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woodelf68 · 3 years ago

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The Hunt For The Green Unicorn

This was supposed to be a fill for both the February @a-monthly-rumbelling prompt "I think we're lost" and for @fluffapalooza, but stuff like broken keyboards happened and I couldn’t get back into it once I missed the event deadline. But I was not going to let the year end without even one Rumbelle fic posted, so here is my very belated offering. This is part of the Floofy!verse, where Neal didn’t die, so the Nolans named their baby Daniel.) Rated G

*****

"I think we're lost," Rumpelstiltskin said mildly. "That's the third time we've seen that picture of the ship.”

The hedge maze had been Regina's contribution to Storybrooke's Summer Arts and Crafts Festival. Magically created, its walls were hung with framed pieces of artwork that were for sale, art that visitors could take down and purchase once they found their way out of the maze.

Belle glared at the offending painting of a tall ship under full sail. "Yes, but..." She glanced around in frustration. At first they had simply meandered, taking their time to look at the art on display, but when they had started seeing the same pictures twice, they had started paying attention to the twists and turns they were taking and actively trying to find the center of the maze, which they presumed held some kind of unicorn -- a statue, maybe? -- and the path which led out of the maze. They had passed by the entrance of the maze again, just as Henry and Grace and the Tillman kids were coming in as a group, chattering amongst themselves, but Belle had ignored it. She knew the proper exit lay on the opposite side of the maze, where an enchantment kept anyone from entering via the wrong opening, and she had no intentions of giving up and admitting defeat. "I'm sure we've tried all the paths!"

"Hmm." Rumpelstiltskin adjusted the baby carrier on his chest, wee Jenny so far having been amazingly good, held snug against him and entertained by all the new sights and sounds. She'd given them a scare, having arrived early, but was now nearly two months old and as bright-eyed and healthy as could be. "Methinks Regina might have built in a little magical misdirection. What did it say about the maze in that flyer you were given?"

Belle fished the folded paper out of her pocket. "The Lair of the Green Unicorn," she read.

“If the way you cannot find In the leafy paths entwined Look for the words that you would sing Hearken to the Lizard King.”

She looked at Rumpel doubtfully. She might have thought the reference to lizards a jibe at Rumpel's appearance in the Enchanted Forest, but he had certainly never sung, at least in her hearing. "Do you -- "

Rumpelstiltskin’s face cleared as a Curse memory surfaced. "Back this way, I think." It only took a minute for him to find the portrait that he had remembered passing more than once. He nodded at it. "Jim Morrison, of the Doors. He was known as the Lizard King."

“Why?” she asked, mystified, studying the young man in the portrait. He was undeniably attractive, all tousled dark hair and sharp cheekbones. She knew that he’d been a rock star who had died tragically young, thanks to her own belatedly received Curse memories, but they offered no further information regarding his moniker. There was nothing lizard-like about him.

“I have no idea,” Rumpelstiltskin admitted.

“Hm.” Something to look up later. Belle read the words printed out at the bottom of the portrait. "Break on through to the other side?" She prodded experimentally at the sturdy walls of the hedge, the branches strong enough to support the weight of some heavy picture frames. "Surely we can't be meant to literally break through the hedge? We'd need a chainsaw. Or a fireball."

Rumpelstiltskin glanced along the hedge to the left of the portrait. The next piece of art hung a good three feet down, leaving an unadorned section of greenery. It hadn't stood out as unusual before, because there were other similar gaps where people had taken down art to purchase. However, now that he concentrated, he could feel the faint hum of magic in this place.

"I think it's a bit simpler than that." Cradling Jenny's head protectively with his left hand, he reached out with his right, trailing his fingers over the hedge to the left of the portrait, until the feel of leaves under his fingertips vanished into nothingness. Grinning, he moved forward slowly, his outstretched arm disappearing, his body following as he met no resistance. "Illusion," he called back. "Come on."

