by Sonya Writes
Alina nodded and watched as he read to her son. Thousands of thoughts floated through her mind as she reflected on the past few years and everything she’d experienced.
“And they all lived happily ever after,” read Rumpelstiltskin. “The end.”
Rowan looked up at him. “Read again, daddy,” he said.
As soon as the words left Rowan’s mouth, Rumpelstiltskin’s skin began to glow. He stretched out his hand and smiled. “What did you say, Rowan?” he asked.
“Read again!”
“The other word.”
Rowan thought for a moment. “Daddy?” He laughed. “You not daddy. You stiw-kin.”
But the curse had been broken. Rumpelstiltskin’s bones began to grow, his hair darkened, and his face changed. Rowan ran to his mother’s side; he and Alina watched in awe as Rumpelstiltskin’s body stretched out into his true form.
Alina’s mouth dropped open. “Cameron?” she said.
He smiled wide and stepped forward to hold her hand. “Alina,” he said. “It’s me. It’s always been me. And I am so happy to finally be able to tell you about this.”
Alina pulled her hand back and shook her head. “All this time?” she said. She shook her head once more and then she ran down the stairs to be away from him.
~
happily ever after
Cameron scooped Rowan up into his arms and chased after Alina, but she’d already made it to her bedroom and locked the door.
Rowan was understandably confused, but he was also delighted. He’d just seen the most magnificent magic trick of his life! “Again!” he cried. “Again!”
“I need to get you in bed, little buddy,” Cameron said. He took Rowan to his room and tucked him in bed. “Good night.”
Rowan yawned and hugged his blanket. “Nighty night.”
Cameron stood and watched for a moment to be sure that Rowan was falling asleep. Then he left the room and returned to Alina. Her door was still locked.
“Alina,” he said. He knocked on the door a few times. “Alina, please let me in. We need to talk.”
“Go away.”
He sighed.
“Alina, listen. Please. I can explain.”
He waited, and after a few moments she opened the door. “Explain what?” she said. “That all this time you’ve been playing me for a fool?”
“No,” he said. “Alina, it’s not like that.”
She started to close the door, but he moved his foot in the way. “Leave me alone,” she said. She pushed on the door a few times, but he wouldn’t budge, so she walked away from him and went to her bed.
Cameron followed her into the room. He sat on the opposite side of the bed from her and they sat with their backs to each other.
“I understand why you’re upset,” he said. “I’ve wondered what this moment would be like for years, when you found out that all along Rumpelstiltskin and I were the same person.” He sighed. “Please understand I didn’t want it to be this way,” he said. “I was under a curse, and if I’d told you about it, it would have been less likely for the curse to be broken.”
He waited, but Alina said nothing. He turned around and sat beside her. He rubbed her back for a moment, and she turned to face him. She leaned onto his chest and closed her eyes.
“I don’t want to talk right now,” she said.
Cameron wrapped his arms around her, and she began to sob. They lay down in the bed together and he rubbed her shoulders until she was asleep. Cameron kissed the back of her head a few times and wondered how he could possibly restore their relationship.
~
The next few weeks were agony for Cameron. Throughout their marriage, he’d had Alina’s physical affection as himself, and as Rumpelstiltskin he had her trust and friendship. Now that the curse was broken, he was experiencing their marriage the way he realized Alina had experienced it all along. She didn’t talk to him much and the relationship felt shallow. He deeply missed her friendship and love. There were times he wished the curse had never been broken.
Alina stopped going to the north tower, but Rowan still loved it up there. Cameron took over his bedtime routine and brought him up the stairs each night to read to him and occasionally play for a bit.
Rowan yawned. “New story,” he said. He closed the book that Cameron was holding. Cameron reached for another book, but Rowan pushed it away. “No,” he said. “New story. Not these books.”
“You want a story we haven’t read before?”
Rowan nodded.
“Okay,” Cameron said. “Well let me think for a minute.” He tried to come up with a story to tell, and then he smiled. “Okay,” he said. “I’ve got it. This is a new story. One you haven’t heard before. Ready?”
Rowan gave a sleepy nod and closed his eyes to listen.
“Okay. Once upon a time, there was a foolish man who came to visit a foolish king. The man told the king that he had a daughter who could spin straw into gold! The king did not like being lied to, so he threatened the man and said that if she could perform the task, he would marry her. But if she could not perform the task, then both she and her father would die.”
Rowan opened his eyes and looked up at his father. “Did they die, daddy?”
Cameron smiled and continued his story. “The next morning, the king regretted what he had said, for he knew he shouldn’t have taken the foolish man so seriously. But, he thought he knew a way to make things better. You see, the king was under a curse.”
“What kind of curse?”
“Well,” said Cameron, “Every night, the king was transformed into a small and unsightly man. The only way to break the curse was to have someone accidentally call him by his true identity, something he’d assumed for a long time would never happen. Anyway, years before, he’d obtained a magical pendant that could prevent the transformation from taking place, but only once every few days. With a bit of thought, he decided to use the pendant’s magic to help the maiden.”
