~Twelve Years Ago~

"Protect the young prince, Kali. Make sure that he stays safe and happy until the day my curse finally comes to pass. If something happens before then, my curse will not hit with quite the intensity I hope it will, after all" Maleficent gave a gentle yet resolute order to her 5-year-old daughter.

"You are only a few weeks younger than him, so expect visits from me on his birthday every year to check on how things are going." The Great Fairy cast a glamour on her only child, hiding the horns that matched her own and wings dark as the night, smaller in size than her own due to the young age of her daughter.

"I will visit more often than only once a year, but I cannot interact with either of you in those times, lest you or I be caught. You will often not know I am around, but know, anyway, that I will be watching best I can" She warned her daughter, before arranging it so that the fairies would have to take Kali in, as well. This preparation took a few weeks.

After those few weeks had passed-

The sound of crying was not missed by the three fairies out in the woods, as they were teaching the young prince how to pick good berries and avoid poisonous ones. Curious, they cautiously followed the sounds to figure out what was going on.

Hair as dark as a Raven's feathers and silky as flowing water covered a portion of porcelain skin as a girl could be seen curled into herself on a lone boulder in the woods.

Unable to ignore the poor thing because of their vows and pure morals, they approach the young girl. "What ever is the matter, child? Where are your parents?" The one dressed in red spoke up.

The young girl put her hands up in defense and scooted back from the concerned voice. "Don't hurt me, please! I'm so sorry, I swear I didn't enter there on purpose, just- I won't tell anyone! Spare me, I beg of you!"

Blood dropped from her raised arms down onto her tattered sky blue dress that looked as though it had probably covered most of her legs at one point.

"You're hurt!" The young prince ran over to the girl and pointed out the obvious wounds on her arms, as well as the less obvious ones on her legs.

"We won't hurt you, I promise. Won't you tell us what happened? Hey...look at me, pretty please?" He gingerly placed his left hand under her chin, letting out a sigh of relief when he felt no wound there, before gently guiding her face up to meet his own.

He let out a small gasp when he saw her face, she was absolutely-

"Beautiful" the fairy dressed in green gushed out in shock.

As heavily wounded as this girl was, her face and hair had somehow managed to be preserved. This is an odd detail that was overlooked because this young child appears, otherwise, to be in very bad shape...and fearful for her life.

The fairy in red chastised the fairy in green with words unheard by all the others as, at the same time, the young girl stared back into the eyes of the young boy. He was innocent and kind, where she appeared frightened and sad.

"My name is Tae-hyung, but my caretakers call me Tae and you're free to call me that, too, if you want. Um...what is your name, young miss?" The young boy did not surprise the young girl with his impeccable manners, but she acted on the opposite, blinking a few times to feign confusion before shyly lowering her gaze.

"I am called Kali." Her voice was soothing and quiet, almost shy, nearly startling the others upon first hearing her speak.

"My mother gave birth to me out of wedlock; everything she taught me she did so reluctantly, just to keep up appearances until she could no longer hide her lies. Disgraceful and unloved, she put me in a catapult and had me sent over the giant walls and into the Moors where she hoped I would die upon impact...once I became old enough that I had something of a fighting chance so she didn't feel as bad for trying to kill me, that is. Instead, I landed in some sort of swamp or marsh and survived the impact. But I was only able to hide for a mere two days before the scary lady with horns chased me and cast me out. She sent all kinds of horrors after me, so many times I thought I was going to die, I-" she paused and glanced down, purposefully drawing attention to her trembling form.

"...I kept running even after I finally got out of there because I thought she was going to kill me. I stopped at this boulder when my legs nearly gave out and I decided that maybe it was just my time to go." She put her face in her hands and dramatically began to weep once more.

Her tale had horrified the other four individuals because they had no way of knowing it was mostly a lie; her mother had taught her well how to speak properly and how to act, after all. It helps that she seemed to have an innate talent for acting, as well.

"I have nowhere to go. If it is easier for you to leave me here, I will try to die away from your eyes. If you have the guts to show mercy, I ask only that you make my death quick. I have had enough suffering already-" She lowered her head, exposing her neck "...please" the last word escaped as a whisper that sounded strained.

"No!"

The young prince picked her up, quite literally sweeping her off of her feet. "I refuse to leave someone in need alone, especially like this. Nobody deserves to be so sad or treated so poorly...I'm sorry you've been through so much already, Kali."

Without permission from the three women he did not know were fairies, he began walking swiftly yet carefully towards their cottage, intending to dress her wounds and take her in.

Of course, the fairies could not refuse: what excuse could they have? Tae's identity as the prince was to be kept a secret from even him, after all, so that was not an option.

Reluctantly, they had to silently agree to risk a compromise to Tae's safety and secrecy at the price of ensuring he grows up with a good heart; corrupting him with dark morals was an even worse fate, in their eyes, after all.

They followed him back to the cottage without a word.