Homecoming, an once upon a time fanfic

I don't own Once Upon a Time: it belongs to Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis, and ABC. I'm just playing in their world.

Thanks so much for reading and comments are always welcome.

Homecoming

A shiver runs down her spine and she feels a little strange. She hopes she's not coming down with anything because she has plans for lunch with Ariel and Eric. She smiles at the thought of the mermaid and her prince, and then she remembers Ariel's last message from Rumple and her smile is now radiant and full of the confidence of shared love and trust. Tell Belle I love her… I will see her again. Her heart beats a little harder and she's a little more alive when she thinks of him.

No one before him ever believed in her. Her father thought she was clever enough, but he never took her seriously. She was only valuable as a wife and mother of sons, and she was to be married off to Gaston of all men: the most loutish idiot there ever was! But then Rumplestiltskin came, and he gave her a way out, if she was brave enough to take it. She surprised herself that day, being able to talk calmly to this powerful sorcerer, but she was more surprised that he dealt seriously with her and treated her, for the first time in her life, as an equal.

Their life together has not been easy: he's had so many problems with trusting her and letting her in, but gradually he began to open up, and they were finally getting somewhere when that pirate shot her and she lost her memory. That time is still a little hazy in her mind: her original memories, her amnesiac memories, and her Lacey memories are still a little jumbled, and she hasn't really had time to sort everything out, but she knows that, no matter what happened, he loves her, and she loves him, and when he comes home, they'll be together at last.

And they understand each other better now. He asked for her help: from realms away, he thought of her and believed in her, and she knows that anyone else may doubt her, but Rumplestiltskin never will, never again, and that knowledge fills her heart with such joy! When she sees him, she'll tell him that: tell him thank you for believing in her in the way that no one else ever has. And she'll tell him that she can do anything because he believes in her.

Smiling to herself, she takes her coat from the hook and goes to greet another day.

'Are you ok, Belle?' Ariel takes her hand across the table and looks curiously at her.

They were happily chatting and then Belle suddenly shivered and went quiet.

She takes a breath and looks at her friend. 'I'm fine: I just felt a little shivery for some reason.'

'Where I come from, they say that means that someone is thinking of you,' Eric says, and smiles.

Belle smiles back. Eric, like Ariel, and her other friends in Storybrooke, knows that she's waiting for the man she loves to come home to her. They've all been supportive over the past few days and she's grateful. Eric's comment makes her think of Rumple once again, and she wonders if he's thinking of her, and she wonders if he's safe.

Ariel has offered to help Belle in the library and Eric is walking them over when Belle gasps and stops walking.

'Belle?' Eric asks, going to her side.

'What's wrong, Belle?' Ariel asks.

'I don't know, but I feel very strange.' She feels that shiver again, and she could have sworn she heard Rumplestiltskin say her name, but he's not here, and he's nowhere near her now. Or, maybe…

'Leroy!' Ariel has seen the dwarf across the street and he comes running at her call.

'What's wrong?' he demands.

'Belle's ill,' Eric says, but Belle is shaking her head.

'I'm not,' she says: 'I'm perfectly well.' She looks around at them. 'We need to get to the docks.'

'What: why?' Leroy asks.

She grips his arm and smiles brightly. 'Because they're back!'

Leroy stares at her for a moment and then his face splits into a grin. 'Then let's go!'

They're not happy that he can't just magic them through the barrier: well, Regina's not happy: the others accept it with varying degrees of patience.

'Well, if you can't do it, maybe I can, or Emma and I could try.'

He sighs. 'It doesn't work that way, dearie,' he tells her, sneering at her. 'The only way we're getting through that barrier is if Belle allows it: that's why I gave the spell to her: she's the only one I trust.'

'Where the hell's a mermaid when you need one?' Regina grumbles. 'So how are we going to get her to allow it?' she demands, clearly not pleased at the thought of having to wait for Belle's good favour.

'We aren't going to do anything,' he retorts, annoyed now: 'I am.'

'So do it!' she snaps.

'Mom!' Henry calls: 'he's already doing it: you're distracting him.'

'What's he doing?' she asks him, frowning.

'Believing,' Henry tells her, and he passes her and comes to stand by him. 'Can I help?'

Rumplestiltskin smiles and puts his hand on his grandson's shoulder. 'Just believe in Belle,' he says, and Henry closes his eyes.

A moment later, Neal stands on Henry's other side, his hand on his son's other shoulder. Rumplestiltskin smiles and turns his thoughts once more to the brave, heroic woman waiting for him back home.

Belle looks at the Blue Fairy in understanding. 'He wanted me to cast the spell so that I could control it when they came back, didn't he?'

'So it would seem,' Blue says.

'So, what do I do: how do I bring them home?'

'What does the magic tell you?' Blue asks.

Belle looks out to sea. 'It's telling me…to believe.' So she does just that: she believes in her love for Rumple and his for her, and she believes in the success of the rescue mission, and suddenly, in the distance, the magical cloak shimmers.

