a/n: Sorry it has been a while guys. I have not abandoned any story, just been having some writer's block. Hope you enjoy. Thanks for all the lovely reviews :)

Once she had returned to her room, Belle found she had it all to herself. Baelfire was still out with Ruby. It was so quiet without him there. It was the first quiet she had had in several days; Belle didn't know what to do with herself.

Going over to the windowsill and sitting down with one of her books, she tried to focus on reading once more. However, after the hundredth time of reading the same sentence over and over again and still not knowing what it read, she finally gave up, letting the book fall to her lap. Her mind was whirling with too many thoughts so concentrate on anything and most of those thoughts centered around Rumplestiltskin or his son.
Sighing deeply, she stood and placed her book down on the table. She decided to go for a walk in the gardens to try and clear her mind. Wrapping her brown cloak about her shoulders, she meandered down the steps and out the door.

Once outside, she walked slowly admiring anything and everything, trying whatever she could not to think about the mysterious prisoner holed up in the West Wing. Curiosity began to plague at her mind, making her wonder as to whether or not she could see Rum's room from outside. Not so reluctantly, she found herself wandering over toward the West Wing side of the castle. She did fell a little nervous about going over there, but she knew she shouldn't be. This was her home; she could walk around the courtyards whenever she pleased.

Once there, she unconsciously picked up her pace, searching the top of the castle for the window to Rumple's room. When she finally caught a glimpse of it, she smiled to herself as she noticed he was standing at it. She could not really make out much except for his silhouette, nor could she tell what he was looking at, but her gut told her he was watching her.

Feeling a little blush form on her cheeks, she averted her eyes to the ground. She didn't mind that he was watching her; it actually made a few butterflies erupt in her stomach, but she felt if she stared any longer, he would consider her some sort of a stalker.

Trying to pretend like she had just happened upon that side of the castle, she continued her stroll along the path trying to make it seem like she had an interest in the trees and plants, when in all actuality she did not. She allowed herself to only glancing up one more time to see he was still standing there, causing more butterflies still.

Eventually, she made it to an area where his window was no longer in sight. She then released a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. It was odd the way this man made her feel. Why was she acting like this?

She continued to enjoy her time outside, but before she knew it the sun was dipping below the horizon and she shivered as a light breeze blew by. Realizing she had stayed out later than intended, she hoped she had not missed dinner. Hurrying back into the castle before she caught a cold, she made her way to the dining room to see if Ruby or Mrs. Potts was there with Bae.

As she entered the dining room she immediately laid eyes on Bae who was sitting at the front of the table next to Ruby. Mrs. Potts was currently placing a plate of food out in front of him. Hearing the footsteps, Mrs. Potts looked up and exclaimed, "Oh there you are my dear! I wondered if you were planning on joining us."

Bae looked up and smiled big, clearly happy Belle was there now, but he did not say anything.

Belle returned his smile, walked over, and placed a kiss to his forehead. "I'm sorry. I was out for a walk in the gardens and I lost track of time," she said to Mrs. Potts.

Mrs. Potts chuckled, "Best pay more attention to the time. Winter's fast approaching and I wouldn't want you to catch your death."

"I will."

"Are you hungry dear? I can bring a plate out if you would prefer."

"Oh yes please, that would be wonderful," Belle replied, taking the empty seat on the other side of Bae. The scent of freshly baked bread and chicken filled the air.

"I'll return in a few minutes with your meal," Mrs. Potts promised her before leaving the room to go fetch it.

Belle glanced over at Ruby, flashing her a smile. Bae had begun to eat his food quietly, devouring it as if he hadn't eaten all day.

"How was he?" Belle asked, curious to how he had acted around this woman they had both only just met. He had seemed all right around her earlier, much better than he had been around any one else he had met so far.

"He was a joy," Ruby replied. "I couldn't get him to talk, but hopefully that will change as the days go on."

Belle nodded. "He wouldn't talk around me for the first few days, but he eventually opened up. He seems to like you, so I think he will come around."

Ruby agreed and went to eating her own meal. It wasn't long before Mrs. Potts returned with Belle's plate also bringing along a pot of freshly brewed tea.

After enjoying a delightful meal just the four of them, Belle took Bae by the hand. "I can escort him upstairs," she told Ruby.

