[center][img]http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d94/Malfoys_one_and_only_girl/Male%20Characters/Rumpel.gif?t=1406852255[/img][img]http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d94/Malfoys_one_and_only_girl/Signatures/240x160Regina.gif?t=1407701155[/img]
[h1][color=Goldenrod]Rumpelstiltskin[/color] and [color=MediumOrchid]Regina[/color][/h1]
[h3]The Enchanted Forest Outskirts ~ The Dark Castle[/h3][/center]

He was back at the spinning wheel again. Finally he had a few moments to himself to get lost amongst his cornucopious amount of thoughts forever plaguing his mind; some thoughts not even his own but belonging to Dark Ones before him, though they all now shared the one, brilliant mind. Amongst the flickering (more prominent) thoughts of Snow White and The Evil Queen was a simple, arguably pure thought that was altogether alien to himself and all the Dark Ones before him. 

Belle. 

Today was the day that she would be getting married and the only reason he knew [i]that[/i] was because of the ever so chatty witch that liked to pay him visits with the most nettlesome of news. Really, he could have done without Regina's theatrics, he was doing quite well on his own after he had sent Belle away. He was ready to be done with his little maid altogether, never to look back or blink an eye, but Regina made it a point to become a thorn in his side, giving him updates on the girl that he truly could have gone the rest of his immortal life without knowing. Like her wedding.

It was Regina's fault that she was gone in the first place. Regina's fault that the ever-so-content help was suddenly driven to change things. They had a good thing going, he and Belle. He ordered her what to do, and she did it. She kept his castle clean, cooked him his meals, laundered his clothing, made him tea... it was the perfect arrangement and that crooked little witch ruined it all - putting ideas into Belle's head about True Loves Kiss. He knew Regina's aim, she wanted him weak; vulnerable. Well it wasn't going to happen. The Dark One [i]has[/i] no weakness, so he cast Belle out, urging her to continue the engagement that he had broken up the very day he collected her as a prize for saving the Kingdom of Avonlea from the Ogre attack. The debt had been paid tenfold; he simply didn't need her anymore...

Wincing, Rumpelstiltskin felt the thread in which he was spinning knot up in his careful hands, ruined beyond (non magical) repair. Grimacing, Rumpelstiltskin let the thread go, staring down the knot as though it had gone out of its way to offend him. Despite the castle being completely empty save for the Imp, The Dining Hall, as well as the whole entirety of The Dark Castle, held a solemn quiet haunting even The Dark One himself, it's echo sending a cold shiver down his spine.

No... that wasn't a shiver... that was a pull of magic...

Becoming more aware of his surroundings, Rumpelstiltskin quickly moved his hand over the knotted thread in which he had been spinning, watching it untangle itself and took up his post again, simply watching himself turn the wheel where the straw thread slowly turned itself into gold, coiling up in a small basket at the foot of the spinning wheel.

She was here. [i]Of course[/i] she was here, he had seen this days ago which gave the Imp ample time to plan out Kaeden Liddel's escape from Wonderland Prison because in order for him to get what Rumpelstiltskin wanted, Regina could not be at her castle. Knowing that she would be coming to pay him a visit on [i]this[/i] particular day, out of any other, well it was just too perfect and he didn't need his ability of foresight to be able to know that.

The lock in which Rumpelstiltskin had set on the twin, grandiose doors that led into The Dining Hall was quickly shattered as though it had been made of glass. The doors, in turn, flew open by the will of magic, allowing Regina entrance into his personal space, walking right on in as though she owned the place.

"Flimsy locks." Regina half-giggled as she entered the room which finally brought the Imp to look at her for the first time, as though he hadn't heard or felt anything prior. " I have a deal to discuss...a certain...mermaid..." Regina went on, stopping at the table in the center of the room before she reached Rumpelstiltskin. On the table was nothing more than a simple tea service, comprised of a small kettle, a sugar bowl and only two tea cups all nestled in snugly on a tray of pure silver. One of the teacups looked to have been damaged; a large chip on the brim that took out quite the chunk which quickly caught Regina's attention.

