Hi Guys, so this is my first Once Upon A Time fanfiction. By the title of the story you can probably guess who my favourite shipping is lol
This is my attempt at writing the first time Rumple and Belle meet in his shop, before the cure breaks. Hope you enjoy x
Rumpelstiltskin, or Mr Gold as he was more commonly known as in this land, stared at the small glass vial of magic in his hands, watching as it glistened a vibrant shade of purple.
It had surprised the sorcerer that Emma Swan had managed to obtain the object so quickly, but then again she was the saviour so her success was only to be expected. Of course she was going to be furious when she realises that he had sent her on a wild goose chase, but for now that was none of his concern.
On the other hand, thanks to her, he was one step closer to finding his beloved son again. Although the thought of seeing his beloved son again excited Rumpelstiltskin greatly, he refused to allow himself to lose focus. It had taken a long time to get this far. Countless years of planning and hard work had gone into this, but there were so many things that could go wrong whether it was those meddling heroes or some magical factor that he hadn't considered.
The loud jangling sound broke the dark one out of his thoughts, alerting him to the fact that someone had entered his shop irrelevant of the "closed" sign on the door. Quickly Rumpelstiltskin shoved the vial into his jacket pocket before turning to hide the golden egg container in an empty box on the shelf behind him. As he closed the lid a quiet, questioning voice sounded from the far side of the room.
"Excuse me, are you Mr Gold"
Gripping his cane, Rumple turned to face the owner of the voice.
"Yes I am, but I'm afraid the shops closed…"
Having been the Dark One for many years, and seen many strange and unusual things, it took a lot to surprise Rumpelstiltskin. However nothing could've prepared him for the sight which greeted him.
In front of him, Belle shifted uncomfortably, cautiously stepping towards him as if nervous or unsure of what she was doing. She was thinner than he remembered, as if she was in need of a good meal. Her long chestnut hair that used to shine in the light, now appeared dull and lifeless. The clothes she wore, standard hospital attire that was designed to be as ugly as possible, hung off her slim frame, offering no protection from the outside elements. The only warmth she received came from the faded red jacket which was also too big for her. Where ever she had spent the last twenty eight years, clearly hadn't been very nice.
But despite all of this, it was still her. The same Belle that he had fallen in love with all those years ago, the same Belle he had thrown out of his castle in a moment of cowardice. The same Belle he believed to be dead.
"I was, err… I was told to find you" Belle said, taking another slow step towards him, "and to tell you that Regina locked me up". As she spoke, Rumpelstiltskin walked around the counter, gripping his cane tightly as if it was the only thing holding him up. After all this time, could this really be his Belle? She looked real enough but this could easily be one of the evil queen's tricks.
"Does that mean anything to you?" she continued eyeing him cautiously as he came to a halt in front of her.
Reaching out Rumple carefully gripped her shoulder. If he was being honest he half expected her to vanish into thin air like a dream. But to his amazement, she didn't.
"You're real!" he breathed, "You're alive!"
That's when it all made sense, Regina's gloating tone when she'd informed him of Belles demise, and when she'd dangled the chipped teacup in front of him whilst in the sheriff's station.
"She did this to you"
Already he could feel the infamous Dark One rage, bubble up inside him.
Oh that witch was going to pay for this when he caught up with her. Whatever she had done to his Belle was nothing compared to what he was going to do to her.
In front of him, Belle stared at him blankly.
"I was told you'd protect me". She looked so afraid and vulnerable that it brought tears to Rumples eyes. Unable to stand the distance between them any longer, he pulled her into a hug, holding her tightly to him and silently vowing that he would do everything in his power to make sure no one hurt her again. By some miracle Belle had come back into his life and he determined not to lose her again.
"Oh yes" Rumple sobbed, "Yes I'll protect you".
To his dismay Belle pulled away from him, seemingly more confused than before.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?"
Rumpelstiltskin felt like slapping himself in the face. The Dark Curse, how could he have forgotten. Of course she would have no idea who he was. However, with the saviour so close to breaking the curse, it was only a matter of time until she remembered.
"No" he replied shaking his head, "But you will".
Hope you liked it, don't forget to leave a review :)