bootlegexcalibur | ❝ the oldest movie i ever saw was the one we wrote together ❞

I certainly respect the dedication to change, but you may want to take this one up with your parents.
:)

My parents the deputy and the elementary school teacher?

Emma.

[ Do you feel the side-eye coming thru the phone. Just in case... ]

😒

Edited 2023-04-18 16:47 (UTC)

[ that's right, Belle missed the bulk of the Emma-in-denial storyline. rest assured, she's great at it in every aspect of her life.]

Belle.

Tell me someone at least had the sense to take a picture. For you to reflect on, of course.

[ Even she knows there's a time and place for "believe in yourself" preachiness!!! ]

You realize it was an actual tiara - from Gold's shop?
It's hard to tell if you were trying to build me up or get me killed.

He wouldn't kill you over something like that! Trust me.

[ Girl. ]

That does explain the missing inventory, though. I've been looking for it all day. Do you still have it?

You're not the one I don't trust in that scenario.

[ she's pretty sure he's killed over less than that. but, moving on...]

Dropped it in the mailbox this morning.

Then, thankfully, this can stay between us.
I'm still certain it suits you, though. :)

That makes one of us.
Just be glad I never inherited a kingdom.

If you did as much good there as you do as sheriff, I don't think there'd be any problems.

Thanks.
I don't deserve it, but thanks.

When a door, a portal, an entryway opens, there's no one-way access. Anna and Elsa might be (hopefully) safely back in Arendelle, but Storybrooke remains the same, and after spending twenty-eight years without magic, clearly, it's trying to catch up. A portal opens. Something goes in. Something comes out.

There's a boy in Belle's library, and she's never been so shocked at how literal magic's transactional nature is.

If there was any commotion over his arrival, if there are any more like him, Belle missed it; Rumplestiltskin has crossed the town line, and in these early days of separation, she's kept to herself, trying to find some sense of normalcy. A notion that feels more and more foolish by the second as she stands in the library's tiny kitchenette, tucked in the back behind the office. A pot of tea steeps on the counter while her hands, unsteady, slice an apple and arrange it next to other fruits on a paper plate.

Belle is certain she does not have a son. Belle is also certain that she shouldn't leave the boy who claims to be such (according to the haphazard debrief she received from the Charmings, who ushered him in and left almost as quickly as they appeared) alone for too long, knowing what magic can do to one's senses and general orientation.

There's a sick feeling dripping into her stomach that this is all Rumple's doing — his way of slipping back through the cracks, his loophole, for all he loves those. The paring knife slips through the fruit, softly thudding against the cutting board. She keeps busy.

Belle doesn't necessarily know what motherly instinct feels like. She'd always wanted children, but that concept seemed so far on the horizon. Even now, it's difficult for her to fathom, but she's experienced enough with other worlds, with stories, to question that potential reality. She reminds herself that in some mythologies, time is cyclical: what is to be, already is.

And so it is.

Plate loaded with fruits and crackers, Belle loads it onto a tray along with the teapot and two paper cups, taking a deep breath and treading into the library proper, toward the table where she'd offered him a seat.

"I hope you like tea," she says, expression curling into a nervous smile as she carefully places the tray on the table. She unstacks the paper cups and nudges one toward him. "I'm — sure you're hungry. There's a little bit of everything."

Ben wasn't sure how he came to this place. His ex-girlfriend Audrey must have spelled him to disappear somehow, and this is where he woke up. His kingdom was in trouble, and he was sent somewhere far away, and he knew his girlfriend and parents were probably worried sick about him... it wasn't like they'd be able to find him. He didn't even know where he was.

It was almost like he was sent somewhere that was kind of like home but completely different. The Snow White he knew didn't look like this. This Snow was kinder towards him and when he mentioned Belle he was ushered into the library. This made ton of sense. His mother loved reading books, but this Belle wasn't his mother. This was so unreal to him.

As he looked around, he knew that he'd get lost in here. Upon seeing Belle, he smiled at her. "I do like tea. I'm starving." he took the cup carefully from her and took a sip of his tea. "You must think I'm completely crazy. I'd think I was crazy." he carefully took a piece of fruit and started to eat it slowly.

Her smile became more pronounced, and she nudged the containers of creamer and sugar packets toward him. Belle had done enough unexpected travel in her years to know the value of creature comforts after a hard landing.

She had questions. She had so many questions, but for the moment, she let them (and him!) settle, busying herself with two of her own sugar packets before she paused, ripped paper hovering over the black tea.

"I don't think you're crazy," Belle said, expression melting into something comforting, something concerned, and even if what he said was casual, well — maybe he was the type to use casual humor to cope with something very real. Her instincts urged her to reach out and lay a comforting hand on his arm, but she kept to herself, unsure of the boundary. "Trust me. Sometimes it seems like once we overcome one fantastic ordeal, we don't get a chance to breathe before the next one."

That was a life lesson, right? Belle stirred her sugar into her tea.

"Why don't you tell me about home? About —" About her, about their home life, "— Mary Margaret and David, you didn't recognize them, did you?"

Being sent here by Audrey was a cruel joke. He was sure that she didn't mean to send him here, but it seemed that there was no turning back now. This Belle seemed different from his mother, and he hoped that he'd actually get to know her. How many Belles existed in this world? He was going to find out sooner or later it seemed. Unless this was a dream. He pinched himself and winced, so he knew it wasn't a dream he was wide awake currently.

"Well, that's good that you don't think I'm crazy. This place is different from the place I am from." He took some of the fruit off the plate and started to eat it slowly, it tasted really sweet like back home so that was a good sign.

