Recap time! David notices Regina yelling at Emma, and attempts to comfort her.

In the fairytale world, Shepherd David arrives at the castle and sees a mysterious woman exiting the castle, who mutters the word, "Impossible".

I don't own OUAT, but I do own Azalea Lockes!

Chapter 3

Rumplestiltskin

Rumple hadn't seen Regina for a few days, and that worried the hell out of him. The Queen was cunning when she needed to be, so whatever she was planning wouldn't be pretty. The loss of true love always drove people to their worst selves. He would know. He thought he'd lost Belle for almost 30 years. He snuggled in closer to her on their bed. Their wedding night was as blissfully romantic as he could ever have hoped. Now, with four days of being married under their belt, they were getting comfortable with each other. They were starting to form routine.

Rumple found that to be a good thing.

The two lived peacefully under one roof, just enjoying each other's company. Belle began to stir, and Rumple was just about to tell her he loved her, when there was a knock at the door.

Rumple knew that whatever desperate urchin needed him could wait until he'd at least said a proper 'I love you' to his wife, but her eyes flew open and she smiled. "Get the door."

He moved a few strands of hair off her face. "I love you." There. He'd done it.

They kissed each other and he got up from the bed, pulled on his robe and made his way downstairs.

The morning light streamed through the kitchen windows, and he stood in the doorway letting his eyes adjust. The morning was never a good time before Belle came back into his life. There had been either a promise of a wife who no longer loved him, or no wife at all. Not even a friend to grace his life. Now mornings were full of potential.

And of course, when he opened the door, it was someone he'd never imagined to see.

"Azalea?"

She blinked. "Good to see you too…I guess."

Rumple just stared at the girl. She was a sight for sore eyes. He hadn't seen her in years, even without the curse, and her presence in Storybrooke was a bit of a shock. Why hadn't he seen her for 30 years?

"What are you doing here?" She looked him up and down before smiling. "I have a favor to ask."

Rumple rolled his eyes and invited her in. She smiled and stepped over the threshold gratefully. He directed her toward the kitchen, where she sat at the island. He meandered up to the fridge and opened it. "Want some juice?" he said, far too casually.

Azalea shook her head. "You look different without the, uh…green."

He chuckled as he poured himself a glass. He put a second one in front of her. "Oh, I said no to the juice."

Rumple replaced the bottle to the fridge. "You were being polite."

She looked at him uneasily for a second. Then she smiled widely and gulped down half the glass. He grabbed his own and took a small sip.

"So what favor are you asking for?" He honestly wanted to know what on earth could merit her seeking him out. He assumed she hated him.

Unless…

"I want you to reverse it."

Rumple stopped mid-sip and set his glass down. He swallowed, and looked straight at her. He knew this day would come.

There was no way he would do that. It was too dangerous.

"Sorry, dearie. No refunds." He began to pull out eggs to make breakfast for Belle.

"But I didn't pay for it in the first place."

Rumple sighed, but continued on with what he was doing. Azalea was no threat to him, and she wouldn't kill him. He had no reason to do otherwise.

"Well, even if I did reverse it, I don't do things for free."

She laughed and finished off the juice sitting in front of her. A little dribbled down her chin, and she wiped her sleeve across it.

"You have before."

Rumple eyed the girl warily. She was smart, but he wouldn't let her win. Not this time.

Rumple was seated in an old tavern near the heart of the forest. The center was where all of the poorer people lived. No one would question him-they had their own problems to run from. His eyes scanned the dimly lit room before his vision was blocked by a man in tattered clothing.

"You're him then?" he said. His eyes were full of fear and awe and an unmistakable pain. Rumple grimaced. "A-to who are you referring to?"

The man stared at him. Rumple waited impatiently for the response. "The…the Dark One."

The Dark One himself giggled, and stood up. "At your service." he said bowing.

"Fred." He jutted his hand out to shake. Rumple took it and gave it a curt grip before sitting back down, Fred following suit.

"So…Fred…whatever do you need from the Dark One?" He was playing with his food-bad habit, but too hard to kick.

Fred stuttered a bit before finally uttering words. "I want to ask you to do something. I'm willing to pay any price."

This perked Rumple's ears, and he leaned forward. "Any price? I'll hold you to that!" Rumple stuck a pointy finger out and onto the man's shoulder. Fred managed to nod.

"Alrighty, dearie, what is it you need from me?"

Fred sighed, and rubbed his hair. The man was older, with grey hair on the sides of his head. His mouth was tight and his hands were calloused. This man knew work, and he knew life. He was also utterly normal.

"It's my daughter. She's a bit…slow."

And that's when Rumple realized that this man wasn't just a regular Dark One customer-this man was fate. Assuming this was the slow girl he thought it was, and this man wanted to do what he thought he did, his life was about to get extremely better.

"I need her to change…for my sake and for our porridge's sake."

Rumple shushed the man and smiled. "Not to worry. Rumplestiltskin is on the case. You want her at everyone else's pace?" Fred nodded, resigned. "It is done."

Rumple started to get up, and Fred stopped him. "What is your price?"

Rumple knew that this was important for more than just himself. So he decided to be kind.

"Consider this one on the house."