Chapter Text
When Rumpelstiltskin had set on bringing true love to anyone who was in a very desperate need of assistance, he really did not anticipate bringing Belle to live with him.
Usually, his most desperate charges needed some external force to bring them together, say, a dragon, an Evil Queen, a crazy Witch. Honestly, some couples were just too plain stubborn or had been dealt a terrible hand and it was his job to fix it.
Well, technically it wasn't his job. But he had made a promise to his son, long after the darkness had taken complete hold of him, after he had fought it with the help of his boy and after he had managed to control it. Now, a few years down the line, with Baelfire off having his adventures alongside the Queen's sister Emma as his bride (not that he got any recognition for setting Snow and David up, honestly, the things he did for his son) he was now hiding at his tower, trying really hard as to think how he had managed to find himself a maid.
As usual, being the Dark One, he had a weakness for deals, so when the Kingdom of Avonlea sent their request, even if it was something absurd as an exchange for gold (was he not famous enough for everyone to know he made gold?) he was intrigued. When he got there, he saw the princess, Lady Belle, and immediately felt she was part of a powerful true love that needed his attention.
But this time, he couldn't sense who was her other half, which was weird, since he usually had a vision of how he was supposed to help and whom. But now, he just saw her as an important half, not her future or her other half's future. It had never happened before. 'You're slipping spinner’ mocked the dark one from his mind. He growled, pushing the beast back with a memory of his son. It was usually all it took these days to make the demon behave.
Either way, he supposed her true love was the very tall and brute of a man who was her fiancée, even if they really didn't seem all that close. Especially for her. Maybe she didn't like him yet. It had happened with Snow and Charming at first.
So his mouth had started talking before his brain had processed the idea and he had asked for her as his prize. Even Baelfire hadn't believed him when he had sent him the raven. Still, he was expecting the boy in a few weeks to check it out for himself so, at least that had come out of his screw up.
And now he had another person living with him, expecting to work for him while he figured how to reunite her with her true love. Well, he guessed he had to wait first for her brute to come look for her, maybe he would get to practice his swordsmanship. It had been a while since he’d had a little entertainment.
Rumpelstiltskin sighed. He could hear the cries of the woman all the way from her room. He just didn't know what he could do to make it better. Even if he was the Dark One, she was a guest, and seemed like a good lass. Smart and selfless. Maybe a nice dinner would be an acceptable gesture?
Mind made up he went to the wing where her room was1, up a few flight of stairs, turn right and walk a few more paces. Once at the door he quietly knocked on it, relieved that the crying had stopped for the moment.
The door got open by a fraction, the princess' teary and a little pale face appearing, making the wizard feel guilty. Fumbling with his fingers, not looking directly at her, he started to speak. "Princess, I was wondering if you'd like to come to have something to eat?" he asked "so I could give you your chores, of course" he hurriedly added, once he saw her suspicious look.
"Alright" she answered, her voice a little gruff from all the crying. She opened the door and stepped outside, Rumple giving her enough space. He really didn't want her to misinterpret anything. He was a monster, but not that kind, never that.
While they were walking towards the great hall, the silence was eating away on the wizard, so when they were near their destination, after conjuring a tea set, he went about telling all of her duties as he came up with them, the woman agreeing without protest, looking too distracted by the scenery.
"You will fetch me fresh straw when I am spinning at the wheel." he listed as he sat at his chair, the only chair on the table.
"Got it." she answered as she got the tea ready.
"Oh, and you will skin the children I hunt for their pelts." In shock at his words, Belle drops the tea cup. "That one was a quip. Not serious." he clarifies.
"Right." she responds trying to smile, clearly relieved, and she bends down and picks up the cup. "Oh... my. I'm so sorry but, uh... it’s... it's chipped." She holds up the cup. "You—you can hardly see it."
Rumple looked at her, she looked so frightened but at the same time, there was something about her. He was intrigued, to be honest, even if he didn't want her here. "Oh, it's just a cup." he said with a bit of disdain, trying to dismiss his intrigue by nonchalance.
