+ + + + + Three O'Clock

It was three o'clock. Regina had dropped off to sleep waiting for Gold. As he had requested, she was wearing a white lace and silk gown. It looked like something a bride would wear for her new husband.

His voice startled her into wakefulness. "You look beautiful, my dear," Gold said from what had become his chair in her bedroom.

"I was afraid you had changed your mind," she said a tad sulkily.

"Of course not. But I had to wait until my new wife was sound asleep. Let me see you. Come here and stand before me." He ordered her around like he had so long ago when she was just his 'girl,' one struggling to learn magic from him. It was good to remind her of what had once been her place with him.

She hesitated a moment, resisting being ordered around like a scullery maid, but then, relenting, complied with his request and stood before him.

Gold twirled his finger, "Turn around, slowly."

She complied again, turning around slowly so that he could see the total picture.

"Lovely, my dear. You are more beautiful now than when you were sixteen."

"When you decided I was old enough to rape."

"We had a bargain, dear. There was an exchange of services. And, as I recall, you were quite willing to spread your legs for me."

"Well, I was a silly, young girl who didn't know what she was doing."

"You aren't a silly girl now, Regina. You are a smart woman who knows exactly what she's doing."

"I am, indeed," Regina came closer to him and knelt before him. "You have always been the most interesting man I've ever known. Brilliant, manipulative, arrogant, irritating, but also enigmatic, enticing and so attractive." She began to caress his thighs.

Gold caught her hands. "Regina, you can tell that I'm interested, my dear, very interested." He put one of her hands onto his erection. "My concern is this. I'm recently married and even though the marriage is mostly for show, I still don't want you running back to my wife to tell her that I've been with you. Can I trust you to be discrete?"

"Oh darling, of course I'm going to tell Emma. You know me too well to believe I'd do anything else. You'll have to use one of your other spells to keep me quiet."

He smiled down at her, "Ah yes, the truth spell. Still working, I see. I will have to find another spell to keep you quiet about this."

Gold sat back and allowed Regina to entertain him with her hands, her lips and tongue. Her talents had certainly improved with time. She was no longer the little chit he had taken on so long ago. He told himself that this wasn't quite cheating, not quite like having sex.

Nor was the follow-up time he spent with Regina laid out on bed and his hands between her thighs. He was hoping that Emma would hurry up. He had only about two more options before he would run out of things to do that weren't exactly sex.

+ + + + + The Price of Magic

Emma was frantic. She ran down into the cold, dark cavern, clutching The Red Feather.

"Help me, help me," she called to the creature. "Regina thinks she is more powerful than Gold and she is trying to seduce him and is going to try to take his heart!" she blurted out.

"My, my, Princess. One would think you had feelings for Gold," the creature slowly emerged from the shadows.

"Please, please, what do I have to do? I'm supposed to destroy The Red Feather. What do I have to do?"

"You trust Gold? You trust me?" the creature asked.

"Yes, yes. What do I do?"

"Let me out?"

Emma stamped her foot furious at the creature. "No! Tell me! How do I destroy The Feather, imp?"

He slowly smiled at her. "Come here, princess." He gestured with his hand for her to come to him.

She complied, shaking with nervousness.

"I think you care a lot about Gold. Have you told him?" The creature had come right up next to the bars and was grinning at her.

"We don't have time for this! How do I destroy The Feather?"

"Have you told him?"

"How do I. . .sort of. . . I told him I liked him some."

The creature shook his head. "You liked him some. Oh, princess, that will never break the spell." He reached out and stroked her face. "How do you really feel about Gold, princess? Tell me how you really feel."

Emma dropped her eyes. "Do we have to, right now?"

"Yes princess. This is the price of the magic. If you want this to work, you have to tell me how you really feel about Gold."

Emma hesitated and swallowed. "I think I'm falling in love with him."

"You think?"

"I've never felt this way about anyone. I don't know," she said honestly. So many walls were still wrapped around her.

The creature held her in his gaze for an interminable period. "That's enough, princess. That's enough. We have your trust. We are beginning to have your love."

