"Princess Abigail of the Eastern Kingdom, Prince James of the Northern kingdom," the herald announces as they walk into the ballroom. Abigail in a bright blue dress accompanied by James dressed up in an embroidered silver gray jacket walk in the ballroom.
Abigail, has been here before so she is showing James around the ballroom, the beautiful banners with the seashells and the seahorses, because prince Eric's is a maritime kingdom, his castle built right next to the ocean. James being a brand new royal is easily impressed by the beautiful castle and the wonderful ocean view. He tries to hide it of course, tries to pretend that he has been in and out of castles his whole life and he is succeeding for the most part. Abigail, his fiance, has never questioned his behavior, never suggested that he is acting strangely. Then again maybe Abigail doesn't care. That is a very likely possibility. A possibility he doesn't like to think about.
They have been engaged for a little over a month now, which means he has gotten to know her pretty well. For example he knows better than to ask her to dance with him. She will definitely come up with an excuse, her shoes are too tight or she is coming down with a cold. The truth is that Abigail either has never liked dancing or dancing stirs up too many painful memories. Either way, James just needs to be content standing on the sidelines.
"Princess Ella and prince Thomas of the Western kingdom," the herald announces and James smiles. He likes Thomas and Ella. Thomas can be a little too proper, very much like a royal, but Ella didn't grow up in a palace and she is a breath of fresh air. Thomas is clearly head over heels in love with her and they are fun to be around.
"James!" a man walks up to him and clasps his arm. "How are you! So glad you made it..."
James smiles and tries hard to remember if he has ever met this man before. He clearly hasn't but his twin brother must have known him well. James sighs and tries hard to keep up with the conversation, trying not to let on that he has only been pretending to be a royal for a month and he has never talked to this man before in his life.
"Snow White is coming tonight, so you can understand my relief," the man smiles.
Snow White. Well, that's easy. When King George drilled him and taught him all about the Enchanted Forest royals he certainly mentioned Snow White. She is the fairest of them all, step daughter to Queen Regina, an upcoming promising young leader, bla bla bla. King George always seemed to be impressed with Regina so he always went on and on with information about the Northern kingdom. But, James has yet to meet either Snow White or Regina.
"Right," James replies to the man talking to him, still trying to understand what it is exactly that they are talking about. He looks around, trying to locate Abigail, perhaps she would be able to shed some light on the matter, but she is at the corner, engaged in an animated conversation with some other royal he's never met before. He is on his own then. "Alright, you are going to have to refresh my memory," he says.
"Snow White!" the man replies incredulously. "Snow was friends with the mystery girl I have been looking for the past months...really James, you must remember me talking about her non stop at the Solstice Ball..."
"Most beautiful girl in the world, yeah, yeah, I remember..." James takes a stab in the dark.
"Exactly!" the man smiles. "So now...-"
"Queen Regina of the Northern Kingdom and Princess Snow White," the herald announces.
Both men turn to look at the grand staircase. Queen Regina is magnificent, she is wearing a purple gown and there is an audible gasp as she walks in the room and then Snow White walks in behind her and the whole world slows down.
Snow is wearing a shimmering white dress, her hair is pulled up, a couple of stray curls framing her face, her eyes are green, she smiling and and she is beautiful. There is a quiet sadness about her. He doesn't know how he knows that, he just does, and then her eyes meet his, and his heart leaps in his chest.
Here she is, he thinks. She is here. And there is no logical explanation for this but he knows, this is the one he's been waiting for. He looks at her and he already knows how she would taste if he were to kiss the crook of her neck and how she would both sigh and smile at the same time, how she would close her eyes and grasp his shirt tighter. He gets flushed just thinking about it.
She offers a small smile and he moves forward. He needs to talk to her he needs to say...what is it that he needs to say? If he remembers how to form words he will be really fortunate, he thinks, and then Abigail tugs on his arm.
"James," she says, "your father and I were just having a most interesting conversation..."
Abigail. He is not free. He is engaged to be married. To Abigail, king Midas' daughter. How could he forget that? She is here and he is engaged, he is not free.
"James are you even listening to me?" Abigail asks impatiently.
"Of course I am, dear," he says absentmindedly, trying not to follow Snow White with his eyes.
"Good," Abigail replies "because I've been meaning to tell you..."
And he will never know what Abigail meant to say because he can't he can't focus on whatever it is she is talking about right now.
"Would you like a drink my dear?" he interrupts her.
"Yes, please," Abigail frowns and then she shrugs and turns and strikes a conversation with the a princess he doesn't know. James looks around. There are so many people between him and the nearest servant holding a tray of drinks. He needs to navigate around a sea of royals and then her voice stops him in his tracks.
"Care do dance?" she asks.
Snow. Snow White. He's never heard her voice before and yet he already knows it's her. He turns around to face her, his heart pounding wildly. She doesn't wait for a response. She just reaches for his hand and pulls him on the dance floor. They face each other and he places his palm on her waist, her hand is already in his. He tries not to imagine himself opening the buttons on her dress, one by one, to reveal the soft skin of her back. He can see her turning around to face him, her dress on the ground, the flush on her cheeks, the invitation in her eyes.
"Prince James," she smiles as they move together. " I can't believe we've never met before..."
Prince James. She knows who he is and she sought him out.
"Incredible isn't it?" he replies and then he lifts up his hand and he twirls her around. When she turns to face him her eyes are shining.
