That same night, while Belle and Baelfire slept Rumplestiltskin could not sleep, watched his true love and his son, fearing that this was no more than a dream or that some god decided it was a mistake and snatched everything he loves .
"Rumple?" Belle muttered in her dream waking up slowly as if she somehow felt his worry.
"I'm here" he answered as he got up from where he was spinning in a corner of the room, trying to get used to the new sensation of light magic.
"You're ok?" Belle asked worriedly, watching as he sat next to her taking care not to disturb Bae who was fast asleep in the middle of the bed
"Yes, it just seems strange to me, all this," Rumple murmured as he watched the little Baelfire approaching the warmth of his mother's body. "I still believe that it is a really wonderful dream from which I will wake up to find myself alone in my tower once more. "
"Honey, I understand" replied Belle as she put a hand on his face
"Really?"
"Yes, when I lived in my father's castle I never thought I could find true love, I always believed that if I had a child it would only be for the sake of my kingdom, now I am happier than I could imagine" she said with a smile while she was approaching to kiss him "Although I must admit that I never imagined that things would happen so fast" Belle added with a laugh.
"Me neither" Rumplestiltskin smiled
"Come, it's time to rest, I read that newborn babies have very irregular sleep schedules"
With a slight laugh Rumplestiltskin got under the covers and embraced his family, for the first time in a long time completely happy, feeling in his heart the first flower of hope for a new beginning which would give peace and harmony to everything in the Enchanted Forest.
++++++++++
A few weeks later while Belle was still trying to adapt to her new life as a mother she had a really amazing discovery. She was sitting in the library trying to make Bae fall asleep, apparently was a baby full of energy but if he did not fall asleep now he would be very grumpy later
"Come on darling, it's time for your nap," murmured Belle as she cooed to her baby and stood up to show him the beautiful scenery that surrounded the dark castle apparently banishing the dark curse also meant banishing many of the dark aspects of the castle the many bad grasses that filled the garden withered to give way to beautiful shrubs and flowers of the most beautiful colors, the melancholy that seemed to follow you through every corridor of the dark castle had disappeared to be summoned by warmth and a warm feeling of peace
"You know it helps mom to relax, a good story and I know the perfect story" exclaimed Belle as she looked around for her book only to find it nowhere
"You know honey sometimes I wish I could do what your father does to raise his hand and suddenly what I want is in my palm, that would be useful, do not you think?" Belle exclaimed as she raised her hand and imitated one of the gestures of Rumple, but to her surprise a bright blue homo cloud floated over her hand for a few moments after she cleared and left a bright children's book, causing Bae to giggle and Belle run out of the library to look for Rumple.
+++++++
"So what do you think is happening?" Belle asked worriedly as she sat on a stool in Rumplestiltskin's tower, and observed mixing various liquids and powders in different flasks. Bae had finally fallen asleep and now rested soundly asleep in a beautifully crafted crib in one of the corners of the tower as far as possible from the odd smells of the positions.
After a moment and several hair samples Rumplestiltskin turned and looked to see her with worried eyes
"I'm not completely sure but I think that all this weeks we practiced basic magic and the wish of the star affected you in a way that we did not expect, you will see when the magic it comes in contact with a person and that person accepts it, never abandons you, is one of the things that I discovered in my research of the last week "
"So there's nothing to worry about?" Belle asked with a bit of hope
"I would not say that sweetheart. You will see the magic of light is unpredictable and is more strongly linked to your emotions and subconscious thoughts "
"So what will we do now?"
"Well, my love, I think now the roles are reversed and it's my turn to teach you how to use your magic", answered Rumplestiltskin with a soft smile.
+++++++++
The time had passed. Rumplestiltskin having no reason why throwing a dark curse and free of his own curse radically altered the course of everyone's destiny in the Enchanted Forest.
The Queen eventually broke her spell and returned to get revenge, however a long conversation with Belle and a little of her magic of light, relieved the Queen of the darkness that rested so much in her heart and relieved her thirst for revenge by opening the way to find his own happiness, which to the surprise of many and not so many of a few found in a kindly widower named Robin Hood, with whom he lived a long life full of love and adventure.
Being free from the persecutions of the Evil Queen, Snow White finally could return to her kingdom to claim her right to the throne and reunite with her true love, giving way to a long reign of prosperity for her people, years later she would give birth to a beautiful girl whom they called Emma without knowing the great destiny that awaited her full of magic and love.
On the other hand the life of Belle and Rumple never ceased to be full of love and a lot of magic. After discovering her new Belle powers, Rumplestiltskin decided that he wanted to help her to perfect them as well as possible and together they worked as a family traveling through all the kingdoms learning new forms of light magic defeating villains and curses. Years later a new member of the family joined them. Gideon, and everything in their lives was even more perfect.
That night Rumple sat quietly at his spinning wheel with still hands. Belle noticed from her spot on the couch, missing the comfortingly familiar sound of it. Belle took a seat next to him. “What’s on your mind?”
Rumple shrugged. All these years with magic and he had yet to find his son, and now…
Belle sensed his fear and loss. “You’ll find him. Have faith.”
Rumple sighed, “He may not forgive me.”
Belle’s voice was somber, “He’s your son isn’t he? I saw the clothes and the toy sheep in your workroom. You left your chest open.”
He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I’ve been preoccupied.”
For a moment they simply sat together. Belle let her arm wrap around him. There, alone with her in the warm dim light of the hearth and candles Rumple let himself open up. “I wasn’t always a monster…”
Then it was pouring forth from him like a torrential storm. The details of his early life, his bad marriage, the ogre wars, taking on the curse, how he let fear lose him his son. His emotions washed over him in waves that had him feeling unsteady.
Belle held him close to her. “You must keep hope. While we were researching I read a passage that said the key stone to a strong magical foundation is belief. You have to believe.”
Rumple nodded silently, but Belle could see the unshed tears in his eyes.
Belle felt her chest tighten at the sight. “That’s what you were trying to do that day. Rid yourself of the curse but keep your magic.”
Rumple nodded. “Aye”.
Belle placed her free hand on his knee. “You’re not a monster Rumple. There is good in you.” Belle turned him to face her and leaned in and sucked on her lip slightly as she saw him unconsciously lean toward her as if her warmth had a magnetic quality. Belle’s voice was a whisper, her breath warm on his face. “You will get your magic back. Everything will work out. I have faith in you.”
Rumple felt as if he was on auto-pilot. The air felt thick and warm and his breathing became shallow. Suddenly he felt Belle’s soft lips on his own and it was as if time stood still. He let his eyes close as a wave of blissful warmth washed over him. He could feel magic at work so he focused on it with all his might. He held on to it in his mind’s eye even as it glowed brighter and brighter until a final burst of energy exploded forth and then there was darkness.
