Chapter Thirty-Five – Everyone:
The door flew open, distracting both men. Through the smoke and haze, they could see the silhouette of a woman standing determined in the doorway.
"I couldn't agree more Hook. Allow me to help you get your revenge," Tamara said with a smile, stepping forward into the apartment.
Both men's eyes fixed on the dagger in her hand, all attention on her now.
"Give it to me!" Gold yelled.
"No! Don't let him have it!" Hook countered. Both men were still too shocked to move.
"Oh dear, it seems to me like I have a choice to make. Maybe I'll just choose - neither!" Tamara rushed at Gold, preparing to stab him herself.
"No! I will be the one to kill him!" Hook said, grabbing her around the waist, shaking himself from the shock. He tried to get his hand to the dagger, but Tamara was excellent at keeping it away from both men. She managed to get the dagger to Gold's throat, inches away from plunging it into his neck.
Hook got his arms around her waist and threw her to the ground. "No one will take my revenge away from me!" he said. He reached for the dagger, but before his fingers closed around the handle, a panicked scream came from behind them.
"What happened here?" Emma yelled, jumping up from the burning bed.
"Emma!" Hook said, focusing on the one thing that could distract him from revenge.
"Watch out!" Emma said. Hook turned around in time for Tamara to catch him with a right hook. He staggered for a moment, Emma rushing to his side to steady him.
"I don't know how you got here, but you'll be going straight back," Tamara said. Apart from the dagger, she had produced a gun from somewhere. Emma, Hook, and Gold were all standing several feet away, analyzing the situation. "I'm still willing to make a deal. Make me an offer and I'll give up the dagger."
"Drop the gun and the dagger, Tamara, and I won't be forced to hurt you," Emma said.
"Brave words Sheriff, but I'm the one with the power here. You and your magic - it means nothing."
"Then allow me to show you what magic can do!" Regina said from the doorway. She sent a stream of fire at Tamara as he turned around. Tamara dropped the gun, going flat on the ground, but her grip on the dagger remained firm.
Emma lunged forward, grabbing the gun before Tamara could recover. "Why are you doing all this?" Trusting Tamara had never been one of Emma's top priorities, but she had never expected Neal's fiancée to be so evil.
"You can't honestly say that you would be sad to see Rumplestiltskin gone," Tamara said as she stood. All other actions stopped when Hook grabbed the woman once again. He put his hook into the collar of her shirt, producing a few drops of blood from the contact. Tamara tried to twist away, but that only caused more blood to fall. With his leverage over her, his good hand gripped the dagger and wrenched it out of her grasp. He held her captive while they tried to understand what prompted these actions.
"Why are you doing this? You can't expect us to believe that all you want to do is "save" us from Rumplestiltskin, out of the goodness of your heart?" Regina asked, a fireball sitting threateningly in her hand.
"As much as Neal dislikes him right now, I think the bloom would go off the rose if you killed his father," Emma warned.
"That might be a factor, if I actually cared about Neal," Tamara said coldly.
"What?"
"All she cares about it magic, and power," Gold said.
"Why would you say that?" Emma asked.
"Because she tricked me into believing that the two of us could work together. I was a fool for believing her," Gold said, his tone betraying his former trust in her.
Emma kept the gun trained on Tamara, and she was grateful for Regina's sudden appearance, creating a distinct advantage for them, though how she showed up here so suddenly was a surprise.
"Where's Henry?" Emma asked, noticing her son's absence.
"Ask him." Hook gestured to Gold with the dagger, the threat clear in the action. Emma turned to the shop owner, the gun still held tightly in her hands.
"What did you do?" she asked.
When Gold refused to answer, Tamara supplied the information. "Gold wanted to get rid of Henry. Said the boy would be his undoing, so he did something to him."
Emma's face immediately hardened. She turned to Hook and very evenly and harshly said, "You can take your revenge now." She didn't care about what was happening with Gold and Tamara anymore, instead rushing to kneel next to Henry, Regina joining her quickly.
"With pleasure." Hook release his hold on Tamara and stalked over to Gold, knowing Emma and Regina would back him if the imp tried anything.
