Authors: Authorwithoutaquill and Judymulder
Chapter 1: The Dream
The Dark One sprang out of bed with a groan. It was that wretched dream again. It had been haunting him for more than six months now and there was nothing he could bloody well do about it. Always the same room, with the same pillow stand and same glass case in a middle of a wooden table. It came about twice a week and left him considerably upset upon waking. He spent many sleepless nights brooding about it, not being able to figure out its meaning. And now he had enough!
Rumplestiltskin sighed and poofed himself to his spinning wheel. Spinning always helped to ease his mind. It helped him to forget. This time it wasn't his purpose though - instead of putting the problem out of his mind, he needed to find a solution. A few weeks back he brew himself a potion that would ensure a night of dreamless sleep, yet the visions of the room and the glass case still came. After that incident he was sure it was no ordinary dream. Ever since he took the power of the Seer, he had glimpses of the future. A peak through the holes of the veil, nothing more, but he had learnt to be wary of each and every piece of information he received.
"This isn't to be solved anytime soon, I suppose."
He often talked to himself in his castle at night, though he never examined the reason behind this too closely. It was for theatrics after all. The more you stay in the character, the easier it was to put on the mask.
He sighed, closed his eyes and began to spin. As the wheel creaked and the gold thread shone on the cold stone floor he began to ease himself back into his dream.
Dark, velvety carpet that muffled every sound…
Bookshelves full of dusty old tomes…
Sunlight breaking on glass, shattering into thousands of shining sparkles on the walls….
The rose.
Lying there.
In the middle of the damn drawing room.
"Calm down, now. Let's just explore the room," he reminded himself. His gaze fell on the glass case again.
The Rose. Calling him like a siren calls the sailor.
In that moment he realized that that was what unsettled him so much about this whole scenario. That every time he was here, his feet wouldn't stop, his arms would stretch out, reaching for the damned object. But most of all, that the necklace was so utterly… Beautiful.
He snorted at himself in the dream space.
"Well done, Rumple, now you're captivated by shiny jewellery!" His voice sounded too loud to his ears. It made a strange echo in the empty room and he quivered slightly. A sense of foreboding overcame him and he almost ran, there and then, but something stopped him. There was a glint in the far corner of the room. He saw it from the corner of his eye as he turned to leave.
A magnificent mirror stood against the wall, framed by diamonds, sapphires and opals big as a child's fist. The frames were made of silver, fashioned into grapevines and oak leaves and climbing roses. What rooted Rumplestiltskin to the spot though was the thing that was in the middle of the mirror. The reflection was showing him something he never saw before, not in reality, nor in his dream: the rose necklace in all its glory. The rose necklace that haunted his dreams for the past six months, the rose necklace that eluded him for more than half a year, the necklace that drew him like nectar drew the bees. And worst of all: it was breathtaking.
It lay there, in its glass case, looking shyly up at him, like a new bride before its bedding night. Blushing, it glinted in the sunlight, its slim golden chain swirling around its deep green stem in mesmerising patterns. The petals were made of the finest rubies, the leaves of emerald and the chain was the finest gold he's ever seen. It was almost white… White as a wedding gown…
Rumplestiltskin shook his head sharply, rousing himself from his trance-like state. He took a step backwards. The necklace was having a strange effect on him. His alertness was slipping away, a warmth filled his chest and his body felt like marshmallows melting in a pond of hot cocoa. He stomped towards the table with every intention of destroying the offending object, when he heard a voice.
"Oh, Mother, I loved the book! It was just as you described - full of adventure, and excitement and magic."
The girl laughed and the sound scared the Dark One worse than anything else in this wretched dream world could. He felt the panic squeeze his chest and freeze his blood and didn't understand. His hands grabbed for the end of the table on their own accord, but he missed. As he crashed into its wooden legs, he was faintly aware of the women's gasps as they entered the hallway. No doubt they heard the commotion and were now coming to investigate its source. He struggled to get back on his feet, but the edge of his vision was already blurred and there was a strange pounding in his ears. He reached his hand up to take the necklace, but couldn't reach the table top. He heard the door open. Then the Darkness overcame him and he knew no more.
He woke up hours later, sprawled on the cold, hard floor of his dining room. His spinning wheel had broken in half and some of the glass cabinets were shattered. So, the dark magic flowing in his veins had done its job after all. It got him out of that cursed dream. As the power washed over him, the fear subsided. The dream wouldn't bother him again, he was sure of that. It has fulfilled its purpose, however unclear that may be for Rumplestiltskin at the moment. He trusted he will learn it soon enough. But as for now, he was free to sleep at last.