*FIVE*

Belle clamped her lips together in a thin line, so tight it left them almost colorless. She closed her eyes against the horror that froze the blood in her veins and caused a violent tremor to skate up her spine. That voice didn't belong to the man she loved, the man she took tea with every day, laughed with, debated with, or merely sat with in companionable silence. This wasn't the voice that sent warmth and desire coursing through her body to leave her breathless with wanting. No, this voice was cold, harsh, and cruel. This was the voice that instilled terror in even the bravest soul and sent mother's rushing to hide their children. But even as she knew in her heart the ugly truth, she couldn't stop herself from finding out for certain.

"R-Rumpel?" she stammered, cursing inwardly that she'd allowed her fear to make itself known in her stumbled words.

Even the sound of his giggle was off as it trilled hollowly through the dungeon room. She bit down hard on her lip as he lifted her, wrapping her legs about his waist and bore her the few steps it took to press her back into the stonewall.

"Guess again, precious," he teased, biting down gently into the flesh of her shoulder and pressing his arousal against the heat of her core. "The spinner is out to lunch," he taunted with a low, menacingly seductive growl in his throat, I suppose you're stuck with me for a while."

Belle winced as his sharp teeth grazed her flesh, the acrid taste of fear flooding her mouth. She froze, her limbs stiffening in his embrace as he shifted, and the dagger, still secured in the waistband of her trousers, dug into her lower back. Rumpelstiltskin's worst fear had come to fruition and now she was faced with a lusty unpredictable Dark One. Her right hand fisted in the soft fabric of his tunic as she delved her left hand into his damp hair and curled her fingers around the locks. She gave a sharp yank and he growled, gnashing his teeth against the pain as she forced his head back so she could look into his eyes.

"You can put me down now," Belle demanded in a succinct tone, giving him no room to interpret it any way but how she meant it.

He pursed his lips in a pout as he quirked a brow at her. She gave another sharp tug on his hair and the pout turned into a grimace. "Do I have to?" he whined petulantly. "I won't hurt you, precious."

She smirked at him. "Oh, I know. Rumpel made sure of that when he gave me that dagger. You can't hurt me without hurting yourself, so I feel relatively safe."

He felt a few strands of his hair pull loose as he fought against her hold, closing enough distance between them to whisper against the corner of her mouth. "You don't have to use the dagger against me, my sweet. I have no desire to harm you; quite the contrary, in fact." He pressed her further into the stones at her back, grinding his hips against her. "I thought you found this form attractive. What does it matter who's driving?" he asked with a wicked grin.

"Oh, it matters. Put. Me. Down…Now!" she hissed. She landed hard on her backside as his hands dropped away from her, the dagger making him bow to her wishes. She clambered to her feet and put some much needed distance between them. "That was completely unnecessary."

The Dark One shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest. "You didn't say I had to be gentle," he smiled impishly, but there was an evil light to his eyes that her Rumpel would never possess.

She took several deep breaths, trying to reign in her temper. She rubbed a hand over her wounded posterior and narrowed her eyes on him. "What have you done with my Rumpel?" When he refused to answer her cerulean eyes narrowed and her voice filled with disdain. "Tell me," she whispered harshly. It was hard for her to look at her beloved's face, feel his hands on her flesh, and know that his body was being controlled by the demon, but she schooled her face into a calm mask, refusing to let him see her sorrow there.

His lips curled back over his ruined teeth, balking over her commanding tone, but helpless to resist the thrall of the kris. "Fear not, precious," he sneered. "Your spinner is still in here…unfortunately."

She couldn't keep the worried frown from puckering her brow and she reached out involuntarily to lay a hand on his forearm. "Please, is he alright?"

The grin that split his lips was vile, sinister, and completely out of place on Rumpelstiltskin's face. She'd never thought to see something like that and her stomach twisted viciously. His eyes were dark and heavy-lidded as he glanced down at her restraining hand before rising to meet hers again. "So, so worried, are we, precious? Feeling guilty for making him go through with such a dangerous piece of magic?" he jeered.

Belle stiffened her spine and glared at him through pointed eyes. "It was to end the conflict, to rid the realm of Regina and George's tyranny and attain peace. Rumpel agreed because it was the right thing to do."

