Prologue

*Flashback*

The last night of Autumn had been harsh. All the villagers in the kingdom began to grumble. 'What's the joy in giving us a new queen?', the peasants would utter, 'What's the use of giving us hope to strengthen the kingdom when its people are starving?'. The people didn't know however that this final autumn night had changed the future of their kingdom.

Regina was thankful that her pregnancy was kept secret from the Kingdom initially. The privacy gave her time to breathe from her new duties as Queen, her new duties as a mother to a spoilt young princess. Whilst the peasants were already huddled and sleeping in their homes in the first twilight of winter, the Queen and her father were still awake along with a select group of servants, midwives and doctors.

Regina had been in labour all night, her cries of pain were heard throughout the otherwise silent and eerie night. The young 18 year-old queen held her father's hand as he soothed her tired and frail body. Regina wanted to give up but as tears blurred her vision, she thought of her dead fiance, the father of her child. She saw Daniel's gentle smile telling her to bring their daughter to life. She felt Daniel's touch telling her that everything will be fine in the end. She heard Daniel's sweet soft voice echoing in her mind, reminding her that she now had one thing to live for, her daughter.

Just seconds before passing out, Regina heard the midwives give a shout for joy. Her father was beaming at her with happiness whilst a midwife presented the queen with her child, bundled in a soft pink blanket. Regina had spent the months leading to her pregnancy embroidering the blanket for her child. The edges of the blanket was decorated with three horses across a large paddock, not far from a beautiful estate. Fireflies depicted the sky, they darted around the horses, creating an allure of joy and love. When the princess, Snow White, saw her stepmother working on the blanket, she had asked about the designs. Regina however never replied. The blanket was a lost fantasy. A dream of a happy and simple life with Daniel and their daughter. Because of Snow White, this life would never happen. Snow's betrayal had cost Regina the lives of her future was dead and their daughter was in danger from the court's judgement.

Despite hopes, especially from her husband, that her child would be a boy, Regina knew that Daniel's child would be a girl. She didn't mention any of this to her husband, he wouldn't understand. Also, the bastard child would become a scandal. Regina was afraid of what this would mean for her daughter if it were to happen. But right now, her overflowed tears of happiness washed away any of these thoughts. The Queen reached out to take her daughter in her arms but before the midwives placed her daughter in her arms, Regina felt her head throb horribly. Her eyes slowly closed as her body fell back onto the pillows.

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The sound of the King's voice and his young 10 year-old daughter woke up the Queen. Regina's father, Sr Henry was the first to realise that his daughter had woken up. He immediately rushed to Regina's side with the King and the princess following him. Snow White jumped on top of her stepmother with an excited smile on her face, "What have you named her? I already have several names in mind...let me see, I think that..."

Regina interrupted harshly, " You already saw her? Where is she? Where is my daughter?". The princess was taken aback by her stepmother's loud response. "She's here," King Leopold answered as he signalled a midwife to bring a squirming bundle to the Queen. Regina took one look at the small group of people around her bed and glared at the midwife who was bringing the child to her. How is it that I am the last person to see my daughter? I am her mother, and how dare that bratty princess come up with names for the child whose father she killed!

The midwife caught Regina's glare and quickly passed the child to the Queen who almost immediately snatched the child into her arms. Snow saw the sudden hostility and retreated into her father's arms. "Lets give your stepmother some time with your half-sister", Leopold whispered into Snow's ears. The princess reluctantly nodded and walked out of Regina's chambers.

As soon as Regina saw her child, she broke down in a silent stream of tears inside. Her child was just like Daniel, including the dark brown eyes and beautifully articulated face. Regina held her daughter's little body up against her chest, rocking her gently. She began to hum a lullaby. One that her own father had used on her even as a small child. Later, Regina had asked her father about the lullaby. Its a song about true love, not between a couple but a parent and his or her daughter. When you have a child one day, I hope that you'll sing this to your little one too. When Regina had fallen pregnant with Daniel's child, she suddenly remembered this lullaby from her childhood.

"What have you named her?" Regina shook out of her thoughts at her husband's voice.
"I thought you wanted to..."

