Chapter Text
"It's forever dearie," Rumplestiltskin said in a high-pitched tone of voice pointing a finger directly in Belle's face. Three words Belle would never forget. Three words which determined her fate for the rest of her life.
'What a strange man…creature…whatever he is,' Belle thought to herself before responding. "My friends, my family, they will all be safe?" she confirmed.
"You have my word." Rumplestiltskin made a small bow.
"Then you have mine."
Rumplestiltskin giggled and clapped his hands together for another deal gone well.
"BELLE, NO!" exclaimed Maurice, Belle's father, "I can't let you go with this… this BEAST."
Rumplestiltskin looked appalled at being called a beast.
Belle turned to her father and placed her hands on his shoulders, "Father," she glanced over at Gaston then back at her father, "Gaston, it's been decided. I must go with him to ensure the safety of you and our kingdom."
Rumplestiltskin leaned over Belle's shoulder to address her father, "She's right you know."
A shiver went down Belle's spine to feel Rumplestiltskin so close to her. She wasn't afraid of him, but she wasn't sure how close she wanted him either. She caught a whiff of his scent before he backed away. It was nicer than she thought it would be. She could definitely smell the magic, but there was another smell, straw. She always liked the smell of straw. It reminded her of the time she spent outside with her horse, Phillipe. Times she would never enjoy again.
"But what about your safety?" Maurice questioned.
"I will be fine, Papa. Please don't worry. I love you." Belle smiled at him, the last smile of hers he would ever see. She did not want the last thing for him to remember was her being upset and frightened.
Rumplestiltskin put a hand on the back of Belle's waist and led her out the door. Belle was surprised at how gentle his touch was. She looked up at him curiously. Curiosity was always her weakness. Curiosity almost always got her in trouble. Curiosity was partly the reason she didn't object so much to going with Rumplestiltskin. He had intrigued her. Curiosity this time she knew was trouble. She didn't care, 'Anything is better than a life with Gaston,' she thought.
"Belle, NO!" Maurice screamed as the two walked out of the room. Tears formed in Belle's eyes as she heard her father scream for her, but she would not let them fall. She had to be brave: brave for herself, brave for her father, and brave for her kingdom. 'Do the brave thing and bravery will follow,' she told herself.
As the two exited the castle, Belle turned around to get one last look at home. "Take a good look dearie," Rumplestiltskin said in a teasing manner tilting his head where he was looking directly into her eyes, "cause you're never gonna see it again." He touched the tip of her nose as he said the last part. For a second he noticed the hurt she felt towards the words he just spoke, but quickly shook it off. He didn't care how anyone else felt, that was not his nature. "Now take a hold of my arm," he demanded as he held his arm out for her.
Belle looked at him questionably before doing as he said. All of a sudden, purple smoke engulfed the two of them. Belle watched as her kingdom faded away. The purple smoke dissipated, and Belle suddenly found herself looking upon an enormous castle. There were numerous mountains surrounding it. As far as she could see there were no towns or other dwellings. "Is this were you live?" she asked before she could stop herself.
He looked at her for a second. 'Why is she acting so calm? Asking me questions? Such a strange girl…' he thought to himself. "Yes it is. Now let me show you to…your room." He smirked and led her into the castle and down a long stairway. Soon they arrived at the dungeon doors.
"Wait, this is my room?"
"What? Were you expecting a bed and breakfast?" He giggled at his joke, as he shoved her into the room, slammed, and locked the door behind him. "I will be back for you bright and early tomorrow morning!"
Belle listened to his footsteps as he walked away until she could finally hear them no more. After she was sure he was gone, she collapsed on the floor and finally let the tears flow. She cried because she knew she would never see her father again. She cried because she realized she was probably going to live in this cold, dirty dungeon for the rest of her life. Maybe one day she could show him he could trust her not to run away and he wouldn't make her stay down here. 'That's impossible,' she thought, 'he would never show me kindness.' She had heard the stories of Rumplestiltskin. Kindness was not his nature. She wept for over an hour until she fell into a deep slumber on the cold hard dungeon floor.
Rumplestiltskin paused for a minute when he heard it. It was quiet sobs coming from the dungeon where he had just left the girl. Something about hearing her cry made him feel bad. He did not want to hear her cry like that. For a moment he thought about going to get her and taking her to one of the many empty bedrooms that were in his castle. He immediately got infuriated with himself. How could he even think like that? He did not care about this girl; he didn't even know her. He was not going to let her sobs bother him. He turned to exit the dungeon completely. As he went up the stairs he couldn't help but wonder what even make him feel this way.
