Once Upon A Time
Mithgrar was a city on the coast known for its harsh stance on pirates and thieves and its outer defenses that protected itself from such invaders
So Rumpelstiltskin felt it would more than likely be a waste of time to be here. He'd put enough together in his investigation to try and track WHERE they were going but not enough to know their complete destination. The only thing he could do was walk as fast as his and his son's legs could carry them and pray that the boat was slowed down by storm season.
He didn't even know if Dagian was alive anymore but he kept walking for the hope that she might be. He couldn't give up now that he was so far. He'd get her back somehow and he'd bring her home and he'd help her heal as much as she could.
He walked through the city until he found an inn at the edge of the docks and used his rapidly disappearing money to buy a room. He hadn't had a decent bed in two weeks and Bae was just exhausted. Otherwise he'd get supplies and keep walking but they were dead on their feet.
He stayed in the room long enough to put Bae down and when the innkeeper's wife promised to look after him; he went down to the tavern to ask questions. Normally he wouldn't trust anyone to watch Bae but she had a kind face and when she saw he carried a son with him, she put extra food on his plate.
The Tavern was a rough place, different from the small one in the village. He showed the picture that he'd drawn of his wife holding their newborn son to several men but none had seen her nor did they remember any pirate ship or captain by the name of Killian Jones.
Finally after about two hours of questions, he was interrupted from his search when the Innkeeper came up behind him and pulled him away from a group of soldiers by his cloak, "What are you doing bothering my customers?"
Rumpelstiltskin turned and ripped his cloak away from the man's hands, "I'm looking for my wife."
"She's not here!" the innkeeper said, "And I hope that you aren't insulting these men by mistaking your wife to be one of them."
"She was taken by pirates," Rumpelstiltskin told him, exhausted, "I'm trying to find her."
"Chances are that if pirates have her then you'll never see her again," the innkeeper said harshly, "It's horrifying but it's fact."
"Look," Rumpelstiltskin took the picture he'd drawn and he showed it to him, "Do you recognize her? Please. We have a son…he needs his mother."
The man looked at it thoughtfully and looked up, "She has red hair?"
"You've seen her?"
"Fisherman and merchants came in her about a week or so back talking about pirates docking to get supplies. Usually we let them if they don't have any defenses up but there was a scuffle when some of the guards saw them pulling a woman back on the boat and I don't know if it's her or not-."
Rumpelstiltskin felt a great relief fill his chest, "She's alive?"
"IF it's her. there are plenty of women on pirate ships who don't want to be there-."
"Where did they go?"
"North from what I Heard, everyone tried to chase after them but their boat is quite fast."
A week? Rumpelstiltskin wasn't sure if he could ever catch up to that ship. Especially with his bad leg and a son that was about to be two years old with him.
"Thank you," he said and put his hand on the man's shoulder, "Thank you."
"It might not be your wife."
"It's her," he told him with resolve, "I can feel it."
Rumpelstiltskin turned to go back to his room. They would sleep tonight and get started in the morning.
He couldn't wait to tell his son.
He finished turning and nearly walked face first into the chest of a recruiter and his blood ran cold…he prayed to whatever gods would listen that he didn't come all of the way up here just to be recruited again.
Filib crossed his arms and glowered at him, "What are you doing here?"
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Present Day
Lying on the couch, playing with his daughter, Rumpelstiltskin was the happiest that he'd been in centuries. With the exception of his prominent cheekbones and his eyes, Lily was very much her mother's daughter in terms of looks but she was definitely going to be his in terms of personality.
She was a quiet baby, and she always looked so serious but when she was happy, she was beaming. Her bright smile just seemed to fill the room when he could get it out of her.
He'd bought her a stuffed monkey from the toy store and she hadn't stopped smiling since he gave it to her. Everyone at the store looked at him weird when he balanced his month old daughter on his good hip and demanded they get him the monkey because his daughter wanted it.
And now that he was home with her, he let the scary businessman façade drop and he just took the time to gush over his little girl. He whispered promises of a better life and how he'd only let the best men anywhere near her to date. He sang her little songs from his time as a human father, it was amazing that he could barely remember his birthday but he could remember things he sang to his son. He didn't understand why he remembered them; he'd given up on the prospect of being a father shortly after he learned he couldn't…conceive with a woman as the Dark One.
That had all changed over here.
Ridding him of his curse, waking Dagian, giving him a daughter, giving him Belle, giving him the chance to see Bae…did this world never cease with its little miracles for him?
Lily started fussing when he wasn't paying attention to her and he looked down and smiled. Lily smiled back and yawned. She was starting to get tired; he supposed that he should be putting her down soon but…maybe later. This was the first time he'd gotten to spend with his daughter completely alone.
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Once Upon A Time
A week passed and the woman said nothing.
Killian kept her shackled like he'd told her he would. He kept his word to show her that she couldn't walk all over him like she probably did that husband she had. He didn't like doing this anymore than she did, because this wasn't something a gentleman would normally do.
She barely even moved from the corner except to go to the chamber pot and relieve herself. But most of the time he found her sitting in the corner of her room looking…just utterly broken. If his life didn't depend on it and if he wasn't getting paid, he might've felt shame for making her like this. However, he doubted her breakdown was permanent. If it was then he suspected the Dark One would've stopped in.
