Once Upon a Time does not belong to me. I really need some reviews and constructive criticism. Oh, and a beta-reader. Volunteers?

Chapter 2 -

Robin sat beside David Nolan and Killian Jones, drawing something on the back of a napkin as the Granny looked on. "We can control her with the dagger," Robin pointed out yet again.

"That's my daughter!" David growled. "She doesn't need 'controlling'. She isn't evil. We -" his words halted for a brief second, his eyes darting quickly towards his wife "- we took steps to protect her."

"But she is the Dark One now," Regina stated softly. "She cannot control the darkness inside her. She is now capable of untold atrocities."

"Not if we have the dagger," Robin pointed out again. "Killian can control her with it."

"I don't want to control her!" argued the captain. "I just want her to be safe and - " he faltered "- and just be Emma again."

At that moment, Regina's phone rang, and she excused herself from the 'discussion.' It was becoming circular and unlikely to solve anything at this point.

Regina smiled ruefully to herself as she hung up the phone. Henry had called her to give her an update on Gold's condition. She knew that the boy has stayed at the hospital with Gold, Belle, and Moe last night. Although she still didn't trust Gold, he was Henry's grandfather whether she liked it or not. With a determined step, her heels clicking on the floor, Regina walked towards Mary Margaret.

"Regina, who was on the phone?" Mary Margaret asked softly as she tenderly tucked her son into his carrier. Mary Margaret, who had just finished feeding Neal and changing his diaper, handed him back into the care of Ruby. She, like the rest of them, was bleary eyed from lack of sleep. "What's wrong now?"

"I'm not sure if anything is wrong, yet." Heaving a sigh, she continued. "That was Henry. Gold's awake, and he's confused. He thinks Henry is Neal."

Mary Margaret dropped into a nearby booth. "You mean he doesn't know Henry at all?" Her brow wrinkled with a frown.

Regina shook her head and sat opposite her once upon a time enemy. "Apparently Gold became hysterical, begging 'Bae' to forgive him. Whale had to sedate him." She glanced at the men still sitting at the table in the far corner, and she lowered her voice. "Whale asked Henry to call me. He's afraid that if Gold is overwrought and still has his magic, then he may not be able to control it. He's asked Henry to have me come over to possibly 'contain' him."

Mary Margaret shook her head. "No, if he isn't the Dark One, then he doesn't have magic."

"How can you still be so naïve?" Regina complained. "You don't have to be the Dark One in order to have magic. I have magic, and so did my mother."

"Well, you were rather dark there for a while," retorted Mary Margaret, "and your mother was one nasty - "

"I'd tell you to leave my mother out of this," Regina said with a glar, "but I'm afraid I'll have to agree with you." She shifted in her seat, still ill at ease thinking about her mother. "Some people are born with the predisposition to perform magic. If they find a teacher, they can learn to harness that power. Their attitude and reason for using the power is what determines whether they have Light or Dark magic. Like your daughter."

Sighing deeply, she muttered, "Sorry."

The bell above the door rang wildly as the door was jerked open. "Killian? Captain Jones?" Belle practically ran across into the diner and towards them. "I need your help. Please help me with Rumple." She tugged on his sleeve, begging him to come with her.

The handsome pirate looked haggard and wary. "Belle, I'm not exactly on friendly terms with your pet crocodile, and I'm far too busy trying to find a way to help Emma."

In sheer desperation, she pulled him up out of his seat. "Please, Captain Jones, I know you two aren't exactly friends, but I'm begging you to help. Dr. Whale said we needed someone who knew Rumple before he became the Dark One, someone who can fill us in on his background. He's confused and lost."

"Frankly, my dear, I don't -"

But Regina, who had jumped from her seat when Belle clattered wildly into the shop, cut him off. "Does this have something to do with Gold believing that Henry is Baelfire?"

Belle turned to Regina with a thankful expression. "Yes, Rumple also thought that the nurse was someone called Milah. We aren't sure who she is." Again, she faced Hook with anxious, pleading eyes. "I'm hoping you can help."

Jones closed his sleep-deprived eyes. His whole body trembled for a moment. "Aye, I know Milah." He opened his eyes and heaved a bone-weary sigh. "Knew her. She's dead. Why do you need me? Why do you need to know about the crocodile's past? What's in it for me?"

"Dr. Whale doesn't know how much of his memory Rumple has lost," she told him bluntly, "or how confused he is. As for your price -" She stared around at the people gathered in this room, and her eyes lit on the Kris dagger lying on the table. "The dagger," she informed them, "if anyone knows how to use the dagger correctly -" she emphasized the word " - it would be Rumple. Help me get Rumple's memories back, and he can tell you how to use the dagger without endangering Emma."

Killian Jones never hesitated. "Done. Let's go." He started briskly for the door.

"Wait," Belle called. "We need Regina, too." She turned woeful eyes towards the former Queen.

"I was going anyway," she answered, "for Henry's sake." Turning to Mary Margaret, she added, "You and David should get some rest. We won't be able to solve anything with Emma until we can get Gold to remember."

"But, Emma is our daughter, and -"

David interrupted her. "And we can begin searching for Merlin."

"I can help with that," Robin put in. "My men know Sherwood Forest like the backs of their hands. Surely one of them knows where Camelot is."

"Mr. Gold," the nurse said softly. "You need to eat to build up your strength." She set a tray of food on a side table and wheeled it over him. Then she began to raise the bed.

"Milah?" he asked softly. "I - " He sat up, alarmed. "What? The bed? It's moving!" Then he noticed the needle and IV in his arm. Holding his arm aloft, he asked, "What's this? What did I do? Milah, please, remove this. I, I'm frightened."

