Belle is a character in Once Upon an Altered Timeline. The daughter of Lord Maurice of Avonlea, Belle is a monster hunter and scholar who travels the Enchanted Forest in search of adventure. In Storybrooke, Maine, under the Dark Curse, she becomes Lacey French, the owner and manager of The Rabbit Hole.
Biography
Background
When Jean needs to slay the werewolf that infected her granddaughter with lycanthropy, she goes to a tavern and enlists the help of Belle. The two travel to the town of Griswold, where the werewolf has recently attacked, and track the wolf down to its cave. They enter the cave and confront the werewolf, eventually engaging in a fight with him. Belle manages to subdue the beast long enough for Jean to kill him. Jean then soaks an enchanted cloak in the werewolf's blood, as doing so will give the cloak the ability to suppress her granddaughter's transformations during a full moon. Jean thanks Belle, and the two part ways.
Volume 1
With Granny in hospital recovering from a heart-attack, Ruby Lucas becomes overwhelmed by the responsibility of managing Granny's Diner and leaves during a shift. She goes to The Rabbit Hole and orders a drink while Lacey is covering the bar shift. Lacey notices that Ruby is "down in the dumps" and asks her about it. When Ruby expresses her fears to Lacey, the latter offers to help her manage the business and gives her advice, such as offering special deals to customers and establishing a take-out service.
Some time later, Ruby enters The Rabbit Hole and asks Lacey if she would be interested in going out for a game of mini-golf.
When the Dark Curse is broken, Lacey regains all her memories of the Enchanted Forest.
Relationships
Family
- Lord Maurice (father)
Allies
Enemies
- Peter †
Trivia
- Belle is based on the beauty from the fairytale "Beauty and the Beast".
- In the canon continuity of Once Upon a Time, Belle is the daughter of Sir Maurice and is engaged to Gaston until Rumplestiltskin takes her into his service as a maid in exchange for protecting Avonlea from the ogres. Belle and Rumplestiltskin eventually fall in love but the latter forces her to leave, fearful of his love for her. Belle is later abducted by the Evil Queen and imprisoned in her palace until the Dark Curse transports her to Storybrooke, Maine, where she is held in the asylum beneath Storybrooke General Hospital. After the Dark Curse breaks, Belle inadvertantly crosses the town line, losing her memories and prompting Regina to replace her memories with those of Lacey, a "scantily-clad barfly" who tries to urge Rumplestiltskin into indulging his dark side.
Appearances
- Vol 1, Ch 04: "Into the Wolf's Mouth"
- Vol 1, Ch 09: "That Still Small Voice"
- Vol 1, Ch 14: "Broken"