Rumple opened his eyes to find himself laid out on the floor with a plush pillow under his head and a cool wet cloth on his forehead. Before he could question his current state of being, Belle was helping him sit up and then she was falling into his lap in her rush to wrap her arms around him. As she pressed her cheek to his own he could feel her tears.
Belle sniffled, “You’re awake!”
Rumple patted her on the back and noticed his very not scaly hand. “Belle?”
Belle pulled back slightly and caressed his face. “True love’s kiss.”
Rumple struggled to understand. True love… his curse was gone. Belle loves him, truly loves him! But what of his magic?!
Belle could see the fear flicker in his face. “You are more than that curse.”
When he continued to stare at his hands she turned his face back toward her. “You told me that you taught Regina magic and her mother before that. You are capable of magic. The curse was no more than a crutch for your self-esteem. You must believe.”
Rumple wanted so badly to believe Belle’s words. He wanted to believe that he was more than he felt, but his life experiences seemed to indicate otherwise.
Belle helped him to his feet. “Anything can be possible if you believe. And I believe that you are capable of greater magic than you know. I believe that your son will come back to you, and I believe that we can build a life together.”
CRACK! Magic like a lightning strike sliced through the air in the space about ten feet away from them. They looked toward the sound as they held each other close and saw the figure of a young man.
Rumple gently let go of Belle and stumbled forward in hopeful disbelief.
“Bae?”
Belle watched in astonishment as the underfed young boy in tattered clothes began to cry. His lips wibbled as he seemed to choke around his words. “Papa?”
Then Rumple had his arms around the boy and they were shaking like leaves in a storm.
After some time had passed and they had calmed, the trio made their way to the kitchen and Belle gave the boy some bread and soup while she and his father took tea.
Bae explained between mouthfuls all that had happened to him since he and his father were separated. He had just described finding out the truth about his mother and escaping to the caves of Neverland when he closed his eyes for a moment as if trying to hold back tears. When he opened them, he stared down dejectedly at his food. “I was so thirsty from the salt water. I could hear a spring toward the back of the caves. It glowed.” Bae sighed, “I suppose I should’ve known it was magic. I drank from it and I saw the truth.”
Rumple looked worried and confused all at once. “The truth?”
Bae looked up at him and it seemed to Belle that he had the eyes of one who has lived a long life.
Bae nodded slightly. “The truth of my life. All of my memories, all the way to my birth came flooding to the forefront of my mind in vivid clarity. It took years to sort through them all, but in Neverland time is something I had an abundance of. I saw the truth of your relationship with mom. I saw her clearly for the first time.” Bae took a deep breath and looked Rumple in the eyes. “And I saw you. The memories you tried to spare me from, how I took advantage of you, those came back. As I watched all the memories of our life together I not only saw you clearly, I saw me… and I was ashamed of what I saw.”
Rumple seemed on the verge of tears again as he reached a hand out toward his son.
Bae stopped his hand by putting his own upon it. “I see now how much you love me and how hard you tried. And I see now that I was unfair to you.”
Rumple shook his head. “No. I could’ve… I should’ve…”
Bae shook his head. “I may not look it Papa, but I’ve grown. I no longer see my life and experiences through the eyes of a self-centered child, I see them with the eyes of truth. And now it’s time for me to get my wish.”
Rumple’s face scrunched in confusion, “Wish?”
Bae nodded. “I wanted so badly to be able to tell you that I forgive you and that I very much hope that you forgive me.” Bae wiped away a tear from his cheek. “Every night I would look up at the stars and wish that I could be back with you so that I could tell you, and one night a star fell from the sky in a streak of light right outside of my cave. When I looked inside the crater it left I found the heart of the wishing star. When it had cooled I picked it up and held the shimmering stone in my hand and wished.” Bae pulled out a small sparkling stone and showed his father before returning it to the dark confines of his pocket. “The next thing I knew I was here.” Bae held his father’s hand tightly. “So… do you forgive me?”
Rumple stood and pulled Bae into his arms. “There is nothing to forgive.”
Belle was in tears as she had sat and watched the exchange between father and son.
When their embrace ended Bae took a step back and looked his father over before turning his gaze to Belle. “So, how did the two of you come to be a couple?”
Rumple seemed to choke on his tongue as Belle felt her face go red. Since Rumple had yet to speak, Belle decided to save him from his embarrassment. “I tell you what Bae, come with me back to the great room and I’ll tell you the story while your father brings us some fresh tea and biscuits.” Rumple nodded in sincere thanks and Bae followed her out of the room.
On the way back to the great room they walked slowly and Belle told Bae about her mother and how she had been killed by an ogre, the war and her father’s desperation, her brutish fiancé, and the appearance of the dark one come to make a deal. She explained her decision to make the deal she did with his father.
They reached the great room and took a seat on the floor in front of the hearth and Belle began to tell him about how the relationship between his father and herself progressed. She told him about the rose, the library, the quips and secret smiles. She told him the story of how his father had saved her from the queens of darkness, the loss of his magic, his heartbreak, how he had saved her from Regina, and finally she told him about the true love’s kiss that had banished his father’s dark curse.
Bae smiled warmly as she finished her tale. “He really has changed.” Bae looked her in the eyes and she could see they were misty. She wondered at that as he continued, “He must really love you. He’s never been that open with any one before. If he trusts you that much, he must really love you.”
Belle leaned toward Bae and motioned to hug him. He reciprocated and wrapped his arms around her. They held each other and Belle whispered to him, “He loves you too you know, so very much.” She could feel Bae nod against her shoulder.
He took in a shuddering breath and replied, “You’ll make a great mother someday, much better than my own. She could never be as selfless. Or as kind.” Bae began to weep and Belle’s heart broke for the boy. She held tightly to him as she heard him sob out, “I wish you had been my mother. I wish I had grown up with you and papa and that our life had been happy and full of love.”
Suddenly a light burst forth from between them brilliantly bright. When it dissipated, and Belle could once again see, the first thing Belle noticed was that Bae was no longer in her arms. The next thing she noticed was that she was very, very pregnant.
Rumple entered the room with a full tea tray. He sat it down on the long table and turned to where a very shocked Belle stood still as a statue facing the hearth. Rumple looked around and noticed that Bae didn’t seem to be there. “Where’s Bae gone?” Suddenly Belle turned around and for a brief moment Rumple swore she looked very pregnant, but no… it must be a trick of the light. But then he saw her face…
He was at her side in a flash. “What’s happened?”