'Is it working?' Emma asks: 'can we get through?'

'I believe so,' Rumplestiltskin tells her, and his heart thumps, because, very soon now, he will see Belle again, and not only that, but he'll be able to touch her and kiss her, and he knows he won't want to let go.

The ship sails through the magical cloak and they're safely on the inside. Then the magic shimmers again and the cloak is once more impenetrable.

'Look!' Henry shouts, and they all see it: Storybrooke lies in the distance: they're almost home.

They're all cheering as the ship appears, as if out of thin air, and then people are hugging Belle and she's laughing, but then she feels herself trembling because Rumple is on that ship and the anticipation of being able to hold him again is almost too much to bear.

'Belle,' Ariel says, catching her attention, and she looks at her friend, who smiles and pulls her into a hug. 'He's coming home to you, just like he said.'

Belle half-laughs, half-sobs, and nods against Ariel's shoulder. She knows that if anyone can understand how she's feeling, it's Ariel, who's also waited a long time to be with her love. She calms a little in Ariel's embrace and then straightens up to watch the ship sail into the harbour.

People are gathered on the docks, but there's only one person he's looking for. He scans the crowd for her and then he sees her, picking her out pretty quickly in that red coat. He sees her before she sees him, actually. The sun is at his back, but it's in her eyes, so she's having to squint to make out shapes, but there she is: his beautiful Belle. She's standing with Ariel, and the mermaid is holding her hand. The dwarf who gave him the memory potion is there too, and if she had to pick a dwarf to befriend, he doesn't mind that it's that one.

Almost there, almost home: almost, almost, almost.

Almost is not good enough at this moment.

'Can you see him?' Leroy asks, standing close beside her.

'No,' she breathes, 'the sun's in my eyes: it's all just blobs.'

Ariel squeezes her hand, sensing her frustration, and she's glad she's here with her.

And then she catches her breath, because she's seen him and…

'Rumple!'

Her screech makes him smile and then laugh a bit. They've all heard it, all the people on the ship and on the docks, but she doesn't care, and nor does he.

And now she's running in those heels of hers and he's afraid she'll break her neck, but no, she's alright, but she looks like she wants to jump into the water and swim the rest of the way to him and he laughs again.

She stares up at the man on the approaching ship. She feels like she won't ever be happy again until she's in his arms and her chest is heaving with the effort to calm herself.

He's staring at her the way she's staring at him. She looks him over for signs of injury and finds none, thank heavens, but she does notice that he's wearing leather again. He must've been wearing that in his message, but she was too distracted by his voice and the import of what he was telling her to notice then: well, she notices now.

They throw down the mooring lines to secure the ship before they can lower the gangplank, but he can't wait that long, not with Belle staring at him like that. He disappears in a cloud of crimson smoke and reappears a few feet away from her.

Sensing his presence, she turns. 'Rumple.' It's almost a moan, the way she says his name, and he knows that before this day is out, he'll be hearing her make that sound again and again.

'Belle,' he growls, and she shivers, because he's never said her name like that before, with that hunger.

'Oh, Rumple,' she breathes, smiling and crying, and then she launches herself into his waiting arms.

He only feels like he's properly breathing again when he holds her, his hands splaying on her back to touch as much of her as he can. She's holding him tightly, and she feels so alive and warm in his arms, and he just wants to sink into her.

Belle can feel his body pressed against hers and she delights in it: the solid mass of him here for her to touch and feel again, at long last. Though they're only embracing, it's almost as intimate as a kiss with the way they're pressed together and trying to get closer all the time.

It's Belle who pulls back first. Keeping her arms around his neck, her eyes are bright as she looks into his face.

'You came back to me,' she breathes, and those are happy tears, he knows: 'just as you said you would. Oh, Rumple: I've missed you.'

He doesn't know what to say. Words won't come, so he does what he has longed to do since he left her. Raising a hand, he caresses her cheek, hearing her sigh as he does so, and then he moves his hand higher, sliding his fingers into her hair.

He leans down and she reaches up, and they tremble as they kiss, clinging to each other. And they both understand that they can't be parted again, won't be parted again, because this is home: in each other's arms.

'Sweetheart,' he murmurs, pulling back to look at her: 'thank you.' He strokes her cheek again. 'I love you.'

'I love you too,' she murmurs, and then she kisses him again: a soft, sensuous kiss that's so full of promise it makes him shudder.

'Oh, Belle,' he breathes. He hugs her then and whispers to her. 'I'd like nothing more than to whisk you away and show you how much I love you, but Charming got himself into a bit of trouble and I promised I'd help.'

'What happened?' she asks, looking up at him.

'He was poisoned by an arrow dipped in dreamshade: the same stuff that almost killed me,' he tells her. 'He needs an elixir, otherwise he'll die.'

She sighs and nods. 'Well, we can't let him die,' she says. 'They do always seem to want something from you, though.' She's trying not to sound disgruntled, but they've been apart for so long and she just wants tine alone with him. She just desperately wants to be with him, without any interruptions, calls for help, or people accusing him of murder.