Belle pushed the stroller -- currently laden only with their diaper bag and some purchases she had already made -- forward, following in his wake as the front wheels disappeared from view. "Oh," she said, as she emerged into the what was obviously the center of the maze. "Oh, that's beautiful." She circled around the life-sized topiary unicorn, admiring it from all angles. A green unicorn, indeed. She glanced back at Rumpel and Jenny with a smile. "Look at the unicorn, sweetheart, it’s made entirely from leaves! Well, sticks and branches, too. What do you think of it, Jenny?”

Rumpelstiltskin turned so Jenny was facing the unicorn, moving closer to it. “If we were in the Enchanted Forest, you could see a real unicorn,” he told her. Jenny gurgled and kicked her legs.

“It’s too bad she isn’t older, I bet a little girl would really like this.”

“Maybe Regina can preserve it,” Rumpelstiltskin suggested. “Or recreate it when Jenny is older. We can ask her. In the meantime, why don’t you take some pictures of it?”

“Yes, of course!” Belle took out her phone and took a few pictures of just the unicorn, from different angles, and then instructed Rumpelstiltskin to pose in front of it with Jenny in her carrier.

“Now you,” said Rumpelstiltskin, and took Jenny out of her wrap and transferred her to Belle’s arms. He took a few pictures and they were just about to leave via what they could see was a straight path to the outside that opened up on the opposite side of the clearing from where they’d entered, when Henry and his friends came stumbling in.

“Oh, awesome!” enthused Henry, circling the unicorn. “I knew Mom had a surprise planned but she wouldn’t tell me what it was. I was thinking that maybe she’d have a horse from the stables corralled here that she’d enchanted to look like a green unicorn.”

Belle looked around assessingly. “Bit of a tight fit to build a pen in here. And the horse would graze the area bare in no time. I think it looks better like this, but...it’s an interesting idea. What about having a live animal outside, for a photo opportunity? Or even to give short rides to children? Rumpel?”

“Such a minor alteration to a horse’s appearance should be a relatively simple thing,” he admitted. “Although personally I think a normal coat colour would be more attractive. And I think we could attach a fake horn without even needing recourse to magic.”

“Maybe you can just dye a horse’s coat,” suggested Nicholas.

“It would have to be a light colour to start with,” said Ava.

“Well, I’ll suggest it to Regina as a possibility for next year,” said Belle. “I’m sure it would be a huge draw.”

“I’d like it,” agreed Grace. “And whoever is in charge of the unicorn could dress like a princess.”

“What if it’s a guy?” asked Henry.

“Well, a prince, then. Or really, any Enchanted Forest type clothing would look nice.” Grace found herself becoming increasingly interested in the idea. “Tell your mom a real live unicorn -- even if it’s only a horse in disguise -- would be really, really cool,” she told Henry.

Henry laughed. “All right, I will.”

*****

The popularity of the maze and the topiary unicorn ensured that it became a permanent fixture and symbol of the fair. Each following year a new design submitted by a high school student was chosen to be used in promotional art, and the elementary school students were allowed to choose a name for the unicorn, with “Leafy” ending up the winner. Neal’s art booth -- a mix of pre-drawn pictures and done-as-you-wait caricatures of the fair’s visitors -- experienced a boom in business when he began adding a cheerful cartoonish unicorn to the caricatures, interacting with the guests. As for the maze, to keep things interesting, each year Regina changed the location of the hidden opening to the center, and hung art with different clues to mark it. The second year the hidden gap was marked by a psychedelic print entitled “The Doors of Perception”, the third year it was some cover art for Jules Verne’s “Journey To The Center Of The Earth”, and the fourth year, after the library had hosted a showing of the extended editions of all three Lord of the Rings movies, with costumed attendance encouraged, there was an illustration of the Doors of Durin.

Belle grinned when she saw it. “Here,” she said confidently, holding firmly onto Jenny’s hand after their daughter had tried to go charging into the maze ahead of them. She read out the translation of the elvish lettering in the picture. “Speak friend and enter.”

Rumpelstiltskin ran his hand along the empty space of hedge to the right of the artwork, encountering only the feel of more shrubbery. “No, it must be somewhere else.”

