Death Shot a Canon into Time's Chipped Heart
Rating: T
Summary: Storybrooke has been villain free for four years and Henry is starting to wonder why. Rumple and Belle, on the other hand, are starting to wonder why their perfect world has started to crack at the seams. A late-night visit with an old 'friend' will throw a canon into their monster-free world and catapult them into several realities.
This story is basically a take on what it would be like if the characters in the Once Upon a Time universe/show had made different decisions, and how what they did or didn't do would have affected the lives of others. As such, this is completely 100% an AU story.
Originally written for Rumbelle Revelry for still-searching 47. The prompt words were not of this world, flickering, and tomb. I chose not of this world and flickering.
Warnings: There is mention of alcohol use, people meeting untimely ends, and angst galore.
Part One:
An Eerily Quiet Town in Maine
October 18, 2020 Storybrooke, Maine
Rumpelstiltskin and Belle's house 5:52 PM
Henry looked out at the red tinged early sunset from the table he shared with his grandpa Rumple's wife Belle as he thought how life in Storybrooke had grown lax, boring, and altogether too quiet over the last four years.
Whilst most of the residents of Storybrooke, home of fairytale creatures and princesses alike, enjoyed the quiet, Henry secretly longed for the more interesting days, or at least a random duel in the middle of Main Street.
There had been no Monster, Big Bad, Bad Guy, Villain, or otherwise Foul Being and or Evil Person to wreak havoc in the small-no-longer-cursed-town.
Ah...life had been so simple. So simple, in fact, people finally felt safe enough to start pairing off with their True Loves and having children.
As such, The-Nowhere-Near-As-Dark-Dark-One-Rumpelstiltskin and his beautiful, brave wife Belle had settled easily into domesticity.
They were married four years ago by The Former Cricket Archie in a quiet ceremony surrounded by his son, grandson and Belle's father.
There was much to celebrate, for you see after Rumple spent an unknown amount of time sharing his body with his son and being a prisoner of the green witch Zelena, in a last minute uncharacteristic turn of events Zelena had seen reason and used her magic to separate Rumple from his son without killing either of them.
Regina had, without hesitation or a second thought, sent her sister back to Oz. To absolutely no one's shock, six months later, her sister acted up in her usual wicked fashion. She was not so sadly easily defeated by Dorothy, with help from Ruby and Mulan.
Today, four years later, Rumple, his son, his daughter-in-law Emma, and his two daughters, Clara and Verity were at the park while Belle and his grandson Henry were at their salmon house surrounded by several stacks of books and crumpled papers trying to figure out what to write for NaNoWriMo.
"I'm not so sure we should write about fairytales when our whole entire lives have been actual fairytales."
Belle smiled, her eyes twinkling with amusement. "I agree. Fairytales are so five years ago. 'Sides there's more than enough fairytale twists and AU's out there. The world doesn't need more."
Henry had agreed to collaborate with Belle seeing as she had read nearly all the books in the library and he'd had an epic case of writer's block ever since the Author had given him his pen to write more stories nearly four and a half years ago.
It didn't help matters that all he really wanted to do was make out with his girlfriend Grace, spend time with his dad and grandfathers, and prepare himself for the delayed jealously of having a sister in three months to set in.
Sure, he'd been thrilled when his parents fell in love again. He was even more elated when their kiss of true love was witnessed by nearly half of the town.
Henry's father had kissed Emma while he was giving her CPR after a black shadow had knocked her unconscious.
His magical kiss and their subsequent 'I love yous' caused the 'pirate' to go back to Neverland. Or was it the Enchanted Forest? It didn't matter to Henry, Killian Jones was never heard from again, and his absence made most of Storybrooke happy.
Rumplestiltskin had been so ecstatic he had thrown a huge party in Town Hall. A celebration which was so joyous, people became engaged and nine-ish months later several babies were born.
That very night marked the end of all malevolent drama.
"Henry are you okay?" Belle's soft accented voice brought him back to reality.
