Disclaimer: I own nothing.
This is my first Rumbelle. Let's see how this goes, shall we?
*First chapter is sort of a teaser. Future chapters will be longer.
Rumpelstiltskin is not a happy man.
He should be ecstatic, he knows, with his long-dead love standing in front of him and magic well on its way, but he cannot bring himself to feel happy.
The only thing Rumpelstiltskin feels is pissed off.
"Regina locked me up."
Regina will pay.
"He said you would protect me."
And he will. He will protect what is his as he didn't the first time around. He will protect her and love her and never let her go. And, hopefully, it will be enough.
She holds his hand in the car. It's probably more out of fear of the vehicle than any kind of buried affection, but it's still a lovely feeling.
"Where are we going?" she asks, eyeing the forest around them as he turns down a partially hidden dirt road. Rumpelstiltskin fights a grin. Always with the questions, his Belle, no matter how frightened she is.
"Somewhere special." He squeezes her hand, hoping it is as reassuring to her as it is to him. "Somewhere that will make it all okay again."
He hopes. He desperately hopes.
When the dirt road ends and he can drive no further, Rumpelstiltskin reluctantly lets go of Belle's hand. "Up for a little walk, Dearie?" he asks, eyeing her pitiful shoes and paper-thin gown. He'll fix that soon enough. He has enough women's clothing in his shop to supply her with a more than decent wardrobe. Most of it in her size. Suddenly, he wonders why he held those particular clothes back. Maybe...
No. That kind of thinking will send him mad.
The Dark One doesn't need any help in that department.
Belle takes his hand again once they are out of the car, and he sucks in a breath when he realizes she's not letting go. "Do you know me?" she asks, her eyes turned to him as he guides her through the forest. "I know I don't know you."
His chest tightens and he mentally pulls himself back from the ledge. She'll know him. In mere minutes she'll know him.
"I know you. I know you better than anybody in the world. Do you believe that?"
"Yes."
They speak no more until Rumpelstiltskin spots the well in the center of the forest. His steps quicken and Belle struggles to keep up. It's almost within his grasp. Magic. Magic that will give him everything he ever desired. His son. Belle. A leg he can fucking walk on.
"Wait! Stop!" Belle yanks on his hand and he realizes that something is wrong.
Or something is right.
The Savior has finally gotten something right. True love's kiss has broken the curse and a wave of strong, pure, potent magic has swept through Storybrooke, waking its sleeping inhabitants.
He almost feels sorry for Regina.
Almost.
"What was that?" Belle's worried voice pulls his attention back to where it should be. Where it always should have been. On her. "What just happened?"
Rumpelstiltskin takes a deep breath and prepares himself for what's surely coming. Why did he let her go? Why did he not come for her? He prepares to beg.
"Mr. Gold?"
Mr. Gold?
In the distance, Rumpelstiltskin hears the sounds of the awakening. Shouts of joy. Shouts of anger. Tears. Love. The forest around him is deathly silent in comparison. Praying to whatever deity might still listen to him, he turns to Belle and peers warily into her big blue eyes.
Confusion. Fear. Absolutely no recognition of any kind.
Belle is still asleep.