I don't own OUAT

Through all the glistening brilliance and multitude of shades, the golden and silver decorations of the ballroom seemed to be merely yellow and grey to their viewer. Her silk wedding gown was just a dress. And the pain that she should have felt coursing through her veins at the sight of her former lover found no purchase in the empty cavity she kept beneath her breast. He thought himself discreet, hiding beneath his magical cloak, but that only concealed him from those who were unaware of its existence. Perhaps he wanted her to find him. He hardly acted as such, hiding behind the golden streams of cloth that hung from the ceilings whenever her gaze went his way. The golden cloth was the pillar of extravagance, but it meant nothing now. She could create gold with the slightest thought. She could do anything she wished now, and it meant nothing. The things that once were so precious meant nothing when they were so available. So constantly present. Jewels were offered to her constantly, gold was her gift, and anything else could be summoned by magic or order. No material object meant anything now. But that man who vanished whenever she neared, who was something she could have had but didn't have. He was what did matter to her. She wanted what she didn't have, and she had everything. But him.

"You can come out now, Rumple." He appeared in front of everyone, women screaming, men drawing their swords. A little laugh was wrought from Cora's throat at their fear, and a smirk stretched across the beast's face. "Oh, that could never hurt him. Put them away, you look like children. Now, Rumple. What do you want?"

"Really, Cora. Do you not care if your subjects know of your involvement with me?" He frowned as another brief chuckle escaped her lips, cold and cruel. He was reminded with remorse of the time that he could make her trill with genuine laughter rather than this contempt.

"I have no need to fear their knowledge of my victory over you, my dear. Let them know the true power of their princess." Their banter was forced, stilted, because neither wished to participate. Both needed it, craved it, yet they hated it as well. Their banter had been so essential to their relationship and their love, yet Cora's banter was cold rather than playful, and the pain in Rumple's eyes came out in his words.

"Shall they also know of their princess's fertility?" She let out a sharp gasp as her glamour was removed in an instant. Her bloated stomach grew out, a harsh tearing sound coming from the dress. It had not been made for a pregnant woman to wear. It was not supposed to be something Cora had to concern herself. The glamour came easily to her now, and she wore it much the same way she would wear a fur cloak. She had forgotten that, like a cloak, she could so easily be stripped of it. Henry, who had remained silent during the pair's exchange, reached for his new wife. He stood behind her, wrapping a protective arm around her that rested on her now bare stomach, a kick welcoming the action. King Xavier drew nearer, sword pointed at his new daughter rather than the monster that stood so proudly in the center of the room.

"Son, step away from this whore who intends on calling her bastard yours." Henry's grip grew firmer, not even considering doing as his father bade him as he thought of the night that could very well have destroyed the prospects of his young bride had she not concealed it.

"The bastard is mine. I had difficulty waiting for this day considering my dear bride. This child will not again be thought of as a bastard, as I recognize it. The child is simply the product of a man and his wife. Am I understood?" Xavier reluctantly lowered his sword. He did not wish to submit to his son's will, nor did he have any obligation to. However, the ball of fire rapidly growing in Cora's palm was quite convincing. He bowed his head in resignation.

"I'll just be off now, dearie." Rumplestiltskin strode from the room with grace, the still-shocked guests parting as he passed. Cora lifted her skirts to an almost scandalous point on her ankle and swiftly began to follow him.

"Not do fast." The regal air she had so quickly adopted was still present in her overall presentation, but the miller's daughter came out in her actions, tearing out of the room to follow her once-lover. Had he wanted to, he easily could have been far from the palace by the time she made it out to the gardens where he had fled to. Clearly he had wanted to be caught, but perhaps caught was not the proper word for it. Rumple was perched atop a bed of roses, looking at his fingers speculatively.

"Hello, dearie. Took you long enough." Plucking a single rose from the cluster, he knelt on one knee before Cora, presenting the rose to her. "For her majesty." Her slim fingers curled around the thin stem of the flower, bringing it to her nose, but pausing before inhaling. A gleeful look beginning to brew on Rumple's face made her toss it to the dirt floor.

"What curse have you prepared to place me under?" Her voice was overflowing with mocking as a cruel smirk spread across her face. As he rose, contemplation emerged on his face. As he chose his wording, he distracted himself with the growth of the rose bush, the thorns growing to unnatural sizes.

"Oh, a simple sleeping curse. Not one that you must be put under, of course. I do believe in giving choices to those who once may have deserved them. As a one-time only offer, of course. This curse may be placed on you or the dear daughter of King Xavier. There is an additional choice, however. One that my Cora would have certainly taken, but I am quite certain you will not even consider." His voice broke for a minute, and he turned away from her, unwilling to let this shell of the woman he loved see him break. "If you return your heart to your chest now, all is forgiven. We can raise that child in your womb together, and all will be well. If you do not take this option, I will have that child. Eventually."

"You are quite right. I won't consider that option. But why should I have to choose the other? I know that you have cursed the rose." A flick of her wrist set the accused flower aflame. "You have no way to make me now." His face fell, the tiny spark of hope that he kept flickering within him now quenched.

"I will give you one more curse. If the child is not in a deep sleep by tomorrow morning at cock's crow, Prince Henry will need to find himself a new wife." She nodded her head solemnly.

"Give me the curse, then. I will make my decision." Rumplestiltskin gestured towards the mutated rose bush. Cora nodded, having one of the poisonous flowers float to her. She stepped toward Rumple, the rose floating beside her. She didn't dare touch it just yet. Clutching the lapels of Rumplestiltskin's dragon-skin suit, Cora pulled him to her. Their noses were almost touching and his longing was strong, but he refrained from making the first move.

