For @26ja! I'm super sorry I wasn't able to post any new chapters of the fic in a long while but last Christmas I did half a rewatch of the Fantaghirò movies and a little ficlet came out of it.
It spawned from some thoughts during the second movie, where it's probably set or it should be, it's just a dialogue actually, kind of a missing moment or canon divergence based on the fact Romualdo seemed often disappointed and upset with Fantaghirò as a princess but he also seemed sad/upset when she acted as a knight and it's so weird because at the beginning of the third he's much happier, both are, even if she's not being a princess-queen at all and training guards in male clothes and short hair so, uh, I don't know, I think they should have addressed this earlier. Or they did in between the two.
You know, I rewrote this introduction twice and it makes less sense every time, so just read the thing and you can tell me what you think of it and what came out of this, especially since it's incomplete so maybe I can finish it with your input. Don't feel pressed, just give me your thoughts as always.
Anyway, that's it:
«I'm disappointed you never listen» he sighed, sitting down.
«You've always known me as this» she replied with a smile «Nothing changed, this is the person you met»
«I met a knight who could do this» was his rebuttal «Proud and arrogant, but we were at war, as men we were supposed to try to intimidate each other. Yet the war is over and you are no man...»
«So this is your isssue? That I am no man?» she almost laughed.
He looked up at her, eyes severe yet features pained «You are to behave like the princess you are, this is what our people expects»
«I was never good with being what people expected me to be, ask my sisters» she shrugged and threw a look towards the other room, where the two were counting and examining the still incoming wedding gifts.
He got up and followed her gaze «You have to try, that's the right thing to do»
At that, she turned. She didn't like what he just said, the whole conversation felt wrong to her. «Is that what you think?» was a much needed question.
He pursed his lips, then nodded «I do. You are a princess, a queen, you can't be a knight as well»
«I'm showing you that I can. This month, alone, I caught more bandits than half the army»
«While neglecting preparations for our wedding» he pointed out.
«There are plenty of people working on it, I know nothing of this all, I am more useful to the kingdom doing what I know to do»
«Fantaghirò, you are not a knight, the Count of Valdoca doesn't exist» he said, and there was something in his exasperation that made her almost miss his next words «You are a lady just as I am a king, this is who we must be»
«You're wrong about that» she replied, anger mounting «I am a knight, I am as good as fighting as you are, the Count of Valdoca was me all along, why can't you see it?»
«He was a fake, a ruse, a means to an end» his voice changed lightly at that, a not-so subtle hurt spilling out a think crack «This is not...» he shook his head and turned, not finishing the sentence.
«Look at me» she pushed his cheek so he'd turn to her again «Look at my eyes» she urged.
He did, and opened his mouth but she didn't give him the time to speak.
«I am the one you fell in love with. I am both Fantaghirò and the Count of Valdoca. But at times like this...» it was her turn for the voice to falter, but she pushed on «At times like this I feel that you love the Count more than the princess, even though...»
«My love, no» he whispered, caressing her face «I looked for you all along, since the day you almost shot me with an arrow and I saw your eyes in the woods»
«But then you met me as a knight. You truly got to know me, my personality and values, as the Count. You actully fell for me when I was that knight»
«Except you are not. I'm sorry you feel this way, I'll do my best to correct that if I must»
«What is there to correct?» she interrupted him «Tell me, what is it that you feel you're truly doing wrong?»
Romualdo's face softened in sorrow «I don't make you feel as loved as you are. I adore and cherish you, you're my wife-to-be and you shouldn't feel any less than that»
«That's wrong too» she scoffed «I never intended it as such. I know you love me. I just wish you understood me better. And yourself as well»
His brows furrowed, and he let her go «What do you mean?»
She shook her head «You don't know that you look at me differently when you catch me in armor. That you have this expression of bliss for just a moment, but then you hide it under disappointment and sigh when you have to scold me»
«That's because you shouldn't run around fighting bandits, I am supposed to cherish and protect you, but you don't allow me»
Fantaghirò rose her chin in defiance «Is my own strength a problem to you?»
Was that it? He felt lessened? Couldn't he accept that his fiancè was just as capable as he was, could it be that he fell into the same thinking as anyone else?
«I admire it, you know I do. Yet, you shouldn't have to use it anymore»
This answer, if possible, frustrated her even more. He loved that side of her, but wanted to snuff it out, making them both unhappy.
