Realization crossed her face. "The queen is as powerful as you?"
Laughing he shook his head. "The silly girl let the power and her freedom from killing her husband, cloud her judgment. As I am now, she couldn't hope to out power me. The fact that she keeps trying to has created this odd relationship we have, bargaining back and forth and trying to kill each other." Her shoulders relaxed."But you see that's our problem Belle. If I give up my power, she would be the most powerful in the land. She'd be holding all the puppet strings. And that wouldn't be enough. She'd come for you as surely as my name is Rumplestiltskin."

"But why? She'd have nothing to fear from you any longer." Her eyes brightened and looked stern.
"Because she could, love. It would be the ultimate win over me. Plus she can't stand for anyone to be truly happy." He shook his head. "I'm evil, but I don't want to watch the world burn to a cinder. She does. Do you really want her unchecked? At least I help the do gooders every once in a while. Keep the game on playable terms, as it were."
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As he watched her blue eyes grew bright and started to sparkle, as tears gathered along her lids. "You mean I can never kiss you?"

The corners of his lips lifted softly. She wanted to kiss him again. So much so the thought of not being able to brought tears to her eyes. That touched his heart and tortured it at the same time. He was sure he wanted nothing more in this world then to kiss her right now.

"Not until I kill Regina." He said softly reaching up to wipe the tears from her cheeks as they fell from her lashes.

She frowned. "I don't want you to kill anyone. Especially because of me…. I want to make you a better man because I was with you, not give you more reasons to be…well maliciously mischievous."

There was no way he could help chuckle at her there. "Maliciously Mischievous?!" he snorted with a raised eyebrow. "Love haven't you been paying attention at all? I'm EVIL, through and through!"

Shaking her head emphatically she denied it. "No, you do horrible things sometimes, but you don't hurt people just for the fun of it. You were not born like this, you can't be evil."

Sighing loudly he pinched the bridge of his nose again. "I thought I'd made myself clear in the story I just told you, love. Evil isn't born, it's made. I am evil."

Belle slipped from the table to kneel between his feet. She reached up and placed one soft hand on each side of his glittering face. "You are not evil. Maybe you were but not now. You've admitted that yourself. You have changed. Everyone can change for the better. Maybe even Regina."

He couldn't move. Frozen in her touch and gaze he stared at the shining blue orbs that looked so sure, so hopelessly hopeful… How could she have so much faith, in of all things him?

"What if I'm willing to throw it all away? To not worry about the consequences for anyone else. What if I'm willing to kiss you now, and every moment of every day I can from now on, in some little hut where she can't find us."

"You aren't capable of that kind of selfishness, Belle."

Her face came closer to his; her lids seemed heavy as they slowly closed over those blue lights she called eyes. Her lips looked redder, and fuller. She was going to kiss him. Throw caution to the wind and he was going to let her. Succumbing he allowed his own lids to droop, as he leaned forward.

"Are you sure?" she breathed right next to his lips.

As the moment drew close and his lids finally met each other in sweet resignation it happened. A flash of red behind closed lids and a vision of terror. Him as he was before the curse.

/ There was rain falling from the sky and he stood in thick mud that sucked at his feet. He was leaning heavily on a stick. The long forgotten ache was there again in his leg, leaving him weak and less then whole. He wasn't cowering though; He stood blocking a smaller figure and rage painted his face. Ignoring the image of himself, he peered closer at the figure behind him. It was Belle. She was prone in the mud…and dear God was that Blood?! It was coming from her shoulder. What the hell had happened here? The vision world spun and he was behind himself looking in the same direction. Facing down Regina. She glowed with a red aura, and with a flick of her wrist she summoned the silver knife from the mud at Belle's side. He hadn't even seen it. Focusing on the weapon he realized instantly what it was. 'His Dagger;' his name hardly able to be read as if the sands of time had worn the name away; was in the Queen's hand.

This didn't make any sense. The dagger was immune to time, and he was human here. Then he noticed the red on the edge of the dagger… Oh Gods she had stabbed Belle with it... He tried to spin back; to look at Belle see if she was breathing, how deep the gash was, but the vision wouldn't allow it.