"You are really good at this," she says.
"At what?" he challenges and he dips her before she gets a chance to respond.
Her hands tightens around him and she closes her eyes. He already knows what it would feel if he were moving inside her, her hands tightening around his shoulders, her tongue on his neck. How, how does he know that?
He is barely breathing as they move together, it's been a while since he's felt this alive and he knows, he knows this, this is a life changing moment and his life will never be the same.
"More, " Snow White whispers "do it again..." and he looks at her surprised. As well as he feels that he knows her, he wouldn't be surprised if she were reading his mind. He lifts up his arm and he twirls her around twice then he dips her and she is suspended in the air. His heart is beating so fast. Her eyes are closed and she is breathing fast, she is not holding on to him tightly this time, she is trusting him to hold her, no doubt on her mind he will lift her back up. More, he thinks, more, more, he needs more...
"Snow!" he can't hold back the whisper that escapes his lips. She doesn't reply, but there is a soft smile playing at her lips. When he pulls her back up the music is over.
She is standing in front of him panting, her eyes searching his.
"James," she says softly. "A pity we didn't meet before..." she says looking pointedly at Abigail who is approaching. Then she turns around and disappears in the crowd.
James is just left standing there, trying to pull himself together, the ghost of her touch lingering in his hand.
"Beautiful isn't she?" he hears Abigail next to him.
He does his best to remain calm.
"Very," he replies matter-of-factly as if this encounter didn't shake him to his very core.
Abigail nods. "Is this your first time meeting her?" she asks.
He really doesn't want to talk about this, not with Abigail of all people. There is one sure way to get her to drop this.
"Care to dance Abigail?" he asks.
"Not at the moment, no," she replies and she walks away. He looks around, trying to locate Snow. More, more, he needs more. He finds Regina instead. She is holding a glass of a blood red drink in her hand, talking to Midas and George and several other monarchs James doesn't recognize.
"My Snow is the most beautiful woman in all the lands," Regina states, "dare I say the most beautiful woman since the beginning of time, her beauty able to conquer even the fiercest of beasts, and I challenge anyone whether mortal or immortal to contradict me..."
The royals around her gasp, a couple of them take a step back.
"Regina don't!" King George tries to stop her.
"Surely you don't mean that, Regina, you know you can't talk like that, not in this kingdom..." Midas tries to intervene.
"What?" Regina asks. "Why not? Of course I mean it, you know it's true..."
A cloud of black smoke appears out of nowhere. A couple of royals scream. And then the smoke becomes more solid, and it's none other than Rumpelstiltskin looking at Regina incredulously.
"Really? You challenge anyone to contradict you?" he says waving his fingers around. "Anyone?"
"It's the Dark one!" a woman screams from the corner then she passes out.
"What do you want Rumple?" Regina shrugs.
"You've done your research dearie, I'll give you that," the dark one tells Regina then he turns to the crowd. "Yes, it's me, when you people enact ancient curses I'm always there, ready with helpful instructions, ready to make a deal, ready to help. I am nothing if I am not helpful!" Rumpelstiltskin smiles.
"What do you want?" Prince Eric steps forward his hand on his sword.
"Please...I have no quarrel with you. Put that away, you are going to hurt yourself," the Dark one smiles and then he waves his hand. Prince Eric finds himself slammed against the wall, his own sword held against his neck by invisible hands. The royals scream again.
"Like I was about to say, before I got so rudely interrupted, Regina, the Queen has evoked an ancient curse. She claimed her stepdaughter is the fairest of them all since the beginning on time. If that wasn't enough she actually said Snow's beauty would conquer any beast. She dared anyone, mortal or immortal to contradict her, so on behalf of all the Dark ones I am here to exact her punishment."
"You cannot punish a Queen," King George frowns.
"No, not the Queen," Rumpelstiltskin laughs and his laugh sends chill down James's spine. "Her stepdaughter!"
James takes a step forward horrified. "No!" is all he says.
Several royals try to protest but the Dark One silences them with a warning look. Everyone turns to look at Snow who is just standing there, her hands at her side.
She doesn't look surprised, James notes, she just looks dejected. Like a moment she's long been expecting is finally here.
"What is my punishment?" she asks, an imperceptible quiver in her voice.
"No!" James says again.
Rumpelstiltskin appears standing right next to Snow. "Your stepmother has behaved very badly, she just challenged Triton, the immortal guardian, grand emperor of the sea. There are two solutions to this. You can all take battle stations and fight Triton's immortal armies, fashioned by shipwreck victims and sirens and his terrifying army formed of mist and then you'll die, or you can offer the object of the offense, as a tribute to the ancient sea monster."
Everyone is staring at Rumpelstiltskin horrified.
"No!" James says again, incapable of thinking straight, unable to come up with an argument that might save her.
"And how do we do that?" Snow speaks up. She looks angry and resigned at the same time. She can't seriously be considering this.
"It's rather simple really," the Dark One explains. "We tie you up to the rocks in the eastern port and let the sea monster claim you..."
Snow is breathing fast, looking at everyone around her. They are all horrified but no one stepping up, no one is outraged. They are all considering it.
James is shaking his head. "No!" he says loudly.
"Is that all?" Snow turns back to the dark on.
"Well technically you are supposed to be naked but that seems excessive, we'll forgo that part..." Rumpelstiltskin replies.
