Imagine person A of your ship dumping person C at the altar for person B. (If only I had made it that simple; it would have saved a lot of time. Oh well. I regret nothing!)

Some of you may recognize part of the marriage scene towards the end from another TV show, and yes, I did do that on purpose because I just can't help myself.

Of all the ways Belle had envisioned this day, it had never turned out like this. It had always been a happy-go-lucky ceremony with no problems, where everything went according to plan. But like all the things in Belle's life, nothing was ever easy.

"Belle, what's wrong?"

"Rumple, I don't understand. Is there something wrong with me?" Belle let her friend wrap his arms around her as she sobbed into his chest.

"No, there's nothing wrong with you at all. You're perfect. Why? What's happened?" Belle felt him tense up after a moment. "Is it Ruby?"

"She dumped me," cried Belle.

"I don't understand..."

"I don't understand!"

"All right, come on. I'm going to take you back to my place."

Belle stared into the mirror, examining the way the pure white dress clung to her skin, the way the veil hid her face. The next time she could see without looking through little holes, she would be looking at him - at Rumpelstiltskin.

This was all Ruby's fault. She kept popping into Belle's mind - everything about Ruby was coming back to haunt her. This was not supposed to be happening today. She should be thinking about Rumpelstiltskin and not about her bold green eyes, her silky smooth black hair, her rebellious red streaks, her long legs that seemed to go on for an eternity, the way her shorts clung to them, the way her shirt cut off above her waist, the way her skin felt, the way her lips kissed Belle's neck...

Belle's eyes jolted open as she realized how deep she had allowed herself to go, and she became increasingly upset with herself. She was in love with Rumple; she really was.

"Ruby! You're home!" Belle jumped off the couch excitedly and wrapped her arms around Ruby's neck before she even got the chance to take off her shoes. "I missed you," she smiled.

"I missed you too." But there was something wrong. Her eyes were not aglow the way they usually were, and she wasn't smiling. She was always smiling.

"Did you have a bad day?"

"No, it was fine," Ruby shrugged her way out of Belle's arms.

"Then what's wrong?"

"Belle, I have something to tell you." She shrunk a few inches after taking off her high heels, and she grabbed Belle's hand and led her to the couch. Belle sat, but Ruby did not.

"What is it?" Belle's hands were fidgeting anxiously on her lap.

"Have I ever told you about Red?"

"Not really. We haven't really talked about who we were before the curse yet."

"Well, Red's a lot like Ruby; she's a lot tamer in some ways but sometimes, she gets even wilder than I do."

"Okay..." Belle was confused. Was she going to demand they up their game in the bedroom? Because Belle had no problem with that.

"No, it's not okay, Belle! I'm - I'm a werewolf!"

"A - a werewolf?" Belle stuttered. That was the last thing she had expected.

Ruby nodded, running her hands anxiously through her hair. "Tomorrow's the first full moon," she whispered. "And I don't know what's going to happen. I haven't turned for twenty-eight years."

Belle stood up and held Ruby's hands in her own. "It's okay; we'll figure this out." She ran her fingers across the taller woman's cheek. "We're going to get through this together."

Ruby grabbed Belle's fingers gently and shook her head. "I have to do this on my own," she said quietly.

"Okay, that's fine. I'll just wait for you ... to get ... back," but she faltered at the look on Ruby's face. "You want to do this on your own," she repeated.

"Belle," but the tears had already begun to fall thick and fast from her eyes. Ruby tried to wipe them away, but her touch only caused Belle more pain. She leapt back, her hands held up in protest. "Don't, Ruby," she whispered, brushing past the woman responsible for breaking her heart.

"Belle, you look so beautiful," Snow laughed as she admired Belle's dress.

"Thanks." She could not avoid the question any longer. "Has anyone heard from - "

"No, I haven't. ... Belle, Ruby's gone. She left last night. She came into our apartment looking flustered, said she was going to Boston."

"And you ... let her go?!"

"Was I not supposed to?" Snow looked confused. "Belle, you're getting married. Why would she want to stick around?"

"She's the one who broke my heart," Belle said defensively.

"Belle, she was just trying to protect you. She did the same thing to me, but I wasn't in love with her."

"So she's - she's just gone?" Maybe this was for the best; maybe Belle could finally get some closure.

"Belle, darling, Snow's on the phone again," Rumple called from the kitchen, and Belle set down The Mysterious Island and rushed to the phone.

"Hey, Snow. What's going on?" she asked.

"Belle, it's bad again." Her smile faded instantly. "I need you."

"I'll be right there." Belle hung up the phone, grabbed her jacket and ran from the house, hurriedly answering Rumple's question and kissing him goodbye.

As soon as she had pulled the car up to Snow's house, Charming ran outside and beckoned her to hurry, which she did.

"How bad is it?" Belle asked.

"The worst it's ever been," he replied solemnly.

"Where is she?"

"She's in Snow's room." Charming held open the door for her, and Belle raced up the stairs to find Snow sitting on a chair with her head in her hands as Ruby lay next to her on the bed, shaking and yelling out cries of pain.

"Is she any better?"

Snow shook her head. "I don't know what to do," she cried in exasperation, and her husband engulfed her comfortingly as Belle took her place in the chair.

