A/N Oh and guys, if you find mistakes, please don't feel shy to rub my face in them.

The next morning the girl made a show of not talking to him. Rumpelstiltskin knew it was a show, because she would glance at him when she thought he wasn't looking to determine whether her silent treatment was noted. It was childish of her yet he found it rather amusing.

There was little she could occupy herself with in the cell. Belle undid her messy braid and combed her fingers through her long brown hair in an attempt to untangle it somewhat. It was an absolute failure of course, so she roped her locks back into a braid with a sigh, hoping she didn't have too many loose strands of hair sticking out.

Belle stood up, stretched and walked around the cell, feeling the tingling in her muscles from too much sitting. The front bars of her cell were iron, but Rumpelstiltskin's cell was wooden all around, even the space where their cells adjoined looked easy enough to break. Belle wondered whether it wasn't just plain wood, perhaps it was charmed. She also heard of magic trees that could heal or even grant wishes if you knew the right words. It would be logical that the most powerful dark sorcerer was bound and encaged with magic, she thought.

As Belle stepped around on the rough stone floor, she could almost feel Rumpelstiltskin's dark eyes with oversized irises follow her every move and her cheeks flushed as Belle suddenly became aware of how tightly the leather pants hugged her legs. Her papa frequently told her to avoid wearing this particular riding outfit, always referring to it as provocative and inappropriate for a lady, but she couldn't be wearing a ball dress on her quest. Belle switched her attention to counting the steps she took. She also noted how she hadn't seen any rats since there was light in the dungeon. Belle knew rats were not afraid of the fire and she shivered at the thought of having them back around soon.

When food was brought to them, Belle was disappointed to see she all she got again was water. She sipped it slowly, watching Rumpelstiltskin lift the bowl up to his face to sniff its contents before scowling and putting it aside.

Belle was no longer angry at him but she thought he deserved a cold shoulder after yesterday's remark. She was tired of men treating her like a silly girl. She liked to think she was intelligent, at least she knew for sure she was a lot smarter than most girls her age. Belle had always liked books as they were so much kinder than the real world. After her mother passed away, Belle would comfort herself by escaping into imaginary lands, where there were heroes, adventures and happy-endings. Of course, she read other books too - on math and household, astronomy and medicine, she even gave a shot to a dusty volume of Laws of the Kingdom, but fantasy stories had always been her favorite.

Belle did hope she looked stern and independent by not talking to her prison mate, but her pride was shattered the second her stomach made a loud, angry gurgling noise. She pressed her palms to her middle trying to conceal it. Belle was ravenously hungry. She looked at Rumpelstiltskin's bowl longingly but she still hesitated. She chewed on her lip and finally decided that asking would not hurt.

"Are you going to have that?" Belle gestured at the food.

Rumpelstiltskin shook his head and pushed the bowl across for her to reach. Unfortunately, there was no gap beneath the bars separating the cells for the food to go through.

"Um… thank you. But I think I will need a spoon too, please?"

Again, wordlessly, Rumpelstiltskin stood up and walked to the opposite side of his cell. He passed the wooden spoon to Belle through the bars and she took it with thanks.

He sat down there and watched her scoop up some of the porridge. It was drying up around the sides of the bowl and was probably cold and clammy, and Rumpelstiltskin scowled recalling its taste, but the girl seemed to be too hungry to care. She ate hurriedly, as if he could change his mind and take the food away. It was a bit awkward with the bars in the way as she had to move her hands into his cell to reach for the bowl but she quickly adjusted to it.

"Has anyone told you that it was dangerous to put your hands in a monster's cage? I could bite them off, you know", Rumpelstiltskin teased.

Belle actually laughed at that, her smile quite disarming.

"Then I'd have to worry about two less things that would get cold on me.

She finished her meal, scraping the bowl almost clean but didn't move away. Instead she reached forward and covered Rumpelstiltskin's hand with her own.

"Thank you", she said sincerely, looking up at him.

