This is my first try at writing in years, so it's probably a bit rocky. If it's unclear, or if anyone has any input please shoot me a review (or PM, whatever). Thanks!
It had been a long few weeks.
Belle still felt as if she'd been punched in the gut when she thought about him, about Rumpelstiltskin, and how he'd broken down on the town line. He'd pleaded with her, even after he was on the other side and could no longer see her, and even after his pleas had fallen silent the sobs took longer to fade. She couldn't walk away, but couldn't turn to face him, unsure of the strength of her own willpower. So she's sat on the cold asphalt, knees drawn up to her chest, silent tears coursing relentlessly down her face, for what felt like forever. Long past when she'd heard him stagger away, until silence finally encroached on the darkness.
She didn't know when she began the trek back into town, but suddenly the buildings came back into view, and the sun was just about ready to poke out from beyond the horizon, and her feet were sore from walking so long on the unforgiving pavement (heels having been abandoned at some point, but she couldn't find it in herself to care about remembering when or where), and that she had no idea where to go.
She couldn't face their home again, not after everything, at least not yet. The shop was well out of the question. Even the apartment above the library, the library itself, a gift from him which she had no desire to revisit at this point. Everything in her life, touched (tainted, a small, bitter part of her heart added) in some way by him. She eventually found herself outside of Granny's inn, knocking on Ruby's door at the crack of dawn (a bleary Ruby, suddenly awake and clear-eyed and pulling Belle inside).
Ruby went to the house for her, gathered some of her things, and set her up in a room, the offer of "as long as you need" back on the table. Belle had run out of tears after that first day, and felt painfully empty the next. The third day she'd tried to go back to the library, hoping work would clear her head, but the stares and whispers and the occasional congratulations made her ill (because he might be a bastard and a liar, but she loved him all the same) but the condolences were just as bad, because she just wanted to forget. She missed him, and knew she had only herself to blame (because she did know what kind of beast she'd married, and if she'd remembered that and noticed the signs before everything blew up then he'd still be there, with her).
And she wanted to hate him, but couldn't. Wanted to want to forget him, but knew she never could. So, on the night of the fifth day, she wound up outside of The Rabbit Hole. A vague recollection from her three-day vacation from her own body, when Lacey had taken over during her brief existence, and the memories reminded her of the numbing effects of alcohol. It was a temporary fix, the effects gone by the next morning, but it was the only thing left holding her together, so she found herself here, night after night.
She was alone, here. Nobody spoke to her, left her to her own devices, her only interactions being between the bartender and booze he kept flowing until she finally stumbled out the door and back into the night.
It was day eighteen (and she loathed the thought of when she'd begin counting by weeks and months instead of days) before someone jumped onto the stool next to her, ordered a drink ("I'll take your cheapest and your strongest, and I don't care if it tastes like shit") and finally turned toward her. "Hello there. Haven't seen you around for a while."
"Sorry, not interested." All she wanted to do was drink in peace. Again. Just one more night. Or maybe forever. Whatever.
He held his hands up, in a placating gesture. "I'm just offering up some polite conversation. You probably don't even remember me, do you?" She sighed. Maybe one night of talking to another human being wouldn't kill her.
She cast a sidelong glance at the man before quirking a brow. "I do remember you. You broke into the library."
"And you called the sheriff on me." He raised his glass towards her, inclining his head slightly.
"After you destroyed my books."
He threw his hands up. "It was one page out of one book."
"And that was enough," she paused, "Why did you do that anyway?"
"Well..."
"Well, what?"
He shrugged, turning his eyes to stare into his drink. "No reason."
Belle reached over to tug at the sleeve of his jacket until he looked back up. "Why?"
He shrugged again. "Dunno."
"Please. Indulge me."
He looked toward her again, the frown pulling her brows together at odds with the small, sad smile. He didn't know what had her here, alone, trying to drink away whatever it was gnawing at her, but maybe helping someone else would lead him to find some relief from his own suffering. Maybe karma would be kind to him for once. Or maybe he was just as desperate for a distraction from his life as she was hers.
"I guess I was just a bit homesick is all," he finally drawled, finishing up his drink.
Her smile dropped off completely before coming back, a little wider and much more sincere. "Homesick? The book... you're from Wonderland?" She cocked her head to the side. "Really?"
"Well, not from, exactly, but it was home. More than anywhere else has been."
"I've always wanted to visit Wonderland. Well, it's one of the places I want to visit. Honestly though, it sounds so magnificently different that it doesn't even seem real. I mean, I've heard about it, thought it sounded interesting but I don't know how I'd ever get there, especially from here, but if I could go, if there was an occasion to go, I would jump at the chance to-" she suddenly cut off, closed her eyes, and then laughed softly at herself. "Let me start over. Please tell me about it. About Wonderland."
Will smiled at her, finding himself getting caught up in her enthusiasm, and laughed out loud. "Alright. I have an idea. I have here, an empty glass," he held up said glass, "And you have a desire to hear about my home. So I propose a deal-"
He was taken aback by how quickly her face fell, how hard her eyes suddenly became. "No. No deals."
