All Magic Comes With A Price

Chapter 4: The Risk

{Four Years Ago}

The room was silent except for the sound of muffled crying. It was cold too. Very cold.

But the confused and grieving princess wasn't bothered by the cold. She wished she was, just so she knew that she could feel something, anything.

She just sat at her door, head buried in her crossed arms and crying, not loudly like a baby, but the kind of controlled crying of grief.

Elsa didn't seek comfort in anyone. She couldn't anyway. Although her parents' ship had just sunk at sea, she still followed their primary instruction to her: Conceal, don't feel.

Even her sister Anna begged her to open the door, but Elsa's fear of hurting her and their parents' wishes stopped her as much as she wanted to be with her sister.

After she heard Anna's soft footsteps move away from her door, Elsa got up, sniffling. She walked to her bedside table, a layer of ice covering the snow wherever she stepped.

Wiping tears from her email eyes, she opened the table drawer, revealing a rolled parchment, still looking new. She turned it over and stated at the wax seal, embossed with the letter "R".

Hands trembling, she removed the seal and unrolled Rumplestiltskin's contract.

The deal seemed quite fair, until she reached the middle of the page stating the price of the Dark One's services.

"Is it really worth it?" she thought silently.

"Just say my name, and I'll be right here." His words rang in her head.

She closed her eyes. She saw herself freezing Anna's head again, all those years ago. It was always the same memory when she closed her eyes, keeping her awake every night as she feared watching herself again and again hurting her sister.

She had to do it. There was no other choice. For Anna's sake.

Taking a deep breath, she mustered all her courage.

"Rumplestiltskin."