Henry nearly jumped out of his chair as a cold blast of air came out of nowhere, causing goosebumps to run up his arms. "Oh, yeah! Sorry, I was just thinking how quiet things have been. Thanks for helping me out with my writer's block. I'm living proof having a magic pen in your possession doesn't mean you can write the next bestseller."
Belle laughed, as she patted Henry on the shoulder. "I'm sure writer's block happens to everyone."
"Not Stephen King." Henry deadpanned, with a serious look on his face.
"Oh, yes, even Stephen King. He'll just never publicly admit it."
Henry's reply was drowned out with the sound of his parents, grandpa, and little aunts stomping through the door.
Rumple's voice echoed from the front door straight to the parlor. "Henry! Belle! We brought dinner. Hamburgers, onion rings, fries, milk shakes, and iced tea for everyone."
Rumpelstiltskin kissed his wife's cheek as he handed her their squirming three and a half old little daughter Verity so he could put the several bags of dinner on the nearest clear surface.
"Did you have fun at the park Verity? Where's Clara?"
As soon as she asked where Verity's twin was, Neal, who now insisted on going by Baelfire, flew through the parlor with a screeching/giggling Clara on his back.
"I hope you'll have enough energy to keep up with this one in a few years." Emma said, patting her stomach as she sat down as gracefully as possible in the nearest recliner.
"Hey Henry, did you and Belle figure out what you're going to write?"
"Nah, but I did look at the list of names you gave me for my sister. I crossed of Ellie, Elia, Ellery, Emelia, Emmy, Remy, and Gemma. Way too close to your name mom. To think, we're being overrun with girls. It's a good thing Grandma Snow and Grandpa David had Leo and Ruby and Archie had Micah or else I would be totally outnumbered."
Emma sighed, nodding her head as she considered how right he was about many the names Bae and she had picked for their daughter. "Did you like any of the names?"
"Yeah. Krista, Scarlett or Madeline. I think those are the coolest names."
Emma looked to Baelfire, as they both shared a knowing look. "Good choices. We were going to wait to tell everyone when she was born, but Henry's decided it. Her name's going to be Madeline Scarlett Cassidy. Maddie for short."
Henry hadn't been so happy and excited since Grace had told him she loved him a month ago.
He would be going to Boston college in a year, and Grace would be going with him. In all his seventeen years, he'd never been more content.
But, something nagged at him, a tickling sensation in the back of his head, telling him something wasn't quite right. A part of him felt uneasy with the peace in the town he'd grown up in. Maybe, he thought, he'd talk to his Grandpa Rumple after dinner…
Dinner came and went.
Baelfire and Emma went home, as they both needed to go to work in the morning, even though it was a Saturday. They left Henry there, knowing Henry would be taken home by Rumple or Belle later. Verity and Clara had gone to bed, and Henry and Belle went back to hovering over their piles of books.
Rumpelstiltskin sat on the couch reading a The Dirty Streets of Heaven, again, as he sipped a small glass of expensive scotch. The Bobby Dollar series was one of his favorite books to read, he'd even let Henry borrow them. Though he did so secret, for they were not books for children or young adults, but Henry seemed mature enough to Rumple. He knew his grandson could handle the extreme adult themes in the trilogy, so long as he didn't tell anyone, especially Belle about reading them, whom he knew would disapprove.
Belle chimed in, breaking another strange silence from her 'grandson'. "Maybe we could ask Rumple for any ideas. I'm sure he has more stories to tell than anyone in town."
Rumple appeared in front of them in a haze of red smoke.
His demeanor feigned irritation but his twinkling eyes held within them a gold tinted playfulness. "I really wish you would give me fair warning if you're going to say my name. I could have been in the shower." Rumple smirked at his wife, enjoying her giggles over their favorite inside joke.
Rumple grabbed a chair, sitting close intimately close to his wife, Henry suddenly felt like an intruder. Years of living with an emotionally-stilted-not-knowing-how-to-show-affection-not-surprisingly-heartless-Regina had made Henry cautious of what to do with himself when people hugged him, or in the presence people doling out kisses, hugs, and hand holding in front of him.
One would think spending time with Prince Charming and Snow White would be nauseating and uncomfortable enough, but the personifications of Beauty and the Beast put them to shame by a mile. Because of this, it'd taken him years to ask Grace out, and months to simply hold her hand.
