Aurelia spent the rest of the day in the library with Lucas. They had poured over books together and Aurelia even fell in love with some of them. A few new favorites of hers included The Dark Realm, Once Upon a Marigold, and a book of fairy tales.

Aurelia had especially loved the fairy tales. She felt like she could relate to some of them. She felt like she was in one herself, only she feared and believed that hers would have no happily ever after. She felt like her story was one of the darker ones she had learned to love like The Little Mermaid or The Little Match Girl. Aurelia truly believed that she would never have a happy ending.

And she knew her ending was coming soon. She hoped for a miracle like the first night, but she knew not to put too much faith in miracles. Aurelia decided to live in the moment and spend what could be her last day enjoying herself as much as she could under the circumstances. And Lucas helped her do that.

So when the clock struck eight her heart sank in her chest.

Aurelia was locked into a slightly larger room than the one she had. It was probably the size of a medium sized bedroom and it was stacked to the ceiling with stacks of straw.

Aurelia sighed. She didn't know what she could do. Should she try again? Maybe...

She sat down on the spinning wheel's seat. She had to try! The king had been very specific about what would happen if she didn't succeed in her task.

"Hello again, Aurelia." A voice said. It was the little man!

"How do you know my name?" Aurelia wondered. She had never told him.

"I know lots of stuff. For example I know that you need to spin all the straw in this room into gold. That's the second night now, isn't it?" The little man sounded sly with his words, as if he had planned it.

Aurelia looked the man over once more, trying to decide if he truly was friend or foe.

"Do you want something from me?" Aurelia asked, curiosity and unease heavy in her voice.

"Oh look, she's got a brain too." The man quipped. "Of course. I want to get you out of this situation, like the night before. I'll spin this room into gold if you give me your necklace."

Aurelia clasped the pendant of her necklace. It meant a lot to her as she had been given it at a young age. She would give it up in a heartbeat for her life though.

"Alright," Aurelia undid the clasp. She handed the piece of jewelry over. She couldn't understand why he would want it. "Here."

The little man jumped, giddily snatching the necklace. He sat down on the spinning wheel and began his task.

"Excuse me, but I don't know your name. I'm sorry I haven't asked sooner." Aurelia told him.

"Just call me Mr. Gold." He said.

Mr. Gold was a short fellow who looked to be part elf. He had pointed ears and wore a yellow tunic and brown pants. Aurelia watched him as he worked hoping that maybe if she watched closely enough she could learn this trick, but she doubted it. She tried anyway.

"Why are you here?" Aurelia wondered. She was going to take this opportunity to learn as much about him as she could.

"I'm here to help. Here is a good situation for me to get what I want, so I'm here. I make deals, I help people, I get what I want. That's how it works." Mr. Gold didn't even look up when talked.

"Why would you want a couple pieces of jewelry owned by the miller's daughter?" Aurelia asked in disbelief.

"That's not what I want." Mr. Gold stated.

Aurelia couldn't help but wonder. What did he want then? Why was he doing this? She almost couldn't ask.

"What do you want?" Aurelia questioned.

A sly smile slid on to Mr. Gold's face. "Humiliation. I want to humiliate those royals who threw me from their kingdom." He admitted.

"Why would helping me do that?" Aurelia wondered.

"You'll see." Mr. Gold didn't say a word after that.

Aurelia wrung her hands in anxiety. She was even more unsure of Mr. Gold's character now. Was he to be trusted at all? How was he going to humiliate the royal family? What exactly had they done to him? Was she just a pawn in his scheme?

Once more the sky began to turn orange with the rising sun. The little window showed her at least that. Aurelia was exhausted, but the little man still seemed quite spritely.

Aurelia heard the twist of the door handle once more. She turned to Mr. Gold.

"Thank you-"

Again he had disappeared.