Thank you for your kind words. It's really very nice. Several people have asked me, what means "plum-plum". When something falls into the water doing sort of "plum" (yeah, I do not know how else to write it), so Regina meant playing during her bath. Because hay! Aunt Ursula can do awesome thing with water!
It was a middle of the night when Rumplestiltskin returned home. He was tired as hell (or even more) and all he wanted was to go to sleep as soon as possible, especially that he used a lot of magic today.
Sometimes he feels that people think that because he is the Dark One, he is not a human being and can use magic all the time. But it is not a truth. He may be immortal, but he needs rest, too. Is not that obvious?
He sighed and sleeply rubbed his nose.
It seems that it is not, because people want his help all the time. There are moments, of course, in which he wonders why he even cares. Why he helps them if he hates them with all of his dark soul. But then again, he knows the answer very well.
Regina.
His precious girl.
His little princess.
He was not born yesterday. He knows people's hearts. He knows how villainous they are.
People.
This word with distaste passes him by his thoughts.
They dare to call themselves masters of life. They dare to call themselves the best of races. But the truth is that they are the worst kind of creatures.
People.
He feels sick every single time he reminds himself that once he was one of them. One of people.
They call him a monster now, because he has power and they are afraid of magic. Because they do not understand it. And if they do not understand something, they try to eliminate the threat. They tried to kill him not once. They even tried to enslave him (because the Dark One can be controlled by a dagger which is safe hidden in the place only he knows) but they failed.
Failed?...
No. He is the one who failed.
They do not have a dagger, that is right, but they can control him anyway.
Because they know that he has a daughter. Because they know that he cares about her very much. They know that she is his greatest weakness.
It is why he helps them. Because they promised that they will not hurt his little girl. They promised that she will have a happy life. They promised.
But you may wonder why he helps them at the first place.
They have magic on their side. Very powerful magic, which is much stronger than his own. Because they have the Sorcerer and Reul Ghorm on their side. And also because they enslave other magical creatures. Why? Well, because they are not human, of course.
His daughter's life is not worth the risk. Her life is more precious than anything. And he will do anything for his daughter's safety. Because he is a parent. And parents always put their children first.
Rumplestiltskin quietly opened the door to his little girl's bedroom and walked in. He had a hard time not to laugh.
Regina – what a surprise! - was in the deep sleep, tightly hugging her best friend Dragon the One-Eye. Well, it would be normal if not the fact that quilt lay on the floor and she had her head wrapped was in it, while her legs was still on the bed.
He gently took her in his arms and then put on the bed and covered her. She only hugged tightly her toy and muttered something like „leave Dragon the One-Eye alone or my mommy and daddy will end you". He could not help and chuckled quietly.
"Sweet dreams, my little princess." He whispered and kissed her forehead before he left her room and walked toward his own.
Less than a minute later he found himself in his bedroom. His wife also was asleep, so as carefully as he could he lay down on the bed and smiled. He was the luckiest man in the world having such amazing girls in his life.
Regina woke up about five in the morning, being full of energy, which she had to spend actively. And because she knew that her mother does not like when she is playing without someone's care, she decided to wake her up.
She smiled cheekily and took Sir Dragon the One-Eye before she went to her parents' room. She opened the door and slowly headed to the bed. Then she climbed awkwardly onto the bed, since it was much bigger than she is. When she saw that her daddy is here, too, she smiled even more. More games! Because mommy was not that funny.
"Wake up!" She yelled and started to jump.
Maleficent and Rumplestiltskin woke up quickly, hearing their daughter. Their first thought was that something happened to her.
"Stop jumping, little one, or else you will get hurt." Said the woman but her little troublemaker ignored her.
"Play! Wanna play!" Regina heard her mother very well, but she decided to jump anyway. After all jumping was funny and her mom always was against all fun. So why she should listen to her? Beside the fact that almost always she was right, that is. "Wanna play! Wake up!"
"Regina, don't jump. It's dangerous!"
"No, mommy. Funny!" She said.
And it was the moment in which she lost her balance and fall, but because of Maleficent's quick reaction she was safe.
"Don't you think that I told you something?"
"Um... no?" She asked nicely and then kissed her cheek. "Love you, mommy. D-agon the One-Eye, too!"
"Don't change the subject, young lady." Said the woman and looked at her husband who now had their daughter's toy in his hands. "You need to learn to listen."
"Me listen! But wanna play!"
"First you need to change your clothes, because you can't play in your nightdress. Secondly you need to have breakfast before. Don't pout, little one, you know the rules."
"Not funny, mommy." She muttered and her mother only shook her head.
"I know. But now come." The woman took her daughter in her arms. "We're going to prepare you for a day."
"Not funny." She said once again.
"But it will be, dearie." Rumplestiltskin gave her back her little friend and kissed her forehead. "And now go with mommy and daddy will make you breakfast."
Breakfast was quick as always with their little troublemaker. Sometimes Maleficent wondered if her daughter was not hiding dishes somehow because it was impossible to eat that fast. But well, Regina needed to play so everything was possible.
Right now all of them were in the living room. Maleficent sat in her favourite armchair and Rumple was playing with Regina. Or rather worked as her horse because little one sat on his back. Sir Dragon the One-Eye was right next to her.
"P-ince Cha-ming!" Yelled Regina and took her wooden sword from the couch. "Attack!"