'No more favours after today,' he tells her, though they both know that that's a pipe dream: he'll help them again if they need it and it's in his power, though he will insist that they leave him and Belle alone for at least a few days after this.

She smiles and runs her hand along his leather-clad chest. 'I like the leather,' she murmurs, and he smiles at her.

'Well, you can help me out of it as soon as we get rid of the Charmings,' he whispers.

She looks up from beneath her lashes and her look reflects what he's feeling: that they need to be alone and soon.

Someone nearby clears their throat and Belle turns and sees Henry. He looks tired, but otherwise unhurt, and she's glad, because Rumple has done what he set out to do: she always knew he would. Henry isn't the one who cleared their throat, though: the voice was a man's, not a boy's, and a man walks with Henry now, his hand on his shoulder. Belle looks up at him. She's seen him before: well, Lacey saw him, but she, Belle, knows who he is, because he looks like his father, but she thought he was dead.

'Baelfire?' she asks in shock.

Baelfire approaches his father and Belle. 'Most people call me Neal now,' he tells her, 'and you must be Belle.'

'Yes.' She smiles then. 'You're alive: I'm so glad!'

He looks a little taken aback, but then he smiles a little. 'Thank you for your help,' he tells her: 'with Henry, and Wendy, and getting home.'

'You're welcome,' she says. 'You found Wendy? Her brothers will be so happy!' She's happy too, that the Darlings will be reunited at last.

He nods and smiles again, and then he's holding out his hand. 'Well, it's a pleasure to finally meet you properly, Belle.'

Her eyes water as she smiles at him. 'And you, Neal: such a pleasure.' She clasps his hand in both of hers.

Rumplestiltskin watches them and he's overcome with gratitude towards his son for his gracious treatment of Belle.

He can't take his eyes off Belle now: her tearful smile at his son is so tender. In that moment, he believes that she loves his boy just as much as he does, and he loves her even more than before, and he didn't know that was possible, until now.

'Well,' Neal says, 'Henry and I are gonna make sure that Wendy finds her brothers ok, but maybe we can all have lunch or something soon and we could…talk?' He looks at his father.

'I'd like that,' Rumplestiltskin says: 'talking would be good.' It'll be a start, at least. He knows it will take more than words on his part, because he's played with words in the past: his deeds must show that he has changed, but it will take time for Neal to trust him, and he's aware that he may never trust him fully, and he's prepared to pay that price if necessary.

Neal nods and puts his hand back on Henry's shoulder.

'Thanks Grandpa,' Henry says, smiling: 'thanks Belle.'

Rumplestiltskin smiles, as does Belle. 'You're welcome, lad,' he murmurs.

Belle watches them walk away and smiles at Rumplestiltskin. 'I'm so happy you get another chance with them,' she says, and he knows that those words come from her heart.

He's about to kiss her again, but then he sees Emma and Snow White coming towards him, with Hook helping David along behind them.

Belle flinches a little at the sight of the pirate and Rumplestiltskin pulls her closer.

'It's alright, sweetheart,' he tells her: 'he won't hurt you again.'

'Gold?' Emma asks: 'can you make that elixir you promised?'

'I can,' he says.

'Then I think you'd better get working on it,' Hook suggests, supporting a very obviously unwell David. 'I'll get him to your shop and–'

'No,' Rumplestiltskin says.

'What?' Emma asks.

'I don't want that pirate anywhere near Belle!' he snaps.

'It's alright, Rumple,' Belle says softly, but he knows that she's frightened. If Hook ever shows any remorse for what he did to her, he knows that Belle will probably forgive him, but right now she's not ready, and they'll all just have to accept that.

He looks down at her. 'No, it's not,' he tells her, and she smiles a little at him.

He looks back at Emma and the others. 'I agreed to help: I said nothing about having Hook along for the ride.'

Emma nods and goes to take her father's weight from Hook.

'Would you like some help?'

Belle looks up and sees Ariel and Eric, and it's Eric who's offered the aid.

'Thanks,' Emma says, and allows Eric to take her place by her father.

Hook, seeing that he's not needed, turns and walks away.

'Ok, Gold,' Emma says: 'lead the way.'

Rumplestiltskin looks at the prince and decides not to delay proceedings any more than they have been. 'I can get us there quicker than on foot, he says,' and he waves his hand and they all disappear.

The back of the shop is crowded. Snow White and her daughter are crouched over the prince as he lies on the cot. Ariel is there too. Apparently she and Snow know each other and Ariel is sympathising with the princess over her husband's condition.

Prince Eric is there too: ready to help again if needed. Rumplestiltskin is surprised that the man didn't look upon him with any kind of fear or mistrust once he learned that he was the notorious Dark One. It's refreshing not to see terror in someone's eyes when they meet him and he thinks that he might grow to like this prince and his mermaid. It helps, of course, that Belle is obviously fond of the pair.