Belle shook her head with a smile. “Don’t you remember? You have to speak the elvish word for “friend” to get the doors to open.”

“Ah, right.” It was a simple enough magic for Regina to manage. He got out his phone, intending to google it. “So what’s the -- “

“Mellon!” commanded Belle, extending her free hand in a dramatic gesture, and the gap in the hedge appeared.

“Yay!” cheered Jenny, and tugged her mother through into the center of the maze. Leafy was an old friend by then, and she demanded to be lifted up to pat his nose before posing for their yearly photos. Then she hurried her parents down the exit path, nearly vibrating with excitement. Last year she had been judged too small; this year, she knew, she was big enough.

In a shaded enclosure close to the maze’s exit stood two unicorns, with two more hooked to the spokes of a nearby pony wheel, carrying their riders around in a sedate circle, their coats gleaming in white and multiple shades of green. Jenny ran to the enclosure and tried to coax one of the other unicorns close enough to pet.

“Ah, do I see a potential customer?” Jefferson inquired with animation. He was attired in a billowy-sleeved shirt and waistcoat, a light cravat loosely wound about his neck. Boots and light cotton trousers completed the look -- he was all for the aesthetic, but he was not going to wear leather trousers or a heavy coat in summer if he had a choice about it. And since he was volunteering his time, he did. When Regina had liked the idea of having a live “unicorn” on hand for visitors to see three years ago, Grace had immediately volunteered to help out, but Regina had told her she would need to have an adult present as well to supervise things. So when Gracie had come to him with a pleading expression on her face -- well, Jefferson would have done a lot more than babysit one enchanted pony that first year to make his little girl happy, even when one unicorn turned into four the next year. He quite enjoyed being Keeper of the Unicorns, actually, there were worse ways to spend the day than making kids happy. And Grace, as she’d promised, did more than her fair share of the work keeping the animals fed and watered and their pen clean, and walking beside some of the younger riders to make sure none of them fell off. “Five dollars a ride, only the finest steeds in all the realms.”

“I’d hate to see what would happen if we told her ‘no’ this year,” said Rumpelstiltskin, watching Jenny with a smile. “So, yes, you have a customer.”

“Excellent!” said Jefferson, jumping up from his folding chair. He glanced towards the pony wheel, where their two actual ponies were already in use, young Danny Nolan perched atop the smaller and sturdier Figment, his father walking by his side, and Alexandra Herman riding the more elegant, all white Cloud, with Grace -- in a flower crown and delicately embroidered green gown -- walking by her side since Ashley Herman was pregnant enough with Alex’s future sibling to prefer watching from the relative comfort of a simple wood plank bench. Jefferson checked his pocket watch.

“Figment’s about ready to come in,” he said. “He’d be the best suited to Jenny’s size. Or if she really wanted Cloud, Alex has about five more minutes on her.”

“Figment will be fine,” said Rumpelstiltskin.

“I want Toby,” said Jenny,

Jefferson glanced at the pinto in the pen -- not a pony, but a compact sized horse, his normal dark brown patches now a dark glossy green that contrasted beautifully against the white of his coat, both his mane and his magically attached horn two-toned. “He’s pretty, isn’t he? But so are the others, and Toby is for the big kids like Henry,” he said, thinking, to himself, or small adults like your parents. “What if some taller riders come along that couldn’t ride the smaller ponies because their feet would be dragging on the ground? It wouldn’t be fair to make them wait for a turn when you could have taken a pony, would it?”

Jenny chewed her lip contemplatively, her sense of justice appealed to.

“He has a point, sweetheart,” Belle said gently. “Do you want Figment to think that you don’t like him? And think of it this way, while you will eventually grow out of Figment, you will grow into Toby; there will be many more years yet for you to ride him.”

“But what if Toby’s bored and no one comes to ride him?” Jenny tried one last tack.

Jefferson laughed. “I can assure you, he’s quite happy grazing there in the shade, with Ginger for company. Just walking around in a circle can’t be very exciting, after all.”

