Hey guys, just a note to say that you will all hate me. Sorry, not sorry, I love stuff like this. It'll resolve itself, just to say, but you will hate me even more by the time I'm finished. I hope you enjoy it anyway and please review. I just want to thank everyone who has already, even if I haven't thanked you personally, which is what I try to do. So thanks again. All mistakes are mine.
Mulan perched on the table, pulling off her gloves and laying them down beside her. She wasn't sure if she should wait here or go after Belle. The library smelled a little like vanilla, calming and sweet. The smell reminded her of the vanilla plants in the old castle that Aurora had grown –
Mulan slammed the brakes on that train of thought, burying it deep inside before it affected her. Well, it was too late for that, but she could still maintain her stony, warrior's mask. She lamented the loss of her helmet. She could hide behind it. Not that she hid from anything. No, she just ran away from her problems. How warrior-like was that, she thought bitterly. She heard footsteps coming down the stairs and she turned, seeing Belle in the doorway. She had shed her damp coat, revealing the blue shirt - slightly crumpled from the encounter with the ogre - that emphasised her sparkling blue eyes.
"Aren't you coming up?" she asked, gesturing to the stairs. Glancing around the library, she quirked an eyebrow. "Where's Regina?"
"She said someone called Emma needed her, but you've to be at the portal at around seven," replied Mulan, remembering the woman's words. Belle nodded slightly, registering the information.
"Well, come on. We can find some clothes for you, if you want to change. You don't need armour as much in this world." Belle neglected to mention the ogres that had attacked them. Armour would have been good then.
"Thank you. It does seem to stand out a little here." Belle smiled warmly and hurried back up the stairs, Mulan trailing behind her, gloves in hand.
"It's probably not a good idea to have the sword outside either. You could get arrested. I doubt it, since its Emma, but it might make people uneasy." Belle held open the door to her apartment.
"It's alright," said Mulan, walking through the doorway and peering around curiously. "I don't need a sword to defend myself," she grinned. Belle was pleased to see Mulan could still smile. They didn't have the best of relationships when they met, but Belle had seen a few rare smiles.
"I'm sure," replied Belle, returning the smile. "Right, let's get some clothes for you. I'm sure there's something around here that will fit you."
"Thank you, Belle," said Mulan sincerely as Belle squeezed past her.
"No problem." Belle crossed to the bedroom, Mulan following behind her, staring at the numerous appliances around the living room. There was a large black rectangular slab opposite a large sofa. The adjoining kitchen had a variety of appliances Mulan couldn't even begin to imagine the use of. Belle pulled open a section of the wall and searched through a bunch of clothes hanging up. After a few moments, Belle produced a black tank top, a thoughtful look on her face. She turned to ask Mulan her opinion, but discovered the warrior wasn't standing in the doorway where she had been until a few moments ago. Belle looked around, poking her head out of the doorway to see Mulan sitting on the floor in the hall, pulling her left boot off and setting it gingerly on the floor next to her right - she didn't want to track mud and snow into Belle's home. Her rough, thick socks had been peeled off too, and Belle watched, suppressing a chuckle as Mulan wiggled her toes in the soft red carpet in amazement. Belle cleared her throat.
"Would you like a shower first? You must have been travelling for ages."
"A… shower?" asked Mulan, tilting her head a little as she stood up. "But it's cold outside... and it isn't raining." Belle laughed for a moment as Mulan narrowed her eyes but grinned, unfastening her breastplate and slid it off, revealing her less than pristine under-shirt.
"No, it's... I'll show you. While you're there, I can make you something to eat."
"There's really no need –" started Mulan, but Belle was already out of the room. Mulan sighed and followed. She knew she couldn't win a hospitality battle with Belle. She just knew.
After Belle had demonstrated the use of the shower, she had left Mulan to get washed while she busied herself. She picked out clothes for Mulan, leaving them on the bed before going to the kitchen and making food. It was around midday by now – Regina liked to practise magic early in the morning so they had enough time to get some decent lessons in before they had to perform their other duties. Belle began cooking lunch – pasta with a tomato sauce that Ruby had showed her how to make – while listening to music. Belle rolled her neck, freeing her tensed up muscles from this morning - the magic helped. She sang along happily for a while, not hearing the shower turning off. Nor did she hear Mulan sneak into her bedroom wrapped in only a towel. Once the food was nearly ready, she returned to the bedroom to pick up her phone in case Ruby had called her. Opening the door, she saw Mulan turning around, only wearing underwear. She didn't seem too bashful about it and smiled at Belle, whose eyes were wide with embarrassment. Her eyes were drawn to Mulan's scars across her abdomen, but she averted her eyes.
"Sorry," she said, biting her lip, staring at the floor. "I just came in for my phone." Mulan looked around, locating a small black device that resembled Regina's.
"This thing?" asked Mulan, reaching over and picking it up. Belle nodded, teeth still biting her lip and becoming very interested in the wall. Mulan turned it over a few times before handing it over to Belle. She laughed at her discomfort. She found the black material was tight around her chest, but she appreciated the design of the thing. The matching black material around her hips was much smaller and comfier than those in the Enchanted Forest.
