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The Trade Off	By : LotornoMiko Category: M through R > Once Upon A Time Views: 5409 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own the Once Upon A Time fandom. Nor do I make any money off of it or this story.

Chapter List
- 1-The Trade Off
- 2-Two
- 3-Three
- 4-Four
- 5-Five
- 6-Six
- 7-Seven
- 8-Eight
- 9-Nine
- 10-Ten
- 11-Trade 11
- 12-Twelve
- 13-Thirteen
- 14-Fourteen
- 15-Fifteen
- 16-Sixteen
- 17-Seventeen
- 18-Eighteen
- 19-Nineteen
- 20-Twenty
- 21-Twenty One
- 22-Twenty Two
- 23-Twenty Three
- 24-Twenty Four
- 25-Twenty Five
- 26-Twenty Six
- 1
- 2
Standard Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time or it's characters. I do not make any money off of this story. This is done purely for entertainment purposes.

----Michelle

There was an intruder aboard his ship. A bold little sneak trespassing where she didn't belong. Hook didn't quite smile, his eyes glittering with a keen and malicious intent. Thoughts about that woman's unexpected trespass, lent to the realization that this was the perfect opportunity, yet another chance to ruin something precious to Rumplestiltskin.

The scarf in his hands, Hook walked up the solid plank steps that led onto his ship. Taking care to match his footprints with hers, those imprints made by the fish feed that the woman had scattered earlier, showed the difference in their size. They not only marked the way onto the ship, but also gave away the fact that the one who had come before him, had most definitely not been Rumplestiltskin. Not with feet that small, that delicate, her weight slight enough that the prints weren't as deep as a man's would be.

Halfway up the steps, the prints began to fade as the ship came into view. That familiar and comforting sight, was lost to an outside observer. To them it was not the Jolly Roger that they would now see, but the sight of what appeared to be a man disappearing into mid air. They would know it for magic, but not for what kind, that cloak of invisibility, an illusion that was known only to Hook and it's caster, the witch queen known as Cora. A magic boon granted to him and to him alone, Hook couldn't help but wonder how anyone could have discovered the ship's secret. It was an ingenuity worth marveling over, the woman who had stole aboard, crafty and resourceful. Smart even.

He marveled about more than that, thinking that the woman, Belle was beautiful in addition to smart. But the two weren't in true balance, Hook also thinking her foolish. Foolish for getting involved with Rumplestiltskin, and foolish for coming aboard Hook's ship all alone. Especially after he had chased her in the library, scaring Belle with his threats. She had clearly been frightened, and yet Belle apparently didn't let the fear stop her from coming here. Brave as well as bold, which were more traits to be admired, Hook began to descend down into the ship's bowels.

He took care to keep his boots from making any real sound, Hook sneaking about as silent as he could manage. The ship groaning as it's weight rocked in the water, helped provide him cover, the man finding the crew barracks, and the door that led into it, open. And inside the very first room was the beauty, Belle, her back to him as she bent and rustled about his belongings until she finally found a small chest. She was just as quick to locate the key which would unlock and open it, Belle hurrying to do that next. Her reaction was immediate, the palpable disappointment radiating off her as Belle then discovered the chest contained nothing but coins of every make and denomination. Her shoulders seem to sag with her sigh, then stiffened at the sound of his voice.

"Looking for this?" He asked, the scarf draped over his hook, his fingers playing with the yellow knit wool of it. His pose was relaxed, Hook leaning nonchalant in the doorway. He was effectively blocking the only way out, and it was all he could do to keep from laughing in triumph.

Belle didn't quite gasp, though she did spin around. Fast enough that her hair had lifted with her movements, before settling wildly about her shoulders. Her eyes were wide, Belle looking worried. It was also blatantly apparent how dismayed she was to see him, her eyes staring at him rather than noticing the scarf.

And then his words must have registered, Belle's eyes lowering briefly to what he actually held. "Uh...that doesn't belong to you." She kept returning her gaze to his face, watching him and not that with which she was after. Wise of her, considering Hook was far more dangerous than the scarf that he continued to hold.

"Oh, it does now." His voice a husky whisper, Hook smirked at Belle. Her face was easy to read, the woman stunned by his answer. As though Belle had honestly believed he'd hand over the scarf just because she had asked. It was amusing to think of someone being that naive, especially a woman who had spent so much time around Rumplestiltskin.