He turned away from her and continued, "Take The Feather in your hands."

She complied.

"Put your fingers on the center of The Feather and, this is very important, think about your feelings about Gold, your love, your trust for him."

Emma closed her eyes, holding The Feather as she had been told to.

"Now snap it. Break it into two."

"That's it?" she asked.

"It's the feelings, the thoughts that are hard, princess. Do as you're told."

Emma did as she was told. But nothing happened. She thought harder about her feelings. And as she thought harder, more deeply, she could begin to feel The Feather cracking until finally it snapped. Wind flew out of broken ends, swirling around her, swirling into the creature. He stood still with his arms outstretched, absorbing the energy as it flowed back into him.

"Good job, Emma. Brave Emma." He lowered his arms. "Give me a kiss," he ordered her.

Without thinking, she leaned in and touched her lips to his. She could feel his hands reach through the bars as they wrapped around her waist. The kiss deepened and her head fell back as she gave herself to his passion. "Let me out, Emma, let me out," he whispered.

She had a hard time clearing her head, a hard time breathing, a hard time standing up. She slowly pulled away from the creature. "I can't. Not yet."

"Guess my name, then," he said abruptly.

"I don't know. Gold uses an 'R.' for his first name. Does your name start with 'R'?"

"Guess, princess."

+ + + + + Broken

Emma woke up abruptly. She was alone in the bedroom. She turned on the light and, sure enough, the red pen was broken into two pieces. So she had broken the spell, hadn't she? Had she returned Gold's power? Had she done it in time?"

+ + + + + The Challenge

Gold was in the process of using his magic to bring Regina to yet another peak. He had, so far, avoided actual sex with her, but was exhausting his extensive repertoire. Abruptly, he felt the on-slaught, the rush of power, like a tornadic wind coming into him. Had Regina felt anything? Apparently not, as she was well in the throes of responding to his attentions.

She was gasping and clutching at the sheets. "When are you going to quite teasing me and come into me? Please, now, please."

Gold pulled back. "Oh Regina, I keep thinking about my pregnant wife. I'm having such guilt feelings."

She was still trying to get her breath. "What? Did I just hear you right? You're backing out on me?"

"I just don't feel this is the right thing to do."

"I don't give a damn, Gold. I'm expecting you to stay here, with me, tonight. I'm expecting you to give me your best."

He picked his pants up from the floor and began to put them on. "I'm sorry, dearie, it sounds like you are going to be disappointed." He added, pointedly, "My heart just isn't in this."

She was livid, drawing herself up on the bed, belatedly pulling the sheet up to cover herself "Your heart, you say. Maybe I can do something about that." She quickly moved from the bed and started to reach for him, but he batted her hand away.

"Regina, we've had this conversation before. I'm not in the mood to have it again."

"Do you think you just say 'please' and walk out of here. I will come after you. I will take you down."

"So you think you are ready? You think you can do this?"

"You are slipping, old man. Your little truth spell didn't last two weeks. You have spent your magic on your little slut bride and you don't have enough to go around. Spreading yourself too thin, Rumple, trying to do too many things and not doing any of them very well." Regina had wrapped the sheet around herself, toga-fashion, and was managing to look like an ancient queen. Her eyes were bright with anger and she looked very, very dangerous.

Gold finished putting on his socks and shoes and then put on and tucked in his shirt. He turned, almost wearily, to Regina. He sighed, "Then let's do it dearie. You have a choice of weapons."

"Water," she spit at him.

He nodded. "Excellent, not your strongest suit, but the element I'm likely to have the most problems with. But you knew that already, didn't you?" he smiled thinly at her. "What say you, shall we go to a clearer field? This room's alittle tight for combat."

"The Toll Bridge," she answered.

Gold held up one arm and was about to snap his fingers. He stopped and asked, "Oh, do I need to give you a lift?"

"I can manage, Hobblefoot," she told him.

And they both vanished from the bedroom and reappear on the Bridge. Regina had shed the sheet and had reattired herself back into the filmy, lacey white nightgown.

