Expectations: Love-Light

Rumple is in that twilight stage between sleep and awareness when he hears the high-pitched scream of "PAPA!" from the bedroom down the hall. Next to him, Belle stirs, and Rumple rubs her shoulder. "I've got her. Go back to sleep."

He pads barefoot down the hallway and into his daughter's room, turning on the overhead light. Faith is sitting up in her bed in her Pooh pajamas, hugging her pillow against her chest and sobbing into it.

Rumple sits down on the bed and the little girl maneuvers herself onto his lap, putting her arms around him and transferring her tears from the pillow into his shoulder. "Shhh, I'm here, Faith. Papa's here. It's all right."

"There were monsters, Papa!" She sniffs after a moment. "They were chasing me around the library and they were gonna eat me and they were big and green and had really sharp teeth."

"My love, do you really think I would ever let that happen?" Rumple kisses her on the forehead. "Besides, no self-respecting monster would ever chase a little thing like you. There's no meat at all on you: you'd hardly be a mouthful and really not worth the effort."

Faith giggles in spite of herself and relaxes in his arms, and he rubs her back. "If any monsters ever did show up, they would be very sorry ones indeed. Because no matter what, Papa will always come for you. I will always keep you safe."

He continues holding his daughter until she goes limp and heavy in his arms, returning to sleep. He tucks her back into bed and pulls the blankets up tightly around her. He is about to leave the room when he hears her call out in a sleepy voice "Can I have a love-light?"

Rumple casts a minor spell and a sphere of glowing white light appears on the ceiling above Faith's bed. "This light" he tells her as always "is my love for you. Let the light burn away the darkness. Let my love protect you through the night."

It doesn't cast much more illumination than a flashlight or a nightlight, but Rumple knows it isn't the light itself that Faith finds assuring. It's the magic he used to create it: knowing that her father can perform such miracles truly makes the child feel that nothing can ever harm her. Papa simply would not allow it.

"Thank you, Papa." She whispers, already almost sleep again.

No, he thinks, thank you, Faith. Thank you for looking at this weak and cowardly man and seeing a God. I won't let you down, my little daughter. I promise.

/

Faith finally pulls back from her father's embrace, wiping away somewhat embarrassing tears. "How did you get here, Papa? And where did they go?" She looks around wildly. "You didn't kill them, did you?"

"They're perfectly safe and waiting for me to deal with them." Rumple promises the girl. "And I promise, they will be dealt with. When I get through with them..."

"No." Faith shakes her head. "No, Papa! They were mad but they have a right to be. What you did to that woman…you messed up her face! You made her into a monster! She and her brother just wanted justice."

"I don't care what I did! They attacked you!" Rumple's voice raises, but Faith stands her ground.

"I care, Papa! And it was me they attacked. Not only do I not want revenge, but I want you to fix what you did to that poor woman!" The girl folds her arms across her chest. "All she wanted to do was get out of marrying someone she didn't love and you ruined her entire life!" She takes a breath. "You either fix it, or I'm telling Mum!"

Neal and Haylan watch from the sidelines, and Haylan giggles at Faith's threat, causing his sister's attention to focus on him, and then the prince next to him. Neal is glaring daggers at her, and she feels a stab of guilt. "Hi, Haylan. You look…different. Hi Neal."

"Don't you 'Hi Neal' me!" Neal stomps over to her. "Did you think that was cute, locking me up in that castle by myself? Well, I got out on my own! Don't you ever do something like that to me again!"

"I was trying to protect you, you peabrain!"

"This isn't the place to dis…HAYLAN!" Rumple snaps. "You get back here at once, young man!" The boy has been taking advantage of the distraction to try and slip into the tavern. Rumple notices that several other people have gathered around to watch the Gold party squabble. He casts a quick spell, and the next thing Faith knows she's in the Great Room of the Dark Castle. So much for not being able to enter by magic, but it was Rumple's castle so of course he knew a way.

Fid looks around the room critically, sneezes once, and hops up on the long oak table.

"Alright, sit down, all of you. We're going to eat and then we'll talk about…everything." Rumple promises wearily.

"No. Not until you fix that poor woman!" Faith has not forgotten the reason for her anger.

"Fine!" Rumple snaps his fingers and the two mage siblings appear in front of them, looking around themselves in complete bewilderment. The woman's mislocated eyes narrow at the sight of the Dark One, and Rumple holds up his hand. "Any spells used against me or my family will double back upon you. The only reason you're still alive after attacking my daughter is because she's too soft, like her mother, and she insisted I spare you. You tried to kill my child…"

"Papa…" Faith warns.

"Not only did she demand you be spared, but she also demanded that I modify the terms of our deal." Rumple forces the words out. There is a cloud of grey smoke, and when it clears Faith sees a normal, middle-aged woman standing before them.