Leopold's shrugged and simply answered, "I had several ideas but I had expected a little boy. As our child is a girl, I guess you can name her".

Regina turned back to her child and smiled. Funny how you refer to my daughter as being OURS. She'll never be yours. She will grow up and learn the truth, about her real father. Regina's reeling mind snapped back to the present however and whispered in a barely audible voice, "She will be named Daniella...Princess Daniella". Leopold nodded and added with a small grin, "It sounds good enough. Queen Snow and Princess Daniella".
Regina stopped rocking Daniella and despite her desire to shout in anger towards the man in front of her, she mumbled, "I guess".
Leopold asked to hold Daniella and Regina reluctantly let her go. Leopold was oblivious to the glares he received. You already took too much of me. My daughter will be Queen. Snow can join you in the grave. Regina shuddered. Oh my, why am I thinking this. What Regina didn't know at this time was that her innocence would not last much longer. Scared about her dark thoughts coming out, Regina asked to hold her daughter and if she could spend some time alone with her. The King put Daniella into Regina's arms and after a brief nod, walked out of the Queen's chambers.

Regina held Daniella close and whispered, "Mamma's never going to leave you, ok? Your real papa may not be here with us but I promise, you'll grow up to experience what true love is. I promise that one day we will be happy together, but just not with the King and his daughter. I'll take you back to the night when you were created. Your father and I were surrounded by the gentle glow of the fireflies in the forest. I hope that one day you'll see the forest for yourself. You'll know why your father and I loved that place. Did you know, Daniella, that fireflies are a symbol of true love and hope despite the darkness? Your father was the one who saved me from a dark place, and you are the product of our love. Daniella, you are my little firefly, you will always be the love of your parents' lives. Daniel is with you, always. So is your mother. Don't worry little firefly, you'll always glow despite the darkness."

Daniella's small hands reached up to touch Regina's face and when they did, a small white glow lit up from her fingertips. Regina took her daughter's hand in her own and immediately, she knew that her daughter had just performed a hint of light magic. Daniella's large watery eyes simply looked straight into Regina, not realising that her mother was already beaming with pride.

Regina, with Daniella in her arms, slowly pushed back the bedsheets and with unsteady steps, walked over to the balcony that overlooked the kingdom. One day we will be free of this, my little firefly. You'll be able to fly away when the time is right...

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*1 year later*

(Regina's chambers)

Regina crouched down and watched as Daniella took small steps toddling towards her mother. "Come, my little firefly. You can do it" The young princess fell into her mother's arms and giggled. Regina swept up her daughter and they walked over to the chaise, where Daniella's dolls sat. With Daniella peacefully playing with her toys, Regina walked over to her vanity and sighed. It was Snow White's 12th birthday and although Regina only endured two of the spoiled princess' birthday balls, she already knew that the night would be long. Just as she was about to mentally set the princess on fire, Regina heard quick shuffles of footsteps. She looked around to see Snow peer into the room. "Is Daniella in here with you?"

Before Regina could answer, the princess ran towards the chaise and sat with her younger sister. Daniella immediately made some space around the couch so that Snow could play with her. Although Regina thought that the scene was adorable, she reminded herself of what the elder princess had done. Frowning, she walked over to Snow and said,"Snow dear, you're going to be twelve soon...you need to focus more on your studies instead of playing with Daniella"

Snow looked up to her stepmother. "But why? I don't see why studying the 'history of the enchanted forest' will help me anytime soon. Also, my new tutor is sooo boring. He insisted that I had to learn about the Battle of Wordsworth before my next lesson!"

"Boring or not, your father will not be pleased if he heard you say this. His hopes for you as the future queen is high. Also, you should be happy to hear that I started learning history when I was much younger than you, Snow" , Regina coolly said to Snow. The princess huffed when Regina added, "And shouldn't you be with Joanna now? You wouldn't want to come unprepared to your birthday ball would you?" Snow answered, "I guess not...I'll go find her then. See you at the party". The princess got up and shuffled out of her stepmother's room despite Daniella's discontent whines.

