Back in Time (AU Fic)

"Flynn is a bit of stiff," Belle admitted playfully before laughing to herself. "He can be fun, though... When he's in the right mood," She hummed, then moved out of the woman's arms and smiled a bit. "I think he would have turned out like you... If Nicholas hadn't become a drunk and beaten him," She said quietly, her eyes sad as she knew Elizabeth did not know that path of her husband's.

"He got that from his grandmother. She was never... 'fun' either..." Elizabeth pointed out, giving a small giggled. However, as Belle told her what exactly happened to Nicholas in this other world of theirs, she felt her heart nearly drop. She felt tears spring to her eyes, only in denial that her Nicholas would do such a thing to their child. However, it was very possible, especially with Nicholas's background before they met. She, at first, placed her hand on her mouth before brushing back her long, ebony hair. "Flynn's father... My dear Nicholas... his family... wasn't the kindest out of many. They hated each other, his own parents hating their kin. It's not the saddest of stories, but it did cause Nick to be harsh towards others. I remember when we first met, I always found him in bars, either passed out from being drunk or fighting the nearest contender. His family hated me, of course, but when he met mine, who loved him with every fiber of their being just like I did, he changed for the better. I just... wish... that my Flynn... could have met that man as his Father..."

Belle bit her tongue when she saw the way Elizabeth almost cried from hearing the news. She took her hand and squeezed it affectionately. "Elizabeth... I'm sorry the both of us didn't get to meet that Nicholas. I mean... My sister had a fancy towards our Nicholas, but he wasn't violent around her," She mumbled, shrugging her shoulders. "I love Flynn... And I can tell why he loves you. I told myself I wasn't going to fall for you, too, but that's quite hard," She admitted, smiling sheepishly. 

"I lost my parents when I was six years old... Their throats were slit in front of me by my brothers father... He was a very disturbed man who did horrible things to me. But... I miss my mother. And my father... Having you here is nice," She admitted, smiling a bit.

Elizabeth nodded softly, smiling a bit that he still had some type of heart left. However, the tears fell as she heard Belle's story and pulled the girl into a hug. "There are such cruel people in this world that do such... cruel and downright evil things to such kind souls such as yourself. I'm so glad... even if you probably be taken away from me soon... that we meet each other. You deserve to have all the love and affection in the world, Belle. And, I am happy, in the world and in the other, to be the grandmother of your children."

Belle didn't cry as easily as she had before. Especially around people she didn't know well. But, Elizabeth had told her everything about herself. And she now knew her own deepest secrets. How could she not connect with her? She felt tears prick her eyes and hugged the woman, nuzzling her head against her chest affectionately. She looked like a small child hugging her own mother with the way their heights worked. "Thank you... At this rate, I don't want to leave," She laughed a bit. "Maybe... There's a way we could take you with us," She smiled sadly. "You would hate Seattle like I do, but... You could be with us... We have room," she smiled shyly.

Elizabeth laughed softly, smoothing down Belle's hair gently. "That... would be amazing..." She whispered, looking at Belle and giving her a small kiss on the forehead. Her brows furrowed, however, when she heard glass shattering from inside the house. "We should go check if Flynn didn't hurt himself..." Elizabeth said, leading them both to go out of the stable. But she stopped, hearing even more ruckus this time from inside the house. Furniture being flipped, even more glass shattering, and gruff voices from inside the house, voices that weren't her son's. 

Having a half mind to run out of the stable, she had a horrible feeling in her stomach, looking back at Belle. She chewed her lip before closing the stable. "Belle, hide now!" Elizabeth commanded the girl, running over to the lanterns and blowing out the fires. She lead Belle over to the corner where Elizabeth made 'fake' haystacks to hide from her parents when she was little. Fortunately enough, she made it big enough for both of them to fit in. Once they were huddled in the corner, Elizabeth had enough time to cover them in the blanket, and pulled the haystack to cover them before the stable doors were kicked open. 

