For a disclaimer check my profile. The italiszed words are memories with an author's note at the end.
Dark, ominous, clouds hung over the town indicating the rain to come. Most of its residents seemed to be in a melancholy mood with only one person that seemed to be enjoying the gray dismal day. His cane clicked as he walked down the sidewalk, while he hummed a merry tune under his breath. The first Tuesday in the beginning of every month were some his favorite days. Always he woke up with a refreshed new spring in his step and a brighter day than before. It endured this new world to him even more. He calmly swung open the door to the Dinner, the first in his rounds, taking a seat in a booth. With concealed excitement, he waited, hungering to see the look on the girl's face.
"Alright you can have anything for breakfast except eggs because the whole batch we got in yesterday is-" The black and red haired waitress immanently stopped after looking away from her note pad.
"Mr. Gold. I'm sorry. I didn't notice you came in. Would you like anything to eat?"
With an inward smile of delight about the look of pure terror he received, he shook his head. "That's quite alright, Miss Ruby. What did you say was wrong with the eggs?"
With a gulp, Ruby quietly answered, "Rotten. The whole shipment turned out rotten."
He just loved pay day. Well, really it should have been called collecting day. The day that he would make his usual rounds collecting the money that the people of StoryBrooke owed him, and enjoy the reactions he received, not because he was misanthropic but he just was not fond of most of the people living in the town. It was quite a nice change than from the past in the other fairytale world. Before he was caught by that double crossing cinder, Rumplestiltskin had to run from hide out to hide out, making little deals for food and the other necessities. His visions into the future helped him little, but he knew ahead of time what his next major bargain was going to be and what perks he could earn. But he wasn't worried about that now because he had gotten something extraordinarily better and much more valuable than a child.
Thanking Ruby for the coffee, he walked out the door almost skipping to his other routine stops. Next was the newspaper, then the sheriff and the dear old Cricket's office, he really hoped he just didn't sing on the way there. While passing be a mirror Mr. Gold gazed at his reflection for a second, after all this time the other man staring back at him looked like another person all together.
"So what are you doing on this fine sunny day?" His head snapped up from the creek he was looking in. A small flying fairy fluttered inches beside him.
"Just thinking. I heard you have a special day tomorrow after the collecting festival."
Using her white magic to transform from a small sprite to the normal human size, the girl replied with an excited squeak, "Yes, tomorrow I find out what fairy type I will be. What about you, James? Isn't it the big day when your father announces who his heir to the business is?"
He snorted. "Yes, the contest between me and my brother will be over."
With a sight, he stared in to the water's reflective surface to find a mud colored face with too long of a pointed nose staring back at him. Crackled skin and dominate long fingers seem to stand out. Who would ever respect him? Sitting beside him in the reflection was a girl twisting a brown strand of hair with her blue eyes staring at him intently. Everything about her seemed normal, almost perfect, except for the occasional glimpse of pointed ears. Who would have laughed at his companion?
In a brief moment, she reached out putting a cool hand on a leathering face, pulling it back to look in her eyes. Although his friend did not speak, her eyes told all the silent comforts and reassurances he so desperately needed to hear, feel from anyone. Lifting her hand from his face, she grabbed his hand with hers, giving a comforting squeeze.
"You know what. Why don't we celebrate with the Fairy Folk for a little while? Being in one of the main events for tomorrow allows me to sample the walnut wine early."
With a tug he was pulled along down a forest path, thorns and burs scratched his leg, however all he noticed her radiant smile.
"Well, well. What seems to have you so happy on this cloudy today, Mr. Gold?"
He gave a slight mocking bow to his addresser before answering. "Madame Mayor, why shouldn't I be happy? I don't have to worry about a certain someone being close to my loyal sheriff all the time now."
With a chuckle at her look of hatred which turned into surprise as his words were thought over, he decided to elaborate more. "You didn't know? Not only is Miss Swan staying with Mrs. Blanchard but she now has a job as the town's deputy."
His smile turned sinister as he watched the mayor almost run to the police station. It was a cruel thing to do, but that was what she got for ruining his genuine feeling of happiness. The emotion had almost seemed foreign to him altogether for it had not been felt in a long time. He stopped walking to stand across the street from the flower shop.
For a time Rumplestiltskin stood looking at the flower shop trying to decide if he should go in or collect the earnings another day. With a sharp breath to gather courage, he begin to saunter toward The Blue Fairy Florist.
Grunting as he was pushed down into the mud by his older brother, who had a sadistic hungering look on his face.
"Mother should have named you Rumplestiltskin for your ugly looks not James." He tried to stand only to receive a punch that connected to his jaw. With a thud, his body shook at the impact to a tree trunk.
"You shouldn't torment him. He is your family, is he not? Some creature might feel pity for him and attack you."
The eyes of his tormenter rested on the new threat. A slender figure in a cloaked hood stood on the path into the forest.
"What are you a forest witch?" His brother angrily demanded causing spit to fly in the newcomer's direction.
"Sure, why not?" A feminine voice stated. With a wave of a hand, vines grew out of the ground wrapping around his older brother and tossed him a few feet away.
As his brother run off, the person made her way toward him. Thorny vines encircled the tree, growing blue flowers.
"Are you ok, James?"
Looking up he gave her a look that clearly said he had a eureka moment, ignoring the pain he stood, hoping his ideal would make her smile. "The Blue Fairy. That's what your fairy name sho-
Thump. Th-Thump. Cursing the annoying beating of his heart and his earlier decision, he stared straight in to her smiling face that always captivated him. Why, why did he think he could handle this? He, Rumplestiltskin, the great seer and deal maker, should have just swallowed his pride and walked away with his tail between his legs. Not standing in front of a what was once a famous fairy, cowering with mixed emotions.
"Hello, Mr. Gold. I was just about to go get the money for you, but the arrangement has to be done by one-thirty this afternoon. It's for baby, Alexandria and her mother, I'm so glad Ashley and her boyfriend was able to work something out."
He stood silent for a few seconds, almost having to force himself to think about what to say. "Yes. Very fortunate. Are those Delphiniums?"
"Why yes, it is. Let me go get your money."
Feh, if he could truly be happy in life money would not matter to him, but he had chosen his path just as she had hers long ago. Even in this different world, Rumplestiltskin knew what the curse really did, no one would ever have happiness and even when Snow White's daughter did undo the curse he could never obtain the simple life he used to crave. Why? Because there was no happy endings for the wicked.
A/N: Yep it's an odd, never happening pair, but I got the idea and just had to write something about them. :) James is the name I gave Rumplestiltskin before he became Rumplestitskin and also has nothing to do with Snow's Prince Charming. (I was reading Harry Potter so that might explain why I had chose the name.) A quick side note I almost have my first chapter of a multi chapter fic done. I'm hoping to get it out as an early Christmas present to you, the readers.