And so she went to make the tea, Rumple choosing not to try to joke with her anymore for the night, her nerves probably couldn't take his darkest humour. Instead, he talked about the castle and its perks. How the Castle would know if they needed food, procuring it from the village below.
"Wait, the food your magic takes, you don't..."
"No, dearie, I leave monetary compensation for the food I take, I'm no thief" he explained a little affronted.
She blushed "Of course, I'm sorry. Please keep going." she said, smiling a bit to show her remorse.
"Hm, you can ask the Castle to provide for hot water for your bath if you wish so and say 'Dry up' to make it disappear."
"That saves up a lot of time."
"Indeed. Oh, one last thing. Don't come to the highest tower in the west wing."
"Why?" she asked tilting her head in curiosity, looking a bit like a kitten.
"Not that is any of your concern, but my laboratory is there, I don't want you touching anything. Could be dangerous."
"Oh, alright. Thank you for the warning." She smiled.
"Tis no matter." He dismissed, waving a hand lazily. At least she looked more like the fearless princess he had encountered earlier today.
Moments passed and no one said a word, drinking their tea in silence until it became a bit too much for Rumple. "If you want to rest, you may go now."
"If you don't mind, it has been a long day." she explained a bit embarrassed.
"Go on, can't have the help falling asleep on her first day now, can't I?" he said, giving one of his little mocking giggles.
She forced a smile and said her good nights, leaving a second later. Rumple decided he needed to spin since he felt...weird, like he had too much energy, to many thoughts all at once. 'Oh spinner, you have gone even softer on your old age'
"Shut up" he gritted, sitting on his bench and starting to spin, all his thoughts going away as if by magic. He sighed, feeling his muscles finally relaxing after the weird day.
The days passed with no much consequence, he had gifted Belle a few work dresses more appropriate than her golden gown, even if he said those must have been in the room she was in before he moved. He couldn't sound too kind, after all. She cleaned well, even if a bit slow. Her cooking...well, let's just say it had gotten better after he had left a couple of cooking books on the kitchen, to be found under a set of pans and skillets.
They didn't talk all that much, but he insisted on at least sharing a meal and tea with her. It would be terrible if the girl grew too lonely and, well, he enjoyed talking to her, she was smart and even knew a lot about strategy and war. Not something so common for ladies in these lands, though he didn't understand why that was the norm.
A week after she had first come here Rumple was passing by the great Hall, looking for a bit of gold by his spinning wheel for a potion he was experimenting with when he saw the little maid reading one of her cooking books. It struck him as weird since it was mostly recipes. And, honestly, who would want to read a book of recipes if you weren't going to cook? or liked cooking for that matter.
"Dearie" he called, approaching her slowly.
"Yes, Rumpelstiltskin?" Belle asked, placing a finger between the pages of the book.
"Why are you reading the cooking book?"
"Oh, well, since we have been having the same few dishes I thought I would try something else. Besides, I kind of miss reading so..." she finished, smiling, a light bush coming to her cheeks.
"You...enjoy reading?" he asked, almost smacking himself for not noticing after their avid discussion of literature just the day before.
"Yes, is there a problem with that?" she asked a bit defencelessly, a little frown appearing on her face.
"No, not at all." he says at once, lifting his hands in surrender. "I just didn't notice, when I should have, especially after our discussion on books" he explained with a sigh. "Come with me, little maid."
"Where are we going?" she asked curiously, putting a ribbon on the pages of the book before getting up and leaving it on her seat.
"I thought you had discovered this room already, but since is in the west wing..." he explained while the walked. The room did exist before, as storage, it was just the books that had been added. Not that he would be telling her that any time soon.
"I haven't touched the west wing."
"Ah." He finished lamely. "Come on then, just another room for you to clean, though. I won't have you slacking your chores." he admonished, pointing a finger at her face trying to sound stern, but Belle simply smiled and grabbed his hand, lowering it a bit, looking at him fondly. He cleared his throat, suddenly regretting this, but opened the door nonetheless.