The Dark One scoffed. "Horseshit! He did it because of you! Because he couldn't bear to disappoint his precious princess," the Dark One spat the words in her face, thoroughly disgusted that the spinner coward had actually come crawling out of his hole for this slip of a girl, "his little dearie. It's fucking nauseating the way he moons over you." He watched her whirl away from him with a satisfied smirk, pleased that he'd managed to upset the girl.

Leave her alone! The voice in his head reverberated against the sides of his skull like a hammer to an anvil and he ground his teeth against the pain, but he'd be damned if he would stop before she knew the truth. "Everything was perfect before he brought you to the castle."

She rubbed her hands over her arms, trying to chase away the chill that danced along her spine. "He saved my people…he saved me," she breathed, swallowing around the lump of emotion that threatened to choke her.

"You made him weak!" the demon hissed furiously. "After he lost his boy, he retreated into the farthest recesses of his mind to escape the pain. I was the one who picked him up and made him into what he is. Deal after deal, the deaths, the carnage. You should have seen it, precious," he whispered against her ear as his arms snaked around her waist and pulled her flush against his body. "It was glorious. And then that pompous king, so desperate and distraught, called for the Dark One and I couldn't resist. I just had to see what agony I could inflict upon the noble."

Belle remained perfectly still in his harsh embrace, silent tears leaving salty trails down her ashen face. She wanted to cover her ears to block out the bile spewing from his lips, but at the same time she craved the words that she'd longed to hear since first coming to the Dark Castle. This proved it…Rumpel, her Rumpel, was not the monster he always believed himself to be.

"How was I to know the presence of the king's brat would wake the spinner?" the imp lamented, his hot breath fanning against her neck as he dipped his head to rake his teeth against the sensitive flesh. "He was quite taken with you from the beginning. He begged for you," he purred. "Would you like to know why I agreed?"

Belle pushed out of his arms and turned to face him. "He said to rid my kingdom of the ogres, it required a great price."

The demon's eyes flashed and a maniacal giggle rent the air. "Indeed, but that's not why I chose you. He was so smitten with you, I thought you'd make for an entertaining plaything. You should have heard his shrieks of outrage when I brought you home to the Dark Castle and tossed you into the dungeon." Before she could blink, he was there towering over her, intimidating her with his presence. "His suffering was nearly…orgasmic."

Belle took a step back only to find herself pressed against the wall there. Her heart bled for what her Rumpel must have suffered at this trickster's hands. She'd always been able to see the good in him, the man he'd been before he'd taken on the curse, the man he was when the demon was firmly locked away and he could be himself. "You're disgusting."

The demon covered his heart with one taloned hand as his mouth dropped open in affront. "How sweet of you to compliment me so, precious."

Belle rolled her eyes.

"But the nastier I was to you, the harder the spinner fought his way to the surface…until he finally broke free. Then it was my turn to sulk and brood in the little corner of his mind I was banished to. No more fun for me…all because of you," he sneered. "And now you're bound to him…to us. Now his feelings for you have crept into my blood and instead of killing you as I'd longed to do for sooooo long…"

Belle quirked a brow, her lips parting on a gasp at his admittance. "You don't want to kill me any longer?"

"No," he said in a clipped tone as he lunged for her, grabbing her roughly and trapping her within the circle of his arms and burying his face in the crook of her neck. "Now I just want to fuck you until you scream," he purred in a seductive whisper, but his eyes flashed with a devilish darkness that made Belle shake down to the very core of her soul. Looking at him, she wasn't staring into warm and loving amber orbs that wanted her for all she was. No, she was gazing into the depths of hell, into dark, torturous nights and a terrifying existence alongside a monster if she didn't find a way to stop this and bring her real True Love to light again. "You're bound to me just as securely as you are to the spinner for as long as he lives. You're mine and I want to hear you scream for me instead of that pitiful excuse for a man. I want to feel your pain, let it wrap around me and feed my soul."

Her scream pierced the stillness of the dungeon as he sank his sharp teeth into the soft flesh of her neck and shoulder, terror freezing the blood in her veins. And just as quickly she was released. Slowly she opened her eyes as his cries of agony reached her ears, to find him writhing on the stone floor, convulsions wracking his wiry frame. It took her a moment to remember that any distress he caused would rebound on him tenfold through the dagger and she smiled in satisfaction as she knelt beside him.

