I walk from town to town. I become the mute boy named Sam again using his notes to communicate. I avoid any military for fear of being discovered, they believe me to be a deserter. I keep my armor and my sword wrapped in my pack. I use my old clothes to keep them from rattling as I travel. My bow and dagger I always keep ready for battle.

I occasionally write to Cliff about my journeys. He and Belle do not write me back because I never stay in one area long enough to wait for a response. I know that they are still on at the castle by the talk I hear about. The people always gossip about how most of the military is focused on defending Gaston's kingdom while the rest of the towns have to defend themselves.

I see Rumpelstiltskin but he does not talk with me like he used to. Instead he only observes me while I train both my magic and my fighting. I tend to track and attack small groups of Ogres. I use the book once again.

One town I could not find anyone willing to have me work for them. The last house I came to an old woman answered the door. She read my note and invited me in for a sip of water.

"Young boy, I do have some work for you. I can offer you a bed for a few nights but you have to promise to leave my granddaughter alone. You are young but I want to know that I can trust you. I need some help repairing some of the house. Will you do as I say?"

I nod my head yes.

"I will hold you to your word."

She does give me a bed for the night. I sleep on the floor of the kitchen. The next few days I follow her orders and help her to repair her house.

The granddaughter is a little older than me but she follows me around. She tries to ask me questions about my travels but she realizes that I cannot talk back to her. She starts to ask my questions that I can answer by shaking and nodding my head. Her name is Red.

I send a letter to Belle and Cliff telling them where I was staying and that they could write to me as I would be staying for some time. I send a gift to Belle, a seed. I have been practicing my magic enough to learn how to get seeds from Belle's flowers. I know her birthday is close so I pay the messenger extra to make sure that the letter is top priority.

One day I was helping Red collect some herbs in the forest nearby. Red is surprised on my ability to recognize certain herbs. I have had years of practice with Belle. The day was warm so I had left my cloak behind in the cottage. When we got back the grandmother was waiting for us by the door.

"Red, I want you to go and collect some more of those berries. Sam and I are going to have a little chat."

Red tries to argue with her grandmother but in the end she is defeated and walks back off into the forest. The grandmother leads me inside and on the table I see all of my stuff.

"I was going to wash some laundry and I figured that I could do some of yours as well. WHO ARE YOU?"

On the table is my pack but it is opened up. Lying next to it is my armor and my weapons. She also had my cloak lying open. She has pulled out my two books. She reaches over and picks up the book that Belle gave me.

"I have read a message in this book. You are either a liar or a thief. Tell me who you are."

I am afraid that she found out that I could do magic. Belle wrote about the magical flowers that I would grow for her and the other magic that I could do when I was younger.

I see that her sleeves are rolled up and I see some kind of mark on her arms. I detect some kind of magic from her scar but I don't think that it is something that she controls.

"Well Dearies, what do we have here?"

I turn and see Rumpelstiltskin.

"I see that you have met Sam, Ms. Dorset. He is an interesting lad."

"Rumpelstiltskin what are you doing here?"

"You must have forgotten our agreement. I have your payment for you here."

He waves his hand in it appears a red cloak.

I look at her and she reaches out for it. He hands it to her.

"I am not a man who breaks deals. But you should be gentle on this one. After all one may seem more than they appear."

He gives me a wink.

"That maybe so but I think that he is more than he appears, he is nothing more than a lying thief spawned from filth. He carries stolen armor from a knight as well as some weapons. I believe that he has ambushed a noble's caravan."

"As I said, what you see may not always be the truth. Till we meet again."

He disappears in a puff of smoke.

She gently puts the cloak down on the table.

"Who are you? If you will not tell me then I will have to have you locked up."

She is keeping her attention focused on cloak and she seems to have a worried look on her face.

"I suppose if you will not tell me then I will have no other choice. If you are a thief then this book will have no importance to you."

She grabs Belle's book and walks over to the fire. I am nearly frozen in place, she intends to burn the book in order to find out the truth about me. I can't use my magic because it would expose me but I also cannot talk as it would also expose my identity. I am caught in a deadlock of keeping my identity a secret or losing one of the most important things in my life.

"P-p-please, do not burn that book."

My voice is a little hoarse from not using it for a long while. I have not even talked to Rumpelstiltskin since I left Gaston's castle over a year ago.

"So you can speak."

A look of shock is on her face not because I can speak but because of my voice.

"And you are a female. I should have guessed, only a woman could have tolerated Red for so long."

"Yes. I am but please do not tell anyone. I am pretending to be a boy for my own safety."

She walks over and hands me the book. I take it and hold it tight. I never want to let go of it again.

"Tell me child who you really are. Why do you carry this armor?"

