So even though it's the day of, I still got this posted before premier! Here's to hoping that 4B (eventually) brings us a great Rumbelle reunion! So here it is, the second to last chapter, enjoy guys!
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"BELLE!" Rumplestiltskin cried. He tried to reach for his wife, tried to run to her, but he couldn't lift his feet. Cruella chuckled "You can not go to her. I command you to not go anywhere near her."
Rumplestiltskin fell to his knees at the spot where he stood, his legs unable to hold the weight of his heavy heart. There was no rise or fall to her chest. No pink blush dotting her cheeks. His Belle was truly gone.
The witches were right. He had no happy ending anymore.
He barely registered the cold laugh that rang behind him. "Such a sad fate for such a pretty thing. But it was her tragic mistake for getting involved with such a villain as yourself." Ursula said with a sneer. "Especially since she didn't mean nearly as much to you as you did to her."
"You know nothing about what she meant to me." Rumplestiltskin said ferociously as he fought back the tears that were rapidly gathering in his eyes.
"Oh but we do, imp. Because we found this," Maleficent said, and Rumplestiltskin let out snarl as she held up that gauntlet. "We collected it from your shop while you were out helping your pathetic band of heroes."
"And when we used it, it led us to the girl's apartment, not to her, but to this," Cruella continued, holding the dagger firmly as it glistened in the sunlight. "She was right when she sent you away Rumple, you do care more for your power than you did her."
Rumplestiltskin looked up from where he knelt, staring daggers at the gauntlet that had begun this whole blessed thing. When Belle had sent him away, he at that point had become so obsessed with power that he couldn't decipher whether or not his power and Belle held the same status in his heart. But now, now that he knew he would never hold her close again, never hear or laugh or see her smile, he knew that she meant more to him than any power in the world.
"You're wrong." Rumplestiltskin snarled. "The gauntlet leads you to my weakness, which is most certainly the dagger. I loved Belle more than any power in this world or any other. But that never made her my weakness. She was my strength."
"Oh how touching," Maleficent said with a roll of her eyes. "But your beauty is gone. And you're back to being the coward you always were. And now that we control your dagger, you have no choice but to tell us whatever you know of the author, and help us finally achieve our happy end-"
But the witch's statement was cut of by a purple ball of fire whirling through the air, hitting the her directly in the chest. The witch was thrown backward, a high shriek erupting from her chest. The other women and Rumplestiltskin turned their heads, right as an arrow whizzed over their heads, hitting a tree right beside where Ursula stood. Snow, Charming, Emma, Hook, Regina and Ruby all stood surrounding the group of villains. It only took a moment for the women to register the situation before all chaos broke loose.
There was magic, arrows, and even claws flying, as Ruby, who had gained a higher level of control over her transformations, took on her wolf form and lunged at Cruella. Cruella snarled and threw a blast of magic toward's the wolf-girl, all the while forgetting about the dagger and letting it clammer to the ground.
Rumplestiltskin looked at where the dagger lay, but yet he couldn't summon the strength the move, let alone retrieve it. Because even though a war had begun to rage around him, none of it mattered to him, because the only light in his life had been snuffed out.
But somehow,still, the dagger had brought itself to him. Rumplestiltskin glanced up, and was more than a little shocked at the realization that Hook had brought him the dagger. The pirate simply looked down at the broken Dark One for a moment. "You taught me what it's like to be under the control of another, and that is not a fate I wish on even my worst enemy. Besides, we know what happens when the Dark One's power is in evil hands," he said, as he turned away to rejoin the fray.
Rumplestiltskin stared numbly at the dagger in his hands. The Dark One's power in evil hands…. that was what had started this all wasn't it? When Zelena had obtained his dagger he had lost Bae, and in turn had eventually lost Belle.
But no, the powers of the Dark One had started destroying his life long before Zelena. They destroyed his life the moment he had become the Dark One. Because thats why he had lost Bae and Belle once before, and why they were both gone forever. The powers had truly destroyed him, and everyone close to him. And because he was a coward, he let it.
But as he thought of Bae, and stared at the body of his beloved Belle, Rumplestiltskin knew he no longer wanted to be a coward. He was finally ready to be brave, like his son and his wife.
As Rumplestiltskin stared down at the dagger, a new determination rose within him. A determination to never let this wicked power destroy his life, or anyone else's again.
And he knew exactly what he had to do.
With one swift movement. he raised the dagger, and plunged it into his gut.
There was pain, but the pain was numb. Because more than anything, As Rumplestiltskin stared down at the wound, it was not blood that he saw, but rather a dark grey mist, that seemed to seep from the gash. His dark powers were leaving him, and with them, his life. And this time, there would be no one going to the dark vault, no one giving they life to bring back the Dark One.