Belle was pale as her lips moved but no sound came out. She took Rumple’s hand and placed a small stone in it. Rumple looked at the now dull heart of the wishing star. Belle’s voice was a mere whisper as she spoke, “He wished… he wished I had been… we had been…”
Rumple looked up from the dull stone to Belle’s face and then to her stomach. Silently he reached out his hand and Belle met it and brought it to her swollen womb and together they gasped as they felt a kick.
Belle’s voice was full of awe as she whispered, “How is this possible?”
Rumple’s mouth felt dry as he replied, “While most wishing stars contain only enough power for one wish, some can grant more than one. I suspect that all of Bae’s nightly wishing on this one over the century he was trapped charged its power to the point that it granted him a second wish.”
Belle looked up from their joined hands and into Rumple’s blank face. Her voice wavered as she spoke, “Oh Rumple, I’m so sorry.”
Rumple looked up at her and shook his head. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” He sighed, “His wish might have been ill thought out, but his heart was in it otherwise the star wouldn’t have granted it.”
Belle couldn’t help the smile that crept across her face. “I’ll make sure that his wish comes true. And yours as well. His life will be happy and full of love, and you will have your son. This can be my gift to the both of you. The life he longed for and a second chance for you to learn from your mistakes.”
Rumple took Belle into his arms. Happy tears streaming from his eyes. “Oh Belle, I love you so very much. You are so good… I… I’m so sorry. I know you didn’t ask for this. You needn’t feel tied down. I can return you to your father. I can give you wealth and a life of your own… I”
Belle pulled away so that he could see her face. “I want this.” She sighed, “Ideally we would have had more time to develop our relationship, and it is a bit unconventional that we are about to share a child when the height of our intimacy up to this point has been a kiss.” Belle chuckled and muttered under her breath, “I guess nurse wasn’t lying when she used tell me not to go kissing boys because it would end in me getting pregnant.” Belle smiled and cupped his cheek with her warm palm. “I know that you love me Rumple. I felt it. We’ll figure the rest out together. You just have to believe.”
Rumple chuckled. “If you say it then it must be so. Just a few hours ago you said you believed that I would get my magic back and my son back and now here we are. I tried for over a century to get him back and you ‘believed him back in an instant’. I dare say I’ll never doubt you again.”
Belle chuckled, “Now we just need to work on your magic.”
Rumple smiled knowingly. “It’s already taken care of.” With a flourish of his hand he transformed her now uncomfortably tight and ripped dress into a very comfortable night gown.
Belle sighed in relief before marveling, “Light magic?”
Rumple nodded, “Aye. When you kissed me and true love banished my curse there was a wave of light magic. I held onto it with all my might and it seems it stuck with me. It’s strange though, with the curse magic always felt like it developed at my finger tips and then moved out, but now… now it feels like it comes from my heart.” Rumple shook his head in thought, “I feel… as if I’ve been reborn.”
Belle felt a sharp pain in her abdomen and then warm liquid was running down her legs. She reached out for Rumple and he steadied her arms with his own. He helped Belle to sit down on the couch and used his magic to dull her pain. Belle took a deep breath and looked at Rumple. “You’ll have to help me. This is my first time at a birth.”
Rumple gave an uneasy smile as he replied, “Mine as well. I was away at war when Bae was born the first time.”
Belle moaned, “Do you know anything about it?”
Rumple shrugged. “I’ve helped birth sheep. Don’t worry sweetheart. We’ll get through this.”
Belle nodded, “And we should have time yet. I’ve heard that women can be in labor for hours.”
Rumple spread her legs and examined her. When he looked up shock was clear on his face. “I don’t think it will be nearly that long. He’s already crowning.”
Belle shrieked, “What?!”
Rumple shrugged. His voice was fast and erratic. “Magic can be unpredictable. Especially wish magic!” He took a couple of quick breaths. “My magic must be keeping you from feeling the brunt of the pain you should surely be in. Here.” He helped her to stand and then knelt before her. “Squat and push on my back so gravity can help as I guide him out.” Belle did as he asked. No sooner was she in position she felt an overwhelming urge to push.
“Rumple, I feel like I need to push.”
The baby’s head had just emerged and Rumple was positioning his hand so that he cradled his son’s head and the other so that he could guide out the body. “Alright Belle, push!”
Belle pushed, pushing down hard on Rumple’s back as she did so. She grunted in pain and then felt overwhelming relief as she heard the babe cry. His son… her son… their son.
Belle sat back upon the couch while Rumple finished what needed doing and used his magic to clean them all up. He gently placed their son in Belle’s welcoming arms and marveled at how she seemed to glow with happiness.
He took a seat next to them and put his arm protectively around them. Belle turned to look at him with loved filled eyes and he felt his heart might burst in happiness as she announced, “Rumple, we have a son.”
Summary: Rumplestiltskin tries to rid himself of the dagger, but things don’t go according to plan and he is left feeling more vulnerable than he has in centuries and now he fears he will lose everything but Belle isn’t about to let him give up and with her help he may just learn the true nature of magic and the power of wishful thinking.
Chapter 1 Writer: @sieben9
PROMPT: MAGIC
AO3: HERE
A crash shook the castle, setting the old walls trembling, and making Belle jump so badly that she nearly sent her book flying halfway across the library. She backed against a wall and waited with bated breath for the shudders to subside. It had been some time since one of Rumplestiltskin's dabblings in magic had gone wrong quite this spectacularly, and she didn't want to risk being nearly crushed by a falling piece of furniture. Again.
Finally, the trembling abated, and Belle breathed a sigh of relief, before surveying the damage around her. Considering how intense the shaking had been, it wasn't too bad. Quite a lot of books had tumbled down from their shelves, and Belle flinched at the thought of the damage the fall might have caused them, before setting out to clear up the mess. She piled the more seriously afflicted tomes in a corner. Maybe she could convince Rumplestiltskin to repair them as an apology. If he stayed true to form, it wouldn't take him long to appear somewhere in the room under the guise of complaining about the chaos, while really apologising for causing it in the first place and, most likely, checking up on her safety.
A silly ruse, really, but he was often like that: Concerned with maintaining a fearsome reputation that she knew was mostly for show. The fact that she was able spent her evenings reading in this library — the library he had all but admitted building for her — was maybe the clearest sign of that. These days, her duties in the castle seemed minimal, at most, and brought her suspiciously often into the company of its owner. Belle suspected that the building was either capable of cleaning itself, or that Rumplestiltskin simply maintained most rooms with magic.
It took Belle a while to realise that Rumplestiltskin wasn't going to make an appearance. Outside, the sun was already setting, and she was nearly done tidying up the library. It seemed odd enough that a twinge of worry tugged at her gut, silly as it seemed. After all, what could possibly have harmed the Dark One? He probably just wanted to avoid apologising — he certainly made it look like the act caused him physical pain each time.