The front door swung open again, and everyone's head turned to face Mary Margaret. "What's going on here?"
Emma realized what a crazy scene her mother had stepped into. Her son was unconscious in her arms, Tamara had once again grabbed the gun she had dropped, Hook held a dagger to control the Dark One and wasn't afraid to use his hook either, and Regina had reignited the fireball in surprise at Mary Margaret's sudden entrance.
Hook took advantage of the distraction, and stood poised with the dagger to Gold's chest. "If I understand correctly, whoever holds the dagger controls the Dark One. Not that the control will last very long, just enough to get rid of you."
"No, Hook, you can't!" Mary Margaret cried out, running for the pirate.
"Mary Margaret, Gold did something to Henry!" Emma said.
"It's time to finally be rid of the crocodile!" Hook said, the dagger inching closer to Gold's heart.
"No! Not like this!" Mary Margaret said.
The entire room was tensed to react. Regina still had the fireball floating above her hand, Hook brandished the dagger at Gold, and Tamara's gun moved around wildly at whoever seemed the most threatening to her at the moment.
"Everyone, drop your weapons, now! Before someone gets hurt, we need to figure out exactly what's going on!" Mary Margaret yelled.
No one moved, not wanting to give up any advantage. "Drop them!"
"Mary Margaret, no offense, but I think we're past talking here," Emma said.
"Regina, tie up Gold and Tamara. Hook, drop the dagger. Now!"
With the dagger in his hand, Hook found the one pleasure he was allowed in controlling Gold. "Sit in the chair," he demanded, pointing towards the dining set. With no free will to fight it, he moved without complaint and Regina used her magic to bind him.
Unfortunately, with the gun her hands, Tamara was not as docile at Gold. "Drop the gun Sweetheart," Hook asked, walking towards her threateningly with Rumplestiltskin's dagger.
"Do you really think I'll give up that easily?" she asked with a humorless laugh.
"Of course not," he said. With her attention focused on Hook, Mary Margaret grabbed her from behind and pinned her arms to her sides. The two women struggled against one another for a long moment. The gun went off, causing everyone to duck and look around to see where the wild shot had gone. It was lodged harmlessly in the refridgerator, but it created enough of a distraction for Tamara to break free of Mary Margaret and hold the gun up once again.
"Do you really think you can get the drop on me? For all your claims about magic, not one of you seems to be able to hold me," she taunted.
"Well then – this is for my son!" Regina sent a spell in Tamara's direction that dropped her to the ground, limp and unconscious. Mary Margaret picked up the gun, holding it nervously.
With the threats neutralized, Mary Margaret finally got the response she wanted. Regina used her magic to trap Tamara in a chair in case she woke up. With Gold's immobilization, Hook lowered his weapon, but did not let it go.
"So, you want to talk? Talk about what?" Regina asked.
"Hook, do you mind?" Mary Margaret asked, holding out her hand. He raised his eyebrow. "The dagger."
"Sorry love, not happening." Hook's grip on the weapon tightened.
"Killian, give her the dagger," Emma said. There were a few startled expressions around the room at her use of his given name.
"Know that I still expect my revenge," he said, relinquishing the dagger, eyeing Emma pointedly to remind her of what he was giving up.
"Prepare to – "David yelled as he ran into the apartment with his sword raised and ready. He stopped short when he saw that everything appeared to be under control.
"You can put down your sword David," Mary Margaret said. He obeyed with a wince, causing everyone to notice his bandaged left arm.
"What happened?" Mary Margaret asked.
"Ogre. It's fine," he replied.
"Now that the cavalry's here, I think we deserve some answers about why you sent us all through that portal. And what you did to my son," Regina said, returning to Henry's side with Emma.
"I don't owe you anything, your majesty," Gold replied.
"Oh yes, you do," Mary Margaret said, pressing his dagger against his chest.
"He wanted to get to Henry. He sent you all away to try to get that to happen," Hook said, his eyes shining in anger at his enemy.
"What did you do to him?" David asked, his anger rivaling that of Hook's at seeing his unconscious grandson. His sword was unsheathed and joined the Mary Margaret's dagger at Gold's chest.
