#annythecat

There was a strange buzz around the institute that day. People hurried up and down the corridors and the previously lax security guards were suddenly all alert. Belle kept her head down and did her best to stay out of the way of other people.

Whatever had the rest of the employees in such a tizzy, she was sure to find out eventually from the snippets of conversations she overheard.

"-it looks almost human, except for the scales-"

"-it's amphibious-"

"-a revolutionary breakthrough-"

It seemed the institute had acquired some sort of a rare creature. Belle felt a pang of excitement. This was the first thing out of the ordinary to have happened since she had started working at this place.

She pushed her cart with the cleaning supplies with more energy than before. The main laboratory was a part of her circuit which meant she would be able to get a look later. The world was suddenly a lot more exciting place.

~~~~~~

The large water tank took almost a third of the laboratory floor. Belle carefully stepped over the various cables and hoses, picking her way closer to the thick glass. The water was murky and she couldn't see anything. She didn't want to come too close, in case the creature was dangerous.

Although, if the creature posed any danger, they would have posted guards inside the room, not just the usual one outside the door. And they wouldn't let a simple cleaning lady inside without anyone to watch over her.

Thus reassured, Belle carefully approached the glass, trying to peer into the depths of the water behind. The sudden movement from behind the glass startled her into jumping back and tripping over one of the numerous cables that lay all over the floor.

She winced as she hit the ground but the pain was pushed to the background by a splashing sound coming from the container.

Belle looked up and her gaze met the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. They were a deep brown colour which was a lovely contrast to the tiny golden-green scales that covered the head of the creature.

The face looking at her over the edge of the water tank wasn't human, although there were some surface similarities, but it was no less expressive for it. And right now, that expression would be best described as sheepish.

Belle tried to smile reassuringly. She was sure that the being in the water hadn't meant to scare her. The eyes slowly blinked - or at least Belle assumed that the quick movement of something whiteish over the being's eyes was blinking - and then the being slid back into the water and disappeared from view.

Belle stood up, dusting herself off. That had been interesting. She looked at the tank for the last time before she gathered her cleaning supplies and left. Her job had just become much more interesting.

~~~~~~

Belle had started to spend a lot of time in the laboratory. Every time she came to clean it, the being came to the surface of the water and watched her. The intense interest she was shown should have scared her but she found it hard to believe that anyone with eyes like that could be evil.

Those eyes were what she thought about the most. They were such a rich colour and for all she heard other people at work refer to the being as a fishman, despite the eyes bulging out of the being's skull, she still found them beautiful.

There was such a sadness in those eyes, too. It was a sadness of someone who missed their home, who was stuck in a place they didn't belong in and that was a sadness that was all too familiar to her.

Belle was independent, yes. She was her own mistress and all things considered, her life was rather good. But there was a home-shaped hole in her heart that couldn't be filled by anything. Not by her books, not by her job, not by her friendly acquaintances. However, when she looked into the being's eyes, she found something like understanding in them and she felt a little less alone.

~~~~~~

The being was curious about her, that much was obvious. And Belle was curious about him - the being was a he according to the scientists - in return. And one day, that curiousity got a better of her.

She finished sweeping the floor - using far too many twists and steps until it looked more like a dance than sweeping - and put away the broom. The being was watching her over the rim of the tank, his eyes focused on her with a flattering intensity. She was the only person in the lab but she had a feeling he would watch her like that even if there were a hundred other people present.

She walked over to the tank, the being pulling away from the edge. Belle smiled and held out a hand, trying to project an aura of comfort. She regretted not being able to speak then because even if he wouldn't understand her, she was sure he would react to the tone of her voice.

He cautiously approached the rim again, watching her cautiously. Belle kept smiling and she extended her hand towards him. He mimicked her and their fingers brushed above the edge of the tank.

Belle's smile got wider. His skin was textured just like fish' scales. Hundreds, if not thousands, of overlapping scales, wet from the water and just the tiniest bit slimy. But Belle felt no revulsion, just a sense of excitement and something very close to happiness.

~~~~~~

Holding hands with the being for a few minutes every day became an established part of Belle's routine and the part of her day to which she looked forward the most. That's why Jefferson's words came as such a devastating shock.

"I'm going to miss the excitement around here," he commented as he walked her home. They lived in the same neighborhood and as Belle was prone to stay at work too long these days, Jefferson made it a point to wait for her every morning he had a night shift.

She signed a question and Jefferson grimaced.

"I thought you knew. That friend of yours will be moved to one of the inland facilities in a couple of weeks."

Belle struggled against the fear that gripped her heart. He would be taken from her? Why?

"Colonel thinks it would be safer for everyone."

Safer? Safer? He never did anything that would make him a threat. He was the one who was kept imprisoned by them and yet he never lashed out. He was lonely and missed his home and he had the kindest eyes she had ever seen and he was her friend and she couldn't, wouldn't lose him. Not to the people who imprisoned him in the first place.

"What?!" Jefferson stared at her as if he couldn't believe the question she had just signed at him. "You're talking about stealing a property of the United States."

Belle angrily signed again.

"Fine, fine, he's not a property. But taking him is still a crime."

Belle's next gesture was succinct and rather vulgar. Jefferson chuckled.

"Can't argue with that. But Belle, do you realize what it would mean for you?"

She nodded and he sighed, shaking his head.

"I'm going to regret this, I just know that." He took a deep breath and let it out. "I've got some contacts in the harbour, give me a week to put something together."

For all she was much smaller than him, the force of her hug nearly sent him to the ground.

~~~~~~

Ariel joined their small conspiracy a few days later when she caught Belle stealing a key from the back gate. Fortunately, she was a romantic at heart and when Belle explained what she was planning, she immediately on board with the plan.

The most difficult part was going to convince the being to go with them and to keep him alive for long enough to get him on the ship Jefferson had procured from one of his shady contacts. A tank, slightly smaller than the one in the lab, was installed in the second deck.

Belle chose a Saturday night for their operation, since it was the slowest night of the week, with only the skeleton crew present in the institute.

She did her usual rounds as quickly as possible. When she finally reached the lab, he was already waiting for her. She saw how his face brightened at seeing her and she felt her last doubts - not that there had been many - dispell. She was doing the right thing.

She smiled at him and took his hand like always. Except this time, instead of holding hands like usual, she started pulling him out. He gave her a confused look and she tried to convey her hurry with a pleading look. He still looked uncertain but followed her lead and slowly climbed out of the tank.

Belle smiled at him and tugged at his hand again, making him follow her. His steps echoed wetly on the metal floor and he was looking around uncertainly but he kept holding her hand and following her. And when she pushed open the door and looked around cautiously before proceeding down the hall, that small bit of hesitancy she had felt in the way he gripped her hand disappeared and he went after her willingly.

