Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Once Upon a Time.
Author's Note: Holy mother! I finished a writing final in class and I had an hour left over, so I wrote this! I wish all my finals were like that. Alas, they won't be. As always, R & R!
And thank you Marcie Gore for your reviews. I so enjoy your comments :)
"What were you doing, Emma?" asked Henry worriedly. He helped her sit down in one of the leather chairs and held her hand.
"I just read in a book that she worked for Regina, and she let the other shapeshifters die without helping them. She's not a good person, Henry."
"Emma, come and look in my storybook. It added pages overnight! I think the book wants to help us. This one isn't a story, it's like one of my textbooks," said Henry as she left her to retrieve his book which was on the table. "Look at it! Here's Armina and Andrew. It tells their story."
Emma picked up the book and began to read. "Henry, this is all good stuff. I don't think this book will say anything bad."
"We all had bad times, right? Just look, she's not all bad."
Emma returned her attention to the book and began to read again.
This is the Queen of Beasts. In Latin, she is called the Regina Bestiarum. Her true name is Armina Vincens, the last shapeshifter alive. When she took over the Wild Forests, she worked to dethrone the Evil Queen, who Armina called the Regina Mala, or Evil Queen.
Armina is hailed as a great ruler, put into the same category as many human rulers before her. Her support of Snow White in her daring rescue of Prince James from the clutches of the Evil Queen has brought many to her side, even the likes of werewolves.
Emma's breath caught as she saw the words written in an elegant script at the bottom of the page:
Henry, you must trust the Queen of Beasts, for she will return you home.
"Who wrote that?" Emma asked, regaining the ability to breathe.
"I don't know, but I slept with it under my pillow last night, like always. No one took it, I don't think," said Henry, scratching his head.
A knock on the door tore their attention from the book. Emma slammed the book shut and handed it to Henry, who clutched it to his chest. A handsome man walked into the library. His dark hair was cropped short and he was well-built. He appeared to be in some sort of uniform.
"My lady, you are requested to witness a ceremony for her majesty the Queen of Beasts," said the young man, offering a respectful bow.
"Um, I don't really want to see her…" Emma said, not exactly finishing her sentence.
"I am not her majesty, my lady. I just work here," he added with a grin. "I'm really sorry, but her majesty told me to come and get you."
"Come on, Emma. Let's just go and avoid another scene," said Henry.
Emma sighed and walked out the door, the young man following close behind. "So what's your name?"
"I am Benjamin Auris, a guard for her majesty the Queen of Beasts," he said simply, not revealing anything particularly interesting.
"Who were you way back when?" asked Henry.
"I…was no one. I was a nameless guard," he said, tension clearly permeating his speech.
Thankfully, Henry left it alone and didn't ask anything else of Benjamin. Emma was utterly embarrassed that Henry had just asked him outright. It had obviously upset the man, whatever his past had been.
They walked into the dining hall which was cleared of the long table that had previously been there. Chairs were shoved up against the wall and candles burned brilliantly in their holders. Armina sat in an elaborately-carved wooden chair, her gaze set intently on something off in space. She looked supremely annoyed with something. What it was, Emma had no idea.
Armina's manner of dress seemed to have become more outlandish. She wore butternut leather pants and a white blouse with a vest covered in silver runes. She had some strange markings on her face, which must have meant something. Her hair mixed with the fur of some white creature which adorned her shoulders along with platinum epaulets. A silver ring of delicate platinum branches circled her head, completing the foreign ensemble.
Armina didn't remove her gaze from whatever it was she was looking at. Instead, she made a beckoning motion with one hand, bringing two chairs to rest behind Emma and Henry. They took the hint to sit and obeyed.
They sat in uncomfortable silence for a moment, until the queen spoke. "I apologize for what I said earlier. You must understand that my past is a tough subject to explain. I'll talk with you later. For the time being, you both will bear witness to a wedding for me."
"Um, who's getting married?" Emma asked, confused.
"You'll see soon enough," Armina said, straightening up in her chair. The sound of boots and delicate heels sounded just outside the dining room. The source of the sound was none other than Rumpelstiltskin and his Belle.
Andrew suddenly appeared behind Armina, resting his hand on the back of her chair.