Belle stays close, searching out ingredients that he needs and watching him work. He never let her near his workroom back in the Dark Castle, but he finds he rather likes having her close now. Perhaps it's because he's missed her so much, but he realises he'd like to teach her some magic if she'd like to learn. They can talk about that: they can talk about everything now that he's home with her again.

He pours some of the Neverland water into the vial and watches the mixture turn a kind of eggplant colour. He nods: it's ready.

Moving out from behind the counter, he goes over to the ailing prince, his cane tapping on the floorboards.

'Drink this,' he orders.

Snow White helps her husband to sit up and he drinks the elixir.

Almost immediately his condition improves and he's able to sit up on his own. The sheen of sweat on his skin is gone and he's breathing normally. He pulls up his shirt and there's no trace of the poison: he's cured.

He looks up at Rumplestiltskin. 'Thank you,' he breathes.

'Yes: thank you,' Snow White echoes.

Rumplestiltskin nods and puts his arm around Belle: she relaxes against him. 'You're welcome,' he says, 'but I do hope you won't be requiring any favours for the foreseeable future, because I'm afraid I'll be rather busy.' He pulls Belle a little closer.

The Charmings seem to get it, for once, and they all nod.

'What are you gonna do with the box?' Emma asks him.

'I think I'll keep that to myself, Miss Swan,' he says: 'I think it's my right.'

She nods. 'I guess you're right,' she says. She looks seriously at him then. 'Thank you for your help, and thank you too, Belle: we couldn't have defeated Pan and saved Henry without both of you.'

Belle smiles at her. 'You're welcome,' she says softly.

Emma nods and then she and her family take their leave.

Ariel and Eric follow after. Belle hugs her friends and shows them both out. She locks the door behind them and when she comes back, Rumplestiltskin is holding Pandora's Box in his hands.

'You trapped Pan,' she guesses.

'Yes.'

'What will you do with it?'

'Hide it somewhere no one will ever find it,' he says, 'but it'll be safe here for now.'

Belle nods and, going to him, she takes the box from his hands and puts it back in its hiding place. Then she reaches into the cabinet and takes their cup from its saucer, and then the trapdoor disappears, concealing the hiding place again. Soon, he'll call his shadow back and have him conceal the box in some bleak, desolate place where no one will ever find it. There's no way his father is ever getting out of that box, ever.

Belle is cradling the cup gently in her hands, smiling at it. He's sure she's remembering how it came to be chipped and how they fell in love with each other back in the Dark Castle before he ruined everything. He remembers turning that cup over and over in his hands as he listened to all the fascinating things she had to say, and he remembers how important that cup was to him in the years after he lost her. The cup is still special, of course, still precious, but he doesn't need to hold it now that he has Belle back.

Belle smiles as he curls his hands around hers, and they're both cradling the cup now, and staring at each other.

She knows that once they start to kiss, they're not going to stop, so she carefully withdraws her hands and places the cup safely on the counter. Then she turns to Rumplestiltskin and smiles, placing her hands on his leather-clad chest and sighing as his hands on her waist pull her closer.

'Hold tight, sweetheart,' he instructs, and, for the second time that day, he wraps his magic around her and takes her away, the price be damned.

When they re-materialise, it takes her a few seconds to figure out where they are, but then she sees the bed that they only shared for a short time and her heart thumps in excitement. She won't be going back to the librarian's apartment now: she knows that for a fact. She belongs here, with him, and she's never leaving again.

'Rumple,' she breathes, her voice taking on a sultry tone that he's not heard before. His pants are getting rather tight now and he pushes impatiently at her coat.

Just as impatiently, she pulls her arms free from the sleeves and throws one arm around his neck, her other hand gripping the collar of his leather coat as they kiss. There's nothing trembling or gentle about this kiss: it's all lips, teeth, and tongues, clashing, vying for control, wanting each other to feel the pleasure they've been denied for so long.

Their hands roam freely: Rumplestiltskin's exploring the curves of Belle's body, making her shiver and him smile, and Belle's playing with his hair and exploring the planes of his chest, delighting in the strength beneath her hands.

Needing to breathe, he pulls back to look at her, raising his hand to cup her cheek, smiling as her eyes sparkle with love.

As she looks up at him, Belle draws her fingertips gently over the patch of skin that's visible beneath his shirt. She likes that patch of skin: she always has, and she wonders, now, what he'll do if she kisses him there. She looks at her fingers: she's going to find out.

'Gods!' he cries, tugging her closer the moment her lips touch his skin. His hand slides from her cheek into her hair and he cradles the back of her head as she kisses and then licks his skin.

'Belle,' he groans, and manoeuvres her backwards so that her back is against the wall. Her lips and tongue are driving him insane and he needs her so badly.

Belle gasps when he rips her blouse open, buttons scattering everywhere. He's never done that before, but she's not afraid: she's more turned on than she's ever been in fact, her chest rising and falling rapidly and her breath coming in pants.

