SMOKE AND ASHES
Gold struggles to get his injured daughter assistance from the suspicious, distrustful Fae folk and receives a heartfelt apology from Ruel. Later in the day he is again enticed by the final scroll and last piece of the dagger and is held in their sway until he is interrupted by Omaha who tells him that the things are dark, dark magic and he should stay away from them. After a gentle joining with Belle, he falls asleep and she seeks out the images she has seen in his mind and soon enough, she is joined by Gold. They are stopped before they can touch the pieces by Elspeth speaking with the voice of Lady Shivat and Lovecraft who makes himself heard to Belle. Ruel joins them and explains the dagger is a cursed item and will enslave whoever re-joins the pieces. The scrolls were there to cast a spell destroying magic to break the enslavement of the host to the dagger. Gold realizes he has been saved from a terrible fate.
At The House, the little grey kitten ingratiates herself to Jefferson and introduces herself to Emma as Smokey. She is the New Guardian of The House.
Beginnings
Chapter 45
It had been more than a week since Gold had walked away from the fifth scroll and the final dagger piece. He had contacted Leroy who was brokering a deal with his fellow dwarfs about sheltering the pieces they had long ago sold to Gold - after Gold, of course, offered to pay them a yearly fee for safekeeping the items. Leroy had assured him the dwarfs would place their pieces in a special place that only dwarfs could get to and would use their own peculiar magic to seal them away.
Then Gold had retrieved the items he had purloined from Avonleigh with the intention of returning them to the vorpal lined Library vault - with some relative suggestions regarding a backup alarm system. He and Belle would soon be on their way to visit her homeland by stepping through a portal.
Elspeth, none the worse for the temporary awakening of her inner-demon who seemed to have returned to sleep, was running around, overly excited. During the week, she had managed to form a peculiar attachment to Maurice. She would greet him enthusiastically in the morning running to him and assuming that they would be sharing breakfast. She would chatter about her different interests and often end up sitting in his lap. Maurice, in turn, would rack his brain for different stories to share with the child. They would take walks together followed at a respectful distance by Omaha and often encounter Lovecraft.
Elspeth explained to the aging king how to approach the large cat.
"He's a scaredy kitty so you have to make nice," she explained. "He'll run away if you shout."
"Will he now?" Maurice accepted the child's instructions and was able to coax Lovecraft into tolerating his attentions.
"I pet him like this," Elspeth showed him how to gently pat the cat's head. Lovecraft still watched the child warily, prepared at any moment to spring away. "Nice kitty, nice kitty," she talked to Lovecraft softly.
Gold watched the two interacting. Maurice seemed to regard the child kindly, her resemblance to Belle no doubt being a factor. But Maurice also seemed to genuinely like children, a characteristic that Gold envied. Of course Gold recognized that he didn't particularly like people, much less children. It had taken Belle and Elspeth to get under his skin.
Elspeth had wandered off to chase butterflies still under Omaha's watchful eye, when Gold took the opportunity to approach Maurice.
"Such a delightful child," Maurice began the exchange.
"She is," Gold easily agreed.
"Miranda tells me that she is not what she seems," Maurice broached the subject tenuously.
"She is . . . and she isn't. What you see, the child, that is real. But there is . . . more to her. She entrusted herself to my care and it is a charge I take quite seriously," Gold explained. Why she trusted him, he did not know. And why she took such interest in him, he had no idea.
"Well, you two do seem to have a very good relationship," Maurice told him.
"Thank you," Gold told the man, actually gratified that Maurice had noticed. "I didn't know if I would be able to be a parent. But Elspeth has made it easy." He paused, "and Belle has helped."
"I would imagine that my daughter is quite good with her," Maurice said proudly.
"She is," Gold had no hesitation agreeing with this. "Maurice," he began hesitantly. "Some things in my life have recently been resolved. "
"Miranda told me," Maurice shared. "She is trying not to keep secrets from me anymore."
"Good luck with that," Gold said under his breath. "Anyway, I had wanted to talk to you about something . . . something . . . that is important to me," he began awkwardly.
Maurice sat quietly, waiting.
"I know that I'm not the man that you would have chosen for your daughter," Gold began.
Maurice looked at him, golden-green scales, snake eyes and claws. "Are you a man?" he asked without any trace of asperity.
