In Storybrooke, Mr. Gold strives to be the man Bae used to love--until Belle is kidnapped to Neverland. If he resumes his Dark One powers to save her, can he control them? In the Enchanted Forest, Emma battles ogres, zombies and her ex to get back h...
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Rumplestiltskin (Mr. Gold): I will do nothing else, I will love nothing else. (The Return)
Stepping into the library, Mr. Gold pointed back at the door, using magic to shut it and lock it—something he was still unable to do for his own house and shop. The main room was dark, but the hallway beyond was lit. Faintly, he caught the sound of whimpering. His forehead wrinkled. Poor Ruby. The moon would rise soon. Evidently, she was dreading its effects.
"Ruby, dear, this is Mr. Gold," he called out as he limped across the floor. "I've cast three different spells on your scarf. One of them should do the trick."
Then he heard a sob that was definitely not Ruby. He tensed. The sound was like his own darling Belle wracked by night terrors, unable to fight her way out of sleep. He swung the crutch out further, leaning into it, quickening his pace.
"Belle! I'm here."
The crutch thumped rhythmically on the linoleum floor as Mr. Gold rounded the corner and hurried down the hall. When he reached the fiction room and saw Belle slumped on the floor with one hand chained to the wall, his face crumpled. He jerked his wrist with such force that his power snapped the manacle in two and whipped it across the room to clang against a steel shelf.
"Oh, Belle." He threw down the crutch, dropped the scarf, hopped four steps, then collapsed beside her, enfolding her in his arms and nestling her against his shoulder. His mind cried I'll protect you, but he knew those words wouldn't help. Instead, he whispered, "You're free, you're free."
A tremor ran through her. She wrapped her arms around him, pressing close, molding herself to his body. His pulse raced, and he closed his eyes. We fit together perfectly—as they had when she'd tumbled off the ladder into his arms, when she'd escaped the lockup ward to find him in his shop, and every night of the bittersweet interval when she'd shared his bed. The memories flooded his mind, melting into a vision of Belle and him like two strands of true love entwining in a sparkling magical dance, tantalizing him with promises of exquisite joy.
He shuddered. Lies. All lies. The thought of them together was absurd. She was well rid of him. For her sanity and well-being, she had to remain so. But he would protect her—always, in any possible way he could.
Belle stirred inside his arms, and he inhaled deeply. He'd thought their embrace in the mines had been their last. Now he'd been granted another last time.
Sighing, Mr. Gold committed every detail to memory. Then he steeled himself to pull back and touch her chin. When she raised her head, her gaze was dreamy, sending a delicate shiver down his spine. He forced himself to ignore it.
"Who did this to you?" he asked. "Who chained you up?"
Belle blinked. Then her lips parted. "Oh, Rumple. Ruby is throwing herself on the mercy of the mob. She didn't want me stopping her. She didn't... didn't know I... didn't know I..." Her words trailed off in gasping breaths.
