A young woman woke up in a choke, she found herself sprawled across a prison cell floor. The walls and floor gave off a musky stench and various smells she could not identify. The metal bars, which yielded her from escaping, were rusting with age. With the environment being cold and harsh, an unwanted feeling was what she received, she breathed a hot breath of air, watching it slither from her lips. Regarding her cage, her eyes drew her attention to a glowing amulet around her neck. Her hand clutched the jewelry and she speculated its rich blue colors. The gemstone was a beautiful lapis lazuli.
In her disarray, she scrambled to her feet, and dusted herself off. The young girl wore a black tunic with blue outlines that fell over her knees, a long black cape that draped over her shoulders, and matching riding boots. She pushed back her long white hair to the other side, in order to understand how exactly she has gotten there.
All she remembered was when she attempted to calm her ogre friend named Shrek after an argument with his wife. However, it was to no avail. Shrek mainly ignored her up to the point where he literally walked away. To him, his friend was merely another voice of reason that refused to see his point of view. The young woman huffed in frustration before storming off into the forest, the opposite direction from Shrek. Sooner than she expected, little droplets of rain fell onto her face, she heard the sound of thunder, a flash of lightening, and then she was soaked to the bone. Suddenly, an eerie chill washed over her, and she sensed a terrible tremble surrounding her. The world around her spun in circles until she fell into a world of darkness.
"Ow," she shuddered. She rubbed her sore temple gingerly from attempting to recall any other memories that could be a clue to that event. Just as the young woman controlled herself, a door creaked opened up, shedding in some golden light, and a silhouette of a short man stepped into her view. As his visage came into view, she saw gleaming emerald eyes, fiery short hair, a dwarf in an attire of white frills and curly shoes. He wore a wry smile, as if expecting the unexpected.
"I take it that you slept well?" the stranger smirked. He detected her displeasure with the surprise look in her eyes. To him, he found her adorable, as the girl grasped the iron bars, sending nothing but daggers in his direction.
"Stiltskin," She sneered.
"It's Rumpelstiltskin, girl, learn your manners." He scoffed.
"Where's Shrek?!" she seethed, shaking the bars with tremendous force.
Rumpel frowned, and tossed his hand into the air implying he did not give a damn about the imprisoned girl. "You sure are impatient. No matter, I will escort you to your new home. Oh, but be in mind that you will be sharing it with somebody else." The devious dwarf gave her a twisted smile, as he whisked out a ring of keys, and nonchalantly picked his preferred key before he inserted it into the lock of her cage, the growing rage inside the woman's eyes flared in response.
"You think that I would go anywhere with you? Well, you got another thing coming." She simmered. The woman threw out her hand with her head held high, chanted a powerful hex to transform him into a toad or worse, she did not care as long she did not have to deal with him in the future, but when she realized that the magic from within has not made an appearance, her confidence withdrew at once. Even he waited for her to realize how useless she actually was.
When a cold splash of reality hit her like a ton of bricks, she recoiled at once in shock and dismay. Her magical powers were not even present, she stumbled aback and her hands trembling, whereas the door hung wide with Rumpel standing at the foot of the other door.
"Hehe looks like you're at a loss, my dear Violet." The emerald eyed one giggled. He beckoned her in following him, Violet, now ashamed, fell in line with the shorter man, as they left where everything began behind. She treaded a slower pace than his, but he did not regard her in the slightest, when the distance between them became erratic, all Violet saw were her feet bearing her weight and traversing through the corridors.
The twosome crossed many hallways and a few flight of stairs. Alas to her boredom, Violet diverted her attention to the details on the walls. She took notice of the garish gold, blinding white, and ruby red interior decoration, which brought her thinking whether if the exterior of the castle shared the same gaudy design as of the inside. Whatever the case, all she ever wanted was to escape this hell-hole before her window of opportunity closed on her, and so, she stuck her tongue out at the ostentatious décor. Accompanying the walls were many layouts of paintings that hung in their golden frames, most to all of them, consisted of him in absurd costumes that Violet has ever laid her eyes upon, a selective group of witches, and a very large goose with a pink bow tightly around her neck. Little did she know was that her trip down the hall was cut short, as she nearly tumbled over the white stump with curly shoes.
"Here we are," exclaimed Rumpel while jumping with his hands in the air, exaggerating on the arrival to her new confinement was indeed brilliantly fun. Violet gazed at her door with awe, for once, she actually admired its beautiful blue frame, and golden door knob. "Oh," she snapped her focus out of daze and stared at Rumpel with his wry smile. "Your roommate won't be returning until tonight. Farewell," he twirled on his curly shoes, and performed an unnecessary bow, and he swiftly trotted away, thus leaving her alone.