"I'm not dealing today." Rumpelstiltskin replied, turning his head back to the wheel and away from her, though he made sure to keep a careful eye on her from the corners. Regina cocked her head to the side, unafraid to look directly at Rumpelstiltskin. There was no child-like giggle, no snark. Nothing but... normality and quite possibly a tinge of sadness that held Regina's attention much more than a damaged old teacup. When Rumpelstiltskin said no more, Regina turned back to the tea service, opting to help herself.

"Are you angry with me?" She asked, holding the tea kettle paused in the air as she was just about to pour it into the cup. But when Rumpelstiltskin said nothing once more, she went on, resuming by pouring her tea. "What is it this time?"

"Your little deception...[i]failed[/i]." Rumpelstiltskin finally replied and only then did he return his attention to the woman helping herself to [i]his[/i] tea, hiding the fact that he felt somewhat relieved that she had chosen to use the undamaged cup. "You'll never be more powerful than me. You can keep trying, dearie, but you're never gonna beat me..."

Regina met the Imp's gaze and held a knowing smirk, hearing the slow increase in Rumpelstiltskin's blood-lustful voice. She set down the tea cup and kettle back onto the table and approached him, letting her painted lips curl out in a false pout.

"Ohh, is this about that girl I met on the road? Hmmm?" She asked, her voice dripping with mockery. Rumpelstiltskin returned his attention to the spinning wheel before him, perhaps he had said too much already. Regina let out a cold laugh at his subtle response as she returned to the table and to her cup of tea. "What was her name?" She went on, picking up the tea cup and raised it to her lips. "Margie? Verna..." She went on, trying to recall the name on her own.

Rumpelstiltskin stopped spinning, if but for a moment.

"Belle..."

"Right...well, you can rest assured I had nothing to do with that tragedy..." Regina replied almost instantly, conjuring up a silver spoon from thin air and began to stir the tea in her cup around, keeping her back to Rumpelstiltskin to hide the smirk on her lips. Rumpelstiltskin felt his blood freeze over, his heart dropping to his boots... Immediately he stopped the spinning wheel, feeling his body tensing until he was so stiff, for once he felt like he fit into the dragon-hide coat properly.

"What. Tragedy?" He practically demanded, pulling himself away from the spinning wheel to approach her at his table. Regina pulled the spoon from her mouth slowly, her eyes wide as she turned to face him, her expression now quite shocked.

"You don't know?" She asked, astounded. When Rumpelstiltskin didn't reply, only looking at her coldly, she set the spoon and cup of tea down onto the tray and turned to face him once more. "I was wondering why you weren't at the Royal Wedding. Didn't get an invitation?" Rumpelstiltskin's lip twitched, his fingers flexing as he was starting to grow impatient, but he remained silent. That was all Regina needed, and she gave him a quick, understanding smile. "Me either." She then finished, using Rumpelstiltskin's own words against him that he used with her when Snow White and Prince David were getting married. Casually, Regina returned to the wooden table and picked her cup back up. She kept him waiting to take a small sip of her tea, drawing it out as long as she possibly could, practically being able to feel the Imp coming apart around her. It was glorious.

"Well...after she got home... it was quite the miracle the knight still wanted her after her... association with [i]you[/i]. The wedding was today, of which I'm more than sure you know..." Regina paused, looking at Rumpelstiltskin directly, her dark eyes shining with the fact that she held a secret that Rumpelstiltskin was so intent on knowing. She could have asked him for anything right then; she had no doubts that she wouldn't be able to. But what would come next, his reaction, would be all the pay she would ever need. "The bride never showed."

Just as Regina had expected, there was a reaction from the Imp. His entire visage shifted, the sickly green tinge to his skin almost lighting up, as did the rest of his features but it was his eyes that told Regina everything that she wanted to know. His eyes held, however small, a look of hope.

"That's right, Rumpel. She [i]ran[/i]. Ran from every little girl's dream of being married off to a knight, to be royalty and raise a happy, healthy family under the fat protection of the crown."