Snow glares at him. "How big of you..." she replies. "Can't I have a sword? Can't I fight this monster?" she asks raising her head defiantly, even as her eyes well up with tears. "I'm expected to go to my death without any resistance?"
Rumpelstiltskin shakes his head. "No sword. No resistance. That's the point of being a tribute, dearie..."
Snow looks down.
"What's your decision?" the Dark one asks Snow along with every royal around the room. James is shocked to see brave kings and Queens avert their eyes to avoid his gaze. How terrifying is that Underwater army that has the men and women in this room so scared, ready to sacrifice an innocent victim? Snow looks around the room as well, her eyes both bold and pleading, she glances at James whose hand is already gripping his sword. When did he draw it, he doesn't even remember doing it. He shakes his head and her expression softens briefly. And then she takes a deep breath. "Alright," she says.
Several royals cry out, a couple of ladies burst into tears.
"No!" James yells. Everyone turns to look at him but he doesn't care, he is looking at Snow White, "you can't agree to that..." But it seems that her decision is binding.
"Excellent," Rumpelstiltskin claps his hands gleefully. Dark smoke like tentacles rise from the ground wrap around her wrists bringing her hands together binding them in front of her. Snow is looking at her hands, trying not to panic, trying to pull them apart and then just like that she is gone.
"Where is she? Why did you do to her?" James yells, his sword drown.
"What exactly do you think you are doing boy? This isn't your fight!" King George hisses at him.
Abigail is gaping at him, like she is seeing at him for the first time and he doesn't care. But now he isn't the only one yelling. The royals seem to be divided. Most of them want to appear outraged after the fact, they are relived to see that Snow is actually doing this, but now they want to go on record and say they disapprove of the princess sacrificing herself. Ella is sobbing in Thomas' arms, Regina is wringing her hands in despair.
"How could this happen?" she says to anyone who will listen. "I was just proud of my stepdaughter, I didn't know there was an ancient curse..."
And somehow through the chaos that ensues Rumpelstiltskin slips away, leaving the royals arguing among themselves.
Prince Eric, Midas and King George have formed a small group in the middle of the ballroom and they are discussing strategies.
"King Triton has a vast army, I'm counting at least thirty thousand, between the dead sailors, pirates beholden to him, sirens, mermaids and the army he can create from the mist. Even if we were battle ready, which we are not, we still don't stand a chance..." Midas is saying.
"We do not send one of our own to her death because we are afraid of Triton's forces..." A royal James doesn't recognize interjects.
"It's not just that we are afraid of Triton's forces," King George crosses his arms. "We have a treaty with king Triton. if we break it...there is no telling what will happen, if we went to war with him, the Enchanted Forest could end up being nothing but a lagoon, he doesn't have to fight us. He has soldiers made of mist, he could drown us all!"
"But would he do that?" Eric asks.
"Why wouldn't he? If you could destroy your enemy's land rather than engage him in battle wouldn't you?"
Regina just stands there wiping her eyes. She seems distraught unable to contribute to the discussion.
This is pointless, James realizes. They will argue and examine every possibility until they feel better for hesitating and not standing up for Snow White. They will talk and talk and talk, but no one will pick up arms and rise to defend her. He can't let this happen. He can't let her face a sea monster alone. A month ago James faced a dragon and prevailed. And before that...it doesn't matter. His life story doesn't matter, his previous victories don't matter, what matters is now, this very moment. He is not going to let Snow White die alone. He turns around to see Abigail standing there, her eyes open wide. She follows him without a word. It's like she already knows that it is time to talk.
"What is it James?" she asks once they are out of the ballroom.
"Abigail, I..." James struggles for the right words. "I can't marry you," he blurts out, once he gives up on the words sounding just right.
"Can't or won't?" Abigail asks, but she doesn't seem upset.
"Both," James replies.
A bitter smile appears on her lips. "Very well then James. I release you from our engagement..." she replies. "You plan on going after her, don't you?" she asks.
"I do," he nods.
"You do realize you will end up getting yourself killed?"
"Do you think it's right that she is out there alone and none of us moved their finger to stop her?" he asks.
The anger in his voice surprises her.
"Of course not, James, but what can we do?" she shrugs.
"We can fight!" he replies. "We can defend her...She doesn't have to die alone..."
"You are prepared to lay down your life...How charming!"
James looks away.
"Good luck then James," Abigail says softly and she steps on her toes and kisses him on the cheek. "And goodbye..." Abigail turns around and walks out of the ballroom. James looks around. A lot of the royals are heading out, going to their carriages. They'd rather return home than deal with the aftermath of Snow's sacrifice. James heads to the armory. He picks up three swords and a few knives. He tries to think, what else does he need?
Snow has been trying hard to untie her hands. Once Rumpelstiltskin used his magic to move her to the rocks of the eastern port she found her hands tied to a long chain attached to the rocks. As if escaping was even an option. She is still wearing a gown and dancing shoes and she is on a rock ledge. The eastern port is not really a port though it might have been used as a port a long time ago. It is is just black rocks as far as they eye can see, in strange formations and then the ocean crushing on them relentlessly, splashing her feet. She can taste the salt in the air. It is getting darker now. She wonders if the sea monster will come claim her in the middle of the night or if she will have to wait here until morning. She sits down on her ledge, wondering what a strange sight she must be, a princess fresh from a ball, in her beautiful gown tied up and abandoned in this dark desolate place, her thoughts as dark as the rocks surrounding her.