Less amusing was the way her eyes darted to the side of him, her intent plain as the day was bright. He didn't know what was there, but Hook moved at the same time she did, almost laughing, his tsking sounds mocking as his hand snatched hold of the weapon seconds before Belle could.

He gave it a brief glance, surprised to see she had brought a gun with her. Perhaps not so foolish after all, Hook thought, sliding his finger onto the trigger. She was still stupid for having set it down, such an act betraying that she didn't really have the intent to use it on someone. At best, Belle probably would have tried to bluff her way past him, but Hook was sure if push came to shove, she wouldn't have been able to shoot him.

He had no compunctions about shooting someone, though Hook realized he didn't really want to hurt Belle. It was far too obvious she was an innocent, her only sin that of associating with the likes of Rumplestiltskin. It didn't mean he couldn't scare her though, Hook's actions slow and exaggerated as he admired the gun, then pointed it at her.

"My dear Belle..." His voice was far too low, too seductive considering what he now aimed at her. "You should have stayed with your books."

She was clearly frightened, eyes darting from his face to the gun, then back to Hook again. "Real life can get so messy..." He continued, watching her nervous swallow.

"I'm not afraid of you." She announced in a clear, strong voice. It surprised him, Hook studying her as she gestured at the scarf. "And I'm not leaving without that."

"Oh, I admire your loyalty." He said, and it was the truth. "But as to Rumplestiltskin, you're fighting a lost cause." He set the scarf down on the very table that the gun had been resting on.

"He needs that shawl..." She began, desperation in her voice. "To find his son!"

He had twirled the gun in his hand, allowing it to point away from her now. "What makes you think his son wants to be found?" Hook demanded, holding her gaze with his own. Belle had not relaxed one bit, as tense now as she had been when the gun had been trained on her.

"Hmm?" He prodded when there was no answer forthcoming from her. "I'm doing that boy a favor."

Belle's lips moistened by the nervous flick of her tongue. He couldn't help it, his gaze being drawn to her mouth by that very action. "Have you not hurt Rumple enough?"

Her question came of a complete surprise, a surge of anger filling him. Making him want to growl at the absurdity, the irony of anyone talking as if Hook was the villain in all this, and Rumplestiltskin the victim.

"Ha. I've hurt him?" He didn't have to feign his disbelief, holding up his hook, as a reminder to her that it was Rumplestiltskin's fault the pirate's hand was gone.

The look she gave him, was of frustration and disbelief, as though she had really thought this was all about Hook's hand. "You stole his wife!"

Blowing out a harsh breath before speaking, Hook began advancing slowly on Belle. "Tell me something love." His voice sounded controlled, made all the more frightening for the lack of emotion in it. "If a woman comes to you..." Belle had backed up all she could, and still Hook pressed in tight, their bodies touching. "Begs you to take her away..." He was close enough that they could have kissed, Hook invading her space, making Belle aware of him, and of the heat of his body. He talked to Belle, but his focus was on her mouth, his intent really seeming like at any moment he would take that kiss from her. "Is that theft?" Hook asked, their noses brushing. Belle's eyes lowered to his lips for one brief instant.

She flushed guiltily enough, when her eyes lifted and saw he was now looking at her, rather than focused on her mouth. "Why would she leave him?" She asked, and even her voice sounded strained.

His lips pulled back, Hook flashing all his teeth in a feral growl. "Because he was a coward. And because she loved me."

Not even the fact that Belle's eyes had darted a quick glance at his mouth once more, could shake Hook out of his anger. He stepped back, and went to the table, running his hook over the scarf. "I should have burned this the moment I had acquired it."

"Why didn't you?"

"Because she made it..." Hook admitted, not looking at Belle. Not looking until her apology made him go rigid, his gaze jerking back towards her.

"I'm sorry she died." She sounded like she meant it too, but Belle's sincerity was ruined by her attempts to reason with him on Rumplestiltskin's behalf. "But vengeance? Vengeance won't bring her back!"

"Died...." Hook said, walking back towards Belle. "Like it was some kind of accident, is that what he told you?"

"He uh...he didn't say...."

