For four months Morraine manned the trenches, discovering a resolve within herself that she never thought possible. And every day for those four months, she scanned the new recruits, looking for Baelfire — each night relieved when he didn't appear. He haunted her dreams as days of their childhood exploits mixed with warzone visions.
One morning as she dozed between battles, falling into a restless slumber from utter exhaustion, she heard Rumplestiltskin's voice. There was a different cadence to it, but it was undeniably his.
"Wake up, wake up, Morraine!" a fellow trenchmate shook her. "The war is over. We are being freed!"
It wasn't a dream; she had indeed heard Rumplestiltskin's voice. She peeked over the edge of the trench and spied him, his skin glittering and his eyes boring into all he surveyed. He stood confidently and resolutely, himself but not himself at the same time.
Teens were running past her now, through the trenches and out onto the field. She stood transfixed, trying to comprehend all that was happening.
And that's when she saw Baelfire.
She thought she was hallucinating, mixing fact with fiction. He rushed past the children, encouraging them to move and follow his father home.
But he was doing more than that. He was turning, scanning, looking for someone frantically.
And that's when Morraine realized one truth in the universe, and it struck her like an ogre's mace to the torso.
Baelfire did not come to save the other children. He did not convince his father to come merely because it was the right thing to do.
He came for her. And her alone.
His eyes met hers and lit up like the stars she spent her evenings after battle wishing on. She inhaled sharply and forgot to exhale. He fought the tide of child soldiers to reach her. He stood in front of her just as breathless as she and grinned down upon her.
"I came to rescue you," he confirmed.
They hugged and held each other tightly. Her heart rate increased and her knees wobbled. Lack of sleep and nutrition, she told herself. She pulled away to address him, to thank him for coming for her. Her mind went blank as she realized how close her face was to his. She looked into his eyes and he looked into hers. Their faces started to inch toward each other.
SMACK! A group of teen girls running by knocked Morraine off balance. Baelfire's arms kept her from falling.
"I've got you," he said, steadying her.
"Yes," she whispered breathlessly. "Yes, yes, you do."
The crowd surrounding them intensified and they were forced to move apart. Baelfire looked ahead and waved at his father who was patiently waiting for him. They made their way through the crowd towards him and discussed logistics of how to get the children home. The change in Rumplestiltskin's appearance startled Morraine speechless at first, but she soon volunteered information to assist in the efforts. As they ventured back to their village, the veil that had been thrown asunder during their initial reunion to show love's mystery and delight fell back into place. She only imagined the possibility of a kiss, she told herself. For if he wanted to kiss her, wouldn't he try again? And alas, he did not.
Before the curse Rumplestiltskin used to chat with her when Baelfire wasn't around. She would always reciprocate by asking about his spinning because it was nice to hear the normally quiet, soft-spoken man pontificate about his passion. But since his change, she became simply "Baelfire's friend" – completely nameless, as he was too busy gaining magic and power to remember someone as lowly as her. She embraced the anonymity, especially when so many people ended up dead. At her parents' insistence, she no longer set foot in Baelfire's house and instead he came to hers.
Because the other children ostracized Baelfire, Morraine spent a great deal of time alone with him. Morraine didn't fear Rumplestiltskin because she sensed a glimmer of good still resided within the man. Still, she wasn't taking any chances and thanks to her training in the Ogre Wars, she became adept at determining when Rumplestiltskin was leaving and returning so she could stay out of his way.
Baelfire and Morraine's relationship was not the same since she returned — and Morraine didn't quite understand why. They seemed to be stuck in limbo, in a stasis of some kind — unable to move forward to something more or backwards to their carefree days before the curse and the war. There was an innocence lost on both their parts, mixed with a twinge of sadness about their own lives. Occasionally there was a glimmer of glee like they had in their younger days, and she held onto it as long as she could to enjoy the short-lived ride. She tried what she could to propel them forward, but Baelfire ignored all her signals. In hopes of bringing happiness back to Baelfire's life, she suggested he talk to Ruel Ghorm to see if the Ultimate Power could break the curse. He liked that idea and told her he'd try. Morraine smiled as she slipped away. There may be a distance between them, but the one thing that remained steadfast was their dependence on each other. Morraine knew that no matter what happened between them, that would never change — and she was grateful for it.
