Hey guys welcome back to the story. I know some of you were wondering if there was possibility of Rumbelle getting back together. For the purpose of this story they will not be. However in this chapter Belle will get some romantic moments with our favorite Hatter :) Enjoy!
To say the ride to Granny's was awkward was an understatement. No one said a word the entire way there. Belle had tried to convince Jefferson that Grace would be perfectly fine with just her chaperoning but he was adamant that he should be there. He'd even insisted on taking them in his car. She felt so bad for Henry. She was sure this was nothing like he had imagined for the evening.
"Well here we are," said Belle when they finally arrived. When she looked over her shoulder at the kids she could see they were as uncomfortable as ever. Grace's face was still contorted with irritation from her father's supervision and Henry's disappointment was more obvious than the setting sun. That's when Belle decided that she was taking control of this date.
"Shall we go inside," suggested the Hatter.
"You know what," she said, turning to the kids. "Why don't you guys go inside without us? We'll sit out on the patio."
"Really?!" said Grace smiling brightly.
"Wait-"protested Jefferson.
"Absolutely!" interrupted Belle. "Just have Granny send us some hot chocolate and the bill."
Henry and Grace rushed inside eager for the chance to escape their chaperones. Jefferson attempted to rush after them but Belle gripped his arm to prevent him from going any further. "Don't!"
He turned to glare at her. "You had no right to do that."
"Nevertheless it needed to be done." Retorted Belle calmly. "Please I am just trying to make sure that the kids have a decent time tonight. They won't be able to if you're watching their every move."
"Did it ever occur to you that maybe their moves need to be watched?" Countered Jefferson.
Belle scoffed at him for insinuating such a thing. They were just two fourteen-year olds yet everyone seemed to be overacting. Then she remembered something. "Do you remember when Rumpelstiltskin came to the library? You said that you owed me for protecting Grace. Well I am calling in that debt. Let them eat inside by themselves while we sit out here. We can even take turns watching through the window if you want."
The Hatter groaned at her words. He did owe her for her actions at the library. Grace had talked about her bravery for days. He also had to admit that he was curious about the courageous librarian. He supposed this was as good a time as any to get know her. So he begrudgingly took a seat at one of the patio table sets. "Fine."
"Thank you," she said as Granny brought out their hot chocolate.
"They seem to be having a good time in there," observed Belle thirty minutes later. Henry and Grace were laughing and eating at their booth inside. She had been periodically checking in on them through the window. Jefferson only rolled his eyes in response.
"You know you might have a better time if you loosened up." She suggested, sitting next to him. "Grace might have a better time too."
"I know you might think of me as being over protective but the truth is I'm just traditional," he said. "In the Enchanted Forest I would be perfectly within my rights to accompany Grace on her first date."
"I don't know if it escaped your attention but we are no longer in the Enchanted Forest. And for most of the women here that is a very good thing," pointed out Belle. "In my opinion when it comes to Grace you might want to let go of some of your traditional values."
"Is that your advice as a parent?" challenged Jefferson.
"That's my advice as a daughter," retorted Belle firmly. She might not have a child like everyone else but she knew what it was like to have an overprotective parent. Jefferson raised his eyebrows at her, encouraging her to continue. Belle sighed before beginning her story.
"When I was young my mother died protecting me from ogres. Once that happened my father became drastically protective of me. He didn't even tell me how she died until I tried to discover the truth by journeying to another kingdom. Once I came back he practically kept me under lock and key. I was never alone. A few weeks later he tried to arrange for me to marry the strongest knight in the kingdom. Gaston might have been strong but he had no intelligence and a bottomless pit of pride. I wasn't in love with him and my father refused to acknowledge that. He just insisted that marrying Gaston would insure that I was protected long after he was gone. It all became so overbearing that when Rumpelstiltskin showed up at the castle and offered to save my people in exchange for my freedom… it felt like more of an escape than a punishment. I was Rumple's slave but I felt like I had more freedom with him than with my own father. Looking back it's probably one of the reasons I fell in love with him."
Jefferson watched Belle as she talked about her past. He'd always wondered how someone so seemingly intelligent and beautiful could fall into a marriage with Rumpelstiltskin. Though he sympathized with her for the troubles of her youth he couldn't help but wonder about how it felt for her father to lose his only child to the Dark One. "How did you father react to your love for the Dark One?"
"He tried to send me across the town line," she answered sadly. "He wanted me to forget my time in the Enchanted Forest so I would forget that I loved Rumpelstiltskin. He thought it better to erase everything that I am than to accept the one part of me that he disagreed with. I know my father always wanted to protect me but he was never interested in understanding me."
"Do you still speak with him often?"
"He gave me away at my wedding but I haven't seen him since then. I'd rather not hear him say I told you so." Belle hadn't seen her father at all recently but she was sure that he had heard of the dissolution of her marriage so it was only a matter of time before he made an appearance.
Jefferson took a minute to think about all that Belle had told him. He didn't want Grace to avoid him like Belle avoided her father. She had been so honest with him he thought it necessary to give his own story. "Before the curse Grace and I were living on our own in the forest. We weren't exactly rolling in wealth but we were happy. When Regina showed up and offered to pay me for a portal jumping trip I wasn't eager to go but I saw it as an opportunity to finally give Grace a chance at the future she deserved. She begged me not to leave but I promised that I would come back for her. As you probably know Regina betrayed me on the trip and stranded me in Wonderland. I hate that realm but the worse part of it all was thinking of how I'd abandoned Grace. How many nights she must've waited for me. All the times she was afraid and I wasn't there. When I finally reunited with her I promised myself that I would never let her feel like I was unreachable again. It might seem like I'm being overprotective but I just want her to know that I'm not going anywhere."
