Hyperion Heights
Washington
One day after the Final Eclipse
It had been a long day for the former residents of what was once known as Enchanted Forest Three, but the lack of sleep and constant consumption of energy supplements had been worth it knowing that hundreds of refugees from the now extinct Nonestica were safe and sound.
"Has anyone heard anything from Storybrooke One?" Belle Weaver asked her husband over lunch.
"I called Molk, one of my counterparts there. He said all the mages there are out cold from exhaustion and probably will be for a few days. They were able to get the portals redirected back to their town and barely got everyone they could out before Nonestica was completely destroyed," Isaac replied before Bobby had a chance to. "No one left behind in Oz survived. That much we know for sure. Molk said someone on that side sealed it off. Only thing that got through was an enchanted stone with a message from the late Queen."
"Our killer was busy last night too I'm afraid," Bobby spoke up.
"How many did he get?" Bae demanded.
"Ten. He must've been staking out one of the portals. Crime scene corresponds to a set of portal coordinates Isaac gave us."
"I want that bastard. I want him bad!" Bae snarled.
"And if he is one of our counterparts the people coming out would've trusted him," added Emma.
"We all have to be on high alert. He's not done."
"I'm afraid the only way we're gonna stop him is by killing him," Rogers predicted.
"This is the worst Dark One that has ever existed. Many of us still had a conscience when we took the curse but this one, he or she has fully embraced the darkness."
"So, the Dark One can be a woman?"
"The first one was. Her name was Zorinda Strogoff. She's the aunt of the Rumple in Storybrooke One," Bobby clarified. "And now there are two Dark Ones in Storybrooke One. They are Wyatt Cain and Dorothia Ozopov. Now that Nonestica has been destroyed they have to either contain Alemedia or kill her."
"Kill a goddess? Is that possible?"
"Nonestica being destroyed proves you can. Lurline tethered her life force to it. Once she died, it died. Killing Alemedia is not so easy but Wyatt and Dorothia have one hell of a score to settle with her so they just might be able to do it," Belle said. "I don't envy them one bit. It's gonna be a nasty battle."
"True because we've never had two Dark Ones fight each other before and that is exactly what they have to. In the meantime, we need to get our refugees settled in."
Boston, Massachusetts
That same day
Lilly awoke to find her daughter and Victor Whale sitting beside her bed.
"Mum, you scared us half to death!" Cassie cried.
"What happened?"
"You were running an unusually high fever Lilly and we had to put you on ice to cool you down," Victor explained. "You were also ummm…hallucinating. Trouble is, we can't find anything in your lab work that explains it."
"Are you saying I was under some kind of spell?" she demanded.
"I don't know. Or having a psychotic break."
She frowned. "I know what a psychotic break is Victor and I was not having one!"
"Mum, you have been under a lot of stress. We all just woke up from a curse…"
"Cassandra Willhemina Bergmann, I was NOT having a psychotic break! It had to be some kind of spell though for the life of me I have NO idea why someone would've done that me. I don't live anywhere near Storybrooke!"
"I might ask Rumple about it and see what he says."
"I'm fine, Victor."
"But Mum…."
"I'm fine!" Lilly insisted firmly.
Cassie shook her head. Her mother was far from fine but damned if she could convince her of it!
Enchanted Forest Two
(Canon-verse)
One day after the Final Eclipse
There was a new resident in what once was the Evil Queen's palace, her identity a closely guarded secret, but in Oz, her name and image struck terror in the hearts of all its citizens. They breathed a collective sigh of relief when she suddenly decided to leave her palace in the Emerald City. No one knew where she went, nor did they care. She was another realm's problem now.
A mobat demon flew through the open window of the Queen's chambers.
"Did you get what I need?"
Yes, Mistress.
"Show me."
The demon held up a talon covered in blood.
"That's her blood? The Queen's?"
The demon nodded enthusiastically.
"Hmm, lovely." She grabbed a vial off the dresser and held it out, allowing the precious substance to drip into it. "And now, now I shall get my revenge!" She replaced the stopper and shook the bottle.
You will, Mistress?
"Of course I will. The Queen may be evil but I'm wicked." She turned to face her reflection. "And wicked always wins!"
"With a little help…of course!"
She gasped, nearly dropping her precious bundle.
"Well, that's a new look for you! You were in a girl's body the last time. The Dorothy from your world I believe."
"And now I'm in this one," Alemedia said as she lounged on a chaise in Wyatt's body. "Hello again, Zelena. I see you've made yourself at home…in your sister's home."
