Author's note: Hey guys! Thanks again to my lovely readers, and an extra thank you to those who favourite, follow or review. Sorry it's been a little while since I've posted. As you know, I'm trying to keep my story as cannon as possible, so when I find out spoilers or see set photos (thanks Meresger!) I try to incorporate them into my story somewhere. I love the challenge of thinking 'how will that fit into the plot?', but it can be quite difficult if I think the story is going one way, and then a set photo somewhere throws me a curve ball, and I have to make that fit, or rewrite a scene.
I think the final two episodes will involve quite a lot of portal jumping, so the trickiest little part was trying to figure out how many magic beans are available for everyone to access.
Anyway, here's my next chapter: I hope you enjoy reading it! I did have to rewrite a few things, so if you spot any inconsistencies, please let me know so I can correct them.
~..~..~..~..
Tamara made her way triumphantly up the path towards the convent.
She had finally found it.
After searching what had felt like every room in The Dark One's home, Tamara had found the Blue Fairy's wand inside a hidden compartment in one of the walls.
Now, she could move on to the next stage in her plan.
Her phone rang, startling her out of her thoughts.
"Hello?"
"Where are you?" Greg asked without preamble. "Why haven't you called me back? I've been worried about you."
"My cover's been blown, Greg," Tamara told him. "They know who I really am."
"What?"
"Don't worry, babe," Tamara smiled, fingering the Blue Fairy's wand in her pocket. "I can still pull this off."
Greg sighed.
"Well," he granted, "maybe now they know you're one of them, they'll be able to tell you where my father is."
"My thoughts exactly," Tamara soothed him. "That was our deal, after all: You help me find Storybrooke and I'll help you find your father. Just trust me."
"I do trust you," Greg assured her. "It's just-"
"What is it?" Tamara asked in a concerned voice.
"I know I wasn't in Neverland for very long," Greg began, "But I remember the story of Peter Pan, and Tinkerbell-"
"You shouldn't believe everything you read, you know," Tamara told him. "The stories often miss a lot from the real thing."
"Why did you want to find Storybrooke?" Greg asked plainly.
"I told you," Tamara reminded him. "I had to find the other fairies. I had to return their wands to them."
"And you've done that already," Greg said.
"And now," Tamara continued, "I'm trying to get what we need to find your father."
Greg sighed again.
"Trust me, babe," Tamara's eyes spotted the Blue Fairy through a window. "I know what I'm doing."
~..~..~..~..
Charming, Emma, Neal, Rumple and Belle made their way quickly along the docks towards their respective cars.
"We can't let Regina get the beans," Charming spoke his thoughts aloud. "They're our only chance of getting back home."
"What about Henry?" Neal asked.
"We won't let Regina get him either," Emma said determinedly.
"I know," Neal assured her, "but, that's not what I meant."
Emma paused mid stride.
"Then what did you mean?" Emma asked.
"Well, if you can get to the Enchanted Forest, Emma," Neal began slowly, "are you and Henry going to go back with your parents?"
Everyone froze, not having considered what that would mean before that moment.
David wondered if his daughter would want to come back to the Enchanted forest, after having lived her whole life in this world. Snow had said that she didn't want to lose Emma again, so would she choose to stay? He couldn't lose them both. But then who would help the people back in their homeland? They couldn't forget about them...
Rumple was afraid that if Emma and Henry decided to travel to the Enchanted forest with the rest of their family, then Bae would go as well, in order to be with his son. But Rumple also knew, that if he followed Bae, than he would find it a lot harder to be better in that world, which had so much more magic than this one.
Could he do it?
Or would everything start all over again? Would he become The Dark One once more? He just wanted to be there for Bae...
Belle knew that Rumple would follow his son in whatever he chose to do, but if they did return to the Enchanted Forest, Belle didn't want Rumple to be tempted into using magic for the wrong reasons again. He was doing so much better in this world. Storybrooke had enough magic in it to allow Rumple to work spells, but not enough to truly turn him into the Dark One, as she remembered him before the curse.
As for her, she would never be able to get a job as a librarian back home...Women were hardly allowed to do anything back in the Enchanted Forest, and Belle doubted much had changed.
But still, if Rumple went back to The Enchanted forest, then Belle would follow him. He would need all the support she could give him, to continue to change for the better...
