Summary: Before there was Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Evil Queen, there was a couple in love. They would eventually be the parents of a character we all know and love, Rumplestilskin. This is the story of Malcolm and the love of his life, the reason behind his turn from absent father to Peter Pan.

Disclaimer: I don't anything from Once Upon a Time. Sorry. Everything else that's mine is from my imagination.

"If you're looking for a story with a happily ever after, this isn't the place for it. My happily ever after doesn't exist. My story already ended, but you didn't even know it. The enchanted forest is a place where every hero gets their happily ever after eventually and villains meet their demise. I'm not a hero or a villain."

I stood in front of my house trying to sweep the dirt from the floors. The sun beat down on my head, and I felt like I was two seconds from spontaneous combustion. I was bored, and I had been bored for the past year. The village life was suffocating me. I wanted to scream every moment because I knew I would never be able to leave. Nobody ever escapes the village. Nobody ever has the money to move away.

I used to dream of a far off land far away from this place where dreams always come true. It was called Neverland, and there I could fly. I was free. I loved it there, but I stopped dreaming about it a couple years ago. I was to old to believe in silly little things, but I still wished with all my heart that I could leave this place far behind.

My dad was a farmer, but the harvest was never plentiful in our tiny little village. The soil was too hard and rocky for anything to grow here. I argued with my father that we should move away to somewhere where the ground is soft and moist, perfect for farming. He never agreed. His father and his father before him have always been here. That means I'm stuck here forever, and my children will be stuck here in a never ending cycle of monotony.

Everyday I followed my father out into the fields to help plant, harvest, or water. I hated the feeling of dirt clinging to every inch of my skin. The dust filled my lungs until each breath feels as if glass was scratching my throat. My throat was dry because the river is almost a mile away, and my father and I often finished the water jug within the first arid hour. We work from sunup to sundown because we have no help for our land. I'm an only child because my mother died in childbirth with my younger sister, who died shortly after. My father never had the heart to remarry.

My mother and father had true love. I still remember how they looked into each other's eyes, and it seemed as if the entire world fell away. They would have gone to the ends of the Earth to find each other. When my mother died, my father looked as if half of his heart had died with her. Fifteen years later, he still had that broken glint in his eyes, as if he was broken too much to continue.

My father had not lost his looks with age, and I had seen many widows giving him a nod of approval. We could use the extra money around the house. He seemed to lose weight every day becoming a sliver of his former self. He gave all his food to me because the money from the harvest had not came in yet.

As I finished sweeping, I turned to go into the house, but I stopped suddenly. I saw a glimmer of red that caught my eye. I turned around to gaze upon one of the most beautiful girls that I had ever seen. I had never seen here before, and this was incredibly strange in our village. We rarely had visitors, but here she was.

She stood across the path in a dark red cloak that seemed to glint in the sunlight. Her dark black hair was tucked in the hood, but it still tumbled out as if struggling to be free. She stared at me with blue eyes that gleamed like sapphires and seemed to stare at me too. I had never seen skin so perfect and smooth before. I was sure that she was a princess. She waved her tiny hand slightly at me and began to work. I quickly set down the broom and attempted to brush the dirt from my clothes.

I was practically dyed brown. She smiled, "Hi, my name is Faye. I just arrived her with my father. It's wonderful to meet someone."

I held out my, "My name is Malcolm. How'd you end up here?"

"Here on your doorstep, or here in your village?"

"I don't know. Both?"

"I ended up on your doorstep because I'm lost, and I have no idea how to find the river. But I ended up in this village because my father is a physician, and he's here to settle down finally. We always move around, but I finally convinced him to buy a home and to not move for at least a year."

"Our old doctor died about a year ago, and everybody's been on edge in case another plague rolls around. It must have been fantastic to travel around so much. I've been stuck here for my entire life."

"It's nothing like that. I've never gotten to know anyone. I'm always moving before I can make friends."

"Well, let's change that. I'll be your first friend."

"I'd like that," said Faye with a laugh.

"My first act as your official first friend is that I will personally escort you to the river."