Well, Belle decided, if Rumplestiltskin wasn't going to come looking for her, she was just going to have to go looking for him. It certainly didn't have anything to do with that persistent feeling of worry; she simply wanted him to fix these books for her. Yes, that was definitely it.
Her first thought was to just check his usual haunts within the castle, but she quickly gave up on the idea. She only saw him in the more open rooms during the day, and that was certainly not the place where he conducted his magical experiments. No, if she wanted to find Rumplestiltskin, she would have to find the source of the explosion. This train of thought led her along new cracks and flaws in the castle's structure all the way to the opposite end of the building, and up into another tower where she found an open door.
"Rumplestiltskin?" she asked. Even if they had a more familiar relationship these days, it seemed imprudent to surprise a busy sorcerer.
No reply came, so she knocked on the door, repeating more loudly, "Rumplestiltskin? Are you in there?"
Silent seconds passed, and Belle was about to resign herself to the idea that she might have been wrong about his whereabouts, when she heard a very quiet "Come in."
With a satisfied smile — she had found him after all — Belle pushed open the door and stepped into the room. It was larger than she had expected, and the air smelled like a meadow after a thunderstorm, coppery and strange, but also fresh and washed clean. Various shelves and clutter of no doubt magical items took up most of the space, but in the middle stood a single table that was suspiciously clear of any disarray. Next to it, a figure sat slumped on a stool, and it took Belle a moment to recognise it as Rumplestiltskin.
"I've never seen this place before," Belle whispered, mostly to herself.
"That would explain why I leave tracks in the dust whenever I come in here."
Belle looked down pointedly at the spotless floor — well, spotless save for the recent signs of disarray, at least — but didn't rise to the bait otherwise. "I was cleaning and heard a noise. Are you alright?" Calling the almighty thunder from earlier 'a noise' felt like even more of a lie than claiming that she was cleaning while actually reading in the library, but she doubted that he would call her on it.
Indeed, Rumplestiltskin just waved her off. "Yes, yes, I'm fine. Everything is fine. Now go away."
Belle raised an eyebrow. This did not seem like him. If nothing else, he should have taken the opportunity to tease her about the allegedly terrible condition of the castle. Squinting, she took a closer look at him, and saw that he looked visibly dishevelled, if unharmed. "Are you sure your alright?" she asked again. "Half the castle seems to have fallen in on itself and—"
" I said I'm fine!" he snapped, now all but snarling at her. He never got up from his stool, but Belle still flinched back. At that, his face softened, but only for a moment. "I am in the middle of a very important breakthrough. Now leave, before you can cause any more damage."
"I'm sorry," Belle managed to say. "I was just worried—"
"I said leave!" His arm moved lightning quick and Belle ducked away instinctively. Behind her something shattered, and when she looked around, she saw the remains of an empty beaker. Without another word, she backed out of the door and fled back to her room.
##
The next morning, Belle woke up determined to find Rumplestiltskin and confront him about his behaviour on the night before. Yes, he had a temper, but he had never really lost it at her like that since she had set free that poor man who had tried to steal from him. Something was wrong, and he was going to tell her what.
However, when Belle went looking for him once again infuriating man seemed nowhere to be found. More than that, as the day went on it became clear to Belle that he was actively avoiding her. While his schedule had never been entirely predictable, Belle had gained the impression that he would usually turn up in the dinner hall at the appropriate times, and on most days, she would happen across him several times a day while going about her — now relatively few — duties. They would talk, or at least trade banter, and both would usually leave the conversation in a better mood than when they had begun it. Now, however, she saw neither hair, nor sparkly hide of him for the entire day, save for a short run-in in the evening, when she went back to her room and found him leaning against the wall, looking decidedly exhausted.
“Are you—” she began, her earlier irritation already forgotten.
“You should be asleep,” he replied, ignoring her question. “Good night.”
Belle tried to engage him again, but he fell silent and refused to even look at her, until she stalked off, once again intensely irritated. Only later did she realise that she'd never seen him actually walking the corridors before. Part of her had always assumed that he magically appeared and disappeared as he pleased, never bothering with mundane concerns like corridors or stairs.
This pattern of evasion continued for two more days. In the end, Belle simply lost patience and went looking for the castle’s elusive owner. Her search didn’t take long. She found him in a previously empty room on the ground floor, buried in a thick tome with something about "Protective Spells" in the title. Belle only caught a glimpse of the cover, before he slammed it shut to glare at her. "What is it now?" Rumplestiltskin asked in a none-too-gentle tone.
"You have been avoiding me for three days," Belle said, trying to keep calm. "Ever since the accident in the lab. I just wanted to make sure—"
"I'm fine," Rumplestiltskin snarled and his emphasis alone convinced Belle that he wasn't.
"You've been avoiding me." Belle couldn't help but let the words sound like an accusation.
"Maybe because I was getting tired of your inane questions." Rumplestiltskin never moved, but his words had gained a dangerous edge.
"Don't be ridiculous! We've spoken exactly once in the last days, and you were ready to bolt to avoid that conversation, too. Not to mention that you threw something at me to avoid explaining what happened. This isn't like you."
"Oh, and you would be the expert on what is 'like me', I suppose?" A nasty grin, devoid of any humour, flashed across his face. "No doubt through the long hours of deep conversations we've had, where I bared my heart and soul to you, and which, of course, make you amply qualified to judge my state of mind."
Belle pressed her lips together. "This is exactly what I mean," she said, although this was much more like him. He could be cruel, sometimes, but rarely without reason, and almost never to her. Not in the recent weeks, at least. "And I'm going to keep asking you questions until you tell me what is wrong. You can't avoid me forever."
His eyes flashed. "Maybe not. But I can certainly lock you in your old cell if you won't leave me alone, when I order you to."
Silence fell, and Belle felt the blood drain from her face. "I think," she said, choosing each word carefully, "that we should end this conversation right now."
Even Rumplestiltskin seemed to realise that he had gone too far. His eyes widened, and he moved to get up. "No, wait," he began. "Belle, I'm sorry, I didn't mean—"
"I don't think I will." The words seemed to come from far away, even though it was her mouth saying them. "When you're ready to talk, come and find me. You usually know where. Until then, I don't think I have anything to say to you, Rumplestiltskin." With that, she stalked off, fighting against the tears that were stinging her eyes.
