He'd done what he had to do. But all magic had a price, and in his case, the cost of doing what needed to be done was not being able to go after Belle the way he wanted. In relinquishing his claim on Regina, he'd used whatever magic he had, and probably even more than that. It killed any chance he had at going after her magically and taking her to safety. The world outside still raged on in the Wraith's wake, but whenever he worried, he tried to remember that the Charmings and the Savior were determined people. They'd left the shop wanting to stop the creature, and if anyone could do it, they could.

And so it seemed they did.

It wasn't long after his attempt that he noticed a change in the magic around him. The wind blew instead of howling. The lights outside stopped blinking and began to flicker. And a few moments later, his cell phone rang, and Regina's name popped up on the screen. He ignored it. He wasn't in the mood to talk to her. But when the voicemail came through, he did spare her a moment to listen.

"This is a courtesy call I won't make again, Rumple. The Wraith is gone, and I'm still alive, you little imp! I'll excuse this attempt on my life this time given the circumstances but try something like that again, and I will find a way to end you."

He rolled his eyes. Same old Regina, still threatening to kill him…as if she could. If he talked to her, he would have told her that he'd called off the Wraith, and she hadn't really survived anything, but he decided to hold onto that bit of news for another time.

The danger was over and done. But still, he couldn't bring himself to go home. He couldn't go home. The Wraith may be "gone," whatever that meant, but Belle was still out there, and though he knew she didn't want to see him, he was still hopeful that she might come back. Not because she wanted him, not because she wanted to see him, but because she'd have to. Regina had made sure she had nothing and no one in this town. Save for him, she'd have nowhere else to go in town, not unless she miraculously ran into her father. He shuddered at that thought. If she found him and he told her what had happened between the two of them, then he knew that he'd never see her again. He did suppose there was always the chance that she might meet someone nice, who might take her in during her hour of need. But he didn't trust anyone enough for that to put him at ease. She could run into a nice citizen just trying to do the right thing, but she could just as easily run into someone like Regina who would take advantage of her, and he'd never live with himself if something bad happened.

So he stayed in the shop through the night, resolute in the decision that if she didn't turn up by morning, plenty of time for his magic to return, then he'd go out and find her himself. He'd offer her an apartment, put her up, get her situated. But he wouldn't ask any more than that. He'd do what he should have done in the beginning. He'd free her from him for good to live the life that she wanted. And as for him...he'd focus his time and attention on Baelfire.

He didn't know how he ended up at his wheel, with wool in his hand and her cup at his side, only that he was spinning again. It was probably inevitable. He had too many thoughts in his head and too much sadness in his heart he wanted to get out. The Curse was broken, magic was back, and Baelfire was still out there. That was worth something. But the loss of Belle…after all those years of imagining what he'd do if he got a second chance, he'd wasted it again.

He called himself a smart man, but rarely did he ever feel that way when it came to her. Something about her always made him feel like he was on shaky ground and couldn't find his footing. Something about her always made him feel like he could be knocked over with a feather. Something about her always made him feel human in a way he had never been before. That was a dangerous thing to feel, probably most dangerous of all. Because it made him forget the monster that lurked beneath his skin, the monsters that hissed and chuckled and whispered "good" in his head when he remembered she was gone. She didn't deserve whatever he was. She deserved better.

But then she was there.

As if summoned by magic, she was standing there!

He'd been so lost in his own thoughts that he hadn't even realized the bell had rung, hadn't even realized that the wind and bangs outside had stopped as well. All he knew was that one moment he wished more than anything she'd come back to him so he could know she was safe, and the next moment she was staggering into the backroom breathing out a "Hi."

"Hey," he whispered back. He was…flabbergasted. Dizzy. He searched her, making sure that she wasn't made of magic, another trick of Regina's or even his mind but…she was real, she was there again just as she had been that morning. And he felt like she'd just reappeared from the dead again. He was relieved to see her in one piece. But the voices in his head recoiled and screamed, wanting her to go.

Yes. She needed to go. He needed to get her a room at Granny's and make other arrangements. This wasn't going to work.

"I, uh…went for a long walk," she explained awkwardly. He gave a swift nod of understanding. He didn't like the silence between them. Or maybe it was the tension. They'd always had silence, but the tension was new.

"I thought you didn't want to see me."

"I didn't…" she shrugged. "But…I was worried."

"Well, the beast is gone," he assured her. "Regina…lives."

A small smirk of amusement that he couldn't understand made its way across her mouth. "So, uh…you didn't get what you wanted."

What he wanted…what a heavy fucking question that was.

