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Chapter 20 – Day 11: About Wars

Bram was panicking. He was seriously regretting giving his friend the three shots. Rumpelstiltskin was supposed to calm down. Any normal person would become numb from so much alcohol, but Rumpelstiltskin seemed to go against all laws of human condition and became instead more and more agitated. It was like if the alcohol stimulated his adrenaline instead of knocking him out.

"It's not fair!" Rumpelstiltskin moaned between his tears. "I came back for them! She didn't have the right!"

"Rumpel, you really need to calm down! Breathe, man!"

"The hell with you! You don't know how it is!" The smaller man spat, looking disturbed. "She left me!...I left the others behind! I left them!"

"What is going on? What is he talking about?" Belle asked confused.

Bram looked helpless at his friend, fear and sadness present in this eyes. The woodman looked frightened as he witnessed the change in Rumpelstiltskin. The hurt being replaced by confusion, which was quickly replaced by panic and terror. The alcohol intensified the cripple´s emotions and confused his mind, his past traumatic memories overlapping each other disorderly. He saw the face of his wife, of his son, of the other men in the wars, of the ogres. He saw the monstrous world of innocent blood tainting the green grass with scattered bodies of lifeless men. He heard the sound of bones being crushed under agonized screams. The world was changing before his eyes, the alcohol blurring and bringing him back to the nightmarish memories of the battlefield.

"The Ogre Wars." Bram whispered and the princess stared shocked at the spinner.

"What? How…" Belle's words were cut by Rumplelstiltkin. Something snapped inside of him when he heard his friend whisper the words.

"Dear Lord Maurice! Our very much beloved king!" He spat sarcastically, in a tone Belle though was misplaced and made her almost shrink from fright. "He sent every man to the Ogre Wars! And I run away,…I couldn't fight,…I had to run…" Rumpelstiltskin mumbled, his anger being quickly replaced by fear and regret. His eyes were directed to Belles' but she knew he wasn't seeing her. His gaze was far away, his mind taking him back to this horrific past. She put her hands on his shoulders in hope it would calm him down and could feel his whole body shaking.

"Rumpel, it's not your fault. You were wounded." Bram tried in vain to comfort his friend.

"I left them to die! I'm a bloody coward! I should have died there! I should have fought!"He suddenly turned to Bram, screaming viciously, as he loathed himself for his weaknesses. But then, Rumplelstiltskin suddenly stopped. "Oh, gods, I feel sick!"

"You had no choice!" Bram misunderstood his friend's words, missing the way the spinner was now contorting of torment with his hands pressed on his belly.

"I really feel sick!" Rumplestiltskin said urgently and walked a few unbalanced steps into the alley, supporting himself on the wall. He convulsed a couple of times, his whole body trembling and finally threw up. Bram had to catch his friend, who nearly stumbled on his own vomit. "Bram, you fool! I'll kill you for poisoning me!"

"This cannot go on." Bram desperately said. "Linda, I need you to go down that street over there. Take the third road to the left and look for a stall selling mushrooms. Ask for Jefferson. Tell him I sent you and that I need his special tea urgently!" Belle, seeing how livid Rumpelstiltskin was, didn't even bother to ask. She ran down the streets as fast as she could and found the stall according to Bram's indications.

"Jefferson! I'm looking for Jefferson!" Linda almost yelled exasperated, as she reached the mushroom stall.

"Now, now. Hush lovely lady. Where's the fire?" A man about Belle's age appeared from behind the counter, smirking confidently.

"Bram sent me. He needs your special tea! It's urgent." The man frowned surprised, but turned swiftly to pick up some herbs and heat up water.

"Bram? What happened?" He calmly asked, while he skillfully prepared the drink.

"It's his friend. He's really in a bad shape." She said, almost in tears. A girl around ten appeared from behind the counter with a white stuffed rabbit, looking curious.

"Grace, daddy is going to bring some tea to Bram. Stay here with Ludwig and Mary Ann. I'll be back in a short while.

"Promise me you'll be back for our tea party" The girl said in her soft voice.

"I promise. Wouldn't miss it for nothing in this world." He planted a kiss on her head, spilled the contents of heated aromatic water in a cup and quickly paced after Belle. When they reached the alley, Jefferson was surprised to see Rumpelstiltskin sitting against the wall, looking white as death and breathing with problems.

"Thank the gods you're here. He started hyperventilating just a moment ago." Bram told.

"What happened?" Jefferson asked. But Bram didn't answer. He took the cup with tea and handed to Rumpelstiltskin.

"No! I don't want any of your poisonous drinks!"

"For goodness sake, just drink it! You'll feel better!" Bram yelled, having nothing more than despair left. Of course, his friend rejected, turning his head away, breathing too fast for his lungs.

"What did you give him?" Jefferson sounded a bit amused.

"I gave him three shots, okay? Milah is here and I thought it would calm him down! Hey!" He yelled as Rumpelstiltskin almost knocked the tea cup from Bram's hand.

"Wow! Milah?...Wait, you gave him three shots? Were you trying to kill him? He's a small man! Why didn't you come right to me?" Jefferson inquired, making Bram feel really stupid.