"It should've been mine!" she snarled. "Instead our mother left me in a damned basket in the middle of nowhere and a twister took me to OZ while Regina got everything she ever wanted! I want to go back and change it. I need to change it."
"All you need are the proper ingredients dear. But one of them is in Ephesis at the moment."
"Rumplestiltskin is dead?"
"Oh, I am sorry. I know how much you cared for him," Alemedia taunted and laughed.
Zelena snorted. "The stupidity of a lovesick girl!"
"You didn't do so well with my father either, did you?"
She flinched. "No, no I didn't. Why are you here other than to torment me?"
"The only way to get what you want is to resurrect one of my Dark Ones."
"And how am I supposed to do that?"
Alemedia waved her hand and a strange looking key appeared in it. "With this. You get Rumplestiltskin's son to touch that key and you can have your revenge."
"And what price do I have to pay for this favor?"
She grinned. "Nothing but to continue to be as wicked as you are."
"That won't be difficult!" Zelena cackled.
Oh I know it won't….Mother, Alemedia thought gleefully. Resurrecting her mother, the weak hearted Persephone Diosa into the worst version of herself had been the goddess's ultimate revenge. As Zelena, Persephone would unleash chaos on the second realm she and her beloved Hades had created, shifting the Balance further into darkness. And if she succeeded in travelling through time, the possibilities would be endless.
"Do you think she will?" Silas demanded when she teleported out of the castle.
"I bound her memories but not her powers, Silas. She'll succeed."
"If they don't kill her first."
"They can't."
"Oh?"
"You've been a Dark One long enough to realize that only a god can kill another god."
"But in the OZ…"
"Katia did not break the emerald. I did."
"You took over Lavinia's body long enough to do it and had Cain kill her."
"She'd outlived her usefulness."
"When is my brother going to get the dagger?"
"Before the last of your life force fades. You can amuse yourself with your killing in the meantime."
"I find the hunt more thrilling than the kill. Nonestica's demise has given me an endless supply of game to hunt," Silas laughed and vanished.
Storybrooke, Maine
One day after the Final Eclipse
Although she was exhausted from her ordeal Regina knew that as mayor, it was her responsibility to see that the new arrivals in her town were taken care of. Emma volunteered to drive her, Robin and Roland back to her home on Mifflin Street after she awoke so that she could at least change her clothes, get something to eat and some rest though she herself was exhausted. She called the television station during the drive informing them to interrupt regular broadcasting in two hours so that she could speak directly to the citizens explaining the situation and ask for aid for the survivors of their land's destruction. She also called Rumple to tell him that they would also need to call an emergency meeting of the Mage Council to discuss any magical ramifications of the day's events on their town. He, Az and DG were also exhausted but they agreed to attend, and he asked Belle to start making the necessary calls on his behalf while he was still talking to Regina.
After Belle hung up the phone she sat down beside her bondmate her eyes filled with tears. "All those people in Oz..." she croaked. "Men...women..."
"I know," he said softly as he wrapped his arms around her. "Thank the gods Lavinia was able to warn us what was happening so we could at least get people from the Enchanted Forest, Agrabah and Wonderland out."
"It shouldn't have happened!" Belle cried. "She knew what destroying that emerald would do...she knew!"
"She died trying to stop it from being destroyed. A land built through magic cannot survive without it." He stood up and retrieved his overcoat from the rack. Once they stepped outside Bae got behind the wheel of the Caddy.
"Papa, you should be resting."
"Later, Baelfire. There is work to be done."
There was already a large crowd assembled at the town hall when they arrived. A large table was set up on the stage where the members of the mage council as they were now calling themselves would be sitting along with the officers of the Storybrooke Sheriff's department. Regina pounded her gavel to call the meeting to order.
"As you all know, a terrible tragedy occurred last night. Our home, Nonestica, has been destroyed." She sighed. "I brought you all here by my curse knowing that once you awakened some of you would long to return home but now, now that is no longer possible. We must now carry on with our lives in this world."
"Yeah but this town ain't big enough for all of us now!" Leroy protested.
"That is why we will be expanding the town's borders and anyone who wishes to leave and start anew may do so. The town line barrier will no longer affect you. Many of us have lived in this land long enough that we can make the adjustment. Our new arrivals however, cannot. I am asking everyone to help me help them have a comfortable transition into live in this new land they find themselves in."
David raised his hand.
"Deputy Molk?"
"Madam Mayor, not everyone who escaped Nonestica was brought here. I was contacted last night by one of my counterparts from the third Enchanted Forest. He and his team picked up a high level of portal activity in Washington. They were able to pick up everyone they could find but he also told me portals opened all over the map. We still have people missing."
