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Chapter 3 - Days 0 and 1: The journey to North
Belle felt bad for lying. But she found herself in a very vulnerable and treacherous position. The memories of her run in the forest's darkness were still fresh in her mind, just like the sound of swords and words of danger. Besides, after today, Belle was sure her identity had become a danger to others.
"Linda, will you let see your wound?" Rumpelstiltskin politely asked.
Belle nodded gloomily, sensing she had no option. The blood and throbbing came from her right side, slightly to the back, exactly on a spot she could not see. Besides her whole body ached from the recent torments, making her feel nauseous and dizzy. Belle sadly admitted she was far from being in state to help herself on this one.
"You'll have to turn a bit to the side, dearie. There…Bae, shed me some light." Rumpelstiltskin quickly spotted the blood and gently pushed a bit of the broken fabric out of the way so he could inspect the wound.
He wet a cloth with water and carefully cleaned the blood of the skin. Belle flinched at the cold sensation and was thankful the man was careful not to hurt her. The pain told her it was bad. Once the skin was clean, Rumpelstiltskin looked closer at the wound. He frowned a bit, gently touching the edge of the cut with his fingertips.
"You're cut, dearie. It's not very deep, but it will have to be stitched otherwise the wound will infect." He bent slightly to look at Belle and she met his gaze. "I know we just met, but would you trust me to treat this cut? I've stitched wounds before."
Belle stared frightened. The thought of being stitched made her insides turn. And then by a stranger, from whom she knew nothing about. Asking to trust him was a big deal. She looked from Rumpelstiltskin to Baelfire. It was the smile and proud nod of confirmation given by the boy that made Belle take the decision.
"Yes." Her voice was faint and barely audible. Rumpelstiltskin nodded and immediately got to work. He grabbed one of his travel bags and took a small box out of it. He picked a small flask and dropped a bit of its liquid on a new clean cloth.
"This is going to hurt." He warned.
Belle wasn't prepared. She barely suppressed a scream when the man pressed mercilessly the wet cloth against the wound. She felt the liquid pierce through her skin and flesh like a million tiny stings.
"I'm sorry, but I have to make sure the wound is well disinfected." Rumpelstiltskin apologized. "The burning sensation you're feeling is good. It means its working."
Belle nodded in tensed understanding and pressed her eyes shut, breathing heavily. After a while she exhaled of relieve, as Rumpelstiltskin removed the cloth with the dreadful liquid. But what she saw next made all her courage shrink. She saw Rumpelstiltskin put the point of a needle in the torch's fire. She knew it would hurt really bad.
"Linda, I want to ask you not to move. If the pain becomes unbearable just tell me and I'll stop." Belle nodded and closed her eyes, as she summoned all the little remaining courage left inside of her. "Bae, light."
Baelfire obeyed and drew the torch closer. He watched fascinated as his father joined the separated skin back together. Belle bit her under lip to suppress a cry of pain, her fingers clutched into fists, her nails digging her skin like claws. After a while, it stopped and Belle let out a sigh of relieve.
"There. Five stitches." The man cleaned the blood remains with some water and made a small bandage to protect the cut. "You were really brave."
Rumpelstiltskin's soft voice was comforting and calming. Belle didn't open her eyes anymore. She was overwhelmed with tiredness. The troubled events of the day and the pain hit her suddenly like wave of exhaustion. The last thing she heard before falling back into unconsciousness were whispers being switched between father and son. She felt a blanket cover and warm her body. And with this she fell into a restless sleep, haunted by dreams of ogres, dark forests and strange lights coming and going between the trees.
…
"She's waking up, Papa!" Belle could hear the voice of a boy. Slowly, she recalled the memories from the day before: the ogres' invasion, the escape thought the tunnels, her flee with Gaston, the dark forest and her encounter with friendly strangers. She groaned as her whole body ached and forced to open her burning eyes. It took some moments for her eyes to adjust at the bright light. And then she saw Baelfire's happy face. He was staring at her expectantly.
"How do you feel?" He asked. Belle frowned as she painfully forced herself to sit up.
"I-I think I'm fine." She said as she caressed her temple. "How long have I been out?"
"Quite some hours, dearie. It's around noon." Rumpelstiltskin answered. Belle blinked as she watched the man stride unevenly, his weight supported by a long wooden staff. "You made it just in time for lunch." He merrily said.
"Oh no, I-I don't, I shouldn't bother you anymore." Belle felt embarrassed. Now, in the daylight, she could see her rescuers clearly. They were peasants, poor, seeing by their clothes. The man was a cripple, clearly dependant of the wooden staff. And yet they took care of her out of pure kindness and were offering whatever little food they had.
"Nonsense. You had a rough night. Besides, you have to eat to get stronger." Belle was about to refuse again but Baelfire interrupted her.
"I hope you like fish!"
"I…Yeah, I do." Belle confessed, letting a small smile appear.
"Grand! Bae, will you build us a fire? I already cleaned the fish." Bae happily obeyed his father and run to fetch wood. Rumpelstiltskin sat on a rock before Belle.
"So tell me, dearie. How are you feeling?"
"I guess I'm okay. A bit sore from the fall." The man nodded in understanding.
"May I look at it? I want to make sure it's stitched properly."
