They took Rumplestiltskin's carriage as following by teleportation wasn't an option Belle sat across from him as they rode dressed in a spring green cloak he had conjured along with brown leather gloves. No point in bringing her if the girl died of cold on the trip.
"I'm losing track of him. This forest is too thick," said Rumplestiltskin as they drove.
"Maybe we should return home." suggested Belle and he snorted. This one really didn't give up did she.
"What, and let the thief escape? What would people think if I spared the life of someone who stole from me?"
"That there's actually a man hiding behind the beast?" Rumplestiltskin didn't like perceptive way she looked at him or her slightly sarcastic tone.
"There isn't." he assured her.
"Then why didn't you kill me when I freed the prisoner?" Belle countered. Internally Rumple cursed. DAMN that woman.
"Well, I would have. But good help these days is very hard to find." It was a weak excuse and they both knew it.
Belle scoffed at his answer. It both irritated and intrigued Rumplestiltskin that she didn't believe him. For gods, sake she'd just heard him torturing a man yet she was still insisting on seeing "the best" in him?
"I think that you are not as dark as you want people to believe. I think that deep down, there's love in your heart. And for something more than power."
Rumplestiltskin narrowed his eyes in annoyance. Belle seemed to have a talent for hitting the heart of matters without even trying. Perhaps he should have bargained for a less insightful maid. Of course she was right. He did have one thing he loved more than power. Bae. Not that he would EVER reveal that to her.
He leaned in and said,
"You're right. There is something I love." Belle leaned towards him as if intrigued and he smirked before saying in a high pitched tone. "My things!" Belle sat back.
"You really are as dark as people say." Why did it make him uncomfortable when she said that?
"Darker, dearie. Much darker." Seeing a man on a horse riding towards them Rumplestiltskin halted the carriage and helped Belle out. After all he didn't need her twisting an ankle falling out of the carriage.
The man on the horse dismounted. He had lanky brown hair and a clear air of one who was slightly hung over. However, he also bore the mark of the sheriff.
"What are you doing in my woods?" the man demanded. Rumplestiltskin stepped forward. Using a slightly more human accent. No need to give anything away yet.
"Pardon the intrusion, sheriff. Uh, I'm looking for a thief. He attacked me with this bow. Uh, I-I traced him as far as these woods, and then he vanished."
"Yes, I know exactly who you're after. But I also know who you are, Rumplestiltskin," said the man. Rumplestiltskin smirked.
"My reputation precedes me. Excellent."
"Yes, as does your penchant for making deals. I'll tell you where you can find your thief... if you give me something in return." Unsurprised Rumplestiltskin answered
"What do you want?" expecting gold or power.
"A night with your wench," said the man pointing at Belle. Disgust and an overwhelming sense of protectiveness filled Rumplestiltskin.
OUAT
Belle hoped the man would perhaps not have any information on the thief but it seemed she was out of luck.
"What do you want?" asked Rumplestiltskin.
"A night with your wench," Belle's eyes widened in horror. She knew Rumplestiltskin was mad at her but surely, he wouldn't sell her virtue like that. To her relief her master answered sharply.
"She's not for sale." The sheriff however didn't seem to pick up on the danger in Rumplestiltskin's tone as he laughed.
"You can't part with her for, say, an hour? 20 minutes?" The idiot carriage seems to be missing a passenger," thought Belle what kind of fool tried to argue with the Dark One over a deal? The fact that the man was demanding HER as payment was also likely coloring her distain of him.
"Let me think." said Rumplestiltskin and Belle heard a touch of sarcasm in his tone. "Um..." he waved his hand and suddenly something pink and wet was in his hand. The sheriff began to cough and Belle realized it was his tongue.
"I propose a new deal. I give you this back, and in return, you tell me everything you know about the man I am hunting." The sheriff continued to gag and had he not moments ago threatened to rape Belle she might have felt pity for him.
"You ought to be more careful with your possessions." he said waving the tongue. It was a rather gruesome sight but at least a more merciful fate than the one he'd bestowed upon the thief.