Regina's frown softened as she sat down on the chaise and moved Daniella onto her lap. The little princess didn't seem to mind now that her sister left her. She continued playing with her dolls whilst her mother bounced her gently on the lap. "Sorry my little firefly but I can't let you become too close to Snow. I know that you think she's your sister but soon enough, I'll make sure that you two will be separated when you find out the truth. Also, I need you to be on my side. Snow doesn't need you, she already has the whole kingdom who is willing to fall at her ungrateful knees. Daniella, you'll understand when the time comes." The young princess, understanding only half of what her mother said to her was unfazed by the comment.

After several minutes, Regina and Daniella were interrupted when a trio of maids entered the room. Two of the young women were Regina's personal servants whereas a slighter older one who stood behind the duet had been assigned to look after Daniella, much like Joanna's duties to Snow. "Your majesty, it's time to prepare for Princess Snow's birthday ball. Evangeline will care for Princess Daniella whilst I help you dress". Regina stood up and nodded, "thank you, Greta". Then, she placed Daniella into Evangeline's arms and watched them walk away to Daniella's room.

Meanwhile, Greta had already begun to take out the dresses that Leopold had bought when he visited King Midas's kingdom. Regina glanced at the outfits and whispered to herself, "Well its not like I have a choice of what to wear anyway".

...

(In the grand ballroom)

"Do you like it? I brought it back from one of my travels, I was told that the jewels gave the wearer of the tiara luck"

Snow beamed up at her father whilst the crowd of royal and noble spectators watched the Princess receive her gifts. "Of course I like it, I love it, thank you father! It looks like the crowns that mother used to wear. I hope I'll look like her with this tiara," said Snow in practically one breathe. The King chuckled and answered, "Don't worry, you'll be even prettier than your mother in the future. I'm glad that you like my gift though. You can wear it to balls and festivals now."

Snow continued to unwrap present after present as she received adoration from the crowd. Regina however found the room suffocating. Why is it that after almost three years of being dead, Queen Eva is still mentioned in every public occasion?!

As soon as Snow finished unwrapping the gifts from the royal guests and began to move onto the packages from the nobles, Regina moved silently away from the crowd. Unsurprisingly to her, no one had noticed the Queen's absence.

Regina followed the shadows out of the room, the sound of her heels masked under the heavy fabrics of her light blue dress. When she made her way into the silent corridor that connected the royal chambers, she suddenly felt a strange feeling on her back as if someone was watching. Regina tossed her head around and stopped walking but there was no sign of anyone, not even any guards. Just as she was about to walk again, she heard a faint giggle. Shaken and unnerved, Regina spoke shakily after making sure again that there weren't any guards or servants nearby,"Rumplestiltskin! Is that you?". Another giggle confirmed her suspicions and in a few seconds, a dark maroon coloured smoke appeared and revealed the Dark One. His scale-like green glittery face had been pasted with a strange smug expression as he spoke, "you know, you don't have to torture yourself with boredom in this musty place if you allow me to teach you magic."

Regina sent a glare at the imp and through gritted teeth, she uttered, "Why do you insist that I learn magic with you? I have already told you that I didn't want to end up like my mother, especially since I have to raise Daniella. I don't want her to have the same life that I did!"

Rumplestiltskin raised his eyebrows, "Ah well, what if the royal court finds out the truth about your daughter? That's right. You and the child would be in danger. How about I make a little deal with you, your majesty. Considering that I already helped you banish your mother, I believe that this is pretty fair wouldn't you say?"

Regina gave a sharp outtake of breath and half shouted, "What do you want from me? Go away! I don't want to do this! Stop pressuring me, I'm not going to corrupt myself with magic. It's going to destroy my daughter!"

"Oh, but I'm sure you've already had several ideas about what to do with the King and his daughter haven't you? Without them, the crown would rest on your pretty little head..." the imp tormented bluntly.

Regina's eyes widened before stepping towards Rumplestiltskin. "Stop it! What if anyone hears you? If I'm executed along with Daniella right now, it'll be your fault, not anyone else's."

"Well, well, well. This just proves that you have thought about taking the crown for yourself haven't you? In this case, wouldn't magic be helpful? But alas, you refuse. Mark my words, your majesty. Soon you'll come to me begging for the magic you refused to learn."