As he lay weak and dying, Rumplestiltskin turned to look at his beloved Belle. She seemed so peaceful, as her pale skin contrasted the green forest floor. With whatever small strength he had left, Rumplestiltskin crawled to his wife, his life leaving him with every move he made.
A darkness began to overcome him, but he couldn't help but lift his weak hand to meet her beautiful face. He hoped, and prayed that he could be reunited with her and Bae, though he knew he by no means deserved whatever heaven they were in.
And just before the dizziness overtook him, Rumplestiltskin look at her pale face, and pressed his forehead to hers. He placed his finger to trace the gently curves of her mouth, and felt the slightest breath against his skin.
The slightest breath…. Rumplestilstkin's eyes snapped open, realization washing over him. He was so weak, and hope seemed like such a foolish thing
But maybe, just maybe, he could still save his love. Even if he lost his own life in the process.
His hand lingered gently on her face, and his lips hovered over hers."I love you Belle," he whispered, as he placed one last kiss on her lips, before he let the darkness overtake him.
But no, darkness didn't come. Rumplestiltskin's eyes fluttered open, to find himself peering into his wives crystal blue ones.
"Belle," her name was barely a whisper on his lips. She's alive!
Her gentle hand reached up to touch his tear soaked face. "Rumple, you saved me," she said softly, as tears began to glisten in her own eyes.
Rumplestiltskin smiled softly, tears still streaming down his face. The Dark One had never been more grateful.
The Dark One…. it was at that moment, the Rumplestiltskin realized the most peculiar part of the situation. He wasn't dead.
He started down, and saw no wound, and no dark mist. He stared at his Belle with utmost confusion written on his face, until understanding finally dawned on him.
Rumplestiltskin scrambled to his feet, as quickly as he could, leaving a very confused Belle lying on the forest floor. "Rumple whats wrong?" she asked, as she watched her husband search the forest frantically. The fighting had ceased, the witches had taken their leave, and all eyes locked on the peculiar actions of the Dark One.
After a few minutes, Rumplestiltskin finally found his dagger glistening on the forest ground. As he picked it up, he was nearly ecstatic with what he saw.
"Belle!" He cried, as he rushed over to where his wife was picking herself up of the ground. "Belle, look at the dagger," he said, with the utmost joy lining his face.
Giving her husband a weary look, she glance down at the dagger and gasped. His name was gone, and left no other name in its place.
She stared up at her husband, not fully prepared to believe, to hope….
"Belle" he said, snapping her out of her daze. "Will you please…." he didn't need to finish the statement as he pushed the dagger into her hands.
"Rumple, I promised I would never use it again…"
"I know. But I need you to try. I need to know for sure," he said with the utmost pleading.
Belle knew he was right. They needed to test this. She took a few steps back from her love, and stared at him with the utmost intensity, raising the dagger out in front of her. "Rumplestiltskin, I command you to kiss me."
He waited a moment. But there was no voice, and no pull, other than the love he felt for the beautiful creature in front of him.
Rumplestiltksin ran to Belle as fast as possible, paying no attention to the slight twinge that had returned to his leg, and swept her up into his arms.
"You never need to command me to do that, my dear." he chuckled as he placed a kiss on her forehead. "I'll do that out of my own free will anytime."
Belle stared at him awestruck. "But how…?"
"True love's kiss can break any curse." said a voice behind them. The pair turned to see Regina and the other hero's making their way towards them. The word's echoed the malicious ones that had been uttered so long ago, but this time they were meant with the utmost sincerity.
Belle glance from Regina to her husband. "So your kiss broke my sleeping curse, but why this time did my kiss break your curse?"
Rumplestiltskin stroked a hand along her face. "Because when I purposely saved you with true love's kiss, not caring at all about my own life, I used an act of light magic and… "
"….the dark one doesn't use light magic. So the kiss finally broke you away from begin the dark one." Belle chuckled. "So after all this time, true love's kiss still broke your curse."
"It did indeed my darling. It seems someone finally wrote us our happy ending."
Belle buried her face in his shirt, laughing. "Oh Rumple, don't you see? There is no author to write our stories."
"WHAT!" the band of heroes behind them said in unison. Belle simply ignored them and continued. "We're our own authors. We write our own stories. We decide…"
"….our own fate. Oh Belle," Rumplestiltskin buried his face in our hair. "We'll if thats the case, I know exactly what choice I'm going to make."
Belle stared up into her husbands eyes, curious of his response. "And what would that be?"
"The one where you and I are together forever."
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I told you guys I would give you a happy ending! Besides, I hate killing people off, I could never actually kill Belle or Rumple. But what happened after this hmmmmmm?