"He summoned the wraith. I saw it before I got here. He sucked out Henry's soul," Regina said with tears in her eyes.
"How do we save him?" Emma asked, cradling him closer to her chest.
"There is no way to bring a soul back," Regina said mournfully.
"Actually, there is," David said softly.
"How?" Emma's voice was echoed by Mary Margaret and Regina.
"I went to the Enchanted Forest, and I helped Mulan and Aurora find a way to return Phillip's soul."
"What way is that?" Mary Margaret asked.
David's face fell in remembrance of the process. "We don't have the items we need in this world. Sorry to give you all hope."
"So, there's nothing we can do?" Regina asked.
"There has to be some way," Emma said. She kissed his forehead and cheeks repeatedly, trying to get her magic to work. If she could get rid of an unbeatable shadow, surely she could save her son.
"Not even True Love's Kiss will work here," Regina said.
Mary Margaret dropped the dagger to her side and grabbed hold of David, not able to accept that this was true. She knew how this was supposed to end, and this wasn't it. "What do we need from the Enchanted Forest? Maybe we have something here that will make an acceptable substitute."
"No. One of the key ingredients is magnum berries, and…" David stopped short. He pulled his hands out of his pockets and held up a vial of clear liquid.
"What is that?" Mary Margaret asked through the tears that threatened to fall.
"Water from Lake Nostos. It has the power to return anything that is lost," David said. He unstopped the vial and knelt next to Emma. He poured the water into his grandson's mouth, and they all waited anxiously to see what happened. Two heartbeats later, Henry sat up quickly, his face wide and panicked.
"What happened?" Henry asked.
"Nothing. Everything is fine," Emma said, hugging her son close to her, not caring about anything else right now.
Mary Margaret was just as thrilled, but her attention quickly returned to the dagger in her hand, and pushed it against Gold's neck to emphasize the seriousness of her words. "I made a promise to someone that I wouldn't kill you, and since Henry was restored, I guess I can keep that. But that's the only reason you're still alive right now."
"Mary Margaret, we've given him enough chances. It's time to make him pay for everything he's done to us. I made a promise to Aurora and Mulan that I would defeat him," David said.
"No. There's still a chance for him," Mary Margaret said.
"Mary Margaret, hand me the dagger," Regina said, suddenly remembering something that she had learned in Wonderland.
"What? Why?"
"Because, maybe we can get rid of the Dark One, but let Gold live," Regina said. She focused on what Kanin had said about the vorpal sword and the Jabberwocky being connected. That connection was only a fraction of the tie between the Dark One and the dagger.
"What?"
"The dagger controls the Dark One. It's also the source of his power. If you stab him with the dagger, it kills him, but if he dies by some other means than the dagger, his powers disappear, and the dagger becomes only a knife," Regina explained, remembering watching Rumple's name disappear from the dagger as he died from Hook's poison.
"So?" Emma asked.
"If we destroy the dagger, his power could be destroyed. Then he doesn't have to be punished. The Dark One is the one who's really done damage, not Gold," Henry said.
"Or we could end up destroying the only sure way to kill him," Hook said, reminding them all of the dangers involved in this plan.
Emma came close to Gold so she could inspect his face closely. "What would happen if we destroyed the dagger?"
Gold took a long moment to respond. "The Dark One would be gone forever."
"He's lying," Hook said.
"No, he's not," Emma said. She had come to accept that her superpower was not one hundred percent accurate, but it this case she was absolutely sure.
"So, what? We just destroy the dagger and let him go free? What about everything he's done in the past?" Hook asked.
"Removing his power is quite a punishment if you ask me. He won't be able to hurt anyone again," Regina said.
"Well then, how do we destroy the dagger?" Mary Margaret asked.
"The raging inferno of a bedroom comes to mind," Emma said.
"No. A magical item like that requires magic to destroy it," Regina said.
"Speaking of the bedroom, could we do something about it?" Mary Margaret asked, eyeing the fire nervously. It was still contained just in the bedroom, but it was coming ever closer.
Regina complied and a raincloud appeared on the ceiling, emptying buckets of water and finally extinguishing the flames.