"Uh. Sorry?"
She closed her eyes and shook her head, just a twitch from side to side. "Just... just call it something else."
His mouth opened and closed a few times before any words actually came out. "A... bargain, then?"
"No. Closer, but not quite. Keep trying." The hardness had fallen from her eyes and she seemed a little embarrassed by her outburst, her teeth worrying the corner of her bottom lip. He decided not to push it... yet.
"Well, your majesty, how does 'quid pro quo' strike you?"
She sighed dramatically, "Well, it's not perfect. But it'll do. What did you have in mind?"
He gestured again to his empty glass. "You buy me another drink, I'll tell you anything you want to know about Wonderland." Belle turned her eyes up, held her chin in her palm as if she was weighing the option, her lips twitching at the corners. She finally looked him in the eye.
"You're on. What, uh, what're you having?"
"Anything 80 proof on up. I'm not picky."
She quickly emptied her own glass before catching the attention of the bartender and ordering two more. As soon as the drinks were in front of them, she turned towards him. "Alright, that's my end. Now, first things first, how did you ever end up there anyway?"
"Magic mirror, the first time."
"And why did you go there?"
"Our d- agreement was about Wonderland, not me." Belle huffed and crossed her arms her arms, but nodded.
"Fine. I'll relent. For now." She grinned, narrowed her eyes, "But I'll get it out of you."
"We'll see," he took a long drink from his glass, "But until then..." he trailed off.
"Most of what I've read is from that book you defaced," Will rolled his eyes but smirked, "So let's start there. Is any of it true?"
"Aye, most of it, actually. Though Alice took some artistic license with parts."
"You know Alice?!"
"Quite well, actually."
"What's she like?"
"Stubborn, mostly. Brave. Damn good in a fight, sword or no, much better than me, for sure. Fell madly in love with probably the single most unavailable person she could have possibly found, but somehow made it work."
"What made him so unavailable?"
"Cursed." Will noticed Belle fumble her glass before settling her hands, then take a long drink.
"Cursed?" She finally ventured.
"Yup. Genie."
"And, um... he's still a..."
"No, no. The curse was broken. Eventually. Then they got married and lived happily ever after."
"They got their happy ending." She stared wistfully into her drink, running her index finger along the rim. "I'm glad it works out for some people, at least."
"I'll drink to that," he said raising his glass, as she looked up and did the same. "To other people's happy endings." Another sad smile crossed her lips, and he was sure the look was mirrored on his own face. They clinked their glasses together, then both drained the last of the liquor. Without being prompted, Belle ordered them two more.
They sat in silence for a long moment, before Belle turned back to him. "So. Tell me about the white rabbit?"
"Huh?"
"I bought you another drink, you owe me more Wonderland."
"Ah, yeah. Well. Him. He's a right git sometimes. Always on about bloody punctuality. Dragging people where ever he pleases on a whim, no regards for what they might have going on for themselves. But he loves his family, and Alice loved him, so I guess he wasn't all bad. He has a few good points, I suppose." He took his first sip from the newly filled tumbler of whiskey. "Still a git though."
"And the Jabberwocky?"
He shuddered. "More terrifying than you can imagine. Reads your fears and makes them real, feeds off of them. Sadistic beyond belief. That's really all there is to say about her."
"The Red Queen?" Will pauses, glass halfway to his mouth.
"Pass."
"Pass?"
"Yeah, pass."
"That's certainly not part of our arrangement. You never said anything about a 'pass' system."
"Explain your aversion to deals and I'll talk about her."
Belle flinched then crossed her arms tightly across her chest. She glared at him, but with no real fire behind it. "Fine, pass." She sighed, then tapped a finger against her chin, thinking. "The Queen of Hearts, then. What do you know about her?"
Will raised an eyebrow, "Pass."
"Again?!"
"Yeah, again."
Belle laughed. "Well, at this point I think it'd be easier for you to tell me what is allowed versus what isn't. A general overview, maybe?"
And so he told her a bit about Wonderland itself, islands floating hundreds of feet above the water, the boiling ocean, the long narrow road stretching all the way from one side of Wonderland to the other, the forest made of trees made of people, dragon flies and the Mallow Marsh and any other thing he could could think of. Belle, for her part, hung on his every word, every description, only interrupting occasionally to get him to expand on or clarify something he'd said.
When the call came for last call, it took them both by surprise.
"Gods, is it really so late? I'm going to be useless tomorrow."
"I'm useless pretty much everyday, so don't beat yourself up over one bloody day of it."
Belle punched him lightly in the shoulder, then smiled at him, eyes impossibly blue even in the dim lights of the bar. "Not completely useless. You were great company this evening. Thank you for that, truly."
"And you were a great drinking partner. So thanks yourself." They walked out at the same time, parting outside the door to head to their respective residences. "See you around, librarian."
"You too, book thief."
"It was one page!"
Belle laughed lightly as she continued to walk, feeling lighter than she had in weeks.