Chapter Nineteen~

A little before eight am the next morning David stood inside Mary's apartment next to Odette who looked more determined than either Emma or Mary. Mary was fiddling with her hands as Emma paces biting her thumb as she muttered,

"I still don't like this."

"But it's our best chance Emma, no matter what happened in the past it was True Loves Kiss that brought her back." David tried to convince her but Mary couldn't believe that the very same powerful truth—Love—came from such a wicked being as Rumpelstiltskin could share in the same feeling. Finally David turned to the clock and said,

"It's time, come on Odette." then he quickly kissed Mary and hugged Emma before the two of them left the building going as quickly as they could to Mr. Gold's house. As soon as they reached his yard they noticed hanging clear crystals on the trees and exchanged glances, Magic perhaps? Either way the two stepped up to the door and it was David who knocked so that Mr. Gold opened the door giving them a smile.

"I see you're right on schedule. Odette step right on in, Charming everything shall be completed by tomorrow the same time." Mr. Gold said evenly keeping his face cool and composed as David said to him,

"Remember the deal Gold." he bowed his head and waved an arm for Odette to enter the house though before she did she hugged David tightly saying to him as she pulled back,

"Tell everyone I'll be fine alright? And tell Emma—I'll see her again." David smiled at this and kissed her cheek in a family manner before watching her enter the house and frowning when Mr. Gold gave him a sly smile before the door shut. Once inside Mr. Gold said,

"Come my dear, we'll be working in the study—I had it set up for enacting the spell." he limped leading the way for her through the house noticing she was staring up at the second floor as she asked,

"Was I here before?" he paused and looked over his shoulder at her face that was relaxed as she looked to him for answers as he replied simply,

"You had dinner here once, as Darcy." she nodded at his answer and simply followed him into a large room where the furniture was all moved against the walls and on the floor was a carpet, two chairs in front of a small end table where a large text book sat. On the end table were various vials, a medium size bowl, a copper spoon, several different color crystals and other strange objects that Odette examined.

"Take a seat here." Mr. Gold said as he sat across from her so that once the two were seated he began,

"This spell is a very time consuming one; it will tax on your mind, body and perhaps even soul depending on how deeply your memories have been erased. It will take all of today and enter into tomorrow morning as you heard though when the spell is completed and you'll most likely end up passing out from the taxing pain. I warn you of that now my dear so be ready for that," he paused to gauge her reaction only to see her nod and give a half-smile so that he continued,

"I can't say how painful it will be, but you have to focus on something positive, like your family. Anything positive in your mind will strengthen your chance of regaining your memories and will quicken the spells chance of working. Now, do you have any questions?"

"Just one, why are you willing to help us so much?" Odette wondered softly so that she watched as his face soften as he said simply,

"Because it was part of the deal was it not?"

"No I mean besides that." Odette pressed only he dismissed her question with his words,

"We need to begin." so he opened the text book written in a strange rune sort of language and looking up at her said as he handed her the medium size dark blue vial,

"Drink this one, it will begin the spell." taking it from him, Odette gave him one hopeful look before opening the topper and swallowing the liquid while he began to chant. She began feeling lightheaded and dizzy, feeling as if she was both floating and ground level at the same time as she put a hand to her head to try to stop the spinning and closed her eyes. She listened as his voice began to grow into an echo and distant and all around her at the same time as he watched her sway slightly in her chair before she began seeing herself in a ballroom. It was her fifth birthday ball of that she was certain because she was a five year old dancing with Charming. He was smiling and laughing at her silly antics making her outwardly smile. Then the scene changed to her standing in front of Rumpelstiltskin asking why his skin was funny. Then everything speed up—yet was clearly visible for her and every word hearable as she watched and listened to years of her life be presented before her. Appearing in the Boston Harbor, going into the foster care system, growing out of it, then meeting a certain someone on a certain rainy night at Johnny's Hillside.

"Concentrate Odette." Mr. Gold said watching as the aura around her, the thing he needed to concentrate on besides what he was doing, was began to weaken.

"I—it hurts." she muttered grabbing her head in a vise like grip as she scrunched up her face and tried not to sob as tears began to leak out of her closed eyes. From here she watched as a tree fell on the hood of a car and she was walking into this strange town to find Snow and Charming's daughter. Everything was so confusing!

"Just concentrate Odette, you're seeing yourself as Darcy and you have to accept that." Mr. Gold said evenly but wanted so badly to reach out and take her hand in support, but she wasn't to be touched until the spell was completed. Odette watched as images of the man before her kept flying across her vision and felt her chest aching, as if her very heart was going to explode inside her ribcage. Letting out a cry of utter distress, she gripped the table and it began to glow from her hands as Mr. Gold said,

"Take deep breaths Odette, calm down you're receiving too much power!" only she couldn't hear him, it was as if everything was being blocked off by the pain she was feeling inside her very bones vibrating throughout her body and then onto her skin. Panting and in a thin sheen of sweat, she let out a scream that had Mr. Gold covering his ears. She was seeing too much at once and it was sending too much power into her body at one time! As he removed his hands from his ears to try to continue the spell quicker to finish it faster so she'd be free of the pain, she gripped his hand and he lurched in his seat. Suddenly her eyes snapped open and she stared deeply straight into his own seeing images from his own memories. Unable to speak let alone shake free of her grasp, he watched as she relived the night before—when Belle had arrived at his shop.

FLASHBACK~~

As the female librarian entered the shop and he came back into the main part of the shop, Mr. Gold found himself unable to move as she just stood within the doorway.

"Um, I know this might seem a bit unorthodox, but I seem to find you strangely familiar—and was hoping you could tell me why." the woman said softly, looking at him expectantly as Mr. Gold leaned against the counter and gripped his cane impossibly tight.

"We, we used to know one another—a very long time ago." was his reply so that he watched as she stepped over closer and asked,

"How long is long? Because I—I can't seem to stop thinking about your face only it's not quite the same as when I last saw it….." here she trailed off as she paused just before him moving to reach up and touch him but stopped when she realized that was rude of her. Even so, the air between them was clearly electrified as she kept allowing her eyes to wander over his face. Very slowly she leaned in closer towards him and—

END OF FLASHBACK~~

Somehow Mr. Gold was able to pull away from her vise tight grip on him and as he did she was blasted completely back against the wall, hitting her head against it impossibly hard and falling limp onto the ground still charged from the spell. Mr. Gold then quickly speed up reading the text and as he was getting to the end watched the aura around her and the charge dissipate so that all that was left was a slight haze over her that was wafting into the vents. Saying the last few lines in closing, he took a single crystal and cracked it in half into the bowl causing it to smoke and burst into sparks signaling the end of the spell allowing him to rush over and tend to Odette. Kneeling down beside her, he helped her gently roll over onto her side as she moaned in pain, going to grip her head.

"Odette, are you ok?" he said softly to see a bruise forming on her head. She was breathing but clearly knocked out cold so exhaled deeply knowing she had seen him and Belle in his shop so would have to deal with that when she woke. For now though he would take her up to the bedroom she had first woken in, so carefully standing lifted her into his arms and carried her up to that bedroom and laid her down in the bed. When the door was shut behind him he went back downstairs and once there began to head for the study to clean up when someone knocked on the front door. When he opened it he found it was of all the people in town young Henry who said,

"I know I'm not supposed to be here but I want to make sure Darcy or Odette is ok." Mr. Gold actually smiled saying to him,

"She'll be fine once she wakes up, for now she's resting so by tomorrow she'll be fine."