Prove Me Wrong (Rumple X OC. Hook X OC)

Chapter Two

They arrived in the hallway of a large stone castle. The first thing Eleanor noticed was the lack of candles or lanterns, they were stood in almost complete darkness. Katherine was admiring the large oil paintings hung from the wall. There was a light yet distinct smell to the air. They recognised it as dust, as though the place had been long abandoned
"Here we are, dearies. This is your home now, might as well make yourselves comfortable" he motioned for them to follow. They traipsed through the long narrow hallway, up a winding flight of stairs and down at least three corridors before they stood outside a large oak door
"This will be your chambers" he told them, unlocking the door and swinging it open. It was beautiful, the two sisters gasped in unison. They had never before seen a bedroom of such luxury. It was so different to the small hut in which they'd grown up. There were two large four poster beds, with curtains hanging around them, two large dressers, a bookshelf and a beautiful scarlet rug in the centre of the room
"It's lovely" Katherine breathed
"Thank you, erm.." Eleanor started, realising for the first time she didn't know her new masters name
"Rumplestiltskin" the man giggled, rolling his 'R' and dramatically bowing as he extended his arm before them.
"Thank you, Rumplestiltskin" she smiled at him and he looked back at her, his eyes almost searching hers
"Yes, well. I'll give you two an hour to settle in and familiarise yourselves with your new quarters. I expect you both downstairs in one hour to begin your work" and with that he turned and walked away from them. Once they were inside their room the two sisters turned to each other and let out a huff of breath, laughing. Not quite believing what had happened that day.
"It's lovely, isn't it?" Katherine spoke, running her finger along the top of the bookcase
"It's beautiful" Eleanor answered sitting down on one of the two beds and lying back, welcoming the comfort of a large mattress and thick blanket
"I wonder how mother is" Katherine thought out loud
"Probably muttering on about how the witch has come back to take us" the two sisters shared a hearty laugh, meaning no harm toward their mother; they adored her, but teased her occasionally - though never in her presence.
"What do you think of him? Rumplestiltskin I mean" Katherine asked, tilting her head ever so slightly, the tone of their conversation becoming more serious.
"I think people judge him far too hastily. He deserves a fair chance as much as anybody else; perhaps more even. We've known him less than an hour and already he treats us far better than anyone in the village" Eleanor responded, growing increasingly frustrated as she remembered her life leading up to that moment.
"I couldn't agree more. We do everything within our power to aid them and yet they continue to look down on us purely because of our upbringing, it hardly seems fair"
"Luckily for us, we no longer have to suffer the stares they think we don't notice and the sniggers they think we don't hear" Eleanor sighed as Katherine delicately perched herself on the edge of her silk woven sheets; afraid that they'd suddenly slip from beneath her.
"I suppose you have a point. This arrangement will benefit us both immensely, I mean, just look at all these books! There's nowhere either of us would rather be than in a room full of books" Katherine glanced over at her sister, raising her eyebrow, knowing she was right. Eleanor simply chuckled and arose from her position on the bed, heading towards the door.
"We should get to work. An early start will make an excellent impression on our gracious host" Eleanor emphasised the word 'host', knowing he was more of a captor than anything else. Although she begged her father to let her go, both sisters had heard the tales of the oh so powerful Dark One. They heard how he stole children from their parents in the night and often returned them as a shell of their former self; how he'd snap the neck of someone who attempted to cross him without a moment of hesitation; how he ruthlessly slaughtered anyone who stood in his path. He had a bad reputation, but that didn't stop the Rhodes sisters from wanting to know more; their curiosity always overpowered their reason. Katherine nodded and stood up straight, dusting off her skirts as she did so.

Eleanor and Katherine mustered all of their strength and forced open the considerably large doors and walked into the main dining room; a skip in their step and awe visible on their faces at the magnificence of the castle they were to live in. Rumplestiltskin noticed this immediately and was not at all pleased by the joy he could feel radiating from his maids.
"Stop that incessant smiling, it's incredibly distracting" he frowned at them as he spoke. Eleanor was the first to respond.
"Our apologies, sir. We only thought the place could do with some...cheer" she said hesitantly, not knowing what reaction the provoking would result in. She immediately regretted her choice of words as his face scrunched up in horror at the word 'cheer'.
"We only mean that there's a layer of dust covering much of the castle, it's a shame to see such a beautiful place in such a dismal state" Katherine quickly interrupted his ever growing outrage. Rumplestiltskin sank back into his chair at the head of his dining table that took up a significant amount of space. Eleanor and Katherine released a sigh of relief and their previously tensed muscles soon returned to their relaxed state.
"Well get to it then, my dismal castle isn't going to clean itself" The Dark One simply waved them away after pointing to the sweeping brush and rag he conjured for them, seemingly out of thin air. Katherine quickly rushed forward, eager to get to the rag first, she never did enjoy sweeping. Eleanor simply waited patiently, having known that Katherine would immediately dart for the rag; she much preferred sweeping anyway, though she wouldn't admit it. She thought it a lot easier to let her sister think she had won yet again. She smiled as Katherine waved the rag above her head, proud of her victory, and made her way towards the broom that was propped up against the wall.
"I suppose I'm on sweeping duty then?" Eleanor let out a small laugh, and immediately the two realised they were still in the presence of Rumplestiltskin. They bowed their heads apologetically and began cleaning the dining room.
Katherine made her way towards a glass cabinet full of fascinating objects that grabbed her interest the moment she laid eyes on them.
"Don't touch that. Clean everywhere but there" she heard the now familiar voice from beside her, making her jump backwards.
She was so easily distracted and therefore hadn't notice Rumplestiltskin appear next to her. Eleanor laughed again, this time The Dark One giggled as she did, clearly finding Katherine's lack of attention to be worthy of laughter. He looked over at Eleanor, knowing the rumours that surrounded her family and what people say about them. He could hardly believe that such an independent and, dare he say, beautiful woman could be born to a unsuccessful bread-selling father and a house-ridden mother. He soon dismissed these thoughts; she was a maid, nothing more. Eleanor, though at first oblivious, soon caught him staring at her and assumed he was merely lost in his thoughts. She continued her sweeping, determined to finish at least that floor of the castle before nightfall.