«But I like to! In fact, I feel myself the most when I am in armor, sword in hand and on horseback, like that's who I was always supposed to be!» she exclaimed at last.
«You were born a princess, though, and a queen you are now. As I am a king, we were born as such and this is the life we should lead»
No, that was plain wrong. He was wrong and he knew it, and he was the same man who thought to end a decades-old war without shedding more blood, even if that was how everyone else did, so she knew he was capable of being daring for the right reasons.
«You already said that, and I wonder who are you telling this to: yourself or me?»
He paused, eyes wide «To us both,» he admitted at last «I wish things could be as you want them to, but they are not. We have a duty to our lands, there are rules we are expected to follow for everyone's good»
«I was never one to bow to rules I find stupid» she pushed on «Can't you see that what we both want and need aligns? Why should we stick to what others dictate is right, if we feel otherwise? We are the royals of this land, if anyone can change the rules, it's us»
He shook his head «The people will never accept it»
«Not now, maybe, but in time. And even if they don't, who are they to criticize the way we live our love? It's a matter between you and me. I am Fantaghirò, queen of this land and Count of Valdoca, both at once. And you, you are my love, a king with a kind heart who loves the part of me no one else did. Don't deprive me of this love just because you fear others would not approve»
Again for @26ja . Thank you for being the one who wants to read all of this stuff that otherwise would have stalled in my pc and gives me such wholesome commentary!
This is the beginning of the fix-it fic I wrote after the 5h Cave of the Golden Rose/Fantaghirò movie. Given I decided to rewrite most of it (I made a lot of mistakes and I had plot holes and other stuff), I’ll only post the few bits I deem good enough to keep to the rewriting.
This sort-of prologue explains the premise. I know you don’t fancy the idea of children of the characters, but although I planned a role for them (yes, plural), they’re part of the plot and not the actual main characters. I hope you enjoy this snippet all the same.
Seven years.
That's how much it passed since Fantaghirò arrived in the Elsewhere and defeated Nameless.
Even if she wasn't held hostage, she felt captive. Since the day of the celebration the villagers pulled together for the Ogre's defeat, she worked on putting on a brave face, pretending not to feel the anguish she did for having left her family and kingdom behind.
Deep down, in a place she wasn't going to admit even to herself, she was scared: when she found out that the feelings tied to her memories could be taken away from her at any whim of the local witch, Asteria, she did everything she could to hide she wasn't fine with her staying in the foreign realm, in order to avoid a second taste of the treatment.
She had to put on a brave mask, the face of a woman always smiling and happy for her new love, little mattered if inside she died a little every day: this was her life now, and the people around her loved her as much the ones she left behind, which made her grateful as they gave her a new home.
Besides, there was apparently no way to go back to her own realm.
It doesn't mean she stopped looking for one.
Fantaghirò had become quite a celebrity in this land too, thanks to the kids rescued from Nameless, and frequently people from near and far villages came to ask for her support.
In secret, when she left the village for this or that ask of help, she kept looking for a magic able to bring her back to her loved ones.
Not that she didn't love the people in the Elsewhere, she had been honest when she said she was beginning to love them, but it wasn't the same kind of deep love she had for her family.
Aries, bless him, understood that the moment the elation for the newfound love had worn out and he managed to see through the cracks in her mask. He couldn't ignore it when she cried in her sleep, or she spent a long time in the day gazing so far that nothing could seem to reach her, lost in her mind as she became when sadness overwhelmed her. Her melancholy was so deep whenever she spoke of motherly love or described to the kids the high towers of her castle that it was hard to miss.
He was a practical man, one who always lived for himself and used to watch his back and get people's characters with a short observation and he had no troubles confronting her on the matter.
Then, he gracefully accepted the truth: that Fantaghirò's heart still belonged to Romualdo and the knight queen was trying to cope with the loss. That of course, she had been charmed by Aries when her real feeling had been taken away, and she was willing to take care of Ezela, Masala and the other orphaned kids, even if she was still longing for home, but it wasn't the same as her family. Her desire to be back was beyond measure.
