Fuck!

He didn't know what it meant that David suddenly had a memory, but he knew it wasn't good. With Emma, the Curse was breaking. He'd seen evidence of that. There was no doubt in his mind all these changes were because of her arrival. He had many theories as to why David didn't have his memories when he woke, but the one that he'd been hoping for was that it wasn't so much evidence of the Curse breaking, but rather a side effect of the Curse breaking.

He'd hoped that no memories might have been a step in the right direction, evidence of a weakness in the Curse. After being asleep for twenty-eight years, it wasn't that David didn't have memories or couldn't remember; it was simply that Regina hadn't given him memories. Regina had planned to keep him that way, so she'd seen no reason to waste magic on crafting a new identity for him. That was the theory he'd hoped for the most, at least, because under that theory, then David could have had so much potential for helping to break the Curse if he truly woke up. It would have been so easy!

He'd already been drawn to Mary Margaret, and the pair had already woken one another up while they were under the Curse. So far, it was only Henry who seemed convinced of the Curse, if David and Mary Margaret could fall in love here again if they could wake one another up…that sort of development could have been invaluable for Emma in the long run.

But for David to suddenly regain his memories…how had that happened? What did it mean? It had been more than a week since the last big signs of the Curse breaking, since the crickets came back to Storybrooke. Had Emma started adjusting? Was she getting too comfortable with life here? Too used to Henry's warnings? Buying into Regina's theory that her son needed help from Archie? Was she less fierce? Less persistent? In a way, he almost hoped that was the case! Because that theory was bad, but it wasn't as bad as the other theory he had.

Regina had done something.

David had told him that he'd run into the Mayor before coming into his shop. Was it possible that Regina had seen what was going on and fought back against the breaking of the Curse? Had she done something to give memories to the Former Prince Charming? Oh, how he hoped that wasn't the case. Because if that was what happened, then it confirmed what he'd feared and suspected from the beginning…Regina had magic. Somewhere in this town, she had access to power that he did not. And though he'd been behaving in these last few weeks as though that were a likely possibility, to have confirmation of it was a terrifying thing. If she could activate Cursed memories within David Nolan, what else was she capable of doing?

Fuck!

He'd left work; locked the shop, and driven straight home but not before calling Dove and telling him to go to the toll bridge path and tell him what he saw. He'd been nearby and didn't ask questions as to why he was abandoning Emma Swan to go watch a bridge path. He was nearly home when Dove sent him a message that David had emerged from the path, crying as he walked down Main Street. He'd been finished with dinner and doing the dishes when he received another message that Mary Margaret had appeared. She was also crying.

He wanted to scream. He wanted to break something. He wanted to go and kill himself an Evil Queen!

But he didn't. Instead, he went about his typical routine that night. He glanced at the chipped cup, still set perfectly upon its clean and orderly table. He looked in on Bae's shawl hidden in his kitchen drawer. Still, he waited until he was dressed and ready for bed before checking for the most important item he owned because if Regina did have magic and was capable of watching him, then he didn't even want to give her a glimpse of the dagger. So he went to bed, rolled over onto his side, then slid his hand between his pillows so he could feel the dagger through the fabric of his pillowcase.

Still there.

Still safe.

But here in his home, if Regina had magic…it wasn't good enough. If his store could be broken into by Ashley, then his home could be broken into by anybody, especially a Mayor who possessed her mother's old skeleton keys and could open any lock. The dagger was something he couldn't risk being taken.

He had two options.

Either figure out a way to discreetly carry a fourteen-inch dagger with him everywhere he went in Storybrooke and hope that Regina didn't notice or find it suspicious if he did.

Or make a new plan.

Obviously, he elected for the second option. He spent most of the next day brainstorming, going over plan after plan in his head. At the same time, Dove continued to send him updates about David going home and Kathryn taking him back; meanwhile, he'd seen none other than Dr. Whale slip out of Mary Margaret's apartment early in the morning, leaving him with a mental image he was happy to ignore. The good news was that by the end of the day, he had a plan together. It wasn't a great one, it wasn't something he was thrilled with, but it was the safest plan he had, one that accounted for Regina looking away at just the right time so that he could do his work.