She placed a firm hand in the center of his chest and glared at him. "I will never be yours. I bound myself to Rumpel, not you, never you," she hissed fervently. "Now give him back."

He calmed enough to laugh at her, the sound like breaking glass to her sensitive ears. "It's your fault he's trapped in here. He was so determined to keep me from you, he used too much magic. Remember what the spell did to Merlin, precious?"

"Nine moons," she said in a horrified whisper.

"By the time I let him out, you might not even want him anymore. Then we'll see if you choose me instead."

"You have to obey. Give him back to me!" she cried. He shrugged and gave himself over the to the darkness the spinner dwelled in, the smile fading from his lips and the soulless blackness of his eyes returning the warm amber hue she loved so well. She struggled to lift him until his head rested on her lap and carded her shaking fingers through the curls at his temples. She felt the darkness recede until she could sense only him, the man she loved and the tenderness he'd shown her throughout the last half a year. She could feel him just beneath the surface, just waiting to wake and rejoin the land of the living, just waiting to return to her. But how long would she have to wait to have him back?

X*X*X*X*X

Belle didn't know how long she'd been sitting on the stone floor of the dungeon room, cradling Rumpelstiltskin on her lap. It could have been minutes, hours, or even days, but she couldn't find it in herself to care. She couldn't, wouldn't, leave him; not even long enough to find someone to tell her the outcome of the battle. Had Snow's forces been victorious? She only knew the signal had come to end the spell, not whether or not they'd been successful. She shifted, the arm she had wrapped securely about his shoulders tightening and pulling him further into her embrace so she could lean forward and press another kiss to his brow.

She stared dumbly at the moisture on his face and pulled her hand from the curls at his temples to wipe it away. It was a fruitless effort as her tears continued to rain down on him. The bite on her neck was painful, but at least the bleeding had stopped after a few small trickles of blood had made it past the neckline of her tunic. A shudder wracked her petite frame as she thought of the Dark One, wondering how Rumpelstiltskin had managed to control the fiend for so long. Would he somehow prohibit her love from waking, or was her spinner stronger than the demon? She needed him to return to her and didn't care how long it took. She'd never leave him, she vowed, slowly trailing her shaking fingers along the curve of his jaw. He was hers and she would let no harm come to him in this state. He'd gone so far as to protect her by giving her the dagger, and now it was her turn to protect him and shield him from those who would seek to harm him. She couldn't bring herself to trust anyone, even the new friends she'd made in the short time she'd been at the White Castle.

She felt so alone, left with nothing but her sleeping imp and the images that continued to plague her weary mind. How was she to ever sort through it all? Is this what he would see when he finally collected his price and delved deeply into her mind and heart? Would he see her life before she'd come into his home, her childhood, her formative years, her hopes and fears? Would all be revealed to him as his had been bared to her? Her mental eye was filled with so many images, it made her head hurt, the most vivid among them a young boy with dark curls, dark eyes and a rather impish grin that reminded her of a wily sorcerer. More tears fell from her lashes as she experienced his terror at watching the boy disappear into a swirling green vortex. At least now she knew what had happened to his son. He'd been so reluctant to share that with her, and now he didn't have to. She'd seen it through his own eyes. So many deaths, so many deals, too many for her to keep track of. She just wanted to push the images to the back of her mind and curl up with him to sleep. The spell and then having to deal with a lusty Dark One, intent on spreading his evil, had taken more out of her than she'd suspected.

Belle curled protectively over the mage. Before she could drift off into peaceful oblivion, her hand coiling around the hilt of the kris as a commotion in the outer room drew her attention away from the turmoil of her beloved's memories that still sought to plague her. She craned her neck, her ears perking up as two guards entered the room, dragging a struggling Regina between them to the cell directly opposite Belle. Two knights followed behind them, one holding a crossbow while the other moved to unlock the cell and pull the door open. Belle watched, horrified as the guards shoved Regina unceremoniously into the cell. She'd never seen the queen in such a disheveled state.