Rumplestiltskin opened the dungeon door the next morning to find Belle still sleeping. He took a few steps into the room and examined her before she woke. She looked most uncomfortable lying there on the floor in that large yellow ballgown, yet she still seemed to be sleeping soundly. He realized she had no other clothes here. He did not allow her to pack anything before they left. Perhaps he would find her something more comfortable to wear. 'I can't let my servant get slowed down with her chores because she's not properly dressed,' he told himself to avoid the fact he may be doing something nice for this girl.
The main thing he noticed was her beauty. She was very beautiful, more beautiful than any woman he had ever seen. Her long brown curls fell about her face as she silently slept. He remembered the color of her eyes were deep blue, they were very hard to forget. He noticed her face was swollen and puffy, obviously from crying all night. That weird feeling started to come up again but he quickly made it disappear. He cleared his throat and Belle's eyes fluttered open.
Belle looked up at Rumplestiltskin standing over her. 'How long has he been watching me?' she wondered. She immediately stood up and brushed herself off. "I…I'm sorry I was still sleeping when you arrived," she stammered.
"No need to apologize dearie, just follow me." Rumplestiltskin turned and walked out of the room with Belle in toe.
She followed him up to a large room with windows that reached to the ceiling. 'Probably the biggest room in the castle,' she thought. All of the windows were covered in dark red curtains so that no light could get through. There was a fireplace on the wall opposite the windows with a large leather-sitting chair in front of it. On one wall there was what she assumed to be a large mirror, but she couldn't be sure because it was completely covered. The last wall contained a large glass cabinet she could see many trinkets stored inside. There were also many other strange trinkets displayed around the room on pedestals. In the middle of the room there was a very large wooden dining table. A pitcher of tea with four cups was resting on one end. The last thing that caught her eye was the spinning wheel, which sat in the back corner near the window. There was a large basket of straw sitting next to it.
Rumplestiltskin took a seat in one of the four large chairs. He motioned for her to pour a cup of tea, "You will serve me my tea, cook the meals, and clean the dark castle. You will fetch me fresh straw while I am spinning at the wheel."
"I understand," Belle said as she poured the steaming hot tea into one of the white and blue cups and started walking over to him.
"Oh and you will skin the children I hunt for their pelts!" Rumplestiltskin's face lit up at the sound of his comment.
Belle stopped dead in her tracks and accidentally dropped the cup full of tea. 'He can't be serious? Can he…I've heard the stories of the children he takes…maybe he is serious…'
Rumplestiltskin smiled at the reaction he got out of her, "That last one was quip dearie, not serious."
Belle breathed a huge sigh of relief. She bent down to get the dropped cup and noticed it was chipped on the rim. 'Oh no,' she thought, 'he's not going to be happy about this…what will he do to me?' She stood up slowly and glanced at him.
"Something wrong dearie?"
"Um, your cup, I chipped it, I'm sorry…"
Rumple looked up at her curiously for a second, "Well it's just a cup." He waved his hand in the air to signify it really didn't mean anything.
From relief, Belle smiled at him, and placed the cup back on the table to pour another cup of tea. 'That was not as I expected…'
Rumple leaned back in his chair and put his fingers together in a triangle manner in front of him, observing her. 'Did she just smile at me? How odd…'
Belle noticed how his facial features softened a bit when he looked up at her as she handed him his tea. She blushed a little and turned around to hide her slightly red face. 'Why am I blushing?'
Rumplestiltskin took a few sips of his tea and then stood up, "Let me show you were the kitchen is so you can start breakfast."
She nodded yes in reply. He placed his hand on her back just like he did when he led her out of her home to come here. This made the red in her cheeks darken. She kept her eyes on the floor as they walked through the castle to avoid his notice.
The kitchen was located in the back of the castle on the main floor. What stood out most about the kitchen was the back wall. It was mostly one large window, with a glass door. It led directly outside to what looked to be some gardens. 'How pretty,' she thought. The sink was on the left wall with the pantry to the right of it. The stove and the oven were on the wall opposite the gardens. She noticed there was another smaller table in here as well. It was not as fancy as the one in the main room, but rather more homely. She liked the kitchen because in a way it reminded her of home.