That night he sent a message that Dove was to meet him at the shop bright and early. The bird didn't complain. Not one bit. And the next morning, he managed to sneak the dagger out of his pillowcase and place the necessary items in the trunk of his car. He parked on the street and didn't even bother going inside. He just waited for Dove to turn up, and it was only then that he unlocked the door. He explained that he wanted him to go to Regina and keep her busy for one hour. No more, no less. How? He didn't care. Start a fire, complain about how Mr. Gold was treating him, talk about the volume of the clocktower chiming at night now that it was working again, hell, Dove could tell her that he'd sent him to complain about the library being such an eyesore and it would be acceptable! So long as it was for one hour, he'd make sure to cover anything that happened later.

Dove was irritated but knew better than to not listen to him. And so, twenty minutes after releasing Dove for the morning, he received a text message that told him he was about to see Regina. And he wasted no time.

He immediately got into his car and drove out into the woods on the outskirts of town. He parked his car on the side of the road and slipped on rubber boots and an apron, and then grabbed the shovel from his trunk. Then he walked inside. He'd purposefully chosen a random spot but one that was easy for him to find again. A small cluster of trees by a fallen log, perhaps a three-minute walk directly east into the woods. One of the trees had a flimsy tangle of bushes and ferns surrounding its trunk. It was easy to spot and easy to identify if he needed to come back later. It was elevated slightly, and the roots would ensure the ground didn't erode. Not to mention his watch told him he had only forty minutes to get this accomplished and get back to the shop, so Regina didn't notice his absence.

With that in mind, he started to dig. Two inches. Four inches. Eight inches, he dug until there was easily a hole that was one foot deep into the ground, big enough to fit his dagger. He'd wrapped it in cloth before he'd left home that morning, and he intended to bury it in the cloth as well. So, with a silent prayer that he was doing the right thing and not making a mistake that Nimue would chastise him for when the Curse was broken, he plopped his bundle into the hole and then began to refill it.

He was just about finished when he heard it, a sound he hadn't heard since his time in the Enchanted Forest, one that sent shivers down his back. Was that…could it be…a wolf? Half of him hoped it was at the same time the other half hoped it wasn't. On the one hand, there had never been any evidence of wolves in Storybrooke. On the other hand, there had never been evidence of crickets either until nearly two weeks ago. It certainly sounded like a wolf, and he supposed that there might have been one here who had been living quietly in the Curse…unless, of course, Ruby had realized what she was and regained some of her magic. Either way, the sound of howling and his phone telling him that he had twenty-five minutes to get back to his car and return to the shop told him that it was time to go. So, with one last cursory look around the spot he'd left the dagger, he took a deep breath, shifted the brush around him, and emerged…

Only to come face to face with Sheriff Graham.

For a moment, he feared failure, feared Regina had been on to him and sent her huntsman out to watch him as he'd sent his bird to distract her. But then he took in the Sheriff's face. He appeared out of breath, as though he were running from something or someone.

Suddenly he remembered the wolf he'd heard. That, coupled with the Sheriff's previous history...

If memory recalled, in a past life, he was a friend to the animals, specifically the kind with four legs and lots of teeth.

Maybe he wasn't running from anything…maybe he was running to some creature. That was best for him. If that assumption were true, then it meant he'd only just arrived. He hadn't been watching him hide his dagger and couldn't report the behavior to Regina. But only if he played this right.

"Good morning, Sheriff," he excused, suddenly aware that they weren't in his shop but rather the middle of a forest that was supposed to be deserted save for the animals. Graham was smart. And he had just stumbled upon him out in the middle of nowhere. He had to tread very carefully. He had to keep the focus on Graham and not him. Regina was supposed to be kept busy, but he was her bedmate…what was he doing here? "Sorry if I startled you."

"Right. Sorry, I…I thought you were a wolf," Graham huffed.

He smiled. Now…why would a police sheriff suddenly take an interest in wolves. "Did I forget to shave?"

"What are you doing out here so early?"

Shit. "A spot of gardening," he excused, hoping he didn't want details. "Yourself?"

"I was looking for, um…"

"A wolf. Yeah, I think I'm beginning to catch on," he interrupted. The best way to distract a person was to turn their attention back to themselves. If he could make the Sheriff feel like the crazy, stupid one running through the forest, maybe he wouldn't take too much note of his own presence. "You know, to the best of my knowledge, Sheriff, there are no wolves in Storybrooke. Not the literal kind, anyway. Why are you looking?"