One autumnal evening two months after her return, Morraine sat at her windowsill looking at the stars and wishing that Baelfire could love her even half as much as she loved him. A tapping noise outside disturbed her dreaming and she was shocked to discover Baelfire standing outside, throwing pebbles to get her attention.
She opened her window. "What are you doing?"
"Meet me in the field," he instructed. "I need to talk to you."
"Ok," she answered. She closed the window and took a deep breath. What did Baelfire need to talk to her about at this time of night that he couldn't talk to her about from his bedroom window? Did he follow her advice and talk to Ruel Ghorm? She bit her lip and beamed as she threw on her robe. She loved that he was always the first person who he told important things like that to. Then her eyes widened. Maybe, just maybe, he wanted to tell her that he felt the same way as her, to kiss her under the moonlight like she'd been fantasizing since the day she'd been taken away from him?
No, she sighed to herself as she descended the ladder of her loft. Boys never thought about romantic things like that. He probably won a bet and wanted to show her the marbles that were his prize. Something silly like that.
But what if he did want to kiss her? She quickly assessed her appearance in the mirror and puckered her lips. She shook her head.
"Stupid," she mumbled to herself. She refused to get her hopes up.
She exited the house, pulling her robe tightly around her, and met him in the field.
"What is it?" she asked as she approached him.
"I talked to Ruel Ghorm and I found a way for my father to lose the magic and for us to be together like we used to."
Morraine beamed. "That's great, Baelfire! I'm so happy for you." She wanted to hug him, but she instead folded her arms in front of her, uncomfortable in front of him wearing such a light nightgown and robe when she knew how cold – and what showed – through such thin fabric. "What do you have to do?"
He showed her a clear bean. "This bean will open a portal to a land without magic. He and I will cross the portal and be free of the curse forever."
Morraine replayed Baelfire's words in her mind. "Crossing a … portal? A land without … magic?"
Baelfire nodded, returning the bean carefully to his pocket.
"But that sounds so …" Morraine searched for the right word, "… final. When will you come back?"
"That's just it; we won't," Baelfire explained calmly. "So I wanted to say goodbye." He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "It's been … very nice … being friends with you … and I'll never forget you."
Morraine looked aghast. This couldn't possibly be happening. She'd fallen asleep at the windowsill waiting for him and she was having a nightmare.
Baelfire stepped toward her, licked his lips and looked at her own. "Um," he began and his voice trailed off as he awkwardly extended his arms, but she was too stunned to notice. When she didn't approach, he nonchalantly swung his arms down, as if he only meant to extend them for circulation. He gazed at the ground and pretended that his step toward her was an attempt to move around her. His shoulder tapped hers as he walked past.
"So long," he mumbled.
She turned and watched his back as he strode away. She closed her eyes and replayed his words to fully comprehend what happened. By the time she had, he was already out of sight.
She shuffled home in a daze and climbed the ladder back to her loft. She looked at the ball — their ball — that rested on her dresser. Now it would be just hers.
That's when the tears came.
She heard rummaging outside and knew Baelfire and Rumplestiltskin were leaving. Her blood began to boil. She grabbed the ball with one hand and opened her window with the other.
"Hey!" she called to them, her anger intensifying exponentially.
Baelfire looked up as she hurled the ball at his head.
"OW!" he howled as the ball struck him hard.
"You forgot YOUR BALL!" she yelled.
Baelfire's eyes flashed and his next words dripped with venom.
"Keep it. I can always get another."
He glared at her before he rounded the corner, coaxing his father along and disappearing from sight.
That glare became emblazoned on her brain.
She threw herself on the bed and sobbed. Was this to be their last encounter? What a tragedy!
No, she told herself resolutely as she wiped her tears away. No, she would not allow it. This was not the way to end things. She had to remain strong. She should have one last GOOD memory of him – and he of her — if they were never to see each other again. She would offer support as a best friend should. She just needed to get through this. Then she could break down.
And be miserable forever.