His nurse placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Mr. Gold. There's nothing to be afraid of. You're being well taken care of." She smiled gently. "This is a modern hospital. The bed moves so the patient can rest, and this - " she indicated the IV drip - "is an easier way to give you medication."

Looking perplexed and still uncertain, he wet his lips but nodded. "I've been ill?" He frowned and squinted up at her. "You're not Milah."

"No, I'm not Milah. I'm your nurse, and I'm here to take care of you." Again she smiled reassuringly. "Eat up, now, before it gets cold."

The older man swallowed hard. "What have I done to be waited upon by so lovely a woman?" he asked softly. But he wasted no time in removing the covering from the food tray. He remembered far too many days of hunger to allow any food to be wasted.

She laughed aloud at that. "We may not be in the Enchanted Forest any more, but you certainly have an enchanted tongue. And, before you ask, - " she held out her hand palm towards him, forestalling any questions - " - I have no idea how we got here."

At that moment, Henry pushed open the door and stuck his head in the room. "Is he awake yet?"

The nurse grinned at the boy as he entered. "That, he is," she answered. "I'll just go, and leave you two to get reacquainted."

"Bae," Rumplestiltskin called out happily. Joyful tears slid down his cheeks to see the brown eyed boy standing at his bedside. "I knew you'd be here."

"Uh, yeah," Henry stammered, "about that - "

"Here," Rumple told him, "have some of this food. It's really good, much better than my poor cooking. A growing boy needs nourishment."

"I've already eaten," Henry replied. "You finish it."

"Are you sure?" Rumple eyed him skeptically. "The son is always supposed to eat first and eat all he can. That was our rule, remember? Baelfire?"

"I've already eaten. I promise."

Rumple frowned, but nodded. "All right, son." He finished the breakfast quickly. He smiled at the boy for a moment and then frowned. "Bae, what's wrong, son?" he asked softly.

"Yeah, see," Henry groped for words, "my name is Henry."

Rumplestiltskin's frown deepened. "Your mother named you Baelfire, a good name, a strong name. Why have you changed it now to call yourself after a king?"

Henry opened and closed his mouth. He heaved a heavy sigh. "Okay, look, a lot of time has passed since you last saw Baelfire. I'm Henry. Baelfire left the Enchanted Forest and came here, to a land with no magic - "

"Aye, I know this," the older man said sorrowfully. There was silence, and when the quiet had settled, he asked, "Who are you, then, who looks so much like my boy, Bae, but calls himself after a king?"

Henry smiled, then. He knew, without a doubt, that the old man was going to be just fine. That last, yep, that slightly pissed-off tone - that was his Grandpa Gold. "I told you," he quipped. "I'm Henry - your grandson."

Rumplestiltskin's mouth dropped open as astonishment bloomed. "My, my," he stuttered, "did you say you were my grandson? Bae's boy?"

Henry nodded, and Rumplestiltskin crowed with sheer delight. "Come here, and let me look at you." Taking the boy's chin, Rumple tilted it first left, then right, squinting at Henry. "Sweet Stars, but you look like your father. And, tell me, who is your mother? Is she Morraine?"

"No, my mom isn't from the Enchanted Forest." He hesitated, thinking, trying to pick his words carefully. "Well, not exactly. Her parents are from there, and she was born there, but, well, it's kinda confusing and hard to explain."

Rumple's smile wavered but only for a moment. "I see," he said slowly. "Perhaps, then, Henry, you could explain this world to me. A land without magic, you said?"

The boy brightened. "Okay, we live in the town of Storybrooke in the state of Maine," he began.

"Mr. Gold?" The door swung open again, and the nurse reentered, looking at Henry. "How is he doing so far?"

"Grandpa Gold is a little better," Henry answered, "but he's still a little confused about some things."

"I can speak for myself," he chided the lad. "Why do you keep calling me Gold?"

"That's your name here in this land," Henry supplied. "You're Mr. Gold, and you have a pawn shop -

"A what?"

Henry fumbled for a synonym. "A sort of business, where you sell things. I guess you'd call yourself a merchant and a ma - "

"And master of most of the town," the nurse added quickly. "You're a very rich, very important man." Moving towards the bed, she added with a satisfied smile, "And you ate your breakfast. I'll just take that away." As she removed the tray, he stopped her.

"Please, milady, I don't feel comfortable being waited upon. It isn't right, even if I am supposed to be so rich and important."

"It's quite alright. It's my job, and I don't mind looking after you," she told him with a blush. "I'd better let the doctor know you're awake and feeling better," she called behind her as she left.

The door had barely closed behind her when Belle, Hook, and Regina came marching down the hall. The nurse halted them. "I know that look. You're on a mission. Well, it's my mission to help him - " she jerked her head towards the closed door " - get well."

Belle looked hurt. "That's my goal, too. I only want what's best for him."

"Look, he's still confused. He knows Henry is his grandson, and he knows we're in a land without magic. He knows that his name here is Mr. Gold and that he's a merchant. And he isn't calling me Milah anymore."

"Then, he is getting better," Belle pointed out happily.

"Has he shown any signs of using magic?" Regina asked. "Anything?"

"Not that I've seen, but I think you ought to speak to Dr. Whale first before you go in," she insisted.

"I'm not waiting to see my husband," Belle asserted boldly. "Killian and I are going in now, and I don't care what you or anyone else - "

Regina spoke up. "I'll go see Whale. You two go on in, take your time speaking with him, and be careful. If anything, and I mean anything, seems off, you get Henry out of there and call me."