Neal didn't want to go back to the Enchanted forest. That's was where all this started, and from what he'd heard, the place had turned a lot worse with the ogres coming back.
He didn't want Henry to be any part of that.
But if Emma and Henry did decide to leave this world, would he follow them?
He'd promised not to abandon Henry like his father abandoned him...
Emma, on the other hand, was feeling so much at the moment, she had no idea what she was thinking.
Gesturing for Neal to follow her, Emma made her way down the stairs of the marina and on to the narrow sandy beach.
"We're a little pressed for time," David called.
"Then go on ahead," Emma called back. "We'll just be a sec."
But Charming didn't move, though his expression appeared conflicted.
"I think we should let them talk for a moment," Rumple suggested aside to David. "As Henry's parents, they do have the right to discuss his possible future, and something tells me they may have to make a decision very soon."
~..~..~..~..
"Okay," Emma demanded of Neal once they'd walked out of earshot of the group, "why the hell did you have to pick now to ask that question?"
"Because this is the only time since finding out about the beans I've really been able to ask you," Neal replied, keeping his hands in his pockets defensively.
"Regina could take Henry to the Enchanted Forest by the end of the day!" Emma exclaimed.
"And if you were planning on going there yourself anyway, that wouldn't be such a problem, though, would it?" Neal shot back.
"Look," Neal began hesitantly. "This isn't like with most parents saying 'do you want the kids on Tuesdays as well as the weekend?' If you and Henry go to the Enchanted forest, I'll have to go with you, or I will never get to see my son again."
"So come with us," Emma said. "You've grown up there, I didn't. It should be no problem for you."
"I don't want to go," Neal admitted. 'But I will if you and Henry do. So," Neal asked, "do you want to go?"
Emma took a breath to steady herself.
"This shouldn't be about what either of us wants," Emma said slowly. "This should be about what's best for Henry. And that's to stay with his family."
"In the Enchanted forest?" Neal asked. "You may not have grown up there, Emma, but you have been there before. Do you really want Henry to be a part of that? He has no idea what it's really like there," Neal said emphatically. "He has such a romanticised idea of the place, from his book, that he doesn't know just how hard it is to live there. You were there for only a short time, Emma," Neal reminded her. "Do you really want to live like that every single day for the rest of your life?"
"Storybrooke isn't safe anymore, either," Emma reminded Neal. She had fought really hard to get back here after being sent to that place, and while she was terrified of the ogres, and having people trying to kill her, having Storybrooke slowly being invaded by outsiders, as well as a vengeful Regina, Emma was struggling to find the safest option for her family.
"So then, what about New York?" Neal put forward. "Henry would love it there. Or Tallahassee," he added softly. "That was our dream, remember?"
Emma swallowed, avoiding his eyes. "That dream's dead," She said shortly. "And I've been looking for my parents my whole life, I can't just leave, and they can't come with us." Emma reminded him. "They'd lose their memory."
"Papa crossed the town line," Neal reminded Emma. "Why can't he make more protection potion, and we can all leave? Leave Storybrooke, leave magic, and still have our family together? No ogres, pirates, or Evil Queens to worry about!"
Emma put a hand to her forehead, feeling the throbbing beneath her temple.
"You can't make a decision on your own, you know," Neal reminded her.
"Yeah," Emma granted. "But any decision we make is going to affect all of us, so why don't we take care of Regina and the beanstalk first, and then –"
"Have a family meeting?" Neal asked.
Emma sighed.
"Yeah, I guess so," she admitted. "Whatever we decide will affect all of us," she repeated, "so we all should have a say.
Slowly, Neal nodded.
"Alright," he agreed. "We'll decide together."
~..~..~..~
"They look like they're arguing," David observed, worried.
"Well, they do have a lot to work out," Rumple granted.
David turned to view the man beside him.
"You mean like how your son left my daughter pregnant and in jail?"
Rumple closed his eyes briefly.
"Bae didn't know she was pregnant," he explained patiently, "and if my son hadn't left Emma at the time, she would have never given Henry up for adoption, Henry wouldn't have gone looking for her, and then Emma would never have come to Storybrooke. So, in a way," Rumple considered, "you actually have my son to thank for the curse breaking."
David folded his arms across his chest.
"I want your son to stay away from my daughter."
Rumple laughed softly.
"Oh, you make it sound like Emma's a naive teenager," he said lightly.
"She was, when they met," David granted. "It's my job to protect her."