~~~~~~

"Okay," Jefferson said as he showed them around the ship he had gotten for them after they settled the escapee into his new tank. "The captain is heading to Brazil and he's willing to drop him off somewhere along the coast. Don't worry about paying for this, the guy owed me a favour and this balances it."

Belle signed her thanks and pulled him into a hug. She then turned to Ariel and repeated the process. She stepped back and wiped her eyes, signing again.

"Goodbye?" Ariel asked. "What do you mean goodbye?"

"She's going with him," Jefferson said. "I noticed the bag in the car," he explained. Belle smiled sadly at them. She handed Jefferson an envelope addressed to her father and he accepted it solemnly.

She nodded at them both, let Ariel pull her into another hug and then resolutely turned away.

"Be happy," Ariel called after her and it was the easiest promise Belle had ever made.

Of course she would be happy. She was going home.

She descended to the second deck and found him waiting for her, his eyes just as lovely as the first time she saw them. She took his hand and held it over her heart, the steady rhythm calming them both.

The couple, well trio with Gideon, bid their friends a farewell and everyone said their goodbyes as Belle and Rumple excused themselves out of the diner. As they drove home, Rumple couldn’t help but notice that the feeling was back and becoming increasingly intense. He wondered, thinking quietly to himself and going through all his enemies who could threaten his family’s life. His father: vanquished. Cora and Hades: dead. Zelena was still alive. No, she is without magic and has turned over a new leaf for the sake of her sister and her daughter. Rumple still shuddered at the thought of baby Robin’s conception. Who else? The Evil Queen was in a different realm as were the other Enchanted Forest citizens’ who sought to harm him and realm jumping was almost impossible, especially for non-magical people.

That just left one other person. Or should he say dust. His mother, Fiona was dead too, a pile of ash on the floor of his shop. He hadn’t even bothered to sweep her up after he destroyed her. After Belle had entered his shop, there was only one thing on is mine at the time and that was to save their son. Fortunately, after almost giving up hope, he did, and Gideon was returned to them safe and sound. On their way out of the cave, they pass by his mother’s lair. A dwelling in the cave filled with magical crystals and gems that are mined for fairy dust. He thought about destroying her lair and being done with all and any remnants of his mother. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Something deep down inside of him wanted his mother. Her last words to him, well the last ones he could to hear, was that all she wanted was him and to be a family. He wanted that to be true, and perhaps some essence of it was, but she betrayed him from the moment he was born and then again three hundreds of years later, and he wasn’t going to fall for her sweet words again.

However, something did catch his eye, his baby blanket woven in gold wool and neatly folded next to her things. He took it with him and gave it to his own son and Belle swaddle him tightly into it.

“I think he likes it, Rumple.” Belle had said as Gideon cooed and yawned in his mother’s arms.

“Wonderful. At least my mother was good for something.” He’d told her as they exited the caves.

Gideon was still wrapped cozily in the blankets hours later as they drove home from Granny’s. When they made it home, Belle heated up some milk under warm water, before testing the temperature on her arm. It was perfect not too hot nor cold, a perfect temperature that matched her own body’s heat. After feeding, it was time to burp him, and Rumple could handle that. They took turns with Gideon to ensure that he would bond with both of his parents. Once all the bubbles from Gideon’s tummy were all gone, he yawned with a small squeak. Together, they both went to his room for bedtime. Rumple rocked him in his arms as Belle read him a story. Gideon’s eyes shifted between the both of them until his lids lowered and he was sound asleep. Belle placed a soft kiss on his temple, and Rumple put him gently into his crib.

Xox0xox

Later that evening, the dark showroom of Gold’s shop began to rumble. The antiques in the glass cases and on the shelf that lined the walls rattled and trembled from some unknown force. Lights flickered even though the power to the pawn shop was off and obscure, eerie noises from an unmanned phonograph in his back office began to play. On the wooden floors, the dust fragments of the fallen black fairy started to vibrate and shift, then swirl and began to take form into black smoke. They floated through the keyhole and poured out from the other side of the door onto the streets of Storybrooke. The Black Fairy’s smoke drifted on twilight’s breeze past the sleepy town and through the dense forest. Passing over the toll bridge and until finally reaching a lone wishing well surrounded by fog. Deep in the woods, The Black Fairy’s smoke enters the well, making it gurgle and bubble. Two solid hands reemerge from its bowels, and a resurrected Fiona pulled herself from the well, dawning her fairy attire, black as a crow.

“My own son thought he could get rid of me.” She chuckled to herself. “Oh Rumple, darkness isn’t snuffed out that easily.”

She shuddered and stretched out her black, dragon-fly like wings, making sure all her magic was intact. “Now, to retrieve what’s mine.”

xox0xox

“Are you sure everything’s okay Rumple?” Belle asked, between the passionate kisses from her husband.

“It’s fine, sweetheart,” Rumple whispered, sending his breath into her skin, giving her chills and making her goose pimples appear where his lips had been.

Gold kissed her neck and ran his hand down the length of her hips and thighs as Belle bit her lip, loving every minute of what he was doing to her. It had been a few hours since they kissed and even longer since he’d touched her in this way. Gods, he missed this. Her soft skin, her moans, and the way she lightly bit his bottom lip when they kissed. Those dreadful thoughts couldn’t penetrate through now that his mind swam in ecstasy.

He moved his hand over her belly, caressing the smooth skin of her mid-drift. His hand moved further down to the hem of her panties, but just before he could dive deeper into her heaven, Belle grabbed his hand and stopped him.

“Before we do this, I should go check on Gideon one last time.” She said with half lidded eyes.

He gazed at her with longing. “He’ll be okay Belle. Stay,” he told her, kissing her more eagerly.

“It won’t take me long. I just want to make sure he’s still sleeping.”

Rumple groaned and pulled his arm from around her and turned onto his back, looking like a child whose parents had refused him candy. Belle kissed his browline and got up from the bed. She threw a robe around her body and went to the nursery. She peeked through the cracked door and saw the small hump of her son underneath his blanket. She smiled and quietly tiptoed into her son’s bedroom. When she reached the crib to make sure he was covered warmly, she noticed that the gold baby blanket that her husband gave their son was gone. She flipped the covers back to reveal that he wasn’t there, and the hump that she thought was his body, was only a pillow.

“N-no. no, no.” She scrambled around the room looking for any signs of her son, but there was none, and she panicked.

“Rumple!” She cried out for her husband.

Xox0xox

To find Gideon, the Black fairy used the gold baby blanket as a beacon and stole him away from his parent’s home, just as easy as she did from that flying nat, Blue. If she couldn’t have Rumple or a family, then neither could he. It was a cruel thing to do, but it was what she longed for. The final battle was to ensure that she had everything she ever wanted. Her son and grandson, a family, a home, all the while still being able to hold onto her power. But Rumple didn’t want to be apart of that, too blinded by a useless bookworm to see that she was only looking out for his best interest. Well, her best interest.

