The Masquerade

By: RosexKnight

spottytonguedog prompted: Meeting at a masquerade ball au.

Chapter One

Rumpelstiltskin did not hate royal balls. On the contrary, sometimes he found them quite enjoyable depending on who was throwing them. The sorcerer was always invited to them. Too many for him to possibly attend, really. Perhaps because people thought if they didn't invite him he would set a curse to their first born. Not that he would. He had much more class than Malifacent.

This particular ball was proving to be the most interesting he'd been to in a while. It was not often that Snow White and Prince Charming threw a ball, and even rarer were they masquerades. At first he didn't entertain the thought of going. After all, what fun would it be if no one could recognize him? There'd be no need for him to make an entrance. No entertaining glances of worry or side-steps to avoid him. In truth the thought really bored him. But something was tugging at the back of his mind. Telling him it would be important. So here he was, dressed in his finest with a golden mask eating refreshments and drinking wine. It turned out he didn't need to worry about people not recognizing him after all. In fact it was even more entertaining to see the fear flash behind their eyes when they made the connection and scurried off. That suited him fine. He didn't mind being left alone at these things. Not when he was only there for formalities anyway.

Names were his specialty, but he was finding it quite challenging to find the names of the party-goers without seeing their faces. He made a game out of it, his eyes wandering the room. Snow and Charming were easy enough to spot, as was their daughter Emma. Cinderella. Aurora. Philip.

"Excuse me." a voice chimed, and he looked beside him to see a maiden clothed in a gorgeous yellow dress with a mask that seemed to be made of pages of old books pressed together in an intricate design of swirls with a few flits of gold mixed in that somehow made her blue eyes even more striking. "You're standing in front of the punch."

The Dark One studied her for a moment, unable to place a name. Most people were able to place who he was by his mannerisms, after all he saw no need to hide them, and had been given a wide birth. This girl, however…

"Sorry, dearie." He said, his voice soft but his tone playful as he stepped to the side in one fluid motion.

She gave him a smile, stepping over to fill her cup. No wary glance. No twinge of fear. He couldn't place a name.

"So…I've been watching you." She started. "And you haven't talked to anyone besides Snow White and the prince all night. Royal balls not to your liking?"

"Oh on the contrary." He said simply, turning to see her looking at him over her cup as she sipped the punch, quite closer than he'd expected. "I've simply been trying to figure out who the guests are."

The maiden nodded. "I see. A game you'd have to be quite clever for. I'm afraid I haven't had much luck at it tonight. I could only place my hatter friend and a navy lieutenant I know."

"Oh I'm much more than clever." He said, giving her a grin. He saw her blink, realization hitting her. But still she didn't move. Still the fear didn't flash through her like all the others. She seemed almost...intrigued. "But I seem to be at a loss to your name."

"Perhaps we can make a deal for it." She offered with a smile, setting her cup down. "I'll tell you my name, if you...give me a dance."

Rumpelstiltskin blinked, something tugging at his chest, making it flutter at the look she was giving him. Suddenly he was very interested to know exactly who this girl, who stood so easily and spoke so bluntly to The Dark One was. Who would trade her name, something that held so much power for something as trivial and annoying as a dance. Yes. One dance with her was more than worth the mystery of who she was.

"Deal."