"From my son?" Rumple asked sceptically, shaking his head. "No, I think it's Hook you have to be concerned about."
David frowned.
"That pirate stole my wife from me, Charming," Rumple reminded the prince. "And from the looks of things, I'd say he now has his eyes set firmly on your daughter. My son is not the one you have to worry about."
"Not the only one," David spat.
"David," Belle stepped forward, "do you remember what my father did to try and 'protect' me from Rumplestiltskin?"
David lowered his eyes, remembering how Moe had tried to send Belle across the town line in order to wipe her memory clean.
"My father thought that he could decide what I did or how I felt," Belle explained. "But ultimately, it was my life, my choice. It's the same thing between you and Emma."
"You once told me, David, that honesty was the most important thing for a relationship to work," Rumple said slowly. "Now, I've come to realise that trust is also important. You have to be able to trust Emma to make the right decision for herself, otherwise," Rumple gestured to Belle, "like Moe, you could end up losing your daughter."
David watched as Emma led the way back up the stairs, Neal trailing behind.
He didn't want to lose his daughter.
"Okay," Emma announced. "Sorry about that, I know we're pressed for time." She glanced inquiringly at Gold.
"I don't suppose you could just," she waved her hands, "magic us to the beanstalk?"
"Well, that would be faster," Rumple granted. "We'll all need to be in contact with each other, though."
Nodding they all got into a position where they each had a hand on someone else's arm.
"Did you reach any decision?" David asked his daughter, as she placed one hand on his arm and the other on Gold's. "About you and Henry coming with us?"
"No," Emma answered quietly. "Other than deciding that it's something we'll all have to decide together."
David nodded, catching the glance that Gold threw at him.
"Well," David replied. "Whatever you decide, Emma, Henry is your son, not mine. It's ultimately your decision. And Neal's." He glanced sideways at his daughter. "I trust you'll do what you think is best."
Emma smiled. "Thanks," she said, touched by his faith in her, before becoming serious. "But first, let's make sure Henry's safe."
~..~..~..~..
Regina smiled as she gazed at the beans sitting in her hand.
She was once step closer to having her son back.
The flickering light of the burning beanstalk danced across the pasture as Regina turned to make her way back to her car.
"Nooo!"
Looking up, the former Queen saw two dwarves sprinting towards her.
"What have you done?"Happy didn't look so happy anymore as his eyes went from the beanstalk, slowly turning to ash and charcoal, to the Queen.
It had been his and Doc's turn to check on the beanstalk that morning...and they were too late to save it.
Smiling, Regina held up her hand.
"I just came to collect the fruits of your labour," she explained smoothly. The dwarves were no threat to her, after all.
"The only person who's going to get a happy ending in this town," she told them surely, "is me."
"But," Doc stammered, "we don't even know which land those beans will open a portal to."
"It doesn't matter," Regina assured them. "Just as long as no one can follow me."
"Regina!"
The former Queen looked up to see that Emma, Charming, Rumple, Bae and Lacey had just materialised near the beanstalk.
"She's stolen the beans!" Happy warned them,
Flicking her wrist, Regina sent both dwarves flying backward to land heavily on the grass.
"Think of what you're doing, Regina," Emma said as she approached. "Do you really think Henry will love you if you kidnap him?"
"Hook just can't keep his mouth shut around you, can he Miss Swan?" Regina demanded.
"Regina, I understand you wanting Henry back in your life," Belle stepped forward gingerly. "But this isn't the way to do it."
"Lacey," Regina began.
"It's Belle, actually," Rumple told her proudly.
"What?" Regina demanded, turning her eyes on the woman at Rumple's side. "How the hell did you get your memory back so quickly?"
"True Love's kiss will break any curse," Belle reminded the Queen.
"Well Rumple," Regina turned her eyes on the Dark One. "You're quite the Casanova, aren't you?"
"The beans," Rumple demanded, ignoring the jibe and pointing to the pod in the Queen's hand.
"No." Regina answered simply.
Wordlessly, Rumple raised a hand, and the beans flew out of Regina's grasp and into his own.
"Thank you for your co-operation, Your Majesty," Rumple smiled as he held the pod behind his back.
Surprisingly, Regina smiled.
"Oh, you're welcome, Rumple," she said as she held up her other hand, revealing the magic bean she had hidden.
"I already have what I need."
