Belle smoothed down her dress nervously. There's nothing to be afraid of, she reminded herself. He doesn't have any reason to hurt you.
She took a deep breath, looking around the forest once more to make sure no one else was there to see her. "Rumplestiltskin! I-I summon thee."
She didn't know what she expected. Perhaps a large bang, or an explosion. But nothing happened for a few minutes, until she heard a cold voice behind her.
"My, my, my! What have we here?"
She spun around quickly, and took a sharp intake of breath.
There he was. The Dark One.
He stood, leaning against a tree like he had been there for hours, looking her up and down with an amused expression on his face.
He was a bit…shorter than she'd imagined. And his scales, although completely inhuman, weren't quite as bad as the stories made them out to be.
It took a moment before she realized he was waiting for a reply. "I've come to make a deal."
He smirked. "I assumed as much. What is it that you need?"
He stood up and made his way toward her, and she forced herself not to flinch. "My kingdom. It's plagued by the ogres. Can you help us?" She was impressed by how steady her voice was coming out.
To this he gave a quick laugh. "Of course I can, dearie. You insult me. But of course…" A twisted smile fell upon his lips. "There will be a price."
She nodded, feeling brave enough to imitate him. "I assumed as much."
He lifted his eyebrows slightly, the grin growing wider.
"But to this you'll have to speak to my father. I can't speak on behalf of my kingdom."
She saw the smile fade ever so slightly, and she wondered what was going on through his head. "Yes, yes, yes. But tell me…why couldn't your father ask me himself?"
"He's not quite as…trusting." She paused. "He hardly even believes in your existence."
He smirked again. "I see."
"So you'll be there? When I call for you again?"
"Wouldn't miss this deal for the world, dearie." He disappeared in a puff of purple smoke, leaving her coughing and wondering what he meant.
It was five days later that the ogres attacked.