It wasn't until moments later that Rumpelstiltskin's wits returned to him and it finally dawned on him that not only was Belle alive, but she was within footsteps of him. Feeling overwhelmed, nausea swept through Mr. Gold as he swayed and clutched at his head.
"She's alive," he mumbled, more to himself than Regina.
"Of course she is. Do you really think I'd let the one weakness of my fiercest competitor flit away to get killed? You really ought to give me more credit than that. I'm actually offended." Regina's face was more pleased with her game than irritated.
Rumpelstiltskin shot upright. "How dare you," he growled.
"Oh, please. You were practically begging me," the mayor feigned innocence.
The man looked back at the sleeping form. Still breathing. Still living. "What did you do to her?"
She grinned. "All I had to do was snatch her away on the path, actually minutes after you'd released her. You've really lost your touch, Rumple," Mr. Gold dug his nails into his palms and subconsciously stepped away from the Queen and closer to the door. She watched his movement with the eyes of a cat while continuing to speak. "Then all I had left was plant her in the dungeon, and make up some silly story that you didn't even bother to check. And then I waited. I simply knew that she would come in handy—"
"You kept her locked up because of me?" He raised his voice. "You kept her in a dungeon?" Rumpelstiltskin walked closer until their noses were practically touching, but Regina still wouldn't budge.
"You locked her up, Mr. Gold. You kept her in a dungeon. Either way, it doesn't matter," Regina extended her neck until they were looking eye-to-eye. "All that matters now is that you give me what I want," she paused, as if daring him to interrupt, and continued, "and then we'll talk about her release."
At last Mr. Gold's resolve broke and he sank into the cold door behind him. It's true. It's all true. I hurt her. It's my fault. He shut his eyes and tried to think.
The mayor watched him with mild amusement. "Tick-tock. We don't know how well she'll hold up in there."
Rumpelstiltskin looked up. "What is it you want?"
"Oh, Mr. Gold," She locked her eyes into his until he looked away. They both knew who would walk away victorious. "There are a lot of things that I want. But from you, I want two things. The first is that I want your powers. Unfortunately, there's not much I can do about that at the moment…" She trailed off, glancing at the door to Belle's room with a hint of accusation in her voice, as if blaming Belle for the entire inconvenience. "What I can ask for is your memory. I want to take away any memories you have ever had of your moments…away from Storybrooke."
"I want to see her," Rumpelstiltskin told her. "Before I agree to anything you have to say, I want to see Belle," His voice broke on her name.
"How touching," Regina said, without a hint of sympathy. "but I'm afraid that I must refuse."
"Then I'm afraid," Mr. Gold fought to keep his words steady, "that I will have to remain here until you agree to let me see her."
Their eyes locked again, but this time Rumpelstiltskin refused to look away. His palms sweat, but the knowledge that she was mere inches away from him seemed to strengthen his determination. "Fine," the Queen's eyes still wouldn't budge. "I'll give you five minutes. The door's unlocked. I trust that after seeing your"-her voice stiffened –"love the right decision will present itself to you." She walked away, her heels clicking sharply on the floor.
Listening to her footsteps dying away, Rumpelstiltskin took a deep breath and faced the door. It was his fault, all of it, and he knew that. The unconscious girl on the floor—the one he kidnapped, threw around, locked up—he had hurt her so many times. But she still loved you, he thought to himself, and it's your duty to fix this. Fix her. And maybe, someday, a long time from now, you will deserve her love. And she will love you again.
Mr. Gold pushed aside the heavy door and entered. It was small and dark, but Belle's light seemed to fill the room. A shadow fell across her face, but he could tell it was Belle as easily as he could have back in his palace. There was only one Belle, one girl who managed to love a monster.
"I will prove that there is something in me that someone like you could ever love, Belle," Rumpelstiltskin sank to his knees and let the tears run down his cheeks like a dam had burst. He felt tired, even though it was barely noon. More had happened in that day than had happened to him in a lifetime. "I don't know if you ever really loved me, but I promise that I will make myself into someone that you might love…someday."
He reached up to brush the tears off his cheeks, but then stopped. Let her see him grovel, cry, beg. She deserved it all. "Belle, I-I.." He stuttered. He couldn't see her face well enough. She needed to see it, hear it, and sense it. Turning her over, gently, Mr. Gold laid her on her back like a piece of china, though he knew how strong she was. He brushed the hair away from her eyes and stared down at her pale face.
"I'm sorry, Belle. I'm so sorry that this happened to you, that I put you through this," He hesitated as she stirred, and then continued as she appeared to return to sleep. "It's all my fault, and I'm so sorry."
Rumpelstiltskin finished truthfully with, "I really loved you, Belle. I think I still do."
AN: I decided to update early, because I did get two reviews, which I was REALLY happy about. Before I review again, I'm going to ask for THREE more. That's not a lot, but I feel that since I'm putting so much time and energy into this, I'd really like some feedback so I feel like all the work was worth it. I may even open this up to anons so PLEASE review if you want an update. (And I promise that it's going to get even better soon. I already have nearly the entire story planned out, and I promise it's going to get good.)