He stayed in the little room with August Wayne Booth longer than he should have. Partly because he had nowhere to go. Partly because watching him struggle to get out of his jacket and gloves and get comfortable was entertaining. But he could only sit there and watch him struggle for so long before he had to get up and have mercy on him. Once he'd helped him out of his jacket, he could finally see the extent of the damage. He'd only seen one leg, but he had a feeling both of them were wooden. His belly and torso, also wooden. His left arm up through his shoulder was wooden, and after he got his jacket off, he watched as his right shoulder was slowly enveloped in wood as well. He'd bet it was only a matter of time until his chest, neck, and head followed. And once that happened…

His cell phone rang just after the sun went down and he wasn't surprised when he saw Mark's name on it, but he was nervous. If he was calling over what he thought it was about, it could potentially be life-changing. So he flipped his phone open, managed to mutter an undignified "yeah," and listened.

"Just thought you should know, an ambulance was called to Mary Margaret's apartment not long ago, and they just came rushing out."

"Is it there for Emma?" he asked.

"No…for the boy." He felt himself let out a breath as he glanced over at Booth, who was watching him with interested eyes. He had the feeling that he knew, even though he had yet to announce anything. "The ambulance gathered a crowd, I asked around a bit, they're saying the kid choked on something, but…when they wheeled him by, it doesn't look like a choking to me. Kid was out cold. We're on the way to the hospital now."

He nodded, but if they were on the way to the hospital, then what was done was done. He gave this game he was playing twenty-four hours, at max, to play out the way he wanted it to. If it did, then neither Mark nor Dove would be of any use. If it didn't…then there was certainly nothing more he could do.

"Take the rest of the day off, Mr. Dove. They might be there a while." He only heard a relieved sigh before he snapped the phone closed and glanced back over at Booth, still staring at him with knowing and expecting eyes. "Henry took the curse, and they're on the way to the hospital now where nothing the hospital can do will be able to help him."

"Should I be relieved?" he asked with sarcasm.

The truth? No, he shouldn't. When he'd made the call, Booth had still had use over his right hand. That had gone away in just the time that he'd arrived, barely an hour ago. He doubted that August would make it through the night. So, no…he shouldn't be relieved because he very much so doubted that there was anything to be done for him except wait for the Curse to be broken and hope that the Blue Fairy could turn him human again or that magic coming to Storybrooke would at least bring a puppet back to life. That was a big hope. But he also didn't need to know that, not at a time like this when there was a little boy in the hospital who had just risked everything, his very life, to make sure Emma broke the Curse. He'd never felt the weight of this Curse on his shoulders like he did now.

"There's nothing happy about any of this," he stated indifferently. "I have to get to the shop. There are things I need to do," he stated truthfully. He had stayed far longer than he wanted to already. Now, he needed to be in a place where Emma could find him when, not if, she needed him.

"What about me?" the puppet asked.

"Well, your part is not yet done, Mr. Booth," he sighed. "You see…if Emma starts to believe, first she's going to look toward her allies."

"Mary Margaret?"

"You. Mary Margaret…her mother is a friend, but still Cursed. Emma will seek out answers; she'll try to understand what she believes. You were the one insisting she believe, so she'll come to you first."

"And you want me to what…send her to you?"

If he was still alive and talking…

"That thought had crossed my mind," he smiled. Emma had no idea that he wasn't cursed. In desperation, she might come to him, and he could use that opportunity to reveal himself, but a finger in his direction could work just as well. And when she came to see him, he'd be ready. "We'll get her there, Mr. Booth. One way or another, we'll get her there."

And he would, that was why the moment he returned to his shop, he prepared. He knew his client, and like a good salesman, he wanted to have exactly the tool she was going to need out and ready when she appeared. Fragile as his client was, the last thing he wanted to do was leave her alone or turn his back on her allowing her to lose her nerve and run away.

The "tool" that Emma would need, in her situation, was contained inside a long, thin case. It was dusty. What was inside had really only been touched on one occasion since they had been brought over from the Enchanted Forest. Its original owner had stolen it after being stored in an umbrella stand. After that, he'd had the case fashioned for it and took it off the shelves, keeping it out of sight, waiting for the right person to come in and take it back.