"It is my own. I once was a soldier fighting against the Ogres. But I cannot tell you my true name."

"I believe you but I have read your name. It is Angel isn't it?"

I nod my head yes.

"Well, I suspect that you have a long story. I would like to invite you to stay longer but I am curious of your past. How do you know Rumpelstiltskin?"

"I cannot tell you of my past other than that I am a mute boy named Sam. I cannot let any know of my past, I have become Sam for a reason."

"If you were once a soldier then I suppose that this armor is yours. But first I must be certain that it is. Put it on."

I reach over for the armor and put it on over my clothes. It feels a little tight than when I first got it because I have grown a little.

"I cannot believe my eyes. You are a female warrior."

She is laughing at the idea.

"I only wish to protect others from the Ogres. I assure you that I was only trying to keep my identity a secret. I was once employed as a knight but I was banished"

"You are welcome to stay here. But I must have a name to call you by."

"I would still like to be called Sam. I have taken that name as my own."

"Alright Sam, but you need no longer to hide your true face. And since you do have a voice you can call me Granny."

She stares out the window. The sky is starting to darken and Red is still outside. I see a look of panic flash on her face.

"It is a dangerous night tonight Sam. I want you to remain indoors, I have to go and get Red. Tonight is Wolf's time."

I had heard the story from Red of how during a full moon a wolf would come and terrorize the village. Red told me that one day she would save the village from the wolf.

She takes the red cloak and walks outside. I wait for some time inside. I light some of the candles inside as it gets darker. I read from Belle's book to pass some time even though I have read it many times. Eventually I start to worry about Granny and Red. Granny has been gone for some time and Red could not have gone far to get the berries. I grab my bow and arrow along with my sword and walk out.

I know that I have not learned how to track from Rumpelstiltskin but I use the best of my knowledge to search. I could easily climb a tree and look around but I was afraid of heights. I search for some time until I hear a ruckus.

I hear a wolf howl and I run towards the sound. When I get there I see Granny trying to hold back a huge wolf. I use my magic to close the distance between me and the two of them. I put myself between Granny and the wolf blocking the wolf from Granny.

"Granny run I will hold the wolf back. Do not worry about me."

I unsheathe my sword and point it towards the wolf.

"Sam, do not hurt her. Let me get the cloak on her."

I am confused about Granny's request. She does not want me to fight the wolf for she is afraid that I would hurt the monster.

"Granny, why do you not want me to fight this monster?"

"She is not a monster you will have to trust me, Angel."

I knew that she was trying to tell me something when she used my real name. I decide to do as she says. I use my magic to turn myself invisible to distract the wolf. I use my sword to whack the creature over the head knocking it unconscious.

While I make myself visible Granny runs forward and puts the cloak on the wolf. I sense magic and the wolf turns back into Red.

"Can you help me bring her back home? I will explain everything when we get back."

I go to pick up Red and Granny leads to way back. Even though Red is older and bigger than me my strength has increased from my training. As I carry her I sense a magic in her, it is the same that I got from Granny's scar. But I feel like it is being overpowered by magic from the red cloak.

When we get back to the cottage I bring Red to her room. I carefully place her in her bed making sure that she is still covered by the cloak. I walk back into the kitchen to Granny serving tea.

"I suppose that we both have our stories to tell. Have a seat and I'll explain first."

She tells me the story of how she was bitten by a wolf and that she learned of the curse. She tells me that she feared it would pass down through her family but her fear was quickly realized when her daughter first changed. She was worried about Red inheriting it so she made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin to protect Red from the curse. The only thing that he could provide was the cloak that would stop her from transforming as long as she wore it during the full moon.

Granny had seen me do magic so she had me tell my story. I only told her that I had been able to do magic for as long I could remember. I did not tell her of my training with Rumpelstiltskin or my life at the castle. When asked who had taught me I told her that I had learned on my own.

By the time we were done the sun was starting to rise. Red woke up and found Granny and I sitting at the table. She wanted to know what happened last night. I surprised her by telling her the story myself. I told her that Granny and I had found her passed out in the forest and we had brought her home.

Granny told Red that I was sick so I could not speak but she had made me some medicine last night that helped me to get better. When Red asked me why I was pretending to be a boy, I told that I was not pretending to be a boy but everyone else considered me to be a boy because of the way I dressed. Since I couldn't speak from being sick I could not tell them otherwise.

I rest for the rest of the day trying to catch up on the sleep I lost. Granny goes to town with Red to run some errands. When they come back Granny comes to wake me up. She has a note for me from Belle but she also has some bad news. Apparently the message that I sent earlier somehow fell into the wrong hands. There were some soldiers looking for me asking around the town. I knew that they did not know exactly where I was but they knew what town I would be in. I knew that Belle and Cliff would never turn me in.