+ + + + + The Duel

Regina did not wait a moment. A tremendous wall of water immediately came at him, but Gold quickly and simply held up his cane. From out the top came what appeared to be a large luminous umbrella that shielded him from the intense wash. Some of the spray got on him, but he stood steady and firm. The wall of water should have washed him off the bridge; it would have taken a car away, but he stood firm.

"Is that first shot your best?" he asked disparagingly.

Regina did not answer, this time she flung out her hands and water lashed out at him in the form of three whips, wrapping themselves around him like ropes of water, typing his arms to his body, beginning to squeeze.

"This is an interesting technique, Regina. Like giant water snakes." His voice was slow and calm, very self-assured. "But for this to work, I have to actually believe these are snakes. If I believe it is just water, which it is, well, water just flows away. It's just water."

And the whips dissolved, soaking into his suit and puddling around his feet.

"One more shot, dearie. I'm getting bored."

Furious, Regina again waved her hands and another wave of water shot up and then came down on his head, freezing into a cage around him

"This is interesting," he remarked, grasping some of the ice bars in his hands. "This is very effective as a cage. Cold, hard, rigid." He stood still a moment, allowing Regina to begin to think that she had experienced a measure of success, finally containing him. "But you know, ice is so fragile and just a quick tap," he used his cane and rapped the bars. The ice shattered into tiny shards, splintering around his feet.

"I believe by anyone's dueling rules that it is now my turn, dearie."

Regina stepped back, "Now Rumple, darling. . ." she began.

But he snapped his fingers on one hand. "And I'm done."

Regina stood, stunned. "What did you do? What did you do?"

Gold took a deep breath. "When I first gained magic, I would just do it. But I found that people did not believe I had done anything. I had to learn to gesture," he waved his arms theatrically in the air and twirled his hands and fingers, "or they wouldn't believe. The more dramatic I made things, the more they believed. It was not an easy lesson for someone like myself to learn. I prefer subtly, quiet, simple gestures. Not at all like yourself who are so given to grand gestures, the flamboyant statements, the warnings, the smoke and mirrors."

Regina sounded desperate, "What did you do?" she asked again.

"Take yourself home," he directed.

Regina fluttered and postured. "You took away my ability to transport?"

Gold smiled. "That and a few other things." From the center of his palm, he produced and then held up a dark crystal. "Lovely isn't it? It's a lot like Zurie's, isn't it? I've often wondered if one of the other Dark Ones hadn't accrued powers into her Blue Crystal and then given it to her for a gift. . . or a curse."

Regina had begun to realize what he had done. "You took my powers, all my powers."

"Not quite all of them, dearie, but most of them."

"You can't do this! " She pleaded, terrified.

"I just did," he explained patiently, walking over to her. "As I said, I'm not one for big gestures. Subtle, simple. That's usually my style. Now, you are going to need some help getting back home."

He put his arms around her and she leaned into him. He patted her, comforting her, "If you are very, very good, I may return some of your powers to you. But if you displease me, I could just keep them or. . . " he considered, "I could give them to someone else."

Regina was crying into his shoulder, "Your wife?" she asked through her sobs.

"No, she has plenty of her own powers, or didn't you know that?" he asked her. "Mary Margaret or David, They could use some magic, I'm sure. Perhaps I could split the crystal." He sighed. "Until I decide what to do, I think I'll put this into a ring. It will look nice next to some of my others." He lifted her chin and kissed her softly. "Now ask me nicely and I'll get you home. You look lovely in this nightdress but would likely attract attention if you walked back through town like this."

+ + + + + Emma has a New Idea

Emma was up and waiting for him. She bolted out of bed and hugged him closely.

"Well," he said returning the hug. "This is nice."

"I wasn't sure if I was quick enough, if it would work, if you would be alright."