Feet shuffled into the stable and what Elizabeth can tell, all of them were brutes. "Check everywhere. I know she's in here." One of them commanded, but the familiar voice made Elizabeth gasped softly, remembering exactly who was attached to that voice. The men looked everywhere for them, even poking the fake stack that they hid behind. Once they returned, the leader huffed before turning. "Where is she, boy?" He asked but no response. Elizabeth made a small noise when she heard a punch, holding Belle close to her. "Elizabeth..." The man cooed softly, smugness interlaced with his voice. "I have something very special of yours, quite a charmer really, looks exactly like you... And you have something that I need very, very soon. So, if you don't want the same fate as your husband had, I suggest we made a compromise very soon. At my place?" The man hummed before the brutes filed out from the stables and collectively went back to their horses.

Belle sighed and nodded when she heard the noise. But, her gut didn't feel right. Flynn was in trouble. She would have been in her right mind to ignore the woman and go to the house if Elizabeth hadn't practically forced her to hide. She squirmed, not wanting to be there. She wanted to get to Flynn. He had to be safe. 

As the men came into the stable, she stilled, her assassin training coming back into play. She knew to hide. She knew to plan. Though, she'd never been good at either. When the sound of someone getting punched hit her ears, she growled under her breath. Only when they were gone did she get up. "What the fuck is your problem, Elizabeth?! You let them take him!" She snapped harshly, her eyes burning gold as well as her hands.

As Belle got up, Elizabeth could only understand why she was upset. Elizabeth stood up as well, brushing off the dirt from her dress. "I understand why you are angry, Belle. But if I gave him what he wanted, he would've killed him anyways. And even you can't get past the amount of men he has. It's best if we get Flynn out without being seen. Because the instant I give him what he wants, he'll kill both of us... Just like he did to Nicholas..." Elizabeth said, looking at Belle. She shook her head softly before going over to her horse, thankful that they didn't hurt her. She opened the stable and the horse trotted out of the stables to the front of the house, almost like an impulse.

"What the hell do they want?!" Belle snapped. She shook her head and ran her hands back through her hair. "This isn't.... This isn't good for me, Elizabeth... Kida lost her baby because she got too stressed out... I need Flynn... I-I...." she was breathing too fast as this point, her hands digging into her scalp slightly and trembling, too.

Elizabeth turned towards Belle as she heard Belle's breathing started to fasten. Walking over and placing her hands on Belle's cheeks, Elizabeth looked deep into Belle's golden eyes. "Belle, we're not going to be able to help him if you went off to have a miscarriage. He's going to be fine, I promise you. They won't hurt him, not until they get what the want." Elizabeth assured her before sighing, pulling out her necklace once more. She opened the locket and a brilliant emerald stone shined despite it being dark out. "This might look like a typical rare stone, but it isn't. A year before Flynn was born, there was a very powerful wizard that was assassinated. He took all of his powers and put it into this tiny stone. For years, everyone searched for it, including us. Fortunately, Nicholas found it and gave it to me before anyone dreadful could get their paws on it. After a few days, however, those men managed to track Nicholas down... Ever since then, I've been keeping it with me or traveling out of Nirethia to make sure no one knows where it is. I just figured out that those men knew that I had it and tracked me down. It was weeks ago, but I foolishly thought that they lost my tracks."

Belle shook her head and tried to steady her breathing. She wanted to get to Flynn. She knew she couldn't lose these babies. Flynn and her both needed them. But, they weren't even a part of this world. Flynn hadn't done anything. 

Shook her head. "No. I'm a witch, I'm sure I can work that thing," she said, and took the stone from the woman's hand. "We get Flynn, and then use this to take you back to Seattle with us," she prompted. "You'll be safer there. And those thugs will just have to rot. Or be dead when I gouge all of their fucking eyeballs from their fucking skulls," She sneered.