Gold grimaced, "Mostly, yes, I am. This form is my inheritance from my father. It was a surprise to me the first time I encountered it. But as I was saying . . ."
"You love her, you love my daughter?" Maurice asked him.
"I do," Gold responded without hesitation. "I love her more than I ever knew I could love anyone. It constantly amazes me how much I love her."
"You love her so that you put her needs, her desires above your own?" Maurice asked him again.
"I do. I find myself thinking, is this what Belle would want. I have changed because I know that she would not approve of . . . well, some of the behaviors that I used to indulge in," Gold agreed.
"You want to take care of her?" Maurice was still questioning him.
"I want to and I'm able to. I have a modest fortune I've accrued over my life and I have properties and, of course, there is some dim status in having the position I have in the Underworld. "
"You're very powerful with this magical stuff, right?" Maurice asked.
"I am an Elemental Master. I believe I'm the only one that's existed in a very long time . . . so yes, I'm very powerful with this magical stuff."
"Let's see then, you love my daughter and you're willing to place her needs above yours. You want to and you are able to take care of her," Maurice summarized. "What else do you think I would want for my daughter?"
"Someone with a less corrupt past? Someone who is not half-demon?"
"The past is the past. We have all done things we regret," Maurice countered. "And we are hardly responsible for who our parents might be."
"So you're all right if I ask her to marry me?" Gold wanted to be sure.
"My daughter would marry you with or without my blessing. She is a very independent woman who makes up her own mind and decides her own fate, in case you haven't noticed," Maurice finished with a little smile. "I'm flattered you feel you need to ask my permission to pursue your relationship to the next level, and, as reluctant as I am to give up my daughter, I believe I can trust you to look out for her and to make her happy."
"I will certainly try," Gold promised him.
+ + + + A Proposal
Belle was in one of the many Palace gardens. She was dressed in one of the flighty dresses of the Fae, a filmy shades of blue affair that floated out about her. Her hair was down around her shoulders and hung in shiny ringlets. She had braided some daisies and blue lavender into her hair and to his sight she had never looked more the Fairy Princess which she was.
Gold rubbed his hands together. He was nervous. He could do this. He knew Belle wanted this. He wanted this. He was ready for this. He just had to do it.
She turned and saw him and sheer delight and love showed through her eyes. "Darling," she greeted him.
"Belle," he answered her. "Wha . . . what are you doing?" he asked for lack of a better opening line. Oh great, really smooth.
"Just getting a few flowers to put in the bedroom. These all smell very nicely together. What's going on?" She knew something was up – anyone could tell that.
He realized that he was bleeding out, letting his feelings project outward. Even someone with modest Talent would be able to pick up on it and for someone with Belle's abilities . . . .
"I had heard you had found the Palace Library." Great, way to deflect attention off yourself.
Belle's eyes lit up. "I did. It is marvelous. I found a book detailing the Fae version of what happened, with the Dark Curse, The Dagger and all."
He was distracted. "You did?"
"I did. It was most interesting. It appears that there was a powerful dark mage, an Elemental Master, King of the Underworld. The book referred to him as a Dark Fae. He was described as a beast, a feral, scaled and clawed monster. He lived isolated, on an island in the middle of a poisonous lake in a tall, unscalable dark tower."
"Sounds a bit familiar. And he's our hero, I take it," he ventured.
"Our hero, exactly. Well, there was also a young lady who was the only daughter of the king in some country I've never heard of except the descriptions sound remarkably like Avonleigh. Apparently they were having some problems with some attacks by magical giants. One of the writers referred to them as ogres. Be that as it may, the King had appealed to the Light Fae but they had not been able to save the country so, in desperation . . ."
"The King appealed to the Dark Fae," Gold finished.
"Of course," Belle agreed. "Well, apparently the Dark One, as they referred to this King of the Underworld, was quite the showman. He made a flamboyant entrance, appearing in the king's chamber, having the audacity to sit on the king's throne and make light of their dilemma. The king promised the Dark One that he could have whatever he wanted for saving their country."
"Bad move on his part," Gold noted.
"Oh yes. They assumed that he would ask for riches, like jewels and gold and stuff but he waved all that off."
"Let me guess, he asked for the King's only daughter's hand in marriage," Gold suggested.
"Well, you're on the right track. He did ask for the King's daughter but not for her hand in marriage."