No one made a move to stop her, none of the royals she's known since childhood, none of the kings or the generals attending the ball. Ella cried. That's something. And James, James, a prince she's often heard of, but only just met, James tried to take her side, James tried to stop her.
This didn't happen by accident, she knows that now. Regina must have done some research she must have heard of the curse and decided that was the perfect way to end her without even getting her hands dirty. Snow has known for a while that for all her loving words, Regina has wanted her out of the picture, it's just that when she announced that they were going to a ball together, when she sent tailors and seamstresses to Snow to design her gown, Snow thought that perhaps she was wrong, perhaps she was overly suspicious, perhaps her stepmother wanted her around after all. She could have gone to Eric's ball on her own, she did't need to bring Snow along. And it all makes sense now. Regina must have found out about this ancient curse and decided to use it against Snow.
The wind is picking up and the waves are splashing higher, soaking her feet. If she wasn't wearing dancing shoes she would try to climb a little higher, but the rocks look slippery, she doesn't want to fall to her death. Even worse she doesn't want to fall and dangle from the chain binding her arms.
Snow pulls her feet back, trying to stay dry. She wishes the royals had been merciful and had just executed her. This waiting for a monster to come claim her is excruciating. She bites her lip, trying to keep her eyes from welling up. She looks up, trying to see the stars but clouds are covering the night sky.
And then she hears it, the sound of oars splashing in the water. There is a small boat approaching her. This is strange, she thinks, who would be arriving here at this hour, ignoring the waves that are crushing on the shore? It is very unlikely that the sea monster will arrive by boat, but she stands up just in case.
The boat arrives, but doesn't really try to dock. Snow can barely make out the one passenger of the boat who jumps in the water and slowly makes his way up, climbing on the slippery rocks. He is carrying something she realizes but she can't tell what it is. It's too dark to make out his face but he seems to be tall. She remains standing just in case, in fact she picks up a large rock and clasps it tightly. She will fight, she will not just stand there and wait for someone to hurt her.
Her heart is beating faster. Maybe she shouldn't wait, maybe she should pelt whoever is climbing up there with rocks, maybe... or maybe she should wait to see who it is. She is breathing faster clasping her rock tighter.
"Who is there?" she asks, trying to keep her voice steady. But the waves splashing drown out her voice. "Who is there?" she asks again this time louder. Still her voice gets drowned in the wind.
Two hands appear, they feel their way around, looking for something to grip on, knuckles whiten with effort as the man pulls himself up. Snow is ready to attack, her arms are tied, she has one rock in her hands, she has to make this count. The man pulls himself up slowly and Snow moves forward and then she freezes in place.
"James?" she gasps.
He stands up slowly, panting. "Snow...were you going to attack me?"
"James what are you doing here?" she takes a great effort to keep her voice steady, when she feels like crying with relief. James is here. She doesn't know how or why he is here. But what she does know is that if he turns around to leave she is going to fall on her knees and beg him to stay.
Stay. Stay with me.
"You asked for a sword," he replies, the he unsheathes his and hands it to her.
Snow drops the rock she was holding and clasps his sword with both hands. It is really hard holding on to a heavy sword when both her hands are tied together, but now she has an actual weapon in her hands. She is not letting go.
She raises her eyes to face him. She feels so incredibly grateful. She bites the inside of her lips, to keep her tears from spilling. She cant cry, not now. She wants to thank him, but she doesn't trust her voice at the moment.
James looks at the length of Snow's chain. It's long enough that they could climb higher if they had to. Then she catches Snow's eyes, so much emotion there, he has to take a step back to keep himself from pulling her in his arms.
"Have you tried breaking this already?" he asks, pointing at the restraints in her hands.
She nods.
"Do you mind if I try too?" he asks.
She shakes her head.
He pulls out a knife and takes her hands in his. Her wrist are wrapped by a magical dark looking flame like substance. His knife runs easily through it, but it reattaches on it's own, as if the knife didn't go through it at all.
"What is this," he frowns not really expecting an answer. Her wrists feel so cold. "Does it hurt?" he asks.
She shakes her head again. She isn't talking much, but he can't blame her. If all the royals in the Enchanted Forest had turned their back on him and let the dark One tie him up and carry him to some desolate cliff, he wouldn't be in much of a talking mood either.
"Alright," he shrugs, "we are going to have to figure this out later."
Later, her heart beats faster. Later. Does that mean he is sticking around? She closes her eyes and tries to stay calm. Stay. Stay with me. Please, please, stay with me.
"Can you climb up a little higher? If we could get a little higher so the water doesn't reach us..."
He glances at her shoes. She is still in her dance slippers, she can't possibly climb with those on, he thinks. "Here," he says, and he pulls out a pair of leather boots and a pair of socks from the bag he is carrying and a warm cape. "Put these on and we can climb higher.
Snow gapes at him in amazement. "How did you even...-" she doesn't finish her question.
"I asked Ella to hunt down some clothes for you," he shrugs.
"Ella!" she mumbles. "I love Ella..."
"Let me hold on to this for you," he asks pointing at the sword she is still clasping tightly.
Snow sits down on the ground. She takes off her slippers. Its not easy to pull the boots on with her hands tied up but she manages. The cape is a different matter though. James ends up wrapping it around her shoulders, and clasping it.