'Gods,' she breathes: 'gods, Rumple…' His eyes are so dark and she's mesmerised by the desire she sees in them.

He kisses her again, delighting in the way she responds to him, in the way her body rises to meet each kiss, as if she's as hungry for him as he is for her. And he loves her breathless sighs: he loves that he can do that to her, that he can make her breathless. She has the same effect on him, though: every time she touches him, he loses his breath, and the way she's clinging to him now, holding him as close as she can get him, leaves him in awe of the fact that this perfect woman wants him of all men.

She loves feeling his hands on her body. Sometimes, all he has to do is put his hand on the small of her back and she feels both at ease and desired. His touch makes her feel so precious, so wanted, and when she feels like that, she wants to make him feel that way too, but first she needs to get him out of all that leather.

She pushes his coat off his shoulders and he removes it as quickly as she did her coat, but there's a waistcoat underneath and she huffs out an impatient breath.

'Always so many layers,' she complains, and he smiles and shrugs out of the waistcoat as well. 'Hmm: better,' she murmurs approvingly, running her hands over the shirt and feeling his warm skin beneath.

The shirt he's wearing could almost be reptile skin with the pattern and feel of it. He always did like to have a thick skin back in the Enchanted Forest and she realises that he thought it was necessary in Neverland too. She'll ask him about it in time and she doesn't doubt that he'll tell her everything, but right now, the most important thing for her to do is to love him.

Thinking that, she reaches up and kisses him again, and pulls his shirt out from the waist of his pants. He shudders when her hands touch his bare skin, but he pulls her closer, and he's pushing her blouse off her shoulders now and kissing the skin he reveals. She straightens her arms and lets the blouse fall to the floor and then he's pulling his shirt off over his head. She stares at him and unclasps her bra, and now they're both naked from the waist up.

'Beautiful,' he breathes, cradling her face in his hands.

'You too,' she returns, sliding her hands along his arms and up to his shoulders.

'You're the only one who's ever thought so,' he tells her and she blinks because she knows he believes that and she wants him to think so for himself.

'I know so,' she murmurs, and wraps her arms around him and kisses him deeply.

He growls and she likes it when he does that: it makes her shiver deliciously. His hands slide down to her backside, caressing through the fabric of her skirt, stockings, and panties. She wants to be out of these clothes, now, and the first thing she does is kick her heels off. Then she reaches down and unzips her skirt: it falls away and she kicks it to the side.

She pushes him backwards and he sits on the edge of the bed, bringing her to stand between his legs, his hands on her waist. He begins to kiss and lick and suck on her stomach and she brings trembling hands up to bury in his hair.

Her unrestrained moan and the way she scratches at his scalp make him clutch at her and then he pushes her stockings and panties down her legs and she kicks them away.

He looks up at her and she smiles down at him, and then she drops to her knees. He catches his breath at the sight of her beautiful naked body as she kneels before him and he reaches out to cup one perfect breast in his hand.

She whimpers and bites her lip, and arches her body towards him, pressing her breast further into his hand. The heat pulsing in her core is almost too much to bear now and she turns her attention to getting him out of the rest of his leather.

She's stumped, though, when she discovers the intricate lacing of his boots: it's going to take her an age to get them off and she can't wait that long. She looks up at him and he smiles and waves his hand, and the boots disappear.

Rumplestiltskin reaches for her suddenly and she squeals as she's pulled onto his lap, but when her legs settle on either side of his waist and she's pressed close to him, she moans in pleasure.

'Sweetheart,' he warns, as she begins to move against him: 'sweetheart, Belle, I won't last if you keep that up: gods!'

'Doesn't matter,' she tells him breathily: 'just…please, Rumple!'

He realises that she's not going to last long either and he figures that they can take their time later. He rolls them over and lifts her further into the middle of the bed.

She wraps her arms around him and kisses his neck. 'I missed you, darling,' she whispers. It's been weeks since they did this: far, far too long, and she wants to make up for that now.

'Sweet Belle,' he breathes, and kisses her cheek, 'you'll never know how often I dreamed of you.'

'What did we do, in your dreams?' she asks, stroking his hair.

'We made love all day and all night,' he whispers, and kisses her ear.

'We can do that now,' she tells him: 'we can make that dream real. We can make all our dreams real.'

He's looking down at her and she sees tears in his eyes. Then he leans down and she reaches up to meet him. They lose themselves in the kiss and when she wraps her legs around his waist, she realises that he's vanished his pants and he's now as naked as she is.

'Useful trick, that,' she murmurs.

'Yes,' he agrees, and positions himself to connect with her in the most intimate way.

'Yes,' she breathes, when he looks at her for assurance that this is ok. 'Please, darling Rumple, I need you so badly.'

Feeling him fill her makes her cry out in delight. Gods, she's missed this! All the time they lost, that was stolen from them, when they could've been together, making each other happy after so long apart. She's so angry about that, and she will make sure that Hook and the queen know it. She knows that there's absolutely nothing else the universe can throw at them now that can ever shake their trust, their faith, their belief in each other, or their love for each other. Nothing she's read in her books could've prepared her for this sublime and profound love that she feels for him and that he feels for her. This is beyond anything she's ever imagined.