When she made it back to the cave, she summoned a portal. The savior, Emma, had died only to be brought back to life by true loves kiss. So the portal to the Dark Realm remained open due to the Savior’s brief demise. Gideon began to cry, sensing the danger he was in, and Fiona tried to hushed the child’s sobs with a lullaby.

I cried and called my sweet Bairn’s name. But never saw sweet baby again..

But Gideon’s tears and wails did not cease. Fiona sighed. “Such a shame. That always worked on Rumple.” She said, placing the child into a wicker basket. “Cry all you want Gideon, like it or not, you’re my son now. I know I wasn’t much of a good mother before. I made a terrible mistake. I took control of your heart and forced you to love me, but now I know that only fear will make you love me.”

xox0xox

Rumple could only look down at the empty crib that once held his son. His blood ran cold in his veins, and the only thing he could think of was how much pain the person who did this was going to endure. But first thing first, he had to get control of the situation.

“This is my fault.” He said in soft, heartbroken words, clutching the crib’s wooden frame.

“Wh-what are you talking about Rumple?”

“Our son is gone, and it’s my fault. I wasted so much time trying to ignore my instincts when I should have been listening to its warning.”

“But you couldn’t have possibly known that this was going to happen,” Belle said, placing a comforting hand on her husband’s hand.

“I had a feeling and chose to overlook it because … I ..we were finally happy.”

“Rumple, this isn’t your fault. Whoever did this – whoever took our son is to blame, not you,” she assured him. “We have to figure something out. We have to get our son back.”

“My shop,” he said, a sense of hope present in his tone. “There may be something in there that will tell us who took him and where he is.”

Belle hugged her husband tight. It hadn’t even been a whole day that her family had gotten back together and now for a second time she’d lost her son. But at least she wasn’t facing this alone.

There was no more time to waste. Vengeance outweighed other tedious tasks like dressing and driving. Rumple waved his hand, and they appeared in his shop fully clothed. He walked over to a glass case that housed a secret compartment. Silently, he dove his hands into the drawer and pulled out a crystal ball with an iron raven’s claw for its stand. The three tali’ held the ball up right and kept it from rolling off the table. He placed his fingers on the glass and tried to concentrate.

Belle watched him silently, pacing the floor only a few feet from him as he gazed into the crystal orb.

“Do you see anything?” She asked.

He didn’t need magic this time to figure out what had happened. “It’s what I don’t see.”

“I don’t understand. You can’t find the person who took our son?” Belle ran to the crystal trying to make sense of what he was talking about, hoping to find some image that showed the whereabouts of her son, but when she looked into it, all she saw was.. nothing.

“When I killed my mother, she calcified and turned to dust.”

“I remember, her remains should be,” -all the color in Belle’s face left, and she appeared porcelain white when she turned to the place where The Black Fairy’s ashes were- “Rumple. They’re gone. Your mother is alive.”

“Indeed. And she has stolen our son.”

“But how is this possible?” Belle asked, with uncertainties. “How can she come back from death?”

“I’m not sure, but a similar thing happened to another Storybrooke resident.”

“Who? Maybe they can help.”

“I doubt she would be willing to help me, and besides her magic is gone. She wouldn’t be much help to us now.”

Belle thought to herself for a moment. “Zelena?” she asked, and Gold nodded yes. “Zelena came back from death?”

He had hoped to keep that a secret, but it was out now and addressing it was the only way to figure out how his mother came back from the dead.

Rumple took a deep breath and exhaled. “After I proposed to you, I made a visit to Zelena’s cell with the real dagger and killed her.” He sighed. The dissatisfied look on Belle’s face wasn’t making telling her the truth any easier. “But I should have known that it would have cost me a terrible price. When I was recovering in a New York hospital, she paid me a visit. She told me that she didn’t technically die, her life force simply fled and went searching for magic to fulfill her last task.”

“The time portal.” Belle clarified. “The one that sent Emma and Killian back in time. That’s why she disguised herself as Marion.”

“Yes. In Zelena’s case, her last task was to use the magical time portal to go back in time, and she was inevitably brought back to life, so to speak. In my mother’s case, she would use the wishing well. She knows of its magic, and how it can return things that were once lost.”

“That explains how she’s alive and walking around, but what is your mother’s last task?”

“To get the thing she always wanted but couldn’t ever have. A son.”

xox0xox

Time moved differently in the Dark Realm, and the sun never rose. It was always night in this realm. The stars didn’t even shine through the dark and lonely night skies. Only the moon provided light and gave him some ounce of time to show many months had gone by.

He could see the moon’s glow from his cell, and every time the moon was round and full, he knew another month had passed. Gideon had eleven birthdays since that evening his new mother brought him to his new home in the dark realm. He spent each day with his classmates, who consisted of 19 other unfortunate children stolen from their parents. Most days were spent doing chores around the school, and others were spent in the mines, digging for fairy dust until their hands blistered from repeated wacks at the solid wall of stone.

Every morning his new mother would wake the students up with an ear splitting alarm. The students had to promptly get up from their small cots and get dressed with their bedding neat and tidy all within five minutes. The ones that were too tired to get up from the previous day’s work received a punishment. Gideon didn’t know what that punishment was, but the screams of the other children he’d hear were enough to know that it wasn’t anything good. So Gideon made it a habit of waking up ten minutes before the alarm went off and always covered his ears when the other kids got punished.

Down in the mines under the school, the clanging of pickaxes hitting rocks over and over again was the only thing breaking the silence. Gideon’s hands were so sore. The blisters from last week hadn’t quite healed, and new ones were forming on top of the old ones. He dropped his ax, only for a moment, just to stretch and wiggle his aching fingers. Out of nowhere a tiny rock hit him on the head next to his temple. He heard some of the kids snicker over the sound of metal hitting rocks, but he couldn’t find the culprit who sent the pebble. After rubbing the spot where the rock hit him, he went back to making big rocks into smaller ones.

“Ouch.” He cried when another rock hit the back of his head.

“Mama’s boy.” One of the older kids said.

“She’s not my mom Jacob,” Gideon said, but the boy only tosses another, larger rock at him. “Stop it.”

“Or what? Your gonna cry to your mother that I’m picking on you.” Jacob said.

“She’s not my mom.”

“Oh yeah, then why does she call you her son?” One of the other boys spoke up. “Why is your room the only one with a window?”

Gideon shrugged, picking up his pickaxe to continue working. “I don’t know. Just is.”

“Just face it you love your whittle mommy, and she wuvs you back, mama’s boy.” Jacod mocked loftily.