Regina looked as though she'd been scrubbed raw, her skin red and glistening, her hair hanging in a dark swath down her back and tumbling wetly over her shoulders. No longer did she wear her form fitting, jewel encrusted gowns; instead a course brown shift like dress hung loosely on her regal frame. She looks awful, Belle thought with a smug smile. After her treachery, it was only fitting that she would linger in the dank cell until her fate could be decided.

"Filthy peasants," Regina spat at the guards as she spun on her heel and watched the door clang shut. As the key turned, a faint blue glimmer of fairy magic sealed the cell, leaving the former queen powerless and alone. Belle thought it poetic justice that the queen found herself on the opposite side of the bars. How many had languished and suffered in her own dungeons before wrongfully being judged and subsequently put to death?

Belle's lips brushed the sorcerer's ear as she whispered, "They've done it, my love. Regina is no longer a threat."

The guards moved to a rough wooden table and sat down in the chairs set next to it to watch over the queen as the two knights left, taking the stone stairs two at a time in their haste to return to the celebration above in the Great Hall. Regina glared at them, taking in her surroundings, sneering in disgust at the dank cell she'd been forced into. And then her eyes narrowed as they fell onto a pair of bare green-gold feet in the room opposite her.

"Well, well, well," she mocked, her lips curling up at the corners in a satisfied smile. "Seems the twisted imp was responsible after all. I thought I could smell his magic in that fog." Belle didn't acknowledge her as she continued to card her fingers through his hair. She didn't have the strength to enter into a battle of wit with the Evil Queen. "And his faithful little maid, too."

"Shut it, you!" one of the guards called out.

Regina ignored him, pressing her face between the bars to see better. "Or are you the Dark One's whore? All used up!" she hissed, the last word accompanied by a resounding pop of her lips.

Belle snorted. "If you knew him, really knew him, you would realize how preposterous your claims are," she said softly, unable to resist coming to the imp's defense.

Regina laughed long and loud. "Oh, I know him quite well, my dear. After all, he made me into what I am today," she said when her laughter had died down to a few chuckles. "Every spell, every potion, every charm I learned under his tutelage. He's an evil bastard, but I'm sure you already know that. Then again, you might not. True Love's kiss apparently didn't work to break his curse, so perhaps I was wrong and he doesn't love you. Or were you too repulsed by him to even try, I wonder. Can't say as I blame you."

"I said to shut it, witch!" the second guard commanded.

"Let her speak," Belle said. "She's powerless and afraid and lashing out; leave her be."

"Aww how gracious of you, pet," Regina simpered in a sing-song voice. It grated on Belle's already raw and battered nerves, but she refused to retaliate in kind. But Regina wouldn't let up. "Soooo, did you try to break his curse? You can tell me…just between us girls."

Belle cut her eyes in Regina's direction and smiled. "I really need to thank you for that chat we had on the road that day, Your Majesty." The beauty's voice bore a slight taunting edge as she addressed the queen with her title.

"Oh?' Regina asked, trying to sound nonchalant though the answer had her dying of curiosity.

"Mhmm," Belle replied. "It made me think long and hard about my true feelings for Rumpel and sent me straight to the library to find out as much as I could about his curse. It was very illuminating."

"Illuminating," Regina repeated, bile churning in her stomach at the thought of the little maid finding happiness with the imp. He didn't deserve happiness after denying the queen her own. "But True love can break any curse."

"Not Rumpel's," Belle said, a soft smile curving her lips as she looked down into his sleeping face.

Regina fought hard to hide her surprise at this admission. A part of her wanted to be smug and believe that the girl was nothing but an idealist little bookworm who, for some ungodly reason, actually found the imp attractive, and therefore had not tried to kiss him. But she could see by the confidence and compassion in the girl's icy gaze that it was more than that. The Dark One's curse was truly unbreakable. Dammit, she seethed. Then her lips curled upward as a manipulative idea began to form in her mind. The implette was closest to the bastard mage; surly she knew where the dagger was hidden. If only Regina could make her reveal its hiding place… "So, there is no way to get rid of that dastardly curse?" she asked, her voice dripping with feigned innocence.