Violet closed her eyes, releasing a pent up sigh, and reopened her lids, while reaching out for that golden handle. When she yanked it wide, she met an imposing bedroom with shades of the depths of the ocean, black streaks of the night across the walls and silver stars that were shaped like a spiral on the ceiling. A pair of twin beds on either side of the walls with red velvet sheets, and satin pillows, across from her was a small subtle fireplace, and a small table with chairs in the center. Violet blinked at this ludicrous sight before her, and resisted gagging. She found it odd to have a luscious suite rather than a stereotypical prison cell like all stereotypical prisoners usually have. Of course, she was not complaining, it did give off a creepy setting.
The young woman flopped onto the nearest bed to await her roommate to be, though she was only to herself for a mere fifteen minutes, when she shot out of bed and threw the curtains aside. This revealed an astounding view of a colorful pastel sky; blood orange hue mixed with crimson red, with the sun dipping back and behind the horizon for a good night's slumber. She saw pearly white stars peeking through the blankets of the heavens, and so she realized that she only had a few hours' left until then. "Some exploring wouldn't hurt anybody," she said with an impish grin, and rubbing her hands together.
Alas, the curiosity that once motivated Violet's eager mind, drained instantaneously after exploring about hundreds of vacant rooms; none of which met to her expectations. There were no secret treasures or anything out of the ordinary; however there have been numerous occurrence of bleached sheets over aged furniture. Each one shared the same spooky setting than the last, and to be frank, it frightened Violet. It was as if there were invisible eyes spying on her, as she peered into one. Another time there have been an event where a cold breeze emerged without open windows, and that she frequently recalled a chilling hand caressing her cheek whenever she lingered for too long.
'If this empire was full of witches, a scary goose, and a psychotic king, how can there be so much space? There could be about a dozen occupants to fill in the void, but no, it's as if Rumpelstiltskin is hosting a castle full of ghosts.' She pondered. After crossing yet another hallway, it finally dawned on Violet that with sudden stupidity she has gotten herself hopelessly lost.
"Awe, damn it," she groaned, while face-palming herself. "Alright I have to develop a better plan to get out of this labyrinth." She sighed, and treaded onwards.
Somehow, she perceived an idiosyncratic pulling from an intersection not too far from where she stood. Ghost-like hands tugged and tugged onto her consciousness through the castle until she was finally led to a door that was emitting a melancholy vibe. Violet snapped out of her trance and swallowed nervously, as the inscriptions on the exterior resembled daunting and strange. They resembled ancient symbols, where one could find in a book of magic, or etched into a large stone. With a sense of foreboding, she heaved the door wide and stepping into the threshold.
"Why hast thou come?" growled a low voice in the midst of the darkness. Inside, Violet squinted her eyes to adjust to the dim-lit chamber, there she almost tripped over shackles and metal chains that linked to the wall. Upon chains upon chains, all of which were strewn over the walls, her eyes fell onto a stooping figure with their legs in a crisscross position in the center. Again, however, the voice thundered, startling poor Violet in her spot. "Tell me why thou hast come!"
"Um," Violet stammered, she watched the stooping figure stumbling to their feet, she got a better view of them. It was a dejected looking old man, with white hair and a long white beard that cascaded over his front. He wore a blue and yellow gown, that came down to his knees, and upon his weary visage he wore a slightly shattered spectacle. Violet knew those characteristics are too well, as she stared into the eyes of Merlin himself. The look on his face was at its boiling point, though Violet did not understand. Was her own presence upsetting him, where, exactly, does he stand in this turmoil?
Merlin scoffed at her dumfounded look. "It appears as though, thee perhaps, has taken a gander at my wretched state for a laugh? Go on, thou can laugh, make the heavens hear thy voice roar." Violet stood in complete shock, and couldn't utter a word. "Thou hungry? Here," Merlin scooped a pile of rubbish from the floor and thrust it out for her to see. "Here, have some rocks, THEY'RE ORGANIC!" He shrieked. She shook her head, therefore, resulting his lips to curl into a nasty sneer. "Why hast thou come, I ask, why, if not then leave me be!"
All of the sudden, that exact same force took her by the shoulders and shoved her into a wall. Violet ricocheted from the blow, and resisted the urge to scream. Her body slid towards the door and before she reacted, Violet was literally thrown out the door with a slam. Her body hit the cold marble ground hard, thus, her letting out a cry.
"Ow," she groaned until she noticed a pair of dark boots standing inches from her face. Her eyes traveled up to a tall man clad in shadows, he wielded a long and silvery flute, and in his eyes held deep disapproval. Violet gasped and jumped to her feet. The instant they made eye contact, a chill ran down her spine as she observed his somber blue eyes. The man had short dark brown hair with alabaster skin lining his long face. Atop of his head, he wore a dark bounty hat with a queer long red feather. After a moment of silence, he was the first to speak. Violet was expecting a tone of criticism like implicating a child for being mischievous. Instead, he set his lips onto his instrument, and a wistful of musical notes resonated the corridors.