"Wait…there's more of us?" Happy asked.
"Nonestica was the original of six worlds my ancestors Hades and Persephone created," Rumple spoke up. "The other five run parallel to it and in them we may be leading the same lives or different lives. In some cases, we may not exist at all. Parallel Storybrookes exist as well, their entrances hidden by cloaking spells outside our town line."
"So why weren't these other worlds destroyed?" Ruby wanted to know.
"Lurline tethered her life force to one…Nonestica. The tether was an emerald like the one that I wear only mine is a small piece from the original stone. The original stone was called the Heart of Lurline," Az added.
"Destroying the Heart of Lurline is what destroyed Nonestica. And unlike Regina's trigger, the Heart of Lurline was not easy to destroy because it contained the life force of a goddess. We assumed my aunt Katia would be the one to destroy the stone, but we were wrong. Alemedia did it herself. Only a god can kill another god and Alemedia killed Lurline, using my mother's body," DG confessed.
"How do you know that?" Granny demanded.
"Because I see it. I am still a Dark One."
People began backing away from her.
"So…with Lurline gone, what happens now?"
"Lurline's powers have passed to her successor and when the time is right, he will take his rightful place on the throne of Paradise."
"If I don't kill him first!" Alemedia snarled, once again in control of DG's body her hands glowing with magic.
"Out! Everyone out! Now!" Rumple ordered. People jumped out of their seats and ran for the doors, screaming and nearly trampling each other trying to escape until Archie and Az teleported them out.
"You can try," Henry challenged as he stepped out from behind his parents and slammed the tip of his staff into the floor. "Her powers have passed to me, Alemedia Demonia and though I may be a child now, I won't be later." Pandora's Box appeared in his hand. "To thy prison I banish thee!" he chanted, waving his hand over the stone. A cloud of red smoke surrounded DG and pulled her inside the box, the goddess screaming out her age.
"What did you do? She still has my sister!" Az cried. "Bring her back."
"He can't!" Archie protested.
"Dammit, Archie I can't lose her again!"
Archie gripped his wife's shoulders and forced her to look at him. "Dellia, listen to me! DG is a greater threat to us now that Nonestica has been destroyed. I'm sorry but….but there's no other way….we have to contain her until we find a way to neutralize her blade."
"She won't want to….without Wyatt," she sniffled.
Emma and Baelfire stared hard at their son holding Pandora's Box in his hand.
"Papa, what did Henry mean when he said Lurline's powers passed to him?" Bae demanded. "Does it mean what I think it does?"
"It does indeed son."
"Our son is a…god?!" Emma exclaimed.
A puff of silver smoke appeared in the town hall revealing Adora. She clenched her hand into a fist and knelt before the boy.
"I give you my word that I will serve and protect you until my last breath, my lord for my world as a Talon is my bond," she recited.
"Oh, come on! Stand up Ozmalita! I'm just a kid!"
"You are Lurline's successor, Henry Alexander Dioso," she declared. "And on your hundredth annual you will ascend to the throne of Paradise but while you are young you are still in danger. The circle must be completed."
"It can't be without Wyatt!" Az reminded them.
"That's why I sent DG to Ephesis," Henry said. "It's where he is."
"So he's still alive," Rumple murmured.
"And the curse placed on him and DG is still active. The curse's point of origin is in Ephesis and that is where they have to break it." He sighed heavily. "If they can."
Until then all they could do was wait…and hope for the best.
Storybrooke, Maine
Two days after the Final Eclipse
The convent and school gymnasium had been transformed into temporary shelters as they had been when the Ephesian Wraith ravaged the town a month earlier. The fairies and faculty were doing their best to make certain everyone had comfortable beds while the staff at Granny's diner was working around the clock to provide plenty of food for everyone while Archie teleported from one end of the town to another offering counseling services to those who needed it. The Storybrooke sheriff's department was also working overtime, the former officers of the SFPD having more experience dealing with crisis situations. They began keeping a list of who arrived through the portals and if anyone was separated.
"We were lucky we got those portals redirected when we did," David was saying to his brother and Az. "No one who came through our portal got separated but Isaac says there's at least sixty families with members missing from the portals that opened up there. He's got a team looking for them and he also told us something interesting….when I came here my counterpart from Enchanted Forest Six got sent down to the Bay. I may have to call him and bring him up to speed if his curse has been broken."
Archie's eyes widened. "So we're twins there?"
"Yeah…and lead almost similar lives…so far."
"Has there been any Home Office activity in Storybrooke Six?" Emma demanded.