In addiction, the princess couldn't help to disapprove the fact Aries ran behind skirts whenever he had the chance, and they both knew it would have been a big problem if they had stayed a couple, but it didn't matter as long as they were friends. Anyway, he never left for too long and Fantaghirò was glad he found his fatherly love for the two orphans enough to make him feel at home once in his life.
Also, he was the only one who could help her, following her in her trips, and so he did. Whether in hope of winning her heart, or get her goodbye's words if she managed to find a passageway to her kingdom, only he knew.
But every place had the same answer: the Wishing Plants were the only things with powerful enough magic, and were extinct.
With seven years of fruitless search to make her heart heavy, Fantaghirò desperately tried to put her mind at ease, with no avail.
Until something happened.
A few neighbouring villagers had come to the market with weird news of an old abandoned palace that suddenly had come to life, but in the creepiest of ways.
The walls covered in a thick layer of frost, which replaced the once broken windows and missing pieces of roof, giving to the previously decaying residence a spectral, cold air.
People who had been close to it swore they heard children's cry day and night.
The man added that monsters made of stone and ice had been seen around the palace and sometimes even in the nearby villages, stealing different kind of food and goods: clothes and covers left out to dry, vegetables, fruit and dried fish and meat.
«I bet» the man added «That the evil being in the palace hates fire. Fears it even!»
«Has anybody tried to go in there?» Fantaghirò asked, curiosity ignited by the tale.
«Impossible. Every door and window is closed by the ice, it's so cold that putting a hand close to the wall you end up with frostbite. Also, no one has ever been seen going in or out, ever!»
«And the monsters?»
«Just tales» the man's companion scoffed «The ice may be real, but no one really saw the monsters except an half-mad woman who had her laundry stolen and a couple field workers who probably got too much sun on their heads»
«I'd still like to see it» Fantaghirò said, already planning the next trip.
A female voice reprimanded: «You're leaving again? What's wrong with you?!»
Ezela was a teenager now, not anymore the sweet girl she once had been, but headstrong and easy to anger.
Every time Fantaghirò decided to leave even if she wasn't asked to, Ezela threw a tantrum. Sometimes Fantaghirò was tempted to lose her temper at this girl she accepted to raise as her own, just like she had once done with Smeralda, whom she missed dearly now, but she restrained herself. More often than not her brother was there to reprimand her first anyway.
«Oh, shut up, Ezela! Not everybody wants to stay always in the same place as you do»
Masala, instead, hasn't changed much, even if he was a young man more than a teen. He was taller and more capable both in fishing and swordfighting, perhaps he got calmer and more thoughtful with age, but at heart he was still the boy wishing for adventure.
«Speaking about it, Masala, why don't you come with us?» Aries suggested «With a haunted house another pair of good eyes could come in handy»
«Can I?»
Ezela scoffed and stomped her feet «Oh, wonderful! Really, Fantaghirò, what kind of mother are you, to always leave me behind!» and she walked away without giving them the time to answer.
The mention never failed to make the woman feel like she had moved the knife in her heart. The blonde girl pointed out often how little Fantaghirò resembled Ezela's deceased mother in moods, appearance and behaviour, but it wasn't the worst part. Fantaghirò had always been proud of who she was as her own person, different and unique, and had worked hard to have people recognize she was fine as she was.
No, the real pain were those exact words "what kind of mother are you?".
Fantaghirò often wondered so herself.
It was clear as the day that she wasn't the mother Ezela wished or needed.
Moreover, she didn't keep her promise to Smeralda, ending up not being a mother for her either.
But the very worst part was the other child she left behind.
Her heart clenched every time she thought about it: her son Rinaldo, her flesh and blood, the result of her true love with Romualdo, who never got to meet her and was now supposed to be seven years old.
She had given birth to him just a few days before the Black Witch sent her men to kidnap her and that very day had been the first she put a foot outside the Castle without a carriage and a big escort to follow her.
It was a mistake she sorely regretted today.
She avoided talking about him, cherishing that memory so deep and private in a way that not even Asteria could take it even if she wanted. Also, her love for him was the one that took less to come back, which didn't come from the little magic parasites of the witch, but rather hidden at the bottom of her heart, where it refuged when it was clear the rest was being ripped away.
«Don't listen to her» Masala tried to distract her from her somber state of mind «She's just jealous»
«It's not like we ever forbade her to come with us, if she wanted» Aries pointed out.