Her hands are buried in his hair and she's alternately scratching his scalp and pulling at his hair. It's a delicious kind of pain and as he trails his lips down the side of her neck, he finds a spot that's just right and sucks and bites until there's a mark for the world to see.

'Mine,' he growls, thrusting into her harder and faster now.

'Yours,' she agrees, and he sees how dark her eyes have gone: she likes being claimed by him. His hips rock hard and fast again and she screams.

'Yours,' she says again, almost desperate: 'always yours, Rumple, always.'

Gods, he likes the sound of that. After everything he's been through: losing Bae, his arrogant shit of a father, thinking Belle was dead and then losing her again to her amnesia, and then again to Lacey, it's only being here in her arms that he finds peace. She is the one thing that's kept him sane all this time, the one person that has always believed in him, and if he learned anything in Neverland, it's that he wants her always by his side.

Belle is babbling now as she comes close to her climax. 'Oh, love…so beautiful…so good…so right…love you more than anything…forever…just like I promised – oh, gods!'

Every nerve in her body is singing and she feels like she could float in mid air. This feels like-like magic. It's always been wonderful, but this is-this is indescribable. She feels so alive, so loved, and so connected with him. Something more than lovemaking is happening between them.

'Oh, Rumple,' she croaks, once she can breathe again.

He's still catching his breath, his face buried against her neck. She's cradling his head, her fingers moving in his hair, fingernails scratching lightly against his scalp. He's crying and so is she, but there's no sadness in their tears.

He begins to kiss her then: sweet, worshipping kisses that make her feel awed and blissfully happy. She realises that something happened in Neverland that's changed him and so changed their relationship, and she's curious, of course, but all she can do is meet his beautiful loving kisses and pour all her love into them.

His hands are caressing her now and she shivers and moans because he knows just how to bring her body to life with those strong hands and long fingers of his. She's seen him do magic with those hands so many times and this magic he works on her body is just as powerful.

'Gods,' she moans, as his hand dips between her thighs. She's barely come down from her orgasm and now she knows he means to give her a second. She arches her back as his fingers tease her. 'Please!' she begs.

He's mesmerised by the look on her face, awed that his touch brings her this pleasure. He never knew that love like this was possible until her.

'Rumple,' she says, her voice full of longing, and he has to kiss her again, a deep, needy, sensuous kiss that makes her moan and writhe beneath him. Her tongue caresses his delicately and he slips his fingers inside her, making her cling to him and growl as she kisses him. He's never heard her growl before and he likes it.

He pulls away, though, because he wants to watch her face as he makes her come. He smiles as her hand reaches up and brushes his hair back, and he kisses her wrist gently.

'Sweet Belle,' he murmurs, and she smiles, and the look of love and trust on her face is one he will never forget. It makes him want to tell her everything he feels for her, so, as his fingers pleasure her, he confesses from his heart.

'You're everything I've ever wanted, Belle,' he says. 'Nobody ever loved me like you or believed in me like you. You make me hope again, and I'd almost forgotten what that felt like. The hope of seeing you again and of having a future with you saved me in Neverland. I'd be lost without you, my sweet, sweet Belle, my darling, my precious, my love.'

'R-rumple,' she sobs, tears glistening on her cheeks at his words. She gives him a trembling kiss. 'You make me so happy, so unbelievably happy.'

She's reached her peak and he leans closer. 'Come for me, angel,' he whispers, and Belle is not sure whether it's the way his fingers curl just so or if it's his voice in her ear calling her angel, but she does come, hard, clinging to him and whimpering. She feels light as air again, and she's not convinced that he's not working some kind of magic, or perhaps it's just the magic of their love.

'Y-you called me angel,' she breathes in awe, when she can speak again.

He looks down at her and smiles. 'And so you are,' he tells her: 'my light in the darkness,' and then he brings his hand up and licks her essence from his fingers. She shudders: it's so…erotic the way he does that. 'And you taste divine.'

She reaches up and kisses him, tasting herself. It's an odd taste, but she doesn't mind it and just keeps kissing him.

'You're everything I've ever wanted too, Rumplestiltskin,' she tells him then, framing his face with her hands. 'You mean more to me than anything in all the realms.'

'And you to me,' he tells her.

She blinks. She always knew that his son was the most important thing in his life and she understood why, but she can see in his eyes that he means what he says: that his feelings have changed, and she knows it's because of Neverland, and she can't wait any more to know what happened there.

'Rumple, what-what happened in Neverland? It changed you, didn't it?'

He strokes her cheek again. 'Yes, it did,' he tells her. 'Let's get under the covers, sweetheart: this is a long story, so we might as well be comfortable.'

She nods and they cuddle together under the blankets. Belle looks up into his face and listens to his soft voice as he tells his tale.

