Blueeyeddevil06 thank you for being my beta!
Zelena was trying to decide if it was worth going through with her plan. She was no closer to finding Emma, which quickly made her less and less valuable to The Dark One. She realized Baelfire was hiding something about Emma from her. He'd given up on getting her for a wife, but she didn't believe him when he said he didn't want her anymore.
Unlike his father, he was easy to read. He was also incredibly cowardly, and she couldn't figure out how he'd come by that. Had she known Rumple's past, she'd have seen he took after his father, but she didn't. She was left to try and puzzle out how the son of the most powerful man in the Enchanted Kingdom was almost afraid of his own shadow.
That left her wondering if it was worth trying to convince him to marry her. She already knew how she'd convince him. She'd lie and tell him that his father would be pleased, he thought, to make Zelena his daughter-in-law, ensuring that everyone knew that she'd always remain on his side.
Truthfully, she knew he didn't respect her power, and he only put up with her because her more powerful sister betrayed him and became good. Baelfire didn't seem to realize that.
Her reason for wanting to be married to Baelfire stemmed from the fact that The Dark One wouldn't be able to give up on her if she was married to his son he loved. Also, it would give her more power. Once everyone knew she was his daughter-in-law, they would fear her more.
She clenched her jaw and decided that she would, in fact, marry Baelfire. She knew she wasn't weak enough to expect to be loved. Her mother had abandoned her as a newborn. No, she didn't ever expect to be loved. Power was what she craved, and power was what The Dark One had.
She put the finishing touches on her hair that morning and observed herself in the mirror. Speaking to herself, she said, "Baelfire really would be the perfect husband. He brings power, and that's all I've ever desired." She nodded and set down her hairbrush. "Marrying him will help me achieve all I've ever dreamed of."
She then exited her room in search of Baelfire. She found him in the sitting room, fidgeting and staring at the fire.
She laid out her prepared reasons for their union. It was effortless to convince him to marry her. Once she told him that he'd be able to help his father gain more power and that he'd be pleased that Baelfire thought to make the alliance on his own, he jumped at the idea. She tactfully didn't point out that it was, in fact, her idea in the end. He was pleased with himself that he'd be gathering more power for his father by making Zelena his wife. She let it go at that.
By the end of the day, they'd officially been married. She immediately sent a message to The Dark One. To gauge his response, she sent one of her flying monkeys to deliver it. If he didn't come back, she'd know that he'd not been pleased. She fully expected he'd kill the messenger.
Belle sat in her dungeon cell as she watched a guard bring her supper. His hand was shaking.
"I won't hurt you," she said. "Why does everyone seem afraid of me?"
She didn't expect a response, so she was shocked when his trembling voice said, "The Dark One has bewitched you." He set the food down for her and quickly backed up. "Don't kill me, please! I have children."
"I'm locked in here. How could I hurt you?" She was confused.
He backed up further and said, "Who knows how he's tainted you." He then quickly walked away to his post out of sight.
She ate her food and spoke to herself. "I wouldn't ever hurt anyone. I can't."
When Belle was younger, she'd seen a woman being attacked by a man. She was screaming for him to stop, and he was advancing on her with a knife. Belle had thrown herself in between the two. He'd managed to get a swing in and blacken Belle's eye before her guards caught up and arrested him.
Sophie had remembered that day well. Her attacker was tried and hung for previous rapes and murders. She knew then exactly what would have happened to her. Belle had rescued her in more ways than that also. She'd become Belle's lady's maid that day too. That extended the protection and respect of being a servant of the King's daughter. She was now one of the highest ranking servants in the kingdom.
She was loyal to Belle above all others. That included herself. It didn't take many days for her to set out to speak to The Dark One. She knew she'd very likely die when she arrived to talk to him. She just knew she had to try to protect Belle. She couldn't let her suffer in the dungeon. She knew how the guards and staff spoke of her. She wouldn't survive much longer.
Rumplestiltskin was furious when Zelena's flying monkey arrived and told him she'd married his son. She was proven right when he'd immediately killed the messenger. He fumed that now his son was tied to a woman whose plans all failed. He didn't worry too much about her going off with her own ideas since they never worked out. His actual irritation was always when they inevitably failed. He tried not to be in the crossfire. Now he wouldn't be able to avoid it.
That made him the angriest. It was by far her best plan for power. He was essentially forced now to step in to protect her from her own screwups. It was that or have her ineptitude hurt his son. Damn.
He contacted Baelfire by the stone he'd given him. He made sure that they were having a private conversation, and he lied. "You did well marrying Zelena. I'm proud of you, son."
"Thank you, Papa. I was hoping you'd be."
"I look forward to you executing the rest of your plan." He let it go at that. He waited for Baelfire to take the bait.
"You figured out what it was already?"