Regina bit her lip and glared into the imp's crocodile eyes, "you're up to something". Rumplestiltskin however only giggled and with the wave of his hand, transported Regina away to Daniella's chambers in a puff of smoke. Satisfied with the fear and doubt that he had shaken into the Queen, Rumplestiltskin made his way into Snow White's chambers. There, he waited to meet the Princess...

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The night had been very long but it was full of joy and festivity for Snow. It was only until an hour or so after her normal bedtime did the princess become tired. Everyone at the birthday ball said 'good night' to the young girl as Joanna led her back up to her chambers. Snow couldn't remember much of what exactly happened when the servants were preparing her for bed. She was too tired and immediately fell back onto the soft white sheets of her bed. After everyone had left the room and Snow was left alone, she was about to go off into a deep sleep when she heard a small giggle. Joanna? There was no response. Heart beating quickly, the young princess drew the sheets tight around her body and reached out for the candle on her bedside table. She held the light out in front of her and moved it around, checking if anyone was there. Cautiously, Snow set the candle back down and slid under the covers. She gripped on tighter to her teddy bear than usual.

Just before closing her eyes, Snow hear another giggle. Before she could scream however, a soft playful voice said, "oh, no need to worry Princess. I've just come to give you a birthday gift".

Snow peeked over the covers and she saw a strange man sitting on her armchair by the fireside. She had never seen a man like that before. His skin was green and weirdly glittery under the curly rough locks of hair that rested a little over his ears. The man was wearing a tight reptilian-like suit that seemed to compliment his small slit of a smile. "Who are you, Sir..."

"Who I am does not matter dearie...Now, would you like to receive a birthday gift?", the strange man asked as he immediately changed the subject.

Snow was a little sceptical of this stranger but she answer anyways, "Why, thank you".

The young princess didn't know that she was talking to Rumplestiltskin, or the fact that what he was about to do would change the course of the future. Rumple held a small box out towards Snow who plucked it carefully from his hands. She smiled and began to unwrap the beautifully wrapped gift. She pushed past the tissue paper inside the box and it revealed a small porcelain doll of a young toddler girl. "Thank you...Sir, I think this sort of looks like my sister!" Snow exclaimed.

Rumplestiltskin simply smiled and answered with a sly smile, "It's your birthday today! It's nice getting all the attention, right? Well, its a pity that in a few years time the Kingdom would have to celebrate the birthdays of two princesses in one year. Your birthday wouldn't be so special anymore would it?"

Snow frowned and answered, "You mean my sister, Daniella? I don't understand what you're saying, Sir."

"Oh, its just a little thought. Never mind about it..."

Snow was confused but she spoke, "Well, I certainly don't mind sharing anything with my sister! I do hope that I'm allowed to play with her more often though. I don't know why but Regina doesn't seem to want me to play with Danni. Whenever I play with my sister, I feel like she is glaring at me. Its a little scary. I don't think she knows that I realise those glares though. When I look up, her face changes again. Its happier but in a strange fake way. Sorry Sir, am I bothering you?"

"Not at all Princess..." the imp smiled manically. He was getting excited as he spoke again, "I do believe that Regina is just a mother being protective of her only child. I suppose I understand her situation though, Daniella really only has Regina doesn't she?..."

Snow breathed out, "Excuse me? I'm her sister! Well half sister technically but father will be there for Danni too..."

Rumplestiltskin knew he had planted a worrisome thought within Snow. The girl was clearly confused. Thats when he took his cue and waved his hands around his body. In a puff of red smoke, he was gone. The princess being unsure what to do, let out a shrill shout. A few minutes after the guards rushed in, Leopold ran towards his daughter's side.

"Snow? What is it? What's the matter? Did you have another nightmare?"

Snow looked at her father and nodded her head timidly, "Can I talk with you privately?"

The King frowned but motioned the guards to leave the room. He turned back to his daughter, "Yes dear? What happened? Are you alright?"