"I think you will find all you need in here. If not, just find me and I will help you," Rumplestiltskin said rather softly. Too soft for him he noted. "When you are finished, you can start cleaning," he said a little harsher, "You can start with the rooms on the second floor. All of the cleaning supplies can be found in the next room." He motioned to the door in the back right corner.
She didn't notice that door when she first walked in, but nodded in agreement. "I'll get started then." Belle said. She walked over to the cupboard to pull out pans and plates.
Rumplestiltskin went to leave the room but he stopped. Watching her amused him, and he found himself doing it constantly. She was rather clumsy he noticed. When she tried to pull one pan out of the cabinet they all came tumbling down. "Careful dearie…wouldn't want anymore broken dishes now would we?" he said in his quip like manner.
She smiled up at him realizing he was joking with her, "I'll be careful, I promise."
'There was that smile again…where did she think she was? Who did she think she was with? No one should be smiling at me, especially when they are my captive.' Once again her attire caught his eye, but this time is was the rather large tea stain on the front from earlier. "Uh, I need to go to town for about an hour. Do not try to escape. You will not like the consequences. Even if you try, you will not be successful. There are walls surrounding the entire castle and the gates will not let you through. I'll expect my breakfast as soon as I return," he said sternly, "I almost forgot, I need you to make a little extra." He turned to leave but was stopped by her soft voice.
"Rumplestiltskin?" He turned back around to face her. "I gave you my word that I would come with you forever. I will not try to run."
He almost believed her. "Let's hope not dearie," he sneered and pointed at her, "or you might find there are worse things then living with a monster." He turned and left.
Belle was being honest when she said she would not run. However, she had only been here a day so how could she expect him to trust her? Then again, he may never trust her. She walked over to the pantry to see what she could make for breakfast. She pulled out some bread, eggs, and bacon. She wondered how the eggs and bacon could keep from spoiling, but then remembered Rumplestiltskin used magic freely. She went to shut the door when she remembered he told her to make some extra. 'Extra?' she wondered, 'Oh well, he must eat a lot. He is after all not human, or is he, but I would never guess he ate much at all from the looks of him.'
The thought about how he looked flooded her mind. His skin was greenish-gray-gold, with what looked to be some sort of scales. He has scraggly brown wavy hair, which fell to his shoulders. His eyes were dark, darker than any eyes she had ever seen. He seemed to like wearing leather and dragon's skin. He wore dark leather pants with tall matching boots. He also wore fancy dragon skin vests with very high necks and a long sleeved silk shirt underneath. She wondered if his skin was the same all over his body. Her face immediately turned bright red. 'Why am I thinking about him?! He took me away from my family! This is ridiculous!' She turned her mind away from him and went back to concentrating on making breakfast.
"Are you my fairy godmother?"
Belle jumped at the sound of another voice. She was sure Rumplestiltskin lived alone. He was not the type to have much company, plus she hadn't seen or heard another soul. Who would want to live with him? Belle turned around and disbelief covered her face. Standing in front of her was a small boy, no older than fourteen or fifteen.
Rumplestiltskin left the castle swiftly so he could return as soon as possible. He decided to walk part of the way so he could clear his head. 'Why didn't I tell her about Bae?' he thought as he walked up the forest path, 'She's gonna find out sooner or later. There is no way I could hide him from her. The boy has a mind of his own.' Any other servant he's had in the past, he swiftly told them about keeping their distance from his son or they would find themselves turned to dust. Something about this girl, however, seemed to make him act differently. This infuriated him. He was not going to let any girl, or anyone for that matter, change his ways. He decided when he got back to the Dark Castle he would set it straight and threaten her to stay away from his boy.
As Rumplestiltskin strolled into the town entrance, people started fleeing inside their homes to stay away from him. This was nothing new to him, and he didn't pay them any mind. Within a few minutes he was met by the town mayor. "What can I help you with today sir?" the mayor questioned trying to keep his composure. The mayor bowed down for Rumplestiltskin. It was very rare to see the Dark One in the village and this always made the mayor nervous.
"I'm only here for a few minutes. I need some women's clothing," Rumplestiltskin commanded.
The mayor was slightly confused by Rumplestiltskin's demands. Why would he need women's clothing? However, the mayor knew to never question anything the Dark One requested. "Yes sir, um, right this way. I know just the place. This lady has the best clothes in town. She just moved here." The mayor led Rumplestiltskin to a small clothing shop on the corner. Up above the shop was a sign labeled Andalasia's Fashions. The two stepped in to be greeted by an excessively cheery red headed girl. "Giselle," the mayor said addressing the girl, "Our lord requires some women's clothing. Please help him find everything he needs." The mayor bowed again and left the shop.
