At the beginning, I am doing different view points in third person. Emma will be the main person we follow but there are others in this story as well. Again, I do not own anything that involves Once Upon a Time, but original characters that I may or may not create.

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"Now what is the end goal, Bae?" The dark one asked his six year old son. The boy looked up at his father with calm and somewhat fearful look. Baelfire, son of the dark one, was fearful of his father. He would do anything to please the man in hope that retaliation would not come to him. Not that his father ever hurt him in any way. His fear came from what he had seen him do to others that cross him. His father liked for him to watch these acts to make sure that his son knew the difference between right and wrong. Right meant that those that were in his domain do everything he said and did nothing to make him angry.

Baelfire remembered when his father was just a regular ordinary man. That was two years ago when he was six. His father was considered a coward. Oh how he wished his father was still that. At the time, he would be made fun of by his friends in the village but now he did not have any. No, his father burned the village and the people occupying it right after the transition between coward to dark one occurred. Now he had no friends.

"To marry the Princess of White and gain her lands so that you can rule them." He hope that was right.

"Tut tut, son. These lands would be yours since you are the one marrying the girl but I will," He grinned down at his son and put his arm on his shoulder steering him down the hall to the entrance of the Dark Forest castle. Baelfire flinched slightly at the contact. "Of course, I will be there to help you with such necessities as deciding laws, making wars, and taxing the filthy peasants. It is a pity that the Whites do not tax their subjects enough. Just think of all that gold Bae."

Since his father had decided that the Dark Forest was not enough to rule, Rumplestiltskin set his eyes on expanding his domain. At first, he thought of the Summerlands but did not want to pursue it at this time. Queen Cora, who wed the King to gain power, was a force to be reckon with. Like the dark one, she had magic herself and was even teaching her daughter the arts. Rumplestiltskin then turned his eyes on the White Kingdom since he decided to gain more power by ruling over the kingdom that feared magic so that he could later challenge the Summerlands.

Upon reaching the entrance, Rumplestiltskin raised his arm and flicked his wrist. The main doors creaked open with a long moan, as if they had not been open in a long while. Baelfire hung his head down as he walked past the armed guards on each side that led to the carriage. The dark one would usually just transport to the places he wanted to go. Unfortunately, his son was not gifted in magic and was not a fan of traveling in such fashion. It also was uncommon in the White Kingdom for magic to be used. It was not frowned upon but people in that kingdom were wary of it. All magic comes with a price and that is why the King and Queen of White would rarely seek to use it.

There was a carriage waiting from them at the bottom of the steps. Baelfire brought his head up and looked around. He frowned. It was always dark in the kingdom. He wandered if it was an enchantment or just a natural occurrence. What he would give for a day in the kingdom where the sun was shinning. Baelfire was somewhat excited to visit the Kingdom of White because it meant that he would be able to get out of such dreary confinements that he was forced to endure. His father was not one to let him venture out on his own. If he had magic of his own, the protectiveness of his father would not be so severe. He knew that deep down his father did love him and would do anything to make him happy. However, his twisted mind thought that Baelfire would be happy marrying a princess and ruling. All Baelfire really wanted to do was get away from magic. He would rather hop a portal to a new world without magic then endure a world where his father ruled by torturing those that were in his domain with magic.

He kept quite at his father's word. It was better to just pretend to agree with the magical imp then make him mad. Baelfire has seen multiple times what he has done to those that anger him him. Even though his father had never hurt him, it was only a matter of time. "Come along dearie." Rumplestiltskin huffed as him ushered his son into the horseless carriage. Once his son was inside, he ushered the magical carriage to drive. It would be a few hours before they arrived at the White Kingdom.

—

The light was starting to fade by the time they arrived at the towering walls surrounding the castle that lay center in the White Kingdom. It was just an hour ago that they finally left the darkness of the dark forest and made their way into the lands of the White Kingdom. Baelfire peered outside the small window of the carriage and took in the sight of the White castle. It was an intimidating structure. "Yes, yes it is rather grand isn't it?" The dark one remarked flippantly once he noticed his son's expression of awe. The dark one was a little irritated that he had to amuse his son by riding the whole way with him. "It will be yours one day. Better get use to it."

Baelfire looked to his father for a moment at the statement before looking out the window once more. It was at that moment that Baelfire agreed with his father. If he was not able to leave this world he would make due with what was given to him. The luscious view of the gardens and the glistening pond in the distant gave Baelfire a reason to woo the princess like his father wanted. If successful, he would never have to set foot in the dark and moody castle he was living in now. Any six year old boy would rather spend his time riding a horse during a beautiful spring day than read books inside because every day it would rain.

The sudden halt of the carriage jolted Baelfire out of his dream of what his life would be like if ruler of this kingdom. The door to the carriage opened by itself. As the two males stepped out of the carriage they were greeted by a middle aged couple that were dressed in the finest of clothes. It was Queen Snow and King David of White that greeted the two upon their arrival. Just behind them, Baelfire noticed two armed guards that he was sure followed the royals where ever they went.

