The Ring
"True Love follows this ring wherever it goes, my son. I had it with your father. I've had it as your mother. Now you will have it. Take it. Take it and I'll know, even if I never see you again, I'll know you'll find love. I'll know you'll be happy." Ruth just failed to mention exactly how the ring achieved this.
Disclaimers
Once Upon a Time belongs to Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz, ABC, Disney, and possibly others, but not me
Everland, Seaborn, and Seaside were the names of kingdoms used in Once Upon a Time and Again by KayleeThePete
Phrygia is the kingdom ruled by the King Midas in Greek legends
Currently rated T. Please advise if you think I am writing beyond the acceptable levels of T and should consider rating my work M
Chapter 5
«Charming, calm down. I love that you would defend me like that, but you're giving us away to King George.»
«I don't care. You are the one true ruler of Everland, Your Majesty, and I'd make a royal proclamation to that effect if I could.»
Snow was so overwhelmed with the love and conviction in David's voice that she had to tackle him and smother him with the fiercest kisses she could devise.
«Snow… Not… Alone.»
The sheer embarrassment of what she had just done in King George's presence caused her to lose her concentration and her eyes snapped open to the suddenly vivid whitewashed wooden ceiling of her room in Dancing Zorba's Inn. She found herself gasping for breath, winded, as though she had just sprinted all the way from Seaborn. Her ribs protested so badly as she sat up that she lifted her shirt expecting big angry bruises.
At first, she was amazed to see smooth unblemished skin, but when she got up close to the mirror and pulled the offending areas taught, she thought she could discern the slightest discolouration. And she was leaving a trail of finger marks across her chest. The bruises were definitely coming.
«Charming, don't concentrate so hard you can hear things around me. Trust me. Going back hurts!» Her frustration mounted when David made no response. «Charming!» She concentrated on the connection she had travelled down so easily not an hour ago, and found… nothing.
Tears pricked her eyes as she realised the implications. Her connection with David was gone. He was free to marry Abigail and… That was a good thing. The thought rang even hollower now than it had a mere twenty-four hours ago. She stared forlornly at her reflection in the mirror, wishing for the feel of David's arms around her. Snow closed her eyes and for a brief moment, she thought she had him.
«Charming.»
But it stopped almost as soon as it began, and she opened her eyes again to find that it was simply her shirt, falling back down over her stomach. She had just put her shirt back to rights, when the door slammed open.
"Mary…"
Snow barely noticed Margaret's entrance. Her mind was too focussed on the empty feeling where David used to be. Margaret gave her a knowing look.
"Primp later. Cook says eat now or you'll have to find your lunch elsewhere."
Snow's eyes boggled. "Lunch?!" How could she even think of eating with her stomach in such turmoil?
"Don't look so surprised. You fair cried the morning away. Missed breakfast completely." Margaret took advantage of her companion's shock to steer her out the door.
Snow snapped out of it just in time to grab her cloak off the back of the door and put it on before the door closed behind them.
"Now I don't know about you, but I'm starved, and I at least managed dinner last night, something I know you didn't. Unless you snuck out to that pirates' tavern and back without telling me, which I know for a fact you did not seeing as how you clearly aren't from around these parts, and wouldn't have known we had a pirates' tavern let alone how to find one. Am I right?"
Snow pointedly sniffed the air. "You really think I don't know a fishing port when I smell one?"
Margaret gave a disdainful sniff. "You're just letting the aromas from the kitchen downstairs give you ideas. And pirates don't frequent every fishing port, you know."
"Well, I'm just glad they do this one. That tavern's my ticket out of the Enchanted Forest." By this time, they had reached the eating area, where the aromas overwhelmed the room. Snow pulled her hood up and headed for the front door. A firm hand at her elbow stopped her.
"Eat first."
A chorus of Margaret's bellowed "Give us lunch for two, Nick!" and her stomach drowned Snow's token protest out. She stared down in shock. Her stomach was in such turmoil that it couldn't decide whether it needed to be filled or empty.
Margaret led her quickly to a table that Snow was certain had been occupied mere moments ago. A rather large party at a table hogging the hearth stopped their loud argument to look on in interest at the newcomers.
Snow tilted her head further into the shadow of her hood.
"You don't want to go to that tavern on an empty stomach. Trust me."
"But they have food there. You said so yourself."
"If you want fish laced with rum, be my guest." A woman placed two steaming plates on the table in front of them.
Snow took one look at the grilled fish almost covered by the piles of carrots, beans and mashed potato, and picked up her fork without further complaint.
"Good choice."
Snow barely noticed the waitress bustling away as she sank her teeth into the fish. She had no knowledge of its species, but it was the best tasting fish she had ever eaten in her life. And the carrot was exquisite, the beans divine, the spices made the potato heavenly, and… Snow stared at her empty plate in dismay. No more?
"Nick, we need a refill over here!"
Snow's head snapped up. "No, we don't."
The front door suddenly slammed open and a youth's voice shouted, "Black knights in Tomis!"
Snow was on her feet before the door slammed closed again, her fist around a few coins from her pouch. "For your trouble." She took Margaret's hand in hers, and closed it over the coins. "Thank you."