"Ready," she says standing up.
"Alright," he replies examining the rock above them. "If we can climb up there," he points to a ledge a few feet higher, "hopefully we can stay dry."
Again he said 'we', she thinks. We. Maybe he'll stay. Maybe... Please. Stay. Stay with me...
It's easier said and done. Her hands are tied, and her chain is dangling, getting in the way, so she climbs up very slowly. He stays next to her, helping her every step of the way. And then they are up, Snow feels so relieved. She sits down, leans against the rock and lets out a sigh of relief.
James is going through his bag again. He produces a knife, a loaf of bread, some meat, a couple of pears and a flask full of water.
Snow is looking impressed. "Thank you," she says and her eyes well up.
"No," he shakes his head, "we should be thanking you. You are saving all of us..."
Snow looks away and doesn't reply. Did they send him here to offer her food and then walk away? He seems in no rush to leave. He sits next to her and he munches on the bread.
"You are not eating," he frowns, so she does, she takes a couple of bites. Her stomach is in knots, she is not hungry at all.
He keeps stealing glances at her. She is so quiet, so sad, he can't bear it. He needs the right words, the right thing to say, he needs to make her feel better. But there are no right words to say to a woman tied up to the rocks, waiting for a sea monster to devour her, are there?
So he focuses his attention on her chains instead.
"So clearly you are bound by magic," he tries, "now do you know anything about magic at all? Any ideas how to break this?"
"I don't," she replies.
"Do you know of any fairies we can ask for help?"
She shakes her head. "I haven't seen my fairy godmother since I was a child..."
"We are on our own, then," he shrugs. "Don't worry, we'll think of something..."
Snow turns to look at him. Is he really going to stay?
"What is it?" he asks and she turns to look at the sea in a hurry. "Are you tired?" he asks. "I don't think anything is coming tonight, you can sleep. We can take turns, I'll take first watch..."
Snow faces him again.
He waits for her to speak, but she hesitates.
"What is it?" he asks quietly, because he can see that she is trying to say something, not daring to say the words.
"Does that mean you are staying?" she whispers. Her eyes are welling up, she can't help herself. Please. Please stay with me...
"Of course, I'm staying," he replies. "You are not doing this alone..." and it's the conviction on his voice that shatters her.
Snow is crying now, her bound hands covering her mouth, as she sobs.
"Snow," he says and he is tearing up. He places his hand on her back and she leans in and he is holding her now. Snow is broken and crying in his arms. And as terrifying and horrible as tomorrow is going to be, as uncertain their fate, James knows that for the first time in his life, he is exactly where he is meant to be. He closes his eyes and caresses her hair. Snow is here. She is here. He is going to die before he lets anyone hurt her.
"I'm sorry," she says wiping her eyes, pulling back. "I...I just didn't think anyone was coming..."
"There was a big meeting, they were trying to determine the best course of action..." he shrugs. "I didn't wait to find out what they decided..."
So he is here on his own, Snow thinks and her heart beats faster. What happens if you find the one you were meant to be with a few hours before the sea monster steps out of the water to devour you? What happens if you find the one and he is engaged to Abigail, Midas' daughter? This cannot happen, a small voice inside her head is trying to get her attention. Even if he is here out of some sense of honor or obligation, even if he is here to save her, that doesn't change the fact that he is engaged. And one does not break an engagement with Midas' daughter, that's just not how things work.
"Do you want to try to get some rest?" he asks quietly.
Snow nods. She wraps herself in her cape tighter, and she lays down. The clouds are parting and the stars are peeking out. "Look!" she says, smiling for the first time.
James lays down next to her. "What am I looking at?"
"The stars are out," she says softly. "I was hoping they'd come out, I wanted to get a chance to see them...-" for the last time is what she means but she doesn't say it.
He reaches for her hands. "We are going to kill your monster," he replies. "I don't care what kind of monster it is, we'll kill it..."
She turns to look at him. "Have you killed a lot of monsters?" she asks.
"Not that many. But I'm killing this one," he replies.
Snow smiles. "How is it that we haven't met before?" she asks. "We are from neighboring kingdoms. You'd think we would have run into each other before..."
He doesn't reply. The truth is he's only been a royal for a month. If she'd ever met James in the past, it would have been his twin bother and not him.
He lays his head on his arm and stares at the stars instead of saying anything. He is feeling warm and content and drowsy all of a sudden. This is ridiculous he thinks. This might very well be his last night on earth, he has to slay an unknown monster tomorrow, he is laying next to a beautiful woman, he should be alert, filled with adrenaline, thinking up a complicated plan that will set Snow free. But he hasn't felt this relaxed, since the Dark One showed up at his farm and made him a prince. Something about Snow, he feels so peaceful in her presence, like he already knows her and he can trust her with his life...which makes no sense, he just met the girl...
Snow turns to say something. Jame is asleep, breathing evenly, a soft smile playing on his lips. She sits up. She is going to have to keep watch. The sea is calmer now, the water is hitting the rocks quietly, and if tomorrow wasn't the day she'd have to face the monster, she'd think tonight a beautiful night. She turns around and looks at James instead. He is handsome and brave and strong. He doesn't even know her yet he showed up to defend her. Snow has never been the one to wish she was somebody else, but right at this moment she wishes she was princess Abigail, so she could claim the man laying next to her as her own. You can't go falling love with him, he'll go back to his fiance and break your heart, she tries to tell herself but her heart is telling her that it's too late.
