Thanks for the support guys! You know I love you (: To clear up some confusion, this is an AU, and the curse is only active for people who do not possess magic. Theodora is the name of the Wicked Witch of the West in the Wizard of OZ, and I thought it would be cool to incorporate her in the story somehow, especially because Once Upon a Time never talks about Rumple's childhood. In this story, Rumple is a half breed; half demon, half witch/warlock. When I refer to witch/warlock I do not mean anything to do with Wicca, I think that wiccans are great, and I would hate to insult them. What I mean is to tap into the fantasy aspect of witches/warlocks and how they have been stereotypically portrayed in movies, novels and plays. Alright, now that I have hopefully cleared some things up, back to the story!

Annabelle entered the familiar, yet strange, home of her lover. The atmosphere was quite different than before, something was off; peculiar. She called out his name, and there was no answer. She had seen his car, so she knew he was home. Then, a horrible thought crossed her mind, and it made her stomach clench with dread. Maybe the other car was another woman. Maybe he was making love to her like he did with her. The thought of that almost made her hurl. She did not know why she was feeling this way; he was a totally insane, and a creep! Yet, something inside of her, perhaps an instinct, was telling her that her feelings were not just frivolous. Begrudgingly, she decided to peer around his house. After all, it was possible that she was just panicking for no reason. She felt her stomach lurch when she heard an innocent giggle coming from a seemingly young woman. She gathered up her courage, and went to go investigate; and if she had to, give him a piece of her mind.

She wandered to where she had heard the giggling, and found a young curvaceous woman standing there with her eyes on Mr. Gold. Annabelle raced right up to Mr. Gold and gave him a kiss on his cheek. He looked surprised, like he hadn't expected to see her, and he also looked a little concerned. She steeped right by Mr. Gold's side and decided to introduce herself.

"Hello there, my name is Annabelle French, may I inquire as to who you may be?" She asked, as cattily as she could.

She laughed a hearty laugh, and reached out to shake Annabelle's hand. In return, Annabelle shook the woman's hand. The woman's eyes appeared to darken, just like Mr. Gold's when he was angry. For a moment, and only a moment, Annabelle was taken back.

"Hello darling! I'm Theodora Gold, Rumple's mother," she told Annabelle with a devious smile.

Annabelle's face twisted with confusion. She looked under thirty, and she was his mother? It couldn't be, Mr. Gold was in his late forties or early fifties. And Mr. Gold's first name was Rumple? What a strange name.

"But you're so young Ms. Gold! You can't be more than twenty-nine!" Annabelle replied, with a false sense of flattery.

"Oh I like her Rumple! She is by far the sweetest and most beautiful of all your female conquests," Theodora spat, hoping to upset the young woman.

"Oh, he has more than one?"

Mr. Gold interrupted them; he had had enough. His mother was untouched by age because of her aging spells, but how was he supposed to explain that to Belle? How dare his mother assume that he has more than one woman! Belle was all he had ever wanted; she was destined to be with him. His worries started to reach their pinnacle because his mother was now circling his Belle like a vulture.

"She sure is beautiful Rumple, I can see why you harbor such an attraction to her. Maybe I could spend a little alone time with her? You know, to better understand why you picked such a human to be a part of your life, that is for the time being," Theodora spewed, she was going to make Annabelle's time with her as uncomfortable as possible, and when the young girl cries, she will harvest her tears and conduct a sinister enchantment.

Theodora will teach her son to be ruthless, and if that meant that she had to isolate him and break his heart, well then so be it! She glared at Belle, she had heard stories about her. She was the pretty little librarian who took care of her dying father, all the while ignoring her own feelings. What a dumb sob story. She was unfit for her son, and so was any other woman that dared try to be with him.

"Mother, I believe that it is time for you to leave now," Rumple coldly insisted, hoping that his mother would not make Belle cry.

He knew that Belle was strong, she had taken a lot of shit in her life, but his horrendous mother would find a way to make her miserable, whether by enchantment or by psychological methods.

Theodora took Annabelle by the hand and led her to her son's living room. She motioned Annabelle to sit down on one of Mr. Gold's brown leather couches, and Annabelle so happily complied. Theodora grumbled something under her breath when she saw the young woman's unscathed shaven legs. Every time Theodora cast a spell or an enchantment a mark would be cast somewhere on her skin. That was the deal she had made with the devil for her powers. Her only mistake was falling for one of Satan's minions. The King of Lies had tricked her into falling in love. She had traded her soul to save her lover, and what did she get out of it? A life full of regret, loneliness and an ungrateful son. When she found out that her son's demon father had tricked her, she had sent him back to hell. She would not listen to his protesting he was scum, and no matter how much the demon said he cared for her, she knew it wasn't true. She knew that Rumple would never forgive her. He loved his treacherous father, but even when he found out the truth of his father's nature, he still favored him over her. It killed her inside. While she did not have a soul, the devil left her with one torturous thing; a bleeding heart.

"So Annabelle, I heard your father is dying of cancer. It must unnerve you to know your father's and my son's past together," she cooed, in a soft and unassuming voice.

She would goat her, and hopefully taint her innocent self with doubt. She would make sure that Annabelle will hold so much distaste for Rumple that she could not stand to be around him, and then when Annabelle will least expect it, she will turn her into dust right in front of her heartbroken Rumplestiltskin.

"What past?" Annabelle inquired.

Annabelle had known nothing of her father and Mr. Gold's past. She did not really want to either, considering that Mr. Gold was an asshole to everyone he was around. Still, it unnerved her to think that her lover and her beloved father hated each other.

"Oh, you don't know?"

"Know what?"

Theodora was almost going to tell her when Mr. Gold walked in. His face was full of fury and discontent.

"Mother, I demand you leave this premise now! You are nothing but a rude, inconsiderate fool, and I will NOT have you hurting my Belle."

"Oh Rumple, calm down. Belle and I were only having a little chat," she innocently stated.

Mr. Gold's eyes turned black, the way they did that night in the alley. He shut his now onyx eyes, and his mother seemed to be pushed out of her seat by some sort of invisible force.

"Oh no you don't you little brat!"

His mother conjured something inaudible, and Annabelle started getting worried. What the hell was happening?

It seemed like the conjuring didn't work, and she was sent flying. She flew throughout the house, carefully avoiding getting hurt or harming any objects, until she reached the front door. Rumple kept her there until he reached her, with a smirk he stated, "Thank you for your visit Mother, please do not come again!"

With that, the front French doors opened and she was thrown out. Outside she was screeched at the top of her lungs that she would come back, and when she did there would be hell to pay.

Annabelle watched with horror. What on earth had she gotten herself into? This was crazy! All these things could not really be happening! Could they? Mr. Gold returned to her and rubbed her hands.

"She didn't hurt you did she?" He asked, overly concerned.

"No, she didn't, but I have a lot of questions to ask you, and I refuse to leave her until they are answered!" Annabelle clearly exclaimed.

"Alright, I have nothing to hide. What's your first question love?"

"What the hell are you? And what history do you have with my father?"