##
Belle woke in almost complete darkness, wedged into a tight space, with aching muscles and dry eyes. For a moment, her thoughts raced, trying to remember where she was. After her fight with Rumplestiltskin, she hadn't been able to face going back to her room, still too shaken by Rumplestiltskin's threat. She liked to think that he would never follow through on it, but the thought of waking up in that dungeon again had felt like an iron vice squeezing her chest until it was fit to crumple in on itself. Instead, she had gone to the only place that still felt like safety.
The library. Right. She was in the library, wedged between two shelves that hid her from view of anyone who might be glancing casually into the room.
She remembered crying a little, before forcing herself to calm down and pulling a book down from the shelves. She must have fallen asleep while reading, because the moon now stood high in the sky and cast its pale light through the library's windows. Belle sighed. Comforting as the books were, the library did not make for good sleeping quarters. She would have to go to her room, or be completely exhausted in the morning.
Just as she was getting up, she heard a faint thump on the stairs and froze. There was really only one option for who could be making noise at this hour in the castle, and Belle had no desire to confront Rumplestiltskin when she was tired and aching all over from her ill-advised nap.
So she held perfectly still while his steps approached. Were they just a little slower than usual? And what was that faint thump that followed them? Tap-tap-thunk. Tap-tap-thunk.
The sounds changed when he reached the top of the stairs, and she could hear him breathe. Her ears painted a picture of golden skin glittering in the silvery light, while he walked through the room, no doubt looking for her. She heard wood scraping on wood — the ladder, he's using the ladder — and a faint rustling noise.
Silence followed, and Belle listened, barely breathing, for his next move.
It came as a resounding, and almost comically protracted crash. One moment, the library was as quiet as a grave, and in the next, filled with the sound of falling books, falling shelves, and one falling Dark One, who let out a thoroughly undignified curse. Belle flinched and ducked, out of sheer habit, until the crashing had abided. She then cautiously peeked around the shelf, to see Rumplestiltskin lying sprawled amidst scattered books, groaning faintly in what she had to assume was pain.
"Rumplestiltskin?" she asked.
He flinched at the sound of his name, quickly pushing himself up from the ground and into a sitting position, but not getting up entirely. He looked around, clearly searching for something and Belle stepped closer and into a beam of moonlight that fell through a window and illuminated the room.
He flinched and scrambled backwards, away from her, eyes impossibly wide and dark in the faint light. "Who—" He broke off. "Belle?"
She didn't ask who else he had been expecting. For some reason, seeing her seemed to terrify him, and even the thought that he might be scared of her was abhorrent. "I'm sorry," she said, keeping her voice low and soothing. "I didn't know you were here until I heard the crash." That wasn't entirely true, but it was close enough. She certainly hadn't meant to spy on him. "What happened?"
His face closed off again. "I fell."
Belle waited, holding her breath, afraid that anything she might say would only make him close up more. Something was terribly wrong with Rumplestiltskin, that much was clear, but if he didn't tell her what it was, there was no chance of her helping him with it. Only a very small part of Belle was surprised that her first instinct was indeed to help a man who technically still held her captive.
The silence stretched between them, their eyes locked, neither of them willing to make the next move. Then, as if something inside him had snapped under the tension, Rumplestiltskin deflated. "I fell, because I was trying to take out a new book, while still holding this one on the other hand, and put weight on my bad leg."
"I didn't know you had a bad leg," Belle said carefully.
Rumplestiltskin made a sound that could almost be called a laugh. "Of course you didn't," he said bitterly, dropping his gaze from hers. "Normally, I make up for the injury with magic."
This time, Belle didn't say anything. She had the feeling that he was working his way towards what he really wanted to say, and she didn't want to throw him off his path with a wrong word.
After a while, Rumplestiltskin spoke again. "It was the potion," he explained. "I was trying to — never mind what I was trying to do. Something went wrong, and…" His gaze was fixed on his hands in his lap. "I lost it."
Belle frowned. "Lost what?" She suspected that she already knew the answer, but even forming the thought in her head seemed ludicrous. She had to hear him say it..
Rumplestiltskin took a deep breath and said, in a clear and measured voice, "I lost my magic."
“Come now Margerie I haven’t gotten all day. Go produce your master and try doing something useful.” Regina waved her hands back at Belle gazing at the display of pink roses on the Ming vase now surrounding Rumpelstiltskin’s ivory coffee table turning away her attentions away from Belle.
The maid rolled her eyes heading to the pantry to collect the tea, Belle became long use to the different names the queen would give her where at times Belle knew it was to get a reaction at her whenever Regina would say a different one in a span of a minute after the previous name.
Belle gave Regina her usual tea surprised to find her continuing to fidget her legs noticing some of the petals from the roses were now on the coffee table as though they had been recently plucked.
“Where is he?” Regina demanded, “Rumple knows better than to keep me waiting.”
Belle looked up at the direction of the tower turning back towards Regina, keeping her demeanor collected. “Not here apparently, a lot of people have been requesting him lately where I haven’t see him for days at a time. Maybe come back tomorrow or next week.”
Regina took a sip of her tea smiling back at Belle whose back was turned to the wall covering her hands to avoid fidgeting them. Out of all the times for Regina to arrive for what Belle assumed to be her latest complaint regarding the queen’s stepdaughter, it had to be when Rumple could not use his magic.
“Haven’t you gotten anything better to do than to scare off my help?” Rumpel yelled coming into the great hall standing over the table in an effort to hide the cane he has been using. Belle noticed how out of breath he appeared turning to Regina who hid her efforts at not appearing annoyed.
“Compared to how you probably treat her, I was being sweet.” She turned to Belle, “leave us now.”
“No Belle stay, please.” Rumpelstiltskin requested before Belle had a chance to budge. She hesitated taking a seat on the dining table when Rumpel stood up turning his attentions to his uninvited guest.
“I need the potions you are working on to get rid of a certain Queen from the North, I don’t particularly care why you are using them but you can find the ingredients later on while my problem has a deadline.”
Regina sat down folding her arms waiting for Rumpelstiltskin who got up taking Belle out of her chair pointing her straight to the front door.
“Can’t help you with that Dearie, you have no use for potions and half of the time you have no idea what are you doing. You might request to turn someone into a toad and the next thing you know you will probably lose a limb, possibly a bigger nose.”
Regina’s eyes widened when she touched her nose as Rumpelstiltskin giggled back at her when he took a cup of the tea happy to see Belle had placed his preferred cup on the set regardless of how out of it place it look.
“I need them Rumple.” She declared “this woman is planning on forming an alliance with Snow White which could jeopardize my crown!”
Rumpelstiltskin could see his former apprentice tapping her foot with annoyance pacing back and forth while staring at him with a murderous glance. “Your stepdaughter is hanging out in the forest telling everyone you are a tyrant, everything jeopardizes your crown. These are not potions you will find any use for regarding your little problem.”