When he heard the bell to his shop chime, his heart jumped at the thought that the right person had finally come for it.

And then he bit back a stutter as he saw that it wasn't exactly what he'd been planning.

Emma had come to see him. But she wasn't alone. She was with Regina.

They entered the shop together, not in a whirlwind or in anger. Instead, they both looked exhausted. That was good. Exhaustion did him little good, but desperation and determination-those could both easily force exhaustion to the side and allow what needed to be done to get done, but…

Together!

It was shocking. He'd always known he needed Regina and Emma to face off to be against one another, but he hadn't expected they might come together! But…

The more he thought about it, the more he realized it was a good thing. Henry was sick, in the hospital. Regina knew the reason why. She'd used magic to put him there. Which meant Regina was doing exactly what he'd thought the Savior might do…she was looking to her allies, namely him. Regina was here to ask for help with magic, to save Henry. And if Emma was with her, instead of at the hospital demanding they fix him with medicine, then that had to mean…she knew.

Better yet. She believed.

Believing meant that she was ready to fetch his potion. He could make that happen. No, it wasn't exactly how he'd pictured it or figured, and yes, Regina might pose a problem, but he could overpower her easily and what would be left in its wake was the same. Magic in Storybrooke. A broken Curse. Emma could do this. And once she did, he could bring magic back. He was closer than he'd ever been; he wasn't about to let a simple thing like shock throw him off.

"Do my eyes deceive me, or is that the look of a believer?" he questioned, coming to stand behind the case he'd set out for Emma on his glass countertop.

"We need your help," Emma cried, standing before it perfectly.

"Indeed, you do. It seems quite the tragic ailment has befallen our young friend." He glanced at Regina. "I told you, magic comes with a price."

"Henry shouldn't have to pay it," Regina whispered with something like sadness in her voice.

"No, you should, but alas, we are where we are."

"Can you help us?" Emma interrupted.

"Of course," he stated, turning back to her and offering her his best salesman smile. He'd never felt more like Mr. Gold and Rumpelstiltskin at one time. Considering that was his future if everything worked out, he rather enjoyed that knowledge. "True love, Miss Swan…the only magic powerful enough to transcend realms and break any curse. Luckily for you, I happen to have bottled some."

"You did?" Regina questioned with a mix of astonishment and hopefulness.

"Oh, yes," he breathed, answering Regina without looking at her. He willed himself to stay focused on Emma. "From strands of your parents' hair, I made the most powerful potion in all the realm. So powerful that when I created the Dark Curse, I placed a single drop on the parchment. Just a little safety valve."

It was a half-truth, but to explain the lie to either of them right now would only bring more questions, and he was working on bringing this all to a close by sun up. Besides, it took a few seconds for it to register, but eventually, Emma Swan's eyes widened in understanding, and she gasped, ending any comments he might have made.

"That's why I'm the Savior. That's why I can break the curse."

"Now you're getting it."

"I don't care about breaking the curse. All I care about is saving Henry."

"Which is why it's your lucky day. I didn't use all the potion. I saved some…for a rainy day."

"Well, it's storming like a bitch. Where is it?" she demanded with absolute seriousness in her eyes that had him growing more and more excited by the second. Her parents always had looks like that before they saved the day. So too would she…if she could scramble together their bravery.

"Where it is, isn't the problem. Getting it is what should worry you."

"Enough riddles. What do we do?" Regina asked, raising her voice.

"You do nothing. It has to be Miss Swan." The vision he'd had so long ago only concerned Emma, not Regina. If she tried, she might get in the way, and he hadn't come this far for Regina to ruin it all.

"He's my son. It should be me."

"All due respect, but it's her son. And it has to be her," he stressed, making something up last minute. He knew how Regina worked. If she thought there was reasoning behind it, then she wouldn't risk Henry. "She's the product of the magic. She must be the one to find it."

"I can do it," Emma nodded.