I took her arm and sauntered off to the river.

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Everyday, I woke up two hours before sunset to rush to Faye's house a mile away. She would open the door and beckon me inside. I would laugh with her for an hour while she fed me breakfast of bread, jam, and eggs. Afterwards, I ran home to begin planting. After sunset, Faye would always be waiting on my doorstep. There wasn't a day when I didn't run to meet her. We would then run to the river to watch the remaining of the stars and count the stars as they came out. The world seemed right for this one year as if nothing could ever happen to change it.

One night after the harvest had been taken in, my father turned to me, "You have the day off tomorrow."

"Why?"

"Because the harvest is over, and you deserve a break."

I hugged him as hard as I could, "Thank you so much. I know exactly what to do."

The next morning, I ran to Faye's house and rushed inside. She gave me a startled look, "What's the big hurry, young grasshopper?"

"Eat up. I have the day off, and we're going on an adventure."

We gobbled down breakfast, then I grabbed her hand. We took off running down the road until we got to the forest.

"Do you trust me?" I asked.

"Yes."

I dragged her further into the woods. The branches caught in our hair as we sprinted through the forest. I could her whopping with laughter behind me. We finally reached a meadow.

I collapsed onto the ground dragging her next to me. The soft smell of lavender and roses surround us, and the clouds above us drifted lazily in a blue sky. I turned to look at her, and her startling eyes gazed back at me. I pulled her close to me, and her head seemed to against my chest like it was made for it. She held me close as if I was the only thing that mattered in the world to her.

I mumbled the words into her hair, "I love you." I moved my face close to hers and pressed my lips against hers. She was shocked for a moment, but then her lips yielded and kissed me back.

I pushed her hair back and moved my hand to her waist to clutch her back. This was perfect. I had never been happier. I didn't care that I was stuck here forever. I had her. Suddenly, I could feel cold tears running down her face. The saltiness mixed in our lips, and she pulled away.

"I can't," she sobbed.

"You can't love me?" I felt my heart breaking into a thousand places.

With tears running down her eyes in tiny silvery rivulets, she exclaimed, "I love you. That's the problem."

"I don't understand."

"I'm cursed." she cried out.

"What?" I backed away suddenly.

Drawing a deep breath, she began, "When my mother was still alive, she taught me magic. I had a natural talent for it, and I learned very quickly. My magic continued to grow and grow, and when she died, she apprenticed me to a magician. This magician was known only as the dark one. Everyday, no matter what happened or where I was, he would appear and teach me magic from sunrise to sundown. As I grew older, my power grew until it matched his in strength and ability. I became more and more curious about who my strange tutor was. One day about five years ago, I followed him away from our lessons and saw him approach a small cottage. He pulled out a woman and demanded that she pay the price for the potion she had bought for him. The woman cried out that she had no money to give him. With a laugh, the magician walked into the house. The woman tried to stop him, but with a wave of his hand, she was on the floor. He took the baby and left in a flurry of smoke. I stood in shock. I approached the woman who laid desperately on the ground as if all life had departed from her. She lifted her head, and I could see the pain in her eyes. Before she could say a word, I ran back into the woods."

She took a deep breathe looking at me for support. I held her close willing for her to have the strength to continue.

"The next day I came to lessons at the usual time. The magician seemed his normal happy self, but when he looked at me, he could tell something was wrong. I told him, 'I saw you take that woman's baby last night.'

He laughed at my anger, 'She owed me, so I took my payment.'

'That's not fair.'

'Life isn't fair.'

I was done with this wicked man who took children from parents. I was going to make him pay. I lifted my hands preparing a spell which rushed towards him in a cloud of gold. He waved his hand dissipating it into thin air.

He smiled, 'I may have taught you everything, but I still have a few tricks up my sleeve.'

The next thing I knew I was on the floor feeling the air crushed from my lungs. The magician stood over me. 'You little fool. How dare you attack me, the dark one. I will make you pay for this for the next eternity. I curse you with the worst curse of all. You will never pass the age of eighteen. I curse you with eternal life. May you forever see your loved ones die as you stand unchanged.'