"Do you think that's enough?" The mage whispers, and her voice is filled with tears. "Now that I'm an old woman? Now that no one would want me anyway?" Her brother puts his arm around her shoulder, and glares at Rumple.

"Papa, you can do better than this." That from Haylan, and Rumple rolls his eyes. Great, now they're both ganging up on him. He casts another spell, and the grey in the woman's hair fades to pale blonde, the lines on her face fading into smooth and youthful skin. She raises one hand to her face hesitantly, and then stares at the back of her hand, grown smooth as well.

Her brother still is not satisfied. "My family's swords…"

"Are the property of MY family now!" Rumple snaps. "Do not push your luck with me! I kept my end of the bargain! I got her out of that marriage! I owed you nothing else, and rest assured if you ever attempt to harm those I care about again, you'll both live to regret it!" He snaps his fingers, and the siblings vanish.

"There. I put them back in the Mid." He grumbles. "Does that suit you, children? Should I have kissed their feet as well? Offered them tea and cuddles?"

"No, that would have just been weird." Haylan sits down at the table. "I agree with you on the swords. I mean, a deal is a deal."

Faith sighs and sits down as well, and reaches over to pet Fid, who tolerates it. "It didn't seem worth fighting about. You did good, Papa. Even if she doesn't ever find a guy, at least she doesn't have to be afraid to show people her face now."

It bothers Faith a little that women here still define themselves on their ability to land a husband. Even her own mother was expected to make a 'good' match. Once again Faith wonders what her own life would have been like here. Better than most had it, she thinks. Neither of her parents would have ever forced her to marry someone she didn't love. Sure, they might both really want her to end up with Neal, but no one was going to make her get married to the guy.

Rumple grumbles and sits down next to her, Neal across from them. "If you expect me to go around this kingdom undoing everything I've done, then we're going to be here a while."

"Of course not, Papa." Faith promises. "On the other hand…" She points at the rose and Rumple mutters under his breath. "Before we leave. I can't deal with him right now."

"Him?" Neal asks, perplexed.

Haylan gestures toward the rose. "Our Mum's old boyfriend. Mum made Papa promise to turn him human again if he ever had a chance."

"I will." Rumple manages through clenched teeth. "Just not yet." He glances down at Fid. "Why can't you be the kind of cat that eats flowers? Hmm?" Fid yawns, showing his pointed white teeth.

"Can we please eat now?" Neal asked pitifully.

"Oh, I left you with food." Faith growls. "Don't play all wounded with me."

Neal gives her a wicked grin. "Maybe I should tell your father that before you locked me in here, you kissed me. Oh. Darn. Looks like I just did."

"NEAL!" Faith turns red underneath the gold of her skin, and Rumple looks delighted. "Oh, she did? Look at that. I think my little girl has a crush…" He claps his hands excitedly.

"Faith and Neal, sittin' in a tree…" Haylan sings out.

"I'll tree you in a minute!" Faith glares at her younger brother.

"It was really quick." Neal continues. "So I think I need another one, just to be able to judge on quality. You know."

"Oh, as IF! You cut that out right now! My father is practically addressing wedding invites over here!"

"Well, that's not fair! I'm the groom. I should at least get a say in font." Neal grins.

"This place is awesome." Haylan ignores the bickering and is looking around himself in delight. "Papa, we need to come back here to visit a lot. Liam is going to love this! And Vivienne: she thinks she's a prince anyway. Will she and Andrew look different here, since they can't use magic?"

"I'm honestly not sure." Rumple admits. "I suppose they might. I can't imagine either one of them would be as happy about it as you are. Now, enough. Food. Then we talk. Then we're all getting some sleep."

/

The bottle appears out of nowhere and lands next to Belle where she lies on the floor. Andrew lies on a pile of blankets nearby, either of them able to sleep tonight. She snatches it up, her hands shaking, and manages to ease the spiral of parchment inside out. Andrew crowds over her shoulder to read it with her.

Dear Mum:

I had Haylan open up a portal so I could send you this, and I enchanted it to make sure it got to you back in our world.

I know you're probably really scared right now, and mad at all of us, and I guess I don't blame you. But I just wanted you to know that we're all okay here. Papa and Neal and Haylan and Fid and I. And we're going to be back home just as soon as we can. I guess that doesn't help much.

The reason we're not back right now, Mum, is that something really bad is happening here. Papa told us a story that he says he told to you once, about how this world was made, and how one day the old world just started dying. We had a really long talk, and if that story is true, it may be happening again. The land where the ogres live is dying, and it's dying just like it died in the story. So much like it, Papa says, that he doesn't think it can be a coincidence. And if it happens there, it might spread to the rest of the world here. And if that happens, Mum, a lot of people here are going to die. Because even if we open a portal and send them all to Storybrooke, we can't save them all. So all we can do is try and stop whatever has gone wrong, but right now we don't even know what it is.