"Not yet but Wallace and Weaver are keeping an eye on it while they get their refugees settled in."
"Call him again and tell him we need his reports on that portal activity, dearie. He's gonna need our help finding everyone and we'll need to set up safe havens outside the town line," Rumple instructed.
"Rumple, you should rest…" Belle insisted.
"There's no time now sweetheart. There is too much work to be done."
That evening Regina went on the news pleading again for the town's assistance with the refugees. Jasmine, the former Sultana of Agrabah and Anastasia and Will of Wonderland also addressed their people, reassuring them that they would be safe in their new home. Will, a former resident of Storybrooke himself was familiar with modern technology and he and his queen had been in the process of modernizing Wonderland when the disaster struck.
"What's going to happen to us...now that Pan is dead. He was using his magic to keep us alive," Jonathan Darling asked worriedly, indicating himself, Michael and Wendy. "We should be dead now."
"He was just telling you that, so you'd do his bidding," Rumple said. "The only magic he was using was freezing your aging process as he did with your sister, the same process that worked here during the Dark Curse. Both are undone now, and you'll age normally, Wendy being the only exception because the process was started when she was younger than you are now."
"Is it possible to make me older?" Wendy asked.
"Are you sure that is what you want?" Rumple asked softly.
"Yes."
"Rumple, don't you think you should rest first? You've been doing so much magic already," Belle asked.
"Sweetheart, the Darlings gave my son a home and a family when he thought he no longer had his. I owe them a debt and I must repay it," Rumple said as he took her hands in his. "If what Hope says is true, once the spell is completed, I'll be needing that rest anyway."
"I know but you've barely had time to..."
"Mourn my father? I mourned him years ago. This needs to be done Belle."
Realizing any further arguments with him would be futile, she nodded. "Whatever happens, I'll be with you every step of the way, but it doesn't stop me from worrying."
When they returned to Rumple's shop, he retrieved an old spell book from the shelf and handed it to Belle. She opened it to the page he needed while Bae made Wendy comfortable on the small cot in the backroom his of shop with Jonathan and Michael kneeling beside her.
"How old do you want to be, Wendy?" Rumple inquired.
"I'm actually the oldest...we're two years apart so I will need to be two years older than Michael," Wendy explained.
"And I stopped aging at twenty-one," Michael added.
"All right. Close your eyes Wendy and when you wake up you will now be twenty-three," Rumple instructed. "Michael, Jonathan, we'll need you to step aside for a few minutes, please." Rumple instructed and began to chant in Ozian. The others stared in awe as her body began to change from that of a prepubescent teenager into a young woman around Belle's age.
"Do you feel all right, Wendy?" Rumple asked her.
"I feel fine Mr. Gold. Thank you," she answered in a more mature voice and held out her arms to her three brothers. "I don't feel any different. Do I look different?"
"Not much," Bae admitted.
"Rumple!" Belle cried out as Rumple sank to the floor. She kneeled beside him and helped him sit up. "Dammit, I told you to rest and you should've listened to me instead of being so damned stubborn!"
"Not even married...and you're already acting like a wife," he muttered.
"All right everyone hear this: you need magic or a solution to any problem, you go bother Blue, Regina, Az, Archie, Emma or Tinkerbell because Rumplestiltskin is NOT leaving his bed until he gets some rest...is that clear?" Belle asked as she glared at the assembled company. Having never seen the beauty in such a rage, the others were too terrified to argue with her.
"Wow Papa, she's got some temper on her!"
"Oh, you haven't seen the worst of it yet," he said while Bae and Belle helped him to his feet and led him outside to his Cadillac and smiled as he remembered their spats back in the Dark Castle. To his surprise Belle got in the driver's seat. "Ahh, sweetheart...maybe Bae should drive," he suggested.
"I know how to drive. Ruby taught me."
"Should I be worried?" he quipped.
"Rumplestiltskin, if you make one snide comment about women drivers you will be going home in the trunk or sleeping with the fishes," she threatened while Bae watched him, his belly aching as he doubled over laughing.
"You even fight like a married couple!"
"Always have," Rumple murmured.
Belle smiled. She didn't need the words or the ring...she already felt like they were married. They did everything a married couple was supposed to do, except have a child. Part of her hoped she already was carrying one.
"Grandpa...can I come over to visit you...when you're feeling better?" Henry asked.
"You can visit me any time you want, Henry."
"How about tomorrow?" Belle suggested.
"Really?"
"Of course."
Although it was a short drive to Rumple's house, he was already asleep by the time Belle pulled into the driveway. She got out of the car and walked over to the passenger door, giving him a kiss to wake him. He smiled.