He stirs in his sleep and then he opens his eyes.
"I'm awake..." he mumbles rubbing his eyes. "Sorry, I didn't mean to fall asleep. If anyone should be resting it should be you..."
"I didn't just hike a terrifying rocky cliff to get here," she replies. "Thank you, by the way..."
James turns to her and smiles. "You are very welcome..." he replies sitting up. He doesn't want to fall asleep again.
"So," she starts hesitantly "if this was your last day before you died, how would you want to spend it?"
"This is my last day whether I survive the monster or not" he mumbles.
"What? How do you mean..." she looks really concerned.
"I went against the king's plans today," he shrugs. "In the grand scheme of things, what with mist soldiers potentially coming out of the water to drown us all, it's probably unimportant, but if we make it, if we kill the monster and we all survive...yeah, after it's over I'm probably going to have to run...he's already told me that if I cross him he will kill me..."
No, no, no. Stay. Stay with me... her heart is screaming out so loud, it's drowning out all thoughts, but she is making an effort to remain calm.
"King George would kill you? Would he kill his own son?" she asks.
"I'm not really his son," James replies simply. "And yes, he said if I crossed him he would kill me, and that's what I did. I went against his perfect plans..."
Snow's eyes open wide. "You are not...then who are you? Is it a royal complicated situation sort of thing?" she asks.
"You could say that," he replies.
Snow shakes her head. "I shouldn't be too surprised that he said he'd kill you. Not when my stepmother was willing to destroy the whole forest to get to me...I can't believe she hates me that much..."
"You think the Queen knew what she was doing? She didn't misspeak..."
Snow shakes her head. "Regina doesn't misspeak. Everything she says is carefully calculated..."
James is looking shocked. "We have a lot in common then," he replies.
"Homicidal parents that hate us?" Snow laughs bitterly.
"Yes..."
"If you run..." Snow struggles for the right words. Would Abigail come with you, she wants to ask but she can't. She looks at the water instead.
"If we make it, what will you do next?" he asks. "You can't go back home if Regina is after you..."
"I can't," she replies. "I didn't even think of that. I was pretty sure I wasn't going to survive tomorrow..."
"We will survive it. So now you have to make plans..." he smiles.
She can see what he is doing. He is trying to stir her away from her gloomy thoughts, trying to give her something to look forward to..."If we survive, I suppose I'm going to run too..."
"Where will you go?"
"I...I don't know. I'll hide in the forest. Why, where will you go?"
"Hey, the forest was going to be my choice..." he teases.
"I said it first. Though it's probably big enough for both of us..." she smircks.
"We can be neighbors. I could come over if I'm cooking and run out of eggs," he offers.
Snow laughs. "I better get some chickens then..."
"You better..."
"James..." Stay. Stay with me.
"Yes..."
Snow stays silent for a while.
"What is it?"
"Why did you come after me?"
"I...because I couldn't live in a world where you got punished for something you didn't do, while all the royals stood by and did nothing..." he replies.
Snow nods. Stay. Stay with me. His hand is right there, She wants to grab it and hold on. Stay with me. He notes the slight movement of her hands.
"Are your hands sore ?" he asks.
"A little," she replies, her voice barely audible, because he picks up her hands and is now rubbing her wrists, trying to get the blood to circulate, but she feels her whole body shiver at his touch.
The words are right there at the tip of her lips. Stay, Stay with me. But she doesn't say them out loud.
"If this is a magical chain, and if we have to combat magic by magic..." he pulls out one of his swords he steps away from her and smashes it a couple of times on the chain connecting it to the rocks. The sword easily cuts through the chain that magically reconnects the moment the sword passes through.
"That didn't wok," he mumbles and sits next to her. "What should we try next? I want to say fire, but after hearing about all the creatures lurking underwater, planning our demise, I really don't want to alert them of our location..."
"No fire," she agrees. "Water?"
He opens the flask and drips some water on her chain. Again the strange smoke like material separates for a moment and then melts back together, stronger than before.
"Blood?" he asks. He cuts his palm, before she gets a chance to protest. The chain gets cut long enough to give them hope, and then it forges on stronger.
He grabs a rock and smashes it a couple of times.
The same thing happens.
"James!" Snow says but he doesn't hear her. "James stop!"
"What's wrong?" he asks, the rock still in his hand.
"Every time we try something I think the chain gets stronger."
James drops the rock and picks up the chain in his hand. It feels a little heavier now, the smoke like substance seems more solid.
He looks at her horrified. "I can't believe this. What sort of magic is this?" He steps closer to her. "Snow! I'm so sorry, I tried to break it and I only made it worse..."
Snow shakes her head. "You didn't," she replies actively stopping herself from reaching for him. "You couldn't make it worse..."
"I already did," he says quietly, placing the chain on the ground.
Snow is still shaking her head.
"It's alright," she says and she sits down her back on the rocks. "You are here. That's already a lot. You can't make things worse..."
He sits back next to her but he looks so worried. Even if they kill the monster, how are they going to set her free if she is tied by unbreakable chains?
"We'll figure this out," he says, trying to reassure her. "I'll go to the Dark One if I have to, we'll sort this out..."
"You'd do that?" she asks.