I started to pack for my journey again. I do not want to leave Granny and Red, I have grown attached to them in the short time that I have known them. Granny and I shared our deepest secrets, even though she does not know all of my past she still knows that I can do magic. Red does not want me to leave either, even though I have not talked to her until this morning, I still had spent a great deal of time with her and sometimes words are meaningless.

Granny gives me some food to take with me on my travels. I try to pay her but she tells me that I have done enough. She wishes me to be careful and promises me that she would keep my secret safe. I know that she is afraid of me exposing her as well but I tell her that I would do the same for her.

When it is my turn to say goodbye to Red I tell her to make sure that she always wears her new cloak. When she asks me why I tell her that the color red helps to ward off wolves. She asks me where my red was and Granny passes me a red scarf to wear.

As I walk off I worry that the soldiers will do stuff to them. But I trust that Granny will be able to hold her own she is a tough woman. When I get far enough into the woods not to be seen by Red, I use my magic to run. I don't stop running until I have to stop rest for the night. Although it was already noon by the time I left I still have made a great distance.

I read the note that Belle wrote me.

Thank you for the seed I hope to grow it when I get back to the castle. My father has decided to move back to our kingdom, he is afraid of abandoning our people in this time of need. I am glad to hear from you again. Cliff will be accompanying me back to my kingdom. I wish to have you visit.

~Belle

I am glad of hear from Belle, I believe that Cliff would be too occupied with his duties to write to me. I only wrote to Cliff because I did not want to arouse suspicion to Gaston.

I suppose that I have gotten some of my brains from my father. For once in his life he has made a good decision, to not leave the kingdom defenseless. I would also be able to visit Belle and Cliff. I have missed them both a great deal. I suspect that Belle had something to do with convincing our father to return to his kingdom.

A few days later I start to train again. I am using a dummy as my target when I sense someone watching me. When I turn during an attack I see Rumpelstiltskin watching me. I decide to do something that no one would ever attempt otherwise, I want to battle with the Dark One.

I use my magic to fall a tree branch behind him. When he looks away I use my magic to speed up behind him and go to attack him from behind. I hear a clang as my sword hits one that he has conjured. He turns and faces me with a smile on his face.

We start to swordfight, he and I are nearly evenly matched. He tries to use his magic to teleport but I am able to counteract his teleporting with my speed. I feel a little restricted by my movements in my tight armor but I still am able to keep up with him.

I go to strike his right arm when a sudden idea comes into my head. I realize that I could defeat him by hitting his open arm but he could easily block it. I decide to aim lower and I hit his leg with the flat part of the blade. His leg buckles a little and he blocks my next attack. As the clang of the blades rings I realize that he is struggling to stand.

"Well done, I think that we have had enough of a good fight today dearie. I believe that we are easily matched but I have a feeling that may not last long."

"Rumpelstiltskin, you cheated using your magic."

"Ah, but it takes two to dance and you were just as guilty. You should know that I have not been challenged like that in a long while. But I suppose that you will be needing new armor for the future."

He waves his hand and I feel myself outfitted with heavier armor that is a little loose.

"You can grow into it."

"Why are you doing this?"

"I wanted to thank you for the good fight. A knight has always been known for their armor and yours was looking a bit too snug."

The armor is a bit heavier than my old armor but I feel like that it will protect me more. I do not see any recognizable insignia on it and I don't feel any magic coming from it. It is nothing more than simple armor that could have come from anywhere but the fact that it came from Rumpelstiltskin is unusual. He has been known for giving enchanted or special objects but this is puzzling.

"I suspect that you have your reasons for this. I just wanted to have a real battle against a worthy opponent. I have not seen an Ogre in a long while and the dummies are no fun."

"You got what you bargained for, I suspect that you thought you could have pulled the sheepskin over my eyes easily but it is never that simple with me. We have to part ways once again. Until we meet again dearie."

He disappears with a puff of smoke and I am left by myself. I take off the armor and manage to fit it into my pack but I realize that it will be more difficult to carry than my old armor. I have to get a new pack the next village I am in.

I thought that it was suspicious that he did not use his magic to heal his leg during the battle. Whenever I would get a scratch on him, he would use his magic to instantly heal it but when I struck his leg he didn't. I suspect that there was something about his leg that prevented him from healing it right away. I have a feeling that if my armor was not restricting me as much then the battle could have easily been won or at least ended sooner.

As I travel again I keep to the main roads avoiding any signs of the military when I encounter them. I fall into the old routine of practicing my magic with Rumpelstiltskin, our fight seems to have ended the silence.