A Little in Love

The Prisoner

Sunlight filtered through the cracks in the crumbling stonework as the White Queen made her way down the spiral steps to the dungeons. Her fingers trailed lightly over the rough walls and as she descended, the light faded until she was enveloped in complete darkness. Feeling her way along, Snow White guided herself along the path she had traveled many times before, once a month every month since her coronation. Finally she reached a large iron gate in front of which two guards were stood. Upon seeing her, they parted and one of them unlocked the gate. Snow White nodded to them as she passed through, stopping only to remove a lit torch from the bracket on the wall.

Before her was a long corridor lined with prison cells. This was the under-prison, reserved for the most nefarious prisoners and enemies of the crown. Keeping her hood up, Snow walked straight and kept facing forwards, determinedly ignoring the rattling of cages and snarls from the imprisoned people that her presence provoked. She had come here for a reason.

The cell at the very end of the corridor directly ahead was in shadow, furthest from the torches that lined the hall but as Snow approached, her torchlight pushed back the darkness to reveal a bare cell. A figured was huddled in the back corner and Snow squinted to see through the darkness. Pulling down her hood, she opened her mouth to announce her presence, but a deep sultry voice cut her off.

"Back again Snow?"

Snow's breath caught in her chest, but she forced her voice to sound confident. "Regina. I visit you every month. Is it a surprise to you that I've returned once again?"

From within the cell, the figure rose and slowly approached the front of the cell. It remained in shadow, but the flickering flames that Snow held would occasionally dance in a pair of chocolate brown eyes and reveal smooth olive skin. 

The prisoner did not speak again, so Snow found herself searching for the words she had come her to use. "I'm sure you are aware that Charming and I have wed." She said, carefully. From inside the cell, the prisoner released a mocking laugh that chilled Snow's bones. "Oh, I knew it was only a matter of time." She purred and Snow shuddered. "Is that why you're here? To rub salt in my wounds?"

"No!" Snow's voice was almost insulted. "I came to make sure, as I do every month, that you are comfortable" At this, Regina gave another mocking laugh, louder than the first, which reverberated off the cold stone walls of her cell. "Comfortable?!" She hissed. "I am a prisoner in the belly of your castle!"
"You are not dead!" Snow retorted. "I stayed your execution against my husbands wishes. For that you should be grateful."

"Grateful?" Regina snarled. "If my life is to be spent in the darkness and at your mercy, death would be a blessing."

Snow sighed, regretting her decision to come down here. Regina was still bitter and angry, though whilst she was contained within that cell she could perform no magic. "I should not have come. " She replied calmly, before turning to leave.

"Wait."
Snow froze and turned slowly. "What is it?"
"You look...different. Come, let me see you."
Regina's tone had changed and Snow was reminded of the time that Regina had been her stepmother and had raised her. She remembered how gentle she had been, brushing Snow's long dark hair and how she had told her stories of magical lands until the young princess had fallen asleep. Cautiously, the white queen approached the cage.
"Closer..."
Snow stepped forwards until she was almost face to face with the fallen queen. Suddenly, Regina's hand reached through the bars and seized Snow's throat. The queen shrieked, but her voice was promptly cut off. The dark eyes searched Snow's face, empty of any compassion, and her grip grew tighter, choking the queen. In panic, Snow wordlessly tried to convey to the Queen the only thing which she knew could save her. Her hands reached up and unbuttoned her long white cloak. The material fell away from her shoulders and crumpled in a white pool at her feet, revealing for the first time, her swollen belly straining against her white dress. Upon seeing this, the queen's hold on Snow White's throat dramatically loosened until Snow was able to free herself. She staggered away from the cage, gasping for air. But the prisoner's mind seemed to be on other things.

"You're pregnant..."
"Eight months..." Snow wheezed, finally standing up straight but this time keeping her distance from the cell. Her hands rested on her bump protectively. "I think we're having a girl."

There was a long silence. Snow could feel her heart hammering against her chest, but she kept her body language calm. In the end it was Regina's voice, bitter and dry with repressed emotion, that broke the silence.

"Get out"
"Regina, I-"
"GET OUT! I don't want you here to torment me with your happiness!" The fallen queen's voice rose to a bitter scream and Snow White turned swiftly on her heel and departed. Inside then darkened cell, the prisoner retreated once again into the shadows and sunk slowly to the ground.

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So that's the first chapter! What did you guys think of it? Let me know in the comments. This story will be updated pretty regularly as I've done more of a plan with this one. So you can expect an update every few days x