"I'd do anything," he replies.
Snow closes her eyes. She is tearing up.
"What's wrong?" he whispers.
"No one has been willing to stand with me before..." she tries to explain.
And he understands. Even though she is not saying much he understands what it's like to be surrounded by royals, loyal to others not you, plotting, planning things, royals willing to use you to achieve their goals.
"Snow," he says his hand cupping her cheeks. She is leaning like she might kiss him. He feels lightheaded but fully aware, he already knows what her lips will taste like, how her tears will feel on his skin.
And then a blood curdling cry fills the air. It is a horrible sound, like a promise of pain and agony and endless torture. James rises and pulls Snow on her feet. He hands her his sword and then he unsheathes the second sword he had strapped on his back and he waits.
There is something raising from the water, and it is terrifying to look at. It's almost a dragon but it is shaped all wrong, it has a fishtail instead of wings, and long terrifying arms that are easily scaling the dark rocks, heading straight for them. And even though it just came from the water, his body is surrounded by an otherworldly flame. The water around him is steaming.
"Stay behind me," he tries to warn her but she is not listening. She means to fight. She is holding on to his sword tightly, breathing fast ready for action.
He holds his breath, doing some fast thinking. If he was on his own, he would be hiding on the right and jumping at the monster, trying to use the element of surprise, but he can't let Snow stand there on her own, can he?
"Won't you attack from the side," she whispers. "It's not like I can go anywhere, so I might as well be the bait..."
He turns around to look at her. She looks alert and determined, like a seasoned warrior that has fought monsters before.
"Are you sure?" he asks.
"No," she smiles, "so you better do it before I change my mind..."
James rushes to the side and waits.
The monster is inhaling deeply trying to sniff out its prey. James is watching closely. He waves his arm but the monster doesn't catch his movement. What if the monster is blind? James grabs a rock and trows it over the ledge. The sea dragon, because that is probably what the monster should be called sniffs around and dives down.
"He is blind," James mouths to Snow. Snow nods. James takes another rock and throws it down. The monster follows this sound. It is sniffing, looking for Snow right on the water. But if they are going to kill it they have to draw it up. James signals Snow to be ready and he throws a rock at the ledge where Snow originally was. The water dragon climbs up fast, his body glowing, his teeth snarling. James throws another rock. The dragon knows they are near, he can smell them, but he is not sure where they are, the breeze is working against him. And the he blows fire right on the rocks and the strangest thing happens. Snow's chain breaks in half. Snow's chain is no longer attached to the rocks. Snow gasps. Her chain dangles, rattling as it hits the rocks hanging from her hands and the dragon follows the sound. The dragon is coming. James lets out a battle cry and jumps. He on the dragon's neck, holding on and stabbing it repeatedly with his sword. The dragon is moving his neck, trying hard to drop James. He is holding on for dear life. The dragon growls again, he blows fire towards Snow and another piece of her chain drops down at the water. The dragon is confused now, He dives towards the water James still on him.
"James!" Snow yells loudly.
Snow takes a step back, because now that the dragon has heard her voice he is zeroing in on her, snarling and growling, letting out the most terrifying sounds.
"Run!" James yells. Now that her chain is broken she can do that, she can run, but she doesn't want to. There is an invisible force drawing her to James, a power she cannot explain. The live together or die together, she is not running away to save herself. So she takes a step back and she grabs his sword tight. She takes a deep breath and she throws his sword as hard and as far as she can, aiming for the dragons gills.
And the sword find its mark. The dragon lets out a terrifying noise and he slides back taking the rocks and half the cliff with him. The dragon slides back while James is still on his neck.
"James!" Snow screams as he watches the giant sea dragon fall back into the water where it came from. "James!" she screams again, because the dragon is gone but so is James, he is inside the dark water.
Snow is breathing fast, she is sliding down the rocks trying to get down. She is not being particularly careful. As the dragon fell down he created this landslide of rocks and now Snow is half sliding down half falling. There is nothing to hold on to, even if her hands weren't still tied she still couldn't grab onto anything, it is just dark rocks toppling on top of each other and then the dark water.
"James," she screams again and she is at the edge of the water, crying, sobbing because the dragon is gone and he took James with him.
"James!"
What if you met the one you were meant to be with but they were already promised to somebody else, what if they followed you against all hope to help you escaped certain death, what if you dealt a dragon a killing blow, only to drown the one you were meant to be with along with the dragon... Snow drops on her knees sobbing, James' name still on her lips.
"Stay...stay with me..."
She hears a small splash in the water and she looks up. James is swimming to shore.
"You are alive," she cries out and she rushes into the water. James swims towards her and once he is almost to the sore she steps in the water, grabs onto his hand and pulls him out.
He is breathing fast.
"You are alive," she sobs, "you are alright, we are both alright..."
He smiles and he lets her pull him on the rocks forming the soreline.
"You are alive," she says again and again. "Stay, stay with me..."
"Where else would I go?" he smiles and then he looks at her hands. "You are still tied up..."
She shrugs. "I thought you died with the dragon," she mumbles.
"You brought the dragon down, that was incredible," he replies.
"I thought I killed you, I was terrified..." she sobs and he pulls her in his arms.
