A Dream Is...
Title: A Dream Is...
Rating: PG13
Genre: Angst/Hurt/Comfort/Drama
Characters: Belle, OMC (unnamed), Ruby Lucas, Rumpelstiltskin, Doctor Whale, Happy the Dwarf, OFC (X2),
Summary: Belle has been gifted with prophetic dreams and they've finally returned to her.
Beta: Unfortunately I did not use my Beta for this one and I apologize in advance.
A Dream Is...
It was not the first time she had seen his face in her dreams, but this time it felt all too real. She could feel how warm his flesh was under her fingers, his breath on her neck.
"It saddens me," he whispered, "That you always forget me when you wake. I could never forget you. I never do," he promised her in his rich, soothing voice.
Belle felt stricken because it was true, "I'm sorry, I do not know why it happens," and she was truly sorry.
He smiled sadly, brushing her hair from her face, cupping her cheek, "It's the man you currently reside with. The Dark One, it's his magic that clouds your memories."
"But why? He loves me," she insisted.
The man simply sighed, "You do not know him, the lies he keeps, the half truths you think you know are nothing to the crimes he committed and those he committed against you. How long have you dreamt of me?"
Belle thought for a moment, "Almost every dream since I was merely 11. With the exception of the nightmares, you are always here."
"And I always will. The nightmares that come through are your gift, your prophetic gift that is stifled by that man. Try resting elsewhere and you will see. But now, it's time for us to wake. I hope someday soon, I will get to see you, it would be nice to see you before I die."
"Die? Die! Wait-"
Belle bolted up with a shout, arms up, reaching for someone....a man she couldn't place...
"And that was the last dream I had in Rumpelstiltskin's home."
Ruby gave her a sympathetic glance, "Sounds intense. My dreams are never so passionate or informative."
Belle shrugged, "What does a wolf dream about?"
"Feasting, mostly but occasionally mating. Mostly feasting, just digging in and ripping something or someone open and feeding."
That made Belle queasy to think about, but Ruby seemed all too happy to think about it. In fact a dreamy smile crossed her lips. Usually, Belle supposed, this would scare normal people but she wasn't normal. Given her ex-boyfriend was Rumpelstiltskin and they were living in a world that believed them all to be characters in stories, there was so such thing as normal.
Little Red Riding Hood, or Ruby as she was called in this land just grinned. "You're so odd, I wonder why I'm friends with you," Belle teased.
"You'd be lost without me," Ruby winked though in all honesty it was the truth.
Belle smiled warmly, "It's the truth, dear, and we both know it." Her thoughts were cut off by a sudden yawn, "Oh my, I'm sorry."
"Its ok, it's getting late, time for bed. I'm not going to disappear; I'll be here when you get up. But then I will have to go check on David, Lord only know what happens if I'm not there to watch over him." Ruby stood, even pulling the covers over her, tucking her in.
No one had done that to Belle since her Eldest sister disappeared, so long ago. She would have thought of her mother but she had been dead since Belle was 2, the only mother she had known was Duvessa, her strong and patient older sister.
"Good night, Belle," Ruby stated, hitting the lights as she crossed the threshold. "May you dream of that guy you keep forgetting."
"And may you dream of something other than feasting!"
Ruby's laughter rang through the darkness, "Fat chance, but thanks," she said and then she was gone.
As Belle was gently pulled into her dream, she wasn't surprised that his promise came true. He waited for her, this time it was in Granny's in the booth she usually sat in. As she sat, she saw others frozen around the cafe, including Ruby, Rumpelstiltskin, Doctor Hopper, a dwarf, a man she knew as Victor before she knew he went by Whale and two blonde females she couldn't see the faces of.
"Why here?" She asked, usually they were outside in a garden of roses or by a river.
He sighed, "There is much you don't see. The truth will be hard to accept but the sooner you do the better."
Belle tilted her head, "What truth?"
He inclined his head to where Ruby was pouring coffee into Archie's cup, but it was frozen like her. The pure rapture in her face as she looked at him was spellbinding but that's when Belle noticed something.
Rumpelstiltskin was right behind Ruby, he was waking passed the table but something caught Belle's eye. His fingers were skimming across her lower back, something seemingly innocent. But there was never any innocence when it came to him.
"He's touching her," Belle stated, "As far as I know she talks to him. I would not say they are friends but they are not strangers."
Her Unknown nodded, "They are far from strangers. Would you allow someone you do not know or even a friend to place their hand there? There is a history of intimacy between them. When you wake, ask her and she will tell you the truth. As for Doctor Hopper, look at how they are staring at one another. You know that look."