"Are you sure? I don't mind," Ruby insisted.

"Quite. He stays with me right now anyway, at least until he feels comfortable enough to sleep alone."

Ruby nodded and retreated to her own quarters without giving any other objections.

Belle held onto to Bae's hand as he followed her eagerly up the stairs. She could tell by his demeanor that he had missed her today. She couldn't deny that she missed him too. It would be hard having him off with Ruby constantly from now on, but she would get used to it. It was better than her father sending him away.

Once they were inside the bedroom and the door was shut, Belle bent down to be eye level with Bae. "If you're ready, I can take you to see your father now," Belle offered. The King was away, Ruby had retired for the evening, and Mrs. Potts knew what Belle was up to. Belle knew they would be safe to visit Rumplestiltskin for the evening.

Bae's eyes lit up and he nodded keenly hopping up and down just a little. "REALLY?" he exclaimed, speaking for the first time all night, "We can go see daddy?!"

Belle smiled, "Yes we can."

"Okay! Okay! Let's go!" He grabbed her hand again trying to pull her along toward the door.
Belle chuckled at her eagerness, but stopped him. "Not that way Bae. We have to go through another door, a secret door." She put a lot of emphasis on secret to get his curiosity going.

"A secret door?" Bae seemed both confused and intrigued.

Belle nodded. "Yes. Now I can show it too you, but it has to remain our little secret. You can't tell anyone about it."

Bae agreed, "I won't, I won't, I pomise!"

"And Bae," she added a little more seriously, "We can't tell anyone we went to see your father either, you understand?"

Bae nodded.

"Good," she said, placing another kiss to his forehead and ruffling her hand through is thick brown hair, before standing to her feet. Holding her hand out for him she said, "Follow me."

Bae didn't hesitate at all taking her hand and letting her lead him. "Wait!" he exclaimed, causing her to stop.

Belle looked down at him questionably as he let go of her hand and ran over to the corner of the room and grabbed something. When he came back over to her and took her hand again, she could see he was holding one of the books she had been reading to him each night. Belle grinned; she assumed he wanted to show the book off to his father.

Quietly and carefully she led him into the secret passageways, encouraging him on more than one occasion to be as quiet as possible. Bae looked around completely captivated by the surroundings even though there wasn't much to see besides stone walls.

As they neared the entrance that led to Rumplestiltskin's room, Belle paused, listening first to make sure he was alone. She creaked the door open slightly and saw him sitting at his spinning wheel, with his back facing her. There was no one else in sight.

She smiled to herself coaxing Bae to go in ahead of her before she briskly shut the door after stepping in as well. The moment Bae laid eyes on his father, his slow stride turned into a sprint and his facial expression became ecstatic. "DADDY!" he squealed a little louder than Belle would have preferred. A quick glance toward the door told her no one heard him, otherwise the guards would have honed in on them in an instant.

Rumplestiltskin's head shot up when he heard the familiar voice and he whirled around, almost falling off of his stool. When he laid eyes on his boy running full on towards him, his face reflected nothing but the look of disbelief. "Bae…" he breathed out barely above a whisper. Holding his arms wide open, the boy collided into him full force, clasping his arms around his father's neck. Rumple wrapped his arms around Bae in return, squeezing him so tight, afraid that if he let him go he would disappear forever. "Oh, Bae, I missed you so…" he said, a few tears coming to his eyes.

Belle stood back and watched the duo reunited. It brought tears to her eyes to see the scene before her. She didn't care what her father said, what any of the rumors said, or what Rumple tried to convince her of. There was no doubt in her mind that the man sitting before her was not a monster. He was a man who loved and cared deeply for his son, only wanting what was best.

She wasn't even sure if Rumple knew she was standing there. He hadn't made any indication of it, so she remained quiet so that father and son could have their moment, a moment she almost felt like she was intruding on.

After a few minutes the two finally released each other and Rumplestiltskin looked down into his son's dark brown eyes. He smiled big, the few tears finally rolling down his cheeks as he touched the boy's cheek as if to make sure he was real. "I'm here for you son, you're safe," he told the boy reassuringly; even though it was obvious Bae didn't feel threatened in any way. He was just thrilled he was with his father again. The boy beamed up at Rumple, before pointing behind him towards Belle, "Look Daddy! I found a Mommy!"