Maleficent chuckled because Regina pushed Rumple to the ground as she jumped from him and ran along with her friend in the hand to the mascot of so called Prince Charming and stab him with her sword. Dragon the One-Eye helped, of course.
"Yes!" Regina cried a few minutes ago with a big smile on her face and ran to them. A few second later she threw herself into her mother's arms. "Won, mommy, won! Daddy, won!"
"I saw it, honey. Congratulations, my little princess." The woman said and kissed her forehead. A moment later her husband did the same as their daughter hugged him, too. "I'm proud of you!"
"Your mother is right, dearie. You're really brave princess. Daddy also is so proud of you!"
Regina grinned and hugged them once again. Then she looked at her little friend.
"D-agon the One-Eye helped!" She hugged him, too. "He's my best buddy. I wish to be like him."
"Be like him, honey?"
"Mhm, mommy. Like him!" Regina pointed at her toy. "He is fearless!"
Adults chuckled although you could sense a certain tension. As if they were not happy with this idea.
"That's right, dearie. He is fearless." Rumple ruffled his daughter's. "And he will always protect you. No matter what."
"Yeah!"
"But now go to play. Your blocks are waiting at you."
Regina nodded and ran away, hugging them once more and a few moments later they stayed alone. They exchanged glances.
"I don't want her to be a dragon." Whispered Maleficent. Pure terror was heard in her voice as she looked at her child who now spoke with her toy. "She can't be one. She can't be a dragon!"
"You need to breathe." Said Rumple and took her hands in his own. "And I don't want her to be one, too. It may be dangerous."
Maleficent closed her eyes and felt as her husband began to rub soothing circles on her back.
It may sound selfish that she does not want her daughter to be a dragon since she alone has a dragon blood in her veins but she really did not want it. Being a magical person was wrong enough and being the dragon was like an invitation to kill you.
You may wonder why she was pregnant in the first place, since she did not want her daughter to be a dragon and since she knew it was dangerous.
Well, the truth is that she and Rumplestiltskin did not plan to have children. It just happened. After all she was the first and probably the only dragon who never laid an eggs.
She was terrified when she found out that she was with a child, because politics in the Enchanted Forest started to change.
People always were afraid of them. They always were afraid of magic but as long they did not attack them, they leave them alone. But then something happened and rulers decided that all magic must be under their control.
They enslaved little fairies and made them their slaves, so now all human families (because humans are the most important of course) have a little fairy in their household. People started to use the dwarfs to work in mines so they can have gold and a fairy dust without any work. Just because the dwarfs were not human.
Wolves also suffered because of that. People began to hunt at them for their fur and also tried to subdue them. But of course it was not easy so a lot of them died in agony. It is why most of them had to hide. Because their lives were in danger.
But their fate was not the worst. Dragons suffered more than them. Because people decided that killing dragons is funny. That killing the dragon shows that you are the best of the best because killed one of the most dangerous creatures in the world. And that was not the worst. The worst was that they killed dragons (and wolves) in very brutal and ignominious death. Because „monsters must be killed for example! And only brave people are able to do it!".But it was not a sign of bravery. It was a sign of what a scoundrel you really are.
But it is not the end.
In the world there are two kinds of dragons. One of them are normal dragons and the second, more powerful, are shapeshifters.
Shapeshifters are dragons who can turn into humans and also have a powerful magic. But they are very rare and there were only three herds of dragons who had shapeshifters between them.
That is right. There were three herds and she was in one of them. Were. Because now she is the only one shapeshifter who survived. Survived... yes. She survived but she had to pay a horrible price.
People say that killing a dragon shows how brave you are but only killing a shapeshifter can make you a hero. Only because they are (were) more powerful and dangerous than normal dragons. Only because of that.
When she found out that she was pregnant they wanted to keep this in secret. But someone told their secret and because of that Rumplestiltskin agreed to make a deal with the King of the Kingdom they live in. He agreed to make gold for him and also protect the land from ogres and in exchange he will leave his family alone. He kept his promise but it did not mean that other agreed on it, too.
Shortly after Regina's birth she was attacked by a few knights. She was weak because being a mother was not easy (but she loved her little girl by whole her heart) but she was able – somehow – turn herself into a dragon for a very first time in months and take care of them. But then something happened and more men showed up. There were too many of them that they were able to defeat her.
She almost died, but in the very last moment her husband with Cruella and Ursula appeared. She was not sure how, but she was really grateful for that. Although if she must be honest if not her daughter she would like to be dead. Because what they did to her... well. Wounds on the body weathered with time, but the one on soul will remain forever. And the fact that she lost her ability to turn into a dragon again does not help at all.
Because being a shapeshifter without an ability to change is fate worst than death. Without it she was just a simply sorceress.
And she did not want her child to suffer in the same way.
"Mommy?" The voice of her daughter brought her to the ground. Regina stood next to her, looking at her with these big brown puppy eyes. Before her daughter could say something else, she hugged her tightly. "Why you c-y, mommy?"
"It's nothing, honey." She said and wiped tears. To be fair she had no idea that she was crying. "Because you're here."
"Yeah!" She smiled, not sure what her mother meant. "And love you!"
"I love you too, little one. More than anything." She said and kissed her daughter who just hugged her.
"And I love you. Both of you." Rumple added and hugged both of them.
TBC
Thank you for reading,
White Little Devil