"You were, it was and I am," he answered. "She didn't back down." He sat on the side of the bed and removed his shoes and socks and began taking off his other clothes. Emma's quick eyes noticed he was wearing a new ring, silver with dark, dark crystal. He continued. "We had a little altercation. Everything is fine. I don't think Regina will be bothering us too much for awhile. Oh, since she is likely to come and tell you, I shall confess all first."

"Did you have sex with her?"

"No, but I came close. She's a very beautiful woman, Emma. We did some preliminary stuff. She did her thing with me. I did some things with my hands and my magic." He was not comfortable confessing this to his wife.

Emma wasn't pleased, and spoke sharply "OK, so you got a blow job and gave her the benefits of your magic fingers."

"Crude, Emma, but essentially correct. I felt the moment when you broke the spell, and I told her I was leaving. She didn't take it well and challenged me. So we dueled. I won."

"Is she ok?

"Do you care? Oh yeah, it's the sheriff-thing again. Yes, she's ok, but if you ask her, she would say she doesn't feel so good."

"What did you do to her?"

"I've borrowed her powers," he held up the ring. "Well, most of it. She still has a little, but she doesn't realize what she still has and what all has been taken. Plus, she still has the power of her office and her contacts."

"What will you do with her power?" Emma was fascinated by the ring.

"I will hold it in case I decide to give it back."

"You would give it back? Why, when would you do such a thing?"

"If I become convinced that she has changed. She has the potential for good, you know." Gold pulled himself into the bed, next to his wife. "You and she are a lot alike. You both had a tough time when you were younger. Regina decided to get back at everybody. You decided that you did not want to treat anyone like you had been treated. Know that her powers are pretty spectacular and there could be time that I might need her help for something. You never know. Even I can't see all possible futures."

Emma sat very quietly.

"You're thinking about something, Emma. What is it?"

"Well," Emma was hesitant. "I've done pretty well as sheriff, haven't I?"

"Yes, my dear. You've done very well."

"And your reputation, while still intact, has softened up a bit. There are an increasing number of rumors about these secret good deeds that you have done. You're becoming abit of an underground hero. You know, people are saying nice things about you, behind your back of course." She added with a little smile.

Gold frowned, "I don't know that I like that. If people like you, they aren't afraid of you anymore and if they aren't afraid, then you don't have so much power over them."

Emma shrugged. "Oh they're still afraid of you, but they are starting to wonder about you. And some are beginning to wonder if you just might be a good guy."

He got up and began to pace. "Oh no! This is all wrong. I don't want people to like me. This is your fault."

Emma was starting to laugh. "Yeah it probably is. A lot of people seem to like me. What would you think if I ran for Mayor?"

He sat back down. He sat silent for a moment. Emma was beginning to worry that he didn't approve. She could never go through with it without his support.

He looked at her and smiled. "I like it and I have a plan for how we can get you elected."

Fin

Folks, I've appreciated all the wonderful comments and support, but I need to put this story to bed, at least, for awhile.

I'm debating doing a sequel, but not sure if there would be any interest (let me know, please).

I have a couple of arcs that could continue from this point. Emma running for mayor – could we possibly expect some dirty tricks? Maybe some exploration as to exactly why Rumple/Gold really, really hates the fairies. How about a friend for Henry? – I really liked sweet, little Paige/Grace (nothing romantic here– at nine, Paige has girl cooties). We also have magical talents beginning to emerge from Emma and, perhaps, Henry. Will Gold relent and restore some of Regina's powers (he doesn't totally dislike her, you know).Then there's the pregnancy to complete, which likely will have some complications (I would think that after two sons, Gold will be quite beside himself with a daughter), and, finally, will Emma guess Rumple's name, will she relent and let him out of his cage in FTL (or just continue to visit him, maybe bring him a cone from time to time?).

Although I have had Emma break one of the curses, we aren't ready (show-wise) to have her move on Rumple's Dagger Curse or Regina's End to All Happiness Curse. I have my own speculations of how these things might resolve (you do too, right?), but I think this is awhile away (let's hope so, shows over if she breaks the curses - we'll have a little show afterwards so all the happy couples can get back together and then it's happily ever after and goodbye). txm