Once Upon a Time does not belong to me. This story has not be beta read. I REALLY need a beta reader. Is anyone interested?

Please review!

Chapter 1

As the nurse walked down the hall of the hospital, her thick soled shoes made barely a sound. Stopping outside the room of her first patient, she inhaled deeply and tucked a few loose strands of her shoulder length, brown hair back behind her ears. She took the clipboard from the bin on the door and carefully noted her newest patient's information on the clipboard before gently opening the door. Her white nurse's shoes squeaked on the clean floor as she stepped softly into the room, and she noted the boy who sat hunched in a corner.

When Belle and Moe left to get some coffee around midnight - actually, Dr. Whale sent everyone home - the young man had refused point blank. In fact, he had hidden beneath the patient's bed until the others were gone. Of course, everyone knew he was there, but no one had had the heart to make him leave. Now, the boy sat up, blinking wearily. He'd been waiting there for more than six hours. The nurse smiled grimly at him and nodded slightly.

Her patient had been brought in late last night. He was unconscious upon arrival and had yet to wake up. The nurse opened the blinds slightly to let in a bit of early morning sunlight. Observing the monitor next to the bed, she took a pen from her pocket and began jotting down his vital information.

Pale, red rimmed eyelids flickered. Slowly, painfully they slid open revealing liquid brown eyes. Eyes full of pain - physical and emotional - blinked rapidly as he tried desperately to focus. Sluggishly, the patient began to stir.

The light hurt his eyes. Weakly, he lifted a hand to shade his watering eyes, but he couldn't hold it up for long. The hand flopped back against his side. A tall figure, swathed in white temporarily blocked the light. He squinted up at the form. It was definitely a woman with shoulder length brown hair. "Milah?" he called tremulously. The throat was dry and talking hurt, leaving his voice sandpaper raspy.

A cool hand reached for his wrist, holding lightly. The soothing touch was gone all too soon. But then there was another touch, a strange tube-like thing, pressed against his mouth.

"Take a sip of water," the woman urged.

Confusion clouded his eyes and a wrinkle etched itself between them. Shaking his head slowly (so slowly, for it throbbed when he moved), he mouthed the words he couldn't say. "Don't understand -"

"Suck on the straw," she told him gently. Again, she pressed the odd device to his lips.

Was she an angel? His long dead, unknown mother here to care for him at last? Maybe Milah even? Milah did love him once. At least he thought she had. He closed his eyes, and sucked at the straw. Short swallows of water eased his parched mouth and throat. Tears seeped from his eyes. "Milah," he sighed, grateful for the water.

The boy, Henry Mills, gasped as he bolted to the side of the bed, his brown eyes - so like his grandfather's - shone with tears. The nurse gave him an encouraging smile and patted the white knuckles of his hands that gripped tightly to the bedrail. Then, she pressed the call button to alert Dr. Whale.

Gingerly, Gold opened his eyes, and as they slowly focused on the boy leaning over his bed, his mouth fell open. "Bae!" he cried. Fumbling, he caught at the boy's hands and kissed them. "Oh, Bae, you're here." Tears fell freely from his deep brown eyes, and soon Henry's hands were wet.

"No, I'm not - "

"I know, I know, son," Gold rushed. "It was all my fault. I have no excuse, and I don't deserve your forgiveness. I can only beg you, please. Please, Baelfire, please, you have to understand how afraid I was." The older man began sobbing.

Henry stood there stunned. He didn't know what to say, what to do, what to think. The older man's confession had shocked him. He shook his head slightly.

"Baelfire, can you ever forgive me?" the man begged. "I only took on the curse so I could have the means to protect you, son. They were going to take you away, send you to the Ogre Wars." Using Henry's arms as leverage, Gold struggled into a lopsided sitting position. "You would have been killed there, Bae. I couldn't let that happen to you." He was becoming hysterical. "I couldn't bear to lose you, son. You're all I had. Please, please, I'll do anything, anything, Bae, please, son, please - "

At that moment, Dr. Whale dashed in. Gently he untangled Gold's hands from Henry's. "Sedative, Nurse," he muttered. "Shh, it's all right." As the nurse slowly injected a sedative into Gold's IV, Whale nodded meaningfully at Henry. "Bae here forgives you. Don't you, son?"

'Yeah," a bewildered Henry muttered. He cleared his throat. "Yes, I forgive you, Papa."

Gold wept tears of joy and release, all the while mumbling a steady stream of barely coherent thanks. And slowly as the tranquilizer took effect, he fell back into a gentle, healing sleep.

"He's awake!" Henry shouted as he ran down the hospital's corridor, his sneakers thundering down the cool tiles. "Grandpa Gold's awake!" He had posted himself in his grandfather's room late Friday evening, refusing to leave.

Belle jerked upright, spilling her cold coffee across the lap of her pale blue skirt. She frowned and passed the cup to Moe French. "He's awake?" She quickly grasped Henry by his arms. "Rumple's awake?"

