Every direction they looked, there was a flurry of white snow acting like a thick curtain between them and the rest of the open space. It clung to their clothes, their hair and skin and left a chill that reached through to their bones, causing them to stumble and shiver with stiff joints and tense muscles almost immediately, even when temporarily standing still. At first glance they couldn't see anything but the snow slapping against their faces and eyes, causing them to cringe and blink, before Henry began a desperate charge forwards, wrapping his arms around himself and calling out for his wife and daughter. After all, where else could the three of them be but with his family, trapped in the snow globe WishRumplestiltskin had created for them.

"ELLA!" Henry shouted over the rushing sounds of the blizzards attempt to drown him out. "LUCY!"

"Where the bloody hell are they?!" Killian called, his teeth chattering in between each word, his jaw and tongue fighting to work against the bitter cold.

"Wait…" Henry shouted suddenly, pausing and squinting ahead. "I think I see something!"

Without waiting for the other men to look at whatever it was he could see, Henry began charging through the thick snow at his feet and towards the shape in the distance. It was dark, making the shape stand out even while the frozen water continued to rain down atop of it and as he and the others drew closer, Henry felt his excitement growing along with the shape until the sight gradually cleared enough for all of them. It wasn't long before Killian and Rumple – who had originally followed more from desperation than belief that there was actually anything there – also saw what Henry did.

It was a small cabin like house; dark brown wooden structure and was smaller than they originally thought, like it might only have one or two rooms hidden within its snow covered walls. There was no light coming from the building, but despite that, Henry knew his family must have taken shelter inside, while Killian and Rumple just knew that they could hide away from the worst of the storm and be safe from the intense and chill that was gradually working on sending them all into an eternal sleep. Though none of them knew what they would do once they were safely inside and reunited with one another, they knew that least they would survive long enough to try and figure it out.

Unknown to the others, Rumple was constantly attempting to use his powers to aid them the whole way to the cabin. At first, he had tried magicking them to the cabin in an instant puff of smoke, but when that failed he tried clearing the way at their feet instead to make walking easier, and when that also failed, he tried focusing on simply warming himself. But no matter what he tried, nothing worked. He couldn't even make the slightest of snow flakes fall in a different direction, even when he paused to stand still and glare at it for a few short seconds. He might have even hovered for long, had the others not finally noticed his hesitation.

"Weaver!" Killian shouted, glancing over his shoulder even as Henry ignored them and rushed on ahead. "What's the matter?!"

Rumple shook his head in response. He couldn't explain it, not now at least. He was too frozen to think clearly, his lips turning blue and his feet had passed the point of being numb, making each step a nasty risk as if he were learning to walk for the first time. When he managed to struggle onward, it took all his energy not to fall over, and even then he swayed dangerously from one side to the other, like he was a drunk fool out for a night of bingeing, staggering as much as Henry and Killian did ahead of him.

And then, by some miracle they made it. The house was within spitting distance. They all picked up speed at the promise of the warmth from the strong building ahead and rushed the last few steps inside, huddling together as they reached the door and barging in without hesitation. They were greeted with an immediate wave of dull heat that was only slightly warmer than the cold air outside, but still that, and the lack of snow on their faces, was enough that it almost made them collapse to the floor with relief.

However, rather than doing anything like that, they forced themselves to stay upright. They all knew if any of them actually dropped down, there was no guarantee they would be able to get back up again. So instead they just slammed their feet on the floorboards, shaking their shoulders and brushing the last few clinging pieces of snow from their heads and faces as best as their number fingers would let them, doing whatever they could think of warm themselves further.

"Daddy!"

"Henry!"

A pair of voices chimed after one another, almost as soon as they entered the building.

Without hesitating Henry stepped forward and greeted his wife and daughter just as they threw themselves against him, ignoring how icy cold he felt – not that they were doing much better. Before Henry and the others had come in, the two of them had been doing what they could to give some warm life to the cold dark fireplace by the wall. But despite their best and constant effort, they couldn't get so much as a spark from the splintered pieces they had managed to gather together.

For a moment the three of them held onto each other, clinging as Weaver and Rogers hovered by the closed doorway, giving them their moment together. Lucy was pinned between her mother and father, feeling like it was the happiest place on earth despite everything else that had happened to them and was extremely disappointed when they pulled away slightly so Henry could press his forehead against Jacinda's, shutting his eyes and enjoying this moment as much as they did, all the while he was conscious of the fact that his daughter's cheeks felt almost as cold as he did.

"I knew you'd save us!" Lucy said, looking proudly up at him.

Henry felt a pang of guilt, knowing he hadn't saved them at all. In fact, he'd all but doomed them by getting the author's pen for WishRumple and WishHenry to use against anyone they pleased. Yet here Lucy was, gazing up at him with those same adoring eyes that made him feel like he'd let everyone down all over again.

"Yeah, uh," Henry said, rubbing Jacinda's shoulders, unwilling to admit the truth. He needed them both to stay hopeful right now. Things were not over yet. "Let's… Let's get you warm first, okay? Let's see if we can't find some blankets or something…" He trailed off, guiding them towards one of the only other rooms the cabin held for them.

Rumple let out a slight quiet groan, still wrapping his arms tightly around himself and willing his magic to warm him through. But still nothing happened. And the forced concentration he used was beginning to hurt as much as when he had broken his own ankle to escape the ogre wars. He really wasn't used to feeling cold at all anymore, or the bitter pain on his skin where the icy layers momentarily refused to be brushed aside or thaw.

He let out a sharp breath, catching the attention of Killian still waiting by his side. "I don't understand." He frowned at him. "Why are you cold? The Dark One doesn't get cold." He should know, he spent centuries trying to find a weakness for the other man, only to fall short each time before he had finally set his revenge aside in order to raise Alice.