"I didn't remember, okay? I was desperate. He looked possessed!" Bram defended himself, while Jefferson shook his head disapprovingly.

"What does this tea do?" Belle asked Jefferson, starting to feel really upset with Bram for his incompetence

"It will definitely calm him down." Jefferson said knowingly with an overly confident smirk.

It was just what the princess needed to hear. She took the cup from Bram's hand and, for his surprise, pushed him away. Belle crouched so she was leveled to Rumpelstiltskin. Now that she could see him closer, she realized he was a real mess. She could see sweat drops on his temple, he was livid as a ghost and his eyes were puffed and unfocussed.

"Drink this. It will help you feel better." She softly told him with a reassuring smile.

Rumpelstiltskin looked warily into her blue eyes and then to the cup. He seemed to struggle a short dilemma, as he hesitated, but ended up accepting the cup. He took a couple sips and, almost instantly, his eyes rolled back and he fell into unconsciousness. Belle didn't expect that to happen and feared for poison.

"What happened? What did you give to him?" She angrily shouted at Jefferson.

"A tea to fall asleep, of course. He'll wake in about one hour." The tea-maker explained nonchalantly. "So, what happened?"

"I told you, Milah is here." Bram said as he picked up his now peaceful friend and hung him over his shoulder. He walked a few paces and placed the man in the shadow of a tree nearby.

"That's heavy." Jefferson said as he scratched his head. "But maybe it is for the best. He'll finally be able to close that chapter."

"You really believe it." Bram asked irritated. The younger man nodded self-assuredly. "Am I right if I'm guessing he's heading to Snowland?" He asked while he stared at Rumpelstiltskin. Bram nodded in confirmation. "Well, he shouldn't. I don't think it's safe there."

"What do you mean? Is Snowland also in war?" Belle asked frightened at the thought.

"No, my lady." He spoke in an annoyingly self-assured tone. "You see, several people are claiming Maleficent is behind the wars. Have you heard that one?" He looked surprised when Belle nodded. "Well, I believe she's not working alone. Actually, I believe somebody else is behind her actions."

"Who?" The princess asked.

"Her Majesty, Queen Regina."

"What? King Leopold's wife? That's madness!" She retorted. She never truly trusted Snow's stepmother, always sensing some kind of masked behavior behind her smile, one that never reached her eyes. But accusing the woman of plotting a war was simply ridiculous.

"Is it? She's a powerful sorceress. Believe it, I've learned it the hard way. I know she has connections with the Dragon Lady" He sneered. "Anyway, I'm leaving this crumbling kingdom. Still have some calls to make, but by the end of the week, I'll be heading to the Golden City. I've heard there are good life opportunities under King Minas' rule."

"Have you heard any news about our king?" Bram asked.

"As far as I know, he is alive and imprisoned. But the princess is gone missing. I've heard from reliable sources that Lord Gaston lost her at the night of the invasion and sent undercover patrols to look for her. But no tracks of her have been found until the date." Jefferson frowned strangely at Bram's shocked expression. "Are you leaving too?" The tea-maker wondered.

"Me? I-I don't know. I think I'm safe where I live." Bram hesitantly answered, sounding nervous.

"You're not safe anywhere at war. If I were you I would leave. You all should go to the City of Gold. Showland will fall next. Mark my words" He said gloomily. "Say, if Rumpelstiltskin wakes up with a headache, bring him to me. I'll make a tea that will relieve the pain." He was about to leave, when he turned around again. "How long has he been at your place, Bram?"

"Uh…About a week."

"Pity. I would have paid a visit if I knew. Oh well. See you later, maybe. And think about what I said." At this he turned his back and waved. There followed a heavy silence.

"Why did you lie?" Belle asked. Bram gave her a dark look. "About our stay at your house." She clarified, afraid she already knew the answer.

"Because it's quite a coincidence that you stumbled on Rumpel the night the princess went missing." Belle swallowed dry. Her cover was unveiled. She had to fight the urge to cry, scared the man would denounce her. "If you are who I think you are…well, you better end this charade! I've seen the way you two behave. But plebeian and royalty don't mix. If you don't end this soon, all that will be left are two broken hearts!" He stared directly in the princess' eyes and looked truly serious. "Now, if you excuse me, I going to compensate Rumpel for the torture I made him endure and trade his wool. You stay with him."

Bram walked away and Belle was left behind with the now very peaceful Rumpelstiltskin. The beauty sat on the ground dejectedly and wept. Her father was still kept captive. Gaston was alive, looking for her. Bram knew her secret. And now, more than ever, Belle feared to tell Rumpelstiltskin the truth. He had already suffered enough. The last thing she wanted was to hurt him even more. The last thing she wanted were two broken hearts.

Jefferson is one of my favorites characters and I was pleased to see he had a connection with Rumple on epi.5. So cool. I hope he comes more often in the show.

This was a rather difficult chapter to write. all the messed up emotions and thoughts whirling inside Rumple's mind, and avoiding to make it sound exagerated or overdramatic (rewrote this several times).

Oh and Belle was caught! Bram's not that dumb :p

Uh-oh. I'm freaking with my own story.

Review!