Meadowpeak

    Levi sat in a red cushioned chair, rope tied around his hands. He glared at the woman on the other end of the table with fire ablaze in his eyes.

    Belle sat leaning against the right arm rest with her feet hanging over the left. She smiled at him as she popped a grape in her mouth. She gestured toward a plate of various fruits in front of him. "Eat. You must be starving."

    She was correct. His stomach grumbled as if listening to her words, but he couldn't eat. He had no idea what she had done to the fruit. It could be poisonous. And he had no intention of eating while his friend lay in a cold dungeon in agony.

    Belle sighed as she threw a grape back down onto her plate, and rubbed her thumb, index, and middle finger together. "Out with it."

    "Why are you wasting my time trying to feed me when my friend's the one who needs attending to!" He didn't even try to hold his tongue. He despised this woman, and he wanted her to know it.

    Belle laughed. "Oh, please. A few lashes never killed anyone. Besides, I was only told I couldn't harm you. Not the girl." She rolled her eyes. "Where is Cinderella anyway? She was supposed to meet us."

    Levi jumped to his feet, and slammed his fists into the table. "I swear. You will pay for what you've done to her."

    "Yes." Belle stared at him blankly. "I'm sure I will." The double, wooden doors behind her suddenly flung open. She leaped to her feet, and twirled around the chair grabbing her whip that rested coiled up on the table.

    Levi's eyes opened in shock. He couldn't believe who had just stormed into the castle, and he didn't know whether to be thankful or afraid.

    Belle snickered. "Rumplestiltskin," she spat. "What are you doing in my palace?"

    Rumple glanced from Levi to Belle, and pointed at him. "I see you got my gift."

    A ticker suddenly went off inside Levi. Gift? Had Rumple planned this all along? He was handing them over to Snow? He gripped his fists tighter until his knuckles turned white.

    Belle glanced his way. "You mean that was all you?"

    Rumple gave her a dumb expression. "Well, I did put the tracker in his hand."

    Belle chuckled. "And Cinderella thinks she's some great huntress."

    Rumple did that high pitched annoying laugh he had before. "Cinderella would've never found that boy if it wasn't for me."

    "Traitor!" Levi shouted. Without thinking, he charged around the table, shouting, as he fully intended on punching Rumple in the face. Before he could reach the sorcerer, he was knocked flat on his back by an unexpected force. He groaned as he tried moving around, feeling pain erupt throughout his spine.

    Within seconds, Belle stood on top of him, her long, black whip raised high in the air. "Forget about what Cinderella said. I'm going to make you pay for that."

    She raised her whip in a swing, and Levi slammed his eyes shut expecting a sharp sting to quickly come. Though it never did. Instead, a hard thud sounded. After a few seconds past, he opened his eyes. Belle was no longer standing over top of him, but in fact, in front of him on the ground looking unconscious.

    He panted with relief, and turned his head upward to see Rumple standing with his hands behind his back. Again, he made that high pitched laugh.

    Levi gave himself a minute to let the anger die down. "You were lying to her."

    "Never hurt to play both sides," Rumple confessed. "Now, if you want to get out of here I suggest you find your lady friend, and hurry before Cinderella finds you." Rumple snapped his fingers, and the ropes around Levi's wrists slid off.

    Levi scrambled to his feet, and took off running down the corridor he had come from moments ago to the dungeon. When he got to the correct cell, he found that it was already open. Had Rumple opened it? His heart began to pound. Or was someone inside?

    He quickly flung open the cell to see Elyssa still lying on her stomach against the wall, and Beast backed in a corner with his head buried in his knees.

    He sighed thankful that luck was for once on their side. He dashed inside, and bent down next to Elyssa shaking her shoulders. "Wake up! We need to get out of here fast."

    Elyssa groggily opened her eyes. "What... is happening?"

    He grabbed her arm, and pulled helping her rise to her feet. He placed her arm around his shoulders, and carefully placed his other arm around her hips trying his best not to touch her wounds. Her winces told him that he wasn't doing a very good job.

    As he headed toward the door, he turned around to find Beast still remaining in his position. "Come on! The cells unlocked."

    Beast slowly looked up, tear streaks staining his fear. He shook his head. "What good would I be out there? The world hates me, and the only woman I've ever loved is here."

    Levi couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Yeah, and that woman beats you daily. You really want to stay here, and let her? She's going to be very upset when she finds we had escaped."

    Beast hugged his knees closer to his chest. "This is my home. I have no where else to go."