"Don't trust him!" Regina insisted.

"What choice do we have?" the Savior argued.

"That's right, dearie. What choice do you have?" he argued right along with her.

"Where is this magic?" Emma interrupted again, refereeing their war of words as if she were their parent instead of Henry's.

"Tell me, Your Majesty," he pondered, looking over at Regina, a smile growing on his face, "is our friend still in the basement?"

Her face shifted and morphed. For a brief second, the anger she had toward him melted into confusion as she considered what he'd just said, then twisted into shock and horror as she realized exactly what he was talking about, all before coming back to anger, an appropriate expression, once again.

"Oh, you twisted little imp!" she gaped. "You hid it with her?!"

"Oh, no, no. Not with her," he corrected. "In her. I knew you couldn't resist bringing her over."

"Who is 'her'?" Emma asked, ignoring Regina and staring at him for answers. That was the result of a lack of trust between the two women. It was worth noting for later if this turned out the way that he thought it would.

"Someone you should be prepared for," he answered, wiping a cloth over the case that had been settled between them before tossing it aside and placing his hand on it, preparing them for the Grand Reveal. "Where you're going, you're going to need this."

And then he opened it. Emma looked inside the case. To her credit, she didn't gasp or ogle it. Instead, she reacted like he would expect a skeptic to react. She stared down at it with a look that suggested he had to be joking, but he wasn't.

"What is that?" she finally asked with a growl, as if she knew but didn't want her suspicion to be true.

Emma might have been a woman of this world, but a dragon was a monster of theirs. She wouldn't beat the creature with a gun. She needed a weapon from their world, which had already proved itself against a fearsome beast of this kind. She needed a sword. And since she didn't have any "family heirlooms," well…it was a good thing he had a few for her.

"Your father's sword…"

He expected Emma Swan to argue, to scoff at the sword or put up some kind of fight at the suggestion she use a sword. She was a believer, but she was still a new believer. She would cling to what she knew before surrendering to something uncertain. But he knew better than anyone that the love a parent had for a child, especially one who was hurt or hurting, could be stronger than anything in this or any other world. Perhaps that was what made her utter a strained "fine."

"What do I have to do?"

"Retrieve an egg," he answered.

"An egg?"

"Not a real one. The potion is protected by a golden egg of my own fashioning. Your father hid it inside the dragon shortly before waking your mother from the same Curse that currently holds your son captive. A Curse created by the same woman, if I might add." His gaze slid to Regina. "Same apple too, I imagine. Yes, your Majesty?"

Regina let out a short, irritated sigh that confirmed his suspicion. "Get the golden egg, and we get the potion, is that all?" she questioned. "Are we done here? Any other helpful tips?"

He smiled. "None that I can think of at the moment, but one never knows."

"Thanks," Regina drawled sarcastically. When she turned to go, Emma caught the action and made a step to go after her before glancing back at the sword. With Regina on her way out, she unceremoniously reached into the case, removed sword and sheath in one fluid motion, then united the two as she hollered Regina's name and followed her out the door.

And here we are, the finale episodes. I loved getting to write this chapter, again, because so much comes together, but at the same time, Emma and Regina coming in together show that it's still possible to surprise our dear Rumple. I loved getting to write the intro with August, showing a bit of a softer side to Rumple buried beneath his curiosity. He doesn't have to help August out of his jacket 'n such, he could wait for the wood to be revealed after the suffering, but he makes that choice despite already having what he wants from August. I liked getting to finally reveal to Regina that he knew Maleficent was in the Library basement and getting Regina to confirm what happened to the apple. All in all, this was an enjoyable scene to write, and I hope that it was a really fun one for you to read too.

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Grace5231973, for leaving awesome reviews on the last chapter, for following me on this journey so far, and for being here during the leg of this fiction! This chapter flows well into our next chapter, which will answer the question "how did Rumple overpower Regina" in the library. However, there is also a very special treat for you in the next chapter. We have a little bit more of history repeating itself so that we can get a bit of growth in there for Regina. Any ideas what we're doing over? Peace and Happy Reading!