The night was a long one, but in the morning Belle woke up and glanced around the room. She sighed in relief, and smiled seeing Rumple.

"I was afraid for a moment it was all just a dream, that I was back in the tower," she told him, setting up a little. It would take time to bring her back up to a healthy weight, but she was clearly stronger. Seeing her set up, Rumple was certain for the first time that she would live. He didn't take his eyes off her, and he couldn't hide his relieved smile.

"Most would say you've been brought from one nightmare to another," he told her. "Here, drink this." He handed her another cup of broth. He'd added a few more drops of the strengthening potion. This time she was able to hold the cup on her own and drink for herself.

"Most people are wrong," she said firmly. When she'd finished the broth, she handed the cup back to him.

"Well, I suppose anything would be an improvement on nearly being starved to death." He couldn't hide his hatred for Regina. She was going to pay for hurting Belle, for coming so close to killing her!

"The worst part wasn't being hungry or cold," she answered. "The worst part was thinking I'd never see you again, that I'd never get to tell you I was always going to come back."

Rumple found that hard to believe. He hadn't expected her to even come back when he'd sent her for straw, that day she'd met the Evil Queen and everything had gone so wrong. She'd come back then. Had she honestly been going to come back after he'd sent her away for good? She had been locked up. Maybe given her choice, she would have returned.

"Were you now, Dearie?"

She nodded. "And I did a lot of thinking, all that time in the tower. I thought about how the kiss didn't break your curse."

"Disappointed I didn't turn into some sort of prince?" he guessed, and forced a giggle. He knew he sounded cold. He didn't want to. The last thing he ever wanted was for her to leave again. But of course she wanted to be gone. She'd likely leave as soon as she was well again. She'd be grateful to have no reason to think a beast like him actually loved her, that she could just be free of him.

"Rumple I never wanted to change you," she told him. Her voice was surprisingly strong. She was determined to help him understand. "I wasn't trying to destroy your powers either. I only wanted to break the curse because it's a curse, and that means it's only going to cause you more pain."

He gave a giggle at that, hiding his grief at the pain it had already caused.

"Pain is something I'm well used to, Dearie."

Belle looked down, and was quieter when she spoke again.

"I wouldn't want anyone deciding my fate. I never meant to try to decide yours. Whether it's because you don't believe I love you, or if you think you wouldn't be worth anything without your magic, it's up to you to decide if you want to free yourself." She paused, and Rumple sat quietly on her bed. Some of the insane look to his eyes had lifted. She lifted her eyes to meet his again. "If you decide to stay cursed, I'll help you face whatever the curse means for you. If you decide to let it be broken, I'll remind you that there's more to you than magic." She reached for her hand. He let her take it. "Either way, when you said no one could ever love you, you were wrong."

He would have given anything, his magic included, if he could just believe that. It was impossible, but would there be so much harm in letting himself fantasize, just for a moment? He leaned in to kiss her, and she returned the kiss. He felt the warm glow he'd felt the first time she'd kissed him, but there was no fading away of the scales, no sign the curse was being broken. Belle was with him again, but it would take time for him to believe she loved him.

When they pulled apart, he didn't see repulsion in her eyes. There was sorrow, but he couldn't be sure if it was sorrow he was still the same, or sorrow that he didn't believe she loved him. Whatever it was, he knew he couldn't be without her again.

"Well if you're so determined to make yourself miserable by staying here, Dearie, that's your choice." His voice said the words, but the tone he used begged "Please mean what you said. Please stay."

Her eyes held her answer. She wasn't going anywhere.

Belle started to recover more quickly. She was able to set up in bed and read that evening, and it wasn't much longer before she was able to leave bed and walk around the castle a little. Once she was strong enough, Rumple used magic to help her be able to eat normal sized meals. Her stomach wasn't used to food anymore. Even with magic keeping her from feeling ill, she ate slowly. That gave her time for long talks with Rumple over meals.

She found she had a hard time knowing how to react to Rumple. Sometimes he seemed even more closed off than before she'd left. No wonder. In trying to break his curse, she had broken his trust, Other times, she was sure he joked more often. She remembered one of the first times he'd joked with her, about watching the wheel helping him to forget. It seemed to her he spun even more than he used to. He had more pain to forget now than he'd had before.

One day while he was spinning, he was so absorbed in what he was doing he didn't notice the pile of straw beside him was down to nearly nothing until he saw the stack of straw had been replaced by a new bundle of it. The bundle wasn't beside him. It was just out of is reach. He was sure he hadn't conjured it. He stopped spinning, and could hear Belle's footsteps leaving the room. He understood the silent message. I'll help you, if you will let me. It's up to you.

The straw was there. It was is choice to pick it up and turn it into gold. The message might have felt like an ultimatum, except for one thing. He heard Belle's footsteps returning, and she looked into the room.

"You know, Rumple, the straw is gleaming. It's almost like it's gold, even without being changed." She came closer and touched the pile of gold he had spun. "Straw or gold, changed or not. There's beauty in both." With that, she left the room again.