AN: I'm just so happy with the ending of season 6! It was hard to make it through most of the season, but it was worth it for their happy beginning ❤️
Also, I felt that given everything they've gone through, this is the perfect place for one of my favourite songs. So please, play Beauty and the Beast as you read. They certainly did that story beautifully.
All rights for Once Upon A Time are ABC's. I own nothing.
Tale as old as time, true as it can be
Barely even friends, then somebody bends unexpectedly
Just a little change, small to say the least
Both a little scared, neither one prepared
Beauty and the Beast
As each family turned to return to their own houses, Rumple turned to his wife, standing next to him outside Granny's. Her goodbyes were longer and more personal than his, of course, but he didn't mind waiting for her. He'd wait for her for the rest of his life if he has to. And in his case, that meant forever.
"So…" He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling nervous. "Are you going back to your house?"
"Do you want me to?" Belle asked softly in response.
"Of course not," He admitted, looking at his shop down the street. He was too scared of her response to look at her. He had a feeling their separation was over, but he wanted her to choose it. He needed her to.
For a long moment, she said nothing. He could feel his heart beating quickly, each beat bringing him closer to believing it would never happen, each flutter of his heart telling him Belle still hated him and he was a fool to hope for anything else.
It felt like a hundred years later when she gently took his hand, lacing her fingers with his. "I think we can go home," She said, her voice soft and somewhat hesitant.
He turned his head to look at her. Tears filled his eyes at the faith and love filling hers, and despite those tears, he smiled at her, the sort of smile only she could bring out. When she smiled back at him, he leaned towards her and kissed her, gently and slowly, revelling in the sensation. He'd missed that more than he'd have liked to admit.
But it didn't matter, because she was coming back home.
When they finally broke apart, Belle began walking towards their home. He hesitated briefly before stopping her. She frowned in confusion and opened her mouth to speak, but he beat her to it.
"There's something I need to do," He said quietly, and somehow, she understood. She gently squeezed his hand, silently telling him she's with him, and then let him lead her to the cemetery.
At first, he let her hold Gideon's bassinet, but after a while, he took it, wanting to feel closer to the son he'd almost lost. She let him, even though he could tell she wanted to keep holding him. They both almost lost him; now all they wanted was to be there with him in every second of his life, at least while they could.
When they reached the cemetery, Belle slowed down, unsure whether he wanted to do it alone again. He merely squeezed her hand and pulled her after him, silently telling her he wanted her there. The last time he stood there he made Baelfire a promise, one he hadn't kept. He spent a long time wondering why he failed. Now, after everything that's happened, he knew exactly why.
He tried to do it alone.
But this was a night of new beginnings. The perfect time to make a new promise, one he'd keep.
As if the boy was aware of the importance of the moment, Gideon woke up the moment they reached Baelfire's grave. He cooed as Rumple placed the bassinet on the ground and then picked him up, cradling him gently. It's been centuries since he'd held a baby. His baby.
"Bae…" He started, his voice sounding choked even to his own ears, "This…" He cleared his throat. Belle wrapped an arm around him, resting her head against his shoulder, silently lending him strength. Confidence filling him, he cleared his throat again and continued. "This is Gideon. Your brother."
He turned his head slightly, looking for Belle, and her eyes immediately found his, showing him her love and faith. She smiled at him, and he immediately returned her a smile, tears once again filling his eyes. He wasn't alone anymore. He had a family.
His eyes found his son's grave once again and he continued, his voice quiet but filled with emotion.
"I failed you, Bae. Three times. Once, when I let go of your hand." The memory still stung. Seeing the anger and hatred in his son's eyes was something he knew he'd never forget. He cleared his throat once again, trying to get rid of the lump in his throat. "The second time, when I let you die."
"He made his choice," Belle said softly, but he shook his head. It was his fault. There was nothing anyone could say to change his mind.
"And the third time… when I broke the promise I made." He let out a long breath, his gaze focused on the tombstone. Neal Cassidy, it said. He always felt it should've been Baelfire, but his son preferred Neal, and he respected it. "Because the last time I stood here, I promised you I'd follow your example and be a hero. I promised you I'd be the man Belle deserves, the man you died for." He shook his head slightly. The name became somewhat blurred, but in his mind, it was still just as clear. Belle turned her head and pressed a kiss to his shoulder, and, his sight still blurred with tears, he turned his head slightly and pressed a kiss to her head. He wasn't alone anymore. His eyes once again finding the tombstone, he said quietly, "But we both know I broke that promise, didn't I?
