Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke
A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover
Season 1, Episode 12, Chapter 2

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

At Rumpelstiltskin's Dark Castle, Belle was assigned a room, though it was in fact the dungeon. The young woman was to be his caretaker. While still in her yellow and gold ball gown she brought out the tea service to serve him his drink. It was here, in the main hall, that Rumpelstiltskin made his full demands known to her.

"You will serve me my meals and you will clean the Dark Castle," he told the frightened Belle. "You will dust my collections and launder my clothing. You will fetch me fresh straw when I'm spinning at the wheel."

"Got it," she said as she filled a teacup with the hot brew.

"Oh, and you will skin the children I hunt for their pelts."

Belle, shocked and horrified by that last demand, dropped the teacup onto the carpet.

"That was just a quip," he replied with a gleeful grin. "Not serious."

Belle was fully relieved. He was a monster, which everyone knew. Thankfully, he wasn't that much of a monster. That assumption was put to the test when she picked up the teacup and found that it had chipped. "It's just a cup," he told her.

~O~

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

After school Tina met with her best friend, Penny. Along with Valerie the trio gathered at Penny's house to play video games. Or in this case, to fulfill a bargain made with Valerie. Penny had set up one of her game platforms so that Vidia could "practice" driving without taking out the minivan.

The game was a racing program on the Xbox 360 operated by a set of pedals and a steering wheel, just as Penny had described. "Now remember," the young teen said, reminding Vidia of why she was here. "This game will help you improve your driving skills by presenting you with difficult situations that requires instant recognition, extreme hand / eye coordination and..."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember what you said last time," Vidia said cutting her off. "Biggest snow job I ever heard. Not surprising coming from a winter fairy."

Tina and Penny just stood there, dumbstruck as Valerie grinned back at them. The pair thought they had put one over on her. It turned out Valerie knew precisely what the two had been up to all along.

"That's why she's the older sister," Tina finally stated.

Vidia was shown how to "drive" within the game. After a few bad starts and some fairy curse words she began to get the hang of it. Soon the fast flyer moved from the "practice stage" into the actual racing gameplay.

While she was busy Tina and Penny spoke about something else. "Sorry I had to bail on you for the game convention," Tina apologized. "I was just so sick."

"You mean like at the restaurant?"

"Yeah, but worse. My gut felt terrible and I was nauseous for hours."

"Do you know what's wrong?"

"No. I've been searching WebMD. So far I've narrowed it down to about twenty possible conditions including GERD, stomach flu, irritable bowel syndrome, food poisoning, gastroparesis… whatever that is, ulcers, cyclic vomiting syndrome, milk allergy, Crohn's Dis-."

"Okay, okay, I get the idea. Did you eat anything strange?" Penny asked.

"Nothing out of the ordinary," Tina replied, trying to remember each meal for the past few days. "Well, except for that peanut butter and banana sandwich, but that was after the convention."

"Wow, an Elvis sandwich. That's a new one. Maybe it's time you visited the doctor."

"I can't. Not just yet. Mom is still paying off Valerie's medical bills. I don't think she can handle another hospital visit."

"Well, then I guess you need to stock up on some Pepto Bismal and watch what you eat," Penny suggested. "You might want to start with that milk allergy. Don't take any dairy for a while and see what happens."

"Yeah, okay. That sounds like a good idea. Thanks."

"Hey, want to see the costumes I had made up for us?"

"Absolutely."

"Come on, I'll show you."

~O~

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

Several months had passed since Belle was taken prisoner as Rumpelstiltskin's "caretaker." It was spring outside. The ice on the mountain where the Dark Castle was located had melted leaving a lush and green landscape in its place. Sadly, no one inside could enjoy it.

Belle was cleaning house as she had each day since coming here. Her master had replaced the formal gown with a blue and white plainclothes dress and blouse. She was standing on a ladder trying to remove the drapes to beat the dust out of them but they wouldn't budge.

"What did you do?" she asked him. "Nail them down?"

"Yes," he replied confused by her need to remove the window covers.

Finally she managed to pull one of the drapes free, but in the process Belle toppled off the ladder. She was caught in the waiting arms of a very surprised Rumpelstiltskin. The bright light of the spring day was temporarily blinding to The Dark One.

She thanked him for catching her. Then apologized for tearing down his drapes. "I'll put them back."

