Cora Mills, mayor of small town Storybrooke, Maine, had come to expect the morons in her town to come to her with the most asinine complaints ever. So when a knock sounded on her office door, she didn't even glance up from the paperwork she still had mounds of as she called for whichever idiot it happened to be this time to come in. However, when no one entered, the sound of a young Australian girl's voice outside the door caught her attention, as she didn't recognize the voice.

"Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." The girl was obviously concerned about whomever she was talking to, and it piqued Cora's interest. She stood from her desk, her stilettoes clicking confidently on the floor. She opened the door, prepared to see a young couple, or perhaps a young girl and her father. Either one would have been better in her opinion. Her breath left her, and it felt like her heart had stopped as she stared at a man she'd never thought she'd see again.

"Rumple?" she managed to whisper. Rumplestiltskin stared at her for a moment longer before finally regaining his voice.

"Hello Cora." he said in a carefully neutral tone. The young girl beside him looked between the two in confusion.

"You two know one another?" she questioned. Cora nodded slowly, unsure of who this girl was to Rumple.

"We're old friends." the man in question answered.

"I didn't know you were back in town." Cora said, her composure finally restored. He shrugged noncommitally.

"We arrived about an hour ago." She nodded and opened her office door wider, a silent invitation for them to enter. They did, and she gestured over towards the couch.

"Would either of you like something to drink?" she asked, hoping to God that at least one of them said yes so she had her own excuse to drink.

"Yes please. Strongest thing you've got." Rumple answered, earning him a nudge from the young girl beside him, which he promptly ignored. She nodded and poured two crystal tumblers, both filled nearly to the brim, and handed one to him before quickly downing her own and refilling it.

"Am I...missing something here?" the young girl asked.

"No!" both others said quickly.

"Okay." the girl replied, dragging the word out. "Well, seeing as Rumple's not planning on introducing me anytime soon, I'm Belle, Rumple's fiancee." At those words, Cora choked on her drink.

"Are you alright?" Belle asked in a concerned tone as the woman in front of her coughed and spluttered. Cora managed to nod, placing her drink down and bracing herself on her desk.

"Yes, yes, I'm alright." she managed to get out once her coughing had died down. Thankfully her phone began to ring, and she said a silent thanks. She looked at the caller ID, hoping it would be someone important so that she could use the 'I have to take this' excuse.

Henry

She breathed out a silent sigh of relief that she could most definitely use her excuse. She turned back to the couple sitting on her couch with an apologetic expression.

"Excuse me, but I really must take this." she apologized before sliding her thumb over the answer button and bringing the phone up to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Cora darling, I didn't have time to stop by the office. I just wanted to let you know that I've got to go to Boston for a few days. I leave tonight." Henry's voice came through.

"What? Henry, you swore you would be here for little Henry's birthday." Cora said into the phone, irritated.

"It was last minute dear. I have to go."

"Tell them no! Our grandchild is far more important than whatever they want you to go to Boston for!"

"I can't just tell them no Cora! I could be fired!"

"They would never fire you! You're one of their best employees! Henry, I swear to God, you cannot keep doing this to our kids. They're starting to take it personally." she snapped.

"They would fire me if I started to tell them that I'm not going to do the work. I have to make money or else we're going to lose this lavish lifestyle you enjoy so much. Do you want to go back to the way you were living before we got married?"

"Don't you dare throw that in my face! I was living perfectly fine before I met you!"

"Don't you have mayoral duties to attend to dear? I'll talk to you later."

"Henry, don't you da-" Before her sentence was even finished, the line had gone dead. She growled under her breath before turning back to Rumple and Belle.

"Was that your husband?" Belle asked curiously as Cora all but slammed her phone down onto her desk.

"Yes. He's the head of an oil company and has just informed me that he's leaving for Boston tonight and is going to miss our grandchild's birthday, which he promised our daughter he would be here for." she ranted, her anger getting the better of her and making her forget who she was talking to.

"I told you years ago not to marry him." Rumple mumbled. She was almost positive that she wasn't supposed to hear it.

'You begged me not to marry him.' she corrected in her head.

"We didn't mean to intrude. We just wanted to reintroduce Rumple to everyone and introduce me." Belle said. "I'm so sorry about your husband." Cora nodded.

"Not your fault dear. It was very nice to meet you, and nice to see you again Rumple." she forced the words out of her mouth and forced a smile onto her face. "Have you moved back to town, or are you just visiting?"

"Moved back. Belle thought it was a good idea." Rumple answered. She nodded again.

"Well then, welcome to Storybrooke."

I really don't need to be putting up a new story, but this idea's been bugging me, and there's another one that's been bugging me, so I'm probably gonna end up putting that one up soon as well.