Gideon had enough. On top of all the hard work that his fake mother was putting him through, he still had to put up with the other kids bullying. He ran over to Jacob and pushed him to the ground. Jacob managed to get to his feet, but he had a busted lip from falling on one of the rocks. The other children in the caves began to chant fight.

Jacob was a lot bigger than Gideon and made him reconsider pushing the older kid. The two boys circled each other, sizing the other up, as the other children chanted the same word over and over again, but just as Jacob was about to throw the first punch, he was swung back across the cave, hitting the rock enclosure.

“Now, Now. You weren’t thinking about striking my son, were you?” she asked calmly, like she hadn’t just thrown a 13-year-old into a stone wall. She sucks her teeth and then turns to Gideon. “Are you hurt, son?”

Gideon ignored her with a stubborn look, reminding Fiona just how much his actual mother resonated with him.

xox0xox

Gold realized that there was only one place where his mother would have taken his son, and that was to the Dark Realm where she could rule and gather more fairy dust for a new dark curse.

“How do we get there?” Belle asked her husband.

He only needed a second to think before his brain came up with a plan. Not long ago, he regained possession of a very powerful wand that was able to cross realms. Gold opened a secret safe behind a picture and inside was the Apprentice’s wand. Belle blushed and looked away. It had been the same wand she almost used to return to the Enchanted Forest.

She cleared her throat. “So this will help us get to the Dark Realm and get our son back?”

Gold nodded. “It should. But the wand will only work if the wielder possesses light and dark. So I’ll need your help.”

It had only been just weeks ago that this very same wand was supposed to separate him from his son, and now it’s being used to reunite him with his son. Funny how these things turn out, he thought to himself. They went to the center of the shop’s showroom and held hands as Rumple drew an outline of a door. Each stroke glowed with light until a black door with a red doorknob appeared in front of them. Gold tucked the wand inside his coat’s pocket and led Belle over the threshold and into another realm.

xox0xox

“Do you know why I asked you to come here, Gideon?” She asked, and he shook his head no. “Because I want to tell you that you’re right. I’m not your mother.”

Gideon’s eyes soften. He had been right all along. The wicked woman wasn’t his true mother, and his birth mother and father was out there somewhere looking for him, just like how he dreamt.

“It was unwise of me to keep the truth from you and lie to you.” She continued. “You deserve to know who your real parents are.”

Gideon’s eyes lit up. “Will you tell me?”

“Are you sure you want to know?” The Black Fairy asked distastefully, “Sometimes the truth is more painful than a merciful lie.”

Gideon nodded. For as long as he could remember he always wanted to know who his parents were and what they were like.

“You read a lot. I see you almost every day in your room reading some book.” Fiona said. “Have you heard of the Dark One?

He knew it. His father was a hero. He killed the Dark One and probably saved his mother from the evil fiend, or perhaps she helped. He always envisioned his mother as a brave warrior.

“Did my father slay the Dark One?”

Fiona giggled contemptuously, mocking Gideon’s question. “Oh that he did, and do you know what happened next?” Gideon smiled, waiting for her to finish the story, desperate to hear that he became a beloved hero, that his father and mother lived happily ever after. “After your father had killed the Dark One, he took his power, draining the very essence of the former Dark One until nothing was left, and your father became the new Dark One.”

Gideon’s smile faded, and he felt a hollow feeling in the pit of his chest. “You’re lying.”

“I’m not. Your father is the Dark One, the most powerful sorcerer in all the realms, and you’re his spawn.”

“I don’t believe you!” Gideon lashed out. The last thing he wanted to hear was that his father was more evil than the woman who kept him prisoner. “Prove it!”

“I don’t need to,” Fiona explained. “You and I, we share the same burden. He’s my son.”

He supposed it had to be true. What other reasons would she have to claim the Dark One as her son? “And what about my mother?”

“Hmmm? Oh yes, your mother. What would you like to know about her?”

Anything. Everything. “Who is she? What’s her name? Is she alive?”

“Slow down, child. One question at a time.” The Black Fairy said. “Your mother’s name is Belle, and she’s quite the looker. I suppose it was no wonder why the Dark One fell for a girl like her.”

That made him smile. “So she’s alive? Is she looking for me?”

“Yes dearie. You needn’t fear. She’s alive. But due to unfortunate circumstances that surrounded your father, she abandoned you, and if I hadn’t found you and graciously took you in, there was no telling what kind of life you would have lived. You could have died.”

“So my father is a monster, and my mother abandoned me,” Gideon said, feeling like his whole world got turned upside down.

“Quite. But I love you, always have.” Fiona said, trying to sound genuine. “Do you know why I make you and the other children work the mines?”

“No.”

“It’s because I want to leave this realm, with you as my son by my side. But I can’t, not without a curse. That’s what the fairy dust is for.” Fiona said, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear and walking away.

“But what about the other kids? What will happen to them when we leave?”

“I’m not sure, but maybe they will be okay,” Fiona said, but it was a lie. Once she left the Dark realm, this place would cease to exist, which in turn would kill the other children. “So, now that I told you the truth, do you trust me now?”

“I do. I want to leave this place and feel the sun. I want adventure.” Gideon said. “I’ll help you any way I can.”

Fiona’s lips formed into a soft smile, but her eyes still held a mischievous gaze. “Wonderful.”

xox0xox

As she took in the sight of her depressing surroundings, a feeling of hopelessness was burrowing its way into Belle’s thoughts. Every which way she turned there was nothing, just darkness. The trees in the forest they trotted through had no leaves, and the bark was black like decay. She heard no birds in the trees or the scurrying of small woodland creatures. When she looked up, there were no stars, just a black desolate sky. It made her shudder to think that this was where Gideon had once stayed for 28 years of his life. Her baby boy, stolen and kept in a place with so much isolation and darkness. And now he’s returned. And who knows how long he’s been here this time. Last time he had been gone a day, and in this realm, it had been equivalent to almost three decades. Luckily, it had only been an hour since she last seen Gideon, and perhaps that wouldn’t equate to the same degree. But how could she know for sure?

Gold stop walking when they reached a clearing and began sealing it with a protection spell.

“Why are we stopping?” Belle asked.

“We need to rest, Belle.” He said. “We won’t be much use to Gideon if we’re too tired to fight.” He said, gathering twigs and small rotted branches from the forest floor.

“But what about Gideon-” Belle reminded him. “I don’t want him to stay here another night, alone and scared. I want our son back.”

“Gideon will be fine for a few hours. I sense him, and the place he’s being kept in isn’t too far away.” Rumple explained. “He’s a brave kid. And besides, we need a plan.”

“You’re right.” Belle agreed.

Rumple set the wood a blaze. The fire crackled on the dry logs as the fingers of the flames waved in the cold air. He held out his hand towards her. “Come closer to the fire.”