The younger man shrugged «She'd be useless and she knows it»
«Now, Masala, stop talking like that about your sister» Fantaghirò scolded him, putting back a smile on her face «I wasn't offended, and she's sort of right: I'm not the mother she wished»
«It's not like you chose to come here. It's our fault you ended up with us, hers more than ours» the boy recalled.
Fantaghirò shook her head «Just stop it. I'm here now, no? So no need to speak about the past. Are you coming with us at Salimea or not?»
«Sure I am!» Masala answered.
«Then go packing!»
«Yes, madam!»
(I think it's n 10, but I'm not sure. Anyway, this is a new bit)
@26ja I said I wanted to post a new chapter since the last one came in December, but I'm stuck with a bit, so here's a snippet for you from a later section.
I know you are a bit wary about the concept of children of main characters appearing in sequels/fics, so I hope you'll like this anyway.
Fantaghirò was lost in contemplation of the sight in front of her eyes: her husband and son, sleeping peacefully, the boy curled in his father's side with his back to her after tossing a lot of times in his restless sleep.
She had no will to sleep herself, wanting to commit that image to memory, so many times she had dreamt of if she couldn't quite believe it was real, that she could touch them if she just stretched her hand.
«You're staring» Romualdo sleepily reprimanded, eyes half-lidded.
«How could I not? I missed you so much» she whispered back.
«I miss you too» was the immediate reply, followed by a sad: «But you are just a dream...»
She caught a tear rolling down his cheek in the moonlight and didn't resist the urge to wipe it «I am no dream. I'll be still here in the morning» she assured.
Romualdo fell asleep again, more serene than before, the only thing that gave her a bit of solace. She lay on her back, looking at the chipped decor of the ceiling, trying to will herself to rest.
«Did you really miss us?» a tiny voice asked.
She sat up, surprised by Rinaldo's question and the way he sounded fully awake, despite still being in the same sleeping position as earlier.
She leaned on her side and whispered back: «Of course I did. Every single day, every minute, even»
«Then why you didn't come back?» he was so serious, too much for a seven-years-old boy «Is it my fault? You didn't want me?» he curled on himself further, his little shoulders shaking, and he wasn't looking her way.
She got closer, to find out her son was silently crying.
Just how long had he held those questions in his heart? How long did they hurt within him, birthing feelings he couldn't name?
Gently, she took him in her arms, not minding how heavy he was. She half-expected him to protest and fuss, but he didn't, waiting for her answer, soaking in the warmth he missed his whole life long.
«Rin, I wanted you more than anything in the world» she whispered «Since the moment I found you existed, and every moment after, I loved you more and more. It broke my heart being unable to come back to you...»
«I don't believe it. Aunt Carolina said you are the strongest and bravest, and you didn't come back...»
«Sometimes the best of our efforts aren't enough» she admitted, carding a hand in his curls «Some times we have to try and try again for a very long time before we can reach our goals. But I promise: I never stopped trying. I always, always wanted to come back to you» she felt her own eyes getting moist and she hugged him tighter, hiding her face in his hair «I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I couldn't be there for you before. I never meant to leave you behind»
«Is it because you didn't have a mom too?»
«Who told you a thing like that?»
«Some people in the castle. They said you weren't ready to be a mom because yours died and you didn't know what to do...»
«That's something only people who don't know me can say» she interrupted quietly «If anything, I wanted to be a good mom to you because I didn't have one, to give you everything I didn't have. I'll never stop being sorry I didn't manage, I love you so much and wanted to give you all I could. I still want this and I promise you I'll do all I can from now on»
The boy curled further in her embrace «You won't leave me again, right? And dad, he was sad too»
«Not as far as I'll be able to prevent it» she affirmed «Rin, leaving you wasn't my choice at all. I was taken away by people who needed me but couldn't send me home again after. I've been looking for a way back this whole time and now I have it. You won't lose me, as long as I can, I'll be there for you»
«Okay. I believe you, mom»
She almost started to cry all over again at the simple word. Instead, she kissed his head and held him close until he fell asleep again.
I made those for the CotGR 6 fic I’ve been working on for literal years and I finally decided to publish. Unlike the other sets, where I did a recast, I picked relatively secent photos of Alessandra Martines and Kim Rossi Stuart, then added Zachary Arthur and Fiammetta Cicogna as Rinaldo and older!Smeralda (although she should be a tad younger, but Fiammetta could pull it off).
