Magic's dead

11) A drabble about my muse’s worst enemy.
◥		blanchardsnow-deactivated201405

^{One of the sincerest questions ever asked by mankind, both in our world as well as what we most commonly call Fairytale Land, is the question of whether or not a person believes in fate and destiny. The habit of belief that there is a set course for every individual, determined by some higher power or Fate itself, is said to stem from very early religious and superstitious customs. Baelfire, however, had never been one for superstition. He knew about the existence of magic, and he was well aware of the influences it could have on a person’s life, but he refused to believe that there was a set path for each and every one of them; though Rumplestiltskin had never spoken much of his father, the air would grow thick with disgust whenever the matter of him was brought up. Coward was a word often used to describe Bae’s elusive grandfather, and before long, that same word became like a second name to his own father. It was then that the boy dug his heels firmly into the ground, determined to fight that pattern with every ounce of energy left inside his youthful body.}

^{Years passed by, and without even realizing it, the man who now went by the name of Neal had chosen a path that would inevitably make him out to be his father’s son. It wouldn’t be until after said events had occurred that he would come to that realization—-and it hurt him like nothing else. He had lived a turbulent life and met many people on his way, a lot of which were meaningless contacts, some fleeting friends, while others remained convinced of their enmity towards him. His enemies had always been quaint, that is, until Fate caught up with him. Funny, really, that the event that caused for Emma and Neal’s path to truly cross to an extent they had never done before, would be the one happenstance that would drive them apart.}

^{And there he was, in an empty apartment with his last wad of cash that remained after he had gifted most of his money to Emma to take care of herself once she would be released. Because all the money in the world would not be able to buy him his happiness back.}

^{And all the effort of one man had never been enough to fend off Fate in all its cruelty. Ultimately, Neal’s worst enemies, the consequences thereof and the searing pain of a maelstrom of thoughts that did not seem to let up, even after all these years. Especially after all these years.}

Lived long enough to become the villain
◥		mayorbelle

Leave 'Lived long enough to become the villain' to get a glimpse of my muse being a villain.

^{So many years had passed, years lived in seclusion, that it was almost impossible for a person such as himself to stay off the darker path. All the trials of life had shaped him into something rougher, and as if to pay some form of homage to a sinister past, he had embraced his birth name once more. Baelfire was no longer a young boy with a tragic course of life, but a man who would go through great lengths to protect what little of value he had left.}

^{Emma was part of everything that was lost to him, and by extent, Henry had slipped through the cracks as well. He hadn’t seen them in years, and he had all but given up hope of ever seeing them again; a picture of Henry as a young boy was all he had left now, and it was his most prized possession—-that is, aside from what glistened in candlelight in a dimly lit room.}

^{Unlike what his expectations had told him back when the curse had brought him back to the Enchanted Forest, the dagger had not been able to help him find his father again—-but it had given him so much more in return. It had become a tool in his hands, and with every spin against his fingertip, every glint of light that would reflect off of the blade and into his eyes, he seemed to have grown that much darker. After all these years, he could finally understand his father’s point of view.}

^{It was addictive, the power that pulsated through the dagger. First thing in the morning and last thing in the evening, the one habit he would have was to run his fingers along the blade and spin the tip on his index finger, as if to quench a thirst he’d never realized he had.}

^{The light that reflected off the blade fell upon a strand of wavy hair, and for one split second, he imagined it was one of his long-lost relatives. Then, when his eyes focused, he was met with the disappointment that was her.}

^{“Hmmm—-Belle.”}

^{The name rolled off his lips as though they were leaking a thick grime, making it evident that it was almost impossible for him to pronounce it without some form of resentment. He wasn’t going to hurt her—-not today. But the thought of repayment was constantly in the back of his mind, ticking like a clock that was nearing its turning point. Who the victim would be when he would ultimately come undone was as much a mystery to him as it was to the people he had once known, who were now avoiding him like the plague. The only thing everyone was absolutely certain of was that he would come undone…and there would be terrible consequences. Perhaps a reckoning of sorts, something artistic and cunning—-or perhaps a simple bloodbath to repay karma in kind. In any case, today was not the day just yet.}

^{He turned to her, darkened eyes fixing on her petite form, and gave her quite the invasive once-over, as though he was examining every inch of her body in search of a flaw, a weakness. In stead of playing upon such things, however, he simply turned the corners of his mouth upwards into a filthy kind of grin.}

^{"There is nothing for you here. Nothing I can give you. Why, pray tell, are you here?”}

✧ {Totally didn't just follow your Dean reading your other responses for this meme, nope ;) course not. ehehehe *poofs like Cas*}
◥		her28thyear-archive-blog

Send me a ✧ and I'll introduce you to one of all the muses I ever had.

^[x]

^{“Well—-this is not exactly where I intended to end up. But at least I’ve picked the right climate.”}

^{Shaking her voluptuous curls until they bounced off her shoulders, River inhaled sharply, as if to take in the atmosphere of wherever or whenever she had found herself this time. Tapping the device on her wrist, she pressed her lips together, apparently in thought for a moment, before she seemed to realize that she was still facing the young blonde she had just barely avoided bumping into.}

^{“Would you happen to know what day it is today, dear? I seem to have lost track of time.”}

^{Oh, but perhaps time had lost track of her, in stead.}

✧
◥		thatfunnygirlnamedbelle-archive

Send me a ✧ and I'll introduce you to one of all the muses I ever had.