"I don't know…" Rumple groaned and he truly didn't. He didn't understand how any of this was possible. His magic was back now, his abilities returned when the curse was broken. Yet now… He felt almost mortal, or at least as close as he could seemingly get.

"I do."

They looked up to find Henry hovering in the doorway, looking back at them with the same guilty expression he wore when they found him with WishHenry and the pen. "I…" He hesitated, shaking his head. "I'm sorry I… Before you guys got back… Rumplestiltskin already used the pen for something."

"And what was that?" Rumple demanded.

Henry swallowed, looking down at his feet and then to the side at the floor, then everywhere he could but at his grandfather. "To… Make it so you could feel pain. Pain but not die. And to take away your magic."

"Can he do that?" Killian frowned. "Won't taking his magic also take his own?"

"Not if he makes it temporary." Henry paused, finally looking his grandfather in the eye. "I am so sorry."

"It's not your fault, Henry." Killian said.

"No. It is. I'm sorry." Henry said, one last time before he swallowed back whatever he was going to say next, turning and rushing from the room, back to his wife and daughters side.

After Henry departed, Rumple turned slightly towards the window – though it was pointless since the snow storm was still coming down too heavily for him to see anything outside the ice covered glass – and hugged himself tightly, no longer just for warmth. The weight of what WishHenry did with the pen was now fully pushing down on him. Not only would he never find his way back to Belle, but now he could suffer as much as anyone else along the way. And his way was never ending. While others may suffer before death, he would never get a chance at that sweet release. There was no end for him now. Only suffering. A toy for WishRumple to play with whenever he felt in the mood for it.

"I can't stop him." Rumple mumbled, mostly talking to himself. In fact he forgot anyone else was in the room until the pirate spoke up and reminded him.

"From doing what?" He asked.

"Well that's the question." Rumple noted grimly. "You see, he's me. But with the darkness unchecked by the love of Belle, he will use this new power to hurt anyone he can. And drag us all into the darkness where he wallows."

"Seems like wallowing is something you have in common." Killian growled, turning and stepping away, trying to walk out some of his frustration in the cramped space.

"Excuse me?" Rumple frowned, squinting slightly at the seemingly uncalled venom from his once cursed partner.

"I'm sorry that you can't be with Belle." Killian said, rounding back on him sharply. "But you're not the only one who's suffered loss. I may never fix my heart- I may never be together with Alice again. But I'm not giving up."

With that he turned away, glancing around the room in search of something that might give him some kind of inspiration as to what to do next, but there was almost nothing else in there with them. In the end, he let out a frustrated growl and stormed from the room, pushing back out into the snow storm without hesitation against the harsh winds pushing him back. Killian didn't bother to glance back, letting the door swing shut behind him and leaving Rumple to stare to the spot he had once been shivering on.

Rumple was gawping after the other man in shock. Even after everything, he was still fighting, but then would Rumple have been any different if he still had a touch of hope left in him? He spent centuries finding and training Regina to cast the Dark curse in order to be reunited with Bae, and went to extraordinary lengths to find his way back to Belle every time they were separated.

And now he was… What? Going to just give up? Sulk for eternity? Just stand to the side and whine while his evil half tore apart the lives of everyone around him? And it wasn't as if he didn't care about any of them. Henry was still his grandson who had already let down one time too many, and he wouldn't be fooling anyone if he said Alice meant nothing to him. If he just gave up now, then their misery was as assured as his own. Rumplestiltskin, and even the early years of Mr Gold, could probably have done that, but Weaver… No. He couldn't do that to Henry, Alice, Robin, Lucy… To everyone.

Taking a breath, he glanced towards the backroom. He couldn't see Henry or his family, but he imagined them curled up together in a corner, wrapped together in a single blanket they had managed to find, just trying to make it through long enough to get out of here alive and plan their next move. But they wouldn't get away just by hoping for it, despite what some people back in Storybrooke might believe. They needed to act if they wanted to escape and stop WishRumple from causing taking away any other happy endings than he already had.

With those thoughts in mind, he made a choice. Whether it was a good one or a bad one didn't seem to matter anymore. At least he was doing something.

So Rumple hunched his shoulders slightly, holding the coat closed with one hand to keep in what little warmth he had left while the other pulled out his dagger from where he had it tucked into his belt by his hip. It was no longer any interest of WishRumple now that the Guardian threat had been dealt with. It probably wouldn't do much, but just holding it in his grip gave him the extra boost of comfort and courage he needed to push out into the snow after Killian.

After all, if any of them were going to die today, then they might as well keep fight until the cold and bitter end.

Pun most certainly not intended.

To Be Continued...

So, again, apart from adding a few minor details to the story there was only really one thing I changed in this scene and that was what WishRumple did to OriginalRumple. Though I did also fill in some blanks, such as explaining WHEN he did it.

1. I know Rumple's death still wouldn't lead him to Belle since he's still cursed, but I felt making him mortal gave hope that he might still find his happy ending somehow. All in all it just seemed pointless as to why WishRumple would do that. I mean why risk it when Rumple was just as miserable being forced to live an eternity alone anyway? Also, taking away his magic confused me because again, it's made clear there is some connection between their Dark One magic so I changed it to a temporary taking instead.

2. I know the series does a lot of telling rather than showing but at least the way I wrote it, we had Henry explain exactly when WishRumple did this. Like, having Rumple say "my wish self did this" was so annoying because I was just sitting there, shouting at the screen "when the hell did he do that?!" so yeah, just a lil added detail I felt wouldn't have taken them very long to include if they hadn't been half assing the finale as much as they were.
(3.? Not to mention having Henry actually apologise to his grandfather. Like, it bugged me how he officially apologised to Killian and Regina but not Rumple in the last episode. Call me bitter but Rumple was screwed the most in that moment.)