With that he turned disappearing into the air."

I gazed sternly down at her face which looks broken. "We will break this curse, and I will love you till the day I die."

With an astonished look in her eyes, she said, "I'll never grow old with you. You deserve someone who can love you and live their whole life with you. I love you, but what if you want a real life? I could never take that from you."

I answered her with a kiss that immediately takes the words from her mouth.

XXXXXXXX

Faye was pregnant with our first son. We married a year after our first kiss. We tried for a son for five years, and finally, our fortunes gave us our first son. I moved out of my father's house and built a house in the meadow with my bare hands. It was small and modest, but Faye filled it with light and beauty.

I had never been happier. Faye and I argue as most married couples do, but we always reconcile. I love her more than life. She is my true love.

The night that Faye gave birth was painful for us all. At dinner that night, she suddenly dropped the bowel she had been carrying. I looked up in surprise. She whispered, "The baby's coming."

I leapt out of my seat to run to get her father. I led her father to our cottage, and we brought her to the bed. She screamed for the next few hours, and every moment of pain for her, was an hour of agony for me. Finally, the doctor came out of her room and handed me my baby boy. Never had I been more filled with joy. I looked into his eyes, and I knew immediately that he was mine. He was my boy.

XXXXXXXX

Faye stood in the house cooking large pot of stew over the fire. The little boy, who we named Rumplestilskin, ran across the floor already three years old. I just turned thirty two. I'm getting older and farming was beginning to take toll on my body. My back ached, and my hands were rough and calloused. Faye hadn't changed a single days since I met her. When I met her eyes, she looked eighteen and beautiful. She looked at me as if I haven't aged a day, and I knew that I will always be her Malcolm.

The people have gotten suspicious of her looks. She doesn't age a day, yet the years pass by quickly for all of us. Many people whispered that she's a witch. I saw their wary glances as she walked through town buying flour and meat for dinner. I knew that soon there will be trouble.

A horrendous plague stroke that year killing five people within the first week. The people were in hysterics praying and crying to God. Thankfully the sickness never touched our household. I owed it to Faye's father's tips to staying healthy including drinking fish oil, but deep down, I suspected that Faye is using magic to keep us all safe.

I knew she hates magic because its the cause of all her pain and agony, but I also knew that she would do anything to protect us. Magic always comes with a price, and I could see the stress digging deeper into her eyes.

By the end of the first month, over half the children died of the plague, and the rest laid sick in their beds. Very few survived the plague, and the mothers were crazed with grief. Only Rumple was healthy and prospering.

One night, I heard a pounding at the door. I flung it open to reveal Faye's father panting. He collapses, and I hold him close. He struggled, "A mob is coming for Faye and me. That idiot, Grizelda, convinced them that we used magic to kill the children of the village. They're coming." With that, his heart gives out, and he collapses lifeless onto the floor.

I rushed to the bedroom. We need to get out of her. Faye rubs sleep out of her eyes. "What?"

"There's a mob coming for you. They're calling you a witch."

We ran through the forest with the mob trailing behind us. They saw us leaving the cottage, and now they're on our tail. We gained a lead on them by taking a shortcut, but I can hear them following us. Faye turned towards me. "I lead them away. Take Rumple far away."

"No we can get away together."

"This will keep on happening as long as we're together. Go live a normal life. Go find another love. Love her. Grow old with her."

"I won't."

"Yes, you will. We don't have much more time. Rumple won't be able to take this much longer."

"Don't leave me. I love you."

"I love you, too. That's why I'm doing this."

"Don't leave Rumple. Don't you love him?"

"I love him more than life. I'm giving him a normal life where he can live in peace. A life where he won't have to run because his mom doesn't grow old and can do magic."

"He needs a mother."

"He has you. I love you both so much."

With those final words, she ran off into the woods towards the mob.

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Two more chapters. The first when Pan visits Faye. The second when Faye visits Storybooke. Comment if you want it to continue. Tell me what you think.