Baelfire looked at the two. While the Queen had a diplomatic smile on her face, the King had a grim look. It seemed he was just a weary of the dark one as a lot of people were. He was caught off guard by the look confidence radiating off the king. He was not afraid of his father. Baelfire wondered if this King was a tad stupid or actually able to counter Rumplestiltskin in battle.

"Welcome Dark One!" The Queen exclaim as she clasped her hands together. Baelfire knew that the Queen was pretending to be happy that they were there. She probably would have liked it best if they didn't come at all. After giving her greetings to his father, she turned to him. "Greeting Prince of the Dark Forest. I hope the travel was not to horrible. A room has been set up for you next to your father. You must be exhausted." The White King just stood in the background letting his Queen do all the talking. Baelfire was sure that if he was to greet his father it would be with swords rather than words.

He nodded in agreement. Yes, he was tired. Riding all day in a carriage did make the bones ache a bit. "I thank you, your majesty for the invitation to stay in your kingdom for the summer." He said in a meek and exhausted voice. Thankfully, his father would not be staying. There were too many things to do in his domain. Baelfire was relieved at this because it meant that he would have more freedom. He bowed politely to the royals as his father had taught him.

"What a well mannered boy." The queen announced as she wrapped an arm around his shoulder. During this exchange of pleasantries, Rumplestiltskin was watching the interaction to see if his son made an error. So far he was doing a marvelous job. He had hired the finest teachers to teach his son all sorts of things and etiquette is a necessity.

"Well dearies. I am off! Remember what the goal of all this in my son." Rumplestiltskin bent over to whisper the last part in his ear. He giggled before a cloud of purple smoke surrounded his form. As the smoke cleared Rumplestiltskin was no where to be found.

"Thank god he is gone!" The king growled. Baelfire perked up at his exclamation.

"David!" Snow looked down at the boy after scolding her husband. "Never mind my husband. He has been sour ever since I told him to lay of the red meat and try to eat some fruit." The queen was trying to make light of the situation. It took Baelfire all his might not to roll his eyes at the queen. Of course, he knew that his father was not liked. Than again, it was nice to have someone not treat him the same as they would his father.

"Can I retired, please?" The prince asked politely.

"Of course you can." Snow steered him into the castle while David trailed behind them. "You will meet our dear princess Emma tomorrow at breakfast. She is already asleep or I would have had her meet upon your arrival."

The Queen then started yammering on about different things as she past them. It was a spontaneous tour of the castle. She did inform him that Ruby, her companion, would show him everything in detail tomorrow but at least he got a preview. As they walked, Baelfire's eyes darted at the different things that were pointed out to him. For just a moment, he turned back and noticed the King's bored look. It seemed to him that the king had heard this information one too many times. "Ah here we are!" The guard that walked in front of them opened the door to a room located in the east wing.

Baelfire's eyes widen at the sight of the room. It was extravagant and bright. His room back home was in darker colors which made the room feel depressing. This room, however, and vibrant shades of red and gold. Baelfire noticed that the room split off into two others. He learned through Queen Snow that one was the bathroom and the other was a sitting area. He also was told that this would be his permanent room whenever he came to visit. As he was scanning the room, he noticed the curtains ruffle. He did not mention his curiosity but waited until the two monarchs left the room before investigating. "If you need anything, a guard is stationed at the end of the hall. He will grab someone to assist you. A maid will come in the morning to wake you up to break fast with us. Have a good nice Prince Baelfire." With that, the two left him alone in the room. Well, he was technically not alone.

A minuted rolled by before Baelfire decided to figure out who was behind the curtain. A small giggle broke the silence that took place once the king and queen had left. "Alright show yourself. They are gone." Baelfire was relieved to hear the giggles of a girl instead of his father's giggles. A moment pasted before a blonde haired head poked out from behind the curtains. "Who are you?"

"They gone?" The little girl whispered.

"Yes."

At the confirmation, the blonde girl slowly inched out from behind the curtains. Her hands were clasped together behind her back. A little skip came as she made her way to where the prince was standing.

A smile plastered itself on the face of the little four year old blonde. "Emma." With a little difficulty, Emma managed to curtsy. She then tilted her head and looked up at the brunette haired boy. "You must be 'fire."

"Baelfire."

"Bale Fire?"

"Baelfire."

"Baelfire." Emma said once more finally getting it right. Baelfire nodded at the girl. She was proud of herself for getting it right. Another moment of silence occurred as Baelfire looked the girl over. He noticed that she was wearing a nightgown. Emma probably just came to visit from her rooms. He wondered how she got past the guards that were stations at the end of the hallway. "Well, I am off. I just wanted to meet up. Gaining a new friend to play with made me excited! See you tomorrow!"

Emma waved before skipping to the door. The door however was not the main one that led to the hallway. Baelfire understood now as he watched the girl part the tapestry aside that was hanging from a wall beside his bed. There behind it was a door with a metal handle protruding. Because of her feeble strength and size it took her a lot of effort to open the door. A few times her feet would slide out. Once she pulled it enough to let her self out, she grinned at the boy before trying to pull it shut.

During this scene, Baelfire raised his eyebrow. "That was weird." He muttered under his breath before shrugging. He then started getting ready for bed all the while wondering what tomorrow will bring. He definitely need to see if there were other hidden passage ways around the castle. They would probably prove useful in the future.