"You want me to tell you about home? Alright I can do that." He wasn't sure where to begin. "Home is basically a magical kingdom called Auradon. My father sent all the villains to live on the isle of the lost including their kids." He paused for a minute to take another drink of his tea. "I was becoming King when I turned sixteen that's how things were in my family and my first decree, I chose four kids from the Isle to come to Auradon. I'm an only child. My mother would have liked this place she adores books."

He shook his head. "I don't recognize them at all. My Snow White is a bit different. David is just Prince Charming. This place is similar to Auradon we just live in a castle instead of a town. I also attend the private school my parents built."

Realm-hopping detected, Belle took a knowing sip of her tea. What he described might not have been identical to her experience, but it fell close enough that it resonated, and the part about books in particular. She took a quick, prideful glance around her library, a sense of relief washing over her that he had at least something familiar.

Belle wasn't from here either, after all, and Ben's tale of Auradon sounded close enough to the Enchanted Forest to provide some context — and although Belle clearly knew about alternate worlds, alternate versions of herself were something she hadn't had the pleasure of becoming acquainted yet with. She wanted to provide some words of comfort, some sense of common ground, but something pinged her as more urgent.

"You were sixteen?" she asked, eyebrows shooting up. Even being nobility herself, Belle can't imagine having that weight so young. Her father had sheltered her (or made every attempt to); the throne and the responsibility of a kingdom hadn't even been a realistic option for her until she was at least ten years his senior. She places her teacup down, fingers still on the handle, rotating it on the table. Hesitantly, she adds, "And what about your father?"

"Yes. I was sixteen. I wasn't really looking forward to becoming king to be honest. It was all part of the family lineage or that's what my father told me at least." He was too young to have that weight put on him. It made him want to run away a few times. He knew that his Kingdom needed him, but he deserved to have some type of teenage life, right??

"I don't even know if I'm ruling right. My parents think I am and so does my girlfriend. I just don't know. I'm always confused." at the mention of his father he looked at her and sighed a bit. "My father wanted to spend more time with mom. I'm close with him but he did have anger issues time to time. I was upset that he put all the villain kids on the isle along with their parents. I got them to change their mind when I invited four children whose parents were horrible villains."

He was probably talking too much but Belle did ask. "Does this place need my help with anything?"

His words about his father turned in her mind; that didn't sound like Rumplestiltskin, even if the anger issues were quite on the nose. The concept of a second chance, though — he must have gotten that from her (or rather, his own Belle, although she wasn't quite sure how to process that one just yet. If she could overcome Lacey, though, she could overcome anything). Belle's heart swelled at the idea that Rumple could have such a bond with a son in another life, possibly, hopefully. The talk of villains and rulership, all of it sounded so similar and yet so many lives ago.

Belle sighed, mouth quirking in an expression meant to be reassuring, and through a surge of boldness she reached out to squeeze his forearm. He was a good kid. She had a sense.

She said, "Well, there are certainly no kings here," as she removed her hand, settling it back on her side of the table. "Or — none actively ruling, at least. Think of Storybrooke as something of a collective. It... sounds like you might be familiar with a good number of us. Maybe younger — or different — versions of people from your world. Luckily, you're not the first person to wind up here unexpectedly. We've all had to adapt to this life, as strange as it might sound."

Idly, Belle turned her teacup by the handle and asked, "What were you doing before... immediately before you found yourself here?"

Ben had so many questions. Though he was really happy that there weren't any kings here as he didn't want to be a ruler. He could easily hang out here and just relax. "I'm not the first? That's a little unsettling. How did all of you end up here if you weren't from here? I know you used to live with grandpa in a farmhouse. He was a builder." Though this version of his mother seemed different. He wasn't sure what it was about her either.

"I was arguing with my ex. She stole a staff and a crown, and it made her become evil. She kept trying to pressure me into getting back with her when I love someone else. Then I remember coming here." He shrugged he wasn't sure how Audrey did this to him and he wasn't even sure how he'd get back. Though did he really want to go back? He could be a regular kid here and that was something he always wanted to be. He'd fit in.

"I am curious about the beast here. If you could tell me about him. I am familiar with all of you. Just where I'm from everyone looks different and different backgrounds it seems."

( prev. )

There'll be plenty of time for a visit once the cookies are in the oven!
You should bring some to her and her family as a present.

Objects with the capacity to sway one's morals — Belle's heart sank. Ben was safe here, of course, but that wouldn't necessarily stop the evil from spreading throughout his realm, or even leaking into this one, if Ben's presence was any indication. A crown and a staff. Belle made a mental note to debrief the Charmings on the artifacts later.

More fittingly, perhaps, her mind drifted to Rumplestiltskin's dagger, and she nearly leapt out of her chair so great was her impulse to get up, to physically look at the weapon that remained tucked away in her office. Belle kept herself seated but nearly choked on the next sense of tea that she took. The boy certainly did have a sense of timing (and an interesting choice of words, certainly; it had been quite a while since Belle had heard that moniker for him).

"He — ah — he doesn't live here. Not anymore." She placed her cup back on the table and neatly folded her hands in her lap. More than anything, it was a way to hide her fidgeting. "We were all brought here by a curse cast by Regina. You might know her better as the Evil Queen. Most of us lost our memories for years, but when the curse was broken, we were able to find each other again. He —" Belle cut off suddenly, her voice wavering. "He crossed the town line. The magic in place, he can't come back here. His — his name is Rumplestiltskin."

Do you think they're safe for bunnies...?

It's not like there's meat in them...
Wait!
We can also make carrot ones. Vegan! With edible flowers!

❝ the oldest movie i ever saw was the one we wrote together ❞

tfln overflows!

@sheriffing

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for ben.

Re: for ben.

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@closeness

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