Belle's eyes narrowed to slits as she gazed suspiciously at the imprisoned queen, piercing right through her false façade. "None but the cursed dagger. When the ancient Gods created this realm, they wanted to be sure no one could ever rid it of their spirit, their Guardian of Darkness, if you will, from this world, so they enchanted the curse from all harm but the single blade."

"And have you tried to find it, this dagger? I know of your deal, implette, I have many spies whom are still loyal to me. There was no other way for him to accomplish such an ancient feat. You are bound to him now, yes?"

Belle clenched her fists at her sides and refused to speak.

Regina scoffed, "Well, surely you don't want to be bound to a sparkly temperamental lizard," she smirked at the nickname, "If you found the dagger, well… all deals would be forgotten," she finished with a suggestive grin.

Belle's nostrils flared, but she clutched the hilt of the blade behind her back and managed to cool her temper. "Oh, there's no need to find it. I have it." She withdraw the knife from behind her back," enjoying the enraged shock that graced Regina's regal features when she saw it. "And as long as I do, no one will be able to harm him."

Regina looked at her, disgust curling her lip up and wrinkling the bridge of her nose. She knew it would be nigh impossible to get the dagger from the girl, even with all her cleverness and tricks to back her up…if she ever got out of the cell. Belle would use every one of her wits to keep it from her. She didn't have magic, yet Regina felt the little princess wouldn't need it. "Gods, you really do love him." It was then she noticed the stillness of her former mentor. "What happened? The magic he cast to help the Charmings capture me, more than he could handle? I have to say he never taught me anything so complex," she said bitterly.

Belle shifted her shoulders, her hair falling over him like a curtain to block Regina's view of the mage, but didn't deny her an answer. "He merely needs to rest."

"I hope he dies," she hissed. "I—"

Her words were cut off by the vicious snarling of a wolf as Red bounded down the stone staircase and skidded to a halt before the cell door, making Regina back away, fearful of her snapping jaws even through the bars. Snow, Charming and Lancelot weren't far behind. "Red," Snow said firmly. The large brown wolf snapped once more at the queen and then trotted across the stone floor to Belle's side, her fur shimmering as she transformed back into a girl.

Snow ignored Regina and knelt at Belle's side, laying a hand on her shoulder. It was the breaking point for Belle and the tears came in a torrent, streaming down her ashen face. She clutched Rumpelstiltskin's prone form closer to her chest, his face resting on her bosom as Red and Snow wrapped their arms about the girl in a gesture of comfort. Lancelot stood at attention, but turned his back to give them the privacy they needed while Charming dropped to one knee in front of them.

"Milady, what happened? Did something go wrong?" he asked, his brow furrowed with worry. "Is he—"

"No!" Belle cried, shaking her head furiously, her chestnut locks bouncing. "He just used a bit too much magic. He's resting," she said, her voice trailing off in a subdued murmur.

"Is there anything we might do for you? For Rumpelstiltskin?" he asked, relieved the imp hadn't died. He didn't want the little princess to suffer any more than she already had and he was sure the dealmaker's death wouldn't bode well…for anyone. For the time being, at least, the mage had thrown in his lot with the White forces and Charming was thankful to have such a powerful ally on their side.

Snow squeezed Belle's shoulders reassuringly. "Of course we will do anything in our power to make you comfortable." She caught Red's eye and said, "Red, have Marissa prepare the blue room, the one with the nice terrace that overlooks the lake. I think our guests will be more than comfortable there for the time being."

"The one in the rainbow wing?' Red asked with a snicker and a wide grin.

Snow rolled her eyes and whispered, "I wish you'd stop calling it that."

"I'm not the one who decorated all the rooms there in a different color," Red retorted in a sing-song melody, rising to her feet with a wink to Belle and hurrying from the room to find the housekeeper.

Snow rubbed a comforting hand over Belle's back, feeling a kinship with the younger girl. "You'll stay with us until you and Rumpelstiltskin can return home to the Dark Castle. And your friend Jefferson will be in the next room so you'll never lack for companionship while you're here."

Belle sniffled and shook her head. "I couldn't impose on you."

"Hush. You are not imposing," Snow assured her. "Let us do this for you."

"Wait! You found Grace? You were able to bring her home to Jeff?" she asked, hope blooming in her breast.