When Belle turned and saw the room, she felt as she might faint. Books! So many books! Everywhere, on shelfs that went a couple of stories high. There was even a fireplace and a large table in the middle of the room, and in front of the fireplace a couch with a little table next to it. It was amazing. Beyond amazing. Before, in her father's castle there had been a small room, barely enough to put a chair in there, and most books were about politics and war. Which, was an interesting topic for sure, Belle loved it, but sometimes she longed for books on history, on far off places, romance, adventure. Something more than what her very limited freedom could afford.
And now, while living her greatest adventure, she had also been given one of her deepest wishes, and by the most surprising person. Without really thinking it, she turned around and hugged Rumpelstiltskin, saying her thanks and being gone to explore faster than he could really process the whole thing.
After that day, Belle really lost all of the little fear she ever had for Rumple. He really wasn't sure how to feel about that. On the one hand, he really didn't want to be feared by the one person who lived in the castle, on the other, scaring her was a bit fun and he was supposed to be the Dark One. Of course, being responsible for bringing True Love together wasn't exactly dark, but no one knew about that, only his son and Bae's wife.
Talking about his son...
"Papa!" a voice came from the entrance, making Belle drop the book she was reading on the windowsill next to his spinning wheel.
Rumple looked at her, giving her a small smile at her shocked face before getting up from his bench, his spinning long forgotten and going to receive his son. He may have forgotten to mention that he had a son.
"Bae!" he greeted, giving the man a long hug. "Princess" he bowed, a small smile on his face when faced with Princess Emma. She was just as beautiful as the tales described her, Belle noted, with long golden hair that cascaded in waves to her back, beautiful emerald eyes, lovely porcelain complexion and clearly besotted with Rumpelstiltskin's son. Who, looked like a normal person. She was expecting someone with scaly greenish golden skin. But the man in front of her had shaggy brown hair, not as long as his father's, whiskey brown eyes and was a bit taller than Rumple.
"Dark One" Emma acknowledged with a curtesy of her own before smiling and giving him a brief hug.
"I'm confident the travel was well?" he asked, a little bit of worry laced in his words, signalling for them to take a seat on the table at the great hall, three chairs appearing with a wave of his hand.
"All good Papa, we stopped by Emma's Kingdom, Snow and David send their regards." he said while pulling out a chair for his wife and sitting on his own, right next to his father's chair.
"Ah, that's kind of them. Oh, I nearly forgot. Belle, dearie, come here." He called for the woman who had suddenly gone quiet and shy. She stood next to the Dark One, still too shocked to do anything. "This is Lady Belle, former princess of Avonlea. Belle, this is my son and daughter in law, Baelfire and Emma" Rumpelstiltskin introduced, a small smile on his face when both his son and wife stood up to greet Belle as the royal she was, the former princess returning the greeting with all the class she had. "A pleasure to meet you. I didn't know Rumpelstiltskin had family."
At Baelfire's look, Rumple had the decency to look ashamed, hastily trying to explain himself. "Yes, well, you haven't been here that long." he immediately clapped his hands, trying to change the subject. "Anyway, you two must be tired, your possessions are already at your usual room if you would rather rest until dinner is served?"
"Sure." responded Emma with a little smirk on her face. "Come on Bae, let’s give your father and his lady a moment." she smirked, grabbing a confused Baelfire by the arm before he could open his mouth. Leaving a blushing dark one and an amused Belle behind.
"So" Belle started, coming around the table, fingers lightly touching the wood, finally sitting on one of the chairs, still not at ease enough to sit on the table itself. "You have a son."
"I do."
"And a daughter in law who happens to be a princess."
"Your point, dearie?" he asked, already a bit irked by her joyous tone.
"None, it's just interesting" she answered, getting up again.
"What is?" he asked, getting a bit irritated.
"It's not exactly how I pictured you, oh great Dark One" she smiles "And I'm glad." she finished, with the most beautiful smile he had ever seen, rendering him completely speechless, his mind going blank. By the time he was able to form a response the woman was already gone, probably to her library.
Maybe he was starting to be in trouble. He couldn't wait for her damn prince to arrive already.