Snow didn't know where to start but she thought that mentioning the strange man to her father wouldn't be a good idea. "I had a nightmare," Snow lied uneasily. Leopold's inquisitive eyes urged her to speak. Unsteadily at first, Snow invented, "In my dream, I was playing with Danni when stepmother came in. She was really angry, I don't know why. I asked her what was the matter and she said something about leaving her and Daniella alone".

Snow was stuck, she didn't know how to continue so in a stuttering manner, she used Rumpelstiltskin's words and continued, "Regina said that Daniella will only have one family member and that was her. After that, she was looking at me with so much hate that I ran out of her chambers. That's when I woke up".

Snow didn't understand what she was saying. Her father however had several ideas in his head already. "Snow, this is very important and I'm going to ask you several questions; you musn't tell anyone about what we're about to speak of, alright?"

The princess nodded as her father continued, "Do you fee like this dream reflects your relationship with your stepmother right now?"

Snow shook her head quickly but after a quick contemplation, she looked down and mumbled, "I don't know."

Leopold grew concerned at these words. "What do you mean? Is Regina not showing love towards you in any way? Is she not allowing you to play with your sister?"

"I'm not sure what happened but this afternoon when I went to play with Danni, Regina seemed a little reluctant about the time that I was spending with my sister. She told me that I was going to be queen soon and that I should focus more on my studies."

"Has Regina been angry at you recently?"

"No father! Of course not! She hasn't scolded me before, at least not like the version of her in my dream..."

Leopold frowned, why would Regina be so protective of our daughter? He thought for a moment. He didn't want to consider the worst possibility but his daughter's dream was making him doubtful. Snow's voice ran in his mind,"Regina said that Daniella will only have one family member and that was her."

"Don't worry Snow, that was only a nightmare. Don't let this trouble you for the night. Your family loves you very much, including Regina and Daniella. But now, its time for you to sleep. It's a little past midnight! You'll be very tired tomorrow if you don't sleep now...good night Snow"

The princess replied, "good night father" as the King tucked her back under the bed sheets. After a kiss on his daughter's forehead, Leopold left Snow's bedroom and immediately headed towards Regina's chambers. The dream and Snow's replies to his questions just wasn't adding up. Why would Regina discourage a sister-sister relationship?

Leopold already had a troubling idea at the back of his mind but he didn't want to accuse the queen yet. When he arrived at Regina's chambers, he knocked on the door sharply. Before Regina could answer, he barged into the room to find Regina rocking Daniella on the chaise. She looked up and in surprise, she dropped a ring that she was fingering prior to Leopold's intrusion. She quickly bent down to pick it up but the King had already reached down. He retrieved the ring and frowned. It was a simple gold band, without any engraved designs or jewels. Despite the plain appearance, Leopold knew that this ring was more than just simple jewellery. This couldn't have been one of the rings that he had given Regina when she became queen. This ring was from another man.

Regina looked fearfully at Leopold as his confused expression slowly turned into realisation and anger. Spitting at Regina, he shouted, "Who gave you this ring? You think that you'll get away with an affair without your husband eventually finding out would you? You ungrateful disloyal swine!"

Regina inched back but stood up as she spoke quickly, "No your majesty! I've never had an affair in these castle walls, I swear! I wouldn't be disloyal to you!"

"And the ring?! Where did you get that ring from? DON'T LIE TO ME, who gave you that ring?"

"No one! This ring was mine before I married you..."

"Then answer me this. Why were you looking at it with so much passion? Don't tell me that its because of your appreciation of cheap jewellery."

"Cheap jewellery?! Are you unhappy that I'm not wearing the jewellery that you gave me? The ones that belonged to everybody's queen, Eva?"

Leopold's face was fuming. He looked once into Regina's eyes before roughly taking Daniella from her arms. The toddler was now screaming and crying for Regina. She wriggled in discontent whilst the king was trying to calm her down. "Stop it! She wants her mother," Regina urged in desperation. She knew what the King was trying to do and in a panicked state, she tried to wrestle Daniella from his arms.

