This story BEGINS in a cursed Storybrooke, BEFORE Emma Swan's arrival.

I do not own 'Once Upon a Time.'

Chapter 1

Mr. Gold hated going in there. The establishment was a blight on the community as far as he was concerned. The neon sign that flashed outside of the windowless door read Enchanted Evenings and featured an artist's rendering of a scantily clad woman, whose bare, high-heel wearing leg was extended. The crude depiction also flashed in neon.

Gold normally arrived there to collect the rent early in the day, before the place was buzzing with too much activity. He certainly wasn't the type to frequent such a place. But he did own the property, and he wanted his money. As long as there were no illegal goings-on at the establishment, Gold didn't much care what they did there. There was no love lost between himself and Keith Sherman, the club's owner. Gold had many suspicions about the man, none of them good. But to his knowledge, none of his activities were of a criminal nature. As long as the man paid his rent in full and on time, there would be no problem.

This particular day, Gold was running a bit late on his collection rounds. He had a bit of a mishap at home that morning; he tripped as he was leaving his house and twisted his leg a bit. It was hurting badly enough that a trip to Dr. Whale's office was warranted. Fortunately, it was simply a mild strain that furthered the pain in his injured leg. He would just tolerate it, as he always did.

When he entered the club that evening, the lights were already dimmed. There was a large crowd of men (and a few women) seated as the lights rose on the stage. Gold approached the bar counter, where Keith was positioned and serving drinks.

"You're pretty late today, Mr. Gold." Keith said nervously. He was as petrified of the man as everyone else in town.

"I was unexpectedly delayed. I take it you have the rent." Gold said.

"Yeah – be right back. You um – you want to watch the show? I can get you a seat, front row, whatever you want." Keith said.

"No thank you." Gold replied. As if he would even be interested. Gold never saw anything appealing or titillating about a strip tease or the women who would debase themselves by doing such things. He just wanted his money so that he could get the hell out of there as quickly as possible.

"And now, please welcome our star performer – Racy Lacey!" a voice was heard shouting over a loudspeaker. The crowd went wild, the men hooting and hollering and calling out the girl's name. A bunch of maniacs, Gold thought to himself. The loud music began to blare as a petite figure took the center of the stage. She had long, dark hair and wore high heels and a flowing, knee-length skirt that she was obviously going to remove until there was nothing left to the imagination.

She took his breath away. She was absolutely beautiful. Gold tried not to stare but he couldn't help himself. He couldn't keep his eyes off of the girl. He wasn't looking at her in a way that one would consider rude or leering. He was almost lovingly gazing at her.

"Mr. Gold?" A voice said, interrupting his focus on the beautiful woman. Gold turned around. "The rent – here." Keith said, handing him a check.

"Oh. Yes. Thank you." Gold replied, obviously distracted.

"I can still get you a seat if you want. No charge." Keith said, his voice trembling a bit.

"Yes. I think I'd like that." Gold replied.

Gold continued to visit Enchanted Evenings whenever Lacey performed. He had a seat in the front row every time. It became a routine for him; she performed on Fridays and Saturdays and every other Tuesday, and he was there for each and every show. He lost track of how long he had been doing this. It seemed like years, but at the same time, it seemed like just yesterday that he first laid eyes on the beautiful girl.

He never spoke to her. He tried not to make eye contact with her. The few times that he did, she smiled at him, and he offered a weak smile back. He didn't know why he kept going back to see her. He didn't want to ogle her like she was some piece of meat. In fact, as soon as her show reached the point where she was going to bare all, he looked away. Every time, he looked away. He didn't want to see her like that. And yet he wanted her – he yearned for her. It was as if he was drawn to her, and couldn't stay away, no matter how hard he tried.

Late one evening, Gold was finishing his rounds and collecting rent. His last stop was the boarding house that was managed by Widow Lucas. A young woman was checking in when he arrived. And the moment she introduced herself, his entire world changed.

"Swan. Emma Swan." she said. Gold's head began to spin, and memories long forgotten began to flood his mind. The Enchanted Forest. The Dark One. Bae. BELLE.

"Emma. Well, that's a lovely name." Gold said to her, and he made his way out the door.

She was dead. Regina told him that she had died by her own hand after being tortured by clerics. But Regina lied. And he foolishly believed her. Gold seethed in anger the entire way home, and as soon as he arrived he flew into a fit of rage. He waved his cane in fury, smashing anything that was in his path.

Belle was alive. And Regina had made her into – he didn't even want to think about the things that Belle had done as Lacey. For over two hundred years, his entire goal had been to find his son. And now he had two more goals: destroy Regina, and save Belle from the hellish life that had been crafted for her in this cursed world. And he was damned determined to accomplish both of them as quickly as possible.