Gold nearly laughed. "Oh, naughty. Well they were unwise enough to give him a blank check. So what did he tell them he wanted her for?"
"He told them he had a large estate that he needed help in keeping clean."
"He asked for the royal princess so that she could become his maid?" Gold was impressed with the boldness of his ancestor. But then he remembered that he had employed his Belle in a similar role, although he was hardly aware that she was a royal princess at the time he met her.
But had he known, it likely wouldn't have changed anything.
"Of course the King refused and he and everyone else in the court communicated in no uncertain terms how inappropriate the request had been," Belle continued.
"Of course, but then there was an ogre attack and they changed their minds?" Gold asked.
"No, it didn't get that far. The Princess stepped up and volunteered herself, to save her people she was willing to give herself to the Beast."
"Brave girl, I like her already," Gold shared.
"Apparently so did the Dark One."
Gold was standing very close to his little Belle admiring her animated quality as she retold the story. "So what nefarious uses did he put the little wench to?"
"Well half the population assumed that he had molested the poor child just after he brought her over his threshold," Belle told him.
"And the other half of the population?" Gold asked.
"Before he got her over his threshold."
Gold drew his lips into a thin line. "So the poor girl, brave as she was, had been soiled beyond repair in the eyes of the very people she had saved."
"But there were other accounts, presumably from the young lady herself, that she was treated with the upmost respect and as long as she completed her tasks was allowed free reign to explore and even to read in the Master's extraordinary library. She was quite happy."
"So at some point the Beauty tamed the Beast?" Gold asked.
"She did and I gather they were formally married by some official The Dark One intimidated into performing the ceremony."
"So when did they run into trouble?"
Belle sighed. "It was in his nature for the Dark One to always be seeking more power and he created The Dagger, housing in it dark, dark energies. But he didn't anticipate The Dagger taking him over. Consuming him as it did."
Gold was intrigued, "So what did they do?"
"Nothing at first. Apparently the Dark One loved the surge of power until The Dagger was stolen by a wicked witch and he was kept in subservience for more than a year. His True Love managed to rescue him and The Dagger and they realized then that they had to destroy it."
"But it was too powerful to un-do?" Gold confirmed. He had already figured this part out.
"So the Princess, who was quite magically talented herself, pulled together a dreadful curse. They could destroy or, at least, remove magic for a while which would break the control of The Dagger. They never wanted The Dagger to come back together, but just in case it did, they included the scrolls so that the spell to take away magic could be re-cast."
"But they didn't want that spell to be readily available either, so they re-wrote it imperfectly and only by having all five scrolls could you cast it," Gold surmised.
"Apparently they managed to write the spell so that it would appear in the language of the reader – instant translation. Remarkable."
"Yes, remarkable. I just wish they could have kept the correct story circulating instead of the we-cast-the-spell-to-protect-our-children and The Dagger was just a tool for use in the casting," Gold shook his head. "I feel like I have spent so much time in seeking something that could have destroyed me. I feel . . . foolish."
Belle bit her lip, "I suspect that you, being what you are, are drawn to The Dagger. It would attract someone of your particular . . . proclivities. It was wanting to be re-made and had bespelled you."
"Pretty damn powerful then, if it was doing all that while it was still broken."
'Uh hum," Belle murmured. She could tell that Gold was still agitating over something. She was close to looking inside of his head but instead she managed to wait while examining the odd plant here and there.
He paced near her, stepping away, then stepping back. He would look at her, then look away. Abruptly, he grabbed her by the arm and, pulling her along, took her over to one of the stone benches. "Sit," he ordered.
Belle complied.
He sat down next to her. "Belle," he began. Then he looked away and swallowed.
"Yes?" she asked.
He cleared his throat. "I think the time is right," he finally blurted out.
"It's right? For what?" Belle asked him. She was growing concerned. He was quite distracted and rambling. She was close to touching him.
Gold turned to her and took her hands in his. He looked deeply into her eyes. "I think it's time for Elspeth to wear her sparkly shoes," he spoke softly.
Belle looked at him and smiled relieved. She leaned forward and in a husky voice asked, "What are you asking me?"
"Marry me. Please. Now. Love you. Love you . . . More . . . Each day. I . . . Always . . . Love you." It all spilled out of him, abruptly, unlovely, but real and heartfelt. "Please," he added.