“Then help me figure them out. We can have little Belinda here pick up any ingredients you may need while I look over the notes.”
Rumpelstiltskin started laughing at Regina’s desperation. “We both know you have little patience for reading spells and it will go over you even if I tried to explain it.” He continued steadying himself hoping Regina wouldn’t notice his appearance. “You’re wasting my time and not giving me a good reason to help you. Just go, we’re done for the day.”
Before Belle could leave the room, she found herself surrounded by a cloud of purple smoke where saw the room in front of her now appearing to be larger than usual and trapped in a glass tube where she turned around to see Regina smiling back at her with a malicious grin with Rumpelstiltskin staring back her then at the queen.
“You are starting to test my patience Regina. Get her out now!”
“No I won’t, it appears the only way I could have gotten your attention was to take the maid and now I am wondering why wasn’t it done sooner.”
Rumpelstiltskin look at Belle. If only he had his magic back, he would get her out of there, punish Regina and send her back to her father perhaps with a spell where she would forget her time living with him. Anything he could do to make her safe once again. He could barely teleport and should he stand straight to Regina, his former apprentice will discover his current predicament which would make her actions even more unpredictable.
“Give me the bottle and I won’t turn you into toad for a month” he demanding while trying to focus away from Belle.
“Then hand me the potions and I will let her out. I don’t see why we are coming to this Rumpel, she is only a maid after all.”
“Let me out!”
Belle continued banging on the tube but no one listened to her when Regina decided to move the bottle back and forth leaving Belle nauseous from the constant movement. She could see Rumpelstiltskin focusing on Regina giving her the impression he was enjoying seeing her being used as leverage.
“Your little pet probably needs to feel more at home.” Shouted Regina when Belle felt something prickling her head looking up to find the bottle was now raining sand.
She continued pounding on the glass screaming to be let out hoping someone would finally listen to her. Please Rumple, I know you can use your magic. Just believe please.
The sand continued pouring in at a quicker rate leaving it up to her neck when Belle started to close her eyes as she felt a sudden drop on her which she landed on the floor with the glass shattering all around leaving the maid coughing and breathing out any sand she might have inhaled.
She started breathing when she felt a hand go over her back patting her in reassurance. Belle turned finding Rumpelstiltskin looking at her as scared as he did the day he had cried to her about losing someone. Gone was all the stoic indifference he placed in front of Regina and showed now was worry for her.
“Where is The Queen?”
Rumpel pointed to Belle seeing a toad standing over Regina’s clothing instantly teleported away from them.
“I don’t know what I did; all I thought about was getting you out of harm’s way and wanting Regina punished.”
Perhaps he does care after all.
“Thank you.” She smiled.
“It’s of no consequence” Rumpelstiltskin waved it off, “good help is sorely hard to find nowadays and how else can I find time to break someone else in while trying to get my magic back.”
She refused to believe him when Belle held back her tears and tightly embracing her master smiling at the realization he placed his arms around her back as well.
I won’t rest until we find a way to get your magic back.
"Oh" Belle said, taken aback, not knowing for sure what to say. Somehow, the Dark One had lost his magic. It was weird. As if the sky wasn't blue anymore. But not exactly in a bad way.
She should have imagined, though. His wandering in the corridors, the lack of that weightness in the air when he was in the room, a tell tale sign of his magic. It all fit together.
"How long will it last?" She asked, getting up from her hiding spot to stand in front of him.
"I don't... I don't know." He sighted and she was sure she had caught a glimpse of tears on his eyes before he dropped on his knees, sobbing desperately into his hands.
"How will I find him?" She heard his muffled voice through the tears. For a moment, Belle didn't know what to do. How do you soothe a crying Dark One?
She also dropped to the floor, alas gentler than he had. A bit reluctantly, she gathered him in her arms. "I NEED TO FIND HIM" he cried into her chest. Belle had no idea who He was, but it did sound like he was important.
Belle made cooing noises and ran her hands into his hair. "We'll get your magic back. I promise." He looked up from his hands and into her eyes, and for a moment it looked like he was going to yell at her. But finding nothing other than concern in her eyes, his features relaxed, and for a second, he believed that as long as she helped him, he'd make it.
##
"Dearie, what are you doing?" He asked as Belle searched his tower for magic books.
"Well, there are barely any magic books in my library so I thought we'd start here." She answered matter of factly without even bothering to stop her search for books.
"Start what?" Rumpletiltskin was beginning to feel like he was missing something. After he had stopped crying, extremely aware that he had collapsed in front of his maid, she had straightened him, fire in her eyes, and took him by his hand, to where he now knew was his laboratory, when all he had been expecting was for her to flee, turn her back and leave the castle unafraid that he'd even have the means to search for her.
And yet there she was, the strange girl. Still in the castle, still trying to help.
Or so that's what he thought she was doing.
"Your training!" She said merrily and now he was sure he was missing something.
“Training?’ he asked, looking for clarification. Surely she didn´t mean what he thought she meant.
“Well, of course. You told me most wizards had to spend some time in apprenticeship to learn how to control their powers. I assume that if you train a bit, you´ll get the hang of it again soon.”
“get the hang of it?’ Rumplestiltskin repeated in a dangerous whisper, barely believing his ears. “I didn´t ‘lose the hang of it’! My magic has been neutralized! I can´t just train and expect it to get better! And what do you know about magic to be able to help me, may I ask?” he had began shouting in a way that would have any inhabitant of the Enchanted forest shiver, but Belle just listened to him with her hands on her hips, her mouth pursed in a ‘have you finished?’ question.
“look.” She began after a long sight. “you´re right. I do´t know anything about magic. But I´m trying to help you whatever way I can! Maybe it won´t work, but do you have any better idea?”
He did not have any other idea at all.
Belle had suggested they begin with some simple potion, but Rumplestiltskin had refused to, quite traumatized by the last time he had tried to brew something, so they had settled with some spell jars, which sounded easy enough for Belle´s inexperienced ears, and at least that rumple had nothing against (he did, however state that something that basic was ridiculous).
Belle grabbed a book on spell jars and asked her master to get the most common ingredients. “where are we going?” he asked her, still a little skeptical about what he was getting himself into.
“To the gardens” she answered as she walked out of the door. “You are looking pale. You could use some fresh air!” Belle screamed as she hopped down the stairs.
Rumplestiltskin sighted to himself and grabbed a basket, filling it with two small, empty glass jars and bigger jars filled with herbs, as well as tiny crystals of different types and other common ingredients, such as salt and oils. Would she ever cease to amaze him?
He took hold of his old walking stick, which he had left by the door upon entering and braced himself for the journey down all those flights of stairs.