"I didn't make any comments about your driving," he reminded her.
"No, you didn't. Let's get you to bed," she said softly as Bae helped him out of the car and upstairs to his bedroom. He sat down on the edge of the bed.
"Neal, would you mind waiting downstairs?" Belle asked.
"But...Belle..." Rumple protested.
"No, it's okay Papa. You need to get some sleep." Bae insisted and left them alone in the room. Rumple started unbuttoning his shirt.
"No, darling, let me do that." Belle insisted.
"But..." he mumbled.
"Rumple...it isn't as if I haven't seen you undressed before." she reminded him gently as she helped him undress, feeling tears brimming in the corners of her eyes when she saw the knife scar on his chest. Once she had him dressed in his pajamas, he lay back on the bed and was asleep again as soon as his head touched the pillow. She kissed him softly on the lips and went downstairs to fix some tea. She also wanted to have a talk with Bae. They hadn't gotten a chance to have a heart to heart and now she felt it was time.
"Is he asleep?" Bae asked her.
Yes. Would you like some tea?" she asked softly.
"Umm...coffee will be good. Not much of a tea drinker," he said.
Belle returned to the living room carrying a tray with two cups on it as well as some finger sandwiches. She set the tray on the coffee table and handed one of the cups to Bae while she took the other. It had a chip in it.
"Now then, are you going to honor your father's wishes and fight for Emma?" she demanded, her eyes meeting his over the rim of her cup.
He gasped, nearly spitting out his coffee. "You go for the jugular, don't you?"
"I learned from the best," she said with a grin. "But you haven't answered my question."
"I want to…I really do…and not just for Henry but…I've…I've got a history."
"Emma may find it hard to understand now but you had to be separated all those years ago for her to be set on the path to become the person she is now."
"And Papa had to lose me to set him on the path to become what he is. Strangely enough, my son is the one who helped me understand that. My son…the god." He exhaled sharply. "I'm still not used to that one! But Belle, I'm not just talking about that time in Portland. I have a past somewhere else….with someone else."
"Tamara?"
He shook his head violently. "I think I was drawn to Tamara because she looked like this woman I'm talking about. Molk's wife would know who she is."
"You've met her before you came to Storybrooke?"
"Beth lived in Miami during her first two marriages. Molk's her third husband." His eyes narrowed. "And I'm beginning to think it wasn't a coincidence I ended up there either."
"Why?"
"Because I think I found some of Papa's relatives there….from Pan's side. They had the same last name he did…and one of them told me there was a history of witchcraft in their family. Beth was married to Jamie McDermott, the actor."
"Whom Rumple suspects was using dark magic on her to keep her under his control before he was shot by the police. Were there any other relations?"
"He has a sister named Channon, his mother Catriona and gram Fiona. Fie and Cattie live in Scotland. Plus there's another cousin from England…he's kinda off the grid. And we know Zee is his cousin on his mother's side."
"I have a feeling finding this family is on your father's to-do list once we get everything settled. Just how serious is the history you have with this other woman?"
"Very," Bae murmured. "I was thinking about marrying her but she….she didn't think she was good enough for me. Belle, if my father finds out what I was doing in Miami he is going to kill me!"
"Bae, you weren't involved in anything else illegal…were you?"
He didn't need to reply. The expression on his face spoke volumes.
"You'd better tell me all of it."
An hour later Belle sat back in Rumple's chair, her knuckles white from holding her teacup with so much force.
"You need to tell Rumple. Right away."
"He's gonna kill me!"
"Would you rather he found out from someone else: like this Detective Rivera or Willie Roasch?"
"NO! Rivera would twist it and Roasch would try to kill me again."
"I won't tell him…for now…but I suggest that you do Baelfire Strogoff-Gold and soon! Now then, we're going to talk a little more about the Emma situation and what you're going to do to fix it."
"I can't."
"You sound like your father. Having trouble believing you deserve to be loved, but you do. Maybe if you give Emma time, she'll realize you belong together."
"There's too many hurt feelings between us, Belle. The only thing we can do is be friends for Henry's sake."
"I just hate to see you give up."
"I know it feels that way to you but not me. I screwed up so much with my life that I don't think I'm ready for a relationship right now. I need to spend some time getting to know Papa again...and Henry."
She smiled. "Well, you know I'm here to help with that. I'd like you and Henry to come over for dinner tomorrow and if you want to bring someone...perhaps Emma, that would be wonderful."
"You're not going to give up on that, are you?"
"No. I'll keep on you until you have your own true love."
He laughed. "My father is going to have his hands full with you."