Belle looked kindly at him and she gently pulled his face to hers and kissed him on the mouth, "Yes, of course."
He pulled back, "Really?"
"Did you think for a moment that I would say 'no'?" she asked him disbelievingly.
He hesitated.
"You had doubts?!" she asked him.
"I'm not a nice person, Belle. There's a long list of reasons why you might say no to me. You're back with your family now . . . and you're well . . . and you don't need me . . . and . . ."
Belle pulled him to her again and kissed him. "I love you."
+ + + + + + A New Residence
The east wing of the royal palace had been shut up for a very long time, but Maurice had insisted the soon to be married couple take it on for their residence. As palace wings went, this one was modest but nonetheless spacious. There were the main living quarters which included several bedrooms – Elspeth had claimed one with a balcony that overlooked a walled garden for herself. Gold and Belle had found one with a spacious sunken bathing tub that they had claimed. There were compartments each with a bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and a small living area that Omaha and Zelena had both found.
In a single room of the wing, Belle and her mother constructed a (more or less) permanent portal between the wing and Gold's shop in Asheville and another that connected the east wing and the Fairy Palace. On her own Belle constructed a portal into Undertown that came out near the Villains' Club. Each portal was created with colorful, inscribed features to distinguish one from the others, so that no one would accidently end up somewhere they had not expected. Gold was impressed with this particular brand of magic.
"I wish I'd have known about this portal building when we first made the trip to Avonleigh from Asheville," Belle remarked.
Gold shrugged, "But flying gave me an excuse to mix drugs with alcohol. Now when I do that, you'll have to get all concerned and have an intervention."
"I would," Belle promised him. "You have enough self-destructive behaviors without adding mundane bad habits to your repertoire. With the portals you can move swiftly between the realms and keep tabs on things. And all our friends can come for the wedding."
He moved in behind her and put his arms around her waist. "Why does the wedding have to be in May? It's months away. Can't we just run down to some official and do the deed?"
Belle leaned back into the man, enjoying his warm kisses along her neck. "This wedding is very important to many people. We are uniting the worlds of Dark and Light and I'm my father's only child so this is a royal wedding that my people should be able to join in celebrating. I thought you were okay with this?"
"I am. I'm just afraid you'll change your mind. It's going to be an interesting crowd gathering here," he observed.
"Anyone creepier than the Bocans coming?" she asked.
"Oh probably. I know a lot of creepy crawlies," Gold told her. "We'll need a place to stash my people so they don't terrorize the Fae and the Avonleigh-ites, Avonleigh-e-ons, what do you call your people, anyway?"
"Avonleigh-ons," she told him. She was leaning against him, enjoying the directions his lips and hands were taking.
"Thank you for making Elspeth a part of the ceremony," he whispered into her ear. "She's beside herself."
"Well you should have seen her when we went shopping for her flower girl dress. It matches the bridesmaids' dresses and she thinks she is very grown up."
"Sparkly shoes and all," Gold opted to turn Belle around and she put her arms around his neck.
"What did you think of my idea?" she asked him between kisses.
"Sucked," he told her. "Stupidest idea you've ever had. I'm completely against it," he told her.
"Then you'll do it?" she asked.
"Of course," he answered.
+ + + + + Preparations
At Belle's request, Gold had moved into separate quarters – actually back to The House – for two weeks prior to the wedding – Belle had thought that the short separation would make their wedding night more special. Elspeth had been torn wanting to be with her father and Miss Belle . . . and Poppa Moe, as she had taken to calling Maurice. But there was also Unca Jeff whom she adored and whom she would see when she was staying with her father. She opted to spend one day in Avonleigh and the next in Asheville, alternating days.
Emma would occasionally accompany Elspeth back to Avonleigh to assist Belle with wedding preparations. Truth be told, Emma wasn't much help. Furbelows and flounces were not in tough, practical Emma's vocabulary; she was more comfortable working security for the affair. Belle wisely set Emma working with Cogsworth to help manage the flux of incoming guests.
Another day, Belle sent for Regina who proved to have keen social acumen and was able to work with the same Cogsworth in settling the schedule for the events that would lead up to the wedding, the wedding and all the post-wedding celebrations.