"Belle, it's fine. I'm not embarrassed," said Mulan. Belle relaxed a little, drawing her eyes to Mulan's face.
"Sorry. People are more conservative in this world than in the Enchanted Forest."
"How odd."
"It is." Mulan picked up the jeans that Belle had left out for her and appraised them. "It's normal for women to wear men's clothing now?"
"Yes."
"Very practical," commented Mulan with a smile. "That food smells amazing."
"Oh, it's nothing much," laughed Belle, dismissing her raise with a wave of her hand. "Speaking of, I better check it isn't burning." Belle closed the door and returned to the kitchen and stirred the sauce a few times. After around a minute, she felt arms lace around her stomach and a familiar scent washing over her as someone planted a kiss on her cheek.
"Ruby," Belle breathed happily. She whirled round and wrapped her arms around Ruby's neck, looking up into the emerald eyes she loved so much. Ruby grinned and leaned down, kissing her lips.
"What're you doing back so early?" asked Belle. "Not that I'm complaining."
"Early lunch break. I see you're already cooking," she laughed, kissing her again. Suddenly, Ruby froze, her nose twitching slightly as she sniffed the air. A noise from behind them made Ruby whirl around.
"Belle, how do you –" Mulan stopped talking abruptly as she walked into the kitchen, wearing nothing but her jeans and the black bra – one of Belle's. She held the tank top in her hand and ran the other through her wet hair as her eyes widened in surprise. Ruby was glaring at her with barely concealed rage. Belle could sense the emotions running wild in the room, but made an effort to calm the atmosphere before somebody – Ruby – exploded.
"Ruby…" said Belle, clearing her throat and squeezing past her in the small kitchen, standing between Mulan and her girlfriend. "You remember Mulan?"
"Yes…" growled Ruby. "She was wearing considerably more." Mulan was silent, but the horror had drained form her eyes, and now stood regarding Ruby with cool indifference. She also knew her sword was only a lunge away, lying on the bed along with her armour.
"Ruby, she had been travelling for ages, she just had a shower," said Belle in a calming voice.
"Belle, I can leave, you've been hospitable enough as it is –" said Mulan, not wanting to cause Belle any more trouble.
"No," interrupted Belle, glancing over her shoulder at her before turning her attention on the fuming Ruby. She placed her hands on Ruby's forearms, looking up into her eyes. "Ruby, calm down. She's new here –"
"Belle," said Ruby in a horribly cold voice. Belle's heart clenched. "I don't want to be like this." Her eyes never left Mulan as she regarded her like an adversary. "But all the stuff with Gold –"
"Ruby, I love you, you know that –"
"All that stuff with Gold, I thought I'd never recover. Maybe this is the wolf in me, maybe it's just me…" She paused, and Belle could hear her voice cracking slightly as Ruby avoided her gaze. "But I can't go through that again. Seeing you with someone else is –"
"We're not together," said Belle and Mulan simultaneously. Ruby's eye twitched. A tense silence fell. Belle felt like she was suffocating.
"But you could be!" replied Ruby, finally breaking as tears ran down her face. Belle could now see how much pain Ruby had been in ever since she had lost her memories. This had been lying underneath the surface all that time. "You're beautiful! You're amazing! And I'm a beast!" A sob choked Ruby's throat at the last word.
"No, Ruby. Ruby!" Belle shook Ruby's arms, but the wolf pulled away, turning her back and placing a hand over her mouth as her breathing heaved. "Ruby, I love you! Just you!"
"I know… I know that," replied Ruby, her voice strangled. "But I just need… I need... I'm sorry," she said, before she ran from the room. Belle followed her, throwing herself down the stairs after her love, but as soon as Ruby had thrown open the library doors, she transformed into a wolf and sprinted away. Belle skidded to a halt at the bottom of the stairs, watching the wolf disappear down the street through the open doors.
"RUBY!" she yelled, her voice echoing around the library, but the only reply was a distant howl. Belle collapsed to her knees and held her head in her hands as tears poured from her eyes, before she slammed her fist into the floor, sobs wracking out of her body. Mulan, now fully clothed, crept down the stairs. Her heart wrenched as she saw the poor woman sitting on the floor, pounding the hard floor with her fist so violently she could break the bones.
"Belle," Mulan breathed, unsure of what to do. Another sob made up her mind, and she crawled to the hard, unforgiving floor next to Belle and wrapped an arm around her, gripping her fist before she caused herself serious harm. Belle fought her a little, but Mulan's superior strength restrained her. Belle curled up to Mulan, who hugged her close as Belle's tears mixed with the water dripping from Mulan's wet hair. Mulan couldn't tell if Belle was shivering from the cold or shaking from her painful sobs.
"It'll be okay," she said quietly, over and over as she draping her arms over Belle's, protecting her from the icy breeze left in Ruby's wake.