When he arrived on the gardens, belle had already layed out a towel under a big Oak three and was reading the book with so much focus one would think her life depended on it. They both sat down and an hour went by in peaceful silence, Belle clumsily putting black pepper, cloves, ginger and a few pieces of hematite to hers, following the book´s instructions, while rumple skillfully added rose petals, lavender oil, rosemary and a chip of Rose Quartz to his.
Belle reached for her hair and let it down, pulling the golden ribbon that was holding it up and wrapping it around her jar. “here” she said, holding it out for him to take it. “it´s a protection jar. To help you while you don´t have your magic back.”
Rumplestiltskin took the jar in his hands, overwhelmed by even the simple gesture. Belle wasn´t exactly the sorcerer of the century, but the core of magic was at intent, and if she really wanted the little vial to keep him safe, than he truly believed it would. He cradled it in his hands on his lap like it was a precious treasure and glanced at the jar he had been preparing.
“I´d give you mine” he said, not looking at her and blushing a bit “But it´s for beauty. You don´t need it.”
Belle's mouth opened slightly and the corners of her mouth lifted in a pleased smile, just as Rumpletiltskin began to process what he had just said. I did not just compliment her! He snarled at himself and tried poofing away like he would do to hide from her, but was disappointed to remember his current magiclesness.
Belle must have noticed his discomfort, for she was quick to change subject. "We haven't had breakfast yet, have we?" She prompted while getting to her feet.
"Here" She handed him his walking stick, which had rolled to her side during their little magic arts and crafts office. He took the stick and she helped him get up.
They made the breakfast together, rumple making eggs on a nest the way he remembered Bealfire had liked it, and Belle humming a merry tune while brewing a pot of tea.
As they sat down to eat, Belle was tempted to ask who was he talking (or more precisely, crying) about in the library, but she felt like it wasn't the time. He had had enough emotion for the day.
So she engaged on friendly banter, trying to cheer him up, and although he was as sassy and snarky as ever, she knew he wasn't bothered by her or her conversation. It usually seemed to calm him, even though he would never admit it, and today was no exception.
"I was thinking we try a bit of sigil magic this afternoon." She suggested and he sighted dramatically.
"But sigils are so ridiculously simple! It'd be too easy!" Rumpletiltskin protested.
Belle's eyebrows shot up. "Oh is that so? In that case would you mind conjuring a fire ball for me, oh mighty wizard?"
He grunted and off to make sigils they went.
##
"Rumple, I don't think that's right..." Belle looked amused at the sight of the parchment her master was using to make his sigils.
"What wouldn't be right about it? It's a simple enough process, dearie. Write your intent, take the vowels away, and arrange the consonants in a symbol. It's not like I'd get it wrong!" He snapped, making grandious gestures in the air.
"Yeah, but I hardly think 'i' is a consonant!" Belle giggled and pointed to the remaining letters of his intent: Y-M-G-I-C-C-M-S-B-C-K
He grunted soundly and ignored Belle, who continued giggling at his expense. "I'll let you know that I follow a technique that is not the usual one because it has already proved itself more efficient!" He insisted but scratched the "I" off when he thought she wasn't looking. He then cut off the repeated letters and arranged them together in a aesthetic pleasing symbol .Under it, he wrote his intent.
'My magic comes back.'
"It's about the fifth of those you've already made. I didn't even know you could arrange the same letters in so many different ways!"
He glared at her and she laughed at again. They had spent their day with sigils, charging them in every way they knew. Burning them, writing them over their pulse points and then washing it away, surrounding it by crystals, carving it in candles and letting it melt away, and even burying the piece of parchment in the earth when they went down to have a break.
"Maybe I should charge it this time." Belle suggested. Rumpletiltskin searched his mind for a good motive not to let her, but found none. He cut the piece of parchment where the sigil was and handed it to her.
She caressed the paper slightly before she locked her eyes with his, took the parchment to her pink, soft lips and gave it a kiss, closing her lids briefly.
That's it, I've reached rock bottom, he thought as his heart beat madly against his ribcage. He was jealous of paper. Simply fantastic.
Belle gave the sigil back to him, seemingly unaware of his heart and mind's reaction to the kiss. He took it back from her with a muttered thanks, and carefully stored the symbol on his coin pouch, which was tied to his breeches, being used for the single purpose of storing the spell jar Belle had gifted him. He'd move it to his nightstand when he went to bed, but for now, having it with him made him feel just a little bit better.
This time, she had not caught him unprepared. He reached for one of the best symbols he had made that afternoon, one with "happiness" inscribed under it. Holding it securely in his hands, he tried, really tried, to charge it with the most powerful way to charge a sigil. With intent. With real magic.
As he concentrated on his wish for his little maid to one day find at least contentment, he felt, even if only for a second, the ripple of magic flow through him, the fire in his veins back for the briefest of moments, heading straight to his hands and the subject of his enchantment.
Rumpletiltskin opened his eyes abruptly, having recognized the so familiar feeling of conjuring magic. He gave Belle one of his wide, maniacal smiles and extended his hand for her to take the sigil.
"You know what, Maid? Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all."
She was just about to call him out for calling her "maid" when she took a look at his hand and the happiness symbol, taking it and storing it away on her dress pocket only after admiring it for a second. Somehow, rumple had managed to make it look like a rose, and having spent her day amongst papers full of what other people would probably think to be some kind of ancient alphabet, she truly admired the beauty in it.
"Thank you" She said truthfully. "I - I think I'll take a bath before beginning to prepare dinner. Will you help me?"
"With the dinner or with the bath?" He asked and wiggled his eyebrows at her, making her drop a bunch of unused parchment scrolls at him.
"You know what I mean, imp!" She scolded without any heat to it and they both laughed it off. "Fine!" He sighted dramatically "woe is me! Having to peel potatoes for my own caretaker!"
Another scroll flew at him, missing it's target and making the room fall into laughter again.
##
Belle hummed off key as she scrubbed her skin with a lavender and chamomile soap. The water was warm, the castle still tending to every need despite the lack of magic in it's master. That day had been... Intense. There were still many questions lingering in her head, and her ever burning curiosity was threatening to take hold of her and make her spill them all at her master.
But she couldn't do that. For the first time since she'd known him, he had cried. Cried like a little lost boy, like a fragile creature. Cried like a man, who she knew existed behind the beast.
But he had looked better, calmer after some time. And she wasn't about to go around asking questions only to ruin that. During their afternoon together, he had been more open and loose than she had ever seen him, laughing and chatting and teasing.
Teasing
She went stiff at the memory of his last quip. The rational part of her brain told her she should be disgusted, even afraid.
Her heart and the other, less behaved part of her brain had other ideas.