To be honest, my next choice for older!Romualdo for an hypotethical sequel, should Kim Rossi Stuart not reprise the role, would be Raul Bova but I’m not involved in any way in the Netflix project I can’t really say anything.
I think I’ll make more sets for the other characters as I keep publishing the story.
It’s not like I finished writing any of the fics, but I thought it’ll be easier to re-read the bits I sent you if they were in order and with a decent format, so I’m getting this ready ;)
I’ll put here the link when I’ll start posting the actual stories.
Merry Christmas @26ja! This my present to you this jolly season (well, it’s supposed to be a jolly season, but this year is what it is...). I hope you’ll like it.
It’s two snippets. The first is with Tarabas and Romualdo, the second is about Smeralda.
1)
It wasn't the first time Tarabas and Romualdo ended up prisoners in a new place they visited. It wasn't new that it happened only because they carried weapons either - the High Prophethess of Diltani was every bit of a scaredy cat and there was an accident with the Pharsian itinerant court too... - so they weren't overly worried about that.
Time wasn't on their side, though. With the anxiety for the kids's fate and not knowing to which point they could trust their travelling companions, saying the duo was a little antsy was an understatement.
«Any idea how to get out of here?» Romualdo asked from his suspended cage up on the ceiling of a sturdy-looking building. The king estimated the place they were in had to be more ancient than the rest of the town, the architecture didn't match after all, except for the ceiling, and had it been another moment he might have mentioned that too, but in the current predicament...
«I'm trying» was the reply from the other, who had his eyes closed and a hand outstretched towards the keys, several meters under them.
«What happened to "no more magic"?»
«With the children involved, this is not my top priority» Tarabas muttered.
Romualdo rose a brow «You don't have to. We'll find a way out of it even without that»
«Not like I have any choice. This strange land's metal doesn't obey me» the former wizard slumped to the bottom of the cell «Either that, or those cages are magic inhibitors»
The two stood in silence for a few moments, thinking what they could to.
«This brings back memories»
Tarabas tilted his head «The expedition in Ozmandya?»
Romuald shrugged «I was thinking of Maideur, but that too»
«Right. How did we come out of that again?»
«Parsel. Maideur is one of the isles of his kingdom and he vouched for us» Romualdo recalled.
«What about how we escaped in Ozmandya?»
«We're not repeating that, Tarabas. I almost broke my legs to do that»
«Almost» the other precised, as if breaking a leg was nothing noteworthy. Maybe it wasn't for him, since he benefited of the accelerated healing of his fae blood, which wasn't the case for Romualdo and his human frailty, not to mention the number age and prolonged efforts did to his body.
«And we don't have Silurus here» he added, mindful of how in that specific case it had been thanks to the huge magical catfish the White Witch had sent thir way, that they got out that situation unscathed.
«So what? We wait for those people to free us? We don't even know them»
«I do. Didn't I tell you I lived for some time in the Auburn Lands? It was before my father died and I had to come back to take his place» Romualdo recalled.
«And?»
«Greer is the younger sister of the duke of the Auburn Lands, who was my friend back then. When I lived there she was ten or so and was already a spitfire with the fame of never leaving any of her playmates behind, no matter what mess they put themselves in. If she's still anything like that, and from the stories I heard of her she is, she won't leave us here»
After a moment of silence, Tarabas switched position to get a better look at the room underneath.
«I'm still going to look for a way out on our own»
«So am I. But I believe you're looking the wrong way»
At Tarabas' interrogative side-eye, Romualdo pointed at the ceiling.
«Oh»
«My thoughts exactly»
They both grinned.
2)
Two years had passed already since Fantaghirò disappeared. I braved my pain in silence, everybody was suffering, I couldn't give them more worries.
But...
Caterina and Carolina were busy, with Evaldo and Sabina and Rinaldo, other than with the kingdom. I took care of him too, of my adoptive brother, while the adults were out, looking for her.
I studied, learned to read and perfect my aim with my slingshot, then learned how to use a bow and even started to practice with knives. I always had a good aim.
For the first year, Romualdo barely spoke with me, always so hurt, always so desperate and despairing in his search, but he looked almost happy... that's a stretch, more like almost proud when he was told of my results. He needed more time to become more like a father to me.
