A/N: *Disclaimer* I do not own OUAT or any of it's characters. But if Robert Carlyle were to show up on my doorstep, with a sign that said "property of Lucy", I wouldn't be complainin'. Also, this oneshot does contain spoilers for "Skin Deep", so read at your own risk!

"So she needs a home?"

The queen's face twisted into a sneer. "Why? Are you looking to rent?"

Before she had finished her quip, Rumpelstiltskin swept out of the room. Donning a cloak, he rushed through his courtyard and out of his estate.

"Fiat tenebris dirige me dilecto meo!"

The inevitable pull gripped his heart and yanked him forward. The forest rushed past him in an indistinguishable blur. Miles flew beneath his feet in seconds. Finally, the world stilled.

He frantically searched his surroundings. It looked like any other patch of Fairy Tale Land. Scanning the ground, he began to wonder if he had said the incantation right. Dusk settled in, making his search all the more difficult. She had to be here. The magic coursing through his veins sensed her.

A pitiful whimper sounded to his right, and he whirled around, desperate for the source.

"B-Belle?" he called out hesitantly. Suddenly he was unsure if he wanted her to find him. Another whimper reached his ears. He dropped his gaze downward.

There, a few meters ahead of him, lay a figure clothed only in tattered rags and strands of dark velvet that caught the light of the moon.

"Belle!"

He rushed to her side in an instant, taking off his cloak to drape it over her shivering, unconscious form. The scraps of velvet obscured his view of her radiant face, the face that had haunted every dream, nightmare, thought, and action of his for too long. He attempted to brush the silky material off her cheek, but it only smeared the length of her face and his hand.

Now shaking, knowing, but not wanting to know, he raised his hand to his lips to taste the dark substance.

Blood.

After pushing the all-consuming rage to the back of his mind, he moved on to the less herculean task: carrying her gorgeous, broken frame back to his castle. The swiftness of magical transportation would only damage her further.

He made the journey slowly and steadily. Miles past beneath his feet, but they never grew tired. Never once did he slow his pace or rest his arms. Never once did he jostle her enough to wake her or cause her pain. And never once did he remove his gaze from her beautiful, terrifyingly blank face.

Time held no meaning for him as he approached the gates to his grounds. He could have been walking for fifteen minutes or fifteen hours; it made no difference.

Making his way past the doors and into the main dining area, he set her down on the table. Pausing once more to admire her beauty, he briefly recalled that it was on this very table that she had inquired about his life. It seemed only fitting that he would save hers in the exact same spot.

He placed his hand over her heart and reached into the recesses of every part of his body to summon the magic to heal her.

"Voco meus dilectus in potestate tenebrarum curare..."

Through the night he remained vigilant by her side, willing every ounce of his being to be enough to save her.

Dawn approached when he finally noticed a change. The blood snaked back up her body and into the slashes they had come from, sealing the source as they completed their journey. The exquisite rose flush returned to her cheeks and lips. She was perfect once again.

A few agonizing seconds passed, and her eyes fluttered open. Those infinite pools of hazel immediately fixed on the man standing over her.

"Rumpelstiltskin," she said simply.

He held his breath.

"You found me," she smiled.

His heart felt as though it had burst in his chest. She was in his arms once again. Her smile was meant for him. Unrestrained tears tumbled down his gold-tinted cheeks.

A look of concern crossed Belle's face. "Are you crying because of me?"

"Everything I do is because of you, dearie."

All fear left him as he lowered his lips onto hers.

In that instant of true love's kiss he saw everything. The things he only caught a glimmer of the first time they kissed; the things he did not let himself see. It all passed before him freely now. His restoration to a normal man. Her absolute joy when he proposed marriage. The heat and euphoria of the wedding night. The elegant curve of her body signaling the anticipation of a child. His son learning to ride a horse. His daughter picking roses in the garden. And her smile. Her smile as they played with their children. Her wonderful smile across the dining table. Her smile as they danced in the royal court. Her smile as she fell asleep in bed next to him.

Her glorious smile.

Washing away…

A terrible smile remained.

"He was cruel to her. He sent in clerics to cleanse her soul with scourges and flame. After awhile she threw herself off the tower. She died."

Rumpelstiltskin shook as heartbreaking reality set in.

She's dead.

She's dead.

Raw fury shot through his body. She was dead because of him. Killing everyone involved did not seem like a strong enough response, but it would be a start.

"Everything I do is because of you, dearie."

A/N: BAHHHHH! All the Rumbelle feels! It kills me. It really does. But I hope you liked it! Please review. It takes two seconds and it makes me very happy and motivates me to write more. Also, here are the two latin phrases translated:

Let the dark lead me to my love.

I call on the power of the darkness to heal my beloved.

Latin always sounds magical. Again, I hope you guys enjoyed it!