Moe set the cup of coffee colored sludge on a table in the waiting area and stood tall beside his daughter. He was angry, angry and stunned that his dear, sweet Belle - so like her mother - could still love that damnable Gold. For just a while there, he was beginning to breathe more easily. Belle has seen Gold's true colors, and she had thrown his sorry ass out of town. She'd grieved for her broken marriage - as was the right thing to do - but then she'd run right back to his side. Moe knew he couldn't do a thing about it, but Belle deserved a hell of a lot better than that manipulative old man.

Henry nodded. "Yeah," he told them, breathing hard. "Just as he woke up, Dr. Whale came in and made me leave." He dropped his head for a moment before looking up. The young man squared his shoulders in an unconscious act much like this grandfather Nolan. "He called me Baelfire." His voice cracked on the last word.

Belle frowned. "I don't understand."

Swallowing hard, Henry explained, "He thought I was my dad." He shook his head from side to side, trying to tear loose the memory. "I was so angry with him. He didn't care what happened to us as long as he got what he wanted. He and that darn author!" The boy dashed angry tears from his eyes. "How can I be angry with him when he doesn't even know who I am or what he did?"

Moe inhaled deeply and held the breath for a moment before letting it go in a long sigh. "Henry, he didn't try to use his magic on you, did he?" His blue eyes were stern and commanding. "If he's so confused, he might lash out with his magic."

"No," Belle cried. "Rumple would never hurt us."

Young Henry snorted. "He would, too, if it meant he could have his way."

"Oh, Henry, you can't mean that!" Belle chided gently, but knowing tears sprang to her eyes.

"Yeah? I remember Sir Rumplestiltskin threatening me with a sword when I tried to stop Zelena from marrying Robin," Henry replied angrily.

"But he didn't know you were his grandson," Belle insisted. "The author told him you were a threat to the kingdom." Tears were pooling in her deep blue eyes. "He isn't the Dark One now."

"He wasn't the Dark One then, either!" Henry took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Belle. I - I shouldn't have yelled at you."

"Papa," she whispered, as she groped blindly for his hand. "Take me to see him."

"Rumple?" Belle tenderly smoothed his forehead and pressed a kiss there. "Please, please wake up," she whispered.

"So, Whale," Moe French spoke with a commanding tone, "what's going on with him?" He jerked his chin slightly towards his son-in-law.

Whale frowned, crossing his arms. "I'm not really sure, and I won't be until he is fully awake - "

"But Henry said he was awake," Belle interrupted. She eased herself onto the side of his bed and reached for her husband's hand.

Dr. Whale nodded at the boy before explaining. "He was awake," he agreed, "but he was confused. I don't know if -"

"He thought I was Baelfire and the nurse was Milah, whoever that is," muttered Henry as he walked to stand on the opposite side of the bed.

Whale snorted. "Yes, but I don't know if he's delusional, or amnesic, or maybe his whole life has been reset back to the point where he became the Dark One. Either way, if he still has his magic but with no way to control it, he may be dangerous."

Belle's tears moved the doctor, and he softened his tone. "He should be waking soon. We'll just have to take things hour by hour."

Belle brushed the tears away. "All right, what can we do to help?"

Rubbing his chin, the doctor thought. "Look, we need to find out about his life before he became the Dark One. You could go home and do some research, find something about his life prior to becoming the Dark One or someone who knew him then. Learn all you can." Next he turned to Moe. "Mr. French, could you get Dr. Hopper over here? You could get it done in half the time it would take my request to go through the hospital red tape."

Moe took one look at his sad little girl; he'd do anything for her. "Consider it done, even if I have to kidnap him." He grinned at Belle. "Come on, Belle. I'll drive you home so you can start your research."

"Not home," she answered firmly. "I know who we need. Captain Jones has known Rumple the longest. We need to find him."

"He's with mom, and Robin, and Grandpa and Grandma at Granny's Diner," Henry informed them. "I spoke with Mom last night to let her know I was staying here at the hospital."

"Then, I'll take you to Granny's before I pick up Dr. Hopper," Moe told her.

Reluctantly, Belle released Rumple's hand. She stood and leaned over to kiss him on the forehead again. "I'm ready," she whispered. Quietly, they left the room.

"What about me, Dr. Whale?" Henry asked. His shoulders were squared back and his legs braced as if ready to do battle.

Dr. Whale patted Henry on the shoulder. "If he wakes up and thinks you're Baelfire, let him."

Henry frowned. "You want me to lie?"

"Not lie exactly," Whale tried to explain. "Henry, we don't want to agitate him. If he becomes panicked like before, I'll have to sedate him again. You can tell him you're Baelfire's son, just don't let him know that Neal is dead, okay? We'll let Dr. Hopper handle that."

Henry nodded, understanding. "Okay, I explain that I'm his grandson and just talk to him calmly. I won't go into any details."

"Good man." Whale hesitated before adding, "And, Henry, we may need a strong magic user to help either control him or teach him control if he still has his magic. Could you call your mother? Get Regina down here?"

"I'll call her, and she'll come," Henry replied.

"All right, " Whale said, "But for the moment, I insist you go down to the cafeteria and get some breakfast. You can call your mother from there."