"You'll think I'm crazy."

"Try me," he grinned. A sheriff taking an interest in a wolf was absurd; Mr. Gold wanted him to know that. A Huntsman who had once had many of them as his companions, on the other hand…not so absurd. And Rumpelstiltskin wanted very much so to hear his answer. He was holding his breath, waiting for this answer. After the disappointment that was now David Nolan the other night, he was eager for some good news.

"I saw one in my dreams, and then I saw one for real. Just a few hours ago. Did you, uh…did you see anything unusual out there?"

He raised his shovel and stared at it for a bit, not because he was particularly interested in it but because it kept him from leaping into the air with joy. "Saw a wolf in his dreams and then one for real."

It could have been just a dream. But after twenty-eight years of nothing, he doubted "just a dream" would send him running into the woods, actually looking for one. Especially not when, besides Henry and Mary Margaret, Sheriff Graham was spending the most time with the Savior now that she was the deputy. All magic had a price, even in this land. He wondered, whatever it was that gave David Nolan memories…memories for memories was a cost with a nice ring of irony to it.

"I'm afraid not. I do wish I could be more helpful," he explained, moving around the Sheriff, away from his dagger.

The dagger…he'd have to hide it again. Whether he had his memories or not, Regina still possessed his heart. He couldn't take the risk that he'd tell her that at the same time she'd been distracted, he'd been out digging in the woods and having her put two and two together. But…as long as he'd already buried it and was moving away…

"You know, Sheriff," he muttered, turning back. "They say that dreams…dreams are memories; memories of another life."

The Sheriff stared at him with something like fear in his eyes. No. Not fear. Panic. But not an external one, an internal panic. A crisis of identity. That was encouraging. "And what do you believe?" he finally breathed.

"I never rule out anything," he commented with a smile. "Good luck, Sheriff. I do hope you find what you're looking for."

He moved over the log before him and began to travel back to his car. But after he was a distance. He turned back at the rustling, at the moving of Sheriff Graham. He held his breath, hoping that the Huntsman was nowhere near his dagger. He wasn't. He was looking about, this way and that, looking perhaps for his wolf. And then he was gone. Into the woods, chasing after…wolves or ghosts, he didn't know. But he was away from the dagger.

Still, he let out another curse as he watched the Huntsman disappear into the woods. The dagger was safe for now, but he couldn't leave it there not for too long. He glanced at his watch. His hour was up. Or at least it would be soon. He didn't have time to unbury it and bury it again in a different place. He didn't have time to do one or the other either. He had to go.

Graham was a threat to it. But for now, he was occupied. He needed to go. He needed to rethink his plan, find a new hiding spot, plan another way to keep Regina occupied. The house wasn't safe, the woods were compromised, perhaps the third time would be the charm.

I really hated some of the logistics of this scene, but I also liked that it opened up some other things later for Rumple. For example, the fact that Graham stumbles upon him as he's burying the dagger, but Gold still just leaves it there. It's careless, not just for Gold but for Rumple especially. You don't keep something that valuable hidden and safe from your enemies for so long only to fuck it up at the end like this. Seriously, all it would take is for Graham to go back to Storybrooke, take Regina to lunch, casually mention, "oh, I saw Gold in the woods," and then Regina realizes something is up and demands that the hunter take him to where he was and...well, you can see where that goes. But, I couldn't write around it. At the end of the scene, he leaves, so I had to have Gold leave too. But, the one positive thing in all of this was that later, when we finally see Gold go back for the dagger, it's in a different spot. Did you catch it? The place he digs it out of is obviously different from where he hid it. That was a positive thing for me. It meant that I could have him say, "fine, I can't to go back now, but I'll be back, and I'll figure out another place for it." That was my one lifeline.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Jennifer Baratta, Grace5231973, and Alarda, for your reviews! I'm so happy you are all pleased with the progression! And now, everyone wave goodbye to Graham because this is the last scene that he appears in. Shame really, other than after he's hit on the head, this is really the only interaction that Gold has with him. It was so sad, he was one of my favorite characters, and I understand the reason for his short-lived life, but there are days I wish he'd stayed alive. I feel like he would have gotten along so well with Neal and Belle. Ah well, no use crying over spilled milk. Peace and Happy Reading!