Saving The Beast
Bittersweet Ending
"I love you." She breathes out, before bringing her lips on top of his rapidly chilling ones...
…
Nothing happened.
Belle feels fresh tears prick the edges of her eyes as she kisses Rumpelstiltskin harder, begging for True Love's Kiss to work, to heal his wounds, to make his heart beat once more.
It still wouldn't work.
Belle lets out a wail as she releases him, burying her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking from grief.
Never again would he give that almost smug smile after scaring her with one of his quips or give her that questioning look while holding the chipped teacup.
However, so immersed in her sorrow, Belle didn't notice the changes happening to her and Rumpelstiltskin.
What seemed like decades later, Belle removes her hands from her face, wiping away tears with the wrist of her hand. She looks around the room.
Slowly, she starts to realized something. Dawn was hours off and there were no lights in the tower room, yet somehow, Belle could see everything perfectly.
She glances down at her hand and then closes her eyes.
Her skin had turned green-gold and scaly. Her eyes tighten when she feels something rise up in the back of her mind, something powerful and... and evil. She shakes her head, trying to rid the feeling but it wouldn't go away.
She opens her eyes and sees Rumpelstiltskin lying on the floor, still surrounded by his blood. Belle's breath catches in her throat when she sees that she wasn't the only one to change.
The skin that now covers Belle had been washed away to be replaced with his human skin. His hair turned straight and a tan-brown color.
With it's host dying, the curse needed a new person to inhabit. Who better than the perfectly healthy girl that had kissed the dead Dark One?
Belle stands up, gathering Rumpelstiltskin in her arms, sensing that the Dark One's powers were helping her. Or perhaps he was always this light.
She now has work to do, as she walks down the tower steps. Learning the ropes of the Dark One's powers was one thing, but the first thing she needed to do, was the one thing she never wants to pass.
Burying Rumpelstiltskin.
At that thought, Belle has to pause, leaning against the wall, feeling a stabbing pain in her gut. She takes a deep breath and forces herself to continue on.
She had to be brave like that.
…
She buried him beside the roses.
She dug the grave by hand, not wanting to use her new powers yet. She tried to ignore the wooden coffin near the area, but somehow her eyes always found it whenever she stood up. Tears ran down her face until she couldn't cry anymore.
The sun was sinking when she opens the casket one last time.
She gazes at Rumpelstiltskin's face, memorising every line and feature on his face. She had cleaned his wounds and dressed him in the clothes he wore around the castle when she was there.
Then ever so slowly, lowers her head so her lips press against his one last time. One more chance for true love's kiss to work.
Again, nothing happens.
Belle feels a single tear drip off of her face and onto Rumpelstiltskin's face in just a way to where it looked like he had shed it.
She walks over to the roses and picks the reddest of the bunch. She presses her lips against it before walking back to Rumpelstiltskin and laying the rose overtop his chest.
She feels her heart breaking as she closes the lid and lowers it into the ground. Night falls and the moon's light was gracing the land when Belle stands in front of the mound of dirt.
"Goodbye, Rumpelstiltskin." She whispers to the wind.
"My first and only, True Love."
…
She found herself in the main room where it had all started after his burial.
She sees the spinning wheel and straw he had yet to spin around it. And next to it, where Belle had been sure a gold ornate goblet used to sit, was the teacup she had chipped.
Belle feels her breath hitch in her throat as she delicately picks up the teacup in her hand.
He had kept it. Belle figured that it would be the first thing to go after she left. Perhaps he had kept it because he had loved her and wanted to remind himself of her.
She'll never know now.
At this thought, Belle quickly sets down the teacup and rushes from the room, sealing it behind her.
It holds too many memories.
…
She finds a mirror uncovered and is truly able see herself in her new self, to study it.
Her hair was still curled as ever but it took on a dusty gold sheen. Her once sky blue eyes grew darker and flecks of gold rested inside them. She wore one of Rumpel's vests, fitted to her form with one of her long sleeved blouse underneath of it. A black skirt hung from her waist and just covered her normal brown boots.
Belle walks towards the mirror, her head tilting to one side.
"Is this what you wanted?" She suddenly snarls at the mirror. "The great Rumpelstiltskin dead or at least powerless?" She lets out a high pitched giggle, indulging the madness and evil she had been fighting since becoming the Dark One. "Well, Plan backfired, Queenie. There's a new Dark One."
With a wave of her hand, the mirror is covered once more, shielding it's gaze.
The released imp within her laughs madly at it's freedom.
…
Her first deal was with the fair princess Snow White.
Belle appears on the boat, commenting on its craftsmanship.
White looks at Belle strangely. "It's not for sale." She snipes.
"Of course it is." Belle giggles. "If you're making a deal with me."
"You're Rumpelstiltskin?" White scoffs.
"Name's Belle, darling." Belle says, "The person you had hoped to deal with is no more."
"By your hand?" White asks nervously.
Belle trills. "Of course not!" She gets off the boat, her skirts swishing. "You'll have to thank my father for that."
White opens her mouth, probably to ask more but Belle cuts her off.
"It's no matter of yours, Darling." Belle says. "So what do you need from the Dark One?"
White takes a moment to collect herself before saying, "I need a cure."
"For a broken heart?" Belle inquires, grin slipping on her face.
White is taken aback. "Why, yes but how-"
"I had the same look in your eyes after my love threw me out of his home." Belle says. She saunters past White and kneels beside the water. "Back to you, Darling. I can help you with your lovesick problem." She reveals a small vial with a flourish, letting out a giggle.
She dips the bottle into the water and then concentrates on the water. It turns a cloudy color and Belle grins.
"That will do it?" White asks.
"Not quite yet." Belle says. She stands up and moves towards White. "It needs to be made" Belle rips a few strands of hair from White's head. "Personal!" She adds one strand, keeping the others.