"Hello!" said Giselle in a rather too cheerful manner, "You must be here to find something special for your true love!" She grabbed his hand in glee.
Rumplestiltskin was taken aback by her words and ripped his hand away from her's. He wasn't sure if he was more shocked with her audacity to speak in such a way, the fact that she had touched him, or the spoken words themselves. "I can tell you dearie, that you are very much mistaken in what you speak."
"Oh nonsense! I can tell love when I see it! Now let me see…" Giselle walked behind the counter and pulled out a pretty blue dress, "I bet she has blue eyes, and this dress would match them perfectly!"
'This girl is way too happy for my liking. Who does she think she is?' Rumplestiltskin grabbed her arm and pulled her face towards him, "Do you know who I am?" he asked with a very evil gleam in his eyes.
Giselle's happy features changed slightly to a mixture of fear and confusion, "Um…no I don't think so…"
Rumplestiltskin let go of her arm and backed away. He stood there for a minute and stared at this girl who was obviously living in her own little land of bliss. He decided to ignore her and examine the dress she suggested. It was made of an exquisite blue fabric with flowers embroidered throughout. It was outlined in brown velvet. There was a corset, which laced in the front. The strings were made of the same brown velvet as the lining. There was also a white lacey shirt, which went underneath the dress to match. The girl was right; it would match Belle's eyes perfectly. "This dress will do," he said rather coldly as he handed her the gold for it.
Giselle's face instantly lit up, " I knew it! I can always tell! She does have blue eyes doesn't she?"
Rumplestiltskin sneered at her, "I told you, this is not for my true love. I am not in love, nor ever will be. True love is for princes and princesses and if you haven't noticed dearie I am a monster. Stop speaking of such nonsense or you will not like the outcome."
It was like Giselle was oblivious to Rumplestiltskin's threats and rising anger. She continued to talk as she wrapped up the dress. "Oh maybe she doesn't know you love her! You should sing to her! That would reassure her of your affections!" Giselle stared off into space with a dreamy look on her face and started to dance around to music it seemed only she could hear, "And then she would return her love, and you could share true loves kiss and live happily ever after…"
"ENOUGH!" Rumplestiltskin screamed. His anger was at its peak.
Giselle stopped and looked at him. The look of terror on his face would have made any normal person flee instantly, but it was as if Giselle couldn't even see it. All of a sudden he was in her face gripping both her arms. "If you do not stop speaking of this nonsense, if you ever speak of it again, I can assure you, I will send you to a place where there are no happy endings." He shoved her off of him and picked up the wrapped up dress to leave. As he turned to go Giselle stopped him.
"Wait!" she exclaimed.
He turned around to face her.
"You forgot the ribbon for her hair that matches. It comes with it, no charge." She held it up for him to take.
He pondered for a second about leaving the pretty silk ribbon behind, but snatched it out of her hand and left.
As the door shut Giselle leaned down, put both her elbows on the counter, and rested her face in her palms. A small brown chipmunk climbed up on her shoulder. "He has it bad Pip," she said addressing the chipmunk, "So, bad I don't think he even knows it yet." She smiled and drifted back into what others would call her imaginary dreamland where there was nothing but happy endings.
Belle was totally speechless. A boy was the last thing she expected to see in the dark castle. What was he doing here? Who was he? She had heard the tales of Rumplestiltskin tradeing favors in exchange for children. Maybe this boy was one of them.
The boy walked up to Belle and grabbed her hand. He had the biggest smile on his face. "You are aren't you? My fairy godmother? You've come to grant me a wish! I want you to save my father from his curse…please."
'Why does he think I'm a fairy godmother?' she thought. Then she realized she was still wearing the large yellow elegant ball gown. Belle could see so much longing in the boys eyes for this to be real that it almost broke her heart to tell him the truth. "Um…no, I'm sorry. I'm not a fairy godmother."
The boy's smile faded. He could not hide the disappointment that crossed his face, "Well then you must be an angel because you are so beautiful."
Belle blushed. "You are so kind, but no I'm just an ordinary human being."
"Oh. Well I'm Baelfire, but you can call me Bae. What's your name?"