"True love," Belle breathed, "...is Rumpelstiltskin keeping them from true love?" She asked as her stomach churned.
The Unknown shrugged, "I don't think it's just the Imp. She honestly fears love, ask her what happened to Peter."
"Why are you telling me this? Why are these people here?" She gestured to Victor and the Dwarf. "Why them? Why Doctor Whale and a Dwarf? That's an odd combination."
"The secrets they keep hold keys to your bloodline."
"Bloodline, my Father is the only member of my family left," Belle insisted, getting up crossing the diner to the men. Unable to move them, she reached out for the women behind them who were facing the register. "Show me who they are! Why did you bring them here?"
Suddenly everything blurred and it seemed like time moved. The men passed through her like she was a ghost leaving her reaching for the women. "Please!" She screamed out, reaching for them.
She heard their laugh and she fell to her knees. She knew that laughter, a sob ripped from her. That was her sisters laughter. Duvessa'a rich chuckle to Lily's high, almost mad, giggle.
As they turned, Belle looked up to Lily, who looked the same and as she looked to her elder sister, she screamed. The decaying corpse of her sister reached for her. Her darkened, cold fingers grazed her cheek. "Join us Belle."
With a terrified scream Belle backed away, being scooped up into the arms of her beloved. The diner melted away into a walled rose garden. The roses all held a faint glow and every last one was in full bloom.
"Shhh, my love, you're alright, you're safe with me. You always are."
"Why...why would you show me that?"
He chuckled, "I didn't, I'm not controlling your dream, you are. This is your gift, I just get to visit."
"Then where are we? I've never been here," she insisted.
"This is my garden, you sought peace and this is where we ended up. You'll be waking soon, remember these walls. You may see them soon," he told her.
Belle reached for him, "I'd rather have your name."
"It's-"
She awoke with a start, almost weeping as she was once again without his name. But a scent lingered in her senses, roses and a masculine scent. She looked around the room and let out a gasp. Gold eyes flickered in the shadows.
"Damn you, Rumpelstiltskin," she all but snarled.
He just chuckled lowly, "My, my, you're certainly feisty this morning."
Belle sighed, running her hand through her tangled hair, "Why are you here?"
"To check on you," he said innocently, but she knew that wasn't it. When she glared at him, he came closer, a sigh escaping his lips.
"I was here to see Miss Lucas; we had business to attend to." When Belle shot him a skeptical look, he held up his hands. "Honestly dear, she's an ally I count on. Given I have so few left."
Crossing her arms over her chest, Belle held her ground, needing the truth from him, the idea that had been put into her mind coming forward. "Are you lovers?"
"Sometimes. Not since your return but when you left in the other world, I did take her as a lover. I believe our...coupling...was mostly from pity and animalistic lust. She and I are beasts; we tend to attract one another. With the addition of not being myself for nearly 30 years, she and I have a complicated relationship that we ended for your sake. Now that you have no claim to me, I have to shame in pursuing her again."
Belle shook her head, "Does she have ties to Doctor Hopper as well?"
He seemed surprised, "How did you know that, you can't possibly hear them."
"What?!"
"Keep quiet, you do know you can easily wake Granny and she's ready to kill me on sight."
Belle snorted, "Probably because you're trying to attach yourself to her Granddaughter."
"True. But yes, Red and Cricket are currently busy, it is why I came to check on you, you seemed distressed," he explained. "I tend not to get in Crickets way, when he gets vengeful, bad things happen. Poor things don't realize they have true love because she refuses to believe in it."
Belle's brows knitted together, "I thought nothing stopped true love."
He laughed softly, "Love truly is a fickle thing, my dear. Look at us, you purely believed you loved me due to what we call in this realm, Stockholm syndrome and your forced feelings almost changed me back. I did have feelings for you but I knew you weren't mine so I was able to stop it. When true love happens, nothing can stop its power. If we had been loves we would not have been able to love without one another, seeking each other as The Charmings have famously done. But after you walked out, I began my plans and have had one goal and one goal that have remained."
"Your son."
There was a curt nod, "Yes, that's why I need Red, she's a hunter. She can scent him out, I hope but it will take a lot of convincing."
Belle locked her gaze, "What if you don't find him? What if he wants nothing to do with you?"
Sadness filled his expression, "Then I have nothing and through some discussions with Hopper I will have to begrudgingly accept that it was my own doing and that I am the monster everyone believed me to be."
