A/N- Thanks to my awesome Beta Woubazoid...3 Enjoy, R&R
The antique cuckoo clock on the wall chimed the hour. Rumplestiltskin sighed with relief. Usually he wasn't this relieved for the end of the day to come, however, today had been particularly full of tourists, mainly overeager wives and ever patient husbands who watched while the Missus squealed over a particularly expensive bauble.
Ever since the curse had been broken, and tourists had taken to using Storybrook as a pit stop on their way to other parts of Maine, the town had gotten much busier. Granny's diner had a steady stream of strangers passing through, and had at least half the rooms booked on a weekly basis. And his little shop...whereas before he had always had trouble moving most of his goods, he now found that he had trouble keeping up with demand.
He also found that he could overprice the most ridiculous things and they would still be bought by the overeager antiquing women who passed through.
Rumple moved through the shop, and, flipping the sign to closed, locked the door and began the stroll home. It was a late April evening, just on the cusp of turning warm. A cool breeze brushed his hair, but with the sun still up it was a beautiful spring evening.
The town had changed once Anton had finished growing his beans. There had been some who had made the choice to go back almost immediately. The Dwarves and the Faeries had been the first to return, mainly to start reconstruction.
In what had been a hard blow, Charming, Snow, their daughter and her son – his grandson – had gone back into the enchanted forest. The hardest blow of all was that Bae had gone with them, wanting to be near his own son.
Rumple understood, however. After having been such a terrible father himself, he was proud of his son for wanting to take that responsibility and wanting such a relationship. It hurt that he couldn't see his son on a regular basis, but the giant had left them well stocked with magic beans. He went back once every few months to see his family.
But he hadn't stayed alone.
Belle had, of course, stayed with him once her memory had been restored to her. There had been some difficult paths to tread as she had found herself again, but now that they were together once more the difficult paths had been incredibly worth it. He would not change a single moment over the past two years for anything.
Idly he stopped at the bakery, with an eye on getting dessert for tonight. Eyeballing the selection of pastries, he chose two éclairs, and two butter pecan tarts. These would go well with whatever Belle was cooking tonight.
Of course, Belle was the kind of cook that could bake breaded rubber and it would taste good.
Leaving the bakery with his parcel in hand, he continued his way up the street.
For the first time in his life he felt contented with who he was and with what life was giving him. He hadn't used magic in a long while, and he discovered that, although he wasn't using it there was nothing wanting it in his life.
He loved the way the trees flanked his home. It was absolutely picturesque really, with the way they opened up into the grove containing the place where he lived with his Belle. The massive front lawn had several different gardens which were lovingly tended by his beloved wife every day. He had come out on the best side of the curse originally, as part of his deal with Regina. Plenty of money, a huge house, but until the day he married Belle, he had never felt like a rich man.
Easing his way up the step onto the porch, he paused at the window that looked into the kitchen.
There, he saw his entire world in one simple picture. Belle stood at the counter, stirring something in a bowl. The mixer off to the side was going as well, with several pots steaming on the stove. She was wearing a short black and white sundress, and her hair was piled onto her head, showing off the long neck he loved to kiss. A couple feet behind his beloved stood a small toddler with dark blonde hair, soft curls framing a huge pair of blue eyes. It was early, but with the baby fat fading, it already looked as though his little girl was going to have his nose and his cheeks, but his wife's Cupid 's bow lips. Belle turned and through her sundress, he could see the swell of her belly.
He smiled; this sight once again reminded him that he was indeed a wealthy man. His smile grew wider when his daughter, Sara, realized he was there and tried to get up to toddle to the door. Belle glanced over, and her face lit up. Pushing the door open he stepped inside, just in time to sit on the bench by the door and scoop Sara up into his arms. "How is my little girl today?" He asked. She giggled and wrapped her tiny arms around his neck. Closing his eyes he reveled in the feeling.
Belle walked over as well and, when he put his daughter down and stood up, she wrapped her arms around him, and he could feel her belly in between them. It was one of the most magical things he had ever felt.
"How was your day?" she said, kissing him.
"You know, " he said. "Full of tourists, wanting to pay top dollar for knick knacks. I stopped at the bakery on the way home." Handing her the box, he shrugged out of his coat and hung it up. When he was done, Sara took his free hand for balance and walked with him towards the kitchen.
As they sat down for dinner, Rumple once again thanked whatever power that had given him this life. He hadn't deserved it, not after the things he had done, but with treasures like this he would spend every day making sure he deserved it.