A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short, but I'm setting the scene for the next one. Thanks for the reviews, keep them coming! :)

Chapter 4

Rumpelstiltskin felt as confused as Belle looked.

"Who are you?" Belle asked again.

Was this a trick? Did the magic he used to save her have some kind of consequence? All magic came with a price, sometimes small, sometimes life-altering, but Rumpelstiltskin was always aware of its endgame. It's how he kept his edge. But this was certainly something he had not intended.

Belle sat up on her elbows. Jack burst into the office and frantically went to Belle's side. He took her hand. "Bo, you're alive!"

"What?"

"Her name is Belle," Rumpel said.

Belle jerked her hand away from Jack and scrambled off the table. She pressed herself to a corner of the room, her eyes darting between both men. "Where am I?" she asked. "What's happened?"

"You were injured," Jack said. "You nearly died. I called for Rumpelstiltskin to come—"

"Who?"

"Rumpel—" Jack stopped, looked at the man next to him. He huffed an impatient sigh and motioned to the creature. "Him. He's a wizard."

"Belle, look at me," Rumpel said. He inched closer to her and held a hand up as if he were taming a wild creature. "Do you remember who I am?"

Jack leaped at the Dark Lord and pulled him away from Belle. "Get away from her, you—!"

Rumpelstiltskin whipped around to the young man and held up his hand as though he were going to choke him. Jack levitated in the air, an invisible force squeezing his neck. Belle screamed and ran past them out the door. Rumpelstiltskin let Jack fall to the floor, the poor boy gasping for breath, and followed Belle to the square. She was lost in the crowd somewhere, frightened and confused and all Rumpel needed was a chance to set it right. He didn't have the magic to bring memories back—only true love's kiss could break whatever fog Belle was in. But that would mean losing his power, becoming vulnerable again, and what if the kiss didn't work, anyway—?

"My price is her!" Rumpelstiltskin yelled to the crowd. He felt that same desperation within him as when his son Baelfire was sentenced to fight in the Ogre Wars. If he didn't get Belle out of this town, her memories would have been poisoned against him from these fearful people. Then she would be gone again. Forever.

"You cannot have her!" Jack yelled. He came out from the doctor's, leaning on the door frame as he still regained his breath.

Rumpelstiltskin snapped his eyes to the poor young man. "We made a deal! I saved her life, and now I want what's mine!"

"I'll die first!" Jack yelled.

Rumpel raised his hand again and a swirling ball of purple smoke appeared in his palm. "That can be arranged—"

"Stop! Please, stop!"

Belle appeared from the crowd, and for a split second, hope swelled in Rumpelstiltskin's chest that she might have remembered him. But her blue eyes were still frantic, her face still stuck in that awful, confused look. She looked at Rumpel. His heart ached at her desperation.

"Please," Belle pleaded. "I don't know what's happening . . . just please don't hurt anyone!"

Rumpelstiltskin slowly lowered his hand, snuffing out the magic. He glanced at Jack, then at Belle. "I can help you," he said. "I can get your memories back."

"He's lying!" Jack yelled.

Belle raised a hand to silence him and she stared at Rumpel quizzically. "You know me? You know who I am?"

Rumpelstiltskin nodded. He wished he could have let the truth dancing on his tongue slip out. He wished he could tell her everything they went through in just one breath, but it would have been useless. She had no reason to trust his word yet, no reason to believe he wasn't just spouting lies for his own gain. Rumpel knew he would have to play this at a certain angle.

"I'll make you another deal," he said to Jack. "She'll stay with me for two months. If she hasn't gotten her memories back in that time, you can reclaim her."

Jack sneered at the magician. "It's a trick. You'll just use magic to warp her mind." He went to Belle and took her hand. "You belong here, Bo. This is your home. We're . . ." Jack looked around and lowered his voice. "We're together, you and I."

Rage boiled within Rumpelstiltskin. "He's lying."

Belle furrowed her eyebrows into a v-shape. She didn't recognize this man. She didn't recognize anything—her clothes, the town, the seemingly dark wizard standing before her. She felt like she was drowning in darkness, an animal trapped in a cage. If there was a chance this man could bring her memory back, she had to at least try. Then again, who could she really trust?

"I saved your life," Rumpelstiltskin said.

And there it was. His ace in the hole. Belle didn't know much at the moment, but she knew about honor. He could have let her die, but he saved her life, and now all he was asking for was two months of her time. Just two months and she could be normal again.

Belle gave Jack an apologetic look, then nodded to Rumpelstiltskin. "I will go with you."

"No, you can't!" Jack cried.

"He saved me," Belle said to him. "I owe him everything."

"Listen to me." Jack touched Belle's arm and whispered, "He's an evil man. He'll make you his slave and taint your memories. Don't trust him, whatever he says—"

"Belle." Rumpelstiltskin held out his hand for the young girl to take.

She looked at him, then back at Jack. Her heart thudded in her chest, and she was beginning to rethink her agreement. Jack seemed sincere, and it was clear he really cared for her. Still, what choice did she have? "I have to go," she said. A feeling of braveness overcame her and replaced her fear. She slipped away from Jack and went to Rumpelstiltskin.

"I'll come for you!" Jack yelled. "I'll fight for you!"

Belled looked at the magic man. His skin glittered like stars, his face the color of the moon. He was well-dressed and spoke articulately, and though his teeth weren't anything to envy, he was as handsome as a beast could be. He may have had a temper and handled Jack roughly, but he gazed at Belle with such tenderness, she became dizzy.

Belle glanced over her shoulder one last time at Jack. The townspeople had been quiet as ghosts the whole time, watching the scene unfold with terror. Belle looked at Rumpelstiltskin and took his hand. It was warm.

There was a rush of wind, the smell of dead leaves and mothballs, and the pair were caught up in a puff of purple smoke.