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~Chapter IV~
"How about a deal, then?"
Rumplestiltskin stared at the Blue Fairy for a long moment, tapping the fingers of one hand against the pad of his thumb. He motioned for her to continue.
"If you can abstain from using the limited amount of magic you have, if you can maintain self-control while in Neverland, I will ensure that upon your return you may work to regain your full powers without opposition from the fairies."
A life of magic without her interference; Rumplestiltskin liked the sound of that. However, he was not foolish enough to walk into a deal without fully learning the dynamics.
"And if I use it?"
"You will never wield magic again, in any world. If you try to obtain some, you will be opposed, severely."
Rumplestiltskin mentally weighed the ultimatum: A life of uncontested magic, or a life completely devoid of it? With unparalleled and unopposed magic, he could ensure that no harm ever befell his son, or Belle, again...
He was awarded a few extra moments to consider the deal when Belle reentered the sitting room. She had replaced his pants and dress shirt with a pair of blue jeans and a breezy, black long-sleeve top. On her arm draped a slender, forest green tweed jacket.
She moved to stand beside Rumplestiltskin, leaning so that their shoulders brushed lightly.
They required the fairies' magic to travel to Neverland, and Rumplestiltskin did not put it past the Blue Fairy to refuse to transport them if he rejected her deal. It would not be the first time she sacrificed others' happiness in favor of doing what was right. She was a wise, powerful woman driven by morals alone.
"Deal."
The Blue Fairy nodded solemnly, holding out her hand for him to shake. Rumplestiltskin smirked slightly at the gesture, stretching out his own hand. He could not resist giving hers a quick, painful squeeze before letting his hand drop back to his side.
A tiny gasp echoed from the hallway. The three of them whirled about, startled at having been overheard.
Nova, in all the glory of a wrinkled white sweater and pleated skirt, stood in the entrance to the sitting room, a look of sheer terror on her face.
Rumplestiltskin felt his mouth stretch in a wide grin as he realized how suspicious this all must seem to the clumsy fairy: the wisest and most well-respected of the fairies making a deal with the Dark One in the dead of night.
"Nova, I was just about to wake you." The Blue Fairy spoke, slowly approaching the petrified slip of a fairy.
"What-what's going on?" Nova whispered, her eyes darting between Rumplestiltskin and the Blue Fairy, and landing with a confused furrow of her brow on the young woman at the former imp's side.
"There is something Rumplestiltskin and Belle must do, something very important, and they need our help," the Blue Fairy calmly explained. Nova's eyes widened even further; they were going to help the Dark One, the wicked imp whose name seemed to be whispered at every scene of disaster?
"You know I would not ask if I did not think it the right thing to do, Nova."
The younger fairy glanced once more at Belle and Rumplestiltskin, briefly wondering how the woman could stand so fearlessly near the crooked man, before nodding her head shakily. "What do you need me to do?"
"We are going to help these two leave this world for another. Have you managed to reclaim some of your magic?" The Blue Fairy asked, smiling gratefully at Nova's cooperation.
Nova nodded, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. The Blue Fairy smiled, and approached the doorway leading to the hallway. She stopped just before it, motioning for Nova to follow. Placing her hands along one side of the doorframe, and directing Nova to do the same on the other side, the Blue Fairy turned to address Rumplestiltskin and Belle.
"Nova and I are going to open a portal to Neverland," and as she said this, the air within the doorway seemed to wave lightly, as though the fairies had cast a heat wave.
"I must warn you: Neverland, though a beautiful land, possesses an unexpected darkness. The longer you stay, the more you will forget."
"Forget what?" Belle asked, worry creasing her forehead. She and Rumplestiltskin's eyes met each other's for a brief moment.
"Details of your past, memories..." The Blue Fairy's gaze traveled to Rumplestiltskin. He was a cursed man; Neverland was bound to react differently to him. His past was composed of far more darkness than light. She only hoped that they would not be in Neverland long enough for that darkness to consume him.
"What must we do to get there?" Belle asked determinedly, her eyes now trained on the doorway and filled with a mixture of awe and slight trepidation.
"You must recall your happiest memory," the Blue Fairy explained, watching Rumplestiltskin as his brow furrowed. "Nova and I will ensure that it carries you in the right direction."
Rumplestiltskin moved to stand before the doorway, his forehead lined with concentration. He reached into the back of his mind, searching for whatever could be his happiest memory. But all he seemed to encounter were the twisted deals and ruined lives that littered his past, all the sins he had committed so that he could find his son...
His son. Rumplestiltskin shoved a hand into his jacket pocket, closing his fist around the silver bracelet that lay inside.
The haze suddenly waved more energetically, and in the dim candlelight of the room he could see the outline of a woman slowly materializing.
She stood facing a lit hearth, wearing a modest beige frock, her long, dark curls hanging down her back.
"Ciora." Rumplestiltskin whispered.
The woman turned around, a soft smile lighting her face as she rested a hand on her swollen belly.
"This isn't real," Rumplestiltskin breathed, reaching out to touch the haze, which felt as solid as a sheet of glass.
"It is as real as you want it to be," the Blue Fairy responded softly.
Rumplestiltskin turned his gaze away from the memory, training it instead on the fairies framing the doorway. He felt a heat crawl up his neck; he wished they would not look so intently. The memory started to fade, its lines and edges becoming blurry. His eyes darted to Belle.
Her features were soft, her mouth lifted in a gentle smile as she gazed upon his memory. Her eyes looked the way they had when he caught her in his arms an eternity ago: filled with a sweet sort of awe, and tenderness.
Rumplestiltskin returned his gaze to the memory, willing his mind to focus. The memory flickered again. His hand twitched slightly toward it, wanting to pull the vision back from the darkness into which it seemed to be slipping. He pressed his lips together, letting his eyes slide closed for a moment. Gradually, the memory started to glow more brightly, its images growing clearer.
Rumplestiltskin approached his wife, his own soft smile matching hers. He trailed the backs of his knuckles gently along her cheek, before bringing his hand to rest over where their unborn child lay, his fingers splayed.
They both laughed suddenly, Ciora bringing her own hand to rest over her husband's. Smiling widely, Rumplestiltskin knelt before her, resting his head against her stomach.
The image in the doorway flickered; Rumplestiltskin clenched his jaw as he felt the memory slipping through his mind's fingers.
"You knew, somehow. That the child would be a boy." The Blue Fairy spoke softly.
"Yes," Rumplestiltskin murmured, his own lips stretching into a tentative smile.
Rumplestiltskin pressed a soft kiss to his wife's belly.
"I'd never felt so..."
"Proud." The Blue Fairy finished for him, smiling at the couple in the memory.
Without tearing his gaze from the memory, Rumplestiltskin nodded.
"Hold on to that thought."
And as though with a will of their own, Rumplestiltskin's feet carried him toward the doorway. His eyelids slid closed.
A warm breeze passed over his form, and when he opened his eyes he was met not with the image of himself embracing his wife and unborn child, but a maze of brilliant green willows, their leaves glistening in the rays of golden sunlight that broke through the forest canopy.
Neverland.
A/N: Reviews are inspiration! :)