"No. That's okay. I'll get used to it," he told her. Rumpelstiltskin walked away feeling a bit confused. Within him stirred a strange sensation. A feeling he had not known in some time.

~O~

PIXIE HOLLOW, NEVER LAND

The coronation had gone off without a hitch. Queen Clarion remembered every word she was to say during the ceremony and she fumbled over only one word during her speech. Now came the procession.

Clarion was in a mouse drawn carriage which took her on a tour of Pixie Hollow so that everyone, fairy and animal alike, could meet their new monarch. The path for her parade was lined with cheering fairies and critters. She did her best to get through it all. While a princess, Queen Clarion had developed a reputation for getting her hands dirty. Sitting up here in the carriage waving to her subjects ran counter to her personality. Clarion was bored. She wanted to be out there with them, not here distant and detached.

The procession wended its way through the three seasons of the warm side: Spring, Summer and Fall. She passed by the communities for every major guild and was heralded at the center of each season. The pageant moved slowly, painfully slowly, along its path until it reached its final destination. A bridge over a babbling stream.

On the others side of this particular bridge was a landscape covered in white. This was the Winter Woods. Off limits to the warm fairies the winter season was overseen by a Lord or Lady of Winter who ruled in the name of the queen.

The royal carriage stopped at the border between the fall and winter seasons. On the opposite side of the river which acted as the boundary hundreds of winter fairies had gathered. This was the other reason for the procession, so the winter residents of Pixie Hollow could meet their new queen.

Standing front and center among the winter fairies was a sparrow man tall and strong. He had dark hair, chiseled features and caring eyes, but it was his way of carrying himself that immediately identified him as the ruler of winter.

"Presenting Clarion the First, queen of all Pixie Hollow and the Winter Woods; defender of the law and ruler of all fairydom," Redleaf bellowed once again. Clarion glided out to the edge of the root bridge where she stood straight and tall as befitting her new station.

Immediately the Lord of Winter knelt before her in fealty. When he did ever other winter fairy knelt, silently proclaiming their undying allegiance to her.

"Rise and speak your name," she said, following the same script used by her mother and every queen since the beginning of Pixie Hollow.

The tall and handsome looking sparrow man stood. "I am Milori, Lord of Winter, ruler of the Winter Woods. My subjects and I live to serve you with full devotion, my queen."

"These are all your subjects?" Queen Clarion asked looking them over. "A fine group they are. You are to be congratulated, Lord Milori."

"Thank you, my queen."

Clarion made a short speech directed specifically at the winter fairies of Pixie Hollow. Under the rule of Queen Clarus, the warm and winter seasons were allowed limited contact at the border. Queen Clarion instead wanted greater integration of the two sides and declared unlimited contact at all the boundaries between the warm and winter seasons. Clarion believed that only with this full integration could Pixie Hollow survive and flourish.

This pronouncement was met with thunderous applause by both the fairies of the Winter Woods and the warm seasons. Clarion's reputation for greater empathy towards the common fairies extended even into the Winter Woods. This new edict while not entirely surprising given Clarion's attitudes, was somewhat unexpected. Most believed the new queen would wait before altering her mother's rules.

Queen Clarion then declared that Milori would continue as ruler of the Winter Woods at her discretion which was also met with great joy by the subjects of the frozen season. This was a common practice when a new queen arrived. It was little more than a formality, but it was a tradition which dated back millennia. When the full ceremony at the border was complete the procession made its way back to the Pixie Dust Tree. As it did Clarion summoned to her side her closest friend, a slightly chubby but enthusiastic tinker fairy named Mary.

"That went well, Your Highness," Mary spoke.

"Thank you, Mary. Tell me, what was your impression of the Lord of Winter?"

"He is well liked among the winter fairies," Mary answered. "Kind hearted, proactive and always seeking to bring out the greatest potential of his subjects."

"Anything else?"

"Well, he is quite handsome," Mary replied, sensing the direction of the queen's curiosity.

Clarion smirked. Her cheeks turned a particularly deep shade of crimson. "Really? I hadn't noticed."

~O~

In the Winter Woods, Lord Milori returned to his ice castle. His friend and confidant Dewey, who was also the Keeper of all Fairy Knowledge, was speaking with him. Milori asked Dewey many of the same questions Clarion had asked Mary.