Tarabas showed up only to help, then he had to leave too, to try more or to reach others he loved. Sometimes they came with him, a few times he took me with him to them. The only bits of solace, moving to a place sadness had not contaminated for good.
At the castle I was alone. So alone.
It was as if I wasn't even there, at times.
«Everyone I love disappears» I sobbed, hiding away in a secluded corner of the forest. What forest? I don't remember. My pain I ignored so long for the sake of others, to look strong when the adults who took me in expected me too, now it was too much, I felt like I was exploding, especially so after the last failed attempt.
«Why? It's me? I bring misfortune? Maybe I should be the one to disappear...»
And I did. I did, at last.
«Shh, Smeralda, no, don't say such things»
Cold but soft arms wrapped around me, a gentle hand carded through my hair. I knew this voice, knew those hands.
«It's not your fault»
My still small hands grabbed back, tightened on pale fabric, tears still stinging in my eyes. I couldn't see, but I knew who was there.
«She never came back. She never will. My parents too...»
«I understand what you're feeling»
«No, you can't» I rebelled, but I didn't pull away. She didn't have the same warmth as Fantaghirò, but her embrace was just as reassuring and I missed that so much. The embrace of a mother.
«My parents died too, Smeralda, when I wasn't much older than you. They were looking for a way to help me. And I felt it was my fault for the longest time»
I sniffled and looked up at her crystal blue eyes.
«But you see, what happened to me had a meaning we didn't understand at the time. Everything happens for a reason, the roads we take lead us to where and who we're supposed to be. Cry, if you need it, but then get up again. We'll figure it out. You're not alone»
Smeralda woke up abruptly. She knew well why she relived that memory.
"Cry, if you need it, but then get up again. We'll figure it out. You're not alone"
She curled more on herself, face hidden in white feathers.
No, she wasn't alone, and even if she was, she was going to find a way out.
Soo, I hope you liked those little snippets, the last one I wrote very recently as a part more enigmatic on what’s going on for the kidnapped people. I am also thinking of starting to post the fic as a proper long in my Ao3 account since I finalized the first two or three chapters and I’ll send you the link when I do.
In the meantime, Merry Christmas and... just tell me whatever you think of it! xxx
I am so sorry, @26ja! I promised you to send more of the CotGR wips and then I left more than a year go on without a single line for you!
Truth is, I spent a lot of my writing energies for my anime ffs and only recently I found new energy and ideas to work on this one. Sorry for making you wait!
I said I was going to add some Xellesia backstory. I had three or four possible plotlines I couldn’t decide between, yesterday I finalized one, to put in the CotGR 4 rewriting fic you already know.
Here it is:
«Mother, why did you never tell me?»
It took one look at her son's upset face for Xellesia to understand «Because it wasn't a story I wanted you to know»
«So I didn't deserve the truth? How many secrets about myself you still keep from me?»
She looked uncomfortable, but held his gaze nevertheless «The curse and the other half of your parentage are the only secrets I kept from you. That's it, nothing else»
«That's not true and you know it. Darken is far too eager to have his successor in me, why I find out only now and like this?»
This time, she turned away.
«Mother! You owe me...»
«No truth will ever set you free, if that's what you hope» she snapped «I am not any more virtuous than you know me to be, don't hope my bloodline can somehow redeem you from the darkness»
«You were fae, once. You told me this, when I was a child»
«Fae are not inherently good. Fae, and I am certain I taught you this, are neutral forces, parts of the Spirits of everything. They have souls that can move towards light or darkness in equal measure, just like humans»
«I know that. What I don't is how you turned to darkness»
«It's a long story...» she glossed over.
«We're prisoners here. I have time» he replied.