«I knew Regina wouldn't stop with Seaborn! She has her knights in Phrygia now!» Snow felt the emptiness inside her increase as the thought echoed in her head, bouncing off the walls of her mind with nowhere else to go.
Margaret stopped her once again with a hand at the elbow. "Relax. That Nick likes to cry wolf. Nothing to worry about."
"No, nothing for you to worry about." She gently removed Margaret's hand and continued towards the door.
"Is you Snow White?" Snow froze and turned. She didn't recognise the old man by the fire, but thanks to all those wanted posters, a great many strangers knew Snow White these days. Even in neighbouring kingdoms, it would seem.
"No, you no Snow White, therefore, you no worry." The man came forward and to her immense shock, drew her into a quick bear hug before kissing her on both cheeks. "Come. You eat with my family."
"But I just ate."
"Okay. I get you something." A large woman got up from the table and bustled off to the kitchen. Snow turned to stop her, but was stopped herself yet again with a hand on at her elbow. The person on the other end of the hand just so happened to be Margaret.
"Please, Mary, you were ready to eat your plate a second ago. Sit back down."
"Really, I couldn't eat another bite." Snow's protests fell on deaf ears as she was led to the large gathering by the fire. "I'm good."
"You're good?" Another woman spoke up from the table. "Look at you. I could break you like a chicken."
Snow was just grateful that she was far enough away that this woman couldn't get her claws on her the way she was clawing the air. The man's heavy-handedness was bad enough. She felt the need to rub the circulation back into her arms once he finally pulled her down into a seat and let her arms go. "But I have to get to Seaside!"
"Is two days away. Is needs energy. You eat. Then you go." The large woman put a large bowl of beef stew in front of Snow, effectively blocking her escape route as she did so.
"You see. Maria's smart. Knights no find Snow White in Tomis, they leave Phrygia alone and go home."
"And how you know they not find Snow White, Kosta?"
"Maria, what for Snow White come to Phrygia? It between Queen Regina and Queen Regina's family."
"Regina has family in Phrygia?" Snow was aghast. Was Prince Henry a relative of King Midas? Why had she never thought to question which royal family they were affiliated with?
Maria sat on Snow's right and had just one thing to say. "Eat!"
Snow picked up her fork and took a mouthful just to keep the woman happy, but her eyes never left Kosta, who was shaking his head and his hands in the air.
"No, no, no. Her father, Prince Henry, is youngest brother of King Shawn in Seaside."
"And her mother?" There had to be some reason why they were living in Everland when they were part of the royal family of Seaside.
"Cora is Phrygian."
"But you said Regina had no family in Phrygia."
"Her mother is born daughter of miller, make good flour for us, but is no good enough for her." Kosta turned his eyes to Maria. "This what happens when you educate women. Does she marry good Phrygian boy? No. She has to marry kseno Prince."
Snow ignored the man's barb. Men never changed anywhere, it seemed. "But did she have to leave the kingdom to marry a prince?" If Cora had only married King Midas, her father would still be alive, and she could put in a counter offer for Charming's hand. But then, would Abigail still be alive, or would it be Regina in her place? Or would it be some bizarre mix of the two women meshed into one whole new person? It hardly beared thinking about.
"Of course. King Midas is young prince, but is already betrothed."
"That no stop her from breaking King Leopold's betrothal to Queen Eva."
Snow dropped her spoon plop in the middle of her stew, causing Maria to tsk and fish it out and clean both it and everywhere else the stew landed. "What?! She tried to marry m- King Leopold?"
"You no know the story?" The man's eyes lit up and there was a collective groan from the table.
Maria hit the nearest man in the back of the head. "Keep quiet, Nico. Go on, Kosta." Nico snickered and calmly went back to his previous conversation with the people around him.
"Okay, so Cora, she meets a man who say he is prince of Everland. He proposes and they spend the night together. Cora is wakes to find man gone. Three month later, she come to Everland castle, is find man is not prince. She meets the real Prince, Leopold. He takes Cora back to Phrygia. He come back with Cora, and is breaks arranged marriage to Princess of Northern Kingdom, Eva."
Maria took advantage of Snow's slack-jawed expression to spoon a generous portion of stew into her mouth. Snow snapped her mouth shut before the juice could escape and began chewing, still without taking her eyes off Kosta's face. His eyes gleamed.
"Princess Eva, she comes to Everland castle, is hears Cora pregnant to other man and is giving gold and jewels to keep this man quiet. Princess Eva is tells Prince Leopold."
"Prgnnt?"
Kosta merely nodded. Frustrated that she couldn't convey the whole of her question with Maria's stew still in her mouth, Snow forced herself to swallow early, and found herself choking instead. So much for being able to talk.
Maria handed her a water goblet. "You should take smaller bites." Snow gave her a dirty look over the glass.
"Prince Leopold, he catch Cora and ask for truth. She lies. He finds jewellery in her pockets. Is calls guards to take her away. Is married to Princess Eva." Kosta ended with an air of bravado, awaiting Snow's reaction.
Disclaimers
My Big Fat Greek Wedding belongs to Nia Vardalos, Gold Circle Films, Home Box Office (HBO), MPH Entertainment Productions, Playtone, Ontario Film Development Corporation, and possibly others, but not me
So, how many of you recognised the Portokaloses? And was it worth the wait?