In Season 5 of ABC’s Once Upon a Time, Belle (Emilie de Ravin) places a sleeping curse on herself to protect the child in her womb from being used by Hades (Greg Germann). In the finale of the fairy-tale drama, Belle is still under the curse and her fate — along with that of her unborn child — hangs in the balance.
Fans of Belle can rest easy knowing that the Belle-Rumple storyline will be explored in Season 6. Co-creators Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis told The Hollywood Reporter that Belle, Rumple (Robert Carlyle) and their baby will be “dealt with next season.”
On a more ominous note, Rumple and Belle’s child may be in danger. Entertainment Weekly asked the co-creators if the sleeping curse will have an adverse effect on Baby Rumbelle and Horowitz replied with, “Can’t say.”
Rumple’s first go at fatherhood was mediocre, at best, as he was never able to put his son, Baelfire, ahead of his need for power. It is likely that Rumple will struggle with the same obstacle with his unborn child. With Baelfire dead, perhaps Rumple will learn from his past mistakes and prioritize his family or perhaps his need for power will, once again, take precedent. When asked by EW if Rumple has the capacity to love his unborn child more than power, Kitsis said: “That is the question of next season.”
As for Rumple and Belle’s relationship, Kitsis told EW that Belle will put her wedding band back on “only if Rumple can win her heart back.” Thus far, Rumple seems to be pulling out all the stops to get Belle back to consciousness, including bringing a new villain to Storybrooke: an evil warden named Hyde (Sam Witwer).
ABC’s Once Upon a Time returns in the fall.
