Once Upon A Time
Rumpelstiltskin supported the child's head and gazed at his son's tiny sleeping face in fascination.
He was so small, but the midwives said that even though he was born early he seemed healthy. He might have a few problems but hopefully he would be fine.
As long as he was healthy then Rumpelstiltskin didn't care. He had a son! A beautiful baby boy that had survived all the stress that his mother had been forced through these past several months.
He was going to be a better man. He was going to be the kind of father that his son and any other children that followed would be proud of. He wasn't quite sure how he was going to do that since he was now labeled a coward but he'd…he'd think of something. A man's honor just wasn't based how he performed on a battlefield; it was based on several other things like how good of a man he was and how good of a husband and father he was as well.
But unfortunately in times of war none of that mattered.
He smiled brightly, the happiest he'd been in months and sat next to his wife, "Hi Bae. Look, it's your mother."
She took his son and he reluctantly let him go, "Support his head."
"I know," she said and he could hear the exhaustion in his voice. It was well into the early hours of the morning before the midwives finally let him back into his own cabin to see her and his son.
Rumpelstiltskin would've given anything to see his wife smile again since he'd been back. Well that was a lie, she smiled but he could see the sadness behind her eyes whenever she'd tried to make him happy or comfortable.
He hadn't told her that as long as she was with him then he was happy. He was hoping she'd know that already.
But the sadness in her eyes was gone and for the first time since she'd told him she was pregnant she was glowing.
He pushed some of her tangled hair over her shoulder and kissed her passionately, "I love you."
She smiled and returned the kiss as soon as he pulled away, "I love you too."
Baelfire's eyes fluttered open and watched both his parents with curiosity.
Dagian saw her husband smile with a father's pride and he brushed a knuckle against his son's cheek in affection and then kissed his boy.
"My hopes came true darling," Dagian smiled, and pulled his face closer to hers, "He does have your eyes."
Once Upon a Time in Storybrooke
Dawn didn't know how the town found out about her marriage since last night, but she had a feeling that the town was avoiding her more out of fear this time than guilt.
While they didn't talk to her, she had a feeling that all of them had prying eyes on her back as she walked into her husband's shop the afternoon after they were married. Let them look; the most feared man and the most terrifying man in the town had saved her life. None of them had.
"Dawn," he greeted as soon as he saw her. He finished dusting off the counter and gave her a smile that almost seemed affectionate, "How are you?"
"Well after waking up in the room of the man I married that I barely know in order to get away from a father that I know all too well, I imagine I'm handling it better than most."
"Indeed," he smiled wider but she could see the emptiness behind it. She knew the look very well, she'd mastered it, "I apologize that you woke up alone but after the events of last night and you're tossing and turning I figured it best to let you sleep in."
"Thank you," she held up the bag, "I brought you lunch. I figured it was a very…married thing to do."
He looked amused by the gesture, "Well thank you, dear."
"And we're on our way to true love," she muttered, dropped the bag, and started to turn.
"Would you like to join me?"
She shrugged, "I only made one sandwich."
"It's not hard to half a sandwich darling."
She tried to search for any excuse that she could but realized she had none, "Alright."
He seemed pleased that she'd agreed, "And we're on our way to true love."
She couldn't help but smile at the bitter cynicism in his voice. Looked like he believed in true love just as much as she did, "I think we're going to get along after all, Mr. Gold."
Present Day
Dawn watched the pouring rain from the bed and turned next to her husband who was lying beside her, "Interesting way to pass the time while we wait out the storm."
He gave that little smirk and she still didn't know if she thought it was secretive and chilling or sexy.
She had issues.
He kissed her shoulder and rolled over on his stomach, "The town council wants to buy some land from us."
She pulled the covers over her bare shoulders and shivered as the storm picked up outside, "What for?"
"Regina wants to use it to build a new playground."
"Because anything they have these days is FAR sturdier than that wooden one by the water," she muttered sarcastically, "That's been there how long now?"
He propped the pillows up and leaned against them, "it's where the boy and his real mother meet. Our beloved mayor is just looking for a reason to tear that down."
"How petty," she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest, "I'm going to have to step it up darling I don't think I like her being more petty than I am."
"Yes but you're supposed to do it with dignity."
She shrugged, "I don't have to do it with dignity my dear, everyone's too terrified of us to notice otherwise."
"You have too much fun being my wife sometimes, do you know that?"
She looked at the length of the bed that they'd spent the afternoon in the temperature dropped and it rained outside.
"Well," she stretched and slung one of her legs over his waist, "It certainly has its perks darling."