Belle smiled at him, "I'm Belle. It's nice to meet you Bae." She curtsied, "Would you like some breakfast?"
Bae bowed slightly in response. "Yes thank you."
Belle resumed cooking while the two continued to talk.
"What are you doing here?" Bae asked.
"Rumplestiltskin brought me here."
Bae's next words couldn't hide the fright behind them, "You made a deal with him?"
Belle nodded.
"But why? Don't you know him? What did you get in return?"
"Well my kingdom was being destroyed in the Ogre Wars. He agreed to save my kingdom, my friends, and family, if I came here as his caretaker for the castle." Belle set two plates of freshly cooked food down on the kitchen table and motioned for Bae to sit. She sat in the chair adjacent to him.
"Oh. My father saved me too from the Ogre Wars. Looks like we have something to common."
"Rumplestiltskin is your father?"
"Yes."
"I never knew he had a child."
"He doesn't like people to know about me. He's very protective."
"What about your mother?"
"She died when I was younger. It's just been the two of us for a long time."
"I'm sorry to hear that. My mother died when I was a child as well."
"We are a lot alike." Bae gleamed up at her.
Belle giggled a little, I guess we are."
There was silence for a few minutes while the two ate their breakfast.
"So," Belle resumed the conversation, "Why were you in danger in the Ogre Wars?"
"Well they lowered the drafting age to fourteen three days before my fourteenth birthday. They were going to take me away. I most likely would have died. Many of the children in our village had already died, and they were older than me."
"I didn't know the king was drafting children." Belle said sadly. She never knew her father did something like that. It couldn't be true…but why would this boy lie to her. He had no motive. It broke her heart to think her father stooped so low. Knowing this made her sacrifice all the more worth it. She put a hand on Bae's arm, "Well now we don't have to worry about any more children being harmed. They are all safe. Your father made sure of it."
Bae gave her a halfhearted smile. "You know it's my fault my father is like this…"
Belle cocked her head, "Why is that?"
"Well…" He was suddenly interrupted.
"Bae? A word with you please?" said Rumplestiltskin as he stepped out of the shadows.
Belle jumped in her chair. 'How long has he been standing there?' she wondered.
Bae looked down at his feet as he stood up and walked over to Rumplestiltskin, "Yes, Papa?"
"Alone." Rumplestiltskin turned and exited the kitchen with Bae following behind him.
Belle swiftly finished the last few bites on her plate, and cleared the table. She went over to the stove to make Rumplestiltskin's plate. She remembered him telling her to have it ready when he returned, and she did not want to do anything else to upset him. She could tell by his tone of voice that he wasn't pleased she was conversing with his son, but Bae was such a sweet child and it was nice to have someone to talk to. Hopefully her punishment would not be too harsh, and she wished for the boy to have none.
Rumplestiltskin stopped and turned to his son as soon as they were out of hearing range from the kitchen. "What did you tell her?" He tried hard to hold his anger back. He did not like to be angry with Bae.
"Nothing Papa! I swear!"
"I heard you!" His voice rose a little, "You were telling her about the Ogre Wars! And you almost told her about the way I came to be the Dark One! You didn't mention the dagger did you?"
"No! No! I swear! I've seen what you do to servants that find out, I wouldn't want that to be her fate. She's so sweet. She doesn't mean any harm. I just thought she would enjoy her time here if she knew us better."
Rumplestiltskin stared at the ground for a minute trying to stay calm before continuing, "She is our servant," he finnaly said through gritted teeth, "It does not matter if she is happy here you understand me? You do not speak to her again about these things, about anything! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
Bae refused to look his father in the eyes, "Yes, Papa." He said barely audible.
Rumplestiltskin was slightly saddened at the look on Bae's face. He knew the boy was lonely, but he couldn't risk him telling her their secrets. "You can go outside and play today while it's nice out. It will be snowing in a couple weeks, so you should enjoy it while you can."
Bae perked up a little because his father rarely let him go outside, especially unsupervised. He ran to grab his cloak.
"Stay in the back gardens and do not go near the front gate. I will check on you periodically."
"Yes, Papa!" Bae ran out the door.
After he saw Bae was gone, Rumplestiltskin returned to the kitchen. As he stepped in he saw Belle standing there waiting for him. She looked slightly frightened and wouldn't make eye contact with him.
"Your breakfast is there on the table, along with a fresh cup of tea." Belle said carefully.