"Oh, he's used to it by now. Which brings me to another question: are you all right with us being together? I know I'm not your mother."
"Right now, you're being more of a mother to me than she was," Neal said. "You've brought back the man my father used to be, the man I loved before it all went to hell and I'll be forever grateful to you for that."
"His love for you did that too, Bae. He never stopped searching for you. He never forgot you. He did all of this for you."
"For us," Bae corrected. "I'm glad now he doesn't have that damned prophecy hanging over his head anymore and he can start being a grandparent to Henry. The cycle has to end somewhere."
"And it has," Belle confirmed. "We all need to let go of the past and start thinking about our futures, just like I told him so many times."
When Belle returned to the bedroom to check on him, he was just as she left him. She made herself comfortable in the chair beside the bed and opened a book. An hour later she too was asleep.
"No...no...Bae...Belle...Henry!"
Belle awoke when she heard Rumple crying out in his sleep, his arms and legs thrashing about wildly. She crawled onto the bed and reached for him. "Rumple, Rumple...darling, please wake up...it's just a nightmare."
As soon as her hand touched his chest, he opened his eyes and threw his arms around her. "You're here...you're alive..." he sobbed.
"It was just a nightmare, darling," she soothed.
He gasped in horror as he gazed out the window and saw a bright green light in the sky. "The curse...he's cast it!" he cried frantically. "We have to leave here or it will kill us all!"
"Darling, darling...the curse was stopped when he died." Belle assured him.
"But...the light..."
"What light?" she asked.
"Don't you see it!?" he demanded. "It's right there..." he said, pointing out the window.
Belle glanced in the direction he was pointing but saw nothing. She cupped his face in her hands and kissed him softly. "It's going to be all right, darling. Go back to sleep."
Thinking it was merely the aftereffects of his nightmare, Rumple lay back down, still holding Belle tightly to him.
Bae froze where he stood when he saw a bright beam of green light in the sky while he walked with Tink, Wendy and her brothers back to Granny's. "What the hell is that?" he mused.
"What's what?" Tink asked. She didn't see anything.
"You don't see that? There's a light in the sky."
"I don't see anything, Bae."
"I guess I need to get my eyes checked then," he muttered as they walked back to Granny's Bed and Breakfast.
At first Henry thought his eyes were playing tricks on him but when he opened them again, he could see a bright bream of green light in the sky.
"Mom, are you seeing that?" he asked Regina.
"Seeing what, honey?"
"That green light."
Regina glanced up. All she could see was a clear sky much to her relief. "I don't see anything honey. We've all had a difficult day. Days…"
Henry frowned. Why wasn't she seeing it when it was bright enough to light up the whole town even when it was dark? There had to be some answers in the Book of the Ancients or somewhere.
"Henry Dioso summons thee
Aramon Dioso, appear now before me!" he chanted. A puff of black smoke appeared revealing the former Ozian god. Henry clenched his hand into a fist and knelt before his ancestor and superior.
"Rise child," the god answered.
"The light."
"The final battle his begun but its climax must be fought here. The two Dark Ones must neutralize their blades before the stroke of midnight on the fourth day after the final eclipse or Alemedia will be free to wander the realms in her true form," the god announced. "If they succeed, in one hundred years' time they will take their rightful places on the dark thrones."
Henry's face paled. "DG and Wyatt will rule Ephesis?"
"They have been chosen to ascend to the dark throne as you have been chosen to ascend to the throne of light, child. You and the woman that will become your true bondmate."
"But my mothers…."
"Your mothers' task will be to protect your heart, to prepare it for the day when you divide it in a union of heart, body and soul."
"Who is my bondmate?"
"She will reveal herself at the proper time. Now Henry, you must prepare the others for the battle to come."
The god vanished.
"DG, you cannot fail this time!" Henry cried as he gazed into a seeing globe. "You can't!"
Storybrooke, Maine
Three days after the Final Eclipse
Rumple sat on the edge of the bed the next morning with the chipped teacup and a long gold string he spun himself in his hands. Calling on his magic he shrunk the cup down until it was the size of a small pendant and transformed the gold string into a chain. He attached the cup to the chain and smiled. The door burst open and Belle walked in, glaring at him. Damn. He'd forgotten that having part of his heart inside her gave her the ability to sense when he was using too much magic and draining himself. He closed his hand, concealing the necklace from her view.
"What the hell are you trying to do?" she snapped. "Kill yourself?! You know you shouldn't be using magic yet! What do I have to do to make you listen? You stay in that bed until I say you can get up and NO MAGIC!"
