A Twisted Tale of Rumpelstiltskin

IV

I had to wait a year to finally hear the news. Queen Eliza is pregnant with her first child! I laughed and jumped around my tavern in sweet victory. In about six to seven more months, that child will be mine. I can't wait to see the look on the king's face when he sees me again, ripping away the thing he loved most. He'll probably kill Eliza once he found out what she had done, but that really isn't my problem. Truthfully, I'm glad this happened when it did. I was beginning to worry that she was foolish enough to seek out another witch doctor or something. I galloped to the back door of the house where Eryn was reading a spell book in bed.

"She's pregnant," I announced.

Eryn just looked up at me, her eyes as radiant as ever but this time, not out of anger. She kept her expression neutral and nodded at me.

"Good," she whispered. I hinted a tiny trace of smile, but I didn't point it out. I closed the door and went to town. There is a lot of preparing to do for a baby's arrival you know, and I needed to start as soon as possible.

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One month away from the due date, I decided to pay Eliza a visit to see how she was doing. Well, more like how my lovely little unborn child was doing I should say. I dressed in my finest suit and put on my good boots, then headed toward the great palace. I got to the gates, blew the sleeping dust on the guards, and sauntered in. I knew she was in the sitting room by herself and that her husband was out for the evening, that much my crystal ball showed me. The door whooshed open in command (my how I love making an entrance) and I walked right in. Eliza was sitting on a fancy chaise lounge with her face turned toward the grand window. She was making small circles with her hand on her large belly bump, while being clothed in a long gold and white jeweled gown, her hair clipped up nicely in soft blonde waves. The shiny golden crown rested neatly on her pretty little ditzy head.

"Hello my dear," I greeted cheerfully.

She spun her head around and furrowed her brows worriedly. "...You," she whispered.

"Yeah, me." I giggled. "How's the life of the queen? I imagine it must be swell, with all the riches and the jewels. A lot nicer than peasant life I presume?"

"What do you want now?"

"I came to see how my baby is doing of course."

"Ugh, stop it," she muttered softly.

"Stop what?"

"Stop calling it yours."

"But...it IS mine. It will be." I'm a little confused. She knows she has to give it up, so why is she acting like this?

"No. It isn't. We changed our minds. We don't want to give up our first baby. Especially not to an evil thing like YOU."

Ouch. I felt my face begin to fume up in anger. "What the hell are you talking about? And--" My breath hitched. "--what do you mean....we?"

"It means Eliza and I will never surrender our child to you," a deep voice came from behind me. I tensed. Eliza stood up, her facial muscles relaxing immediately. There was something...not right about this picture.

I twirled to face the man--the king.

"Hello...Midas," I said, rather dramatically.

Midas, an old but built king, looked down on me, his eyes in narrow slits. He had grown his graying beard a bit, I could tell. Too bad he couldn't grow any on that glossy round head of his, which was currently covered by his crown.

"You," he said threateningly.

I sighed. "Yeah, me." This was getting rather old, wouldn't you say?