"No of course not. Of course he would leave out the most important detail of her passing." He was right back in her space, but this time he wasn't anything but angry.

"And uh..." Belle whispered. "What would that be?"

"He KILLED her." It wasn't as satisfying as Hook had expected it to be, to watch the horror and dismay fill up Belle's expression. And yet he kept on fueling those emotions, the gun brought up to her face, then turned down to brush over her chest. To prod directly over her heart. "He ripped out her heart..." His voice was an angry whisper, Hook backing Belle up closer to the wall. "And he crushed it..right in front of me."

He saw the denial take over, Belle frantically shaking her head no. "No." She breathed out, and Hook responded.

"Oh yes."

"NO!" She repeated, her voice breaking on an angry sob.

"He would do anything..." The gun was now tracing along her jaw line, Hook then using it to tilt her head back. Belle was shaking, holding in her gasps, but still managing to glare at him defiantly. "Anything! To hold onto his power. Why do you think any one whose ever gotten close to him..." Abruptly he released her, stepping past the woman. "Has either run away..." He heard her footsteps, Belle trying for the door. "Or been killed?!" Hook finished, spinning around, the safety of the gun clicking loudly in the room.

He had shouted the last, aiming the gun at Belle once more. "What makes you think you're any different?" Hook asked softly. "Tell me something, darling....why would you want to fight for a man like that?" It wasn't just rhetoric, Hook truly wanted to know. Wanted to understand why a woman with Belle's qualities would ever waste her time on a monster like Rumplestiltskin.

"Because..." Belle spoke without hesitation. "I still see the good in him. Because I believe he's changed. Because his heart is true."

So earnest, so sincere, still clinging to those beliefs. Rumplestiltskin didn't deserve a woman like Belle, didn't deserve to have her, or anyone else believing in him, or his supposed goodness. A real flash of honest to goodness envy filled him, Hook jealous of Rumplestiltskin, of what he had found in Belle. Hook couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to have a woman like her believe in HIM, to speak so earnestly and heartfelt about his own inner qualities.

Hook was wondering if a woman like Belle would somehow find the good in him, if she could somehow be loyal and true to him instead of Rumplestiltskin when she abruptly spoke again. "And yours?" His eyebrow arched, Hook bracing himself for what possibly things she could say about his own black heart. "Yours is rotten."

He had been distracted, it was the only reason why she had managed to pull the paddle down from it's spot on the ceiling. It was a move completely unexpected, Belle hitting him with it, causing him to fall back from the blow, and tumble down into the very place he had once been holding the cricket prisoner.

Landing hard, the coiled ropes hardly ideal cushioning for breaking a fall, Hook lay there stunned for one second. Hearing Belle's frantic footsteps, the woman running out the room above him, Hook's anger rearing. Angry at her, at himself, for wanting something he would most likely never have, Belle's words about his heart echoed in his head. He snarled then, thinking she had no idea how rotten his heart truly was. But she soon would, Hook scrambling to his feet.

Climbing up, Hook took a roundabout way to get topside, leaping out in front of Belle just as she was running for the steps that would lead off the ship. Belle nearly screamed, the scarf clutched in her hands, and she stared at him shocked.

"How uh...how did you....?"

"Oh, I know this ship like the back of my...." He didn't finish, smiling ironically as he and she both glanced at his hook. "Well you know..."

"I suggest you give that back to me now..." Hook then added, once again advancing on Belle. She seriously looked as though she was considering barreling past him anyway, Hook stepping slightly to the side. Giving her an opening that she actually tried to take, Belle lunging past him, only to get caught around the waist by his arms.

"NO!" She cried out, tugging back as his hook caught hold of the wool, the pirate easily plucking it free of her hands. She kept on trying to reach for it, twisting about in his grip so that for one moment they were face to face. Her expression was fierce, beautiful even in it's anger. He kept on denying her the scarf, feeling the way her body rubbed against his, the squirming Belle was doing oddly enticing.

But Hook wouldn't allow her to be a distraction, the man dragging Belle with him over to a metal barrel. The barrel was missing it's top, holding a black liquid substance filled to about the half way mark.

"You know what this is, love...?" Hook asked, but Belle barely looked at it. Not until he lit a match, the oil's response immediate and eager, the flames crackling inside the barrel.