His skin wasn't slimy after all. It felt warm and slightly rough under her fingers and Belle stroked her fingertips over his palm lightly, curiously.

Rumpelstiltskin was confused. It's literally been ages since anyone touched him without disgust before cringing away and he didn't understand why Belle would do that. He looked up to her face, trying to figure it out, but she met his gaze calmly and without fear. Why would such a simple touch worry him so much? He felt a knot tighten up in his stomach, his breath quickened and he felt excited and nervous for no reason at all. If he didn't know better, he'd think he was under a spell, but he was the Dark One, he knew when spells were cast. Besides, his form could not be influenced by most of them. Most, but not all, he mused, apparently other magical creatures could be used to enchant him, that's how he ended up here after all, but the girl was no nymph or enchantress. He would have sensed that.

He looked down to where their hands were joined. Her small palm was cool on his skin but strangely it felt as though were she to hold it there longer, it would burn a hole through his body. Rumpelstiltskin shook her hand off and turned away, leaning his back against the bars to avoid looking at her, but the feel of her touch still lingered. However unusual it was to be touched, he liked it but he wasn't about to let her know how much he enjoyed that. The girl was probably too overwhelmed with gratitude or plainly silly enough to realize who she was touching. It was a one-time thing and it would never happen again.

Rumpelstiltskin tensed up when he felt Belle's body press to his back. She shifted until she found a comfortable position and sighed.

"It's warmer that way", she said apologetically, "You don't mind it much, do you?"

He didn't mind, but Rumpelstiltskin would rather bite his own tongue off than acknowledge that. It still struck him as incredibly odd how this girl could trust him so easily. The same person who cried her eyes out days ago was now touching him freely as if it was the most natural thing in the world. As if he wasn't twisted, both inside and out - as if he wasn't the dark sorcerer to be hated and despised. The girl was young and naïve, she didn't know one hundredth of what the Dark One was like, otherwise she'd never spare him a second look. To her he was just a man who showed her kindness by sharing his meal and provided little conversation that helped to pass the time.

They were sitting in silence but it was peaceful. He could feel her back move slightly as she breathed and Rumpelstiltskin for a moment wished that there were no bars separating them. That thought filled him with dread. Was he already getting attached? He dismissed the unlikely notion. No, of course he wasn't. He was just bored, that was all. Bored and alone for long enough to enjoy a company of another being.

"Rumpelstiltskin?" She called out softly.

He turned his head to hear her better, his long wavy hair brushing her shoulder and the side of her face. She was sitting so close, her breath felt warm on his cheek. Rumpelstiltskin expected it to be unpleasant, after all she had no chance to brush her teeth or to do anything else about her hygiene, but Belle's breath was neutral and tickled his face as she spoke. Their closeness was a lot more enjoyable than it had any right to be.

"Could you teach me some magic?"

"Why would you want that, dearie?" Rumpelstiltskin used to have several apprentices, but eventually the power clouded their minds, making them hungry for more and they either went mad or attempted to kill their master to absorb his magic. There was one witch however, who he could be distantly proud of, in a way, but he didn't want to think of Regina now.

"Because it's interesting", Belle replied. "And because I'd do good things with it".

She'd do good things with magic. The girl was mad, talking to the Dark One like that. Although long ago Rumpelstiltskin had noble goals as well. He wanted to feed the hungry, to end war and put the shredded pieces of his family back together. Everything in life came at a price though; he learnt it the hard way. And even magic with the purest intentions behind it could - and often did - backfire.

"I could teach you to do tricks, but that is all."

Belle sighed but didn't argue. She moved away from him, hearing the food boy approach and he immediately missed the presence of her little body at his side.

But as Rumpelstiltskin turned towards the intruder, he froze. It wasn't the prison duty boy who brought him meals. It was a stern-looking guard who unlocked the girl's cell, seized her by the arm and roughly dragged her towards the exit and out of the dungeon.