The Courtyard Of Mist
The Storybrooke heroes stood in the throne room of Camelot. The worst had happened. The dark swan had escaped her prison cell and they needed to find her quickly,
"We need to find her but where would she go in this world?" asked Mary Margret before looking to her side when she heard Killian mutter,
"Anywhere but that prison cell where she never should have been in the first place" he murmured angrily as he glared towards King Arthur who looked guilty,
"I can assure you. I never wanted to lock her up but when she first came here she begged me too. She said that it was the only way to keep others safe….. She was terrified I couldn't help but obey her request" he told him but Killian didn't answer. Charming sighed and rubbed the back of his neck with calm frustration,
"Right now the dark swan has control of Emma's mind and body….. But we're forgetting our secret weapon" he said smugly and Regina looked at him unbelievably,
"It's got to be one hell of a secret weapon because even I don't know what it is…. Anybody else?" she asked sarcastically and Charming rolled his eyes,
"How do you track down a dark one?" he asked expectantly and they all looked around at each other confused and he chuckled before looking at Rumple who was stood beside Belle,
"Think like a dark one" he said simply,
"And we're lucky enough to have one of our very own" he said and Rumple shook his head nervously,
"No I….. I'm not the dark one anymore. I can't…." he tried as he slowly backed away but Belle held his hand in gentle reassurance but Charming took a step towards him,
"Rumplestiltskin Please" he begged,
"You know the dark one. You know how it thinks… Help us find Emma" he begged once more and Rumple looked between the heroes scared and he looked back at Charming before shaking his head slowly,
"I'm sorry… I can't help you. You're asking the wrong person" he said sadly before pulling away from Belle and he ran out the throne room.
The heroes allowed him to flee. They knew he hadn't been the same since the darkness had left his heart. He was more anxious, scared and nervous about everything. They knew he needed some time alone.
He ran all the way into the grounds of the castle before finally coming to rest within an old ruined courtyard. He sighed sadly before sitting down on a rock,
"No use… No use to anybody" he said to himself sadly. He didn't notice as the courtyard began to fill with mist. He sighed to himself sadly but looked up suddenly when he heard an echoing voice surround him,
"Rumple… Rumple" the voice called and he looked around the thick mist,
"Who's there?... Who is that?" he called out nervously when he heard the voice speak again,
"There, There Rumple…. My little Rumple, Hush now" the voice said soothingly and he looked confused and he soon heard a baby crying. He squinted his eyes as he saw a figure walking through the fog. It was a woman he had never seen before but yet she seemed so familiar. He saw that she was carrying a crying baby in her arms and he saw how she smiled soothingly,
"There, There no more tears" she cooed to the child and Rumple looked confused,
"Who are you?" he called out but she didn't even look at him which confused him more,
"She can't hear you Rumplestiltskin" said a voice behind him and he turned quickly to find King Arthur looking at him sadly,
"I'm so sorry but she can't hear you….. She's an echo. An echo of your past" he explained and he looked confused,
"I don't understand….. I've never seen her before in my life" he said and Arthur looked at him sadly,
"Perhaps you saw her before you had the capability of remembering her" he said solemnly,
"The child in her arms" he said quietly and Rumple felt a tear fall down his cheek as he slowly looked at her once more as she rocked the child in her arms,
"My… My mother" he said quietly and Arthur nodded sadly,
"This is the courtyard of mist… It allows us to see echos of our past upon request" he explained and Rumple's expression became confused,
"I don't understand….. I didn't request to see her" he said and Arthur smiled sadly,
"Maybe she's who you need to see right now" he told him gently,
"What was her name?" he asked quietly and Rumple watched his mother's form walk around as she cradled him as a child,
"Maria" he answered in a whisper as another tear fell down his cheek and that was when the woman's head looked around,
"Hello?" she called out as she looked around,
"Who's there?" she asked and Rumple's eyes widened,
"She can hear me" he said with excitement and Arthur shook his head sadly,
"I'm sorry Mr Stiltskin but it's impossible for her to hear you… She's just a ghost" he said sadly but Rumple shook his head,
"No she heard me I know she heard me….. Mother!... Mother it's me!" he called out but she looked around hopelessly….. Blindly and Rumple's expression became sad,
"Mama" he whispered and her gaze soon fell on him and her expression of confusion was almost identical to his own,
"Who….. Who are you?" she asked as she walked towards him slowly as she held her baby protectively. As she became closer her eyes met his own,
"Malcolm?" she asked and Rumple shook his head slowly as a tear fell down his cheek when she spoke his father's name and she looked confused before her eyes widened when she suddenly looked between the baby in her arms and him,
"….. R…. Rumple?... My Rumple?... You're him aren't you? You're my little boy all grown up?" she asked in a mesmerised tone as she reached out her free hand to touch his cheek but her hand went right through him and she looked confused,
"I….. I don't understand" she said with a confused tone mixed with sadness but Rumple smiled sadly,
"It's ok mama…. Everything's going to be ok…. This is simply a dream" he told her gently before stepping towards her and looked at her sadly,
"You need to wake up now" he told her softly before waving his hand over her eyes which made her close them softly and she instantly vanished and he sighed sadly before turning towards the king who had a stunned expression upon his face,
"That….. That was amazing" he said stunned and Rumple smiled sadly,
"That was my mama" he said softly and for the first time since the darkness had left him. Rumple didn't feel afraid. He was now ready to help find Emma because he now knew that his mother would always be with him.
I hope you all enjoyed this little one shot :) please review and let me know what you think.
Kind Regards,
TheAuthor1996