Rumplestiltskin

"All magic comes with a price!"

- Rumpelstiltskin's iconic phrase

Rumpelstiltskin is an extremely powerful but crooked and greedy wizard who is able to foresee the future. In exchange for the secret to completing the Evil Queen's curse, he now has riches and comfort in the real world, and the Storybrooke version of the Evil Queen, Regina Mills, has to give him anything he asks for as long as he says "please", because of a deal she made with him.

History
Rumpelstiltskin was once a normal widowed spinner with a son named Baelfire, whom he loved with all his heart and was his most treasured possession in the world. At some point before Baelfire was born, Rumpelstiltskin ran from a war that he was meant to fight in, and was forever labeled as a coward.

When the kingdom finally had to resort to using children as soldiers in The Ogre Wars, Rumpelstiltskin and his son fled into the forest, only to be found and tormented by royal knights. After the knights left, Rumpelstiltskin and Baelfire were approached a mysterious old man who offered them shelter in exchange for a small amount of food and company.

After listening to Rumpelstiltskin's story, the old man tried to inspire him to find another way to save his son, but Rumpelstiltskin was adamant that the only real choice was to run away. Knowing that Rumpelstiltskin could not run forever, the old man offerd him a more complete solution to his problems, informing him that the Duke of the kingdom had in his possesion a magical dagger, which he in turn used to control the Dark One, a terrifying entity with unmatched magical powers and was the most feared being in all the land.

As such, if Rumpelstiltskin could steal the dagger, he, rather than the Duke, would have control over the Dark One, and could thus protect Baelfire and turn the Dark One into a force of good. Of course, Rumpelstiltskin realized that he would never be able to trully hold the Dark One as a slave because he would be terrified. The old man sympathized with Rumpelstiltskin, but reiterated that obtaining the dagger was the only way to protect Baelfire from being taken away.

Convinced that he had no other choice, Rumpelstiltskin plotted to steal the dagger by setting fire to the Duke's castle during the night. After stealing the weapon, Rumpelstiltskin ran back into the forest to meet Baelfire, whom he told to go wait at home while he summoned the Dark One. Upon calling the name on the dagger, "Zoso", the Dark One appeared. Though he attempted to act brave, Rumpelstiltskin cowered in the Dark One's presence, and when the entity implied that Baelfire was not truly Rumpelstiltskin's son, Rumpelstiltskin stabbed the Dark One in a fit of blind rage.

Upon getting a better look at the dying entity's face, Rumpelstiltskin discovered the Dark One was in fact the old man who had told him about the dagger in the first place. Shocked, Rumpelstiltskin asked why the old man would do such a thing as plot his own murder, to which the man told him that all the horrible deeds he was forced to carry out as the Dark One had made his life such a burden, that he welcomed death as a release.

Cackling at Rumpelstiltskin's blind faith and desperation, the old man spat his last words: "Magic always comes with a price," knowing that now that price was Rumpelstiltskin's to bear forever, sealed with his own name replacing Zoso's on the dagger.

Rumpelstiltskin, now with more power than he ever dreamed, returned to his hamlet to humiliate and kill the knights who had harassed him the other day, all while Baelfire watched in horror as his father relished in their murder. When Baelfire asked his father the cause for his actions, Rumpelstiltskin stated that he had simply protected what belonged to him, and that he was no longer afraid, thus beginning his descent into evil. ("Desperate Souls"). Rumpelstiltskin protects Belle's town in exchange for her living in his castle. Rumpelstiltskin, after keeping her in the castle for a while, allows her to go to town on the pretext of fetching him straw. Although he suspected she would not come back, he let her go. Belle meets the Evil Queen on the road who prompts her to kiss Rumpelstiltskin by saying it will break the curse.

Belle goes back to the castle and kisses Rumpelstiltskin who begins to turn human. Rumpelstiltskin incorrectly believes Belle is working with the Queen when Belle says that kissing him is breaking the curse. In his anger he sends her away. The Queen visits Rumpelstiltskin and goads him about Belle. After the Queen tells him Belle has died, Rumpelstiltskin is seen crying over his lost love. ("Skin Deep")

Deals
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Gallery
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Trivia

 * He used to be in love with Belle and was once known as The Beast from The Beauty and the Beast.
 * Both he and his counterpart have a habit of being captured and locked in prison cells. ("The Thing You Love Most"), ("The Price of Gold"), ("The Shepherd"), ("Skin Deep").
 * Ironically, Rumpelstiltskin is given a deadline of three days to save his son from becoming a soldier in the Duke's army. In the original fairy tale, the girl Rumpelstiltskin spins gold thread for is also given a deadline of three days to guess his true name or else she must foreit her firstborn child. ("Desperate Souls").
 * He is seen spinning gold out of straw in various episodes. However, he states that gold itself is meaningless to him, and the real reason he spins so much is that it helps him relax and forget what he has lost. ("That Still Small Voice"), ("Skin Deep").
 * His powers can be taken away by a kiss from his true love since his powers are a curse
 * In the traditional fairytales, Rumpelstiltskin was an imp, who spun straw into gold for a girl in return for her first-born child. The girl was told she could keep her child if she could guess his name. When she finally did Rumpelstiltskin destroyed himself.

Appearances

 * Pilot
 * The Thing You Love Most
 * The Price of Gold
 * That Still Small Voice
 * The Shepherd
 * Desperate Souls
 * Skin Deep