He could sense she was waiting for some sort of punishment. "Well…yes, thank you." He took a seat. "I see you met my son." He kept a calm demeanor about him.
Belle nodded still avoiding his gaze.
"Ah, well you are not to speak to him. If I catch you doing so you will be punished. You are to attend to your chores and when you are finished you will come find me for further instructions."
"Got it." Belle had the sudden urge to object to not being able to speak to Bae, but she held her tongue. It hurt her a little she would not be able to talk with him. She only just met him, but she already enjoyed his company. He seemed nothing like his father He was so nice and kind. Sensing Rumplestiltskin wasn't going to say anything else, she turned around to clean the dishes from the morning's breakfast.
Rumplestiltskin noticed the same hurt in her face as he saw in Bae when he said they could no longer speak, and it made him feel uneasy. He decided now might be the best time to give her the dress. "One more thing…"
Belle turned back around to face him, this time looking at him. He stood up and walked over to her. He got so incredibly close, way too close for her comfort. She started feeling uncomfortable. She backed into the sink, but he did not budge. She was staring up into those deep dark brown eyes, with her mouth slightly hanging open.
"I can't have you slowed down while doing your chores because of this oversized eye sore." He pointed a finger at her dress and looked her up and down once.
"Well…you…you didn't let me pack anything, so I have nothing else to wear." 'Please don't let him say I should work naked,' she silently hoped, 'Surely he doesn't want something like that from me. I've heard many many stories about Rumplestiltskin, but never any that involved taking a woman unwillingly.' She closed her eyes waiting for his next words.
Rumplestiltskin held up his hand as purple smoke surrounded it and the packaged dress appeared. "Here, this will be more suitable attire as you clean the castle." He held it out for her.
Belle opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. She took the package from him. He backed away from her slightly. She unwrapped the ribbon and unfolded the dress to reveal what it looked like. Her eyes instantly lit up. "You bought this for me?"
"Now dearie why would I do such a thing like that?" he said in quip like manner, "I told you I don't want you to be bogged down during your chores."
Belle smiled up at him.
Rumplestiltskin resisted the urge to smile back, "You can change in the first bedroom on the right, second floor. Now hurry along dearie I do not like a slacker."
Belle nodded and ran out of the room all while keeping the smile on her face. She entered the bedroom he mentioned and set her new dress down on the bed. This was unbelievable. 'He bought me a dress! But why? And it's so pretty too, way to expensive just to be servant clothing…' She ran her hand along the embroidered flowers. Just last night she thought he would show her no kindness, but her first day here and that is exactly what he does. She quickly put the dress on and looked around for a mirror to examine herself in. She couldn't find one. 'That's strange, are there no mirrors in this place?' She shrugged it off and ran back down to the kitchen. She wanted to thank Rumplestiltskin, but when she got there he was gone. She wondered toward the main hall to see if he was there.
Rumplestiltskin sat spinning at his spinning wheel. He paused for a minute and pulled the blue ribbon from his pocket. He stared at it for a minute. 'Should I give it to her? NO! What am I thinking? She is a servant, I am her master. I shouldn't be thinking like this.' He went to put the ribbon back in his pocket but paused when he saw her. There she was in the pretty blue dress he had just given her, standing with both hands locked in front of her. She was swaying from side to side slightly as if she was a bit nervous. She was more radiant than he could have ever imagined. Her brown curls fell loose about her shoulders and he longed to tie them back himself with the matching ribbon. "Yes dearie, is there something you need?"
Belle walked closer to him. She couldn't read the expression on his face, but she realized he was definitely staring. Her cheeks flushed slightly as another smile came to her face. "I just wanted to thank you for this lovely dress."
'Smiling, why did she keep doing that?' He resisted his own urge to smile back, the second time today. "No matter," he paused and instantly regretted the words that came out of his mouth, but he couldn't stop them, "But it's missing something."
Belle looked at him questionably, "Oh?"
Rumplestiltskin stood up and walked over to her. He motioned for her to turn around. As she did so, he pulled the ribbon out of his pocket. He reached up a pulled her curls behind her head. They were so soft he almost wanted to run his fingers through them. He gently tied them back with the blue silky ribbon and dropped his hands.