“Oh, all right,” Jenny agreed.

Jefferson checked his watch again. “Perfect timing,” he said. “All right, David,” he called. “Time’s up. How was your ride, Danny?” He went to stop the walker while Danny was lifted down from Figment. The normally dun pony had turned a rather attractive mossy green under Regina’s spell; each pony’s natural coat colour influencing what shade of green they had become. He checked to make sure that Figment’s girth was still snug and his saddle blanket smooth while Danny said it was good and he was going to be a cowboy when he grew up. David grinned and prompted his son to say ‘thank you’ for the ride and then they left, and Jefferson allowed Figment a couple of swallows of water out of a bucket before turning back towards his next customer.

“All right, Jenny, you’re up. And I need someone to walk beside you. Mom? Dad?”

“I’ll do it,” said Belle, stepping forward with Jenny.

Jenny was nearly vibrating with excitement as she was boosted into the saddle and Jefferson made sure the stirrups were the right length for her. She grabbed onto the pommel of the saddle for lack of anything else to hold. “That’s right, hold on tight. You don’t have to do any steering, just relax and enjoy the ride. And whatever you do, do not kick Figment to try to make him go faster. If I see you doing that, your ride is immediately over. Got it?

Jenny looked alarmed. “I won’t. I promise.”

“Good girl. All right, off you go.” He started the walker again, and retreated back to his chair. He looked at Rumpelstiltskin and nodded towards the bench where Ashley Herman sat. “Why don’t you take a load off your feet?”

“I think I might,” Rumpelstiltskin replied, and approached the bench. “Might I join you, Mrs. Herman?”

“Of course.” Ashley patted the empty space beside her. “And just “Ashley” is fine, “Mrs. Herman” is what Alex’s friends call me.”

“Ashley, then.” Rumpelstiltskin looked at the young girl riding Cloud. Her back was straight, her heels were down, and her hands were resting lightly on her thighs instead of holding on to the pommel or a handful of Cloud’s mane. In short, she looked perfectly capable of trotting away on Cloud if only someone would unhook the pony from the walker so they could go for a proper ride.

“Alexandra’s riding lessons going well?”

Ashley laughed. “Very well. She’s started going over low jumps already. I thought this would be too boring for her this year but she told me it would be good for her to practice her balance. Any time on a horse’s back is a good time for her.”

“How are you? And the baby?”

“Oh, we’re fine.” Ashley looked down at her belly, cupping the roundness of it. “This little one is very much making their presence known more and more lately. Not a fan of being kicked from the inside, but aside from the usual pregnancy woes, it’s been nice being able to share this with Sean this time, nice being able to look forward to being a mom. I didn’t get to do any of that the first time,” she said wistfully. “No picking out baby names, no decorating the nursery, no buying things for the baby. Just becoming increasingly aware that I could not bear to hand over my daughter to be raised by strangers once she was born but not seeing a way out of it.” Her gaze rested on her poised, confident daughter, every inch a princess on her steed.

“I’m sorry for my part in your unhappiness the first time,” said Rumpelstiltskin softly, his eyes on his own daughter.

“Why?” Ashley shrugged. “You didn’t force me to sign that contract; the idea of a child seemed so far off and distant when I didn’t even have a husband that the thought of giving one up didn’t really mean anything to me at the time. I couldn’t think that far ahead; I just knew I had to get out of the situation I was in at the moment. If it wasn’t for you,” she added philosophically, “I wouldn’t have Sean, and I wouldn’t have Alex. I can’t regret anything that led to this place.”

“Wise words,” said Rumpelstiltskin. “You have grown and matured into a woman that any child would be lucky to have for a mother.”

Ashley flushed with pleasure. “It’s hard work, but it’s worth it.”

“It is indeed.”

Ashley saw the softness in his eyes as he watched his wife and child. “So,” she said conversationally, “Any plans for a second child for you and Belle?”

