3. The First Day On The Job

Before I knew it, the door opened, and my dark, bleak cell was filled with light. "Come," said Rumplestilzkin. "It is morning, and it is time for you to get to work."

"Please, sir, can I change into something more… fitting?" I asked.

I felt his gaze drop to my low cut, elegant dress. I blushed, waiting for his response.

"I will find something more suitable for the… activities you shall be doing." He snapped his fingers, and a beautiful blue and white casual dress appeared. "Will this satisfy?"

"Th-thank you," I stammered in awe as I walked toward him to take my new dress. "Now, if you don't mind…"

"Don't mind what?" asked Rumple.

"I am a lady, and I will require privacy while I change sir," I said sternly.

"Forgive me, I am not so used to customs," bowed Rumple as he closed the door behind him.

I checked to make sure he could not see me undress, then I quickly began to change. I began to hum softly to myself as I stepped into the lovely dress. It fit like a glove, and by the time the door reopened, Rumple caught a glimpse of me twirling. "It's so beautiful, thank you," I said with a curtsy.

"You are welcome," said Rumplestilzkin haltingly. He stepped aside and made a motion for me to follow him. "These are the tasks you are to do for me. You will firstly cook my breakfast in the morning. I start with coffee, two eggs, half a grapefruit with a pinch of sugar and one English muffin. Next will be the dusting and polishing of all of the furniture and décor. This will lead up to my afternoon tea. The tea must be hot, but not scalding, and it cannot be lukewarm. I also ask you to, on the occasion, gather straw for me when I run low to spin into gold. And finally for dinner, I require baby's brains."

I knocked over the cup accidentally in utter shock and disbelief. "S-sir?" I said shakily.

"Just a joke," laughed Rumple lightly. "I can be quite humorous at times."

"Oh, right," I said, nodding furiously. I picked up the cup that I had knocked over, and realized that I had chipped it significantly, but not so much as to trash it. "Oh, my gosh. I am so sorry, I chipped your cup. It's just a slight thing, can hardly see it. I really am sorry! It must be so expensive because all of your dinning ware are so beautiful and intricate…"

"It's just a cup," said Rumplestilzkin as he watched me with interest.

"Oh, right," I said, placing the cup gently back down on the table. "Let me get your breakfast…"

I ran to the kitchen, and began to prepare his breakfast the way he had asked me to. When I returned, he watched as I gently set down the tray in front of him. "Well?" he asked me as I stood there, not knowing what to do.

"Yes sir?" I asked.

"Don't you require something to eat as well?"

"I didn't think it best to be so bold as to help myself sir," I replied. "I am a guest here, although a permanent guest, and I do not think it proper to help myself without first being invited to do so."

"Well… Go on then!" said Rumplestilzkin as he began to attack his eggs with hungry voraciousness.

I returned to the kitchen, and found a loaf of bread and some butter. I cut myself a slice, and spread a bit of butter on it. Just as I was about to sit at the kitchen table to eat, Rumple cleared his throat. "Come here!"

I had no choice but to obey. "Sit here at the table with me."

I sat down across from him, and nibbled at my bread. "Will you talk? The silence is excruciating!"

"Will everything out of your mouth become a command that I must obey?" I asked. "It is not becoming of you to make demands of me without any sense of manners. I understand that this is a part of my bargain, but I have a few demands as well."

"First, you are to treat me as an equal. I cannot sleep in a cell every night like an animal. I am a human being, and will not be treated as such. Secondly, I require that you mind your manners around me. If you ask me to do something, say please and thank you. Give me my privacy when I need to change or use the chamber pot. And lastly, I would like one day off a week from cleaning. I promise to do everything else you require, but I will not clean."

"Interesting that you try to make demands with me dearie," said Rumple as he chewed his grapefruit. "What makes you think you can call the shots around here?"

"I am not asking for much," I sighed as I wiped my mouth with a napkin. "Just some human comforts. I don't require much, just my few meager demands."

"I will think them over," said Rumplestilzkin. "But don't think I will grant every one of your requests. I have the power over you dearie, and don't you forget it. I own you."

I got up, and pushed my chair in shakily as I returned to the kitchen to wash my utensils. After cleaning up, I walked back to my cell, and closed the door. I rummaged through the dress I had worn when I had first came here, and found my Jane Eyre. I began to pick up where I left off, and as I turned the page, I noticed something strange. It looked like someone had scribbled and ripped out several pages of my book. I skimmed through the rest of the book, and found the other remaining pages torn and graffitied. I knew who was behind it. Gaston.

He must have figured out that I had used Rumplestilzkin in order to escape from the marriage. This was his attempt to get back at me for ruining his plans to "ravish me." I threw the book against the wall and sobbed. My favorite book, the only book I had brought with me by pure chance, was in tatters.

There was a soft knock, and Rumple spoke. "Are you alright in there?"

"I'm fine," I said, wiping my tears.

"Can I enter?" asked Rumple.

"Yes you may."

He entered. "Why are you crying?"

"Gaston has ruined the only book I had brought with me here…" I said quietly. "This was my last bit of comfort from home, and now it is taken away from me. This is my favorite book in the whole world, and now I will never get to read it again…"

"You… enjoy reading?" asked Rumplestilzkin.

"I absolutely love it," I said. "It's the only thing in the world that makes me happy. It lets me escape, it fills me with emotion…"

"Tell you what," said Rumple. "I will agree to your demands if you read to me once a day."

I stood up in shock. "But sir, this is my only book, and it is ruined."

"I have my own private library," said Rumplestilzkin. "In which I give you full access to. After you finish cleaning everything, please put on a kettle of tea and pick a book from the library to read to me while I have my lunch."

"Yes sir, right away sir," I said as I walked out of my cell and towards the kitchen to find some cleaning supplies.