The Light in the Dark Kingdom

Pig Keeper

"Taran, quit daydreaming!" The older man yelled as he carried large stacks of hay across their property, "You're a grown man, now act like one!"

"C'mon, dad," he chuckled,  following. Ruins him and waving a stick in the air, "What is life without a bit of imagination and adventure?"

"The life of a peasant, pig keeper!" He replied roughly and moved passed his son.

He huffed, tossing the stick into the lake, "How can a man live such a boring life?" He leaned on the fence, looking over the pigs and shaking his head in disgrace.

"Taran!" The old man shouted from inside of their small cabin in a panic and the boy quickly looked up, "Bring HenWen inside at once!"

"Yes, father," he called back with a sigh and hopped into the pig pen to fetch their prized pig.

"I have a bad feeling in my stomach, boy," he said as the boy entered with the pig and he filled a half barrel of water on the floor, "I'm going to show you something that I've kept hidden for a long time."

"What's that?" The dark haired boy asked as he placed the pig before the barrel. The old man chanted as he stirred the water with his rod, the pigs eyes following the current. He placed his snout into the water and an image appeared.

"Do not disturb her," he said quietly to his son as they both watched the image of the horned king appear on the water. A vivid image of the black cauldron, and the unborn army, then the hands of the horned king reaching for HenWen, "Enough!" The old man exclaimed, splashing the water with his rod to interrupt the vision, "He knows! Taran, I need you to leave now and take HenWen to our Winter home, do not let him out of your site!" He began to rush around the room to collect a basket of travel supplies, "You must hurry."

"What is this all about, father?" He asked with a chuckle.

"Son, this is no laughing matter," he scolded as his son tied the pig with a leash, "If the horned king finds the black cauldron, life as we know it will end, everything will be destroyed. You have to hide and keep HenWen safe."

"Hide? Why not fight?" He asked, holding the leash and taking his father's basket, "I could be as strong as any other warrior!"

"Taran, you are living in a day dream!" His father said, shaking his shoulders, "You need to wake up or there will be consequences!"

"Yes, father, a daydream where a pig has oracular powers," he scoffed, "I'll be fine, nothing will happen to HenWen under my watch!" 

He hurried out of the house and down the path towards their winter house near the forbidden forest, "I don't need to hide, HenWen, with a little training I could be anything I wished! I could be the warrior who defeats the horned king!"

"You could be, dearie," he looked up to see a man with green scaled skin standing before him, "You just need a little assistance."

"Do I know you?" He asked, holding the leash tightly, "What do you know about being a warrior? You look as if you hide behind a mask!"

"Rumplestiltskin," he sang, "I know more than you think," he let out a laugh, "and I can help you find the power you desire, to prove your father wrong and become a great and noble warrior."

"How could you?" He asked roughly, "and hurry it up, I have places to be!"

"Magic, dearie," he said with a convincing smile, "it can change you life!"

"I can see what magic did to you," he scoffed, "I don't want that! I'll find another way to prove my father wrong."

"You might want to think again," he laughed, snapping his fingers to transform the young peasant boy into a warriors clothes. Placing a mirror before him, the boy stopped, loosely holding the pig's leash in his fingers. Taran pulled out his sword and lunged forward, dropping the leash, "Is this the life you desire?"  He asked the man with a tricky smile, "A life away from work and pigs?" He let out a devilish laugh and watched as the boy's mind wandered, "Make your choice, dearie, time is of the essence."

"How will you help me achieve this?" He asked roughly and tossed the sword onto the ground, "An outfit does not make you a warrior!"

"I know the prophecy, dearie," he said in a crazed voice, "I can bring you to the greatest Prydainian warrior, the one who has been prophesied to end the horn king's army."

"What do you want in return?" He asked the man as he looked over his reflection in the mirror.

"What else do you have, dearie?" He chuckled, "A chance to meet the prophesied great warrior in exchange for a simple pig?"

"You want Hen?" He asked in shock and grabbed the rope off of the ground. Rumplestiltskin exchanged his warrior clothes for his peasant rags, but left the mirror in front of him.

"It's a simple trade," he said to the boy as he offered his hand, "Do we have a deal?"

"What will happen?" He asked the man, "When I meet this almighty warrior, will they teach me their tricks?"

"That is up for you to decide!" The crocodile chuckled, "I will simply lead you to your desired path and be on my way with my pig."

"You will take good care of her?" He asked, kneeing down beside her.

"Yes, yes, of course," the man said quickly and offered his hand, "Do we have a deal? Meeting the prophesied mighty warrior for the pig?"

"Deal," the boy said, shaking his hand. Smoke covered them and they were teleported to the front gates of the horned kings castle, "Why are we here?" The boy asked in fear as he looked to find HenWen, but found that he was no where near them, "Where did Hen go?"

"That is one of your concern anymore, he will be taken care of," Rumplestiltskin said with a laugh as chains appeared around the boy's wrists.

"We had a deal!" The boy shouted and caught to get out of the chains.

"Indeed we did," he laughed and pulled the boy towards the front door to the castle, "and I always follow through."

"I got the pig! I have the boy!" Rumple chanted as he entered the castle. The boy saw no one sitting on the throne, but he was throne onto the ground, commanded to "Bow!" by the green man.

"We had a deal!" The boy continued to chant as the dark one roughly shoved him towards the door to the dungeon.

"Your father would be so proud," he taunted the boy, "Have fun with your almighty warrior!" He laughed, vanishing before the boy could lunge at him.