"It was a simple spell," he protested.
"For what? What may I ask is so damned important that it can't wait until you're recovered?"
He opened his palm revealing a gold chain with a small object on it. "Well most men do this on their knees and with a diamond ring but I'm not most men...and I'm not allowed to get out of bed," he added. "I told you before the only future I was interested in was the one where we were together. I still am." He held the necklace out to her. "Will you marry me, Belle?"
"Yes," she whispered, taking the chain in her hands.
"Ohhhh...you made me a mini chipped cup!"
"Umm...about that...well...it is the cup, my sweetheart," he said nervously. "I just redid the spell we had on it earlier."
"That's what you used magic for?"
"Yes." He braced himself for her anger. Instead she threw her arms around him and kissed him.
"Don't use anymore. The sooner you get better, the sooner we can be married." she murmured.
"As you wish," he said, and he pulled her onto the bed with him and kissed her.
"Your lunch!" she protested.
"Already having it," he quipped as he started undressing her. She giggled and swatted his shoulder.
"Grandpa!" he heard Henry calling from downstairs just as they had discarded the last of their clothes. "Belle? You here?"
They froze.
"Oh my God...please don't let him come up here yet..." Belle pleaded as she crawled out from underneath him and wrapped herself in the sheet. "Rumple, where are my. .."
"I don't know where I threw them," he cried. "Where are my pants?"
"Over here..." she said and tossed them at him. "Oh no, I can hear him coming up the steps!"
"Dammit," Rumple grumbled as he struggled to pull his pajama pants on. "Belle, are you dressed yet?"
"No...one of the buttons on my sweater popped off and I can't find my bra!"
"Then I'll just fix it..."
"NO magic!"
"Sweetheart, unless you want our grandson to see us half naked and scar him more than he already is can we please make an exception!" he pleaded. "Or you do it! You know how!"
"Grandpa! Belle!" Henry called out from the end of the hallway.
"Tick tock, dearie!" Rumple cried urgently.
"All right!" Belle groaned. She waved her hand and both were back in their clothes. Belle ran to the door to open it while Rumple hobbled back into bed. "In here, Henry," she called out.
"Hi Belle," he greeted then walked over to the bed and embraced his grandfather. "Hi Grandpa."
"Hello, Henry."
"Was I interrupting something?" the boy inquired, grinning when he noticed some lipstick marks on his grandfather's neck.
"What? Umm...no...why would you ask that?" Rumple stammered.
"Because you guys look as nervous as Grandpa David and Grandma Snow did the day Mom and I got back to her place and found them in bed in the middle of the day...and they were kinda naked so they were probably having sex."
Belle buried her face in her hands and giggled.
"Aren't you a bit young to know about that?" Rumple demanded. "What are they teaching in that school!"
"We don't get sex ed til seventh grade but it's all over TV."
"I'll be having a discussion with your parents about your television watching habits, Henry Mills Strogoff-Gold," Rumple said firmly while Belle struggled to control her laughter. He glared over at her.
"It's okay if you were ummm...doing that."
"We are not having that discussion yet!"
"When did you have it with Dad?"
"When he was thirteen...and you still have two more years to go!" Rumple reminded him. "Why don't we go downstairs and see what Belle made us for lunch," he suggested, desperate to change the subject.
"Now that Pan's gone and his curse is too, do you think we'll be able to bring back all the happy endings?" Henry asked him once they were gathered in the dining room.
"Ummm...Henry...some of them are already happening," his grandfather reminded him.
"What about yours?"
"Mine?"
"Yeah. You're the beast and you're supposed to be with Belle. You are but...not married yet."
Belle smiled. "Your grandfather proposed a bit ago and I've accepted."
"You did?" He glanced down at her ring finger. "Where's your ring?"
"I did something a bit different...she's wearing it," Rumple answered.
"Oh! You made her cup into a necklace because its your symbol. That's so cool!" Henry exclaimed. "Did you tell my dad yet?"
"We're going to tell him at dinner tonight so..." He imitated zipping his lips.
"Ummm...he told me he's bringing someone over...is that okay?"
"Your mother?" Rumple asked hopefully. Reconnecting with Emma was something his son wanted desperately. It was also his wish.
"Ummm...no. Tink."
"I won't have my son making Tink a rebound girl. And she is a nice girl...for a fairy."
"Rumple!" Belle swatted his hand while Henry chuckled. He enjoyed seeing this lighter side of his grandfather and he saw that Belle brought that out of him more than anyone else. The three of them spent most of the day talking and when it came time to get dinner ready Henry surprised them by pitching in.
