There was no easy way to tell anyone about what happened, but Rumple didn't have to say anything for his family to know something was wrong. They could see the difference in how he acted. He became withdrawn, not speaking to anyone unless he had to. He would claim he was busy with one thing or another. With preparations for the school that was understandable, but when he avoided Bae, there was no question of how wrong something was. Never before had he ever let anything distract him from his son.
He couldn't keep what had happened hidden forever, especially when visions of seemingly limitless possible futures continued whirling through his mind. He wasn't yet able to control when he saw, and didn't even know which visions had to be and which only might be. Everyone noticed the few times Rumple couldn't avoid being near them, he seemed lost, to be seeing things that weren't there. Finally, Fiona confronted him.
"Rumple, what's wrong? I know we haven't had the chance to grow as close as you are with Tiger Lily or even with any of the Hatters, but whatever it is, I'm still your mother. You can tell me why you're avoiding us, especially Bae."
Rumple was silent a few moment, not looking at her. She tried again. He had never given up on her, and she certainly wasn't going to let him go through whatever was troubling him alone.
"You can't go the rest of your life without speaking to him. You know that."
"He's better off without a monster- a murderer- for a father," he finally answered. He told the whole story, how he had met the Seer years before, and then again when she'd asked him to take her ability to see the future. He told his mother how the visions, overwhelming him, had hidden the fact that the Seer's life was leaving her until it was too late.
"You didn't know what would happen to her," Fiona reminded him.
"I knew all magic come with a price. I should have known better."
"But you thought you would pay that price, didn't you?" she asked.
"I certainly didn't know her life was connected to her powers."
That should have helped him ease his conscience, but he needed more convincing that he had not done something evil.
"Do you trust me, son?" Fiona asked gently. In answer, he looked at her and took her wrist in his hand. He ran his thumb over the smooth skin where the crescent shaped scar had once been. The message was wordless, but easily understood. The Black Fairy is gone. You're my mother. Of course I trust you.
"Then, I'm sorry. This will hurt a little, but there's something you need to see," she told him as she held out a hand, reaching towards his chest. Rumple could tell she was being as careful as possible to avoid hurting him, but he still felt a slight squeeze and pressure in his chest as Fiona removed his heart. She held it out so he could see it. Rumple drew in a shaky breath in surprise. Not only was his heart not darkened, it wasn't even red like a normal heart would have been. It glowed white, bright and pure.
"It's still the heart of the Savior," Fiona told him, placing it back in his chest. "You didn't know what would happen. You would never have ended her life willingly. She knew that, and that's why she tricked you. You're not a murderer or a monster. You're someone who saw a chance to take a magical gift and use it for the protection of your family, and took it not knowing what it meant."
That helped Rumple begin to forgive himself, but it didn't completely remove the burden of guilt.
"I didn't know what would happen, but that doesn't bring her back."
"And that isn't what she wanted anyway," Fiona reminded him. "She found her gift such a burden she wanted to be rid of it, even if it meant dying to do it. She used you as a tool to bring that about. That doesn't make her death your fault."
Rumple knew she was right about that. The Seer had wanted to die. He still would never have been willing to kill unless it was a last resort to protect his family. Yet he'd had no idea what taking her sight would do.
"I know about darkening myself," Fiona continued. "I was willing to do whatever it took to protect you, no matter who else was hurt. You feeling so guilty about this proves you aren't a murderer or a monster, and you saw your heart for yourself. She saw it as a mercy, as wrong as that was of her. She tricked and used you. You aren't to blame."
The burden of his guilt was lifted from him, but there was no way to ever be rid of the burden of the visions. Fiona understood now why he'd seemed unaware of things at times, why he seemed not to see or hear her when she'd tried to talk to him only the day before, and the look in his eyes that made them seem unfocused. They'd been focused on something only he could see.
"Not that I have any desire to do what she did, but I can understand why she felt it was such a curse." He rubbed at his head, and groaned in frustration. He'd had so many visions since the Seer's power had become his that he'd spent more time seeing the future than the present. Not that it mattered much. He couldn't say he could make sense of what he saw.
"You need to learn to control the visions, the same as you had to learn to control the rest of your magic," Fiona advised. "There's no reason to learn to control them alone."
There was only one seer alive who Rumple knew personally.
"I'll talk to Taliesin about it." He took his mother's hand and kissed her forehead. "Thank you for helping me through this."
"You didn't abandon me when I needed you the most," she reminded him, and embraced him. "And there's no reason to ever shut yourself away from your family Rumple. You're starting a school hoping demi- Fae and humans can learn together and work together against the Clerics. You know there's strength in standing together. Even someone born to be a Savior is better off not being alone."
Trying to face his struggle with guilt and his new ability alone had been a mistake, and it was not one he would repeat. He'd always been grateful to Tiger Lily and his aunts for raising him, to the Hatters and now Taliesin and Callum for their friendship, and to the Dragon for being his mentor in magic. Now he had someone else he could rely on. The bond between mother and son was growing closer.