Belle felt fortunate to be considered in his plans regarding their child. Before he used to exclude her and would try to take care of the act himself using some form of dark magic, but now he wanted her help and wanted to do things together as a team. She always knew that there was a man behind the beast.

He conjured a blanket that was big enough for the both of them and wrapped it around Belle’s shoulders making sure every inch of her was covered before joining her inside the blanket.

“Are you warm?” He asked.

“Yes. Thank you.” Belle said, looking into the flames and smiling. “You know, I’ve been camping before.”

“Really? I would have never suspected,” Rumple said, giving her a skeptical look, and Belle nudged her elbow into his side. “ What I meant was that you were royalty. A princess. You shouldn’t have been camping like a peasant.”

“Well, I did,” Belle said. “I had to if I was ever going to get back to you.”

Rumple’s head sagged. Sending Belle away wasn’t a pleasant memory he liked to remember. Things only got worst for the both of them. He slipped further into madness, and she got captured by the Evil Queen.

“I really enjoyed it.” Belle continued. “Out in nature, catching my dinner, building fires and pitching a shelter. I even met some really nice people along the way.” Belle said remembering Mulan and Prince Phillip. “I used to tell myself that when I made it back to you, we could have our own little camping adventure.”

Gold smiled. “Well, it would seem you got your wish.”

A log popped open and cracked in the fire, sending embers dancing into the sky. The couple laughed, and Belle rested her head on his shoulder.

“What about you?” Belle asked. “Have you ever been camping?”

“I have.” He said, regretfully. “When I was a soldier during the first ogres’ war. And once when I ran away from the old spinsters to look for my father.”

“Doesn’t sound like you had much fun when you went camping.”

“No.” He said. “But I am now.”

Belle sighed. “I doubt we can count this as fun. It’s technically a rescue mission.”

“It’s fun because we are doing it together. And we can take another one once we get our son back.”

That made her smile.

Xox0xox

Belle was able to sleep for a few hours before getting jarred awake by the sound of rustling. Rumple pressed a finger to her lips so that she couldn’t make any sudden noises. The fire had died, and only a small amount of black smoke stirred above the grey ashes.

“Who’s there?” Rumple said in a hard voice.

A hooded young figure stepped out of the brush of bushes with a bowed arrow pointed to towards the couple. “On your feet intruders.” He commanded, but they were hesitant to make any sudden moves. “Now!”

Rumple and Belle rose slowly from the ground, with their hands in the air to show they were unarmed and meant the person no harm.

“Who are you?” The man asked bravely and without an ounce of fear.

Belle kept her hands up in surrender. “We are parents who just wanted our son back. He was stolen from us by the Black Fairy.” Belle said calmly.

“What’s your son’s name?”

“Belle, enough of this. He’s not going to help us. He’s just some brainwashed minion of my mother,” Gold said, conjuring up a fire ball. One way or another he was going to get his son back.

Belle jerked his arm down. “Rumple, no. Hurting him is not going to get Gideon back.”

“How do you know that name?” The young man asked, pulling the string of his bow backwards and nocking the arrow in the couple’s direction. Belle noticed that his elbow was beginning to shake, and at any moment, he could let his arrow loose.

“He’s our son.” Belle managed to say. “Gideon is our son. Pl-please put the bow down. We mean you no harm.”

“If what you say is true and you are both his parents, then that would make him the Dark One.” The hooded figured said before aiming the tip of the arrow at Rumple, releasing his arrow to let it fly.

Belle wasn’t given any chance to react as the arrow flew towards her husband and struck him in the chest. The force made him stumble backwards, but luckily he didn’t lose his footing.

“You didn’t do all your research dearie. Because if you had, then you would know this wouldn’t have killed me.” Rumple said, pulling the arrow’s pointed tip from his chest. But as he tossed the arrow aside something black and sticky remained on his hand, and in seconds, he stiffened and hardened in place.

“I wasn’t trying to kill you.” The man threw back his hood and revealed himself. A thin boy with curly brown hair that swept over his forehead with brown eyes to match. Belle could recognize those eyes anywhere. They were just like his father’s, and she couldn’t keep herself from looking in them since the moment he was born.

“Gideon?”

The boy dropped his bow and arrow and ran to Belle, grabbing her by the hand. “We have to go, mother, the squid ink won’t last for long. I won’t let the Dark One hurt you.”

Belle stood her ground as her son tried to lead her away. “Gideon, he’s your father. He would never hurt you or me.”

“He’s the Dark One. He will hurt everyone.”

“Not anymore. He’s changed. We both came here to bring you home.”

“But the Black Fairy said-”

“She lied Gideon. She’s the evil one, not your father. The Black Fairy stole you from our home and before that, she cursed me to an awful life. One that made sure that I would never see you again.”

“Gideon, whatever my mother is telling you, she’s feeding you lies,” Rumple said straining to speak in his frozen state. “She severed my fate of becoming the savior and ruined my life, and now she is doing the same to you.”

“How do I know you both aren’t lying?”

It had only been hours since she last seen him, but for Gideon, it had been years since their separation. He needed some way of knowing how much they loved him.

“I can prove it,” Belle said before reaching into her husband’s pocket and pulling out a picture. It was a photo of the three of them when Gideon was just a small babe.

“And this baby is me?” Gideon asked, pointing to the baby in its father’s arms.

“Yes, sweetie that’s you,” Belle assured him.

Gold finally unfroze and when to stand next to his son. “I’m sorry. I-I.”

“It’s not your fault. And this isn’t the first time one of my sons used squid ink to immobilize me.” Rumple said, placing a hand on his son’s shoulder. “Think of it as a rite of passage.

"Are you ready to go home, dear?” Belle asked, tucking a bushy curl behind his ear.

“Yes. But- well I can’t.” Gideon stammered. “Not without help the other kids here.”

“There’s more of you?” Rumple asked, unaware and Gideon nodded yes. “My mother has been a busy woman.”

“Of course we’ll help the other children get home,” Belle said.

“Gideon, show your mother where the kids are. And I’ll make sure that my mother never leaves the Dark Realm again.”

“How do you plan to do that?” Belle asked, worrying that he would sacrifice himself as he did with his other parent. “I trust this won’t be too dangerous.”

“No, not at all,” Rumple said. “No magic, just a little something my sons taught me.”

xox0xox

Fiona paced the floor with an empty wine glass in her hand and wondered what was taking Gideon so long to find out who the intruder in the forest was. She refilled her glass up with the red liquid when she felt someone appear in her chambers behind her.

“Well, if it isn’t my least favorite son, Rumple.” She said with a sadistic smile.

“I’m your only son.”

“Is that so?” She said casually like this was a conversation.

“Yes, and I won’t let you condemn Gideon to the same fate as you did to me.” He growled through gritted teeth. He was done with his Mother’s game. He just wanted his son back, no matter the price.