"Do you agree to my terms?" jeered Rumplestiltskin as the man finally grunted. And Rumplestiltskin giggled. "All right, I'll take that as a "yes" then." he waved his hand and the man's tongue was returned leaving him gasping.
"Aah! Aah!"
"Start talking." snarled her master.
"The thief that you're after—I've been chasing him for years. He ruined me! He stole the woman I love and... made me the laughing stock of all of Nottingham."
"Given how much you drink are you sure you needed any help with that?" thought Belle. She was a forgiving person but the man's threat had still left her shaken.
"Where can I find him?"
"Well, the last I heard, he was hiding out in Sherwood Forest."
"And his name?" asked Rumplestiltskin. The sheriff scowled.
"Robin Hood. He goes by Robin Hood."
OUAT
Unfortunately, it didn't take long for them to find Robin Hood after that. And soon they were trekking through the forest on foot.
"You, uh, you know it's still not too late to... to turn back." Suggested Belle desperately. Rumplestiltskin ignored her and she tried to take a firmer stance though she had no idea how she'd actually follow through on the threat.
"You know, I am not going to stand by and watch you kill a man." Rumplestiltskin scoffed.
"Well, you're welcome to sit if you like, but you are gonna watch. That's the whole point of our little expedition, remember? To see what your actions wrought." They stopped and just over the ridge hiding behind a tree was the thief. "Found him." smirked Rumplestiltskin.
The thief appeared to be looking for someone.
"Look, he's... he's waiting for someone." A carriage pulled up and in its back was a sickly looking woman. "That woman."
"That must be the one he stole from the sheriff." said Rumplestiltskin.
"She's sick. She's going to die." said Belle her heart going out to the poor woman.
"Yeah, and so is he." Rumplestiltskin made to aim but Belle grabbed his arm.
"Stop!" thankfully he lowered the bow slightly. Robin passed the wand over the woman twice and slowly the color returned to her nearly white face. Her cough stopped and she seemed to relax. Belle smiled triumphantly.
"I'm right about him, about why he stole the wand. He did it so he could heal the woman he loves."
"He's still a thief." snapped Rumplestiltskin.
"And she would have died if he hadn't stolen your wand." argued Belle.
"And now he gets to die! And she can tell all of Sherwood Forest what happens when you cross Rumplestiltskin. There!" Rumplestiltskin waved his hand and suddenly the lower half of Belle's body was stuck in the earth. She made to pull herself out but to no avail. "That should give you a good view."
OUAT
Belle had apparently been right. The thief's intentions were pure. But that didn't mean Rumplestiltskin could allow him to get away with it. To stop her interfering Rumplestiltskin trapped Belle's lower body in the earth. As he aimed the bow Belle pleaded with him.
"You don't have to do this. There's good in you. I was right about the thief, and I am right about you." Belle's words were a sharp contrast to those of the dark ones in his head.
"Kill him. Kill him!" Oddly enough it was a genuine contest between the two. The previously sick woman made to get out of the cart revealing she was clearly several months pregnant.
"Look, she's pregnant. You are not the kind of man to leave a child fatherless." pleaded Belle.
Rumplestiltskin exhaled Belle's words reminding him of the seer and that damned prophecy from so long ago. Belle was right he wouldn't inflict the that fate on any child.
Altering his aim Rumple loosed the arrow. He heard Belle scream but instead of hitting the thief it hit the carriage. The thief looked round.
"We've been found. Marian, we must go." He helped the woman onto a horse but Rumplestiltskin no longer paid much attention to him as he released Belle from the earth.
"What happened?" she asked.
"I missed." Rumple lied. "Get back to the carriage. I'm bored of this forest." Instead of obeying Belle asked.
"You're—you're not going after him?"
"He's not worth the effort." shrugged Rumple.
"You spared his life." she said her tone pleased.
"What? I did nothing of the sort."
