A/N I just watched Tallahassee, and the first thing I thought when we got a glimpse at Henry's dad was: If I wrote this, Neal would be Baelfire. I haven't confirmed my suspicions yet, but will be watching all of the other aired episodes once I'm done writing this little fic. If I'm right, feel free to say so if you leave a review, I won't be checking my inbox until tomorrow, so spoiler away! Enjoy my little piece of insanity.
The stranger parked his car just before the 'Welcome to Storybrooke' sign. He hauled his packed suitcase from the trunk and took a last look at the world, after which he faced the small town. The drawn line on the ground was guarded by a very familiar face.
Long yellow curls rested on Emma's face, whose feautures were frozen in a mixture of shock and complete fury. She drew her gun and pointed it at him, ready to shoot if he didn't step back. The stanger was one step away from the border, and with a hesitant move, crossed the line.
Purple smoke rose from the ground, enveloping them and the rest of the small town, until it had been erased from existance.
When the smoke disappeared, Emma was still pointing a gun at him, but her expression was one of complete confusion, her eyes locked to the spot behind him.
The stranger turned to find her source of disbelieve. He found a castle, grand and old, its front door a mere feet before him. He couldn't even bother to look impressed, and simply faced Emma agin, taking in her appearance.
Time had only increased her beauty. Her eyes were sharp and focused, her high cheekbones accentuated by her blonde locks. Her figure was still as perfect as it had always been. He noticed that the gun in her hand was back at her hip, resting in the leather holster.
He was about to speak, start with an explanation, when the other inhabitants of Storybrook showed up, Henry heading the crowd at a run, wanting to make sure his mom was okay.
"Emma!" he shouted, making his mom turn around and shoot a look at the man behind her, looking like a deer caught in the headlights.
Neal looked at the boy who could only be his son. The boy looked a lot like him, but had Emma´s more delicate features. Henry, who he knew only by name, hugged the blonde and looked at him with suspicion from his place in his mother´s arms.
The rest of the crowd caught up, disoriented and looking in awe at the castle that stood at the border of their intact little town. Had the castle come to the magic-less world or were they back home?
"We are back in the Enchanted forest. You're home," Neal told the people. They looked at him and broke out in cheering.
Emma wasn't nearly as happy. She crossed the small distance between them and pushed him against the nearest tree, her elbow digging into his throat.
Neal, mostly expecting that from the mother of his son, simply relaxed and used the force of her move to spin their positions around, his hands resting at the sides of her head. "I taught you that move, remember," he said with a slightly arrogant grin.
Emma knew exactly what memory brought that to his face, and attempted to bring her knee up in retaliation. That was the second move he parried, simply sidestepping the probably painful blow.
He tried to open his mouth again to explain, when another arm (neither his nor Emma's) wrapped around his throat and pulled him away from his former lover, throwing him to the ground.
Neal observed the couple above him. Instead of the man, like he'd expected, it had been the woman who threw him to the ground, her partner doing little more than watch. The woman's foot dug into his already sore throat, cutting of his airsupply.
Emma tentivaly put her hand on Mary Margaret's shoulder, pulling her back gently and freeing Neal from her mother's hold. James stood half a step in front of his wife and daughter in a protective gesture.
"Who are you?" James asked, wishing he had his sword so he could point at the stranger's neck for attacking his daughter.
A voice spoke up from the silent crowd: "I have reason to believe he is my son." Gold made his way to the old border with Belle holding his hand, looking at Bealfire. The similarity between him and his fourteen-year-old self was uncanny. Even though he was approximately twenty years older, he still had the same highly recognizable features. There was no doubt in Rumplestiltskin's mind that this was his long lost son.
"Papa?" his son said, not quite believing he was finally ace to face with his father. "Bae," Rumple returned softly. They met in the middle for a hug, reunited after all these years apart.
Meanwhile, Emma looked at the scene with incredulous understanding. The father of her child came from Fairytale Land and apparantly was the son of the most feared man in all the lands. Just great. Could her day get any worse?
It could, Rumplestiltskin of all people was her father-in-law. When she wanted a family, she didn't expect the screwed up one she had now. And how could she explain this to Henry?
Gold – no Rumplestiltskin – grabbed his son by the shoulder and guided him to the castle doors, opening them and exposing a majestic room with a long table in the middle.
"Home sweet home. Welcome to my castle, Bae."