"Your highness?" The question came out as a sigh, his body itching to close the distance between them. Finally, mercifully, she closed the distance herself, kissing him with a passion that made him forget for just the briefest moment that she wasn't his anymore. She pulled away, her next words whispered.

"Our last deal, let's hope." And with that, she and the rose were gone. He stood there for a moment, numb at the loss that he wished he could fix. It would be second only to the loss of his son.

He transported himself to young Sophia's room, shielding himself so that not even Cora could see him. Sophia, however, seemed to be immune to it as she looked up at him in curiosity.

"What are you doing here?" Her innocence was really heartbreaking, her tone containing none of the hostility he had grown used to hearing. Only curiosity could be found. He sat down on the edge of her bed beside her. This child deserved to hear the truth. Letting out a deep breath, he looked down at her.

"Cora is going to try to hurt you." She simply nodded, her eyes lighting up with the golden shine he had learnt meant she was using her magic.

"Thank you for protecting me." Her voice came out far more mature than her seven years. He hadn't known that she had his gift as well. The future. It certainly did make things more difficult. Her chestnut hair was lightening to a golden colour, and the olive eyes he had seen in her were nearly-constantly golden now. The girl was becoming a strong druid, and that worried him. She would certainly grow up powerful, but without a good mentor...

"Of course, dearie. I don't stand for children being hurt. I would, however, like to offer you a new life. For my revenge, the King must think that Cora has killed you. I plan to take you with me and train you. Would you like that?" The little girl nodded, a soft smile playing across her lips.

The sound of footsteps coming from outside the door made Sophia lay back against her bed, feigning sleep. Rumple drew back against the wall. The door slowly opened, not making a sound as Cora crept into the room. The rose still trailed after her dutifully, going closer to Sophia at the flick of her wrist. When the rose was nearly touching Sophia's delicate pink lips, a black force threw it back. Cora frowned slightly, stepping closer to the 'sleeping' girl. Rumple revealed himself, and Sophia sat upright, screaming as loud as she could.

"Wrong choice, dearie." Rumple's arms wrapped around Sophia's shoulders, and they were transported to his castle, where they promptly shielded it against Cora.

Rumple kissed Sophia's head, leading her to a spare bedroom. The room had a soft bed, golden coverings, and a tall mirror hanging on the wall. Otherwise, the room was bare but for the two doors, one leading to the hallway and another to a private bathroom.

"Anything you need, ask me. I will get it for you." She nodded, looking around the room for a moment before sitting down on the corner of the bed. She snapped her fingers, lighting the candles around the room. "And, Sophia?" She looked up at her new guardian. "You'll be needing a new name. What would you like me to call you when we aren't in private?" She took only a minute's pause.

"Glinda."

Cora tried to flee the room, but a golden wall prevented her attempts. The thundering echoes of footsteps on stone sent trickles of fear through her, breaking through the hard walls that kept her emotions in check. It grew to panic as smears of blood began to spread across her hands and the walls. They were going to make this look like a murder. Henry ran into the room, followed by a whole group of guards. Looking down at herself, Cora had to admit that she looked a mess. She still wore her tiara from her coronation earlier in the day, but her hair had fallen, and her perfect wedding dress was torn and covered in blood stains.

"Where is Sophia?" Henry looked in a panic, quickly gathering her up in his arms. One particularly stupid guard named Lee stepped forward to whisper in Henry's ear, gesturing towards Cora on occasion. Cora, frustrated and annoyed at being ignored so quickly, sent a ball of fire at Lee's head. He managed to avoid it, but another guard, Michael, got hit in the head. His hair went up in flames as many different guards beat the man's hair with their hats in an attempt to stop the flames. "Cora!"

"What? They were wasting time!" Sighing, Cora put Michael's hair out. After settling the fire issue, she curled up in Henry's arms. He gave in nearly immediately to her pleas that he just hold her for a moment. Finally, she gave her excuse with a quivering tone in her voice. "The Dark One took her. He tried to kill me."

"Today is not going how I planned..." Henry sighed, holding her closer to him as he placed a kiss on her temple. The guards seemed to understand that they should leave, slowly exiting the room. Michael and Lee remained positioned outside the door, waiting for their prince to leave his wife so that they could complain about her temper. "My father is sending us away."

"What?!" She jolted up, looking at him. "But... We didn't do anything wrong." His hands landed on her stomach, and she understood. She was being punished for their bastard. She sighed in resignation.

"Where are we to be taken?" He brushed an errant strand of hair from her face, placing a soft kiss on her lips.

"Please don't worry, Cora. We aren't being sent into poverty. All royalty are assigned their own homes, even if they live in the palace. We are being sent to mine. It is not a bad home. Stables, decorated rooms, elegant furniture. I am sure you will love it." This was not what she had given up everything for. She would get back into that palace, whatever she had to do. Placing her own hands over Henry's on her stomach, she thought of her unborn child. Regina. Regina would return her to her rightful place in a palace. She just had to wait for the proper time...

And that's it. The end of Why I Love You. I'm more than willing to write more of Rumple and Cora if anyone has suggestions, and I might write Sophia/Rumple if anyone wants it. Thank you to all of my readers. Thank you to my friend Scarlet who started me on my Cora obsession. Thank you to Kryssi for not hating me for writing her into my story and killing her off. That's it, I suppose. Until the next time, this is...

THE END