would be the daughter of Rumpelstiltskin. He was a dead man if he let the secret between them slip free.

Snow let go of Belle turning her eyes on the lovely young woman standing a few feet away from them all. "You must be Sorsha." The girl nodded making Snow smile. "You are so beautiful, just like your mother." Snow offered her hand to Sorsha. The young woman moved to her and took it.

"Thank you for the compliment your majesty." Sorsha fought to keep her eyes off of the Huntsman, if that was even his real name. "My beauty pales in comparison to you, for you are the fairest of them all." Sorsha bowed her head in a sign of respect. A hand cupped her chin urging her head up until her eyes locked with that of the Queen's.

"Yes," Snow grinned, "But I can see that soon many men will be saying that about you." It was meant to be a compliment, but Snow saw a flash of panic in Sorsha's eyes for a second and then it was gone." Snow stepped back. "Let me introduce you to my grandson Henry," She motioned for Henry to step closer. "This is the crowned prince."

Sorsha's heart was in her throat at the sight of her Huntsman, better known as Henry the crowned prince of the kingdom. She didn't know if she wanted to laugh or to cry at that very moment. What had she gotten herself into? How was she to react? All she could do was stare at him openly as he stared at her. Sorsha tried to slow her breathing, to compose herself should she give the game away.

Henry kept his eyes on Sorsha, gently reaching out to take her hand, and lifting it up so he could kiss her knuckles. She looked like a rabbit ready to ground at the first wrong movement. "It's an honor to meet you my lady." His lips touched the back of her hand gently. Henry had to force himself not to linger on her perfect skin.

"Thank you my lord." Sorsha tried to keep her words from shaking. She had to pretend not to know him, not to have kissed him, not to have held him in her arms. "It's an honor to welcome you to my home." He still held her hand close to his lips. "My lord, you're still holding my hand." Sorsha pointed out.

"Oh," Henry smiled, "I thought you were still holding mine." He teased for the benefit of his grandfather and his mother who now stood watching him. Henry couldn't keep his heart rate down. Sorsha always made him lose is mind. "My grandmother is right. You are the fairest of them all." It was a gentle breath, barely above a whisper. He noticed a blush creep up into her cheeks.

Sorsha stepped back, "Thank you," It came out as a breathy gasp. She was losing control. Having him so close to her was too much too soon. "You honor me, your highness." She was afraid to turn her eyes to her father lest he see all the conflicting emotions she knew would be reflected in her blue amber gaze. All of her feelings were for Henry. She had to get away. She had to calm down, to regain her composure. She was Sorsha, the daughter of Rumpelstiltskin and Belle. She was not some foolish love struck kid seeing the man she had been sneaking around with. And yet that was how she was feeling, love struck and blindsided all at once. "Allow me to show you valet's where to stable the horse so they can rest." Sorsha managed to regain some of her composure.

"Sorsha's, I'm sure the king's men can find the stables on their own." Belle protested gently.

"No, mother please. Let me," Sorsha glanced back at her mother. Then she turned to the man who held the reigns of Henry's horse. "If you'll follow me gentlemen," Sorsha smiled heading away from her parents, from the King and Queen, and from Henry.

At the stables Sorsha hadn't noticed that Henry was watching her as she talked with Renegade and the other horses. It was a stall tactic to be sure. She was just too overwhelmed with all the people and with Henry, or Huntsman, being so near. He had lied to her and she to him. Though, her lie was to protect him from the unpredictable wrath of her father. "What should I do?" Sorsha asked Renegade.

"Tell the truth." The horse answered seeing the man she had been meeting for two years in secret hiding around the corner.

"You're talking to a horse and not to me?" Henry made his presence known. She jumped at the sound of his voice "So, you're Sorsha, the girl many call the Rising Sun." Still she refused to turn to him. The last time he had seen her she had been vibrant, laughing, and teasing him as they rode through the enchanted forest without a care in the world.

"And you're the Crowned Prince." Sorsha pointed out keeping her eyes on her horse Renegade. "We can't do this." She said feeling her heart kick up in beat again after she had worked so hard to calm it down. His hands cupped her shoulders slowly bringing her back against the warm leather of his traveling clothes. Sorsha tried not to sigh in relief at the feel of him, but she couldn't resist. She started to shudder.

"It doesn't matter who we are," Henry muttered close to her ear. She had been a mysterious creature riding a white stallion. He had never seen anyone like her and he knew he never would again. "I know I love you…" She turned in his arms and covered his mouth. Sorsha shook her head at him. Henry kissed the palm of her hand that covered his lips.

Sorsha lowered her hands offering up a small smile. She knew she couldn't stay mad at him forever. "Don't…" What more could she say? Was she to tell him that she just gained her freedom; that she was able to leave the Dark Castle without having to lie. Henry didn't give her a chance to say more. He took her lips in a passionate kiss that left her dizzy. Her hands came up to tangle in his cap of brown locks. This was bad, this was dangerous, and this was the most thrilling love; her first love.

MAIN HALL:

Inside the main hall Rumpelstiltskin kept scanning the faces of the King's court that had traveled with Snow White and Charming looking for the face of his daughter. She had been in the stables a long while and it was starting to worry him. He was just about to take a step away when the door opened and he caught sight of her striding in with Henry hot on her heels. "This is an interesting turn of events." Rumpelstiltskin muttered.

Belle turned from Emma after hearing her husband's comment, "What is?" She followed his gaze over to Sorsha who was talking with Henry while the crowned prince smiled wryly. He was obviously teasing her but Sorsha was looking around nervously. "I wonder what's happening?" Her husband was about to walk away from her, to go to their daughter, and he would have had Belle not hooked her arm with his. "Leave them."

Sorsha looked across the room seeing her father staring at her and Henry with avid interest. To put him at ease, she smiled warmly at her father. Taking a breath, Sorsha fought to calm down again. Then she turned back to Henry, "Huntsman, please… stop." Sorsha bit her tongue. She hadn't meant to call him that. "Henry…"

"I'm trying to be sociable, to look like I'm trying to get to know a woman who close to my age." He covered smiling at the dwarfs just across the room watching them with avid interest. It seemed everyone was watching them. Henry leaned in and whispered, "I want to get to know the real you."

"Oh, Henry, I want to know you too." Sorsha confessed. She had to resist leaning her head on his shoulder. He was so close, so tempting to touch. Sorsha had to remember where she was. She was at home where her father could plainly see her and how she was reacting to Henry. "My father…" It was an excuse, over used, but still an excuse none the less.

"I'm not afraid of him." Henry stated looking Sorsha in her lovely blue amber eyes. Those eyes should have told him who she was when he first saw her. "Don't you think he would be understanding if he knew I loved you?" He asked.

"Stop saying that." Sorsha warned. "I don't want you to get hurt." She made a move, almost to cup his face, but at the last moment wrapped her arms around her waist. Her father was unpredictable where it came to her. If he leaned that she had been having an affair with the Crowned Prince, Sorsha couldn't guarantee how the situation would turn out.