I Know You

14

It was a fair distance to the village of Wolfslock, and almost dark by the time they arrived.

Truth be told, Aurora did not know exactly why she felt the need to go there, but her meeting with the man who claimed to be her Uncle had been playing on her mind. She wasn't sure why – it wasn't as if she yearned for her father or any other kind of blood relative either. After all, she had a family - a mother.

A mother who thought her capable of the same greed as the late king.

Arriving at the entrance of the village, Aurora hopped down from Diaval's back.

Perhaps that's what it was, she thought, as she considered her next move.

Despite the bump in the road that was the curse, her relationship with Maleficent had been like nothing else Aurora had ever experienced. Having been raised by the three pixies, Aurora had known fun and laughter her whole life, but with her Godmother, she felt loved and protected. And in recent weeks, she had to come to trust the dark fairy with every fibre of her being.

The realisation that this feeling was, apparently, not mutual, stung at her heart and constricted at her throat.

Perhaps she could never truly belong to the moors at all. Never truly belong to Maleficent or be her child, because she was human and Maleficent hated humans.

Allowing Diaval to pull her gently in the direction of Darius' home, Aurora let her eyes wander across the quiet village.

It was fairly unremarkable, with rows of wooden houses to either side of her, some in better condition than others. A number with open fronts which appeared to be shops or apothecaries were now in darkness as evening drew in.

Eventually, Diaval came to a halt in front of one of the larger houses. The door was ajar, and Aurora could hear voices inside.

She hesitated at the door.

"Uncle?"

Within moments Darius appeared at the door, looking more than a little surprised to see her.

"Aurora. What are you...?"

"I'm sorry to arrive unannounced. I was hoping we might talk," Aurora told him, softly.

Darius glanced behind her before putting his head out a little further, checking the front of his house.

"I'm alone," she assured him. "I'm sorry about the other day. My Godmother can be... protective."

"Is that what they're calling it in the moors?" he muttered, but opened the door wider all the same. "Come in, please."

Following him inside, Aurora realised the Darius had company – a group of men dressed in similar attire sat around a table, playing some kind of board game.

"My niece," he told them, gesturing towards her.

"This is the crown Princess?" one asked, as if he didn't quite believe it.

"Not anymore," Aurora told them, quickly. "I was. Now I'm not. I'm just Aurora."

"Please, sit," Darius said, pulling out a chair by the fire place. "Are you hungry?"

Aurora shook her head, sitting down. There was a chill in the air, and the warmth of the crackling fire was welcome.

"Then, a drink perhaps? I was just about to brew some camomile tea," he told her.

"Thank you, that would be lovely," she smiled.

A silence followed as Darius set to work on the tea, and Aurora gazed into the flames, mesmerised as they danced and flickered within the rugged hearth.

"So is it true then, that you live in the moors, with the fairies?" one of the men asked.

Aurora nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Sir!" another chuckled. "Clearly, Ruben, she doesn't know you at all!"

"There's nothing wrong with manners, you know? Besides, she's been raised by...." Ruben began, the end of his sentence inaudible.

"But of course! Maleficent, is it? Or do you call her something else?" the third man asked.

"Godmother," Aurora told them, quietly.

The three of them erupted into laughter, and Aurora frowned, wondering if she had missed the joke.

"Godmother!" one of them cried. "Aren't you a bit too old for Fairy Godmothers, Princess?"

"Aren't you a bit too old to be playing board games?" Aurora asked coolly.

"Enough," Darius told his friends, gesturing to the door. "Don't you have homes to go to? Leave us."

Grumbling, the three of them got up, finishing up their drinks and heading for the door – the third curtseying before her as he went.

Aurora rolled her eyes, turning back toward the fire.

"Sorry about them," Darius said, handing her a cup.

"Thank you."

Sitting on the chair opposite, Darius took a sip from his own cup before he spoke again.

"What brings you here?"

Aurora shrugged her shoulders slowly. "Curiosity, I suppose. I didn't know my father for long, and I until we met, I didn't know I had an Uncle at all. So... well... I suppose I'd like a chance to get to know you."

And so they talked then – long into the night – about Darius' childhood, her father and his life in the village. They talked and talked until Aurora's eyelids grew heavy and she succumbed to sleep.

And as Aurora drifted off, she thought about how the warmth of the fire and the sack-cloth blanket Darius had covered her with were almost a good substitute for the comfort of the wings that usually surrounded her as she slept.

Almost, but not quite.

Ω Ω Ω Ω

The room was dark when Aurora awoke, aside for a small lantern somewhere in the corner.

It took her a moment to remember where she was, and she was just about to stir when she heard hushed whispers across from her.

Remaining perfectly still and closing her eyes again, Aurora listened.

"You really think she'll do it...?"

"She came all this way, didn't she...?"

"It could be a trap, Darius. That thing she calls mother could be right outside, waiting to pounce at any second..."

"Once I have the crown, that thing will be my first hunt..." Darius' voice.

Aurora's breath caught in her throat.

"Do you think she truly fell for the whole Uncle thing?"

Darius chuckled. "Hook, line and sinker."

For a moment, Aurora considered sitting up and making her presence known.

"And if she doesn't go to the palace?"

"Then she would be very, very foolish," Darius said, an edge to his voice now.

Aurora remained stock still, biting down hard on her lower lip.

Had her Godmother not suggested days earlier that the man may not be her Uncle at all? And she hadn't listened. Instead, she had walked right into his home.

Aurora knew she needed to get out of there. She needed to go home, to put things right with her Godmother and rid herself of this man who cared only for a claim to the throne – a claim that wasn't his at all.

But for now, Aurora remained in the chair by the fireplace with her eyes tight shut. She would need to wait until the men were gone before she made her next move.

Ω Ω Ω Ω