"Do you have any ideas?" David asked Regina.
"There is a destruction spell that could work," she said. Mary Margaret handed the dagger over to her and she held it carefully.
"Please don't let us down Regina," Emma said, holding Henry close. Hook's arm came around to protect them both.
Regina stared at the dagger, causing everyone to take several steps backward. A dark red aura surrounded the dagger. Drops of sweat dripped down Regina's face, and there was a collective breath held in the room. The red light disappeared, and everyone exhaled. Regina's hands were now empty. Attention turned quickly to Gold, seeing his reaction to the destroyed knife.
"Well?" Emma asked.
Gold gave no verbal response, but his face was calm, unlined and peaceful.
"How do we know if it actually worked?" Mary Margaret asked.
"I have an idea," Hook said. He approached Gold with his sword raised.
"Killian, no! Remember what you told me. Does revenge really mean that much to you?" Emma asked. Hook backed off, but did not seem happy about it.
"We should just leave him to his own devices. And know, if he does anything, we will find another way to deal with him. I take it the town line still erases memories?" Mary Margaret said.
"What do we do with her?" Emma asked, gesturing to Tamara.
"She conspired with Gold, knew about his plans for Henry, and tried to destroy magic. Does anyone want to give her any mercy?" David asked.
"At least one person should be destroyed," Hook offered, not completely satisfied yet.
"No! I have an idea. Leave her to me, please," Regina said.
Emma looked at her carefully, then her parents. "Alright. As long as you don't actually kill her."
"Oh, I won't kill her. I just happen to know of the perfect place for someone who doesn't like magic." And to allow me to finally have my own happy ending, she thought.
"Hey, where's Dad?" Henry asked.
"Yeah, where is Neal?" Emma asked, suddenly noticing he was nowhere to be seen.
"Tamara said he left. She also said she was leaving, so she obviously doesn't mind bending the truth," Hook said
"We need to get to her before Regina does whatever she's planning. Who knows what she did to Neal," Emma said.
Gold spoke up, but his voice lacked his usual flair and sarcasm. "Don't worry dearie, he's just fine. Do you really think I would allow her to harm my son?"
"You know where Neal is," Mary Margaret said.
"Of course. He's in my shop," Gold said.
"What? Why didn't he come back to see me?" Henry asked.
"I needed him out of the way for a while," Gold said.
"He's under a sleeping curse," Emma said, recognizing that Gold was still keeping some things secret. Emma and company relocated to the pawn shop, searching for the missing Neal.
"In here!" Emma called from the backroom.
"We found him. Now what do we do?" Henry asked.
"True Love's Kiss," David said. Everyone looked to Emma, expecting her to act.
"Oh, ah…" Emma didn't know what to do. Yes, she had cared for him, loved him even, but that was in the past. Still, as the savior, maybe she could make it work. She gave Killian a look to reassure him that whatever happened, this wasn't going to change how she felt about him. He still looked nervous though. Of course, for his past few weeks, she had been holding him at arms' length. Once this was over though, they could finally be together again, right. She bent over and kissed him, waiting for the familiar magical pulse. She could hear Hook behind her make an unhappy noise. But, nothing happened.
"I could have told you that would happen," Hook muttered, his relief embarrassingly obvious.
"How do we wake him up then?" Mary Margaret asked.
David searched through his pockets to see if anything he brought back from the Enchanted Forest would work.
"Maybe, a different True Love?" Henry asked. He looked to Gold. "If you really aren't the Dark One anymore, it will work.
They all looked to Gold. He stepped forward and bent over his son. "I love you Bae." The second Gold's lips connected with his son's forehead, a magical force pushed outward and Neal gasped awake.
"What happened?" he asked.
"I gave up my magic for you Bae. So we can finally be together." After over three hundred years, father and son embraced fully, no magic to keep them apart.
AN: I have to apologize for this chapter. I tried rewriting it multiple times, but I couldn't figure out a better way to end it. If there are any suggestions out there for improvements, I may rewrite this chapter at a later date. For those of you who stuck through it, there is an epilogue coming soon that I am proud of, and should answer all of your burning questions! ;)