"I wasn't a hero. I've made a lot of wrong choices. I've hurt Belle. I nearly blackened my heart completely. I became the Dark One again, and then worked with Hades to save Gideon." He shook his head again. The mistakes seemed so much clearer now, after all they've gone through to find and save their son. "I tried to force them to be a part of my life, which almost got them killed. I promised you I'd do things right this time, but I made the same mistakes, just like I did with you. I was so afraid of losing them, the way I lost you, that I pushed them away."
Belle pulled back slightly. He tried blinking his tears away, but when she cupped his cheek with her free hand, he could feel his tears trapped between them. Gently, she turned his head until his eyes once again met hers.
"We made mistakes," She said softly, her thumb caressing his cheek, "But Gideon is here. He's safe. We all get to have another chance."
He nodded and took a deep breath, trying to stop the tears running down his cheeks. It wasn't helping that she, too, was crying. The sight of her tears alone was enough to keep his coming.
"We get to have another chance," He agreed, keeping his eyes on hers. The love in her eyes was clear, even through the shade of tears. "And I promise, Belle, this time, I will do anything I can to be the man you deserve."
She smiled through her own tears and then kissed him gently, her thumb still caressing his cheek. He returned the kiss, letting himself get lost in the sensation of kissing her again. He didn't mind doing it for the rest of his life.
Gideon's cry made them break the kiss. He rocked him gently, murmuring soothingly, and after a moment the boy slowly grew quiet again. Looking at his son, Rumple couldn't help but smile. When he yawned, Rumple chuckled quietly and then looked up at his wife.
"We should go home," She said, her eyes filled with wonder as she looked at the boy.
He nodded. "We should," He agreed. He let Belle take the baby back, now cradling him in her arms, and then turned back to his son's grave. "Bae…" He said quietly, looking at the name on the tombstone. Neal Cassidy. "I didn't keep my last promise to you. But I will keep this one. I know that in the end, you believed in me. You believed I could be a hero. So that's what I'm going to be now, Bae. For you, for Belle… and for Gideon. This time I'm going to do the right thing. I promise."
He took a shaky breath and then gently stroked the tombstone, wishing Baelfire could be there with him. He wanted nothing more than to be able to introduce Gideon and Bae to one another. He knew they would've liked each other.
But he couldn't do that. The least he could do was to be the man Gideon and Belle needed him to be. The father he should've been for Baelfire. Brave and strong; a man who chooses to do the right thing and does it for those he loves.
And whatever fears he still had, he knew he could face with Belle by his side.
"I hope I can make you proud, Bae," He whispered, his voice choked and tears once again blurring his sight.
"I know you can," Belle said softly, and he immediately turned to look at her, once again amazed by her faith in him.
"I should have told you…" He took a shaky breath. "I wasn't the Saviour." She frowned, but he spoke before she could, already knowing what she wanted to ask. "My mother… when she learned I was destined to die as the Saviour, she used the shears on me." Belle's eyes filled with sympathy and sorrow. "I'm not the Saviour. I haven't been the Saviour for a long time."
"You still saved our son," She said softly. He shook his head, knowing it didn't happen thanks to him, but she cut him off this time. "Rumple, I don't need you to be the Saviour. I just need you to try to do the right thing. That's what makes a hero, not some prophecy."
Looking into her eyes, he could practically feel her love and faith. He hoped she could feel his love just as well; there weren't enough words in all the realms to describe how he felt at that moment. He only hoped he could be the man she deserved. Because there was nothing as important as her and the boy she held in her arms – his new son.
"I love you," He said quietly.
She smiled at him. "I love you too," She replied.
Clearly unimpressed by the importance of the moment, Gideon yawned again. They both chuckled as they turned their heads to look at their son, who seemed to be falling back to sleep. It didn't matter, though; they knew they'd remember that moment for him. He couldn't realise it, of course, but they both knew that was their first moment as a real family.
And they intended to have a lot more.
"Home?" He asked eventually, looking at Belle.
She smiled. "Home."
Tale as old as time, tune as old as song
Bittersweet and strange
Finding you can change
Learning you were wrong
Certain as the sun rising in the east
Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme
Beauty and the Beast
Tale as old as time, song as old as rhyme
Beauty and the Beast