"That bow has magic in it. It never misses its target." The skepticism was evident in Belle's voice. Blast it all. That woman was too clever for her own good. Yet he couldn't find it in his heart to be angry at her any longer.
"Well, perhaps the magic just simply wore... off." he said turning to face her. However, she simply raised an eyebrow a knowing look on her face. Then she did the strangest thing of all she reached up and hugged him.
Rumple froze. It had been centuries since he'd had this kind of contact and now this beautiful young woman was embracing him. She pulled back and began to walk away leaving Rumple still trying to comprehend what happened. She turned back.
"Aren't you coming?" Rumple shook his head and moved to pick up the quiver. As followed he couldn't help the small smile that made it's way onto his face.
OUAT
Belle wasn't sure what had driven her to hug Rumplestiltskin but she certainly didn't regret it. She supposed she had to have just been so happy and proud that he had spared the thief that it was all she could think to do.
Their outing today had only served to prove that she had been right about him. He wasn't so dark after all. Certainly not as much as he wanted to pretend. Otherwise, he'd never have let her live, never have protected her from the sheriff, and certainly never let the thief go.
The thought brought her a happiness she couldn't quite explain. They re-entered the great hall together.
"What do you plan to do with the bow now you no longer need it?" she said, more to make conversation than anything else.
"I think I'll hold onto it. You never know. Could come in handy someday." said Rumplestiltskin hanging the bow and quiver on the corner of a chair. Belle supposed it didn't surprise her. A powerful magical object like that wasn't something he'd just get rid of. More things to dust she thought dryly.
"Well, uh, if you don't need me for anything else, good night, Rumplestiltskin," she said with a curtsy. She made to leave but was stopped by his voice.
"No, wait. There is something else." She followed him curiously as he led her up several flights of steps until they came out into a huge octagonal room covered in bookshelves. Belle gasped at the sight.
"Temper your excitement, dearie. This is merely another room for you to clean." He said though it sounded like an afterthought.
"It's... it's beautiful. There's more books in here than I could read in a lifetime." exclaimed Belle taking in every inch of the room. There was a large fireplace with two comfy chairs perfect for reading in.
"Well, I hope you can clean faster than you can read," Rumplestiltskin told her with no bite to his tone.
"Is this for me?" asked Belle picking up a book and flipping through it. Instead of answering the question Rumplestiltskin pointed at her.
"I better not see a single speck of dust gathering on any of these books." Belle couldn't help the smile that spread across her face and the small giggle that escaped her lips.
"What are you smiling at? I'm serious." Belle took the hand he had pointed at her in hers as her smile softened.
"You're not who I feared you were. And I'm glad." Perhaps it was her imagination but she thought his strange amber eyes seemed to soften slightly as he gazed at her. Then he pulled away.
"Don't stay up too late dearie," he called.
OUAT
Rumplestiltskin watched the look of wonder and joy on Belle's face as she looked over the library. It gave him an odd rush of pleasure to see her expressing such happiness.
"Is this for me?" a part of him wished to tell her the truth that yes, the library was hers now. But another part, the one that was determined to protect himself and that refused to let anyone in, would not let him say the words. Instead, he answered with a quip.
"I better not see a single speck of dust gathering on any of these books." he told her and to his shock she giggled.
"What are you laughing about I'm serious," he told her in a mock serious tone but she only smiled taking his hand.
"You're not who I feared you were. And I'm glad." The small smile on her face made him certain he had made the right decision. It also seemed the day's argument over the thief had been forgiven. He savored the feeling of her hand over his for a moment before pulling away.
"Don't stay up too late dearie!" he told her before heading back down the staircase. Just before he was out of view he glanced back and saw her face alight with interest as she poured over a tome.
Author's Note: I really do love this flashback so much. Especially that little smile he gives after she hugs him. I think that's really where they start falling in love. I am trying on the episode included chapters to add someone of my own take so I'm not just copy pasting dialogue. Thanks again to all who have read and commented do leave your thoughts in the comments below if you like the story. It especially helps with what will be long term projects to keep a consistent update if get some feedback. Until next time!
