This chapter was originally the stand-alone fic "Summoner." But Belle and Rum had quite a bit left to talk about after that, and this little story just didn't want to be a one-shot. If you've already read "Summoner," head on over to chapter 2.

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Conversations

Chapter 1

By ZionAngel

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The trees, the land, the air, the very world itself shudders as magic pours into the realm and permeates everything it touches. Rumpelstiltskin watches as it rolls through the land, so strong and tremendous that it takes shape and form. When the thick cloud of purple smoke finally dissipates, when the birds sing and the trees hum at the new wonder of it, at the sheer joy of being alive in a way they never were before, he looks around only to find himself standing alone.

His heart races as he fights down panic. He reaches out into the air around him with long-dormant senses and searches for her, while at the same time limping back to the path. He isn't sure if his eyes or his mind find her first, but all the same, he rounds a massive, ancient tree, and finds her standing in the middle of the small clearing. He sighs with relief and calls her name. But even as he approaches her, even though he has not seen her in thirty years, he can see in her posture that something is wrong.

"Belle?" he murmurs as he touches her shoulder. "Are you all right?"

She turns to him slowly, and backs away. Her eyes are cold, her brow drawn tightly together.

"When I left…" she begins, and licks her lips, "you told me that your power meant more to you than me. In all that time I never once believed that you really meant it… not until now."

A cold fist grips his heart, and for a moment he can't find his words. "I didn't mean it, Belle. I was a coward and a fool to turn you away. I've regretted it every day since, I -"

He takes a step toward her. She takes two back. "Then what is this?" She gestures to the world around them, looking stricken, furious, fierce. "Why do this? Why, immediately after I tell you that I remember who you are, and that I love you, right after you claim to love me, why is your power the first thing you think about? Does it really mean so much more to you that you can't take two minutes to talk to me and kiss me before you go lusting after your precious power again?"

The hand of ice at his heart squeezes and twists and destroys him, and he knows now what Regina's many victims must have felt just before they met their end by her magic. But this is no death spell. He has nothing to blame for this but his own human stupidity and cowardice and single-mindedness. This, it seems, is the price he must pay for hurting her over and over, and for hurting her still.

"Time is of the essence right now, dearie," he tries to explain, not sure what else to say. "There wasn't a moment to waste."

The fury in her face transforms, melts away and turns to pain. "Why do you even need it at all? We found each other again, we're together. We can be happy together!"

"It's complicated…" He wants nothing more than to go to her, take her in his arms and whisper his love to her over and over until all her doubts vanish, but pain and anger radiate out from her like a barrier, forcing him away as strongly as any magic.

Belle shakes her head, and her eyes transform from soft, inviting depths into cold, hard steel. "The only thing I see is that you love your power more than me, and that's not complicated at all."

She turns on her heel and marches away from him, so very much like she did decades and realms ago, and around him, Rumpelstiltskin's world cracks and crumbles and dies around him. He cannot lose her, not again, not now, not after he only just got her back, he cannot see her turn and reject him again. Even with all that he's worked for and still has left to do, if he loses her, he will surely wither away and die from the pain. His mind races round and round in circles, tripping over itself and growing dizzy as he tries to think of something to say, anything, so long as it will make her stop, forgive him, stay. And as she walks farther and farther away from him, miles and miles away and out of his life and heart forever, his mind falls into the only thing that will save him, the only thing there is to do.

She told him so very long ago that she merely had to take the leap, do the brave thing, and bravery would follow with her and carry her through. And though he is forever a coward deep inside, he prays the same will work for him, too.

He takes a deep breath and calls out after her. "I need the power because of my son, Belle." She stumbles to a halt, like he has shocked her, and he drives forward before he has a chance to stop. "I need it to find my son."

She holds her ground. She does not turn to look at him, and he sees her hands clench into fists. He hurries after her and stops behind her when she is just out of arm's reach. He takes a deep, steadying breath, and continues quietly. "His name is Balefire. I told you that I lost him. He came to this world, and I was supposed to come with him… but I was a coward and a fool and I lost him. And now I need magic so that I can find him again. So that I can make things right."

Still she does not move. She does not turn and smile at him, but she does not storm away and leave him behind. It's a good sign. He takes a few cautious steps forward to stand beside her, still keeping some distance, as though she is a deer that might startle and run off. Her face is turned down, hidden by her tangled hair. He takes a half step forward, close enough to touch her, but he keeps his hands at his sides. He swallows away the lump of fear in his throat, and when he continues, his words come out as a soft murmur.

"But I know he's not the only one I need to apologize to, or the only one that I need to make amends with. You were right all along, Belle. I don't care about power more than you. But I do need my power so that I can find Baelfire." Carefully, slowly, he reaches out and brushes his hand against her shoulder. "There is nothing in this realm, or any other, that I love more than you. There is one thing I love as much as you, and that is my son. But beyond that, nothing compares to my love for you. Please, please believe that."

She turns, just the tiniest bit, and he can see her eyes through the curtain of hair. She waits.

"I have a lot to explain, and a lot to tell you about, and a lot to apologize for." His voice cracks, and he must fight to get the words out. "But I swear to you, Belle, I love you with all my heart… and I will never hurt you, or shut you out, or choose my power over you ever again. I promise." His voice breaks, and he feels hot tears fall down his face.

Belle turns her head away. She takes a deep breath, fighting for control over her own emotions. She raises a hand to her face, and he hears her sniffle. He wants to wipe her tears away himself, but he only waits. She looks up through the dappled light of the trees and to the morning sky above, and she's quiet for a long time. He can feel her letting the magic wash over her, ground her in the earth below her feet and help her stand tall and steady and brave in the face of everything.

"If I kiss you are you going to pull away from me again?"

His heart breaks, from pain as much as joy. "No. Never again."

She turns to look at him, head held high. Her eyes are red from the tears, and her cheeks are pink from the cool morning air. She faces him fully, and closes the space between them. She stares up into his eyes, and he can feel her boring all the way down to his dark, broken soul, and the intensity of the gaze nearly sends him to his knees. And she must see something deep down inside, that little flicker of light that she saw all those years ago, that made her think him redeemable, that made her somehow, incredibly, love him. She must see it, because she brings her hands up to his face, cupping his cheeks in a way that should not possibly be so intimate. She brushes the pad of her thumb over his lips, lightly, only a whisper of a touch, and his lips part for her with a gasp. She leans up, and presses her lips to his, and the world is crumbling around him all over again, but this time he couldn't care less.

When she pulls away, she leaves his lips warm and tingling and aching for more. She leans her forehead against his and sighs deeply. He feels her whole body relax.

"We have a lot to talk about."

"Yes we do." He pushes her hair away from her face, and cradles the back of her neck. For the first time since she came back to him, he lets the world around them fall silent, and just lets himself cherish and love the woman in his arms. "I can take you home now. If you like."

Belle nods, and links her arm with his, and lets him lead her out of the forest.