"Ruby?" she whispered. "Can you hear me?" But Ruby continued to scream as if she was somewhere else, caught between two parts of herself. "I'm going to take care of you, okay?" Belle's gently pressed her fingertips to Ruby's forehead, shining with sweat; her hair was damp and stuck to it. "She's burning up."

"I'll get a cold washcloth," Snow mumbled as she went back downstairs. Charming followed her; he didn't like to stay up here. Neither did Snow and Belle, but they always did.

Belle's hands were shaking violently until Snow placed the washcloth in them, and she gently dabbed at Ruby's cheeks and forehead. "Snow, I need you to keep doing this. I have to get some of her clothes off," Belle whispered.

Her friend took the damp cloth from her hands as Belle climbed cautiously onto the bed. "Ruby, it's going to be okay."

Her screams were turning into pitiful whimpers now, and Belle's heart filled with anguish as she gently unbuttoned Ruby's blouse and slid it off her arms. "Belle, do you have to - "

"Yes, Snow, I do. I don't want to do this any more than you, okay? But she will die if we don't cool her down."

Snow did not argue again after that. Belle cautiously undid Ruby's belt, and her jeans loosened just enough that Belle could pull them off. She was so exposed, and Belle had seen her like this before, but never had she been less tempted. All that mattered now was that Ruby lived.

"Belle, her fever's going down."

"Okay, okay, good," Belle lay beside her and brushed the hair from her eyes. Snow knew there was nothing more they could do. Now all that was left was to wait it out. Belle wanted to stop the pain inside Ruby's body, but all she could do was make sure that Ruby didn't get too warm or too cold (that would come later). She wanted to wrap her arms around the beautiful woman beside her, to hold her and try to help her know that everything was going to get better. But she couldn't because her fever would return. All she could do was lie there, whisper meaningless words of comfort and listen to Ruby's pain-filled cries.

She had never felt so useless.

Hours passed; Snow had left some time ago to sleep, and even though she offered Belle the chance to rest first, Belle refused. She knew that Ruby would need her soon.

About halfway between sundown and sunrise, Ruby would start to shiver; her teeth would chatter violently and goosebumps would cover every inch of her skin. So Belle would put her clothes back on, cover her with blankets, and finally wrap her arms around her, shielding her in a warm embrace. Ruby would nuzzle against her desperately, clinging to her like a child would cling to a stuffed animal. This made Belle feel that she was at least doing something to help even though Ruby continued to moan quietly in pain.

And then, as soon as the moon had disappeared in the sky, it was over. Belle kissed Ruby's forehead and gently slipped out of the bed, making sure the blankets were securely around Ruby before she left.

There was that familiar piano tune - those few notes that meant she had to start walking now. If it hadn't been for David, she would have remained completely immobile. Her father had adamantly refused to be at her wedding as soon as she had told him she was marrying Rumpelstiltskin. Although, he wouldn't have showed up if she had decided to marry Ruby either.

There she was again, running through Belle's mind. Every step was another reminder.

"I haven't seen you in here before."

"Well, I've been a kept woman ... until recently."

Everyone was staring at her.

"They'll kill you!"

"Isn't that what I deserve?"

Her cheeks felt so warm.

"Hey, Belle, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Ruby. You can ask me anything."

"Have you ever kissed a girl?"

She was starting to feel dizzy now.

"Ruby, I remember!"

"I remember too! ... Does this change anything?"

"No, why should it?"

"I just figured you would have been married or something."

"It wouldn't have mattered."

Why had they stopped moving?

"Ruby, have you ever done this before?"

"Plenty of times."

"Well ... what if ... what if I do it wrong?"

"You won't. Trust me."

"It's that simple? I just won't."

"All you have to do is stop thinking about it."

"Okay..."

"Repeat after me. I, Isabelle..."

"I, Isabelle..."

"Belle?"

"Yes, Ruby?"

"Take thee, Rumpelstiltskin..."

"I think there's a very good chance I've fallen in love with you."

"Take thee, Ruby..." As soon as the words left her mouth, Belle heard herself say it. There was no noise, no movement, nothing. And all Belle could think was What am I doing here? This is all wrong.

"I'm sorry, Rumple. This - this was a mistake," she mumbled before running straight down the aisle, ignoring the many stares and dropped jaws.

As she threw open the doors, she found herself face-to-face with none other than Ruby Lucas, who was staring at her as though they had only just met. Her eyes were open wide, and that crooked smile crept over her face.

"You're - you're not in Boston." It was not a question.

"No, I'm not." She was coming closer, and Belle was coming closer, and they were inches apart.

"I'm sorry," Ruby said. "I shouldn't have pushed you away; I just wanted to keep you safe; and it took something as crucial as a marriage for me to realize that I should never have - "

But Belle stopped her short, crashing her lips against Ruby's, her hand on the back of the woman's neck, who, for the first time, was not taller than Belle. Ruby's surprise was short-lived, and she responded with such enthusiasm that she lifted Belle off her feet.

Ruby kissed her neck and her collarbone lustfully, but Belle gently cupped her face and kissed her lips again. Everything in her body was pulling her towards Ruby. Her heart was beating a mile a minute, and there was nothing holding her back.

In the end, Belle never did get her ideal wedding day, but she got something a whole lot better.