"You aren't, but you are a lost soul," she said, trying to appease him which only made him laugh.
"Oh Belle, you are always looking to the light when the truth is much darker than that. They say power corrupts but in actuality it shows us who we really are. If I had a pure soul, I could have resisted the dark impulses but I had been bitterer by life. I could have bettered myself long before...maybe if I had..."
"Rumpel, what do you what?" Ruby's sudden voice from the doorway, she looked annoyed but the same way she had when she had tucked Belle in the night before. Before Rumpelstiltskin answered Ruby saw the look on Belle's face. "What did you say to her about me?"
He merely grinned, "You were busy with Cricket."
"Talking! Talking with Archie! Can't I just talk to someone?!"
"He implied you were doing other activities. And that he desires to have you back," Belle added.
The guiltiest look consumed Ruby's face, "Belle, I'm-"
"I assume he never talked about me. I am not offended and I have moved on, if you want him, he's yours," Belle stated, voice strong and face set, meaning every word,
Ruby shook her head, "I don't want him."
"Sure you don't," he stated with a laugh, "but you always come back to me."
The woman crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a look at surely could have killed a mortal. "I'm working things out with Archie. I want a happy, healthy relationship and no one can have one with you and we all know it."
"That was my point," Belle stated, "I will not be controlled and I will not subject myself to your darkness. It consumes everyone around you and I will not be the next victim. I thought I loved you once but I had never been around someone like you or people in general now that I think about it. I need time for me, to be my own person, not a prisoner."
He looked at the women with a smile, "Well the ladies, I see your resolves are set. But do remember my door is always open, one day both of you will return. You all need me, you always do," he stated, standing. He crossed to Belle and cupped her face. She flinched back, waiting for a blow to fall, and the look of concern passed his features.
"The last time someone did that to me, that damn pirate knocked me out and tried to kill me because I wouldn't help murder you," she answered, know why he was concerned.
His eyes narrowed, "One more reason," he murmured, the crossed to Ruby. His skimmed her exposed line of flesh on her stomach. As she growled, he leaned in and nuzzled her neck. "Good night, dear."
Ruby slammed the door as he left."That ass. I meant what I said, I don't want him."
Belle nodded, gesturing for Ruby to come closer. "I know. But I need to talk to you, I dreamt of him again..."
-to be continued
In "Heritage"-
Rating: PG13
Genre: Angst/Hurt/Comfort/Drama
Characters: Belle, OMC (unnamed), Ruby Lucas, Rumpelstiltskin, Doctor Whale, Happy the Dwarf, OFC (X2),
Summary: Belle has been gifted with prophetic dreams and they've finally returned to her.
Beta: Unfortunately I did not use my Beta for this one and I apologize in advance.
A Dream Is...
It was not the first time she had seen his face in her dreams, but this time it felt all too real. She could feel how warm his flesh was under her fingers, his breath on her neck.
"It saddens me," he whispered, "That you always forget me when you wake. I could never forget you. I never do," he promised her in his rich, soothing voice.
Belle felt stricken because it was true, "I'm sorry, I do not know why it happens," and she was truly sorry.
He smiled sadly, brushing her hair from her face, cupping her cheek, "It's the man you currently reside with. The Dark One, it's his magic that clouds your memories."
"But why? He loves me," she insisted.
The man simply sighed, "You do not know him, the lies he keeps, the half truths you think you know are nothing to the crimes he committed and those he committed against you. How long have you dreamt of me?"
Belle thought for a moment, "Almost every dream since I was merely 11. With the exception of the nightmares, you are always here."
"And I always will. The nightmares that come through are your gift, your prophetic gift that is stifled by that man. Try resting elsewhere and you will see. But now, it's time for us to wake. I hope someday soon, I will get to see you, it would be nice to see you before I die."
"Die? Die! Wait-"
Belle bolted up with a shout, arms up, reaching for someone....a man she couldn't place...
"And that was the last dream I had in Rumpelstiltskin's home."
Ruby gave her a sympathetic glance, "Sounds intense. My dreams are never so passionate or informative."
Belle shrugged, "What does a wolf dream about?"
"Feasting, mostly but occasionally mating. Mostly feasting, just digging in and ripping something or someone open and feeding."
That made Belle queasy to think about, but Ruby seemed all too happy to think about it. In fact a dreamy smile crossed her lips. Usually, Belle supposed, this would scare normal people but she wasn't normal. Given her ex-boyfriend was Rumpelstiltskin and they were living in a world that believed them all to be characters in stories, there was so such thing as normal.