"This room is forbidden; you're not allowed around this part of the castle." His flute sounded. She blinked at the phenomenal standing right before her eyes. Never has she ever encountered a person to replace their voice with an instrument, for her, the idea was intriguing. The sound of his foot tapping snapped Violet out of her daze, her first impression was already dwindling at that point.
"Are you here to pick me up?" She queried, immediately she rescinded her actions, as she heard her words left her mouth and hung into the air to. She did not mean to sound cocky, her train of thought still was reeling since her encounter with a delirious Merlin.
To her relief, the man did not care for her disrespect, but he did find her demeanor to be strange and mystifying. He studied her characteristics in silence. She had the most peculiar set of deep violet eyes, and unnatural pale skin. The two most interesting traits were her hair and the unique piece of jewelry that hung around her neck. Her hair, to be frank, was not part of this era since it was similar to snow and only half of her head was covered by it. Next his attention seemingly was unable to withdraw from the blue stone, in which held a significance power inside.
"My name is Willmar; I am known as the Pied Piper." He declared, however she detected the same kind of sadness from his eyes matching well with the sound of his name. Both cases having to share a heavy burden that he was not willing to reveal to her any time soon. It was her cue to introduce herself next, she frantically pulled herself together before relaxing her body.
"I'm Violet Reilly; no special title," she replied. He gave her a curt nod, and said nothing more from his flute. He swiftly turned on his heels, therefore, suggesting her to do the same and headed onwards to their destination. At first, there was only silence that separated them until he listened for her footsteps following in pursuit. The purple eyed girl swept across the floor, all the while glancing ahead at her new companion as he glided with elegance, though he mainly just wanted to get to bed for he came back from a mission, and he was yearning for a goodnight sleep. She understood his intentions clearly, though she sensed a few barriers that he carried with him, some were readable and understandable, while the rest were unstable and undeciphered. During her deep thoughts, Violet knew that his name weighed a lot of emotional pain, perhaps he could go by a nickname instead, even though her idea for a new one still had some anguish lingering in it
Having the atmosphere so heavy, Violet held her head high and fell in his pace, however due to her shortness, her strutting was especially awkward. Perhaps it was her imagination, but Violet swore she saw a smirk on his face yet he recovered it quickly with his usual blank expression. At last, they made it to the door with the blue frame and golden doorknob. To her surprise, they came here in such a haste that she probably assumed that he knew his way around the castle. The man with somber blue eyes held the door for her to pass through, and she stepped back into the suite.
As the twosome adapted to each other's company rather quickly, Violet paused near Willmar, as he assorted through a knapsack, which sat on his bed. She peered slightly over his shoulder to see a collection of flutes; most of them carved from wood, while others were made out of metal. Willmar acknowledged her and allowed her continuing to gaze upon them. This was her chance to mention her idea to him.
"Willmar," she mused softly, he turned his attention fully on her, casting a look of utter curiosity. "I like Piper better. It gives more of an eccentric appeal than your authentic name." she smiled, but recoiled at once when he pondered on the concept, meanwhile, he looked back at her. He shrugged despite the differences, and as if he was agreeing with her. Willmar placed his lips to his main flute.
"Call me whatever you want,"
Violet nodded and gave him a grin. "Alright, and you may call me Violet!" To her amazement, he flashed her a small smile before it disappeared as quickly as it came. Maybe this was the moment that their friendship was blossoming, and that gave Violet the reason to beam with excitement. She began parading in the direction of her bed, when a thought hit her. "Oh," she swerved on her heels and faced him. "Welcome back," with a smile, she left him as she snuggled deep into bed. Her exhausted eyelids were closing, as her head hit the satin pillows. Strange, though, the dark side does offer luxury but alas no cookies. She could deal with that later.
It has been a month since Violet has grown accustomed to her new world, therefore, she has been learning about life outside the castle walls, little by little, with the help from Piper whenever he headed out on a mission. She also heard about a resistance that the witches have been desperately trying to find, but failure was always in their future. When Piper told her about it, Violet demanded who resided in the resistance, but after explaining that the remaining ones that he mentioned were her friends, he got a clear grasp why she was in need of such information. However, Shrek's whereabouts was still unknown, and those who knew of him were on edge. Even Rumpelstiltskin nearly killed a few witches, when they kept asking if he was doing alright.
Over the course of her purpose in existing on the side of being a villain, Violet gained an ability that would help her and Piper in getting through the madness that Rumpelstiltskin has offered. She has the talent to heal her companion's injuries from the abuse that Rumpelstiltskin and his witches inflicted upon.
One day, as Violet attended a large gash in Piper's shoulder, a shudder washed through her body, upon noticing his friend pausing, he asked whether she was alright or not. She simply shook him off and merely said that she has gotten a bit chilly. But an occurring thought erupted her mind, therefore, she knew exactly what it meant. That chill was a sign that she has been waiting for so long; Shrek has finally made an appearance.