"Well, that remains to be seen," he answered. It was the best answer that he could think of at the moment. Between her and Baelfire and Regina…

He meant to tell her what he had planned, to take her to Granny's to tell her that he'd take care of arrangements for her…but then the smirk she'd worn disappeared in a small gasp and smile. She glanced at him, then drew her eyes back to something beside him and reached out to grab whatever she'd seen.

"You, uh, you kept it! My chipped cup!" she smiled, laughing a little as he realized the object she'd found was her chipped cup.

He nodded, but words weren't coming to him as easily as she stared down at it, her hands delicate. All day she'd been surrounded by new things. She'd been scared and confused as she examined them, and yet here and now, finally, there was something familiar to her. And suddenly, she was Belle again, his Belle. The clothes were new and different, the surroundings were strange, but when she laughed and smiled like that, a blush rising to her cheeks, so her eyes sparkled, it was easy to remember how they'd been together in the castle, talking about something simple like books. He swallowed the lump she'd brought up in his throat. If he'd known that was how she was going to react, he'd have brought it out hours ago! And yet…

It still wouldn't have changed things.

It didn't change things now. And the thought of losing her and that cup…one was enough…

"There are many, many things in this shop," he whispered, standing before her so that he could pluck it from her fingers and back into his own. If he had to lose her, then he couldn't let her take it. Even if he knew he'd give it to her the moment she asked. "But this…this is the only thing I truly cherish."

And that meant something to her. He could tell it did. From the way she smiled up at him to the way her eyes watered, he knew that what he'd said was important to her. It was a high note, a good way to end things, better than the angry way they'd left them before. What was the saying? Better to quit while ahead...

"And now you must leave," he insisted painfully.

The happiness in her eyes died at his words, and she shook her head at him, confused all over again. "What?!"

"You must leave because despite what you hope…I am still a monster."

Granny's. Money. Arrangements. Those were all things he was supposed to mention, the plan he was supposed to tell her that he had for her, to assure her that though they couldn't be together, he was still going to make sure that she would be alright. But the words hadn't even gotten out of his mouth before she scoffed at them. She let out a laugh and shook her head. And then her hands were on his shoulders, a tight grip that had him feeling like he'd never move again so long as she could stay just as she was.

"Don't you see?" she smiled at him. "That's exactly the reason I have to stay."

Stay. She wanted to stay?! After everything that had happened, after he'd…

He looked down at the cup. She'd thought things had changed once, and he'd screwed it all up before lunchtime. How could she ever think things would be different?

"I don't know if I can change, Belle," he explained honestly. "I don't want you to be disappointed."

She thought about it for a second, for a very long heartbeat as he held his breath, not sure what he wanted her to say or what he wanted her to do. He wasn't sure which fate was worse from here.

"You can," she finally smiled. "I'll help you."

And then finally, she stepped forward slightly and carefully, so she wouldn't damage the cup he still held in his hands; she slid her arms around his neck and held him.

The Dark Ones were screaming in his head, every instinct he had told him to push her away; this was dangerous for her, dangerous for him. But the only voice in his head that he suddenly cared about was the Seer's, who whispered the word "right" over and over again.

Right. This was right. She was right, and he was right. Together was where they were supposed to be, and so together is what they would be.

So finally, he sighed and gave in. He moved his arms around her waist and held her tighter than he had before, and whispered the words, "I'd like that."

He closed his eyes and let his senses be drowned out by nothing but her as he realized the impossible had happened today.

He'd been given a third chance.

And here we have a familiar scene that, at the end of the day, just needed a bit of framing to help us get from one chapter to the other. Simple, but I can't tell you how long I agonized over that line he had at the beginning "the beast is gone, and Regina lives". I thought of half a dozen ways to get him to have that information. Then one morning woke up and realized that when Regina is angry and scared, she likes to be dramatic and gloat, calling him and leaving a voicemail like that would not be out of character for their relationship. So, at the end of all my brainstorming and hard work, three simple little lines said it all. Figures.

Thank you dearly, Alarda, for your review of the last chapter! Fun fact, the Wraith is gone, and this is where 2x01 as we saw it ends, but of course, there is more to the story than this. From here we'll begin to explore what happens beyond this scene in 2x01 because there are many of them. 2x01-2x04 takes up a little less than half of the entire fiction. And I know that seems weird because you are doing the math and saying, "pretty sure Rumple wasn't even in one of those episodes, how is that possible. It's possible. We'll cover the timeline a bit in a few chapters and it'll all make sense then! Peace and Happy Reading!