TheAuburnGirl prompted: MAV: When Belle runs off to see Totoro, Rumple actually wakes up while she's gone (not while she's returning) and goes on a frenzied, terrified hunt to find her :3

a/n This is an AU of Ch 8 in the Many Adventures of Rumple and Belle

Yawning, Rumplestiltskin awoke refreshed from his afternoon nap. Naps were usually a rare thing for him, but ever since he had gained his freedom and ran away with Belle, they seemed to be more and more common. It wasn't terribly surprising; they were newlyweds after all.

Sitting up, he looked to his side to see if Belle was still reading her new book. When he saw she wasn't sitting beside him any longer, he assumed she had went to dip her feet in the water. However, she wasn't in sight. Standing, he lightly called out her name, "Belle?"

After a moment, and no answer, he began to grow worried. Where could she have gone? Trying not to panic, he searched the vicinity. With still no sight of her, he was not able to stay calm. At first, he believed she had run away from him, that her feelings for him were not true, and that she was just waiting for the opportune moment to flee. Yet, when he discovered her book, marked where she had stopped reading, resting on a rock by the water, he knew this was not so.

'Someone must have kidnapped her!' he thought clutching the book tightly in his hand. And to him that someone could only be Regina or Maurice. The rage began to build fast, taking away his ability to think rationally. Ready to burn down the forest to find her, he remembered a spell that would locate her. If Regina had her, there was no way of knowing where she'd hide her, so he would have to rely on magic to tell him.

Finding a nearby small bush, he knelt beside it, waved a hand, and a cloud of purple smoke transformed the plant into the shape of a wolf. With a snap of his fingers the plant came to life, and looked at him. "Find Belle, and take me to her," Rumplestiltskin commanded.

The creature appeared to nod and bounded off into the woods at a pace Rumplestiltskin could keep up with. Following the windy path, Rumple ducked and dodged limbs and bushes, until the wolf finally came to a stop at the large camphor tree. Jumping over the largest root, the plant wolf collided with the side, disappearing without a trace in a puff of smoke. It was a symbol Rumple had arrived at Belle's location. Furrowing his brow, Rumple didn't see anyone or anything in sight. Was his magic growing faulty? Climbing up to where the dog had disappeared, he examined the area, surprised to find a tunnel leading down into the tree. That was odd, he'd been to this tree many times before and this tunnel had never been there.

He didn't entirely trust what was in it, it most likely could be a trick of Regina, but nevertheless he had to go in. He was sure that was where Belle was. Climbing down into the hole, he worked his way through the tunnel and landed hard on his feet as he reached the bottom. Looking around he could see sunlight ahead, and worried now he may have been deceived. Sunlight couldn't stream into the inside of a tree.

Cautiously he made his way forward, until he came to an opening. Stepping out into the sun, the light blinding him for a second, but as his eyes adjusted, his heart skipped a beat as he spotted Belle atop a large rock. "Bel…" he started to call as he stepped forward toward her, until he noticed she was fast asleep. She looked so peaceful and happy sleeping soundly on her belly. However, he wondered how she could be comfortable sleeping atop a rock. Except it wasn't a rock. His eyes widened in shock, as he realized she was actually sleeping on a giant furry animal, more than fifteen times the size of them. It was asleep as well, along with two other creatures beside it. They were smaller but almost identical to the large one. Examining the creatures, with their round bodies and their pointy ears, Rumplestiltskin came to a shocking realization: He was standing before the king of the forest.