Emma's eyes were drawn to Belle in her lovely white satin dress. It wasn't exactly bridal white, but more of off-white, or the color of cream. It was cut just below her knees, so it wasn't really a wedding dress, but it appeared that Belle loved her dress all the same.
Rumpelstiltskin was in one of the signature Mr. Gold suits that he had in his possession. Unlike his human form, the Dark One walked with a sure step, no cane required.
As they entered Armina stood, and made a motion for Emma and Henry to do so as well. Rumpelstiltskin and Belle approached the queen and knelt in front of her, their hands seemingly glued together until they knelt.
Emma and Henry sat back down, their eyes fixed on the odd couple. Armina spoke first. "Rise, dear ones, your queen shall marry you." Rumpelstiltskin rose, with Belle doing the same. "Before we begin, I must ask you each a question, since it is against my beliefs to marry couples that have been arranged," she said and turned to the imp. "Do you, Rumpelstiltskin Aurum, enter into this union of your own volition?"
"I am," he replied with a smile.
The queen turned her gaze to Belle, whose cheeks turned a light pink. "Do you, Belle Regis, enter into this union of your own volition?"
Belle's blush deepened as she fixed her gaze on her lover's face. "I am."
Armina seemed genuinely uninterested in the exchange, but she continued. "Join right hands." The lovers held each other's right hand. "Rumpelstiltskin Aurum, Dark One, do you promise to love and protect Belle for the rest of your life? Do you swear that she will be your only, and nothing shall come between you? Do you swear that you will hold her life more sacred than your own until the end of time?"
The adoration in Rumpelstiltskin's eyes was enough to make even the battle-hardened Armina appear uncomfortable. The imp finally answered, "I so swear."
The queen rolled her eyes and looked to Belle. "Belle Regis, caretaker of the Dark Castle, promise to love and protect Rumpelstiltskin for the rest of your life? Do you swear that he will be your only, and nothing shall come between you? Do you swear that you will hold his life more sacred than your own until the end of time?"
Belle's smile widened, her eyes not leaving Rumpelstiltskin's. "I so swear."
"By the power of the Queen of Beasts, greatest of the creatures in the Wild Forests, I declare you to be married in the eyes of the gods. Let nothing separate those that have been joined by the Queen of Beasts this day. Let you now seal your union with True Love's kiss."
Armina stepped back from the couple, giving them more than enough room. Rumpelstiltskin's face still hadn't lost its sickening look of adoration for Belle as he leaned in, gently pressing his lips against Belle's. There was a blinding flash of light as the power of True Love's kiss was invoked. Henry covered his eyes in an attempt at shielding himself from the burst of light.
When the light faded, they studied the man that stood where the Dark One was not a moment before. His hair was the brown of Mr. Gold and his quasi-serpentine eyes were now a normal, humanly, chocolate brown.
His expression was pained as he shifted his weight to his left leg, favoring the right. "I hope you don't mind having a lame man for a husband," he said with a playful smile.
"I could fix that, Rumple, if you would allow it," said Armina from her chair. She was draped across it, one leg casually resting on the arm of the chair. She studied her claw-like fingernails like she was more interested in them.
"All magick comes with a price, my queen," he said, his tone neutral.
"Oh, I think you'll find that inborn magick is much more potent, and more easily paid for. I would, however, ask a favor of you. I trust you know the art of the deal?" she asked with a toothy grin.
He looked to Belle, who threaded her fingers with his in a supportive gesture. "What do you ask of me?"
"I need a captain of the guard who isn't a complete imbecile. I need a tracker who knows these woods as well as I do: like the back of my hand. I need someone who knows the beasts which roam my Wild Forests. I need someone like you, Rumpelstiltskin."
His mouth fell open at her declaration. He looked back to Belle, who gave him a beaming smile in response. "Take the deal, love. I trust her."
He nodded with a loving smile to his beloved, and turned to the Queen of Beasts. "I will take the job."
"In the words of the infamous Dark One, 'the deal is struck.'" Armina grinned and with a flourish of her hand, the newly-transformed human man dropped to the floor in pain as his leg began to heal correctly. Muscles and tendons rearranged themselves and scar tissue disappeared. Belle looked panicked, and she looked to the queen for help.
"The pain cannot be helped, dear one. It will soon subside," said the queen, going back to studying her nails. Belle turned back to her new husband, relieved when his pain seemed to end.