She ran down the main street, through the field and into the woods, only to be met by Rumplestiltskin stumbling around in a daze.
She looked around him, past him. "Where … where … where is Baelfire?" she asked, turning in all directions.
"Gone," Rumplestiltskin whispered, staring into space. "Gone."
"What?" she asked, processing Rumplestiltskin's words. "What?" she breathed, still processing. "WHAT?" she shrieked. "No, no he isn't! He can't be gone. Not yet. I … I didn't get a chance to say goodbye! Not the way I should have! No… no, he can't be gone!" She twirled around, expecting him to step out from behind a tree at any moment as punishment for her anger, ready to forgive her.
This was her fault. She had been the one to suggest Ruel Ghorm. None of this would have happened if she hadn't tried to be helpful. None of this would have happened if she hadn't loved him so much and wanted more than anything to see him happy again.
She heard of people's lives flashing before their eyes as they were about to die. But she never heard of what happened to her: seeing the life she could have, the life she was supposed to have, flash into oblivion. The first kiss, the first declaration, the first time. The first vows, the first house, the first marriage bed. The first baby, the first birthday, the first steps. The first school projects, the first empty nest, the first grandchild. So many firsts gone, all gone. Never experienced, never gained, never coming back.
"You robbed me of my future!" she screeched, her voice hoarse and strained. "You ripped it away from me!" She pushed Rumplestiltskin as hard as she could. "Why didn't you go with him? Why are you still here? He did this all for you! He gave me up for YOU! And you let him leave — without going with him!"
She pounded her fists against Rumplestiltskin's chest. She didn't care if he turned her into a snail and stepped on her. That would be preferable to living a day without Baelfire.
Rumplestiltskin grabbed her arms. "I am going to get him back!" he vowed through clenched teeth. "I will not rest until we can be together again! Just you watch. I'll do it. I have all the time in the world, and it will be my sole purpose."
Realizing that he was serious, she stumbled backwards and out of his grasp. He stepped back himself, assessed her keenly, and then rushed past, his cloak furrowing in the wind until he disappeared into the night.
She shuffled home and stood outside Baelfire and Rumplestiltskin's house, now dark and deserted. She pressed her face against one of their windowpanes and the pale moonlight illuminated an empty interior.
She raced to the alley between their houses and looked for the ball she threw at Baelfire. But like all Baelfire's personal effects, it had disappeared. As she tried to open Baelfire's front door, a shock jolted her backwards. She flexed the fingers of her injured hand; magic surrounded the house, forbidding her entrance.
She clenched her fists and cursed Rumplestiltskin. "You bastard! That wasn't your ball to take! That was OURS. OURS, not yours." And she felt the raw loss just as keenly as she had a few minutes before.
Her parents staggered out the front door.
"Morraine, what's going on? What's the matter?" her mother asked.
Morraine collapsed into her mother's arms and sobbed. "Baelfire's gone. He's gone."
Her parents summoned the doctor, who gave Morraine a tea that tasted funny. She lay in her bed feeling woozy and listened as her parents discussed her downstairs with words like "traumatic event" and "hysteria." She also heard them speak of Rumplestiltskin and Baelfire followed by the word "murder." Let the whole village think that, she told herself. It didn't feel that far from the truth.
She dozed involuntarily until the sound of rain on the roof revived her. She longed to feel it pelt her skin rather than the numbness that now enveloped her. She opened her window and poked her head outside. She closed her eyes and let the rain soak her. She extended her arms, welcoming the sensation, and opened her eyes. As rivulets ran down her face, she stared at the window across from her, a window that would never open again, not until his return.
And he would return. She would see to it. Fire and Rain, they were called. Elements of the gods. Destined to be together no matter what barriers life put in their way. She felt the rain revitalize her, empower here. If Rumplestiltskin could devote the rest of his long, miserable life to reuniting with Baelfire, so could she.
"You came to my rescue," she addressed the starless sky above. "Now I'm coming to yours."
Morraine followed destiny's path while Rumplestiltskin followed his own. A teenage girl and the world's most powerful wizard, both working toward the same purpose — but separately.
And the teenage girl would be the one to succeed.