"Don't!" Belle cried out, struggling even more to get free, and to get the scarf from him. "You can't."

She looked close to tears, actually panicking. It was oddly touching in a sickening way, that she would still cry for Rumplestiltskin.

"I'm afraid your pleas fall on deaf ears, love." Hook said, beginning to dangle one end of the scarf over the barrel. It was sadistic, but he was enjoying himself, enjoying her frantic squirming, and the way that she was begging him.

"Please!" Belle continued, having placed one hand on his arm, trying to keep it from lowering any further. "There has to be some other way....something else you can do. Don't cost him his son!"

"He has to know what it feels like to lose someone precious." Hook insisted. "He has to know the same pain I knew...the same pain I feel even now!"

"Not this!" Belle cried out. "Anything but this!"

The end of the scarf had the flames licking at it, the wool starting to catch on fire. Hook should have dropped it the rest of the way into the fire, but instead he let it dangle between total destruction and relative safety. Because her words had made him realize something. Had made Hook realize there was something more he could do, something that might be even better than preventing Rumplestiltskin from reuniting with his son.

"Anything?" Hook asked, looking not at the scarf but at the woman in his arms. "And would you do anything for him?"

"You know I would." Belle said plaintively.

He did indeed, more of that envious feeling surging through him. Remembering how he had once had a woman, Milah, who had been willing to do just about anything for him. Even endanger her own life in order to save Hook's. It didn't seem fair that Rumplestiltskin was now in that enviable position, that he had Belle to believe in him, trust him, devote herself to him while being absolutely loyal to him, and him alone.

"Well then love, you have a very important decision to make." Hook told her, fighting to keep from purring. He delighted in watching that confused look appear on her face, Hook lowering his mouth towards hers. "I'll let you bargain for it."

"Bargain? Bargain with what?" Belle demanded. "I have nothing of value."

"Oh but you do." Hook said, his lips practically caressing hers with every word spoken. "You've been selling it since the moment you found my ship, making me aware of just how appealing a trade this could be...."

She frowned, having no idea what he could be referring to.

"You Belle. I'll take you."

Her mouth parted in shock, an opening Hook took prime advantage of. Giving her more than the kiss he had been threathening her with earlier, Hook now taking full possession of Belle's mouth with his lips and his tongue. She made a noise in protest, her hands pushing at his chest. He only kissed her harder, nearly forgetting about the scarf, his one and only bargaining chip to get Belle in his life.

"Well, Belle..." Hook said, resting his forehead against hers, listening to the sound of her gasping breaths. "Will you be my woman? Or shall I let Rumplestiltskin's one and only chance to find his precious son go up in flames?"

She didn't answer right away, actually letting him lower the scarf further before she shouted at him to wait. "All right!" She cried out. "I will do this." She closed her eyes, actually shuddering with her breath. "I will be yours. Now please! Put out the fire!"

It was a split second decision she had made, one that she didn't look entirely sure of. But Belle was so obviously the type, loyal to a fault, that she couldn't, actually refused to be the reason Rumplestiltskin's son stayed lost. Especially if there was something she could do about it. It was oddly endearing, and also infuriating, though Hook almost laughed to think Belle hadn't thought it through properly. Hadn't thought of the pain she would still be causing Rumplestiltskin with her decision. He liked the thought of Rumplestiltskin hurting over this, but even more than that, Hook liked the thought of Belle belonging to him. Hell it was enough to make him half hard, when he hadn't really done anything to her aside from a kiss. But he soon would be doing more, Hook taking the scarf, and flinging it over the side of the ship. It made a little splash, the fire put out with a stifled hiss as the scarf then began sinking to the bottom of the harbor. Let Rumplestiltskin dig it out himself, Hook now had his woman to see to.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To Be Continued.....

It's crazy scary how many ideas just a few moments can give me. XD Anyway, this one is going to get smutty, like maybe extra smutty and obviously pretty early on. This is actually a completely new attempt, as my first one which was a very smutty Belle POV was trashed. This version is better, though I still couldn't get it completely to my satisfaction. X_X

It also starts out as what one would call dubious consent. She's consented, but is not without her own hesitations and second thoughts. ^^;; Consider these your warnings....

-----Michelle
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The Trade Off