Note: Someone requested something along the lines of Gold witnessing Belle's maternal side during a school trip to the library. I'd already had pretty much the exact same idea! The quotes from the story Belle is reading come from 'Another Mince Pie' by H.E. Todd, which was my favourite Christmas story when I was little.
Summary: Gold thinks that Belle would make an excellent mother, and is threatened by a six-year-old.
Mince Pie
It was the third day of December and the weather was definitely beginning to take a turn for the worse. Gold gritted his teeth against the chill wind as he made his way towards the library to collect Belle. It wasn't often that he finished work before her, especially on a Tuesday, but for the second year running, Belle and Tina were organising 'After-School Advent', where the children could come along and build up the library's nativity scene day by day, participate in winter-themed activities, and listen to festive stories.
The two young librarians took it in turns to read and tonight was Belle's night. Tina was leaning on the issue desk watching the crowd of children sitting on the floor and the old bean bags around Belle's feet as she read aloud from the Christmas storybook in the children's corner. Tina gave Gold a wave as he entered before returning her attention to Belle. It was past the library's normal closing time, and there was no-one else in there. Gold came over and leaned back on the desk next to Tina, as loath to break the spell as she was. The children were rapt and aside from Belle's soft voice, there wasn't a sound to be heard in the library.
""Who on earth can be crying on Christmas Day of all days?" he said to himself. At least, he thought he said it to himself, but he can't have done because a voice answered him. It did, really.
"I'm crying," it said. "And I'm not on earth, I'm on top of the Christmas tree.""
Gold loved listening to Belle read aloud. She hadn't liked doing it at first, suddenly and inexplicably conscious of her accent, but at Gold's encouragement she had continued and perfected her art. Gold could quite see how she captured the kids' attention so fully. In her skirt and pixie boots, sitting on one of the small children's chairs, she wouldn't have looked at all out of place as a fairy princess in a picture book.
Tina glanced up at the clock on the wall and Gold followed her eyeline; it was nearly five o'clock and the parents would be arriving to collect their children soon. About a minute later the first parents arrived and came into the library, chatting loudly, whereupon one of the children turned round and shushed them with a fierce expression. Abashed, the adults fell silent and Belle continued to read, trying hard to hide her smile.
"Well, it was a very large mince pie, and she was a very small fairy, but Bobby gazed goggle-eyed as she tucked into it. In no time at all the mince pie was eaten right up.
"That was delicious," said the fairy."
As more and more parents came into the library so more and more people fell under Belle's spell and listened to the end of the story with Gold and Tina.
""Thank you so much for being so clever," replied the fairy, and Bobby felt quite proud of himself.
"Before I go to bed," he asked, "is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Yes please," said the fairy wistfully.
"What is it?" asked Bobby.
"I should like another mince pie," said the fairy."
Belle closed the book. "That's the end, folks, and now it's time to go home. I'll see you all again tomorrow."
"Thank you," the children chorused, but her name was lost in different variations, with some calling her Belle, some calling her Mrs Gold and the overall effect being that of 'Mrs Belle'. Gold raised one eyebrow at Tina.
"Oh, that's normal," she said with a laugh. "Belle's Mrs Belle and I'm Miss Tina. It gets confusing otherwise, since my last name's Bell as well. Children are always told that it's polite to call grown-ups Miss or Mrs or Mr So-and-so, and when we tell them that they can call us by our first names, the amalgamation begins."
Gold continued to watch the children leaving in dribs and drabs, and Belle chatting easily with them. Not for the first time, he pictured Belle with her own child, teaching him or her the wonders of the written word and reading bedtime stories every night. All of a sudden Gold was reminded of the bedtime stories he used to read to Bae, twenty years ago now, and something inside him twisted.
Tina cut through his reminiscences with her goodbye, running off to catch her bus, and Gold was left alone at the issue desk.
Only one little girl was left talking excitedly to Belle and seemingly refusing to go home, and Belle was trying to shepherd her towards her mother and the exit. Gold recognised her as the one who had told the parents to be quiet earlier.
"It's time to go home, Rachel!" Belle was saying. "The library's closing! Tina's already gone home, see. Your mum's here to take you home. My husband's here to take me home."
Rachel looked at Gold, leaning on the issue desk, and she came over to him.
"So you're Mr Belle?" she asked.
"No, Rachel, he's Mr Gold." Rachel's mother followed her over to the desk and began wrestling her daughter into her coat and scarf.
"Oh no, Mr Belle's probably a more accurate description," Belle called from the bookshelves. She gave Gold a dazzling smile over her shoulder, and he stuck his tongue out at her. Rachel giggled, but then became worryingly sombre and beckoned for Gold to come down to her level so that she could whisper in his ear.
"Rachel! Stop pestering Mr Gold, it's time to go!" Her mother tugged on her hand. "I'm so sorry," she added to Gold. "Come on, Rachel!"
"No, no, it's ok." Gold crouched down, leaning on his cane.
"Mrs Belle loves you a lot," Rachel whispered, her hot breath tickling his ear. "I heard her telling Miss Tina that you were the best thing that had ever happened to her."
She pulled away and gave him a stern look, and Gold knew that he had just been threatened by a six-year-old. Hurt Mrs Belle, her look said, and you will have to deal with me. He blinked.
"Thank you, Rachel," he finally managed to say. "I love Belle a lot too, so I think we're all going to be all right."
Rachel beamed in response and her mother finally succeeded in dragging her away. Gold stayed crouched on the ground for a little while longer, still trying to process what had just happened.
"You look slightly shellshocked," Belle commented, coming over with her coat on and giving him a hand up. "What could she possibly have said?"
"Belle, I've just had a veritable shovel talk," Gold muttered as they left the building and Belle locked up. "From a six-year-old. You certainly endear yourself to your young charges."
Belle laughed.
"I love after-school advent," she said wistfully. "The children are always so enthusiastic, and I love reading to them." She tailed off. "Gold, I've been meaning to talk to you about something. I should have told you sooner but I wanted to make sure I didn't chicken out and so far it hasn't made a difference because we haven't... I'm gabbling, aren't I?"
"Just a little, Mrs Gold."
Belle fell silent before she slipped her arm through his and they walked down through the narrow streets towards the shopping centre car park. It was a long time before she spoke again.
"You remember last year, when Ruby got pregnant and we were talking about having kids ourselves?"
"Yes, I remember."
"You remember that we said that if it happened then great, and if it didn't, then that was fine too?"
"Yes, I remember that as well." Gold wondered precisely where the conversation was going. He had an inkling, but he didn't want to guess.
"Well, a little while ago, I was looking at my birth control prescription, and I thought to myself, "this is silly, because all other variables aside, we're never going to have a baby if I'm on the Pill'. So… I didn't put my prescription in. And I ran out of pills three days ago. And obviously that's a moot point because we haven't actually made love since I stopped taking it, but I thought I probably ought to tell you, in case you thought it was too soon or something. I've still got the prescription, I can take it to the pharmacy tomorrow..."
Gold stopped and pressed a finger to Belle's lips to silence her nervous stream of chatter.
"Gold," she said against his finger, "please say something."
Words, always his tool of choice, chose that moment to fail him, so he kissed her instead. Belle relaxed into his embrace, slipping her arms around his middle under his coat. Perhaps this time next year, it would be their own child that Belle was reading to.