^[x]

^{“Hey Catnip, wait up!”}

^{Somewhere along the line, he had lost track of that wavy brown hair of hers, though he was sure she’d played him on purpose. With everything the two of them had on their mind, Katniss would lead Gale on a wild goose chase every once in a while when they were running close to the end of their hunt in the forest; no work, just play. And while she was usually prone to being caught within minutes, the sun was starting to lower itself on the horizon and he still hadn’t even seen a glimpse of her. He was certain that she could leap out of a tree in attempt to startle him within moments, but no such thing had happened so far.}

^{And then he saw a flash of dark hair in the distance, so naturally, believing it to be Katniss, he approached the young woman with the same nonchalance that usually played between the two of them. Except moments later, he realized it wasn’t her, and a wholehearted grin morphed into a frown all too soon.}

^{“Uh—-‘scuse me, miss. I don’t think you’re supposed to be here. I mean, neither am I, but you might get caught.”}

^{Yeah, as if he wasn’t risking getting caught, too. But at least he knew what he was doing it for. He was reminded of that every single time he walked into his house or that of Katniss’ family, with the knowledge that they had a little more to feed the hungry mouths that the Capitol had left high and dry long ago.}

✧
◥		youwouldvebeenenough-deactivate

Send me a ✧ and I'll introduce you to one of all the muses I ever had.

^[x]

^{“Was I summoned? What a low-life form of communication. Daddy always told me to be careful what you wish for~”}

^{A crack of the neck, combined with a spark in the young vessel’s gaze that hints at something far beyond diabolical intent, and her eyes glaze over with a pure white—though her demeanor is now completely bereft of any purity that may have slipped through the cracks before. Her fingers arch, but she does not yet make a move. In stead, she gradually allows for her eyes to revert back to their normal, heavenly blue state as she gazes upon the woman before her with such innocence you would almost believe its sincerity. That is, until she speaks once more.}

^{"And what, exactly, is it that you were seeking to accomplish? You must know, I’ve been out of the game for so long, I’m positively aching to go for a spin—-if it weren’t for priorities. Do inform me and make this visit worth my while. Call it…mutually beneficial.”}

✧
◥		occasionallymadhatter-deactivat

Send me a ✧ and I'll introduce you to one of all the muses I ever had.

^[x]

^{“Hey, I’m bein’ let out to play? It’s about damn time. It’s kinda dusty up here—-dustier than a Man of Letters library section. Eesh.”}

"Do it." --rumplestiltskingold
◥		k2esso-blog

Send me "Do it." and I’ll generate a number from 1-30

^{17. My muse leaps onto yours for a piggyback ride (which is really conveniently adorable)}

^“Papa!”

^{The sound was mangled by the speed at which the boy crossed the distance between him and his father, the echo of it mostly carried away by the strong tendrils of the wind that ran across the field. It had been a hard day’s work for Rumplestiltskin, and while his son had been playing out in the field, he could immediately sense that the man was less than cheerful about the progress of his day. And what more could a boy do than to cheer his father up in the only manner he was accustomed to?}

^{The two collided, with a giggle from Baelfire’s side; he had leapt onto his father’s back like the little rascal he was, though careful not to hurt him in the process, and his hand had already moved upward to ruffle the man’s hair in return for the ruffling he had given him that morning. Moments later, he was on his feet again, not wanting to strain his father’s old injury, and his toothy grin had simmered down into a modest smile.}

^{“How was your day? Will you come play with me for a little while?”}

Do it
◥		ducklingturnedswan-archive-blog

Send me "Do it." and I’ll generate a number from 1-30

^{16. My muse sneaks up behind yours to nip them on the ear}

^{There is a fine line between creepy and affectionate, and at some point, Neal was convinced he was balancing it. Things had been fairly decent between him and Emma, but he could not quite stop old habits from sneaking into his daily routine—-and one of those habits was halting in his tracks to observe her as she was brushing her hair.}

^{She hadn’t turned around just yet and she was humming the tune to some song she’d had stuck in her head for days, so he assumed he hadn’t seen her yet. All and all, it was a perfect opportunity for him to sneak up behind her, and he took said opportunity by remaining hidden behind Emma’s own reflection, so she would not catch sight of him in the mirror until the very last moments. Footsteps shuffled towards her, and at the last moment, he leaned in to make himself known, placing a trail of kisses along the nape of her neck and upwards, before finally settling for a nip on her earlobe.}

^{“Good mornin’, Miss Swan.”}

“I missed you so bad.”
◥		viridisalae

^{“Me too, Tink. You don’t know the half of it.”}

^{He gave a half-hearted smile, but the remark rang nothing but truth; with all that had happened as of late, he had longed for nothing better than a friendly face, perhaps even a shoulder to lean on if he felt all the stress was finally making him come loose at the hinges. And then there was Tinkerbell.}

^{In the flurry of events, Neal had hardly had time to rekindle his friendship with her, but now that everything had been said and done, his father was gone and the curse had swept Emma and Henry away from him, he was left all but empty-handed. Yet once again, her presence reminded him that he was not without the presence of friends.}

^{His smile grew fonder at the notion, and he inhaled calmly, as deep as he could, to clear any and all negative thought he may have had before that moment. Despite his current state of being, he was not alone. Patting the spot beside where he was seated by the campfire they had set up for the night, he offered her a seat, and essentially, an opportunity for conversation. Long overdue conversation.}

^{“Looks like it’s gonna be a while ‘fore we get to settle down again, huh?”}

^{Not that he was planning to settle down in the Enchanted Forest without resolving a few pressing issues—-he needed peace of mind. And it was probably audible in his tone of voice as well.}

^{“So, what’s the first thing you’ve got planned? Any wild dreams that you’re lookin’ to fulfill now that things’re looking up for you?”}