His grandfather gave him an understanding look. "You're a million miles away tonight, aren't you Henry?"
"Yeah. I guess I am. Sorry. I've been distracted all day. I've been wondering, ohm…do either of you think it's strange things have been so drama free over the past four years? Don't get me wrong, who wouldn't want peace after the constant onslaught of every villain imaginable trying to take over the town or destroy as many people as possible?"
Henry paused to take a breath. "We haven't been villain free since before the curse broke the first time, oh and the year my mom and I spent in New York; and after, when we came back. But, then again, it's hard to call the Snow Queen a villain."
Belle and Rumple shared a look almost identical to the one shared by his mom and dad a few hours ago, as if they couldn't wait to tell him something they've been wanting to say for a while.
Belle spoke first. "Well we have thought it strange, yes. But we've been having such an easy time we didn't want to jinx things by saying how lucky we've all been. We've enjoyed our reprieve too much to desire any other form of entertainment."
Rumple chimed in, holding Belle's hand in his. "One day you'll understand why living a life full of adventure and being the hero is nowhere near as rewarding as settling down and having a peaceful life. I know life may seem old hat, but, trust me Henry, one day when you want to settle down with someone, or even if it's just you, you definitely won't want Chaos knocking at your door demanding a fight."
Henry decided it would be best to tell a hopefully believable lie-based on their reactions to his question. "Alright. I understand. I guess I'm just restless. I'll be going to college soon and I'm afraid I won't be able to write a thing and end up dropping out and disappointing all of you."
Rumple stifled his laugh by downing the rest of his whiskey. "Oh, Henry just because you were given a magic pen that seems broken, doesn't mean you've lost the ability to write. Have you tried writing without it?"
Henry looked at his grandfather as if he'd grown two heads.
Rumple put up his hands, knowing how ridiculous his question sounded. "I know. I'm sure you have. Try going somewhere you'd never go to write. Inspiration, I hear, tends to strike in the oddest of places."
Henry nodded his head as he stifled a yawn.
Rumple kissed Belles hand, using the table to lift himself up. "I'll walk Henry home. I need to stretch my legs." He kissed the top of Belle's head. "I'll be home soon, sweetheart."
She gave him a look Henry couldn't decipher, nor did he want to, coming to the correct conclusion it was a look shared between a couple with true love. If Henry would have understood it for what it truly was-a look of hurried irritation-instead of an assumed look describing to her husband how excited she was now their children were asleep and their company was almost gone, he would have been even more suspicious something was amiss.
An hour later Rumpelstiltskin opened the door to the beautiful picture of his small, but fierce wife greeting him with a sequence of crossed arms and hands on her hips.
"You promised no one would remember. Why is it every time there's something amiss with this town, it's always Henry who has a funny feeling things aren't quite right?"
Rumple sighed, closing the door behind him, locking it, and placing a shield of magic over the large door. He placed a hand on her lower back, steering his angry, shaking wife to the kitchen.
"Would you please explain how you promised to keep us safe from anything that would harm us after you brought Bae from the Underworld, woke me up and promised never to lie to me again and yet after four years something has gone very, very wrong?"
Rumple ran a hand through his nearly shoulder length hair, still not used to having his hair long after using his hair for the 'spell', which for some reason had started to crack at the seams.
"I don't know. We should gave had a lifetime of protection. I didn't count on Henry catching on."
Belle rolled her eyes. "Oh puleeze, it took him four, nearly five years to realize the Author's pen wouldn't work, and start to wonder why he's completely unable to write a word. I mean he did end up figuring out Regina's curse; sure it took him ten years...but..." She let out a long displeased sigh. "Rumple what are we going to do?"
Rumple touched the tip of his nose, deep in thought. "Have Bae and Emma babysit the girls, pretend we're going on a date night, and go back to where I cast the spell?" He suggested, in a hopeful tone, wishing and praying she would accept his plan. "Ohm… we can see if I can fix it or make it stronger?"