Of course, Belle consulted with Milah for the finer details of hair and makeup that would complement her candlelight colored, pearl enhanced, gold-trimmed wedding dress and long veil.
"Gold is gonna swallow his teeth when he sees you Belle," Milah promised her. Elspeth was jumping up and down while Milah did some practice hair arrangements to match the veil. After settling on one particular hair style that involved ringlets of bronzed curls coming down one side of Belle's face, Milah turned her attentions to Elspeth.
"Sit up here sweetie," Milah told the child and set her on a booster seat. "What do you think Belle? She'll be the only flower girl so she can have something a little different."
"Make my hair pretty?" Elspeth asked.
"Make it weddin' pretty, girl," Milah told her. She then spoke to Belle, "Her hair's too fine to put up. It'll fall out if we try anything on the top of her head. I think having a few curls and a clip with gold ribbons and strands of little pearls, maybe with a little tulle, on the top of her head." Milah grabbed some notions and began to wrap them together to make a presentable hair ornament. She put it on Elspeth's head and Elspeth pronounced it, "beautiful," and she bounced down to run and show Lovecraft.
"She's pretty easy," Milah said to Belle.
"She is," Belle agreed. "Milah, I've got to thank you for all your help."
"It's been fun," Milah told her.
"You made some things possible that might not have been without your help. Rum and I will always remember what you've done for us," Belle told her. She was surprised to find tears in Milah's eyes.
"Thank you," Milah told her. "Until you came along I always thought I was one of the second-raters on the team. But ever since we took down Emma and Regina during practice . . . I've felt so much better about myself. And now I've got my own shop, my own place, my life is so much better."
"You deserve it," Belle told her.
"Come and see me sometimes?" Milah asked.
"When I'm in Asheville and anytime I need a special outfit," Belle promised.
+ + + + + Wedding Day
May day, May the first, that was the date the wedding had been set. Milah, as her gift to the couple, had maneuvered the weather systems so that the day would be warm with a light breeze.
The wedding managed to be both a quiet intimate affair and a huge, overwhelming event.
The guest list was overwhelming. Literally everyone from Avonleigh was invited. It was a small country, but it was still an entire country. Most of the people gathered in the church and in the large open courtyard outside of the church. Emma and Cogsworth had set aside one area outside of the church under a shelter of tents for the residents of Undertown to attend, since most of them eschewed both the church and the sunlight. The fairies sat far away from the Bocans, the dubharim, the powries and various other representatives of Undertown life forms. They too were not comfortable in the church but didn't need protections from the sun. The two groups glared at each other.
Despite the staggering number of guests, Belle had kept the wedding party small. Emma and Ruby served as bridesmaids along with Elspeth, the flower girl. Jefferson served as Gold's best man and Leroy and Luminere served as ushers. Archie, working with Omaha and Cogsworth, had been set up at the back of the church to sense out any threats to security. Belle had kept the colors simple, shades of soft white with gold accents for all the wedding party. Gold, who always managed to dress impeccably, was waiting for her as her father conducted her up the aisle. He was dressed in black with a small accent of a soft white rose in his lapel.
Belle had only the vaguest recall of the ceremony. There seemed to be a haze around Gold and herself, a sparkling glittering mist that enveloped them. She already felt linked to this man and as he held her hand during the ceremony she felt their shields join and their minds come together. She suddenly realized that she would never be alone again . . . he would always be there. The haze around them was the physical manifestation, apparent to those with Vision, of their connection to each other.
They made their promises, to love, to care for, to be there for each other, to be faithful, and strong and true, everything that every couple ever promises to the other. When he lifted her veil, he gave her a gentle kiss to seal their fates.
+ + + + + The Wedding Night
"You first," Belle told him. They had gone through a portal to Paris for their honeymoon, a gift from Maurice and Miranda-Ruel, and had locked themselves in their posh hotel room. Belle, still dressed in a fashionable sophisticated, soft blue suit, was sitting on the bed of their room and looking at her new husband.
"I'm not good at this," he apologized. "I'm not graceful."
"Then I'll help," she came over to him and pulled off his tie. She undid a couple of buttons on his shirt and then helped him off with his jacket.
"Let me help you," he said and helped her with her jacket.
Belle then unbuttoned his vest and then finished with his shirt, sliding them off of her new husband.