This world, Mum…these people…they're worth saving. We even have family here. Do you remember a boy named Rustus that you used to play with? He's our uncle, Mum. Your half brother. Grandmother Vivienne gave birth to him and then hid him as a servant so he'd have a better life than he would as her kid. I've met him, and he has your eyes, and he's so nice. When we're done, we're going to bring him and his adopted mother to Storybrooke to see you. There are a lot of nice people here and they don't deserve what might be happening.

So anyway, we're okay, and we all miss you like crazy, and Andrew and even Vivienne too. Never thought I'd say that but it's true. I also guess that when we do get home you're going to be pretty mad at Papa. Please don't be. Mum…I've seen some stuff here, stuff that he did a long time ago. Some of it is pretty bad, but at the same time it I guess it makes me appreciate how he is now. And…as soon as he was able, he came to find me. He's always promised me he would, my whole life, that if I ever needed him, he'd be there. And he was. And I hate the thought of you being mad at him for keeping that promise.

I'm writing this inside of the Dark Castle. Papa showed me around, the places the two of you used to sit and talk. I asked him if he wanted to bring you back there and he got kind of quiet and weird, and then he told me that he did, but he was scared of you seeing him how he used to look. I told him he was crazy: I mean, you fell in love with him looking like that. Then he told me something else, and I'm not supposed to tell you but I'm going to anyway.

He says that when you decide you've caught up to him, he's going to have Haylan bring you both to the Dark Castle. And he's going to do what he was too afraid to do before: he's going to let you break the curse. And he's going to live out the rest of his life as just a normal man, without the magic. He said he can't do it yet, not while Andrew and the twins are still young, not while they might still need his magic to protect them. But when we're all grown, and he's sure we can take care of ourselves, then he'll be ready. I don't know why, but it was really important to me that you know that. That he plans on giving it up for you, Mum.

I wish so badly that you were here right now, because there's so much I want to talk to you about. Like Neal. I have all these really confused emotions right now bubbling around inside of me and I don't know if I'm falling in love with him or if I just don't hate him as much anymore. And I keep going between wanting to kiss him and wanting to slap him, and it is so frustrating! I was wrong about him being boring: he's actually pretty damn brave. And still annoying: he's learned how to use a fire spell and you'd think he'd climbed a mountain naked and blind-folded.

Haylan and I look…different here. I guess because Papa's weird DNA only shows itself in this world. We took some pictures to show you when we get back. I don't look as freaky as Haylan does. Of course being a boy, he thinks it's awesome.

Anyway, I need to get some sleep, but I wanted to send you this just so you wouldn't worry so much. We're going to be okay, Mum, I promise. Papa doesn't break his promises and neither do I. And we'll be back really soon. I love you so much: I don't think I realized how much until I came here. I know we argued a lot but you are the best. I would not trade you for any other mother in any world. When I get home, I'm going to be better at telling you that. Tell Andrew and Viv how much I love them, and tell Viv that even though I hate what she did, I don't hate her. I never could. I'm going to work on that as well. Vivienne and I have never been close and I guess I never really tried very hard to fix that. I think I've been a pretty good big sister to Andrew and Haylan, but not to her. That has to change, and even if she won't change, maybe I can. If Papa could, as stubborn as he is, I think anyone can do it.

Goodnight, Mum. See you as soon as we can.

Love,

Faith

"Are you okay, Mum?" Andrew asks softly, and Belle nods, crying too hard to speak, and too overcome with love for her oldest child.

And her brother…she has to read that again to process it. Of course she remembers Rustus, her older, protective friend who used to talk all the time about wanting his own inn someday…her brother? Her mother's true oldest child? Could such a thing be possible? She feels a flash of kinship to Regina, who once faced the same thing. Only Rustus was no Zelena: apparently Faith already loves him and has accepted him into her family. Belle wants desperately to see him, to put her arms around him, to call him brother, to fold him and his sweet-natured mother into the embrace of the Gold clan, because her family can never, ever be big enough.

"So we have an uncle?" Andrew asks. "That's cool, Mum. We've never had one of those before. I want to meet him."

"You will." Belle promises her son, wiping her eyes. "I'll make sure of that. Once I get my hands on him, we're never letting him go again. And when everyone does get back, we are going to have a huge party to celebrate: Thanksgiving, and Faith's birthday, and everyone coming home safely, and Rustus being your uncle. All of it. Because we are going to have a lot to celebrate. Come on, let's go wake up the others and show them this. I can't wait to see the look on Emma's face when she finds out her brother can use magic too."