    Levi sighed. He didn't have time to stand here and deal with this beasts issues. He had to get Elyssa and himself to safety. He quickly took out the door, and down the corridor to where he had met Rumple.

    Rumple was still there running his fingers along a marbled wolf on the mantel. "Out those doors to the left. You can't miss the exit."

    Levi wanted to know why he was still here. Why he had helped them, but now wasn't the time for questions. He was sure their paths would meet again.

    He followed Rumple's instructions and dragged Elyssa out of the chamber, and to the left where another pair of giant doors stood. That had to be the exit Rumple was talking about. He hoped anyway. If only he had been awake when he was brought in.

    He shoved open one side of the double doors with his shoulder, and quickly scurried off down the vast amount of steps. He could see the trees not far from here. Even in the rain and darkness. Surely in this weather Cinderella wouldn't come after them, right?

    He quickly made his way across the clearing to the tree line. Relief began to wash over him as a smile crept onto his face. They were going to make it! Snow wouldn't have the victory yet again.

    As he stood at the edge of the tree line, something made his ears perk up. A whistling sound filled his ears even in the downpour. Where was it coming from?

    Unexpectedly, pain shot through his left shoulder. A sudden force sent him to his hands and knees, Elyssa falling to the mud beside him.

    Levi sat there, his hands burying themselves in mud, as water ran down his face. His mouth fell agape from the shock of the impact. He couldn't even get a single thought to form as he stared down at the forming puddle.

    What had just happened? Had he been hit with something? But what? He didn't feel any pain. Wouldn't he feel some kind of pain if something had hit him?

    He didn't dare look to his left afraid of what he would see. But he also couldn't bare the thought of not knowing. He closed his mouth and slowly glanced to his left. His heart rate quicken and dread set in as he saw the bloodied tip of an arrow stuck out of his shoulder.

    Howls presented the air from all around. Levi inhaled a few deep breaths before blowing them out slowly. He couldn't worry about himself. For now, he couldn't feel anything. He still needed the strength to get him and Elyssa far from here.

    He once more placed his best friends arm around his shoulder, and grabbed around her hips as he hoisted her out of the puddle, water dripping from her hair as he did so.

    Elyssa moaned. "I can't... go any further."

    He reached up with his left hand to grab onto her hand that dangled from his shoulder. "You can do, Elyssa. You have my strength too. Dip deep, and use it."

    Whatever he said seemed to work. He felt himself dragging her less as they quickened their pace to get away from this cursed place.

    Within minutes, they stepped out under a clear sky. He looked up with a smile on his face as the stars danced with the moon. "The storm must be passing." He glanced around. "We need a place to hold up for the night. Just until Cinderella and Jacob pass us, and it'd give us a chance to rest."

    "There."

    He turned his head right to see Elyssa pointing toward a small canopy under an uprooted tree. If he could make something out of branches and leaves, he might be able to hide them for a few hours.

    He made his way over to the canopy, and helped Elyssa to her stomach. She winced and moaned making him cringe. "I'm sorry," he whispered.

    He quickly set to work tying branches with leaves together with vines. Once he had made one big enough, he leaned it up against the up rooted root, and let the bottom top the ground giving them a small dome to hide in. One that would hopefully not be noticeable.

    Levi sat down and panted, wiping sweat mixed with water from his brow. He was finally starting to feel the effects of the arrow. He looked at the deadly thing in his arm to see a dark patch of color surrounding the arrow along with a thin stream of blood running down his white shirts sleeve, and onto his hand.

    He sighed as he leaned back. How was he going to get this out of his shoulder? Pulling it out from the back was going to be extremely hard, but pulling from the front would be excruciating.

    He sat up straight, squinted his eyes, and bit his bottom lip. He grabbed ahold of the shaft down against his skin, and yanked with all his might.

    The burning of his flesh made him want to scream out in agony, but he bit his lip hard making sure he couldn't, clenching his eyes tightly shut. Cinderella mustn't find them. They couldn't go back to that castle.

    Levi panted as he leaned back once more against the tree, and raised the arrow to make sure it was all still attached. He sighed, laid his head back against the bark, and closed his eyes. Thankfully, the arrow was intact.

    He turned his head and stared at Elyssa. He didn't know whether she was just asleep or unconscious. Either way, she looked peaceful.

    He turned his head upward gazing at a few stars he could see in between the holes of leaves. What was he going to do? How was he going to patch himself and Elyssa up when they had no supplies?

    He pressed a hand up against his wound knowing that that would help stop the blood flow, but it wouldn't do much good without a proper bandage.

    If only Mother were here. She'd know what to do.