"You may kiss the bride!" the bishop proclaimed as the groom, the Captain of the Guard, took his new wife's face in his hands. This was truly the happiest moment of their lives. As the crescendo of the applause rose, the happy couple could feel the love surrounding them. The king and queen beamed at their daughter, the Princess Born of True Love; the dwarves were elated, and no long suspicious of the groom's intentions; the happy couple's best friends smiled conspiratorially at them, waiting to share a secret with the couple and even the princess' godmother seemed happy.
"I love you," the groom whispered to his new wife as he moved in for the kiss. And then, just as their lips were about to touch, the doors to the cathedral were whipped open by a fierce wind. All the congregants turned to see the Black Fairy standing there.
She moved down the aisle, wordless, as guards marched to block her way. With the flick of her wrist, they were pushed aside like toy soldiers. She continued her approach, shoving the dwarves aside as the amassed for protection. They, too, were little help. The king and queen positioned themselves in from front of their daughter and newly minted son-in-law, fearful of what was to come. The best man, the Admiral of the King's Navy and the maid of honor stood at the ready, preparing a defense with sword and magic in hand, while the the godmother made her way to the Black Fairy.
"What do you want, Mother?" Queen Dowager Regina asked sharply, eying her mother with caution.
The Black Fairy smiled dangerously. "I only came to offer my congratulations to the happy couple, even if I was so cruelly ignored on such a happy occasion," Cora responded. "I am, after all, family."
"You are no family of mine," Queen Snow called out.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but my daughter is your father's widow," Cora responded. "That would make me the step-grandmother of the bride."
"You are no family any of us acknowledge," Regina replied. "Now, leave before I do something that will ruins this day for the bride and groom."
Cora glanced at her daughter. "Not before I give them my gift."
"We don't want it," the bride said, a low rumble escaping her throat as a light glow engulfed her hand.
"But I will still give it. You will have this happiness, but it will be your last. Soon, very soon, this land, your kingdom," she looked to the king and queen, "and your inheritance", she moved her eyes to the princess, "will be no more. And there is nothing you can do to stop it," Cora proclaimed. "I curse you."
"You forgot something, dearie," another voice chimed in. It was high pitched, with a giggle capping it. "Any curse can be broken."
The groom looked around quickly. He had heard that voice before, but not in centuries. How could that be? How could he still be alive. How could he have found me? Then his eyes fell upon the speaker. As he had been surmised, the man, if you could call him that, hadn't changed in three centuries. He looked back to his friend, seeing his own shocked expression. It seems he didn't know either.
"Even if you were the writer?" Cora asked, turning to the latest uninvited guest. At least, that's what she assumed him to be. Cora knew the history between the imp and the groom. The other made no reply, only giggling. Cora raised an eyebrow. "No matter. This is far from over." Then she faced her daughter once more. "Choose your side wisely, my darling." With that, she was gone in a puff of smoke.
There was a long moment of quiet before King David turned his attention to the newest arrival. "You can defeat this curse that is to come? You can save our kingdom?"
The other was about to respond when the groom cut it loudly. "There's always a price, isn't that right? Well, it's a price I will not pay."
"But if it can save us-" Queen Snow questioned.
"His prices are too high to take the risk, Your Majesty. Believe me, I know better than anyone," came the answer, as the groom stared across the cathedral. He began an approach to the visitor, his friend behind him, watching to see if an attack was forthcoming
"And how do you know that?" King David asked. He glanced between the two as they came face to face. He saw the almost hateful stare darkening the groom's face, but the other's look was softer, almost yearning, for what, David did not know.
The groom responded. "Because I have been paid it before. I lost everything to his being...my home, my childhood...my father."
"Who is he?" his new wife asked, tugging at his arm to get him to turn to her. She had followed him, her own handmaiden following her, guarding her as she swore she always would.
The groom glanced back, seeing the guards standing, ready for orders. "Take him to the dungeon," he ordered. They were obeyed, for he was the Captain of the Guards and he knew no one would countermand them, and that the king and queen would believe it to be for their safety. The guards looked up and saw the king nod, and the other was taken away. The Captain was surprised he went willingly, and it made him doubly suspicious.
With the commotion over, the people began to disperse. The Captain captured his wife's face again and kissed her deeply. It was met with enthusiasm, and then she pulled back. "Who was that...demon?" she asked her husband again.
The eyes of King David, Queen Snow, Queen Regina and her lover, Chancellor Robin of Lockesly, Admiral Killian Jones and the young sorceress Lilith fell upon him again. Sir Balfire, Captain of the Guard, took a deep breath and, as he looked into the eyes of his wife, Princess Emma, answered at last. "He is the Dark One...and he is my father."
She looked down at him as he slept peacefully. It was hard to believe that nearly ten years had passed. She ached for him, knowing what all the prophecies said was coming. It was her fervent hope that they had all been wrong. It was too much to ask of a child. But in her heart, she knew it was all true. Her son was a special boy, unusually precocious for his age. He always had been, even as a baby. It was as if he had been touched by…
"Magic," her husband had said. "It really is magic how you can get him to sleep."
"Well, I am the product of true love. I am do possess some as it is, right?" she whispered as she moved to the edge the room as they both watched their son's chest rise and fall.
"That is what they said back home. You were blessed with the strongest magic. And you have exhibited it from time to time, back home. But here?" he replied. Then he caught the shadow in his wife's eyes. "You're afraid for him, aren't you?"
"Well, aren't you? It's a lot to take in. It's a lot to shoulder him with," the mother replied.
"I have faith he'll be able to manage it, sweetheart." The father followed his wife's gave to the bed. "The final battle is approaching soon."
"And we still don't know where it even is. How are we supposed to fight it if we don't even know where it is?" she asked him, almost begging him for an answer. After all these years, she knew he was more aware of everything that followed them. He had been imbued with it from a young age, a blessing from his father. Now, she looked to him more than ever.
"'A sign will come to you.' That was all that my papa said," he replied.
"Your father has a gift for the vague," she cracked, almost smiling as she did so.
He let out a chuckle at that, remembering his father with affection. It had taken him a long time to get there, but, as his father had predicted, he had made it. "Well, when you're a Seer, that's par for the course."
She saw the ghost lurking behind his eyes. "You miss him." It wasn't a question.
"Is mind reading one of your gifts as well?" When she continued to look at him, waiting for his answer, he replied. "I never thought I would, but since the day we left." He caught himself, reconsidering his response. "Since the day Henry was born, I have missed him so much."
They had occurred on the same day, his son's birth and their escape to the Land Without Magic. His father had been unable to give his son, now a father himself, much advise. But there was one thing he had said, after his wife and newborn son had already made their escape. "Do whatever you must to protect your family. Do not let fear or cowardice stand in your way." His father looked downcast as he continued. "That was my mistake. I beg of you, don't follow my example. Be a better man than I."
Baelfire had taken his father in his arms, the first time since Rumplestiltskin had taken on the Dark Curse, and embraced him as they both cried. Then he looked through the portal and followed Emma and Henry to a strange new land, one that they would be safe in until they were needed.
Baelfire, now called Neal, took his wife in his arms and she laid her head on his shoulder. "We will be brave and we will be strong. For Henry, for our families, for all of us," he vowed as they faced the future as a family.