Xellesia looked conflicted. For a long moment, silence blanketed over them, then she spoke «Long before you were born, I was nothing but a common faerie, lived with my siblings near my birth garden, protected by the depth of a forest. We were rich in magic and resources, so were willing to share with those who happened to wander by us. Until, one day, we hosted a group of lost humans» she paused a bit, then reprised «They stayed with us only a short time and when they left we thought that, like many others, we wouldn't see them again, that they'd keep the secret. If only!» she shuddered, her frown furrowed in anger «They came back, with many others, to destroy our forest and take from us all we had. Many of my siblings died, some of us fled. At last, the Garden repelled the intruders but closed off: because we had been unable to protect it, it protected itself, and I lost my home»
She held her head up, an ancient pain coated her «I wandered for years, with my exiled brethren we took revenge on the humans who wronged us, but even when there were none of the invaders left alive, my anger and pain didn't relent. While my sisters, the only who were left, tried to purify themselves to be readmitted to the Garden, I left for good, unable to do the same. Darken came to me at that time and I am not blameless for falling to his enticement. He said "evil is as evil wants", and that there was no betrayal to be expected from evil when you already know it's hellbent on destroying everything. Evil is the only real way to win, if you destroy others first, they can't hurt you back»
«The same you taught me. Lies you fell for»
«Are those lies? I am not certain. Sometimes the truth is the deadliest weapon we can wield, and when evils says the truth...» she trailed off, leaving the phrase hanging «You can always expect evil to be honest with its intentions, at least, this much was enough for me, after the betrayal my people faced at the hands of humans. Darken didn't ask for my trust, or my loyalty, more than content, he said, to see me join his ranks. His only promise to me was that if I agreed to be evil, no one would have crossed me and lived to tell the tale ever again. I willingly fell to the seduction of darkness» she stopped, the words hanging in the air with all their hidden meanings.
«And then you arrived, and I found I loved you more fiercely than I ever did anyone or anything. I thought better for your sake to raise you away from humans, and onto the way of evil so you wouldn't have to suffer like I did. Humans are wicked, far more than we are, they just don't have the resources to do worse than they already do. But I wanted to keep you away from your father too, for fear he'd take you away from me. I wanted no one to take you from me, you were my child and the strongest bond I had to the land of living, stronger than the one I had with my sisters, even, and I was willing to do everything to keep you by my side forever»
«That's what to curse was for? To keep me prisoner?»
«Don't twist my words, son. The curse... I made so no human could trick you»
Continuation of my snippets of my Cave of the Golden Rose ff for @26ja , under the cut.
6) Darken is defeated and Tuan’s castle is back where it should. I was upset there was no reunion between Tarabas and Smeralda so I wrote mine
«Tarabas!» the young princess ran to him. She was gleaming with happiness, her golden curls flowing freely as she ran with her arms full of her heavy red and white skirts.
«Smeralda!» he replied, opening his arms and bowing to let her hug him.
«I knew it! I knew you were going to help us!» she rejoiced. She never doubted, that's what a friend does? His parting gift to her had to be extinguished by now and still she was gleaming with happiness just for his presence.
«How could I abandon you?» he asked casually, but he was actually wondering, how could I? While looking for himself, he never even came around to say hello from time to time.
«Well, now you're here and all is alright» the little smart mouse said as if she just read his mind «Who is she?»
He followed the girl's gaze to the castle's walls, where Anjalika was waiting, exotic and out of place in her raven braid and bright pink and yellow dress. She was staring at the friendly reunion biting her lip and moving from one foot to another.
«Come on, I want you two to meet» he offered his hand to Smeralda and she happily took it.
[...]
He could read a tinge of worry in her bright eyes as Smeralda asked: «Tarabas, is it true you're going to marry her?»
«Maybe. In time» was his vague reply «I want to understand love a little better before. I'll take small steps this time»
The little princess was relieved «I hope you don't. I don't like her» she revealed.
«You were never good with first impressions» he said with a smile.
The girl put her hands on her hips «I am! I knew you were evil when we met and I was right. And I knew Fantaghirò was okay, even if not really a mom, and I was right too. Now, tell me, is Elsa nice?»
«She is» he acknowledged.
«See? I'm right again»
Tarabas couldn't help but smile wider. Yes, his little friend had a good instinct for people, but Anjalika wasn't bad. And he had time to find out if she was the right woman for him.
«Come on» he only said, putting a hand on the girl's shoulder «Let's take you back to the castle»
I wrote more than that, but the other bits are even more fragmented and incomprehensible, so I’ll stop here until I have something more consistent. I have another WIP that has Romualdo and Tarabas end up in Elsewhere, but I recently decided to rewrite it from scratch and only keep one or two main scenes and a few elements. I’ll put those in another post, if you want it, but keep in mind it accepts the 5th movie as canon and I tried to fix its wrongs.