"Well well Rumple dear. Finally going to stand up and be a man." Regina sneered the last word. Laughing musically she twisted the silver weapon the point pressing into her finger.

"What do you want Regina?! You have the world let us be."

"You are so right I do have the world, and you shall address me as a peasant should a Queen."

His lip curled in distaste. "You aren't my queen."

"Oh no? Well if you don't think so I may have to show you." She flared out her fingers sending power streaming his way. He watched the human him take the assault and remain standing.

How could that be? The witches face mirrored his own confusion.

The other him spoke. "You'll have to do better than that, dearie. We have left the castle and have lived in these woods away from you and your plots. Let us be and leave now."

"How dare you speak to me so? Order me as if I'm still your simpering apprentice." She stepped toward him radiating power.

The other Rumpelstiltskin didn't even baulk, he stood firm blocking Belle's small form. Why was he mincing words with Regina? How was he standing up to her? Didn't he know Belle was wounded?

"Your last threat didn't work. Neither will your next. If you want to continue this to see just how much I can stand against you we can. I suggest you turn and walk away while you can do so intact. We will stay here and live in peace."

Dark eyes stared down at his not intimidating form. "Striking one more deal?"

He nodded. "If that's what you want to call it. We stay here at peace you go away and don't return."

The queen smiled. "She won't live forever."

Shrugging his shoulders he replied. "Neither will I."

She cut her eyes then. "Deal. I leave you two alone and you stay here and do not interfere with my plans."

"Deal."

"Make sure you speak for your little doll as well Rum. I don't want to see her running into my way while I rip the hearts from her father's whole court."

"No…" The gasp from behind him tore at his heart. Belle was alive then. Again he tried to turn to see her but was not allowed.

He was forced to stand watching Regina as the other him turned to check Belle. He saw as the Queen's eyes narrowed and her red lips stretched in a sadistic smile. The dagger hovered for a mili second over her hand before she shot it at his back.

Now turned with the vision he saw her aim wasn't true. It nicked his side, but nowhere near his heart or other vitals. He started to laugh but then realized that the blade was still moving….. And without his body blocking her, it was headed straight for Belle!

"Deals off." Her voice echoed through the vision. Mixing with his screams and echoing in his head. /

"NO!" Thankfully it wasn't a scream, but it was louder in the quiet of the castle with her so close then it should have been.

With speed he didn't know he possessed he slipped two fingers between his lips and hers. Her kiss, so close but so far from his lips pressed to his fingers. Her eyes fluttered open in shock and looked questionably at him. Smiling tenderly at her he shook his head.

"Even if you feel you can doom the world in this moment, you'd come to regret it. I won't cause you pain if I can help it."

Turning his fingers he pressed the padded tips he had kissed against her lips, and moved forward to receive the kiss from the back of his fingers that she had left.

Once the beauty realized what he was doing she kissed his finger tips in turn, and when she drew back she took his hand and pressed it to her cheek, forcing him to caress her face. "It isn't enough. But I will make do with this for now." She smiled and leaned into his hand more.

He leaned down and pressed his forehead to hers, leaving his hand holding her face, the other wandered into her hair. "I promise you I will find a way for all of this to work out."

"Without killing the Queen?" she prompted.

Giving an amused as well as weary sigh he nodded, still touching her. "Yes without killing the Queen..."

The dark part of him, hidden in the back of his soul wondered if maiming and imprisoning the queen in a dank cave would set any better with Belle. The majority of him was far too removed from such thoughts. It was wrapped lovingly around the only light it had seen in centuries.

Much like his thoughts, his body pulled her up from the floor into his lap, where her small form curled into him and rested her head on his shoulder.

Pulling his talon like hands softly through her long tresses he whispered in her ear. "Thank you for not leaving."

Sitting up a little straighter she pressed her own fingers to his lips and kissed the backs of them. Then imitating him she turned them around, allowing them each to receive their misplaced kisses.

"I'm never going to."

The returning promise made him smile, before he felt a pang from his previous vision. Not willingly, but if he wasn't careful, he'd lose her just the same.