A/N: Aight, so, I love this show – and Rumbelle - with every fibre of my being but I have only seen the first 2 seasons at the moment, so, bear with me on this one. I wrote this around the season 1 finale – partway through season 2 mark, so keep that in mind if it sounds… weird? Basically, if I have misinterpreted Rumple's motivations here, I do apologise. Hope y'all enjoy nonetheless!

Also, the title is a lyric from 'Beauty and the Beast' as I had no clue what to title this.

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"I remember."

Mr Gold's heart slowed to a halt. She'd done it then. Emma had broken the curse. Of course, he knew that it was only a matter of time now before she fulfilled her destiny, he just didn't expect it to be so soon.

So the boy was alright then.

Mr Gold had known that true love's kiss was most effective even in the non-romantic sense, but he didn't have time to make that detail known, not when he had an opportunity to retrieve the most powerful kind of magic he had ever obtained.

Still, he did desire for Henry to live and was glad that Emma had figured out how to save him - or at least had stumbled upon the solution by chance. He understood the agony of losing a child. Mr Gold wouldn't wish that upon anyone… well, he wouldn't wish it upon some people.

There was one person he knew he would never wish anything bad upon. She was standing right here in front of him after decades of her supposed death and the fact that she now remembered him was truly wonderful.

"I love you."

Mr Gold felt his heart go from zero to one hundred in a second and the two enveloped themselves in the warm embrace of the other, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck and his securely around her back; he didn't want to ever let her go again. Not after so much time apart.

"Yes. Yes, and I love you too."

He didn't want to ever let her go again... but there was something that he had to do right now.

"But, hey, there'll be time for that." He broke from their embrace and cupped the side of Belle's face. He noted how her skin felt broken and dry - likely as a result of being locked up for 30 years - and he silently vowed to make Regina pay.

"There'll be time for everything" And there would, as soon as he had returned to himself his rightful power. "First, there's something I must do."

He led a baffled and even-more-so disappointed Belle to a sorry-looking stone well, who wondered what Rumpelstiltskin could possibly want with it at a time like this.

"What is this?" Belle asked, eager for an answer.

"This is a very special place, Belle. The waters that run below are said to have the power to return that which one has lost." Mr Gold explains before stepping up onto the well's platform.

"Your son?"

Rumple stopped in his tracks. He was definitely not referring to his son - in fact, in all of this he had not once given his son a second thought. Guilt found its way into this power-hungry man which churned his insides.

One hand on the well, he turned himself around to face Belle. He could have lied to her, he could have put his plan on hold just for the moment - but this was Belle. She would just see right through him and - of this Rumple was certain - if there was one person he would never try to deceive, it was Belle.

Rumple's face crumpled into a look of sorrow. "No… no. I'm ashamed to admit that I wasn't referring to Bae."

"That's a lovely name." Belle commented, for that was the first time Rumpelstiltskin had referred to his son by name in her presence. She crouched down next to Rumpelstiltskin, who had now sunk to the ground, and placed a hand on his shoulder in comfort. "So… what were you going to return?"

"Magic." He delved into his mind to find the right words to express it all, but alas, he fell short. "I have no powers in this world, Belle... Magic is power." He finished lamely.

Belle waited for him to continue - she knew there was more to it than that. "Go on."

"Of course, I fully intend to find Baelfire. That was the entire reason I wanted this curse, as I knew that this was the land where he had escaped to. Only, I realised quite quickly that he does not reside in Storybrooke."

"But the curse is broken now - you don't need your powers to find him. We can leave this place and go and search for Bae."

It did not go unnoticed to Rumpelstiltskin that she used the pronoun 'we' rather than 'you', which he appreciated a great deal.

"I know that. I'm afraid my reason is more selfish than you would like."

"I'm listening."

Mr Golding sighed before continuing. "I'm a coward Belle. I always have been." His thoughts were cast back to when he left the army and returned to his first wife, Mila, her face twisted with shame. "Obtaining power is, in a sense, my way of making up for my cowardice."

"But you don't need power in order to not be a coward. There are other ways."

"At this point... I don't know any other way." He admitted.

"Then let me help you find one." Mr Gold smiled fondly at his love. He felt little remorse for his wrongdoings and so he found himself wondering how the universe could bring this amazing person into his life after all that he had done. "The magic isn't what's important - but you do know what is."

Rumple took her hand in his and lifted himself up off of the ground, squeezing her hand and holding her gaze. "Yes. Yes, I do."