Prologue

A/AN: So I'm not happy about the Scarlet Beauty kiss at all! This is my take on HOW this could turn out. I will be updating this weekly. This is going to end with Rumbelle because THAT'S HOW IT'S GOING TO BE DARN IT! Anyway enjoy the first chapter.

Belle had been going through the inventory when Will Scarlet walked in with two steaming cups of coffee. This had become their morning ritual over the past two weeks. He would come in, and they would have a nice chat and then he would go off to help the Merry Men with lumber-jacking. They had picked up the trade of selling wild game to the people of Storybrooke and wood to keep their fires burning during the harsh winter.

They had met under awkward circumstances when she'd found him passed out drunk in the library, clutching a picture of the Red Queen to his chest from the classic tale "Alice in Wonderland". She had discovered weeks later during one of their more serious talks that Anastasia had reverted to the dark side and banished him from Wonderland when he tried to reason with her.

They had found mutual comfort in losing their "true" loves. She had lost her true love to the darkness just as Will had. She had banished Rumple for the sake of Storybrooke. He was very much still alive, but she knew he would never return.

Belle felt her mood darken after dealing with the Cruella and Ursula. She loathed those two for trying to harm her, and she didn't trust them as far as she could throw them. They had taken a box from the shop with who knows what in it. She hoped the town didn't explode, but she wouldn't be surprised if it did.

She was about to close up the shop when she heard the bell ding, signaling a customer. "Hey I was just about to close up...What do you need?" she inquired, reaching up on the shelf to retrieve something.

"Oh the pleasure of your company will do perhaps." the stranger spoke, and she couldn't help but smile as she turned around to face the knave.

"What brings you back to the shop Will?" Belle asked curiously, putting the concoction she'd retrieved on the counter.

"I just wanted to see you." he shrugged, averting his gaze shyly. He shuffled his feet, standing by the window.

"You wanted to see me? You just saw me this morning..." she remarked, walking around the counter to join him.

"Seeing you this morning was nice, but I'm here for an entirely different reason tonight..." he added, causing her to raise a brow.

"And what reason would that be?" she probed, etching closer to him. She bit her lip nervously as her heart began to thud heavily in her chest. She usually didn't get these reactions from other men, but Will was just so sweet. He listened to her talk about all her favorite books, and he seemed to fill the aching loneliness in her heart just a bit.

"I wanted to ask you out on a date...I understand if you're not ready or if you don't want to go out or if you-" but Belle cut him off, holding up one finger in the air.

"I would love to go out with you..." she smiled leaning in closer to him. The visitation from the Queen's made her feel vulnerable, especially after mentioning Rumple. It was probably selfish of her, but she wanted to forget him, and in that moment Will was helping her do that. She threw all rationality to the wind when their lips met, forgetting all of her heartbreak for the moment. She was unaware of the man gazing at her ardently from the shadows, his heart breaking as the scene unfolded in front of him.

Rumplestiltskin stammered back when he watched his wife touch the lips of a man he didn't recognize. Had he meant anything to her at all? It felt like their 'true love' had all been a sham.. He shrank further into the shadows as he watched the 'happy' couple leave hand in hand. He felt tears prickle behind his eyes when he heard her distinct musical laughter fill the night air—a symbol of hope and now betrayal. It wasn't he who had made her laugh but another man.

"I guess I'll have to find another happy ending then..." he muttered silently before magicking himself away, pure hatred churning in his heart.

A/AN: That's all for the first part. In the next chapter Rumple will confront Belle and a confrontation will ensue. Please review!