“So you’ve come here to save him?” she cackled delightedly. “Have you forgotten? This is my realm, and no one leaves here unless I will it.”

“I sensed as much. I took a look around your little school, or should I say, your concentration camp. You won’t get that curse you’ve been working on done with children mining for fairy dust. Only dwarfs can.” Rumple saw the change in his mother’s expression. He had her attention.

She tapped her fingernails on the side of her wine glass impatiently. “They’re basically the same thing, runt bastards that like to complain. Not much of a difference I’m afraid.”

“But they’re never going to get what you need,” Rumple said, taking a step closer to her. “But I can.”

Fiona smiled. “Is that a deal I smell?”

“It’s more like a trade. Release the children and my son-” He said, pulling out his dagger by the blade. “-And you can have me.”

Fiona’s eyes grew large as they traced the outline of the dagger. “You would give up your freedom just for a few measly children?”

Rumple nodded solemnly. “Is it a deal?”

The dagger flew from Rumple’s hand and across the room to of the Black Fairy, with the hilt in her palm. “Deal.”

Fiona smiled and gazed over the Dark One’s dagger like it was her new favorite toy. Rumple was hers, and he was the Dark One to boot. Now she had everything she needed to enact her curse that would enslave humanity in every the realm. She finally had it all. She finally had everything she wanted.

She gasped. “No, What- what’s happening.” Fiona cried. Her arm stiffened, and she lost the ability to use it as a poisonous spell crept over her body. When she finally realized that it was coming from the inky dagger, she dropped it to the ground. Unfortunately, it was far too late.

xox0xox

Belle, Gideon, and the rest of the children waited in the forest just outside of the thick walls of the school. The kids were scared when Belle came to save them. Most of them thought it was some kind of trick, and if they went with her the Black fairy would punish them. Luckily Gideon was there to persuade them that this was his real mother and she was going to take them home. They managed to get all the children out, and the protection spell withdrew from around the school, enabling them to leave. Belle kept them quiet and calmed while waiting for her husband who she hoped was alright.

One of the younger boys began to cry, he was only 4 and didn’t understand what was going on. Belle comforted him with a story, and even the other children’s fear began to fade while listening to her. After a few more stories, Rumple appeared and hugged her, happy to see that Belle and his son were safe. He explained to Belle that once they were back in Storybrooke, he would talk with Emma about sending the children back to their respective homes.

“We don’t have much time. The squid ink will be wearing off soon.” Rumple said, reaching into his pocket for the Apprentice’s wand.

Belle watched him summon the portal, and looked back at the ominous school’s Gideon looked and wrapped his arms around his mother’s waist, burying his face in her stomach. Belle stroked his soft hair protectively as the door to the portal open. “But Rumple, won’t she just follow us?”

Rumple tucked the wand back into his pocket. “No, once we are out of this realm, I’m closing any portal to this land off for good.”

One by one, all the children entered the portal that placed them back in Gold’s shop. Rumple waited to be last, ensuring that the children made it before he sealed off the realm. Once he was safely inside his shop, Gold cast a banishment spell, locking the Dark Realm from ever being open again.

xox0xox

The next morning, Belle and Rumple were watching their eleven-year-old son wolf down a healthy portion of breakfast. They weren’t sure about how he was going to react to the question that kept them up for a better part of the whole night, but it wasn’t fair to either of them if they made this decision without first consulting with their son.

“Son,” Rumple said, and Gideon popped his head up chewing a mouthful of food. “Your mother and I wanted to ask you something.”

Gideon swallowed the remainder of the food he had in his mouth, then picked up his glass of milk and washed it down. “Okay, what did you want to ask?”

“Well as you know, you were only a baby when the Black Fairy stole you from us,” Belle said, and Gideon nodded yes. “We missed so much of you growing up, like your first word, and your first steps.”

“You want to turn me back into a baby?” Gideon asked, completely aware of where this conversation was heading.

“Well, it’s up to you.” His father said. “We won’t force you to do something you don’t want to do. If you wish to stay eleven, then we would still be perfectly happy.”

“We just want you to be happy,” Belle added.

Gideon bowed his head, making Belle worried that they might have upset him by talking about changing him back. But to their surprise, he looked up at them and smiled.

“Okay. If I’m a baby again, that means I won’t have to go to school for a few more years,” he said, and his parents laughed.

That is, until a year ago when a beautiful marine biologist and bibliophile named Belle French sat on his secluded square of beach and changed the mundane system of his life.

It was the thought of her that made his urge to mate stronger than ever.

Belle was so beautiful, with her pearl-white skin and eyes blue as the distant sea, but it was her understanding of him that was truly beautiful. When they first met, he had been destroying boats and fishing equipment to protect the harbor, but Belle had stepped in and worked out an arrangement with the humans and the destruction of his harbor decreased significantly.

After that, they spent months learning about each other, going on adventures here and there, and Rumple had irrevocably, but platonically, fallen in love with her.

It wasn’t until the stirrings began that the love he felt for her had turned into an instinctual lust.

When he realized his new feelings for Belle, he was disturbed that he could feel such a thing for her. A human! Beautiful, smart, amazing Belle at that!

Then, as thoughts of her became muddled with his instincts, he thought, why not?

He loved Belle, and knew with certainty that she was attracted to him. She was always raving how beautiful a swimmer he was or how his scales looked like gold coins in the sunlight. She wasn’t afraid to touch him or even ride atop his back when they went on their watery adventures. They shared kisses and cuddled all the time.

He pondered exactly how he could approach the subject of Belle being his mate as he sunned behind the cluster of rocks at their place, the little cluster of beach ignored by the people of Storybrooke but miraculously found by Belle. It was as if nature wanted them together.

He heard sand shifting above and sat up, smiling gleefully as Belle tried not to roll down the hill, flip-flops and sunglasses dangling from one hand while she used her other to try and balance her giant beach bag. She stumbled down the dune, making an ungraceful jump to steady ground.

“Hi Rumple!” she gasped as she reached the shore, spreading out her blanket.

Rumple crawled through the sand until he was lying beside the blanket. “Hi Be…” he trailed off as Belle pulled off her tank top, her pearl-white breasts bouncing in her tight swimsuit top.

“Whoa, it’s hot today!” Belle whooped as she fell back on the blanket.  

Rumple gaped at her peeking breasts and long, silky legs. Though he admired her features, his attention had never been focused directly on them. But now with his hormones raging…

“Belle!” Rumple gasped desperately. “I need to ask you something!”

Belle stared at him. “You okay?”

“Yes!” Rumple nodded. “I just wanted to know if…” Rumple stared into her eyes, blue as the ocean in the early morning sun. So full of love for him, of acceptance.

So unsuspecting and undeserving of his lustful instincts.