Belle felt his hand brush against her neck as he gathered her hair. They were much warmer and smoother than she imagined. She could feel her heart beat faster, and butterflies in her stomach as he fixed her hair. 'Why am I thinking like this again? Why is he being so nice to me?' Belle turned back around to face him. He was incredibly close to her staring right into her dark blue eyes. She still couldn't read his facial expression. She wondered if she would ever be able too. Finally she broke the silence, "Thank you again, it's wonderful," she flashed him another smile, "I think I will go start on the rooms upstairs now."
He backed away without saying another word and watched as she left the hall.
Over the next week, Rumplestiltskin did his best to avoid Belle. He despised the way the girl made him feel, especially when she smiled at him, so he tried to keep his distance. However, he still found himself secretly watching her in the shadows as she cleaned the dark castle. She intrigued and amused him; she was nothing like he expected. He noticed she was very clumsy, always knocking things over and tripping over her own feet. He even caught her daydreaming sometimes or abandoning a chore to study one of his many possessions. She seemed comfortable around him and would do everything he asked without one word of protest, no matter how difficult the task. Not once had he caught her trying to escape. All of this bothered him a little. He was the monster, the beast, and this girl should fear him. He also noted Bae did as he was told and stayed away from her. He was glad the boy was actually listening to him for once.
As Belle cleaned the many rooms in the castle, she could almost always feel his eyes on her. It didn't bother her much. She knew he was just watching to see if she would run away. However, it was bothersome how he wouldn't talk to her. It almost seemed as if he was avoiding her since the day gave her the dress and the ribbon. The only times she actually saw him were when he came to get her from the dungeon and take her back in the evening. She always left his meals out in the main halls, along with Bae's, and ate by herself in the kitchen. She was starting to get terribly lonely. She wished he wouldn't avoid her so; his company was better than none at all. He didn't seem to be the terrible monster everyone always made him out to be.
She also wished more than anything for him to allow her to talk to Bae. The boy was so kind and terribly lonely. She had run into him a couple times throughout the castle, but he never came to say hello after that first morning. She assumed he was listening to his father to avoid any penalties for the both of them. She would do the same. She did not want any harm to come to the boy or herself from disobeying Rumplestiltskin's orders, although she highly doubted he would ever harm his son. Besides with Rumplestiltskin's eyes always on her, she knew he would easily find out.
On this day Rumplestiltskin came and let her out of "her room" just like any other. "I would like you to clean the north tower today. Scrub the windows and walls, and mop the floor. Dust everything as needed. It should take you all day, so when you are finished you can come down and start supper," he commanded in a very cold tone without looking at her.
"Yes sir," she said and turned to leave. She heard him take a seat, and then the sound of the spinning wheel starting. She sighed quietly. 'I wish he wouldn't give me such time consuming chores, and then maybe I would have time to get to know him a little better.'
After breakfast, she grabbed the cleaning supplies she needed and headed up the long staircase that led to the north tower. This was the first time she had climbed up to one of the towers. She wondered how high it went. As she climbed she admired the scenery outside the few windows along the stairwell. Once she reached the top she was completely exhausted. She set her stuff down so she could survey the room while she caught her breath. She could still hear the hum of the spinning wheel, even all the way up in the tower. It reassured her Rumplestiltskin wasn't watching her "slack off" for a few minutes.
It was incredibly dusty up here, but so were all the unused rooms in this castle. They looked like they haven't been cleaned in hundreds of years; the layers of dust were so thick. He never used sheets to cover up anything either, which made the job all the more harder.
This was not the most interesting room she had come to find so far. The room that amazed her most she had found on the third floor. She remembered when she opened the door and was completely taken aback. The room was huge, filled from floor to ceiling with spools of gold thread. There were so many; she didn't even think it was possible to count. There was no way he would ever be able to spend that amount of gold in this life or the next, or maybe even the lifetime after that.
She looked over the many trinkets stowed about the north tower. They were all very odd: crowns, dolls, goblets, figurines, and many other items. None of them seemed to fit together. It was like he just collected random things and cared nothing for them with the way he left them to dust.
Across the room two large stained glass doors caught her eye. The sun beamed down brilliantly through them, lighting the entire room in the different colors. She walked over to the doors. They were very pretty. She made the picture out to be a single rose in the center of each door. She opened them to reveal a beautiful unused balcony with the most spectacular view. She walked out to observe the world around her. She had never seen such landscaping. There were mountains as far as the eye could see. She remembered Rumplestiltskin mentioning a town, but she could not make out any other dwellings much less villages nearby. 'Oh that's right, he travels by magic,' she realized, 'We really must be all alone way out here.'