"Yes," Charming said, a satisfied smile gracing his lips. "She was safe and unharmed just as Rumpelstiltskin predicted." She breathed a relieved sigh, happy that something good had come out of Rumpelstiltskin's sacrifice.

Belle still wasn't certain as to whether or not staying with the Charmings was such a fantastic idea, as there were too many things that could go wrong in a castle that housed so many. There were always those that would seek to harm her beloved and how was she to protect him? It would be better to have him safely behind the wards of the Dark Castle, but how was she to get him there?

Charming nodded in agreement. "It would be too perilous to try to transport the Dark One home in his condition," he said, reading the conflict on her lovely features. "Please, stay with us for as long as you need."

Belle turned her luminous cerulean eyes on Snow, still hesitant. "But—"

"No buts, Belle," Snow said softly, her soft pink lips turning up in a warm smile. "Let us do this for you."

Belle finally agreed, nodding, but she was reluctant to release the death grip she had on her sorcerer as Charming took his arm and Lancelot the other, supporting the unconscious mage between them. They left the room with Belle and Snow following behind and Regina's cackles over her former mentor's plight echoing in their ears.

X*X*X*X*X

"As soon as we get you settled, I'll have someone retrieve your trunk from the dungeon," Snow said, taking the extra blankets from her housekeeper and laying them at the foot of the bed.

Belle pushed past Charming and Lancelot, eager to see to her sorcerer, answering absently. "No need, but thank you. Rumpel charmed the trunk to follow us wherever we went. At least until we return home."

Snow's brows disappeared somewhere in her hairline as she felt the presence of magic in the room. She turned to her fiancée in question, but he was already staring at the small trunk at his feet, having nearly tripped over it at the foot of the bed. "Well," she said a bit too brightly in her discomfiture. "I suppose that comes in handy."

Belle brushed her fingertips gently along Rumpelstiltskin's jaw, so tired and weary and simply wishing the royals would leave them be, but it was too ingrained in her to forget her manners. She was so focused on him, she hadn't even bothered to take in her surroundings, only briefly glancing at the room as she'd followed her hosts.

It was one of Snow's more opulent guest rooms and they would be comfortable for the duration of their say, however long that would be. It was furnished in soft tones of gold and blue. There was a massive four poster canopy bed draped in a royal blue and gold satin coverlet and mounds of soft goose down pillows, sheer blue curtains tied to the posts with gold cord. A small writing desk sat against one wall. A bookcase that would surely have her fingers itching to explore sat next to it. There was a hearth already lit with a small fire with a sofa and several chairs before it and a low table with a tea service. A soft Agrabahan carpet covered the polished wooden floors and a wide archway led out onto a small balcony that did indeed look out over the lake that surrounded the castle. If circumstances had been different, Belle could see herself enjoying her stay, but her worry over her beloved kept any happy feelings from rising to the surface.

Red sank down into one of the plush upholstered chairs and hid a huge yawn behind her hand. "So how long is Rumpels going to be down for the count?" she asked, swinging her legs up to drape over the arm of the chair.

"Red," Snow admonished wearily, pinching the bridge of her nose. She cast Charming a quelling glance as he chuckled over the moniker Red had dubbed the sorcerer. "Out! The lot of you," she commanded.

Lancelot bowed to his princess. "I shall be right outside."

Red frowned. "Aren't you coming to the celebration?"

"Rumpelstiltskin charged me with Lady Belle's safety. I will remain to watch over her," he explained. He turned to Belle who merely nodded, accepting his word. She'd wondered why he'd wanted her out of the room so badly that afternoon and now she had her answer. She would have protested and he'd wanted to avoid an argument. "Percy can spell me at dawn."

Charming and Red followed, leaving Snow alone with her new friend. She moved to the tea service the servants had left for them and poured Belle a cup of the steaming brew. "The door there," she said, pointing to a solid oak door next to the wardrobe, "leads into the yellow room. We've prepared it for your use so you can remain near Rumpelstiltskin."

Belle took the cup and shuddered as the bland brew hit her palate. She desperately hoped she'd remembered to pack her own blend in the trunk. "I won't need the extra room, your highness, but thank you. I will stay here."