“If you’d…” he sighed, courage evaporating like puddles on a hot day. “If you’d like to go swimming with dolphins today.”

Belle gleamed with excitement. “Oh Rumple that sounds beautiful! Now?”

He nodded, mentally beating himself for his lapse of courage as Belle trifled through her bag.

“Could you rub the sunscreen on my back?” she inquired as she started to undo the string of her swimsuit top.

Oh Poseidon’s trident why!?

Rumple pulled himself up, curling his tail under, struggling with the cap of SPF 100 until he squirted a fat blob into his scaly palm.

“Um…”

“It’s fine.” Belle commented. “Just spread it out as evenly as you can.”

Rumple stared at her glistening back, eyes trailing over the adorable moles and blemishes. The cool glop became heavy in his palm as he continued to hesitate.

Belle glanced back, holding her brown curls out of the way. “Rumple?”

The merman slapped her back, causing the goop to ooze between his fingers.

“Ouch! Careful!”

“S-sorry.” He muttered, circling the sunscreen, mesmerized by how the white oil faded into her pores and left a slick residue on her beautiful porcelain skin. Oh and it smelled so good mixed with her scent: salt and coconuts and warmth.

Belle sighed as Rumple rubbed the sunscreen into her skin. His rough, scaly hands felt erotic on her back and shoulders, relaxing her yet sending a tingling pleasure through her nerves. She wondered what they would feel like on other parts of her body…

Belle tensed at a flash of Rumple’s hand running over her thighs.

What was she thinking! She couldn’t look at Rumple…like that.

She loved Rumple, and knew with certainty that he was attracted to her. She saw the love in his eyes every time she came to visit him. He was always offering her little gifts from his cave and touching her. Not inappropriately or against her will, just running his fingers through her hair or intertwining their fingers. They even shared kisses and cuddled.

Those touches had never incited the feelings they were now. She felt warmer somehow, more weighed down.

“I…think you’re ready…Belle.” Rumple said suddenly, pulling Belle out of her daze.

Belle gasped, pulling regretfully from the merman’s grip. “T-thanks.”

Rumple nodded, not quite meeting her eyes. “I’ll…be right back.”

Belle followed Rumple until they were waist-deep, then watched him duck into the waters to summon the dolphins.

“He really is magical.” Belle thought aloud. He was clever, maliciously so, but still greatly intelligent. He was devoted to the ocean and all who inhabited it, and just as devoted to her.

He loved her. It was such a beautifully painful realization because Belle felt the same way. He was everything she ever wanted in a companion. But Belle also knew that expressing her love for him would only confuse him, and she never wanted to hurt him.

Rumple resurfaced and Belle forced a smile.

“There they are.” Rumple whispered, pointing to the distance.

Belle watched in wonder as several dolphins cruised a in the water, coming up for air and chasing each other around, waiting for the couple.

Belle met Rumple in the water and slid onto his back. She locked her legs around his waist and arms around his neck, resting her chin on the space between his shoulder and neck.

They swam deeper into the harbor, picking up speed.

“Whoooo-whoo!” Belle exclaimed as she and Rumple sped on the surface of the water alongside the myriad of dolphins. The mighty dolphins certainly had her mer-boyfriend beat with balance due to his torn fin, but his wiry yet surprisingly strong arms had them beat in speed.

“Should I get off?” Belle yelled over the wind as they began lagging behind.

“No!” Rumple shouted out. “Hang on tight; rough waves!”

Belle clenched her thighs harder down around the waist of his tail. Though Rumple’s scales weren’t slimy, they were still slippery when wet and Belle was having a hard time staying on. She kept adjusting herself, unintentionally rubbing herself up and down his tale until heat started pooling in her lower belly.

Belle blushed at the feeling, not sure if she should be ashamed or aroused. Why was she feeling these things all of a sudden? She and Rumple did things like this all the time and it had never affected her this way.

So consumed with her thoughts that she didn’t see the giant wave racing to them. Rumple jumped to miss it and immediately felt Belle’s weight lift from his back and collide back down sharply before she screamed and fell into the ocean.

“Belle!”

Rumple dove after her, finding her instantly and pulling her to the surface, rushing her to calmer waters.

It took a moment to realize what had happened. One second she was struggling not to let the tingling in her loins overpower her and the next she was having an orgasm so intense that she lost momentary control of her limbs. The aftershocks of it continued to shake her even as she plunged into the ocean and took in a large gulp of salt water. She felt Rumple’s arm wrap around her and pull her urgently to shore, holding her up by her shoulders as he examined her.

“Belle! Oh Belle are you alright? Did you hurt anything?” he pleaded as he checked her arms.

Belle coughed and blew the salty water from her senses and nodded.

“Fine.” She wheezed.

Behind them he dolphins began to cackle, mocking them for their wipeout and defeat.

Rumple hissed at them. “I’ll let the humans turn you into canned goods!”

One of the dolphins cackled again before leading its pack back into the depths of the ocean, leaving the couple alone.

Rumple humped. Majestic dolphins? Prissy peacocks was more like it.

Another cough from Belle led him from is annoyance. He circled an arm around her waist and helped her climb back on his back.

“Let’s get you dried off.”

“Just…take it slow, okay?” Belle inquired shakily, the dregs of her surprise orgasm still dying away.

Rumple nodded, doing his best to ignore the pressure of her delicate weight on his tail.

He got her back to shore without too much of a fuss and crawled up the sand beside her as she pulled her towel out of her bag.

Rumple watched her run her fingers through her salt-coated hair, working out the tangles. She was indeed more beautiful than any creature in the sea. Oh he loved her, every bit of her, even the parts unattainable to him.

No you shark! Don’t think about her parts!

He drummed his fingers on a seashell, keeping his eyes away from her.

“Rumple,” Belle asked suddenly, “can I ask you something?”

Rumple startled. “Of course Belle. You know you can ask me anything.”

Belle chewed worriedly on her withered lip. “How…how do you feel about me?”

Rumple blinked, his mouth going dry. If only she knew…

“I love you Belle. I…thought you knew that.”

Belle giggled. “I do Rumple I do. I just…” she rubbed her hands nervously across her sand-coated knees. “What do you think of me physically?”

Rumple gulped, his pulse and hormones racing all the more. “I…you’re beautiful…”

Belle scooted closer to him. “Rumple,” she began as she lifted his chin. “please look at me.”

Rumple grasped the hand under his chin and brought it to his mouth, holding it while he inhaled the scent of the ocean from her skin. The smell alone stirred the fire inside of him. He lowered his hand to his mouth and ran his tongue along her skin and between her fingers

“Belle…”

Belle stared at her mer-boyfriend in curious astonishment.  “Rum…”

“Belle Belle Belle…” he groaned as he rubbed his face against her palm.

The merman finally looked up at her impossibly blue eyes. She was afraid, not of him, but for him.