The crowd was splitting up, ready to travel to their own homes and rebuilt the kingdoms. The kings and queens gathered their people and went to find their own castles.
James and Snow, though, followed Emma and Henry into the , too, went with them, not willing to part with Henry.
Baelfire and his father were moving around the room, catching up on lost time. Emma cleared her throat, considering taking Neal to a more private place, but dismissing it.
"What the hell are you doing here, Neal? Trying to turn me in to the police again?"
The smile that adorned his face quickly fell and turned into a guilty expression. "I did that for your own good." Immediately, he knew that it was the wrong thing to say. He was a little bit rusty when it came to dealing with the temper of Emma Swan.
"My own good? My own good!" she raised her voice, making the room's occupants take a step back. Neal stood his ground. He remembered that Emma calms down quicker when you showed no fear.
"I gave birth to Henry in a prison cell I had a criminal record and a stupid yellow car and that was it! You are the reason I had to give him to Regina. It's your fault!"
"Emma," Henry spoke up from behind his grandparents, "How do you know that man?"
The blonde in question looked from her son to his father and back, deciding whether to tell the truth or not. She knew Neal would never speak of it without her permission, but the decision was taken out of her hands by Henry himself.
"Is he my…?" Henry didn't finish the question, but they all knew what he meant, and waited with bathed breath for the answer.
Neal looked at Emma with hope written all over his face, and she gave him a nod in defeat. There was no point in denying the truth when it was as obvious as it was in this instance.
Baelfire crouched in front of his son, unsure but determined non the less. "I met your mother many years ago, and I did something she may never forgive me for, but yes, I am your biological father."
"What is your name?" Henry asked with the same curiosity he always displayed.
"In Storybrooke, I'm Neal. Here, I am Baelfire, the son of Rumplestiltskin."
Henry, amazed with the turn of events, looked over his father's shoulder and watched Rumple, whose skin was slowly starting to glisten, magic taking him over. "Does that make you my gramps?"
"Wait a second," Snow spoke up, "You are telling me, that everyone in this room is somehow related to each other?" She looked to her stepmother who was also Henry's adoptive mother.
"It seems to be so," Regina said, already hurting with the loss of her son. She would never be able to get him back when the most powerful people in the kingdoms were doing everything to make sure he stayed away from her, even though she had given up the use of her magic months ago.
"Than let me be a kind host and gather our little family under my roof. After all, I have enough room for all of us," he grinned.
Everyone ignored him.
"About that, how did the curse break?" James asked in the general direction of the lost father and son, knowing one of them would have the answer.
"Pinocchio," Bae said. He wanted to turn the word into a sentence, but was interrupted by Emma, who had trouble keeping up.
"You know August?"
He looked at her, not quite annoyed, but close. "Yes, he is the reason I left you in the first place."
"You can't blame anyone but yourself for that!" she yelled back. "You chose to leave me and Henry in a cell. Do you have any idea what I've been through?"
As if he hadn't been interrupted, he continued: "He found us and told me about the curse. When I found out my father created it, I knew he was looking for me." He spared a glance at said man.
"August and I theorized that Storybrooke would return to the Enchanted forest once the goal of the curse was completed. " At the look everyone shot him, he elaborated: "Once I returned to Storybrooke. I wanted to, but Pinocchio held me back. Without your memories, it would be a nightmare to sent you back, so Emma had to break the curse first."
He waited for the interruption, but none came. "When I found out Emma had given the baby up for adoption, I pulled some strings to get Henry to Storybrooke, ensuring she would eventually end up there."
"Did you know?" Emma said, feeling like her whole life had been planned from birth. Had any choice she made actually been meant to be, had she ever had a choice at all.
"I found out the day you left. I didn't know you were the savior, I didn't know about the curse."
Distrustful, she put her hand on Henry's shoulder, ready to pull him back should the need arise. "Henry, go to Regina."
"Why?"
"I need to talk to your father, alone."
She grabbed Neal by the arm, dragging him to one of the side rooms "Henry will want to get to know you, and I have no grounds to keep you away from him. So, we're going to do it like this: I'm going to find a place for Henry and me, and you get to visit anytime you want."
"You can stay here if you want, with me and Papa. Your parents can stay,too."
"Deal."
A/N I won't be continuing this, but I just had to write it… I just can't think of a sufficient ending, so this has to do. A little bit abrupt maybe, but I just can't seem to wirie the last paragraphs differently..