"Mom taught me how to cook some stuff," he said proudly and rolled up his sleeves. "What do you want for dessert?"
Rumple smiled. "Surprise me."
"All right, but you gotta leave the kitchen."
"I do know how to cook."
"Yeah but you'll ruin the surprise."
"I'm being thrown out of my own kitchen," he complained and retreated to the living room to read the newspaper while he waited for Bae and Tinkerbell to arrive.
Despite his prejudice against fairies, Rumple noticed that his son and Tinkerbell seemed to be getting along well, much better than he and Emma did. The best he could hope for was that Emma and Bae could come to some sort of agreement with Regina that the three of them could share custody of Henry.
"Papa, I know I really shouldn't bring this up now but...something strange happened last night."
Rumple tensed. "What, Bae?"
"You too?" Henry asked.
Rumple glanced over at his grandson. "Something happened to you too, Henry?"
"Yeah...I saw a weird green light in the sky."
Belle and Rumple's forks dropped to their plates with a clang as did Bae's.
"You too!" Bae exclaimed.
"I saw the light...but Belle didn't." Rumple answered.
"I summoned Aramon. The light was coming from Ephesis. Aramon said the final battle was starting and the end of it had to be fought here. He said that DG and Wyatt have to neutralize their blades before midnight tomorrow night or…"
"Alemedia will walk the earth in her true form with no prison to bind her," Rumple finished. "DG and Wyatt have to fight here where Alemedia's powers can be contained. If they succeed, in a hundred years they will ascend to her throne."
"Wait a minute…they'll become gods?" Bae exclaimed.
"Yes. This was the second prophecy Lurline and Alemedia feared and it was this one, not the Final Eclipse as we all believed that got Aramon stripped of his powers and locked in Ephesis. He knew two of his descendants would be powerful enough to defeat Lurline and Alemedia and they were hoping their grandmother's curse would wipe them out before they could."
Belle sighed deeply. "I just wish we could all get a day off from this."
"We're Guardians, dearie. We don't get a day off," Rumple reminded her.
Tink was silent through most of the meal but while Henry and Bae challenged each other to a video game in the living room Rumple and Belle took the young fae outside for a chat.
"Do you have feelings for my son?" Rumple inquired.
"We're friends," she replied.
"But do you wish to be more than that?"
"I don't know. I've never thought of Bae that way. He was just a child when I met him. Thinking of him differently would be a bit strange, don't you think?"
"It has happened. Look at Archie and Az."
"That's different. They're bound to each other."
"Tinkerbell, I am going to be frank. It was my hope that my son would reconcile with Henry's mother but if that is no longer possible….then you have my blessing if your feelings change at some point."
She smiled. "Thank you Rumple. But as I said before, it may be a bit awkward at first."
"True love is always worth fighting for," Belle said softly. "If it's not Bae then maybe there is another man out there for you."
"Blue…Galaluna…she forbids it!"
"You let me deal with her, dearie."
Archie's Office
Three days after the Final Eclipse
"…My darling daughters, among my many sins as a mother, queen and wife, I fear my greatest was withholding certain truths from you. Now those truths must be spoken."
"The fault for Bastinda's release is neither yours nor Azkadellia's my DG. It is mine. It is mine because I was not at a council meeting as I claimed to be. I was with a man, a man you know well and that man, that man my DG is your real father."
"I do love your father, my Azkadellia but I also loved this man too and it was difficult for us to end our affair once Archie learned of and confronted us with it. I know concealing this truth was difficult for you Archie, but you did so not only to protect Azkadellia but DG as well and I thank you for that."
"Forgive me, Ambrose. We made a vow many years ago that we would take this secret to our graves, but I must now break this vow. Too many secrets have been kept already and this is what is giving the darkness its power over our child. She must use it now to return her soul to the light."
"DG, even if Ahamo knew the truth know that he still loved you as if you were his own and you must NEVER forget that. A spell of mine may have given you his artistic gift but not his love. That you earned. Continue to carry it with you my angel."
"I love you my angels."
Archie cradled his bondmate in his arms, offering her what little comfort he could as she viewed her mother's final messages to her and her sister.
"Mama, Papa…Vinny…" Ambrose moaned, burying his face in Raw's shoulder while his other arm was around Xenia while she mourned their parents.
"Queen needed to tell truth to help DG and Az," Raw murmured. "And Callux and Medira with Mistress Alana in Paradise."
"DG, please….don't let Mother's sacrifice be in vain….restore the Balance!" Az pleaded through her tears.
It was now midnight and only twenty-four hours remained before the realms' greatest evil would be released.