"Now," she told him, "You take off the pants." And she sat back, absentmindedly unbuttoning her fluid crepe blouse and slipping it off.
Gold hesitated but a moment. He recognized that Belle wanted to take the lead. She had been shy and inexperienced when he had first met her but within a short time he had taken her on a sensual journey, teaching her how to enjoy her body. If she wanted to tell him what to do for a change, he was fine with it. He was quite sure that it would end well for him.
He dropped his pants, leaving him in his socks and shoes and his boxers. Belle's eyes traveled to his boxers which were clearly distended.
"Nice," she complimented him.
"Well, it has been two weeks," he told her. "I think I'll get rid of my shoes and socks. This outfit looks a bit ridiculous."
"You never look ridiculous," she assured him as he shed his footwear. And she slipped her skirt off and stepped out of her shoes so that she was standing only in a silk slip and undergarments.
"I hope I don't disappoint," he smirked at her and dropped his boxers.
Belle looked him over, her eyes soft and darkened. She reached out and stroked his penis, standing up, rigid and distended. He almost stepped back.
"Belle," his voice was strained. "You don't have to do anything more to get my attention. I'm quite ready."
"Really?" and she dropped her slip, revealing a white corseted merry widow with garters that held up her pale stockings. The corset pushed her breasts up and only just covered her nipples.
"Damn," he whispered. He hadn't thought he could get any harder.
"This was the other little undergarment I picked up when Emma and I went shopping the first time we were all in Avonleigh. Do you like it?" she asked, looking at him from under her eyelashes.
Gold didn't make a response. He couldn't make a response. He was stunned. He'd always known that his Belle was a beautiful woman, but dressed in the sultry undergarments, designed to seduce, he was swept away with feeling and desire.
"Why don't you keep that on," he suggested hoarsely. "At least for a little while."
Belle managed to sound innocent, "Just for a little while?" she asked.
"I'm not going to be lasting very long, Princess," he told her. "I'm on the edge right now. Tell me what you want me to do next."
"Well, you might want to come over and look at this pretty corset a little more closely."
"Yes, ma'am," he obeyed promptly so that he was standing immediately in front of Belle.
She put her hands on his shoulders and ran them down his arms. "I love touching you, do you know that?" she asked him.
"May I touch you?" he asked, still allowing her to take the lead.
"Not yet," she told him and drew her hands down his chest. She leaned in and kissed him on the chest, right near the nipple. She ran her tongue over his nipple. Then grinned up at him.
"Belle," he warned her.
She walked around him, threading her arms through his so that she could press herself against his back.
"Belle," he spoke again and twitched when her hands dropped down and she grasped him.
"Woman, you had best consider your next move. I'm running out of patience," he told her through gritted teeth.
"You're strong. You can . . .wait," she pressed kisses along his shoulders and slowly came around to face him. They were standing facing each other. "I love you."
"I love you," he answered. And he brought his hand up to touch her face and held it in place while he lowered his mouth onto hers and began a long kiss, nudging her mouth open. At some point in the kiss, she realized that his arms had gone around her and he was no longer restraining himself. She was pushed back, the back of her legs touching the bed and then she was pushed down.
"If you want to be on top, I can deal with that," he told her between kisses, "but if we wait much longer, we'll have to wait much longer."
She started giggling and took pity on the man rolling him over so that his back was on the bed and she was able to straddle him and lower herself onto him. He reached up to pull the top of corset down just enough to allow her breasts to pop over the top.
"Lovely," she heard him mutter and he dropped his hand, resting it between their bodies so that she was gaining friction from a new source. She leaned down to kiss him and he reached up to hold her in place. That odd sense of connectedness began to grow and, looking into his eyes, she knew he felt it too – they were joined together, their abilities melding one into the other.
Belle felt a rush of energy and gave herself up into the flow of forces swirling around them. She felt him riding along with her and there were colors and sounds and a sweetness to all things. She collapsed onto him.
Thanks to my supportive, faithful reviewers: RaFire, Robin4, CharlotteAshmore, jewel415, cynicsquest, orthankg1, deweymay, Erik'sTrueAngel, MyraValhallah, Grace5231973, Chauchi, crazykat77 and
Anne Andrews (Guest) (I did an awkward proposal rather than a flowery one – this Gold is still filled with self-doubt)
NEXT: After the Wedding – settling into new roles.