“I think we’re happy with just the one. Besides Bae, of course. And we’ve got Henry to spoil. I know that Belle has been enjoying going back to work part time at the library now that Jenny has started school. She’s invested in making sure the children’s section is up-to-date and interesting.” He grinned.

“Well, Alex appreciates all the horse stories that she stocks.” Ashley grinned back. “Any animal stories, really. But horses are her favourite.”

“I would never have guessed,” said Rumpelstiltskin with a deadpan expression. “And Jenny seems to be following in her footsteps. What is it with girls and horses?”

“They’re beautiful and they let you ride them. What’s not to like?” A thoughtful expression crossed her face. “Hm, care to make a deal?”

Rumpelstiltskin’s eyebrows rose. “For what?”

“Babysitting trade,” said Ashley matter-of-factly. “You look after Alex for an evening, and Sean and I will do the same for Jenny. Alex has a lot of horse stuff that they could play with. Or they could watch a horse movie.”

“Date night?” asked Rumpelstiltskin knowingly, and Ashley nodded.

“It would be nice to have an evening alone with Sean before I get too big to do anything, she said, and then flushed as she realised that that might have been too much information. But still, he was a father too, and he and Belle must face the same lack of privacy with a young child in the house. She shrugged and added recklessly “Might as well enjoy the pregnancy hormones.”

Rumpelstiltskin snorted, but he remembered when Belle had been pregnant and her libido had soared. They, fortunately, had not had to worry about a young child interrupting them, though. “I don’t see why not, as long as Belle approves. Why not make it a sleepover if the girls want to? You’re right; I think they would enjoy themselves.”

“A sleepover would be great,” said Ashley fervently. “Talk to Belle and get back to me if she’s agreeable, we’ll work out a good night for both of us.”

Rumpelstiltskin looked at Belle walking along beside Jenny on her unicorn pony, making sure she didn’t fall off and listening as Jenny chattered happily. No need to worry about making noise or being interrupted, he thought with pleasure. No need to stay in a locked bedroom. No need to rush. Just his beautiful wife, and the house all to themselves for the night.

“Daddy!” Jenny called, as the pony walker carried her close to where he was sitting. “Are you taking pictures?”

Rumpelstiltskin hastily fished his phone out. “I am now!” he called, snapping a few photos while she was close and nobody else was in the way. He made sure that Figment’s horn was clearly visible; while long enough to clearly mark him as a unicorn, Regina had sensibly kept the ponies’ horns on the shorter side, for fear of them accidentally hurting themselves of one of the other ponies due to suddenly having a sharp, pointy thing on their heads that they were not used to making accommodations for. The ponies had adapted to them quickly, however, and seemed not at all bothered by them. Belle saw him holding his phone up and waved with a smile. He quickly snapped a picture. As Jenny moved away from him and Alex and Cloud came into view, Grace keeping pace at their side, Rumpelstiltskin took pleasure in the sight of the three girls, healthy and happy and knowing that they were loved and wanted. Which reminded him -- he turned back to Ashley.

“Do you know if you’re having a girl or a boy?”

“Yes,” said Ashley. “It seemed silly to waste time picking out two sets of baby names that we liked when we didn’t have to.”

“And?”

Ashley grinned. “You get to be surprised when they’re born, just like everyone else.”

“Fair enough,” Rumpelstiltskin allowed.

Ashley watched the two girls riding on their ponies, noting with amusement that Jenny was copying Alex’s posture, although she kept one hand on the pommel of her saddle. “What about you?” she asked. “Before you knew what Jenny was going to be, were you hoping for anything in particular? Boy or girl?”

“As long as they were healthy, of course nothing else mattered, but if I had been given a choice -- I’d already raised a little boy; I was hoping for a little girl,” Rumpelstiltskin admitted.

“So you got what you wanted,” said Ashley with a smile.

Rumpelstiltskin watched his wife and daughter and knew how very lucky of a man he was. “I got everything that I wanted and more.”

#rumbelle fic #rumbelle #ficwoodelf #the hunt for the green unicorn #a-monthly-rumbelling #the floofy!verse

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