"Right, of course." Belle got up with some difficulty and walked to the cripple so her cut was leveled to him. She could hardly feel Rumpelstiltskin's touch and thanked for that. She was not used to be examined, least by a strange man.
"It's going to heal wonderfully." Rumpelstiltskin stated, unable to hide the pride in his voice for his good work. "A couple days and you won't feel it anymore. Now it's only your dress that has to be cleaned and sowed." He said as he lifted a bit of the loose stained fabric making his point.
"It's okay. I'll look into it later on." Belle assured. She took the man's example and sat on a rock nearby. "Thank you."
"No need for that." The man dismissed.
"No, really. I thank you." Belle spoke sincerely. The cripple smiled a bit shyly, obviously not used to hear that kind of words. Then he looked at her inquiringly for a moment.
"So, what were you running from yesterday?" Belle looked shocked for a second, not expecting the question and not knowing what to answer.
"I-I…Well..." She mumbled embarrassed. What was she supposed to say?
"I'm sorry. I assumed you were running away from something. But really, I should not have asked you. Forgive me."
"No, it's okay. I was indeed running away. I left my, uhm, former master." Rumpelstiltskin lifted an eyebrow and Belle scowled herself internally for making up such a silly lie.
"Why? He treated you bad? Wanted to take advantage of you?" Belle nodded, trying to look sad instead of nervous. There was an awkward silence. "And, may I ask you what your function was?"
"I was housekeeper." She answered, proud for finally saying something with sense. But she could not really make out Rumpelstiltskin's thoughts, for he looked strangely at her with an almost neutral expression.
"Ready!" Baelfire yelled, smoke rising next to him. Belle noticed the cripple was about to ask her something again, but kept his mouth shut after his son's call. He instead smiled kindly, and gestured Belle to join them.
…
Belle could not remember ever enjoying a meal as much as now. It was the tastiest fish she ever ate. Probably because she was starving, having eaten nothing since lunch the day before. Rumpelstiltskin and Baelfire switched accomplice looks and both seemed to be satisfied with Belle's appetite. She even liked her fingers after she was finished.
"Uhm, this is truly the best lunch I ever had." She confessed.
"I highly doubt it, but thanks for the compliment." Rumpelstiltskin said in an amuse tone. "Bae, will you pack the things up? We'll be leaving soon."
"Yes, Papa." The boy got up, but whispered something in his father's ear, while he looked at Belle, before he left. The princess wondered what the boy was saying, it was clear it was about her. Rumplestiltskin just gave him a knowing look and send the boy off. Baelfire giggled and run to start packing their stuff. The man stared seriously at Belle for just a second.
"Pardon my son's behavior. He's not used to have young ladies lunch with us." He excused. Belle smiled back, a little amused by the situation. But she noticed the serious expression was back on his face. "So, Linda, the housekeeper with clean hands and fine clothing." Belle's heart skipped a beat. She felt her face burn of embarrassment. She felt caught. She looked at her hands, her dress, and back at him. Belle opened and closed her mouth, not knowing what to say. "I'm not judging you, dearie. I'm sure you're just protecting yourself. Don't worry; your secret will be safe with me." He said pressing his hand on his chest. Belle relaxed a bit, thanking internally for the man's comprehension. He looked at his son's direction. "Just be honest with me about something." He turned back to face Belle, bent over slightly and almost whispered. "Whatever you were running from…would it endanger my son?" Belle widened her eyes. Her heart was running fast. She had no idea. She never saw who attacked Gaston. All she knew, was that they did attack. Rumpelstiltskin, reading her frightened look, nodded. "The path by the river it will be." He spoke decidedly and got up. Belle blinked.
"W-Wait. You are counting with me to travel with you? I could not possibly…I don't want to be in the way." Belle ranted. The cripple stared at her a bit amazed.
"You cannot expect we'll let you adventure alone in this forest! Besides, the roads are dangerous places, nowadays. Especially for young ladies like yourself. You'll get hurt." Belle swallowed dry. His words were true and as headstrong she wanted to be, she knew she would be easily defeated by anybody. She was after all a prey now. "Look, we're heading to Gaevo for some trade. It's a three days journey. But once we are there, you can go on by yourself safely." Belle gladly made a mental note that Gaevo was to the north.
"Why are you being so kind for me?" Belle finally asked. Rumpelstiltskin once again looked surprised at her, the question obviously sounding odd to him.
"It's only the human thing to do, dearie. We're living difficult times. And people help each other during difficult times." He stated like it was the word's most obvious thing. "Besides, my son will be really happy not having to put up with his old man alone." He joked.
"I highly doubt that." Belle giggled.
"Ah, you don't know me yet, Linda." Was his teasing reply. Belle smiled and watched the man walk towards his son. She was thankful for the generosity of these simple people. But above all, her heart warmed at the thought she was not alone. And this gave her a new hope and strength to be able to fight her new challenging ordeals.
Although I love the evil Rumpelstiltskin/Dark One from the show, I decided, in this story, to explore more the Rumpelstiltskin before the dagger incident: the simple spinner, the poor peasent, the faithful father. And Baelfire, he's such an adorable kid!
Please, share your thoughts about this story/chapter. Review!