Daughter of Darkness (OUAT fanfic)

Chapter 11

I sit in a field of clovers in the forest outside the dark one's castle. When footsteps approach, I open my eyes.

Two children, a girl and a boy, inch toward me.

"I'm Hansel," the younger boy says. "This is my sister Gretel."

"Are you here to see the dark one?" I ask them. "He isn't in the mood for visitors."

"We're lost," Gretel says. "My compass is broken."

"Do you live here?" the boy asks.

I don't know what to say. If I associate myself with the dark one, they will fear me. If I lie, they will trust me. "I'm here to make a deal with the dark one," I say.

"Do you mind if we sit with you for a while?" Gretel asks. "We've been walking for miles."

"I don't mind."

I've never been good at making friends. I've never really had the opportunity to be good at it. As the only heir to the Prydainian throne, I was instructed to stay inside. There was too much darkness, too many threats to my existence on the other side of the wall surrounding the castle. It was safer for me to stay hidden.

Hansel sits across from me, passing his palm over the grass. He searches for a four-leafed clover. "Where are you from?"

"Far away from here," I say, leaving it at that. When they aren't looking, I conjure a four-leaf clover to impress them.

We play tag in the grass, running in circles. My heart is soaring in my chest. For a while, I forget about the darkness moving through my veins. For once, I feel normal, like nothing is wrong with me, like I am good.

"What's your name?" Gretel asks.

"My name is-" I say my name, but my voice disappears. When I try to speak, I don't make a sound.

"What happened?" she asks. "Are you okay?"

I push away from the ground, stomping across the grass to the dark one's castle.

They follow me inside.

"I see you've made some friends," Rumplestiltskin sings. "How lovely. . ."

I march across the dining room to the spinning wheel and motion to my mouth. I try to speak, but I have no words.

"Remember what I told you, dearie," he says.

This is his way of protecting me.

I close my eyes, focusing on my breath, remembering the sound of my voice, summoning it. I try to scream, but there is no sound.

He shakes his head. "You'll exhaust yourself trying, dearie. Trust me."

I try to speak again, waving my hands, gesturing to my mouth, begging. Please, I promise. I won't tell them my name. I won't tell them anything.

"Lead them away from my castle," the dark one tells me. "When you return, I will give your voice back to you."

I wave for Hansel and Gretel to follow me, entering the trees that surround the dark one's castle.

"You lied to us," Gretel says, and I don't respond.

"Where are we going?" Hansel asks as we move through the forest. He hides behind his sister. "Why are we trusting her? She works for the dark one."

"What other choice do we have?" Gretel asks.

We walk for a while, following a dirt path through the trees. It leads to a road that reaches a nearby village.