Belle smiled at the hatter's admission. She could tell that the man clearly cared for his daughter more than anything. "You can let her know that you're there for her but you also have to give her the space to become her own person. That way when she does make those mistakes she'll know she can lean on you."
Jefferson smiled at her. Her advice, though unsolicited, had made an impact on him. She was wiser than he'd expected her to be.
Once Henry and Grace had finished their dinner the group headed over to the ice rink. It wasn't the most popular place in town but during the winter it really drew in a crowd. White string lights were hung from the ceiling and they reflected off the ice beautifully. It was the perfect setting for a date. When they pulled up Belle urged the kids to go inside while she and Jefferson remained in the car.
"What's wrong?" he asked.
"Do you see that black town car on the corner?" she asked nodding her head toward the vehicle sitting a block away. "Well it's been following us since Granny's."
"Rumpelstiltskin?" asked Jefferson alarmed. He had hoped to avoid another showdown with the dark sorcerer.
"No but I think I have a pretty good idea who it is," she said pulling out her cell phone. She waited through three long rings before the person on the other line picked up.
"Hello," answered Regina smoothly.
"Okay I'm just going to get straight to the point and say that I can see you." said Belle bluntly.
"What are you talking about?" said Regina coyly.
"Don't play dumb Regina." Said Belle firmly. "Just a tip: the next time you glamour your car to stalk your son remember to change the numbers on your license plate."
Regina was silent for a minute. "Damn it."
"Yeah. Let Emma know that I can see her in the backseat from here and then put me on speakerphone."
There was shuffling in the background before the Belle heard Emma speak.
"Hi Belle. How's it going?" she said awkwardly.
"You both need to leave." Commanded Belle ignoring her greeting. "I am handling everything here and it is going fine but it will explode if Henry knows you followed him here."
"Well maybe I'd have more faith in your supervision of my son's date if you weren't distracted by your own." said Regina.
Belle was confused for a minute before she realized she was talking about Jefferson. "This is not a date! We are co-chaperones and nothing more. Besides you should be happy this means double the supervision. So please just leave. If Henry finds out you're here he will be so embarrassed and you know he will never forgive you for it."
Regina rolled her eyes but she knew the bookworm was right. "Fine! We'll head back to the mansion but keep your goo-goo eyes in your head and pay attention to my son."
Belle just hung up the phone without responding. She watched as the town car pulled away, satisfied that she'd helped Henry avoid a major embarrassment.
"You know I'm starting to see what you mean about a protective streak being dangerous," quipped Jefferson as they headed inside.
The night went smoothly from there. The kids were having a lot of fun on the ice. Belle even got a cute candid photo of Henry helping Grace put on her ice skates.
"Snow forced the camera into my purse." she explained when Jefferson looked at her strangely.
Looking out at all the people on the ice Belle became wistful. When she was younger she and her mother had gone ice skating every winter. She hadn't been in so long she really missed it. "I think I'm going to rent some skates," she said suddenly. "Care to join me?"
"I don't think I will." He said apprehensively. "Skating has never really been my forte."
"Oh c'mon." said Belle dragging him to the rental booth. "I'll help you learn. Besides I hate to skate alone."
It took some persuasion on her part but she finally convinced the Hatter to get on the ice. As he stated before skating was not one of his skills. He fell at least three times in the first ten minutes but he was always a good sport about it. With Belle's help however he came to gain a small semblance of balance and actually started to enjoy himself.
"It seems your instruction has turned me into an almost capable skater," he laughed.
Belle smiled at him as she glided around him smoothly. She was glad he was having a good time. She checked the time on her watch. "It's getting late." She said. "I'm going to get the kids. Do you think you can make to the exit on your own?"
"With my enhanced skills? Of course." He said brightly. As soon as she turned her back to him he clung to the rink barrier for dear life and made his way to the exit.
The drive to the mansion was livelier than the one to Granny's. Everyone was in a much better mood than before and more eager to talk about how they'd enjoyed the ice rink. When they pulled up to the mansion Grace insisted on heading inside to say hello to Regina but Belle was sure that she just wanted the chance to say goodbye to Henry without her father there. She was on her way inside when Jefferson said he wanted to speak with her.
"Is something wrong?" she asked.
"No!" he said quickly. "It's just… I had a really nice time getting to know you tonight."
"It was nice to get to know you too." she said. And she really meant that. She had really connected with the Hatter while they chaperoned Henry and Grace. She hadn't expected to have such a good time.
"I was just wondering if you would like to continue getting to know each other some other time without the kids."
Belle's eyebrows rose as she realized what was happening. "You mean like a date?"
"Yes," he clarified. "Would you like to go on a date with me?"
She hadn't expected that either.
Rumpelstiltskin fumed as he watched the Hatter and Belle talk through his magic mirror. This couldn't be happening! She was moving on from him! In a fit of anger he bashed in the mirror with his cane. I've been moving too slowly, he thought taking deep breaths. It's time to speed things up.
DUN DUN DUN! Will Belle say yes to the date? What has Rumple got up his sleeve? Stay tuned to find out!
Seriously though let me know what you think. Please Review!