She suddenly imagined Rumpletiltskin there with her, kneeling between her legs, his hands, with their long, elegant fingers caressing her and washing her body tenderly, while her hands tangled in his wild hair as he kissed her neck reverentially.
She reopened the eyes she didn't even remember closing in the first place and sat straight, having reclined against the wall (another thing her body had done without asking for her permission). The fuck? He was her master. She was to help him with his castle and now with his magic, and nothing more.
Right?
As she used a rose and honey scented cream to soften her hair, residues of her daydream still lingered.
"Dammit, Rumpletiltskin." She whispered as she turned the magical faucet to the left side, filling the tub with much needed cold water.
Rumpletiltskin knocked on her door before getting inside the room. Was she still there? Belle was taking an unusual amount of time to take her bath. He just wanted to check if she was alright. And if they were all right. He worried she would have taken offense in his earlier quip, and he agreed she had every right to.
Stepping inside carefully, he looked around the room, and when he didn't see any naked Belles he entered the room completely, ready to apologize should he need to. Voices in the back of his mind hissed that the Dark One should never apologize, but Belle's comfort, he knew, was worth more than his pride.
However, both conscious and subconscious went silent at the sight before him. Tossed in the bed, was the pink dress she favoured at night. It had a velvet corset, three quarters sleeves and pockets just as she liked, and when questioned about the gift, he had swore with his life he hadn't had any involvement with it.
But what was mouth shutting in it wasn't it's beauty. It was the fact than the emotional part of his mind came to a realization he would rather not have.
Belle was naked. He immediately turned on his heels, ready to leave the room and have the least respect he should have towards a lady.
But magic was made of emotion.
And his emotions were quite strong right now. And they were not telling him to go.
Before he could even try to control himself or his magic again, a cloud of smoke submerged him, and when it cleared, he found himself in Belle's bathroom, with a barely covered by her undergarments Belle standing before him.
He didn't give himself any time to admire his view. Monster yes, harasser never. When a surprised yelp came from the woman, he had already covered his eyes and was apologizing madly while stumbling back to the wall.
"Belle, I'm so sorry, I promise I didn't mean to, somehow my magic came back and brought me here and I'm sorry I just wanted to check out on you but there was the dress-"
"Rumple" She put a hand on his shoulder, and he was relieved to realize that she sounded more concerned than angry. "It's okay, you're can open your eyes. I've put on a robe"
He reluctantly took one hand from his eye and then the other, when he realized she was telling the truth. And just why wouldn't she be? He snapped at himself. it's not like her biggest dream is you seeing her naked body!
"can you use your magic again?" She asked hopefully. But both their faces wilted as he unsuccessfully tried conjuring a fire ball on his hand.
"No!" He screamed into his palm, his optimism being crushed again after only a few desperate seconds of hope.
"It's okay." Belle squeezed his shoulder, curious as to how he managed to perform his typical 'poofing' but suspecting it to be better if she didn't ask just yet. "We'll keep on working on that. If you managed telleportation after just a day, imagine what you'll be doing in some time!"
But time passed and no such thing happened again. After a week of research and simple spells (that couldn't even be considered real spells) it was becoming clear that what triggered his magic wasn't training, but they kept on with it anyway. After all, as far as Belle was concerned, they weren't in such a hurry.
That is, of course, until Rumple's former apprentice barged open the castle doors, requiring to see her master and looking less than pleased.
New Post has been published on http://a24gazetesi.com/money/business/the-newest-flood-grants-out-there-for-small-companies.html
The Newest: Flood Grants Out there for Small Companies.
8:00 a.m.
Enterprise and financial growth teams from throughout south Louisiana have teamed as much as launch the Louisiana Small Enterprise Rebirth Fund, which goals to provide grants to corporations damage by the historic flood.
Ansley Zehnder, a spokeswoman for the Baton Rouge Space Chamber, stated in a information launch the fund will give grants of between $1,000 to $10,000 to small companies.
Whereas the precise scope of the injury from the flooding that began Aug. 12 remains to be being decided, the chamber stated there are an estimated 12,000 small companies positioned in areas that took on floodwater.
To be eligible for the funding, a enterprise should be situated within the 20 parishes included within the federal catastrophe declaration, have 50 or fewer staff and have been in enterprise on Aug. 10.
7:55 a.m.
Baton Rouge’s flooded first responders will likely be allowed to stay on metropolis-parish land in housing supplied by the Federal Emergency Administration Company.
The East Baton Rouge Metro Council says firefighters and law enforcement officials whose houses had been made uninhabitable by the floods that devastated the area can be allowed to reside in short-term housing below an settlement authorised Wednesday.
Legislation enforcement and political leaders have repeatedly praised first responders for rescuing flood victims throughout the parish whereas many firefighters and law enforcement officials knew their very own homes have been flooded and so they and their households couldn’t return dwelling.
Metropolis-parish Chief Administrative Officer William Daniel tells The Advocate (http://bit.ly/2biP4dA) the primary responders will likely be on the prime of the checklist for the housing.
Daniel mentioned leaders usually are not certain but the place the housing for first responders shall be positioned
7:30 a.m.
Louisiana’s largest well being insurer, Blue Cross and Blue Defend, has relaxed some restrictions to make sure that clients affected by the current flooding can get well being care, drugs and medical provides.
The corporate mentioned in a information launch Blue Cross is increasing its extra intensive Most popular Care PPO community to supply in-community protection to its HMO Louisiana and Neighborhood Blue members dwelling in areas affected by the flood. The corporate additionally will permit early refills and the substitute of some medical provides to assist members within the aftermath.
The corporate stated HMO Louisiana and Group Blue members could use the bigger Blue Cross Most popular Care PPO community for care if they’ve relocated outdoors of their plan’s service space or if their common physician’s workplace or clinic has been broken.
All acute hospitals within the affected areas are totally operational and in a position to deal with sufferers.
2:00 a.m.
Cellular properties will fill entrance yards throughout southern Louisiana once more, simply as they did afterHurricane Katrina.
FEMA is bringing within the momentary housing for 1000’s of individuals displaced by catastrophic flooding. Solely these homes will probably be on blocks and strapped down, not on wheels just like the journey trailers of a decade in the past.
Gov. John Bel Edwards introduced the catastrophe housing plans Wednesday. However he described a “shelter at house” program because the extra fascinating choice.
Owners will be capable of obtain grants as much as $15,000 geared toward making homes liveable rapidly so individuals can dwell inside whereas doing extra intensive repairs. Registration for that program begins Monday.
These grants can solely assist householders with much less catastrophic harm. For these with extra extreme destruction, they’re going to have entry to cellular houses.