Rumpelstiltskin stood stock still. He tried moving his arms in the elaborate flourish that he was accustomed to, but the most he got out of them both was a few awkward twitches that never went any higher than his wrist.

"S-so... she needs... a... a [i]home[/i]?" he stated, more than asked. A flicker of a severely repressed smile showed for only a fraction of a second on the corner of his lip, his eyes widening and brows raising to his hairline. Belle had run from her own wedding, and he couldn't help but to think that he might have been a reason. He didn't [i]want[/i] to think that way, but with that thought came a torrid of others that quickly followed behind; that he regretted pushing her away the very moment she was gone. He regretted letting her go, regretted pushing her into the arms of another man. Regretted his harsh words towards her. A quick fluttering in his chest told him right away that this was perhaps the best thing he had ever heard, almost too good to be true. He wasn't wrong.

Regina let out a cold laugh that instantly turned off everything Rumpelstiltskin had been feeling. It was that one laugh that brought him back to the nature of their conversation, of what had led up to this moment to begin with. Belle running from her wedding was no tragedy, at least not to either of the two standing within The Dining Hall. So... what [i]was[/i] the tragedy? He felt his insides starting to twist and knot; similar to how the thread had knotted in his hand only this time, Rumpelstiltskin felt the pain. He [i]almost[/i] didn't want to know.

"She was hysterical! The nursemaids helping her to get ready said that she had lost all sense of her own mind, that she kept begging them to make it stop. When no one would help her, she ran straight into The Infinite Forest... Now... why would she do that, I wonder?" Regina gave Rumpelstiltskin a pointed look. 

Rumpelstiltskin's dark eyes narrowed, not buying into what the witch before him was saying. He knew Belle, she would never knowingly step foot into that cursed forest. It didn't take a dark sorcerer like himself to know what dangers lurked within those woods. But more than that, The Infinite Forest was in the complete [i]opposite[/i] direction of The Dark Castle. In the complete opposite direction of [i]him[/i].

"You're lying..." Came his eventual reply, but the uneasiness in his voice made Regina quirk a black eyebrow.

"Am I?" She challenged, practically able to [i]see[/i] the varying thoughts playing across Rumpelstiltskin's mind as he stared right back at her, trying to surmise on his own what had happened but unable to find any doubt in Regina's words. He let his guard down too quick, he was [i]too[/i] hopeful that Belle might actually be wanting to return to him. No, instead, she wanted to be lost not only from everyone else, but to herself as well. Any time spent in The Dark Castle would have driven anyone else to do the same thing.

After a few very tense moments, Rumpelstiltskin pulled himself from whatever dark hole the woman was burying his thoughts into and shook his head no, pointing a gnarled finger at her. 

"We're done." He waved his hand, the double doors of the room opening up magically as if to show her the way out and Rumpelstiltskin walked to the doors themselves, stopping at the threshold with an arm gesturing for her to leave. He wasn't going to allow this woman to plant any more thoughts into his head; he would [i]not[/i] be played like a puppet. Regina shrugged and walked towards him slowly after setting down her cup of tea.

"Fine, I have other house-calls to make." She said with a light chuckle, dragging her finger on the table as she walked towards him and looked upon the dust that gathered upon her finger. "Hmmm...place is looking dusty Rumpel..." She said meeting him at the doorway. "You should get a new girl." She gave him a pleasant smile and took her leave.

Rumpelstiltskin closed his eyes hard, waiting until the witch had left his house completely before magically shutting the doors once more. He walked to the table and picked up the cup that Regina hadn't used for her tea and admired the small chip the cup had on the rim. If what Regina had said was true, then Belle was gone, forever. Even [i]he[/i] couldn't track her down in The Infinite Forest before it was too late. To do that would require a more complex location spell... and he simply didn't have the time. Belle was already lost and even quite possibly, dead.

Rumpelstiltskin delicately set the chipped cup back down on the tray, his eyes never leaving the ornate piece of china, letting the single tear he didn't even know was there to slide down his cheek silently.

No. This [i]wasn't[/i] Regina's fault. This was [i]his[/i] fault. The fault of a monster.