It's not long before she's in tears. He tells her not to cry, but she can't help it. She cries for the boy he was and the man he became, for the loss of his father and his son. She understands, now, why he told her that no one could ever love him: she understands that he truly believed that, and why wouldn't he, when his own father traded him for youth? Ooh, if she'd ever met him, she would have given him a piece of her mind and then some!

'Sweetheart, please don't cry,' he begs again: 'it doesn't matter any more.'

She sniffles. 'I'm sorry, I just…you lost so much and it breaks my heart.' She hugs him and her tears fall against this neck.

He kisses her hair and whispers to her. 'I lost much, but I gained the love of a kind, smart, breathtakingly beautiful woman, and I wouldn't trade that.'

She sends him a tearful smile and he strokes her cheek. 'And, yes, Neverland changed things a lot. That place put a lot of things into perspective for me.' And he tells her about Pan's taunts and his attempts to get him off the island.

'He wanted me out of the way. He didn't want to be reminded that he had a son: he wanted to just forget, but I wouldn't leave, so he used the one thing he thought would sway me: you.'

She gasps. 'Me?'

He nods. 'He suggested I go home and start again, have another child with you.'

Belle's eyes widen and she doesn't dare speak, but she's seen something in his eyes that tells her he wants that very much, and, oh, she wants it too.

'He shouldn't have put that thought in my head, because that's what gave me back my hope: the thought of a life with you, and that's when I realised that I didn't have to die to save Henry. My father didn't understand just what it is that you mean to me: he didn't understand that you are my strength.'

She smiles and kisses him. 'You're mine too,' she whispers.

He smiles, but then he tells her what happened with Pandora's Box, and now she's absolutely furious.

'He did what?' she demands, her fingers tightening as she holds him: 'that little… I almost wish he were still free so that I could slap him! But how did you get out?' And now her eyes are wide and half-curious, half-awed, with a little bit of anger on his behalf still burning in them.

He kisses her. 'I thought of you and how much I want a future with you, and all my hope for us, my love for you, freed me.'

'Hope was still in the box!' she cries excitedly.

He nods. 'And Love is Hope: isn't that what you say?'

She nods and stares at him. 'You love me that much…'

'I love you more,' he tells her: 'I fall a little more in love with you every day.'

'Rumple.' Her eyes well up and her chin trembles the way it does when she's emotional. He smiles and kisses her gently.

'I love you,' she whispers, 'and I want to tell you something.'

'I'm listening,' he says, smiling.

'Sit up, please,' she requests, and he does, leaning back against the pillows. She smiles and sits up beside him; then, supporting herself with her hands on his shoulders, she moves so she's straddling him and smiles as he groans.

'You say that I'm the only one who believed in you,' she tells him: 'well, no one believed in me before you, Rumple. No one ever thought I was good for anything other than birthing heirs: they never listened to me or paid attention to what I had to say, but when you came and took me seriously as we negotiated our deal…that was the first time anyone ever treated me as an equal, and that meant more than I can say. And when you sent Ariel to ask for my help, I was so happy that you thought I could do something important, something to help you.'

He sees the uncertainty flicker over her face and he never knew that she had doubted herself so much. Well, if she needs to see the strength of his belief in her, then he'll show her: after all, she's always showing him how much she believes in him.

'Sweetheart, I'm sorry,' he says now: 'I'm sorry I left you thinking that I didn't need you, but I want you to know that I will always need you, and I'll never leave you again, or, if I have to leave, I'll be taking you with me.'

'Promise?' she asks softly, her eyes shining with trust and love.

He kisses her. 'I promise.'

'Good,' she breathes against his lips. He smiles, but it turns into a gasp when her soft little hand begins to stroke him. She smiles and sucks on his bottom lip.

'Beautiful Belle,' he murmurs as she pulls away, and it's like a prayer.

She watches his face as her hand moves and she marvels that she can make him look like that: the picture of bliss. She wants to always make him feel as happy as he looks right now.

'Belle,' he breathes: 'oh, sweetheart, please.'

She knows what he wants and she wants it too, but his eyes are closed and she wants him to look at her.

'Watch me, Rumple,' she requests, and she smiles as he opens his eyes.

They both hold their breath as she lifts herself up and lowers herself onto him, and then they exhale together. She begins to move, slowly, teasingly, and his hands roam her body, caressing and warming her, and this moment is almost perfect.

'I love you, Rumplestiltskin,' she tells him, looking into his eyes, 'and I want what you want: I want a future and a family with you, very, very much.'

'Belle!' he cries, and the smile on his face makes him look like the young man he must have been before he went off to war, full of hope and confidence.

His hands caress her angelic face reverently and then he kisses her sweetly. She moves faster now and he meets her, thrusting up as she slides down.

They come at the same time, clinging to each other, rocking together, and murmuring words of love to each other.

'Gods, Belle,' Rumplestiltskin pants, collapsing against the pillows and bringing her with him.

She laughs softly and rests against his shoulder. 'I can't move,' she says: 'you've worn me out.'