She leaned over the rail to observe the castle surroundings. She could see the entire castle grounds: the large black gates at the entrance, the pretty trees which lined the driveway, and the gardens near the kitchen. On one side of the castle she noticed a pond with a small meadow surrounding it. There were a few trees growing sporadically near the pond. She spotted a swing hanging from one of the trees with Bae swinging in it. Bae looked up and saw here on the balcony, he waved. She smiled and waved back. Oh how she wished she could be down there too. She would curl up under one of those trees and read a good book on such a pretty day like this. If she missed anything more than someone's company, it was books. She knew she could never ask Rumplestiltskin for anything, much less books. He was generous enough to buy her a dress; she wouldn't want to push it. Besides he never gave her any free time anyway, when would she have time to read? As she stood there and continued daydreaming about reading she didn't hear the footsteps approaching behind her.
"Careful dearie, you wouldn't want to make me have to find a new caretaker now would you?"
Belle gasped and whirled around. As she did so her feet caught the bottom of her skirts and she fell backwards over the railing. She shut her eyes bracing for the fall and her death when she felt two arms embracing her instead. She opened her eyes and saw Rumplestiltskin looking down at her. He held her close as if fearing she might still be in danger. Her hands were buried in his chest and his arms were tightly wrapped around her waist. His was face was so close to her's; they were almost touching. She could make out more of his features that she couldn't before. She could see his skin wasn't scaley, but looked rather normal except for the color. It was a shiny greenish gray color. 'The shininess must be what make's it look like scales from a distance,' she thought. But his eyes were what stood out the most. She could see how dark they really were, so dark and mysterious with lots of pain and sadness behind them; she saw something else there, but she wasn't sure what it was. She noticed he was staring at her lips as if he was planning on kissing her. This thought made the redness in her checks appear again. She didn't think she would mind if he tried to kiss her, after all he just saved her life. 'What is wrong with you Belle?' she quietly reprimanded herself, 'you've barely known him for a week, and the only reason you do is because he ripped you away from your friends and family! And now you're wondering what it would be like to kiss him?'
Rumplestiltskin could see her deep blue eyes so much clearer this close to her. He noticed how rosy her cheeks were and how smooth her skin looked. For a second he longed to run his hand down her cheek. The last thing he noticed was her bright red lips, so perfect, so inviting. He wondered what it would feel like to brush his lips up against hers. He saw her blush and suddenly realized how close they were. So he rapidly backed away releasing his grip around her. "Well it looks like you do think I need some new help," he said mockingly, smirking, and waving a hand through the air.
Belle giggled at his comment, "No you just startled me, that's all."
Rumplestiltskin looked at her curiously with one eyebrow raised higher than the other. 'Now she's giggling at me? This girl is such a mystery…'
He turned to leave but Belle stopped him, "Thank you for saving me."
He slightly smiled at her, "It's no matter."
Belle felt like she was standing there looking like a schoolgirl with a crush. She had her hands behind her back, a large smile on her face, and her eyes averted downward.
Rumplestiltskin turned to leave once more, but this time he stopped himself, "Why don't you come down and have a cup of tea before you start your chores?"
Belle's mouth fell open slightly; she couldn't believe what he just asked her. She managed a small nod and followed him down the stairwell.
Bae sat outside swinging, totally lost in thought. He wished his father wouldn't be so strict. He wanted to get to know Belle. He hadn't had anyone besides his father to talk to in a long time. He was very lonely. None of the other children would be his friend because they were too terrified of his father. He also was getting tired of being home all the time. His father rarely let him go into the town. In a way he felt like a prisoner. He glanced up to look at the castle that was his "prison." He noticed Belle standing on the balcony in the north tower. She was looking right at him, so he waved up at her. She smiled and waved back.
It depressed him to think he couldn't talk to her. He went back to looking at the ground as he kicked it with his feet while the swing slowed. He wished Belle could come down and visit him. He almost stood up to go to see her, but then remembered what his father said. He knew if he disobeyed, his father would never hurt him, but he was afraid Rumplestiltskin would harm Belle. The last thing he wanted was his father to harm someone else, much less someone as sweet as Belle. He glanced back up to where Belle had been standing. He gasped. He saw his father gripping Belle tightly. 'Oh no he's hurting her! He must have saw her waving at me!' He hopped out of the swing and ran as fast as he could towards the castle.