Belle French


 * {|style="padding-bottom:10px;padding-top:10px;padding-left:10px;padding-right:10px;border-radius:10px; border: 2px double #000;line-height:1.5;"

"No, you don't understand. It's my life."
 * This article focuses on Belle's Storybrooke persona. For her Fairytale Land counterpart, see Belle.
 * }

- Belle's Counterpart to Moe French

Belle is a character on ABC's Once Upon a Time. She makes her debut in the twelfth episode of the first season. She is portrayed by starring cast member Emilie de Ravin and is the Storybrooke counterpart of Belle.

History
For events occurring before the casting of the Dark Curse, see the counterpart page.

During the Curse
Belle is held in Storybrooke General Hospital's psychiatric ward since the Dark Curseis enacted and has stayed there since. When Mr. Gold beats her father, Moe French, it is done under the presumption that the man has the chipped cup Gold keeps in memory of Belle. Instead, it is revealed Regina Mills has the cup, and she uses it to goad him into telling her his real name. Later, Regina pays a visit to Belle's Storybrooke counterpart in the basement of the psychiatric ward. No one knows of the girl's existence in Storybrooke except Regina herself. She opens the door flap, prompting the girl to look up. Regina looks at her and smiles. ("Skin Deep")

Jefferson is jilted by Regina Mills on her promise that if he helped her retrieve something from Fairytale Land to get rid of Emma Swan, that in return she'd bring his daughter back to him. To spite her, he decides to reveal the girl Regina Mills is keeping locked up, and bring her to Mr. Gold. He disguises himself as a hospital staff member and sneaks down to the psychiatric ward to free Belle's counterpart after drugging the nurse. He tells her to go and find Mr. Gold, and to tell him that Regina Mills held her captive. She goes into the pawn shop and tells Gold what happened. He is very shocked and even though Belle doesn't remember him, he promises to protect her. He leads her out into the woods, and (due to Emma Swan successfully breaking the curse), she remembers her life as Belle and tells Rumplestiltskin that she loves him. She witnesses him creating the purple smoke that spreads across Storybrooke. ("A Land Without Magic")

After the Curse
After Emma Swan breaks the Dark Curse, Belle is with Mr. Gold beside the well in the aftermath of magic being restored to Storybrooke. She tells Mr. Gold of her imprisonment and asks if the release of magic was to seek revenge for her capture. He states that it wasn't his intention, but he will use it to his advantage. She makes him promise not to use the magic to seek revenge. When he breaks his promise by releasing the Wraith to suck out Regina Mills's soul, she leaves the pawn shop in tears of anger and frustration. After the Wraith disappears through a vortex leaving Regina Mills unscathed, she returns and states that she will remain with Mr. Gold because he is still a "monster." ("Broken")

Belle next appears living with Mr. Gold in his Storybrooke home. She has a nightmare where Mr. Gold attacks Leroy, who has come looking for his axe. Mr. Gold transforms into the Dark One before Belle's eyes as he strangles Leroy. She wakes up in a cold sweat and goes looking for Mr. Gold, and sees him in the basement spinning gold thread and working magic without her knowledge.

The next day, Belle asks Mr. Gold what he was doing in the basement when she saw him practicing magic. He tries to brush it off, but Belle states that he is a coward for not letting her into his life. Then, without informing Mr. Gold, goes to Granny's, where Ruby serves her iced tea. Ruby asks if she is all right, to which Belle responds she fears she is headed towards a break up. Ruby offers her a room in the inn, and Belle tells her that she is looking for a job. Ruby tells her about the library when Belle mentions her love of books and that they might be looking for a librarian. Belle thanks her and goes to the library and peeks inside, seeing all the books there. She tries to get in, but runs into William Smee, who asks her for change, questions her whether she is meeting someone there, and then kidnaps her.

She is taken to a back room where she is reunited with her father, Moe French. She is at first overjoyed to see him, but when Moe demands that she leave Mr. Gold for good, Belle refuses, saying he does not have the right to tell her how to live her life. Moe realizes that he can't talk her out of being in a relationship with Mr. Gold, and orders Smee to take his daughter to the town boundary, so that she will lose her memory. Belle is then tied to a mining cart and is set off down a train track by Smee towards the boundary. She tries to get the key to release the handcuffs, and gets it, but drops it on the tracks. She is barely caught by Mr. Gold's magic, which pulls her back to David Nolan, Ruby, Moe, and Mr. Gold. She is grateful for Mr. Gold's help, but she makes it clear it doesn't mean they are back together. She says he is a coward for not being able to be truthful with her. Belle is also equally unhappy with her father for trying to make choices for her. She walks off after saying she doesn't want to see either of them ever again.

The next day, Belle is having breakfast at Granny's and Ruby is introducing her to pancakes. Belle is staying at Granny's Bed and Breakfast for now until she gets back on her feet. Ruby gives her a small box with a bow, saying that it was left for her at the front desk. Belle opens it to see the key to the library. She takes the key and opens up the library. Mr. Gold is waiting for her, and tells Belle about an apartment available for the librarian. Just when Belle is about to give the key back, he tells her that he isn't giving it to her to get her back, and that she was right for calling him a coward. He admits that he brought magic to Storybrooke because magic is his crutch, and he doesn't know how to live without it. He also tells Belle that when the dark curse was broken, he thought he would be able to leave Storybrooke and search for Baelfire, but instead a new curse was put up in its place which erases the memories of those who try to leave. He says that he was practicing magic to see if he could break this new curse. As he turns to go, Belle invites him out for a hamburger at Granny's sometime, to which he happily agrees. ("The Crocodile")

Belle is present at the celebration at Granny's after the discovery of the diamonds in the Storybrooke mines. When Ruby dismisses Billy after talking to him, Belle comes up and tells Billy that it is because she and Ruby are having a girl's night. Ruby thanks her for intervening.

Later, Ruby is taken from the jail cell to Belle's library, where she is chained to a pipe inside to prevent her from hurting anybody and from anybody finding her and hurting her. She was told to call Granny if the crowd comes by. Belle states it is fine that she is there, and that its not everyday that you find out your friend is different. She tells Ruby to just think of it as a girl's night. Later, Belle frees Ruby to use the restroom, and Ruby then tricks Belle, chaining her to the pipe with a manacle, saying that she cannot risk hurting anyone else that she cares about, and that she deserves what she will get. She leaves Belle in tears. Later, Belle is unchained after Ruby reveals she was left in the library. ("Child of the Moon")

Later, while Belle and Mr. Gold are eventually eating hamburgers together at Granny's, they are interupted by Regina. She tells Mr. Gold that he is needed immediately to help her with their shared enemy, Cora. Belle asks who she is and Mr. Gold replies that she will never have to meet her. Gold argues that he has defeated Cora before, but when Regina reminds him that last time he fought Cora he "didn't have anything to lose", she is refering to Belle which makes the librarian nervous. ("Into the Deep")

Trivia

 * "Belle" may or may not have been given a new name in Storybrooke; since she was imprisoned beneath the hospital, she did not need a new identity.
 * Like her Disney version, Belle is interested in books and was given a library by Mr. Gold, her love interest and counterpart of the Beast.
 * Belle is the only person who Mr. Gold/Rumplestiltskin has revealed the motive for many of his actions and for creating The Dark Curse to: finding his son, Baelfire.  ("The Crocodile")
 * Belle considers herself as an expert at rehabilitation.

Appearances
Contrapartida de Bella Belle (Storybrooke) Belle (Storybrooke)