"Do you think she will make a fine queen?" Milori queried.

"Well, she was known as 'The People's Princess' for a reason," Dewey reminded him. "I suspect she'll be as good as, if not better, than Queen Clarus."

Milori considered Dewey's response. "Yes, I suppose you're right. Did you notice anything else about her?"

"Well, eh, she is rather nice looking," Dewey replied, "if you don't mind me saying so."

"Really?" Milori answered, his cheeks turning flush. "I hadn't noticed."

~O~

STORYBROOKE, MAINE

It was just as Mr. Gold had said. Moe French had indeed broken into the pawn broker's house and stolen the man's property. French clearly had an axe to grind. When Gold arrived at the Sheriff's Office she removed a sheet showing everything that had been recovered.

"This is most of what was stolen," she told him, satisfied that this case was coming together so quickly. "A job well done."

"And the man himself?" Gold asked while searching through the delicate china and flatware that was sitting on the Sheriff's desk.

"I'm closing in on him as we speak," Swan answered. "When I catch him I'll recover the rest of your stolen property."

Mr. Gold tossed the sheet back over the items on the desk in a fit. He stormed out of the room saying, "Job well half done, Sheriff."

Emma was more confused than ever. One thing was certain, however, Gold was looking for something. Something very specific that wasn't included among the items she had returned to him. Whatever it was it must have been incredibly important to him. She didn't care about what or why. What concerned her the most was that Mr. Gold seemed ready to exact revenge on Moe French. Now it was more important than ever to find Mr. French. Not just to capture the thief, but protect him from Mr. Gold.

~O~

THE ENCHANTED FOREST

"Why do you spin so much?" Belle asked her captor. "You have more gold than you could possibly spend."

Rumpelstiltskin was sitting at a great wheel, a variation of the device characterized by a towering wheel. Carefully he put straw into the simple machine with one hand. As he did Rumpel used his free hand to slowly turn the machine with the straw emerging as gold chain on the other side.

Upon hearing her query Rumpelstiltskin continued to spin, but answered, "It helps me forget."

"Forget what?"

He stopped to think about it. "I guess it worked," he answered with a playful grin.

Belle mentioned that while cleaning the rooms she found some clothing that belonged to a child. To satisfy her curiosity Rumpel told her that it belonged to his son. A son whom he lost along with this wife.

"So you were man, once?" she asked, reading between the lines.

"That was a very long time ago," he answered.

There was a thunderous knock at the door. Rumpelstiltskin answered it to find a man in military clothing.

"I am Sir Gaston," he announced. "I am here to-."

Weary of him, Rumpelstiltskin turned Gaston into a rose. He returned to the great hall where he then presented it to Belle as gift. He told her that he acquired it from an old lady selling them. Belle clipped the end of the stem and put the rose into a vase with water.

Then Rumpel turned the questions around. He wanted to know about Gaston, the man she was supposed to marry.

"It was an arranged marriage," she confessed. Belle had no love for the man. She left home and Gaston because she had a desire to do something heroic.

"Oh is that why you came here? To slay the monster? Be the hero? Eh? Eh?" he asked in a silly tone of voice.

"Oh no," Belle replied. Women didn't have many such chances to do heroic deeds in her land. When one presented itself she took it. It had been her hope to see the world and have many grand adventures of the kind she had read in her collection of books. Of course that would be impossible now that she was his caretaker, but at least she was able to do something meaningful with her life that helped other people.

Rumpelstiltskin had developed a strong bond with the girl during her time here. At first she was afraid of him. But as time passed that fearfulness went away. Now she treated him with respect and dignity. She sympathized with him and for him.

Strangely he found himself beginning to reciprocate those feelings. Maybe he was even becoming attracted to her. To that end he asked her to go into town and bring more straw. He was running low.

"You trust me to come back?" she asked him, surprised that he was letting her go alone.

"Oh no. I suspect I will never see you again."

He was giving her the opportunity to escape and return to her father. To be heroic. To live the adventures that up till now she only knew about from her books. Belle donned a cloak and took a sack for the straw and left. She had no intention of returning to the Dark Castle. She was going home.

I'm pretty sure Gaston is no more after being turned into a rose and getting his stem clipped.

I suppose you Freudians are going to read something into that.