“Something’s changed between us Rumple.” Belle affirmed.

“It’s me Belle.” Rumple answered, focusing his gaze on her collar bone.

“What’s you? What’s going on Rumple?”

“It’s mating season Belle.” He admitted at last. “And I…I feel things for you that I shouldn’t…”

Belle paused as she let the vague information set in. She was aware that it was mating season for the sea life of Storybrooke, as she had learned their patterns during her stay, but she hadn’t given Rumple’s nature a lot of thought. It pained her to think that her friend was going through a similar sexual crisis like her.

“Rumple, it’s okay.” Belle reassured gently. “You can’t help biology.”

“But Belle,” Rumple groaned, squirming in the shallow waters. “I feel things for you! I love you, I have for so long, but it’s not love I’m feeling now. It’s lust. And…I’m ashamed.”

Belle took hold of his shoulders and helped him sit up so that she could properly straddle his tail.

“Do you believe that I love you?” Belle asked him, rubbing his shoulders soothingly.

Rumple gulped, his pulse racing and hormones pulsing. “Of course.”

Belle placed a hand over his racing heart. “Then please trust me when I say that I feel the same things for you. And though I’m…confused…I’m not ashamed, and you shouldn’t be either.”

Rumple stared at her in surprise, but then felt a rush of gratefulness. His desire was becoming unbearable and he was relieved that she would be willing to consent to his proposal.

“Are you sure of your feelings are towards me?”

“Of course I’m sure. I know how I feel. Don’t you?”

“I want to be with you Belle but should know…merfolk take their mating rituals very seriously.”

Belle shrugged. “Some humans do too. I for one do.”

“We mate for life Belle.” Rumple confided, taking hold of one of her hands and intertwining their fingers. “We can’t separate from our mates once we choose them.”

Belle tilted her head. “Have you been with another merperson before?”

Rumple grimaced. “No. I never…it just never worked out for me.”

Belle laughed humorlessly. “Tell me about it.”

Rumple’s thumb soothed over her smooth palm. “And you?”

Belle shook her head, looking almost sad. “Almost, a few times. But…it just never worked out.”

Rumple frowned at the thought of the sharks that had dared denied his Belle. They could have had the most amazing woman by their side!

“But it’s better this way.” Belle continued. “I have you.”

Heat coursed through his chest. He smiled lovingly at her and kissed her hand.

“I do love you Belle.”

“Then let’s do it!” Belle said excitedly. “Let’s be together always.”

Rumple leaned up and kissed her, slow and sensational. He petted her damp hair as he pulled back, sighing as he kissed the corners of her mouth and her chin.

“Just let me lead you Belle. Let me lead.”

Belle nodded and let him pull her into the water until she had to climb on his back. He took them deep into the waters, near a patch of coral reef that was starting to bloom with the summer life. When he stopped, he pulled her around to his chest and helped her float.

“Traditionally, this is done underwater.” Rumple explained. “Unless…”

“No.” Belle shook her head, nervous but excited too.  And a little warm even in the cool waters. “I want to do it the way your kind does it. I trust you.”

She kissed Rumple back when he put his lips to hers, but was surprised when his lips didn’t move against hers in response. Instead, he began breathing air into her lungs as he pulled them into the water.

Belle moaned into Rumple’s mouth, breathing in the air he was sending to her lungs. She pulled away briefly to look into his lustful, golden eyes, her eyes barely burning from the salt water thanks to the thicker contacts she had switched to.

Rumple’s hands scaled down her naked sides to her hips and buttock, firm from years of intense swimming. He gently grasped her hips and encouraged her to wrap her legs around his waist, pulling at the string of her bikini bottoms while his other hand undid the top.

Belle allowed him to maneuver her and gasped into his mouth when his scaly tail erotically rubbed against her clit. Her arms swayed by his sides, unsure where or what to grasp in her mission for completion.

Rumple made sure he had a firm grip on her before he began to slowly circle them, creating a sort of dance, all the while applying small thrusts against her pelvis. He felt heat greater than the one flushing through his body collect in the center of his tail, level at the place where Belle’s mating parts were. He glanced down long enough to see a phallus extend from his tale, scale-less but gold like the rest of his tail, brushing against Belle’s thigh.

He was nervous then. He didn’t know the extent of what would happen next, didn’t know if once it happened if everything between them would change. But brave Belle’s gentle touches encouraged him to press on and swallow his uncertainties.

Carefully and uncertainly, he leveled himself with Belle’s parts. Her hands covered his, helping him position himself in her comfortably. As soon as he was incased in her spongey, warm cave, Belle began moving them, and Rumple placed a wedge between his need to shoot off and to take care of her. He scaled his hands everywhere he could. Her pulse was racing under his fingertips, her hands holding his waist against her to discourage separation.

Her hand removed one of his from her waist, placing it where they were joined. Rumple felt around, grazing her parts and his, unsure of what she wanted him to do. Thankfully, Belle patiently moved his fingers where she wanted them to be: on top of a spongy button. Each time he pressed on it or moved it around, Belle would moan into his mouth or her thighs would twitch.

Suddenly Belle pulled from his mouth, leaning her forehead against his. Her eyes bore into his and Rumple could see t lust in her dilated pupils. Her hips began to grind against his frantically, creating small whirlpools around their hips. Rumple’s talons began to pierce Belle’s thighs as his release escalated to its strongest point.

Belle’s sex clenched him so tight Rumple released a vibrating cry, his eyes rolling as is seed shot into her. Belle pulled back from him, her mouth screwing in a gasp, the oxygen she had been containing leaving her at a rapid pace.

Still blurry-minded, Rumple gripped her hips and shot through the surface, Belle panting and Rumple shaking.

“B-belle?” Rumple husked, holding her up.

Belle leaned her head against her mer-boyfriend’s chest, feeling boneless from the low quantity of oxygen and sex.

“Hmm?”

“Are you alright?” he murmured, kissing her wet hair.

Belle yawned, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Just tired. Can you get us back to shore?”

Rumple giggled, filled to the brim with pride and love for his darling Belle and relief for himself. He felt lighter than he had in days, free from the pressing weight of instinctual lust. But he also felt fuller than ever before.

He’d been so lonely before he met Belle, so lonely that he hadn’t known at first just how to be with someone else. She had showed him how, showed him how to let affection and love in and give it back.

Now he had a future because he and Belle were connected in a way no one could take away from them.

They were mated for life.

-,-,-,-,

“Rumple?”

Rumple opened his tired eyes, turning on his side and smiling at his mate. “Yes my love?”

“Did you grab my swimsuit?”

-,-,-,-,-,-

Okay…I have no idea how mermaids do it.

I barely know how fish do it, and I frankly don’ want to explore any further.

I barely barely know how people do it.

So…I did my best.