'Glad to know I've still got it,' he says, and she can tell he's smirking.

'You certainly do,' she agrees, and turns her head to kiss his neck. 'I'm just gonna rest here for a bit.'

'Me too,' he agrees, and they fall asleep together.

He wakes to the feel of her hand caressing his chest gently. 'Hey,' he greets, reaching to kiss her as she lifts herself up to kiss him, her right hand caressing his cheek.

'Hey,' she returns with a smile.

She moves her hand and he notices the band of gold on her right ring finger.

'This is new,' he comments, as he catches her hand and rubs his thumb over the metal. Obviously she was wearing it earlier, but he was rather distracted then.

She nods. 'I wanted people to know that I was yours: that I would always be yours, and I wanted to remember you, like you remembered me with your ring.'

'Oh, sweetheart,' he breathes, and he raises her hand to his lips and kisses it. He kisses the back of her hand and each finger; then he turns her hand over and kisses her fingers again, and then her palm, and then her wrist.

Belle smiles, but she squeaks in surprise when he rolls them over and kisses her deeply, making her head spin.

'Oh,' she sighs, trying to catch her breath: 'you like the ring, then?'

'I'd like it better if it was on your other hand,' he tells her in a low voice, 'but you'll need another one to wear for a while first, I believe, so, what about this?' And he flourishes his hand and, a flash of golden light later, a small, blue velvet box is sitting on his palm.

Belle stares at it and then looks at him, a million questions in her eyes.

'Open it sweetheart,' he entreats: 'tell me what you think.'

She takes the box and opens it, and then gasps, because inside is the most beautiful ring she's ever seen. The ring itself is made of the purest gold, and it's not the kind that's found in this world, unless one knows how to spin straw into gold, which her Rumple does. The stone, too, seems to be of his own making. It's not a diamond, she can tell that much: it shimmers too warmly to be a diamond.

'It's a ray of sunlight,' he tells her, seeing her curious look: 'frozen into a stone.'

Tears trickle down her cheeks at the realisation that he would make something so beautiful for her.

'It's beautiful,' she whispers: 'it's perfect.'

'I made it before I left to find Bae,' he tells her, 'before you lost your memory. I was gonna give it to you when I came back, but I think now is the right time.' He looks into her eyes. 'Will you accept it, Belle, and with it my heart, my body, and my soul: will you be my wife?'

She's happy, but she can't seem to stop crying. She laughs at her foolishness and then nods eagerly. 'Yes,' she breathes: 'yes, yes, yes!' She kisses him quickly for each 'yes'.

'And will you accept my heart, my body, and my soul in return?' she asks, smiling up at him.

His eyes are sparkling with tears, but he's smiling. 'I thought I was the dealmaker here, sweetheart.'

She smiles. 'Well, you did deal with me before, remember, and that worked out pretty well in the end. Besides, I'd call this a pretty even trade.'

He shakes his head. 'Oh, no, sweetheart,' he dissents, 'as I always do, I'm getting the better end of the bargain.'

'No!' she protests.

'Yes!' he returns.

She kisses him. 'No.'

He kisses her back. 'Yes.'

'Rumplestiltskin, don't argue with your future wife,' she scolds, 'because you won't win.'

He laughs. 'Alright, sweetheart, we'll agree to disagree. Now, I'll trade you your ring for mine and I'll give you yours back on our wedding day: deal?'

'I'll make that deal with you, Rumple,' she says thoughtfully, 'if you agree to let me move your ring to your left hand on our wedding day.'

'Deal!' he says at once, and the look in his eyes is just as gleeful as it was on the day she made her first deal with him. She smiles at the memory.

He sobers then as he gently removes the ring on her right hand and slips her engagement ring onto her left ring finger: it fits perfectly and he smiles as she admires it. Then he puts her ring in the box for safekeeping: he'll be needing it soon.

'It's beautiful, Rumple,' Belle breathes, and she admires the way the stone sparkles as the sun descends on another day. Tomorrow morning, they'll wake up in each other's arms for the first time in too long, but she has no plans to sleep yet.

'It had to be,' he tells her quietly, 'to suit the most beautiful woman in all the realms.'

She smiles. 'Well, I am the luckiest woman in all the realms,' she tells him. 'I love you, Rumplestiltskin: I will always, always love you, and I promise you'll never be unhappy or lonely again.'

'Oh, Belle,' he rasps out, burying his face against her neck.

She kisses everywhere she can reach and runs her fingers through his hair, her other hand rubbing his back. Then she wraps her legs around him, cradling him between her thighs again.

'Welcome home, love,' she whispers, and he raises his head and kisses her softly.

They make love again as the sun goes down, their bodies moving in a perfect rhythm as they delight in bringing each other pleasure. Their soft moans and breathless pants are the only sounds as twilight falls, and even after the sunlight is completely gone, there's still a strange, ethereal glow about the lovers. It might be magic, or it might be their love for each other lighting them from the inside out.

The end

Thanks for reading :)