"Why does Daniella never let me hold her?!" Leopold's red face shouted at Regina. The Queen's mind was reeling. Because you are not her father. However, Regina stepped away from Leopold and remained silent. The King saw this silence as a confirmation. He let go of Daniella who roughly fell onto the cold stone floor. Before Regina could pick her up, a hand landed harshly on her face. She fell back and raised her hand towards her cheek. Taking it away from her face, she noticed a small tint of blood on her fingers. She didn't dare look up at Leopold as he screamed.

"Daniella isn't my daughter is she? How dare you fool me and pretend that she is mine? All you want is for your daughter to grow up in a royal family so that one day she may take what belongs to Snow, am I right?! I bet you were ecstatic when I proposed to you! You evil girl!"

Regina felt tears run down her face. She tasted them in her mouth as she shook her head. The memory of Leopold's proposal flashed in her mind. Thoughts screamed inside her head, I never even wanted to marry you! It was my mother and Snow! They killed Daniella's father so that I would become queen! If it wasn't for this marriage I would have never wanted to make Daniella queen instead of Snow! I saved your brat of a daughter and in return I lost my true love and now you're taking Daniella from me!

Leopold was about to strike Regina again when he paused and shouted, "Guards!"

In a second, two of the guards who had stood outside Regina's chambers rushed into the scene. "Take this child away, give her to one of the servants, tell them to take her out into a village and abandon her there."

Regina screamed and fell onto her knees at Leopold's feet. "No! Please don't, your Majesty! Don't do this to her, she's innocent, she's only a child! Daniella doesn't need to grow up as a Princess! Just as long as I can take care of her and see her everyday!"

Leopold eyes blazed fire as he replied, "I want nothing to do with the child that you made with another man! And you shouldn't either! Your duties are now as queen! You should be grateful, I'm not going to kill you or Daniella for that matter. Don't forget that I'm your King! I have every right to do so!" Leopold paused before continuing again, "We will tell the kingdom that Daniella died of a mysterious illness overnight. No one is to know about this, if you utter a single word about this to anyone, if you try to find Daniella and bring her back here, I'll have your father killed!" The King knew that this threat was a little harsh but he didn't want gossip to travel about his 'barely one year' marriage to Regina.

Regina kept screaming until Leopold kicked her so that she fell backwards towards the fireplace. The King motioned a guard to pin her down as the other guard dragged Daniella out of Regina's chambers. In futile attempts to escape from the guard's firm grasp, Regina tried to channel her magic, just like the time she pushed her mother into the mirror on her wedding night. It didn't work however and as Regina lay on the floor with tears streaming down her face, she screamed out to Daniella who was also struggling. "I love you Daniella! I'm so sorry for everything! Don't ever forget, your father and I will always be with you. Your mama loves you, look for the light amongst the fireflies. I may not have experienced true love for long but I hope that you will!"

Leopold whispered something to the guard that held down Regina and after spitting on his wife, he walked out of the room. Regina's head fell onto the floor as she tucked herself into a small ball. She didn't notice that the guard left and that she had been left alone until the click of the door closing awoke her from her painful thoughts. The young queen remained on the floor as her heart pounded in sync to her tears. She looked up at her room and hollered. This was her life now. Muttering in sobs, Regina pleaded for anyone to help her. She glanced at the skies and spoke softly, "Daniel, I'm so sorry I failed you and our daughter. Perhaps I should have given her to my father to raise. Now she'll never know who her parents are...I'm so sorry Daniel, please forgive me, I love you."

Regina used her weak arms and crawled towards the balcony that overlooked the kingdom. Slowly using it to support her body as she stood up, she looked out at the peaceful night and immediately wanted to burn the tranquillity. Then, she cursed her life. She cursed all those to refused to help her, including the imaginary fairy godmothers of her childhood, the fake friends she had met in her teenage years, her father, her mother and most of all, the king and his daughter. Deranged and tired, Regina stalked towards the mirror on her vanity in rage and after glancing once at her sullen appearance, she threw her fist into her reflection. The glass immediately smashed everywhere. Regina looked at her bloody hand and noticed a dark purple glow coming from it. It felt strangely cool but comforting at the same time. She slid down and with her hands over her face, she collapsed beside the vanity. Before she passed out however, she heard a faint voice.

"I can help you Dearie, would you like me to teach you magic?"