He watched her for a few seconds and then moved into her room, "Time's up sweetheart, you're a free woman again."
She didn't even bother to look at him when he came into the room, but he could tell that she'd heard him. She tensed and her eyes threatened to spill with tears.
"Still the silent treatment?" he asked as her shackles fell away, "I did what I told you I would do if you tried to run. You can hardly get angry at me."
She gave him nothing and he sighed. He'd tried to be nice about this. He'd flirted and teased her at first by saying that he didn't normally use them to keep a woman prisoner for too long. She was in shackles, come on…that joke wrote itself. However when she didn't react, he tried to talk to her a little more gently. He told her he understood her desire to get back to her family, and her fears at being trapped for months on end with just amoral men for company. HE tried to explain it from his side of things as well. Again. He didn't WANT to make her upset; he didn't want her to be scared of him or his crew. She wouldn't have to be if she just joined up and made her stay a bit more enjoyable if there was a bit more respect from all sides.
But his stance was firm and perhaps that's why she didn't acknowledge him.
She wasn't going anywhere.
He shackles fell away and he shook his head in sympathy at the shape of her wrists. He was glad he'd thought to buy ointment when they docked yesterday.
"I think you should continue to think about my proposition," he said and rubbed the ointment in her wrists. She cringed but was still silent and it made him more determined to get her to talk. He never had a challenge from a woman that he didn't' win eventually, "You'd have wages, nice jewelry, clothes…with your ability to read and your…overflowing charm," he said the last two words sarcastically but he meant the next ones, "I imagine you'd raise among the ranks quickly enough."
She wasn't even looking at him. Now that was just insulting.
"Oh gods," he said finally irritated, "Woman, I did what I had to do to keep us both alive. I know my fate is of little importance to you should you ever escape but what do you think would happen to yourself once you leave this ship? Do you think your dark one that wants you away from your husband so very much would let you go to him just because you got away from me? He'd put you in with a more dangerous group and that's if he doesn't kill you because honestly dear, I don't see how you're worth all this trouble."
Still nothing, she didn't tense and he rolled his eyes at what he was about to do. He wasn't even interested in her other than taking comfort with someone on those long lonely nights when the other part of the bed was empty and he could have that with any woman. Her appeal was circling the drain faster and faster with each bit of trouble she gave him.
But he still needed to wake her up out of this reverie before she crumbled into a depression.
He grabbed her by the back of her hair and forced his lips onto hers. She reached immediately. He felt every muscle of hers coil up and when she processed what he was doing, she raked her fingernails down his face.
He smiled victoriously as she angrily shoved him on his back. He grabbed her and as he fell and she landed on top of him. He'd won. He'd gotten his reaction and they were in quite the compromising position now…his day couldn't end any better.
Well it could, but it was going great so far.
She tried to get up but he wrapped his arms around her, trapping her against him, "It's about bloody time."
"Let go!" she slammed her knee in a very…sensitive area and when he released her, she scrambled away from him and stumbled out the open door where her legs gave out from under her and she sat in the middle of his room.
"There was no need for that," he yelled once he had his voice back, "I was only teasing you!"
"Oh trust me," she hissed angrily and wiped her mouth, "There was a need for it."
He forced himself to a sitting position, "The minute you stepped off that boat, you would've been killed! I saved your life!"
"Saved it for what?" she demanded, "To stay on this boat for days? Years? Navigating your little stars to take us to a safe harbor for gods know how long until I retire to my little closet for a room?! This isn't freedom! This isn't living! I don't want this. I didn't ask for it."
"Maybe not, but It's the one you have," he told her and stood. She stood as well, as if she was expecting another fight. He leaned in close but made sure he was far enough away to avoid any repeats of what just happened, "You're trying my patience."
He didn't look at her as he stormed out of the room and back on the deck.
Bloody woman
He felt numb from the waist down.
This day couldn't be any worse.
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Present Day
Dagian shifted from the tips of her toes to her heels as she looked around the front yard of the large house.
Oh the relaxing she could do with this sort of solitude.
The door opened and Dagian turned and looked into the tired eyes of Jefferson, "Hi….sorry, I didn't really mean to wake you. I just…brought some chicken soup for Grace."
He leaned his head on the door frame and smiled as if he was touched by the gesture…, "Original recipe?"
She sighed, "Dawn's actually. When Rumpelstiltskin made her personality, I guess he realized he might get the sniffles every now and again and he was going to need someone who could make this stuff to make him feel better. I guess she was good for something besides snarking and copulating."
He smiled wider, "Would you like to come in?"
"Oh no," she said quickly, "I couldn't…I could bring it home to the baby-."
"It's pretty much over with and I've disinfected everything, Grace is just sleeping what's left off," he held the door open, "Come on, just for a few minutes. It's not a bother."
She couldn't ignore those pleading eyes of his, "Been awhile since you had adult company, hm?"
"I'd settle for just healthy company," he said and shut the door behind them when she relented and walked in, "Now tell me how you got up here and where your daughter is."