Little Red Riding Hood, or Ruby as she was called in this land just grinned. "You're so odd, I wonder why I'm friends with you," Belle teased.
"You'd be lost without me," Ruby winked though in all honesty it was the truth.
Belle smiled warmly, "It's the truth, dear, and we both know it." Her thoughts were cut off by a sudden yawn, "Oh my, I'm sorry."
"Its ok, it's getting late, time for bed. I'm not going to disappear; I'll be here when you get up. But then I will have to go check on David, Lord only know what happens if I'm not there to watch over him." Ruby stood, even pulling the covers over her, tucking her in.
No one had done that to Belle since her Eldest sister disappeared, so long ago. She would have thought of her mother but she had been dead since Belle was 2, the only mother she had known was Duvessa, her strong and patient older sister.
"Good night, Belle," Ruby stated, hitting the lights as she crossed the threshold. "May you dream of that guy you keep forgetting."
"And may you dream of something other than feasting!"
Ruby's laughter rang through the darkness, "Fat chance, but thanks," she said and then she was gone.
As Belle was gently pulled into her dream, she wasn't surprised that his promise came true. He waited for her, this time it was in Granny's in the booth she usually sat in. As she sat, she saw others frozen around the cafe, including Ruby, Rumpelstiltskin, Doctor Hopper, a dwarf, a man she knew as Victor before she knew he went by Whale and two blonde females she couldn't see the faces of.
"Why here?" She asked, usually they were outside in a garden of roses or by a river.
He sighed, "There is much you don't see. The truth will be hard to accept but the sooner you do the better."
Belle tilted her head, "What truth?"
He inclined his head to where Ruby was pouring coffee into Archie's cup, but it was frozen like her. The pure rapture in her face as she looked at him was spellbinding but that's when Belle noticed something.
Rumpelstiltskin was right behind Ruby, he was waking passed the table but something caught Belle's eye. His fingers were skimming across her lower back, something seemingly innocent. But there was never any innocence when it came to him.
"He's touching her," Belle stated, "As far as I know she talks to him. I would not say they are friends but they are not strangers."
Her Unknown nodded, "They are far from strangers. Would you allow someone you do not know or even a friend to place their hand there? There is a history of intimacy between them. When you wake, ask her and she will tell you the truth. As for Doctor Hopper, look at how they are staring at one another. You know that look."
"True love," Belle breathed, "...is Rumpelstiltskin keeping them from true love?" She asked as her stomach churned.
The Unknown shrugged, "I don't think it's just the Imp. She honestly fears love, ask her what happened to Peter."
"Why are you telling me this? Why are these people here?" She gestured to Victor and the Dwarf. "Why them? Why Doctor Whale and a Dwarf? That's an odd combination."
"The secrets they keep hold keys to your bloodline."
"Bloodline, my Father is the only member of my family left," Belle insisted, getting up crossing the diner to the men. Unable to move them, she reached out for the women behind them who were facing the register. "Show me who they are! Why did you bring them here?"
Suddenly everything blurred and it seemed like time moved. The men passed through her like she was a ghost leaving her reaching for the women. "Please!" She screamed out, reaching for them.
She heard their laugh and she fell to her knees. She knew that laughter, a sob ripped from her. That was her sisters laughter. Duvessa'a rich chuckle to Lily's high, almost mad, giggle.
As they turned, Belle looked up to Lily, who looked the same and as she looked to her elder sister, she screamed. The decaying corpse of her sister reached for her. Her darkened, cold fingers grazed her cheek. "Join us Belle."
With a terrified scream Belle backed away, being scooped up into the arms of her beloved. The diner melted away into a walled rose garden. The roses all held a faint glow and every last one was in full bloom.
"Shhh, my love, you're alright, you're safe with me. You always are."
"Why...why would you show me that?"
He chuckled, "I didn't, I'm not controlling your dream, you are. This is your gift, I just get to visit."
"Then where are we? I've never been here," she insisted.
"This is my garden, you sought peace and this is where we ended up. You'll be waking soon, remember these walls. You may see them soon," he told her.
Belle reached for him, "I'd rather have your name."
"It's-"
She awoke with a start, almost weeping as she was once again without his name. But a scent lingered in her senses, roses and a masculine scent. She looked around the room and let out a gasp. Gold eyes flickered in the shadows.
"Damn you, Rumpelstiltskin," she all but snarled.
He just chuckled lowly, "My, my, you're certainly feisty this morning."
Belle sighed, running her hand through her tangled hair, "Why are you here?"