Rowan smiled, but his eyes closed once more as he listened.
“So,” said Cameron. “The king went into the tower after his transformation one night, and he helped the young woman spin the straw into gold! But the maiden did not know it was the king who helped her. She very much liked the man who helped her spin the straw into gold, but she did not care for the king. So, in order to know his wife, and also with the hope that one day she or her child may break the curse, the king continued to visit with the maiden each night after his transformation. They developed a wonderful friendship.”
Cameron looked down and realized that Rowan was asleep. He frowned. “And then,” he said. “The king, in all his foolishness, broke the maiden’s heart and their friendship was gone.”
Cameron stood and carried Rowan down the stairs. When he got to the bottom, he found Alina sitting there, waiting for him.
“I heard your story,” she said. “Sound travels so well up and down this staircase.”
Cameron nodded.
She sighed. “Come to bed once you’ve put Rowan down,” she said. She walked to her room.
Cameron did as she asked. Alina looked like she was asleep when he found her, but he knew she wasn’t. He lay down beside her. She reached over and touched his hand.
“I miss my friend,” she said. “I could tell him things that I told no one else.”
“He’s still here,” Cameron said. “He’s been right here all along.”
“I’m still trying to make sense of it all,” Alina said. “I feel so betrayed. I trusted Rumpelstiltskin.”
“You trusted me.”
“That’s not fair,” she said. “I didn’t know it was you. Rumpelstiltskin, Cameron, whoever you are. You misled me. You’ve deceived me. And to think that you threatened my father with a death sentence because of a stupid lie he told.” She pulled her hand back and turned away from him. “So much for you being a man of your word,” she said.
“Now, wait a minute. That’s different,” he said. “As king, I had to be
a man of my word, all the time, or no one would take me seriously. As Rumpelstiltskin, yes it was still me, but I was able to take on another identity because no one knew it was me. You hated me as Cameron, so as Rumpelstiltskin I wanted to be your hero.”
“I just don’t think you understand how much you’ve played with my heart in all of this.”
He sighed. “Perhaps not,” he said. “But I’m beginning to. It was easy to be patient while you hated me as Cameron because I knew you cared for me as Rumpelstiltskin. Now that the curse has been lifted, I’m afraid you won’t care for me at all.”
“I just want to know who you really are, Cameron. Are you the man who planned to put me to death for my father’s dishonesty, or are you the man who used dishonesty to save my life?”
“I’m both, Alina. I’ve always told you that I knew holding your father accountable to those words was a mistake, and I did everything I could to make it right.”
“Everything except tell me the truth,” she said.
“If I’d told you it was me, then the curse might never have been broken,” he said.
“And neither might have my heart.”
Cameron groaned. “Is our marriage impossible, then? Will we always be at odds and never be friends as we once were? Are the conversations we used to have when I was Rumpelstiltskin simply gone for good?”
She turned to look at him. “I’m talking to you now,” she said. “The conversation just feels a bit differently now that I’m talking to you instead of about you.”
Cameron grabbed her hand once more. “And, if we keep talking like this, do you suppose we can begin to trust each other again? Can you come to trust me the way you trusted Rumpelstiltskin?”
“I hope so,” Alina said. “I’ve really missed my best friend these past few weeks.”
“I’ve missed you too,” Cameron said. “Will you forgive me for this mess I’ve created, and can we try to start a clean slate?”
Alina nodded. “I think that would be for the best,” she said. She scooted closer and cuddled into his arms.
“If you can be as transparent with me as you were with Rumpelstiltskin, I think we can have a decent marriage.”
“If you can daily remind me why I loved you when you were Rumpelstiltskin, and if you promise to never deceive me again, it would make opening up to you a whole lot easier.”
“I’ll do my best,” he said. “And I promise not to deceive you again.” He gave her a gentle squeeze and kissed the back of her head.
“You know,” she said. “I think I like this. Instead of sharing half of myself with you and half with Rumpelstiltskin, I can give all of myself to one person, my spouse, the one I love. It never felt right to share physical chemistry with you while we lacked any sort of emotional connection. Or at least, I thought we did. I like being able to talk like this with you while knowing it’s you.”
“I like it too,” he said. “It’s nice to finally know that you can love me while I am myself.”
Alina closed her eyes and smiled. “And Cameron, the next time you tell Rowan that story, make sure to give it a happier ending.”
He nodded. “I will, Alina,” he said. “I will.”
And together they did give their story a happier ending. They worked on their marriage together day after day, setting a good example for all who knew them. Years later they had another child, a daughter. They ruled the kingdom well, never kept any secrets from each other, and they all lived happily ever after.
Other Books in this Series
Treasury - Fairy Tales Retold
Treasury contains the complete collection of Sonya Writes' Fairy Tales Retold series, offered together in one book at over a 50% discount compared to purchasing all eight novellas separately.