Belle took out her phone, looking at it for a long drawn out moment, banging it on their granite table, causing her husband to jump nearly out of his skin. "Halloween's in two weeks Rumple. Are you sure we have that much time?"
"Yes." He said, confidently. "All we have to do is make sure Henry continues to not write a word."
Belle looked away from Rumple's pleading face, to the table of books and crumpled paper. "I wish I hadn't offered to help him with National Novel Writing Month. I honestly forgot all about the stipulations."
Rumple placed a hand on her hip, pulling her closer to him. "Oh, come now sweetheart, the stipulations where more like guidelines. Henry's a curious lad. It makes sense he'd of eventually figured it out."
He held out his hand and smiled, the gold of his teeth sparkled in what little light there was in the dim kitchen. "Come to bed with me?"
Knowing her husband's intentions where good, or at least had been for the past four years, Belle took his hand in hers and exhaled, resigned to the fact they couldn't do anything about the glitch in Rumple's protection spell. "Oh very well. You promised to protect me and our family, and you have. Take me to bed Rumple, we'll deal with this catastrophe in two weeks."
Two weeks came and went in the blink of an eye.
Belle and Rumple persuaded Baelfire and an irritable Emma to watch his sisters the night before Halloween so they could have a nice date night.
They told them they'd be late, after midnight and that they were free to stay over. Bae had agreed to stay later right away, not wanting to know any more details of what or why his papa and his papa's wife needed to stay out so late.
They kissed their daughters' goodbye at six, giving money to Bae and Emma, enough for pizza and a couple rented movies, one for the girls and one for the adults after they went to bed.
Rumple and Belle headed to their favorite Italian bistro which was co-owned by the former Queens of Darkness, the now married (also by Archie) Cruella and Ursula-whose sudden love for each other had outweighed their conquests for revenge.
(Henry didn't remember, but he had written their happy ending a few months before Rumple and Company had landed in the Underworld.)
They were seated in a table in the back for maximum privacy.
Belle twirled a curl in her finger, a nervous habit she'd started shortly after she had her daughters. "Cruella...I mean Ella seems much happier."
"Yes, thank goodness Henry decided to play matchmaker."
Belle gently nudged her husband's shin not at all playfully the moment he said the above sentence loud enough people could hear. "Rumpelstiltskin!"
"Sorry. You're right my dear. They fell in love all by themselves." He buried his sarcastic tone with a smile and an intense look at the menu. "What do you think went wrong?" He asked seriously.
"I thought we agreed not to talk about this in public."
"Yes, we did. You're right. I'm sorry sweetheart. How was your day with the girls at the library? Did they enjoy Dr. Seuss Hour?"
Knowing they had to walk a fine line, she replied, "Yes, Verity loved Green Eggs and Ham and Clara enjoyed Horton Hears a Who. What are you going to order Rumple?" She asked, so sweetly he swore he received a metaphorical cavity.
"Spaghetti and meatballs. Shall we order some wine?" He asked nonchalantly as possible, trying his best to act inconspicuous and failing miserably.
Belle took off her flats and rubbed his shin with her stockinged feet affectionately as an apology and to quell her previous uncharacteristic outburst. "Rumple you know I'm not angry. I'm happy about what you did. You gave us a wonderful life and a world where our daughters and family don't have to live in constant fear. It gave you back your son. If you had to do it over again, I would stand by your side every time. I'm just nervous we have to summon..." She whispered and pointed down, "Him."
Rumple said under his breath, "It's not an ideal situation, but I believe it is fixable."
Belle nodded her head, not saying a word about their 'problem' until three hours later on the car.
She looked at the time on the dash and then at her silver watch. "What are we going to do for three hours?"
Rumple smiled. "We don't have the girls tonight. I brought a blanket, strawberries, and some champagne to ohm...settle our nerves before..." He gulped when her hand started caressing his thigh. "Ohm...our meeting."
She batted her eyelashes. "Oh Rumple, if you wanted to make love in the backseat of your car, you could have asked years ago." She leaned over, whispering in his ear. "You also didn't have to bring anything. All I need is you."
Belle gave him a kiss before he could reply which left him breathless and speechless for the next two hours and fifty minutes.