"To check on you," he said innocently, but she knew that wasn't it. When she glared at him, he came closer, a sigh escaping his lips.
"I was here to see Miss Lucas; we had business to attend to." When Belle shot him a skeptical look, he held up his hands. "Honestly dear, she's an ally I count on. Given I have so few left."
Crossing her arms over her chest, Belle held her ground, needing the truth from him, the idea that had been put into her mind coming forward. "Are you lovers?"
"Sometimes. Not since your return but when you left in the other world, I did take her as a lover. I believe our...coupling...was mostly from pity and animalistic lust. She and I are beasts; we tend to attract one another. With the addition of not being myself for nearly 30 years, she and I have a complicated relationship that we ended for your sake. Now that you have no claim to me, I have to shame in pursuing her again."
Belle shook her head, "Does she have ties to Doctor Hopper as well?"
He seemed surprised, "How did you know that, you can't possibly hear them."
"What?!"
"Keep quiet, you do know you can easily wake Granny and she's ready to kill me on sight."
Belle snorted, "Probably because you're trying to attach yourself to her Granddaughter."
"True. But yes, Red and Cricket are currently busy, it is why I came to check on you, you seemed distressed," he explained. "I tend not to get in Crickets way, when he gets vengeful, bad things happen. Poor things don't realize they have true love because she refuses to believe in it."
Belle's brows knitted together, "I thought nothing stopped true love."
He laughed softly, "Love truly is a fickle thing, my dear. Look at us, you purely believed you loved me due to what we call in this realm, Stockholm syndrome and your forced feelings almost changed me back. I did have feelings for you but I knew you weren't mine so I was able to stop it. When true love happens, nothing can stop its power. If we had been loves we would not have been able to love without one another, seeking each other as The Charmings have famously done. But after you walked out, I began my plans and have had one goal and one goal that have remained."
"Your son."
There was a curt nod, "Yes, that's why I need Red, she's a hunter. She can scent him out, I hope but it will take a lot of convincing."
Belle locked her gaze, "What if you don't find him? What if he wants nothing to do with you?"
Sadness filled his expression, "Then I have nothing and through some discussions with Hopper I will have to begrudgingly accept that it was my own doing and that I am the monster everyone believed me to be."
"You aren't, but you are a lost soul," she said, trying to appease him which only made him laugh.
"Oh Belle, you are always looking to the light when the truth is much darker than that. They say power corrupts but in actuality it shows us who we really are. If I had a pure soul, I could have resisted the dark impulses but I had been bitterer by life. I could have bettered myself long before...maybe if I had..."
"Rumpel, what do you what?" Ruby's sudden voice from the doorway, she looked annoyed but the same way she had when she had tucked Belle in the night before. Before Rumpelstiltskin answered Ruby saw the look on Belle's face. "What did you say to her about me?"
He merely grinned, "You were busy with Cricket."
"Talking! Talking with Archie! Can't I just talk to someone?!"
"He implied you were doing other activities. And that he desires to have you back," Belle added.
The guiltiest look consumed Ruby's face, "Belle, I'm-"
"I assume he never talked about me. I am not offended and I have moved on, if you want him, he's yours," Belle stated, voice strong and face set, meaning every word,
Ruby shook her head, "I don't want him."
"Sure you don't," he stated with a laugh, "but you always come back to me."
The woman crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a look at surely could have killed a mortal. "I'm working things out with Archie. I want a happy, healthy relationship and no one can have one with you and we all know it."
"That was my point," Belle stated, "I will not be controlled and I will not subject myself to your darkness. It consumes everyone around you and I will not be the next victim. I thought I loved you once but I had never been around someone like you or people in general now that I think about it. I need time for me, to be my own person, not a prisoner."
He looked at the women with a smile, "Well the ladies, I see your resolves are set. But do remember my door is always open, one day both of you will return. You all need me, you always do," he stated, standing. He crossed to Belle and cupped her face. She flinched back, waiting for a blow to fall, and the look of concern passed his features.
"The last time someone did that to me, that damn pirate knocked me out and tried to kill me because I wouldn't help murder you," she answered, know why he was concerned.
His eyes narrowed, "One more reason," he murmured, the crossed to Ruby. His skimmed her exposed line of flesh on her stomach. As she growled, he leaned in and nuzzled her neck. "Good night, dear."
Ruby slammed the door as he left."That ass. I meant what I said, I don't want him."
Belle nodded, gesturing for Ruby to come closer. "I know. But I need to talk to you, I dreamt of him again..."
-to be continued
In "Heritage"-