Rivalry – a Cinderella story
When the prince comes to return Cinderella's glass slipper, her twin sister Marcella is the one who answers the door. Desperate for love after a difficult childhood, Marcella is happy to play along and pretend to be 'Ella' for the prince...
Remedy – a Sleeping Beauty story
Accused of kidnapping the prince and locked high in a tower, Laila Rose Thatcher utilizes the only solution she can think of to avoid the queen's daily questions and accusations: drink a potion and sleep until Prince Thaddeus has returned safely home.
Lethargy – a Princess and the Pea story
Nicholas is ready for marriage and tired of his mother sending away princesses for the silliest of reasons. So when he learns that Princess Penelope has a rare allergy to peas, he comes up with a plan...
Liberty – a Rapunzel story
When Princess Rapunzel and her nanny Gisele are locked up in a tower together, Gisele quickly forms a plan: they will grow their hair together until it's long enough that they can use it to escape.
Transparency – a Beauty & the Beast story
Adah sees people for who they are inside whenever she touches a rose. So when the royal prince appears as a hideous beast to her, she know she must prevent her best friend from falling in love with him for his outward charm.
Flattery – a Frog Prince story
Prince Jeffrey and Princess Helena have never met each other, but their wedding is tomorrow. Jeffrey's little sister Sari is excited about Helena becoming her new sister-in-law.
Helena's plan is to go through with the wedding and work on building a happily ever after with this man she's never met.
Jeffrey's plan is to disappear for a while to avoid the marriage. He has a month-long adventure all planned out, and he's not coming home until he's sure the wedding has been canceled. Unfortunately, he drops the map outlining his adventure, and Sari happens to find it.
Sari doesn't have a plan, but somehow it seems convenient to tell Helena that Jeffrey has been turned into a frog. The next thing she knows, she's sending Helena off with the map and a large frog, with the hope that Jeffrey and Helena might bump into each other before the adventure ends, and that perhaps they'll fall in love along the way.
Vanity – a Snow White story
Vanity is the story of one young woman's ascent to the throne. Cassius has been desperate her entire life to hear that she's beautiful, and when the king takes interest in her, she easily falls for his charms. After his death, she finds herself alone to raise a step-daughter and rule a kingdom, a task more difficult than she's prepared to handle.
Other Books by Sonya Writes
Yearning (a First to Dance prequel)
a novelette
Etana is looking for purpose in her life when an opportunity presents itself: leave Earth and become one of the first colonists on a planet called Azias. Convinced she's found her purpose, Etana applies for the opportunity and prepares to leave Earth behind.
Approximately a thousand years later, a young woman on a planet called Zozeis finds a collection of Etana's books hidden in her basement. Sometimes a discovery can change your life forever, and for Ayita, this is one of them.
First to Dance
Nineteen year-old Ayita grew up believing that human life only existed on Zozeis, until she found the books. Learning about Earth changed everything for her, and she is determined to discover and reveal the truth.
Many generations earlier, Etana left Earth as a young woman hoping to find a better life on another planet, but by the time she arrived, she realized she had made a big mistake. No one got what they were promised when they left Earth, and as a result the people are determined to put all memory of Earth behind them. Etana finds this unacceptable, and she will do whatever it takes to keep Earth's memory alive.
Their stories take place separately, and yet neither one of them could accomplish their goal without the other. How far will they go to make sure Earth is not forgotten?
Imaginary
A story of selfless friendship: Anna, an imaginary friend, struggles with conflicting choices. She wants to help Natalie, the six year-old human girl who created her, but her whole existence is dependent on Natalie. By helping Natalie improve
her life, Anna knows she's essentially ending her own.
Atalaya
The Mountains of Eden surround a paradise, home to people who have never known pain or sorrow. There is but One Rule in their garden: the people are not to cross the stream that divides the valley. When Atalaya crosses the stream one day, her life begins to turn upside down…
Gordon Likes Math
(a short picture book of math humor)
Meet Gordon. Gordon likes math. And pie. Gordon knows that sometimes x = y, and this frustrates Gordon's English teacher. But sometimes x = 3y, and this frustrates her even more!
Gordon Likes Math is a short little book about a boy who likes math, and pi! It is a great book to read on pi day with all your math loving friends.
The following books by Sonya Writes are available in print format only:
Children’s Books:
Share the Story: Ellie the Elephant
Share the Story: Eel and Seal Feel
Share the Story: Ant at Work
Princess Isabella Counts to Ten
My First Word Search
My First Journal
Coloring Books:
Color and Design 400+ Dresses
Color and Design 1000+ Dresses
Other:
Board Game in a Book: Gemstone Island
Board Game in a Book: Matching Lions
Write Your Own Storybook
Family Meetings Notebook
Journal (Doodle Journal Series)
Notes (Doodle Journal Series)
www.SonyaWrites.com