"I'm alright," he says caressing her hair. "I'm alright. Here is what I'm thinking," he explains. "It's a few hours till dawn. If we leave now, they might think the sea dragon killed us, it will take forever for them to figure out the dragon is dead and think to look for us... so we go, we leave all this...we hide in the forest. I know where the dwarves live and I bet a dwarf's ax could break your chain...What do you say? Will you come with me?"
He has thought this trough and his plan makes perfect sense. Snow reads the plea in his eyes, the words he doesn't say out loud. Stay. Stay with me.
"Yes!" she replies without any hesitation.
"Yes?" he asks and he flashes his bright smile.
Snow smiles back. And then she looks sad again.
"Is Abigail going to join you, once you run?"
And she doesn't mean to cry but they've been through so much these past day. Her eyes well up.
"Abigail?" he looks surprised. "I don't think she'd go with me for a picnic in the forest if I asked let alone run away with me..."
Snow holds her breath.
"I ended our engagement yesterday," he explains. "That's why king George will come after me. He had his heart set on getting access to Midas' gold..."
"Oh," is all the Snow manages to say, still crying. She really wishes she wasn't crying, but she is.
"Snow," is all he says searching her eyes and she grabs onto his jacket with both hands.
"Stay with me," she says and she means forever, for better or for worse, through broken cursed times and happy times, through dragon fights and kidnappings and failed murder attempts. Stay with me...
"Always," he replies, his hands cupping her face, his lips meeting hers. His kiss is soft and intense at the same time, familiar and new. Snow smiles, her heart beating wildly and then the strangest thing happens. The chains melt off her wrists, fall on the ground and disappear. The ground around them shakes, the light blinds them.
"It seems that we do know a few things about magic after all," Charming whispers rubbing the marks the chains left on her hands.
Snow just holds on to him as tight as she can. "Stay with me," she says "Stay with me, I don't know how much longer of this I can take..."
He tries not to cry, because there is nothing he'd like more than to hold her and stay in her arms forever.
"I know," he says his voice hoarse, "I know, but we will figure this out, Snow, we'll be together, I know it...have faith!" and Snow offers a sad smile just as she disappears.
David isn't holding back his tears as he counts "one, two, three..."
"He gets teased and bullied by children a lot. They tell him that he is not a real boy. And his father is always so busy with his woodwork, he doesn't realize that he needs to be supervised..." Snow explains.
David smiles sympathetically. "He looks real enough, I've never seen anyone like him!"
"He was built from enchanted wood," Snow smiles. "Have you heard of Geppetto?"
"I haven't."
"He built him. He is a famous toy maker in this part of the woods..."
Thank you so much for reading, thank you for reviewing. I enjoy your input so much.
As promised the story was ancient,classic and star studded- there are constellations named after Perseus and Andromeda...
baratta jennifer chapter 24 Your welcome and awesome chapter. Belle and Aphrodite would argue about that.
Thanks Jennifer. You are so right about that They certainly would along with several other beautiful heroines... Bragging always leads to trouble, them's the fairytale rules...
Bwayrox chapter 24 This is a double review. I loved the last two chapters, especially Snow as the siren/dragon. I like how every chapter has a little different nuance to Snow and Charming relationship. Last chapter we got all angst and heartbreak. In Red Riding Hood, we got some light-hearted flirting and laughter. Good work.
Thank you so much Bwayrox! I appreciate the double review.
SecretLoveCara chapter 24 . Another superb update. So love Charming being the boy who cried wolf. I use that on my kids a lot to teach them things. So love Charming coming to the rescue. We know Snow can kick butt and take care of herself, but it's still great to see him show up for her now and then when times get tough. See you again Satirday!
Thank you so much...
Bella1296 chapter 24 Great story! I loved it
Thank you Bella! :)
Guest chapter 24 That was real cute! I might have gotten cavities after reading it. It was like reading sunshine. I love Snows and Reds teasing friendship. Snow naming the baby lambs and calling herself fairy sheepmother was so Snow and really sweet. Tiny hats and scarfs on sheep could never be a laughing matter it's just too cute. I love the addition of Charming being the one who cried wolf, ruining it for all the other shepherds poor baby. I felt bad for Snow not being able to let herself be happy and feel safe and loved. I like how you changed Reds story and how she found out about her wolfness, but it was still really sad also trust granny to be the first one to figure the curse. Snow having a near death experience and then seeing all the versions of David was beautiful. I thought that Snow should have kissed David before she left but I also loved his heroic moment. They found each other quite fast in this story too. When you say an ancient classic do you mean Romeo and Juliet or Helen of Troy. Probably neither but I'm very interested.
Alright so in my head this was innocent M/M David Nolan flirting... like "I heard you got a job at the pet shelter, are the animals taking over?" sort of thing. Are you the boy that cried wolf? Yes, that's me... He is not actually the boy that cried wolf, he is just flirting... And yes your interpretation is funner...
So to answer your question yes I absolutely overthink everything. That's what I do... :)
Also they could have totally kissed before she left, but I wanted to give the shepherd version of David a chance to be a hero.
I'm not sure if you know this but a Romeo Juliet Snowing story actually exists and it is really good! It's called Lumière
Guest chapter 24 Using the little red ridding hoods story was a fun surprise! The quote you used in the last chapter about their hearts recognizing each other when their minds can't fit this story too. I love the different dynamics between Snow, her friends and David. I'm curious what the next story will be about. Thanks for the update!
Thank you so much...yes, I think form now on, maybe they will just look at each other and sort of know...