Elizabeth took the stone back, shaking her head. "It'll kill you if you try to use it and even when you use it, the wizard who died wasn't the kindest of all men either. We'll find another way." Elizabeth explained before smirking a bit at her imaginative killing. "I'm assuming you were an assassin before? Seeing how knives are your specialty. Hopefully you can work with a bow?" Elizabeth threw over to Belle her extra set of bow and arrows before heading back to the house. When she got inside, she could feel her jaw clenched as they completely ruined the place, turning everything upside down. "When I get my hands on them..." She mumbled before heading into her room. She returned, her cloak in hand, her secret stash of weapons located on different parts of her body, and an extra dress in hand. She handed the dress briefly over to Belle. "Wear this. It'll be a bit long but you can cut off the edges. It'll be faster than whatever you are in."

Belle pursed her lips and growled a bit, not liking that she was being told no so much. "Assassin, yes. Trained since I was ten by my brother and his teacher. I take my job seriously. Or at least, I did," She mumbled. She grabbed the bow and smirked a bit. "Haven't gotten to play with one of these in a while," She chuckled. 

She went inside with Elizabeth and sighed, looking towards the dress she was given. She hadn't worn a dress since she'd gotten into Seattle. "Mm... Pretty," she muttered. She got undressed and pulled on the new dress, finding it fit her, but was a bit tighter on her stomach that she wanted it to be. "Forgot how tight people wear clothes in this world," She laughed a bit. She bent over and took the edge of her dress, ripping it to show more of her legs, allowing her more flexibility. "There."

"It's good that you stopped..." Elizabeth said, with assumption as she fasten the cloak around her and help Belle on with hers. "I know this woman, also an assassin, that went out on a job almost 8 months pregnant. It's quite impossible, but that women was quite impossible as well. Nearly gave her husband a heart attack." Elizabeth laughed a bit, stepping back and examining Belle's outfit. "It will be tight on your stomach and you may feel like it will threaten the babies, but believe me, it will help them out a lot more than it will help you." Elizabeth explained with a nod before heading out of the door. 

"I only have one horse, so we will have to ride together. It'll take at least an hour or so to get where they are going..." Elizabeth said as she hopped onto her horse with ease and lending a hand to Belle.

Belle made a face and placed her hands on her stomach. "If you're sure they're safe," she sighed and ran her hands back through her hair to pull it into a ponytail. She climbed up onto the horse with her and wrapped her arms around her middle. "As long as you don't push me off the horse... Let's go."

"I won't push you off, but I highly advise you hold on tightly." Elizabeth said before kicking the horse into motion. The ride to their hideout wasn't as long as Elizabeth expected, her horse feeling speedy today. They road on the outskirts of town, a little out towards the north. Elizabeth halted the horse and jumped off, helping Belle off as well. "We have to walk from here." Elizabeth told Belle, tying her horse to the tree before setting off into the woods. She stopped when they got a good view of the guarded entrance of a cave. "It used to be an old mining shaft before they took it over. They like to think themselves as Kings but they chose to live in an old cave..." Elizabeth scoffed, shaking her head lightly before leading Belle west from the entrance. "There's an emergency evacuation door over this way, we can get it, assuming that they haven't boarded it up yet."

Fortunately, Elizabeth was right and what looked like an entrance to another cave appeared in the rock. It wasn't lit, meaning that the thugs haven't discovered it yet since moving in, but Elizabeth didn't mind the dark so much, liking to avoid conflict at all costs. She looked around, making sure there was no guards around before hurrying over to the cave. She kept Belle close to her as the walked inside the cave, keeping along the walls.

Belle kept up with her and sighed, looking towards the place where she knew Flynn was being held. She could practically feel him within the building. She wanted to get to him. To have him safe. She sighed and looked towards Elizabeth, nodding and following her around to the secret entrance. She didn't like that there was no light. She bit her lip and nodded, trying to get herself together over the fact. She could handle there being no light if it helped her to get to Flynn. She kept close and silent, her feet making no sound along the ground.