"Oh," Snow said, surprised. She wrapped one arm around her middle and chewed the thumbnail of the other nervously. "I-I mean, do you think that wise, Belle?"

Before Belle could answer, a team of servants trooped through the suite carrying buckets of hot water which they dumped into the copper tub hidden off in the corner behind a dressing screen. When they'd departed, she sighed and leveled the princess with a steely look of determination. "I will not leave him. He's vulnerable like this; he needs me. Propriety be damned."

"But Belle, what if—"

She cut the princess off with a dismissive wave of her hand, the mark on her wrist drawing her stare. She thrust out her wrist to show Snow the smooth cut in her creamy flesh. "Do you see this?" She lifted Rumpelstiltskin's hand and revealed the matching mark on his arm. "We are bound. A cleric, monk or priest couldn't have bound us more closely than the magic he performed this evening. He's as good as my husband and I will not be separated from him. If you insist, I'm certain I could make arrangements for transportation home." She sighed heavily when a blush rose to kiss Snow's fair cheeks. "I'm sorry. I just think it a bit unnecessary to keep us apart. I've been alone with him for almost a year now and it is hard for me to have to explain my actions to others after all this time."

Snow rushed to reassure her. "No, no, Belle, I'm the one who should apologize. You shouldn't have to explain anything to me."

"I'm just not used to having anyone to answer to aside from Rumpel," Belle said with a small dry laugh that sounded odd issuing from her lips.

Snow smiled in understanding and laid a hand upon the younger girl's shoulder. "I'll leave you to your bath. If there's anything you need, just ring the bell pull, ok? Maybe we can talk more tomorrow?"

"Certainly. I'd rather like that."

Snow left, only to run directly into the hatter as he came barreling into the room. "Belle! God's teeth, are you ok? You look like hell," he said, pulling her up off the bed where she sat next to her sorcerer and hugging her tightly.

"Thank you, Jefferson," she said, chuckling softly and pushing out of his arms. "Don't worry about me; how is little Gracie? Is she alright?"

Jefferson raked a hand through his wild hair and huffed out a sigh. "She is; she's good. Sleeping right now. She was exhausted when Lance brought her here, so we got her cleaned up and warm and tucked into bed. She'll probably sleep til morning, I suppose. But I want to hear about what happened with you…and why does Rum look like he's dead?"

Belle rolled her eyes and disappeared behind the screen. "I'm sorry, but I want to have my bath before the water grows cold," she called. He hummed his agreement and took advantage of the tea service, pouring himself a cup.

"Gah! Who made this swill?"

"Awful, isn't it?" she agreed, stripping out of her tunic and trousers and slipping into the soothing heat of the water. She told the hatter the details of what had happened during the spell, leaving out the emergence of the Dark One. That would be kept between her and Rumpelstiltskin. She didn't feel her friend needed to know.

It didn't take her long to scrub the filth of the dungeon, sweat and blood from her small frame and the long locks of her chestnut hair. She rose from the tub and toweled off quickly, wrapping the silk dressing robe she found hanging from the screen about her still damp form.

"So you don't even know how long he's going to sleep…if that's even what he's doing? What if he never comes out of it?" Jefferson asked worriedly, abandoning his tea cup on the coffee table to embrace her again when she emerged from behind the screen. "What are you doing with that?"

She worried her lower lip between her teeth and tamped down the fear that rose in her. "He will wake; he just needs time for his power to recover. And this," she said, indicating the bucket of fresh water that had been left behind, "is for Rumpel. Will you help me? I really don't want to have to summon one of the maids." Not that they'd want to stay and help her with the task.

"I suppose it's the least I can do…for you, precious girl."

Belle shuddered as she moved to the side of the bed. If she never heard that name again for several centuries, it would be too soon. They worked in silence as they stripped the sorcerer of his filthy clothes and cleaned the dirt from his green gold skin, finally dressing him in a clean pair of sleeping pants Belle found in their trunk. It was warm enough, especially with the fire in the hearth, that he didn't need a sleeping shirt. She had Jefferson tug back the coverlet from beneath him and then helped her tuck the sorcerer in for his long period of rest.

She hid a wide yawn, turning away slightly. "So how long will you and Grace be staying here at the palace?"

