Season 2 Rewatch Drabbles

by jdmusiclover

A series of 100-500 word drabbles to accompany my rewatch of season 2 of Once Upon a Time as an attempt to finally jump start the muse again. There will be a drabble-either a deleted scene, a "fix it" fic or a character musing for each episode of the season. Focus will be on Emma, Henry, the Charmings and Killian-with an emphasis on the very beginnings of Captain Swan.

16. 2x16 The Miller's Daughter

And so it came down to this. Rumple supposed it was inevitable; he supposed the only way the Dark One ever went out was with violence.

What surprised him was his lack of fear. He'd spent a lifetime–several lifetimes in fact–as a coward, so desperate to hold onto his power that he'd do anything, anything to keep it, but now, with the dreamshade surging through his heart, zapping his strength and his will to live, he was just…tired, ready to have it over with.

He didn't suppose he'd enjoy the afterlife that awaited him. After all, he'd done more unforgivable things during his tenure as Dark One than he could count. But he couldn't worry himself about that now. He was just So. Damn. Tired.

"A vision told me about you; told me this day would come, but it didn't tell me everything;" Rumple said, looking up at Cora, standing over him with the dagger in hand, "didn't tell me what I really wanted to know."

Cora sat on the bed beside him, looking at him with something akin to tenderness, if the emotion was even possible for her. "And what's that?"

"Did you ever love me?" he asked softly.

He'd loved her; truly he had–not in the way he loved Belle, to be sure, but he supposed he didn't deserve the love of a woman as pure and good as Belle. Someone who was so corrupted by her own ambition and inflated sense of self worth as Cora was probably more what he deserved.

Cora's face softened even more, and she reached an impossibly gentle, gloved hand to caress his face and swipe the damp hair from his forehead. "Why do you think I had to rip my own heart out? You were my weakness; you were the only man I truly loved."

And with that, she stood, raising the dagger high above her head, preparing to plunge it into his chest.

Rumple watched dispassionately, making peace with the inevitable. He'd made one last play, manipulating Mary Margaret to use the candle to save his life, and he knew he'd convinced her to do it.

But it appeared help wasn't coming soon enough.

His last play had failed, and all that was left was to be grateful he'd been able to make his peace with his son and his true love. It wasn't enough, but he supposed it was more than he deserved.

He took a breath, waiting for the inevitable, as he endeavored to make his last thoughts thoughts of them.

Belle.

Bae.