Once upon a time, there was a just King and his fair Queen. Long had they wanted for a child, and at long last their wish was granted.
At the birth of his beloved daughter, King Stephan was rejoicing with the rest of his people. Both his wife and daughter were healthy and whole. Today was the child's christening. They named her Aurora because she filled their lives with sunshine. The nobility, the gentry, the Three Good Fairies, and King Hubert with his young son, to whom Aurora would be betrothed to and eventually marry.
The happy day was ruined with the arrival of the Dark Fairy, Maleficent. She had cursed the child for having been spurned. In the end, after speaking with the fairies and his wife, they all conceded that the fairies taking Aurora away until the curse was lifted was the best course of action.
So with heavy hearts, the King and Queen watched as their most precious possession, their only child, disappeared into the night.
16 years later, deep in the forest, the Three Good Fairies had raised the child as their own, and named her Briar Rose.
Today was the girl's birthday and the fairies had planned a surprise for her. They needed to get her out of the house. In the end they managed with the excuse of picking berries.
Either way, Briar Rose smiled and headed into the forest she had come to know like the back of her hand. She began to sing, at first just notes that harmonized with one another. Singing had come naturally to her. The fairies would tell her that she sang before she spoke.
Her song echoed through the forest. Songbirds flocked to her, and chirped merrily along. As she spotted the berry bushes, she sang to her songbird friends as she picked berries.
Unaware, Briar Rose kept singing as a dark figure in the trees watched her. She laughed and giggled as she saw some of the animals of the forest come with a white coat and boots to act as her 'prince.' She gave them a curtsy and began to sing and dance with them, enjoying herself all the while.
Connor had been riding in the forest when he heard and ethereal voice echo throughout. He warily looked about him, recalling the incident at sea with the sirens. Shuddering at the horrifying memory of clammy hands trying to drag him under the waves, his thought drifted to his father and grandfather. Both men were stern in their discipline, and that was how Connor was schooled. His grandfather guffawed at the story about the sirens though, saying that most if not all women wanted to sink their hands into any man and drown him or tear him to shreds.
Remembering that he was in a forest, and not at sea; he began to think about his father and the task he was given for their stay in King Stephan's kingdom. A wife. When his father told him this, he was rendered speechless. He knew that this would come eventually, but still. No girl had ever caught his eye. At least he was given a chance to choose his bride.
"Peasant or princess, it does not matter to me, Connor," his father stated, "so long as she has a good head on her shoulders and can bear a healthy child."
"Yes, father," he answered after a moment. And so they sailed to the kingdom of King Stephan to find a wife for him among the king's courtiers.
About two days in, he gave up. The women were beautiful, but no more beautiful or interesting than the girls back home. So today he told his father he would go for a ride in the forest. So here he was, looking for a creature that was probably a product of his imagination.
Still, he wanted to know what creature on earth could make sounds as beautiful as those he was hearing. After riding his horse through the forest, he was tired and sweaty. He stopped by a pond, stripping off his heavy white hooded coat, and leather boots. Cupping his hands, he scooped some of the cool water and sipped at it. His thoughts were a storm of ideas.
Who was singing? What was singing? Where were they? Could he be able to trap it and take it with him?
He paused at this. What if it wasn't? What if it was? Would he do it? He thought and decided that no. If it was something he could take that he would leave it here, in the forest where it belonged. He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose, exhaling deeply. The singing had stopped for now.
Why was his coat flying off without him?! And why were his boots hopping away?! He sighed in frustration and started free running through the trees, a skill his mother, God rest her soul, taught him when he was young. He followed the creatures to a small clearing.
There he saw his coat float and heard the most beautiful singing. The coat moved to the side and he blinked in surprise when he saw the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. He went further out on the branch to see her better.
CRACK!
The thin end of the branch snapped under his weight and he went tumbling down to the ground near the girl. Perfect. He groaned and tried to stand. The girl looked frightened and about to run. He held up his hands. "I'm sorry for startling you, Miss," he said calmly, as if he were talking to a scared little animal.
Rose slowly backed away from him, her eyes wide with terror. There was a shallowness to her breath, and a hum in her ears.
"I'm not going to hurt you," the man said, approaching her cautiously as if she was the dangerous one. She exhaled when he did.
"I'm sorry for startling you, Miss. I didn't mean to," he said, internally trying to keep himself calm because she was so damn beautiful and he wanted to hear her just one more time.
"Oh, um, it's quite alright. You just, um, startled me. No one ever comes this far into the forest. A-are you lost?" she asked, keeping her distance from him.
"N-no. I just." He paused. He just what? Was looking for the person singing and it turned out to be her? "I just heard you singing, and I, just..." he trailed off towards the end, scratching the back of his neck embarrassedly.
"O-oh," she muttered, looking at the ground, blushing bashfully.
Connor bit his bottom lip before extending out his hand, "I'm Connor, Miss. Nice to meet you."
Briar Rose looked at his hand curiously. "Um...I am Briar Rose," she answered, curtsying.
"Oh, right." Connor gave a bow, his face hot.