Perfect. Now he just had to tell him what to do. "Of course I did. It was obvious you married her so that she'd trust you with her secrets. You were brilliant. Now you'll be able to tell me everything she's planning."
He rolled his eyes when he heard Baelfire's response. "That's exactly why I did it, Papa."
"Of course, son. I didn't doubt you." He then quickly finished the conversation. He briefly considered making his son a widower and then held off of the idea. He wanted Zelena as cannon fodder. He suspected Emma or Regina would take care of her for him.
Grumpy had sent a message to Tinkerbell. She was standing with Killian and Emma when she received the message. All it said was, The Pompous-Club are all in attendance in fifteen minutes.
She folded the note, put it in her pocket, grabbed Killian and Emma's hands, and pulled them after her. "I have a treat for you! Let's go!"
Killian wasn't one to be dragged around by anyone but Emma. He put a halt to everything. "What are you talking about?"
Tinkerbell looked at him and said, "Remember the Pompous-Club?"
"Who?"
Emma explained, "That's what we call Sir Dalton and his cronies."
"I remember them." He scowled. "Why are you dragging us to see them?"
Tink clapped her hands, "They're about to anger Regina. This is going to be great. They haven't given up on trying to marry Emma."
"What?!" Killian was furious. "She's my wife! How could they try to marry her?"
Emma started laughing. "Tell me they're not!" She looked at Tinkerbell.
"They are!" She joined Emma in laughter. "They are going to try and challenge the validity of a magical marriage."
Killian shook his head in confusion. "I thought they couldn't. Regina and Robin married that way."
Tinkerbell answered before Emma could. "Exactly. They're that stupid. This is going to be hilarious!"
"You knew they were going to do this?" Emma asked.
"Of course I did. I spied on them. I'll only get involved when a plot has a chance of working. Or not being hilarious. This one is going to be so funny to watch." She grabbed their hands again and started pulling them to the throne room. This time Killian didn't resist.
By the time they arrived, Sir Dalton, the self-appointed spokesman, addressed Queen Snow and King David. They listened as he said, "I'm sure you can appreciate your Royal Highnesses that when the Crown Princess married a dirty pirate by magic, she insulted us all. I will be the ninth in my line of loyal men to the throne. Surely there are better men to have married your daughter." His cronies all nodded their heads.
Killian didn't see that. He knew what those men thought of him, and it wasn't their reactions that interested him. He focused on the crowd of onlookers. Many of them held high positions in the kingdom, and there were many knights, lords, and ladies. When he saw the vast majority of them scowling at the Pompous-Club, he was shocked.
He then watched one of the knights he knew whisper to another man. It was apparent they were displeased with what Sir Dalton had said.
Killian was floored. He wondered when he gained the general acceptance of the kingdom? He hadn't even looked for it. Emma had been his focus.
What he didn't realize was that was a big reason he was accepted. He had rescued their beloved princess from the clutches of The Dark One. He had put himself at risk by going into the demon's own home. He was also hugely respected by all of the knights. He was an excellent swordsman and, to their surprise, a patient teacher. He'd quickly impressed all of them. The lords and ladies respected power, and it was apparent that Killian had it. It was equally evident that he was cunning and was someone to be reckoned with.
He saw Lord Dalton, Sir Dalton's father. scowling at his son. It was apparent he disapproved of the scheme. Killian held back a chuckle that his own father was upset over what he was saying.
He stopped Emma from stepping forward. "Dirty pirate" had angered her, and he heard her mumble that she'd turn him into a newt for that comment. He whispered, "Let him dig himself in further." She nodded and stayed tense by his side.
Snow looked at Sir Dalton in confusion. "They're married. What are you hoping to achieve by saying all of this?"
"I'm saying they aren't actually married. It was only a magical marriage, and that doesn't count. I would be willing to marry her even though she's been with that pirate."
Lord Dalton had obviously not realized his son was willing to go that far. "Enough!" He yelled. "Don't speak anymore!" There was an edge of panic in his voice.
His son proved stupid. "I'm trying to be a prince, father. You should be pleased."
That was when Regina stood and strode forward. She stood in front of Sir Dalton and his friends. "You all agree?" They were dumb enough to nod.
Lord Dalton got down on one knee. "Your Highness, Regina, I disown my son. His younger brother, Nathan, is now my heir. I didn't know he was going to challenge the validity of your marriage."
It was then the group realized their mistake. The whole crowd seemed to laugh at the same time when the color drained from the accusing group's faces.
Regina scowled at them and that made some of them begin to tremble visibly.
King David announced, "You are all stripped of your titles and banished. Killian Jones is Emma's true love and the man Queen Snow and I owe for rescuing our daughter. He is a man I'm proud to call, son."
The throne room quickly emptied. Everyone in attendance was excited to be the first to spread the news of what had happened. By the end of the day, those that had questioned Killian's place in Emma's life knew that he was a firm fixture. He was her husband, their prince, and their future king.