Everything was always the same in the village where you lived.

But not that day. No, that day was different.

The sun had already risen, and so had you, eager to welcome your father home. So you sat on the porch stairs, feeding the chickens in the meantime, to distract yourself a little from the growing concern in your heart.

Maybe he just took a longer path.

Perhaps he had stayed there a little longer, for some reason.

Or maybe Jarvis had to rest in the middle of the trip, he was no longer the young horse he was before.

You stayed so deep in thought that for a moment you thought you were imagining the horse's gallops, but looking at the open field, you recognized him in the distance. Jarvis was back.

But your father was not.

Your eyes filled with tears before the horse even reached you, fearing that the worst had happened. The feeling of worry that was once only a nuisance was now unbearable.

"Jarvis, where's papa? Take me to him!" You begged, dropping the wagon from its saddle and riding on it. The horse wasted no time, shooting back into the field, soon entrenching itself in the forest. Your mind was running as fast as Jarvis, wondering all the time what you would find.

No, no, papa had to be well, he had to be.

You only came out of your thoughts when the forest ended at a large gate, already open. Jarvis kept running through the garden until he reached the front of a staircase, where you hurried down, before he even stopped galloping completely. Papa had already asked you to stop doing this, but you would apologize when you found him safe and sound.

It was still daylight, but the rays of sunlight barely reached the castle, giving it a frightening appearance, you could see it when you went up the stairs, wondering what your father could be doing there. When you touched the door, it opened for you and your eyes widened slightly as you entered.

The place had clearly been forgotten by time, but it was still stunning. You took a few more steps, looking around, searching for your father cautiously.

A few steps from you, a clock and a candlestick whispered not so subtly.

"Look, Darcy, it's a girl!" Jimmy turned his metallic neck in time to see the clock roll her eyes.

"I know it's a girl, I have no arms, but I still have my eyes," she huffed.

"Could be her? The one who will break the curse?" Jimmy's candles lit up with pure excitement, his hope reigniting, quite literally.

When the sparkle reached your eyes, you approached, wondering if the candlestick was lit when you arrived. The thought didn't last long, because as soon as you heard a cough, you knew that your father was really there.

Picking up the candlestick and running in the direction of the noise, you climbed up a narrow, dark staircase, meeting Tony on the fourth flight of stairs, behind the iron bars that stand between you.

"Papa!" You knelt down, leaving the candlestick on the floor to hold his hands.

"YN! What are you doing here? How did you find me?" His eyes had no trace of relief, his face and tone charged with a mixture of worry and despair.

"You're freezing... I'm going to take you with me," you stood up, ready to look for a key or anything you could use to open that door.

But your father didn't listen to you, holding your hands even tighter, "Y/N, listen to me, this castle is alive, you have to get out of here, you have to obey me and run away from her!"

"Run away from who?"

A choleric female voice echoed through the stone walls, approaching the stairs, "Who?! Why, that question should be mine! Who are you?!"

"I'm Y/N, I came to get my dad."

"Your father is a thief, he stole a rose."

"I... I wanted the rose! Let me take his place!" You begged, feeling the weight of guilt for such a simple desire.

"Y/N, no! This is a life sentence!"

Your blood boiled, "his life for a rose?!"

A loud growl was your first response, before purple eyes blinked behind the pitch dark, "my life has been cursed forever for a rose! He's just locked in there and you decide whether to stay in his place."

"Show up!"

The shadow shrank a little more, silently refusing. But you wouldn't make a deal without even knowing with whom, so your hand reached for the candlestick on the floor, bringing it close to the woman.

Even though her bulky, tousled hair was a little in the way, you still gasped when the fire enlightened the horns on her head and the pulsating magic in her furious eyes, "choose."

"No! I already lost your mother, Y/N, and I will not let you lose your life here." Your father's desperate voice, followed by a cough, made your heart shrink.

Your choice was made.

"Okay, I'm leaving," you nodded, looking at the beast in front of you, "but first, can I say goodbye to him?"

The woman simply turned, ready to go up the stairs.

"Are you so cruel that you will not let a daughter hug her father for the last time? Eternity can wait," your voice almost broke.

She then stopped for a few seconds, as if considering your request, before turning around again. You took a few steps back when she walked towards you, never taking her eyes off yours, while murmuring something under her breath, purple magic shining from her hands and eyes.

And then the door opened, "when that door closes, it will never open again," the woman gave her verdict.

You nodded once, before throwing yourself into your father's arms. Oh, you would miss him. Too damn much.

"I love you, Y/N."

"I love you too, papa," you hugged him even tighter, before whispering in his ear, "I promise I will escape."

"Wha-" he started to ask, before you shoved him out of the cell and slammed the door shut. Your fate was sealed.

You could barely see your father falling to the ground before the woman stared at you behind bars, "did you really take his place?"

"He's my dad," you said as if your choice was obvious.

"He's a fool, just like you," she spat out the words, before lifting him off the floor with a few weird words, making him whimper. For a moment you wondered if that beast would really keep her word to spare him.

She then went down the stairs with him and your heart sped up, "don't hurt him!" You shouted, having no answer from your captor, but your father shouted that he would come back for you.

No, papa, I will come back to you.