So here's the "story." The work 'A Deal for the Cursed' is complete as it was. It said what I wanted to say, and left unsaid what I wished. However, there was a plan to make a larger work. So I decided to pull a Tolkien ("I'm not worthy! I'm not worthy") and publish appendices (aka Missing Scenes). I hope you enjoy.
Appendix One
Belle and Mr. Gold: 'Everything that Needed to be Said.'
"So here we are, " Belle smiled into Mr. Gold's face and tightened her hand on his.
"Yes," he sighed, "people will talk."
She looked away pensive, and then started suddenly, sitting up in horror, "You're right! We're alone overnight!"
Mr. Gold froze wondering what in both worlds she meant. Then it clicked, "That's not what I meant, my dear," he laughed, and gently took her hands away from her face. "This is a cursed world. That's
normal here!"
"What?" she exclaimed. He nodded, still laughing, "Truly?"
"Would I lie to you Belle?"
She looked thoughtful, considering. "Oh," she said presently. "Perhaps… I suppose, well, you must realize. . ." her cheeks began turning red. Finally she blurted out, "You must understand my mind. Until I went home, it never occurred to me that everyone would assume that . . ." She stopped again, blushing bright red now. "That . . ." she couldn't finish.
"You would be compromised?" Mr. Gold suggested helpfully. She dove then into the pillows and nodded her head, deep scarlet now.
Finally her muffled voice emerged, "I can't believe we're speaking about this out loud!"
"Oh, my Belle," Mr. Gold was almost in stitches with laughter now. "You are, I sincerely believe, the only woman of your age in this world, or the other, for whom that WOULDN'T be the first thought!"
She shook her head. He almost continued, then saw her brown hair still burrowing the pillow, and decided to continue with his original point.
"Believe it or not, the staying overnight will not be the talk, however I am committing a horrible faux paux," he sat up and untied his shoes, "of wearing my shoes while lying on such a nice bed." He tossed them away where they hit the wall with quite a loud 'thud.'
That caused her to emerge. She looked flirtily into his eyes, "Am I now to get up and put them away?"
"No!" He exclaimed a little too loudly, "you are not my servant any more. "
"Of course not," Belle nodded her head. "I will be your wife."
She said it so matter- of- factly, that Mr. Gold leaned in with genuine curiosity and perhaps …hope?
"You are that sure?"
"I suppose . . ." she began, her head swaying back and forth as it would at the castle when she was
slowly trying to get to a point, "I mean, I knew—I did!—that if you ever came for me, after that terrible morning, that it would be because you loved me, so, of course we would marry! I really don't remember anything after I left my father's house after being shunned. It all seems as yesterday. What I'm saying is, I haven't changed a bit."
"I should have come after you." Mirth was gone.
All blush was also gone from her face, and she grew rather pale.
"Of all the evil I did after I became Rumplestilskin- and it was great—sending you away was my worst act," he continued, "I was tricked into my dark curse, but sending you away came from my free-will. I should have found a way."
She nodded, 'My kiss offered you freedom from the curse, and you chose the curse that morning.'
"Yes, I chose to keep it," Mr. Gold concurred, setting aside for this night another conversation they would need to have. "But you were also right," he continued "that I couldn't believe you could love me, because I was despicable." His smile was now brittle, "and nobody could love that."
Her smile was also sad, "Then who am I?"
"A very unique lady," he stated. "That's one of the things that made me fall in love with you."
"Weeelll, I'm not so certain about that. I'm sure there might have been another," Belle's mischievous smile was back.
He shook his head, "There was no other. Had sworn not to love anyone after I lost my son."
"Let's then look to the present," she kissed him lightly. "So you could have married me and we would have lived happily ever after!' She lightly pushed his shoulder, "But now we have to!"
Mr. Gold shook his head, "Are we really back to the 'scandal' of spending the night?"
"Of course!" she squinted her eyes, "Of what were you thinking?"
"When?" he was genuinely lost about what they were discussing.
"When you said people will talk! What started this whole conversation!" she rolled her eyes.
Mr. Gold replied, "Why, of our ages, of course!"
"Ages?" Belle's brow furrowed.
"Belle, I am at least twenty years your senior! Am I correct?" he asked, confused, when she shook her head.
"No," Belle assured him. "You're right. I'm 22. And you are?"
"As a man, 45," he said slowly.
She grinned, "Why that's nothing at all! Why, most good matches are made with the man being older. It was VERY rare that my fiancé was so young. I was given in part as a reward for service to my father." She grinned wickedly now, 'For men take longer to get some sense into their heads enough to make a good match." He laughed and shook his head, "If I'm wrong, feel free to contradict!"
"Never!" Mr. Gold said in earnest. "When did you become so worldy?"
"Well, I did have that time to read all those books!" Belle reminded him.
"Indeed," he winced slightly, not caring to remember those days. "All jesting aside," he insisted. "Let me explain Storybrooke: I am the creepy-old-man-who-limps-and-barely-above-loan-shark."
Belle giggled.
"I am in earnest!"
But Belle still laughed, "I didn't say you weren't! But the curse for you is broken now, and I'm holding you to that!"
"That doesn't change the 'creepy-old-man' part," Mr. Gold insisted.
"Well, they're fools!" Belled stated emphatically, kissing him once more. 'Silly cursed world that does not mind a woman's virtue being taken, but is only worried about age, limps, and looks!"
After a moment, he repeated, "Silly, cursed world indeed!" and he kissed her back.
"Yes," Belle sighed sleepily, snuggling into his shoulder, "we'll conquer it in no time!"
"If you insist," Mr. Gold replied, settling back with her, "and I know where to start."
"Where?" she yawned.
"With Cinderella," he answered. "The first of the 'Happy Enders,' if you will."
She whispered against his shoulder, "'Happy Enders.' I like that. Why her?"
"Well, she was the first and she is at home all day with her . . .," he stopped, remembering that Belle was the last innocent woman in the world. How could he explain that Cinderella, of all women, had a baby without being married to the father?
That can wait till after breakfast.
"What?" She lifted her head to peer into his eyes, knowing that he was withholding something.
"Tomorrow," he said.
"But . . ."
"But sleep!"
Belle opened her mouth to continue, but decided it could wait. She'd get it out of him. She always could.
"Very well," she pulled the covers over them. "You still have to marry me!"
She ducked under the covers and grinned, having had the last word.
In minutes they were both asleep.