He sat up and ran his hand down his right leg, marveling at how it was completely normal. "I…thank you, your majesty."
"Don't think you'll receive special treatment, captain. You get a week's time before you will first work for me. A house has been set aside for you and your new wife," she said with a knowing smile. "You have tonight, but your week doesn't begin until you finally bring me the lovely Regina Mala."
Rumpelstiltskin gave her a look of resignation. "I will do as you ask, my queen." Emma marveled at his sudden change of heart. When he had been the Dark One, or even Mr. Gold, he always was in control and never submissive. But here, he submitted to his new employer's will. It was utterly strange to see.
"Now," said the queen with a smile, "I have a dinner set out for you in celebration." At Emma's look of surprise, the queen said, "I'm not that much of a wench now am I? Let's go to the dining room, shall we?" The queen rose and looped her arm in Andrew's before gesturing for Rumple and Belle to lead the way.
They walked across the hall to what must have been a ballroom at some point. An intricately-carved table was parked off to the side, plates of food carefully placed for all of the small wedding party.
They all sat down, the monarchs, of course, were sitting at the head of the table.
They all immediately dug in, causing an awkward silence. That is, until Armina waved her hand, summoning an enchanted brass ensemble to play. Rumple immediately abandoned his meal, and asked Belle to dance, which she, of course, accepted.
Rumple was obviously a little out of practice, and he was a bit clumsy with his dancing, but Belle seemed to enjoy it all the same.
Armina leaned over to Henry and whispered, not so quietly, that he should ask Emma to dance with him. Henry excitedly did so, and dragged Emma into an awkward dance. Emma glared daggers at the beastly monarch, only to receive a satisfied smirk in return.
After a short time, Andrew dragged Armina from where she sat. Unlike the other two couples, they seemed to glide across the dance floor like a reincarnated Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. They kept perfectly in time with the music, but Emma thought that she might be playing with the speed of the music with her magick.
After a while, Emma and Henry made their escape to their rooms, probably to contemplate Armina's seemingly bipolar tendencies. Armina and Andrew also left, leaving Rumple and Belle alone in their never-ending dance.
As Armina walked with Andrew to their chambers, they were confronted by an angry Emma. "What was that? How do you turn from insufferable wench into the sweetest ruler that could be?"
"What can I say? I'm a sucker for true love, dear," said Armina with a smirk. "Besides, I needed you to learn for yourself that I can be quite generous when I feel like it. You didn't seem to trust me after our little confrontation this afternoon, and I needed to get you to believe me. I can be a manipulative wench when it's convenient for me, but I assure you, I can be kind."
"I don't trust you," said Emma.
"You shouldn't, at least, not yet. Never trust anyone but yourself and your significant other. You should never trust me, dear, I am a beast after all," she said with her smile growing wider.
"Yeah, whatever you say. I'll see you tomorrow. I plan on going back to town and finding another place to stay."
"Fair enough," Armina replied. "I just wish for you to remember this: I am your last chance. Know that, even though I may appear to be against you, I am allied with your mother. In all that I do, I do what is best for my subjects. You are among them."
"How can you say that? You're beastly!" shouted Emma.
"Why, thank you. I am quite a beast, aren't I? You might not realize it yet, but I will protect you and your family. I will find Regina and I will see to it that she won't live to harm those in my kingdom. You may not trust me, and you shouldn't, but you are the last hope of getting us home. You tripped the series of events that ended in the return of my magick. I am in your debt."
"Then why do you act like this? I swear you're bipolar!"
Andrew broke into their conversation. "Whether you find what she does to be against you, I can certify that it is in your interest. It was better for you to learn of her past on your own."
"Whatever you say. When you catch Regina, come and talk to me. Until then, I'm taking Henry home and we're going to live in Regina's old house. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Rest well, Emma," said Armina, and added ominously, "The war has just begun."
A/N: I would like to clarify something that may be confusing you. When I refer to the name "Regina" alone, I do mean the Evil Queen, or the "Regina Mala." I will always address Armina as the Queen of Beasts or "Regina Bestiarum." I hope that clears up any confusion.
In short, "Regina Mala" = Evil Queen/Regina
"Regina Bestiarum" = Armina/Queen of Beasts