In her kingdom, hidden away underneath a veil of roses, she would become a hero. Ballads would be written of her great sacrifice to the people and she would later be christened the Martyr Princess. On the first day of her absence the proud king would stand with his head held high and declare that the kingdom was safe from the tyranny of the inhumane ogres and also that prosperity would return to their humble home, almost hidden away from the rest of the world.

She had always believed in the principle of bravery and when presented with the chance to protect those that meant so much to her she had taken it without much thought. Regardless, however, being barely a girl of eighteen it was hard to not shed even a single tear. The road up ahead was bleak and without guiding candlelight and as she rode behind her captor she allowed herself one last look over her shoulder of the one place that she had ever known as home.

The brunt of the journey back to Rumpelstiltskin's estate was made in silence with no passing comments between her and her new master. He was a shadow in front of her, an impish nightmares dream. Belle could not help but feel grateful that he at least offered her the courtesy of a horse to herself, allowing her one last ride before being condemned to the darkness of his abode.

Her mount was a beautiful butterscotch colored pony with white hooves, young and very strong. Underneath the cover of night it was the clip clop of it's hooves that kept Belle from becoming completely undone. "There, there," she mumbled to herself, stroking the mare's white mane. "There, there." She repeated those words several times throughout the next four days.

When the sun was raised high over head in the sky the next day her master stopped and urged her to do the same. There was a stream nearby and it was there that he took the horses to drink and replenish their spirits, Belle watching wordlessly from behind a large hemlock tree. He showed no cruelty to them but when he reached out to stroke one behind the ear it whinnied and backed away from him. With neither screech nor flick of a whip he simply shook his head and stepped back before calling for the beast with a voice sweet like honey.

"A charming spell," Belle observed, watching as the horse approached him, this time allowing him a brief scratch behind the ears. It was then that he dropped his sugary pretenses and took the horses, tethering them to a tree for the time being.

He had removed his saddlebag from his mount and was sorting through the contents, a small grin at lips when he found them. As he produced a loaf of bread and a wedge of cheese Belle felt her mouth water, remembering that she hadn't eaten anything since dinner the night before. It was as her stomach let out a small rumble that Rumpelstiltskin looked up and laughed, spotting out her hiding place with ease.

"Well, are you just going to stand there, Dearie?" he asked, hands at his hips.

"E-excuse me?" she asked, sheepishly stepping out from behind the tree.

"I said, are you just going to stand there? I've only just gotten you, Dearie, and what a shame it would be if my new caretaker dropped dead of starvation before she even lifted a feather duster to my bookcases?" he punctuated this statement with a coltish giggle.

Belle allowed a nervous laugh to pass her lips and nodded her head. "Yes, of course." she said, nodding her head and stepping forward.

He had laid out a handkerchief and was now tearing apart the loaf of bread, taking the bigger piece for himself. Belle said nothing about this, more grateful that he was allowing her any food at all than she was offended.

They remained in the small valley for several hours, until the sun went down and the sky faded into soft pink hues and then transformed into the monochrome night. Belle was curled up in her cloak, lying against a tree and it was just as her eyes were beginning to grow heavy with sleep that she felt his hand at her shoulder.

"It is time again for us to continue our journey." he said, his face shaded by his hood.

She questioned him not and was quick to untie her pony and mount her, once more falling into the monotony of following him into the night.

When they finally did reach his estate Belle felt her breath catch in surprise. Even after living for eighteen years in a palace had she could not say that she had ever seen a place of such splendor. It was not was exquisitely bejeweled or trimmed with gold, what left Belle speechless was how the very walls seemed to buzz with magic. Her adventurer's heart which had lain dormant inside of her swelled with excitement and she was surprised by how well she was able to restrain herself for giving a whoop of joy and going to explore.

As they trotted to the stable Belle allowed herself to take in the landscape and found that despite the magical whispers in the air she was disappointed by the lack of flowers or by any life at all. The sweet scent of hay filled her nostrils as they entered the dark stable and she was quiet as she waited for him to dismount. She was about to do the same but was surprised when she found him waiting for her, offering her his hand.

"What use would it be if you became broken before you could even peel a single potato?" he asked, giggling once more as he brought her down from the mare. He walked the young beast into it's stall and patted it tenderly on the nose, though the horse only neighed and retreated further back away from him.

He shook his head as he did every time he was rejected by one of the magnificent beasts and then stepped away from the stalls. Belle was left alone in the dark and almost assumed that he had forgotten her when she heard a soft whistle and then, "Do try to keep up, Dearie!"

They had burned through most of the day and already the sky was turning a mellow orange. As they reached the main entrance Rumpelstiltskin stopped and with a smooth flourish of his arm the front doors opened. Belle followed behind him into the castle, curiously eyeing her surrounding.

She spotted a pointed wizard's hat in the background, as well as two hanging marionette puppets, a boy and a girl. The hardwood floor creaked beneath her feet and as she ran her finger along the surface of the great oak table she knew that it was safe to assume that nearly everything was coated in a fine layer of dust.

"You'll have your work cut out for you, won't you, Dearie?" the elfish man asked, giggling and then taking her wrist. "It's probably best that I lock you up now, seeing as you'll have such a long day before you!"

"Oh!" Belle cried, tearing her eyes away from a lovely glass slipper resting on a satin pillow. "Where are you taking me?"

The beastly man stopped for only the briefest of seconds in a mock state of thought before picking up the pace once more. "Let's call it… your room." he said, giving a flick of the wrist and throwing open the door of her cell.

"M-my room?" Belle asked, her body shivering from the unwelcoming darkness which lay behind the door.

"Well, it sounds a lot nicer than dungeon!" He giggled, grabbing her by the wrist and shoving her inside.

"W-wait!" Belle cried, her eyes unable to adjust to the dank blackness of the room. "You can't just leave me here!" All she could hear from the other side of the door was the menacing sound of his characteristic giggle and what she only could have assumed to have been the first few steps of a jig.

She lay flat against the door for a moment or so before sinking to her knees and burying her face in her hands. It was true that she had wanted adventure in her life but it was hard then to know what exactly adventure entailed.