The hospital doors were thrown open as Doc, in Eric's body, wheeled in Whale, who was clutching Snow's stomach as the contractions wracked his body. Jefferson ran behind him, followed by Snow and Charming. Doc had never delivered a baby in this realm, so he allowed the nurses to show him the equipment used in this world.
They reached the bed and Jefferson helped Whale up and laid him down as Doc took off his clothes and handed him a gown. Jefferson held his hand as Whale cried out in pain. He flashed back to the day that Grace was born. It was one of the happiest days of his life, but he never thought he would go through it again, especially under such unusual circumstances. Whale was in agony, finally understanding why women asked for drugs when giving birth.
Snow and Charming watched on the other side of the glass with conflicting emotions. On one hand, they were thrilled that they were about to finally meet their son. On the other hand, they were freaked out of their minds. For Snow, the image of watching herself give birth was one of the strangest things she had ever experienced.
Doc and the nurses prepared Whale for the birth and Doc was sitting between his legs. The nurse handed Jefferson a bowl of ice chips that he fed to his boyfriend. Whale was starting to sweat as the contractions caused an all-time high of pain.
"Push," Doc said. Whale wanted to snap at him, but he knew that there was no use trying to fight. He gave a push and cried out in pain, unleashing a string of curse words. Jefferson held his hand and whispered words of encouragement. Whale pushed again, gripping Jefferson's hand. A few more minutes passed and Jefferson was worried that his hand would break from the pressure.
Whale pushed several more times and Doc called out, "Almost there!" Whale gave a final push and the sound of the baby's cry filled the room. Snow and Charming released the breaths they didn't know they were holding.
Jefferson kissed the top of Victor's head. Doc checked the baby's vital signs as Snow and Charming rushed over. A nurse handed Charming a pair of scissors to cut the cord. A snap and Doc cleaned the baby off before handing him to Snow. "He's healthy," Doc told her.
Snow and Charming smiled adoringly at the son they had created even if they hadn't been the ones to bring him into the world. "Hello Lancelot," Snow cooed as the boy smiled up at her, "I love you already."
"Welcome to the family," Charming said, "I can't wait for you to meet your sister and nephew. Doc took the baby back to the nursery and the happy couple looked at each other. "I love you," said Charming.
"I love you too," Snow replied. She leaned in to kiss her husband, but pulled away giggling. "Sorry, I can't kiss you when you look like Regina."
Charming laughed, "I'd rather not kiss Whale…though we should probably get him a gift basket." Snow laughed as the two settled on a hug, pulling each other close.
Snow glanced over at Whale and Jefferson who were talking as Whale was trying to catch his breath. "This is one of the weirdest experiences I've ever had," said Snow, "And we come from a world with magic." Charming nodded in agreement as the two walked over to the nursery to see Lancelot.
Meanwhile, Whale was not in as great of a mood. "Of all the bodies I could have swapped with, I had to get the woman who was nine months pregnant. At least you got the hot waitress. I'm going to kill that fairy." Whale noticed that Jefferson was laughing. "Is this funny to you?"
"Yes," Jefferson admitted. When he saw Whale's scowl, he added, "How about I take care of you for the next week. You deserve it after what you had to go through."
Whale smiled, "That sounds perfect."
Emma, Regina, and Blue followed Neal into the scene of the crime. The vial still laid smashed on the ground, untouched from the night before. Regina waved her hand over the mess and the pieces of glass came together to reassemble the vial.
"Did your father keep records of the items in the shop?" Emma turned to Neal, hoping that the answer to the curse would be quick and easy.
Neal went to a cabinet in the back and pulled out an old and dusty book. "I think this is it."
Blue took the book from him and placed it on the table. She waved her hand and the book magically flipped open to a page. Blue glanced at the page written in an old magical language. Regina and Emma looked over her shoulder. Emma scowled at the page, "What does it say?"
"It has the recipe for the curse," Blue replied. She traced her finger on the page, "and here is the reverse spell."
"Good, we can fix this quickly right?" Emma asked.
"The spell takes an evening to take effect," Regina told her and Emma's face fell. "I think I have a few ingredients in my vault. Some of these we can find in the woods. We can send the wolf to find them. Though we will have trouble with the last ingredient."
"What is it?" Emma asked.
"The teardrop of the person who cast the curse," Regina replied.
"Nova cries at the drop of a hat," Emma said, "It should be easy."
"It would be, if Nova was in her own body," Blue told her, "We need the drop from the original body, and Mulan doesn't cry as easily."
"She does if Aurora's in danger," Emma said, remembering their adventure in the Enchanted Forest, "But we need to find another way. Maybe Aurora can help."
"I'll work on the spell," Blue said, "Regina, you and Ruby get the ingredients and Emma will get the tear."
"Sounds like a plan," Regina replied.
Emma looked at the other two, looking forward to getting back to her own body. "Let's do this," she said, as the three went their separate ways.