"It will now." Belle says, laughing. "This will take away all of your memories of him, the source of your pain. Next time you see him, you won't even know his name."
"That's extreme." White states.
"True Love is powerful." Belle says. "No simple potion will do." She hands White the potion. "You're making the right decision, Darling. Love is a disease that kills more than any other one."
"I'm living proof."
…
She creates the curse one night after waking from one of her many dreams of what could have been.
Belle pours all of her grief, fury, pain, desperation into the curse.
Tears dripped from her face as she grasps the table for support, staring at the swirling mass of black and purple clouds that lit up with blue lighting contained within a small orb.
She straightens and picks up the curse.
"No more happy endings" She thinks bitterly.
She already lost her Happy Ending. Why should she give a damn about the others?
…
"Love is hope. It fuels our dreams."
She once told a dwarf that. A dwarf in love with a fairy.
She tried to help, try to help them get their happy ending.
Last she heard of them, The dwarf was grumpy and the fairy never really truly recovered from the heartbreak.
How can love be hope, when she has none?
How can it fuel her dreams, if she only dreams of him?
"Love is worthless." She spats to the empty room.
…
"Well, Hello." The evil Queen smiles at Belle, walking boldly into his Estate.
She never think of it as hers.
Belle only stares at the Queen coldly, her eyes narrowing.
"What is it? Are you angry with me?" The Queen says. "I only tried to help, Dearie."
Belle's stomach twists at the term of endearment. "Help?" She scoffs. "We're done here." Belle turns to leave.
"I really did think True Love's kiss would work, Dearie." The Queen continues, in that false sympathy filled voice. "If I had known it was not powerful enough to bring someone from the brink of death, I never would have told your father that killing The Dark One would break the curse over you." The queen pauses. "Did I say that out loud? Oops."
Belle freezes before turning around, fury in her eyes. "What?" She hisses.
"DId you really think that pathetic man would ever had gained the idea of killing Rumpelstiltskin? Please. I merely suggested to him when we meet that scourges and flaying would only harm you. You needed to head right to the source."
Belle feels her heart, the heart she thought would never break again, shatter anew. "Get. Out." She orders, pointing the way.
"Fine." The Queen says, pouting. While walking out, she runs a hand down a random table. "You still clean the place. Hoping for the old times?" Then with another satisfied cat smirk, the Queen was gone.
Belle slowly walks to the Main Hall, re-opening the doors. A layer of dust greeted her.
She walks over and picks up the teacup, sitting beside the spinning wheel, running her hand over the wheel, spinning it, watching the spokes go round 'n round.
"It helps me forget."
"Forget what?
"I guess it worked."
Belle holds the cup to her chest.
She never ever wanted to forget.
...
She feels it coming.
Belle knew it was only a matter of time after Maleficent saw the opportunity when Belle was captured by Cinders.
And then the Evil Queen stole it and when it didn't work, came to Belle.
"No more happy endings."
Belle leans her head back, a crazy grin on her face. She laughs as her curse swirls around her, taking her somewhere that's hopefully horrible.
…
She awakes in a fancy bed, wearing a silk nightgown.
She lays there for a while, sorting through her memories, real and fake.
Her name is Belinda Gold. Her name was Belle
She lives in Storybrooke, Maine. She lived in a Dark Castle.
She is a pawnshop owner and owns most of Storybrooke. She used to be a dealer and practically owned all of their happy endings.
She is feared by everyone in town and whispers of her being the Devil's Mistress are said behind her back. No change there.
She married a man named Mr. Gold. His name was Rumpelstiltskin.
He was killed in a confrontation with her father, shot in the heart. A dagger slid in between his ribs, still by the same person.
Belinda takes a deep breath before getting up.
She dresses in a black woman's suit with a robin's egg blue blouse underneath. A cane rested by her bed, her fake memories told her that she had it to protect herself from robbers (as if anyone would be stupid enough to rob her) but one touch revealed that Cinder's fairy godmother's wand was hidden inside.
She passes by her shop but doesn't head in. Plenty of time for that later. 28 years worth in fact.
Instead, she heads right for the florist's shop.
Tense angry words are swapped between Belinda and her father as Belinda buys a single red rose.
A. Single. Red. Rose.
Her next stop was the graveyard.
She finds his grave easily and kneels beside it. She was happy to see the stone had not been changed much except for his name and other things.
One again, she plants a kiss on the delicate red petals before laying on the ground in front of the stone.
She stands up and turns around.
Emma was due to come in 28 years and Belinda had to make ready for when Emma came. She had to make everything went according to her plan of Emma's battle.
She never once thought about the possibility of the Evil Queen, when thinking her requests for the curse, wished for Rumpelstiltskin to be in her possesion, a upper hand against Belinda just in case.
She never thought that her beast is locked in secret asylum, hidden away because he was declared insane (but really because he remembered everything).
And since she never thought, she would never know.
Until Emma would come...
…
This chapter was brought to you by the shattering on my heart and stabbing of my gut. I went through video by video (the worst one was the one I first found.) and fanfiction after fanfiction of depressing Rumbelle things so I could create convincing Emotions. Now I have to find some happy ones!
I hoped you enjoyed it. (highly unlikely) and hopefully will be glad to hear I'm now toying with the idea this chapter brought.
I'm still in the works of the happy ending. so please be patient while I'm typing that up. It's actually proving a lot more difficult than expected. but I'm trying. That is also the reason why you get the bittersweet ending first and also, who wants to read something happy then read sad stuff, I mean, come on!
And what's this? I brought Rumpel back to life? *le gasp!* But that is another story, Dearies!
~8 Navy Roses
P.S. This chapter is 2241 words and 8 pages. Longest Chapter I have ever written. I have a lot to live up to in the next one!