A/N: Last chapter! I didn't mean for it to end on a sad note, but that's just kind of how it turned out. Not to worry, though, with season 4 in full swing I will be full of Rumbelle feels pretty much 24/7. I already have a S4 Rumbelle story started, and I have an idea for a oneshot that was requested. Thanks for reading everyone! Stay tuned for more Rumbelle stories!

Also, as a random side note, I had "Can You Feel the Love Tonight?" stuck in my head as I wrote this chapter. :)

Belle woke as light filtered through the library windows. She looked down at the book in her lap and smiled as she remembered last night. Though he would never admit it himself, Belle knew that Rumplestiltskin was slowly letting down his guard. The fact that he had stayed to listen to her read last night was proof that maybe, just maybe, he could feel love.

The thought of her master brought a strange dream to her mind. All she could remember was Rumplestiltskin whispering something in a very soft voice, something she secretly hoped, deep down in her heart, he would say out loud…

Then he had touched her hand, their skin only coming in contact for a fraction of a second as if it had burned him. It all seemed so real. However, Belle knew that it was all just fanciful dreaming.

Perhaps, over time, the Dark One would come to trust her, at least. But she didn't want to hope that he would ever think of her more than the book-loving caretaker. And yet…she did. Who knew what time would bring?

"Finished daydreaming, dearie?"

Belle inhaled sharply and jumped as Rumplestiltskin appeared in front of her with a sneer on his face.

"I'm-I'm sorry," she stuttered, her dream coming back to her in full force as she looked into his eyes. She stood up and smoothed out her dress, holding the book in her hands and carefully avoiding his gaze.

"You should be." He pointed an accusing finger at her. "Sleeping in the library, again. It's a punishable offense, you know!"

Belle felt no fear from his threat, as she knew it was empty. Instead, it cleared her mind of the dream and allowed her to look at him with defiance. "Well maybe if my room was more comfortable I would want to sleep there." She raised an eyebrow at him, her hand on her hip.

Rumplestiltskin's eyes narrowed, but his hard swallow told Belle that he was…nervous? Uncomfortable?

"Yes, about that." He turned and began walking down the stairs, waving her forward in a gesture indicating that she should follow him.

Belle carefully set the book down on the library's table, intrigued by where Rumplestiltskin was taking her.

"We'll be having some visitors soon," he continued as they entered his trophy room.

"Visitors?" Belle lengthened her stride to walk alongside him. "What kind of visitors?"

"I'll need to use your room for some time." He kept on talking as if she hadn't said anything, opening a set of double doors with a wave of his hand.

"My room?" Belle knew immediately what he meant and turned her head to look at him. "Visitors? You mean prisoners?"

"Call them what you like, it makes no difference to me." He grinned and giggled, stepping lightly up a flight of stairs.

Belle huffed as she skipped two steps in order to catch up with him. "Who are they?"

"They're no concern of yours, dearie. All you need to know is that you're staying here until further notice." He nodded at one last set of doors, which opened inward at his indication.

Belle looked into the oversized bedchamber to see light blue painted walls and a fluffy white carpet that covered the ground. A large bed was pushed against the far wall, its frame made of a dark wood that matched a dresser in the corner. A huge window dominated the right wall, giving an unimpaired view to the gardens below and the forest beyond the castle walls.

"Don't get too excited, dearie, it's only for a day or two." Rumplestiltskin's voice sounded cynical and uninterested.

Belle grinned at the beautiful room, knowing that he had made it all for her. As a passing thought, she wondered if he had even lied about his prisoners. She turned to him, just in time to see him hide a smile.

"Thank you, Rumplestiltskin."

"No need to thank me yet!" He waved a hand in the air as an amused sneer settled itself on his face. "You're cleaning the horse's stalls today, and no more wasting time. I'll be back later." And with that, he poofed away.

Belle laughed to herself, thinking about how the Rumplestiltskin she knew was so much different than the merciless terror she had always heard of. He wasn't a monster like most people thought; he was just like any man would be with his amount of power: lonely.

But he wasn't lonely anymore. He had her, and he would always have her.

"It's forever, dearie," she remembered him saying with a satisfied sneer.

Suddenly, forever didn't seem very long. Minutes turned to hours, hours to days, and days to weeks. Rumplestiltskin came and went as he always did, and when he was gone Belle would walk past the dungeon to see that every single cell was empty. Never once did he hold a prisoner in what had been "her room."

All too soon, at a moment's notice, at a kiss gone wrong, forever was shattered. Broken. Chipped, never to be fully mended again.

Because Rumplestiltskin could make deals with the most dangerous enemies in the land. He could spin enough straw into gold to last the Enchanted Forest for a lifetime. But what he could never, ever do was believe that anyone could learn to love a beast.