As they descended into the cave, Elizabeth stopped when she felt a wall in there way. She felt the wall to the top and used her strength to lift herself to the top of the wall before helping Belle up as well. Elizabeth smiled a bit when she saw the light shining at the end of the cave, leading Belle towards that light. She was cautious when they came closer to the light, but as she saw the wooden platform and nearly the top of the mining cave,, she knew she was right about the emergency exit. She didn't hesitate to step out, the old wooden planks creaking so easily to her weight, and peaked out to the long and winding way down to the main levels of the mine. She understood now why no one went through this way, most of men would break the planks before getting up to the third level. The area was lit, but not enough to reveal either Belle or Elizabeth, making them look more like shadows. Elizabeth nodded her head in the direction of the ladder before walking over and descending down, not minding the creaks it made.

Belle looked at the plank that Elizabeth crossed and made a face. That thing wouldn't hold two people. So, when Elizabeth was across, Belle backed up a bit. She then silently ran forward and jumped, her hands catching the ground and flipping herself over to land perfectly and silently on the other side. She smiled, proud of herself for still being able to do flips. She then looked towards the latter and made a face. "It's too loud," she whispered. She waited until Elizabeth was down before making sure she was out of the way. She then dropped down and caught herself in the correct position as to not break any bones. Only a small thud was sounded from her feet.

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at Belle's tricks, only taking the easy route down for her sake. She briefly pointed at her stomach, indicating Belle's stomach before shrugging softly. She bent back, performing two back handsprings before flipping off the platform and on the bottom one with a soft thud. "Are you coming?" Elizabeth whispered softly with a smirk on her face. As they both descended down the levels, they started to become quieter as the came down to the main levels. Elizabeth hid behind an enlarged rock, peaking over as she can see several of men passing by.

Belle grinned when Elizabeth began doing some of the same acrobatics. She followed after her, flipping smoothly each time. She wasn't worried for her babies. Exercise was good for pregnant women. Sure, nothing strenuous, but she needed to do something. When they came to the large rock, Belle hid easily and bit her bottom lip. She pulled out a small bottle from her back pocket and looked at Elizabeth. "Smoke," she whispered, gesturing to the bottle before handing it to the woman.

Elizabeth looked over and grinned at Belle, taking the bottle. "We'll smoke them and head straight down for the bottom. They have several of tunnels down there and I can only assume where he would be at. If anyone gets in your way, don't kill but pass them out. We don't want to alarm them." Elizabeth whispered, informing Belle of the plan. She nodded before opening the bottle and rolling it out. It merely took a few seconds for the place to smoke out and Elizabeth didn't take anytime running down to the lower levels. A few men got in her way, some of them didn't see her coming and others 'trying' to put out a fight. However, she didn't kill them as part of the plan, only bashing a few heads into the rock wall. As she made it down to the main level, she couldn't see through the thick smoke the other levels. She waited for Belle before quickly hiding behind another rock as a few men from the tunnels came out to see the commotion.

Belle held her breath as the smoke filled the room. She ran silently, flipping over one man's shoulder and hitting a pressure point on him to cause him to pass out in the process. When the new group of men came through, she made quick work them, working their pressure points fluidly before landing near Elizabeth as the smoke vented out. She smirked at the woman and pushed her hair from her face.

Elizabeth watched Belle with a raised brow. "You have a knack for being overly excessive." She criticized before going into one of the tunnels. There were many door down the tunnel, but she knew none of them held Flynn. Only ones that were heavily guarded had a chance of him being inside. She grinned when she saw two brutes in front of a door but quickly hid in one of the rooms when she saw the door open and even more came out from the room. Elizabeth held the door at an almost closed position, through keeping it crack so she could hear. 

"So you said there was some commotion outside?" The man asked, being the same who spoke up at the stable. It was only a few seconds of silence before the man spoke up again. "Good, that means she's here. I was getting awfully tired of using the punch dummy." He said, a smugness interlaced with his voice as they made their way down the hallway.

Belle pouted a bit at her words and huffed, finding that she wasn't winning the woman's approval as easily as she'd hoped. She sighed and walked over to the woman, kneeling down and listening as well. "Let me take them out. Please," She whispered to the woman, her eyes showing how useless she felt for just sneaking everywhere. In her missions, she never left anyone alive. Left far too many possibilities of a witness.