"We've been invited to stay indefinitely. I think we might just stay until Rum is back on his feet. You could use an ally here, someone you trust."

He looked fondly between the beauty and her mage before resting his hands on her shoulders and giving her a light squeeze. "I'm glad he has you. He's been alone for far too long in that mausoleum. You've brought out a different side in him; makes him not quite so beastly."

"He's not a beast," she denied, refusing to dwell on the real dark side of him that made his temperamental mood swings look like children playing in the sandbox. "He's a good man," she murmured, almost to herself as she tried again to banish the horrors of his counterpart from her mind. Otherwise he'd never have cast that spell tonight."

Jefferson chuckled wryly. "Don't delude yourself, my girl," he said, making his way to the door so he could retire with his daughter. "He did that spell only because you asked him. He doesn't give a fig about the royals and you know it."

Belle stared at the closed door for several moments before disappearing behind the screen once more to retrieve the dagger where she'd left it under her discarded clothing. She knew Jefferson was right about Rumpelstiltskin's motives for casting the spell and it made her feel worse for his present condition. She stared down at the dagger in her hand before squaring her shoulders stubbornly and moving to their trunk. She dug through its bottomless depths until she found two garters, sliding them both about her right thigh and then securing the dagger to her leg. She could take no chances that it would fall into the wrong hands. Having him under someone's control, even her own, was unthinkable, but she was firm in the knowledge that she could give the power right back to him the moment he woke. Others wouldn't be quite so willing to relinquish it given the choice.

But the others want his power, she reminded herself. Belle didn't desire control over anyone, especially her Rumpel. And that, she knew, was in part the reason he had entrusted her with it. Still, she felt she'd be able to rest easier if it was on her person rather than hidden away in their suite.

Her fingers twisted as she fidgeted, her lip captured between her teeth as she stood next to the bed. Instead of climbing in as she longed to do, she moved about the suite, extinguishing the candles and throwing the bolt on the door. She moved to the balcony and looked over to the jagged rocks below, confident no one would be getting in that way. She even threw the bolt on the door that connected their suite with the one Snow had offered her before. The room was secure and the tightness in her chest seemed to ease as she finally felt relaxed enough to drag her weary body back to the bed. She noticed the trembling in her limbs had finally ceased as she reached out to pull the sheer curtains closed about the bed. Lifting the comforter she slid between the cool sheets to the center of the bed where her sorcerer rested.

Belle curled herself against his side, smoothing her cool fingers over his brow, brushing his soft brown curls away from his eyes. He looked peaceful, more peaceful than she'd ever seen him. When he was awake, he was either animated in his gestures, or brooding and silent. She'd never seen him where he was at rest with himself and the universe. Oh, what she wouldn't give to see him prancing in irritation or gleeful over a deal. Her hand trailed down along his jaw and over the bare expanse of his chest to settle over his heart as her tears began in earnest, flowing over her pale cheeks and slipping silently onto her pillow.

"Come back to me, Rum, please?" she whispered, moving her head to rest it gently against his shoulder, letting the even sounds of his breathing and the slow rise and fall of his chest bring her comfort. "I love you," she breathed, the pull of slumber finally too much for her to bear.

A/N: I know, I know…I said one more chapter…this should have been the end. HOWEVER…I feel the need to torture you, dearies, by making you wait for the last installment. I just couldn't fit everything in here all within my word count. I'm sorry, but hey you have another chapter to look forward to! And the next one will be the last one…promise! I am so sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out to you. I've been working on it every day, BUT my beta insisted that I rewrite the entire first section bc she claimed my Dark One was entirely too OOC. She said this version is much better, which makes me feel better, which well…you know. I would like to thank my beta, FaerieTales4ever, for putting up with my tedious behind and keeping me on the right track and also for helping me with my Regina problems. She's awesome and I cannot live without her.

A great big shout out to my awesome readers and reviewers! I love each and every comment I get and even if I don't respond, know that I cherish every word: MagdalenaP, RaziOUAT, 11sCompanion, mikabronxgirl, AquaJasmine23 (who brainstorms with me for hours…love u!), AbbieWood, crazykat77, Twyla Mercedes, MyraValhallah, and sheshe21.