And in a swirl of smoke, she was gone.
"Do you think that was a bluff?" Neal asked hopefully.
"No," Belle answered. "She looked too pleased. I think these beans were a distraction, and her bean was the one she'd really been after."
"She'll go after Henry next," Emma told them fearfully. "We have to get to him first."
"Don't fret, Emma," Rumple told her. "For even if Regina does get to Henry first, we have the beans to follow her, now."
"Each type of bean takes you to a different land," Charming reminded them. "We don't know if she got the same bean as us, or a different one. So, where would these take us?"
Studying the beans in Belle's hands, Rumple recognised the translucent, almost glass-like appearance.
"Do these beans look familiar to you, Bae?" Rumple asked, showing his son.
Slowly, Bae nodded.
"They look like the one the Blue Fairy gave me."
"And the one that Hook had," Rumple added.
Emma raised her eyes from the beans to Gold's face.
"Does this mean what I think it means?"
Rumple nodded.
"It'll open a portal to Neverland."
"What about Regina's one?" David asked.
Rumple shook his head.
"All I could tell was that it was a different bean to these," he explained. "However, Neverland is the homeland of the magic beans, so we can easily travel there now to get more."
"We need to get Henry first," Emma stated. "Regina's not taking him anywhere."
"Indeed not, Miss Swan," Rumple agreed, his eyes on his son. "No good parent should have their child taken from them."
~..~..~..~..
"Mother Superior?"
Blue turned to see Tamara opening the door to her room hesitantly.
"Tinkerbell," Blue smiled in greeting. "Please, come in."
Stepping into the room, Tamara closed the door behind her.
Blue didn't see her flick the lock into place.
"What can I do for you?" Blue asked.
Tamara stepped forward, keeping her hands behind her back.
"We haven't had much opportunity to talk since I arrived," she began slowly. "And, there's something I need to discuss."
"Of course," Blue nodded sympathetically, gesturing for Tinkerbell to have a seat, but she shook her head, choosing to remain standing.
"What do you want to talk about?"
Tamara took another step forward.
"I never agreed with your decision to lie to Baelfire about where that bean would take him," Tamara said plainly. "Why couldn't you have at least told him that it would take him to a place where he could find the bean he was looking for?"
Blue sighed.
"Making a decision for the greater good is not always easy," Blue granted.
"How was lying to a little boy 'for the greater good'?" Tamara demanded. "You claim to bring joy to people," Tamara continued, "but you ignore the pain you cause while doing it, thinking that you know what's best for everyone's happiness in the long run."
Blue appeared shocked.
"Pain?"
"Yes. Pain." Tamara told her. "You made Bae believe that he was sent to Neverland rather than this world, because his father let him go."
"His father did let him go," Blue stated.
"But that's not why Bae went to Neverland, is it?" Tamara countered.
Blue frowned. What was Tinkerbell doing?
"Astrid told me of how you kept her away from the one she loved," Tamara continued.
"He was a dwarf," Blue explained. "Their love wasn't real. And Astrid wanted to be a fairy godmother. She couldn't have done that if she'd run away with Dreamy."
Tamara shook her head with disgust.
"Who are you to say whether their love was real or not?" She demanded. "Love is supposed to be the most powerful magic in the world."
"And it is," The Blue Fairy granted. "But if they had run away together-"
"They could have been happy," Tamara told her boss.
"Tamara," Blue kept her voice soothing as she could see that Tamara was getting upset. "Being a fairy or a dwarf is about putting the needs of others before our own, you know that."
Tamara laughed.
"And now we're back to Baelfire." She said flatly. "You didn't want to help him, you just wanted to get the Dark One out of your realm."
"It's my job to protect my realm," Blue said firmly.
"By any means necessary?" Tamara asked.
Blue frowned slightly as she regarded the fairy before her.
"You've changed, Tinkerbell," Blue realised.
"Well, not really," Tamara smiled. "I'm just good at acting."
Blue observed how Tamara's entire demeanour changed from conflicted to calculating.
"Tinkerbell?"
"Tell me, Blue," Tamara began, taking another step forward. "Do you know why I became a fairy?"
"You told me that you wanted to be a fairy godmother," Blue answered. "Like your great aunt."
Tamara nodded.
"My grandmother and I were very close," Tamara explained. "She was the one who raised me, and she would always tell me stories of her sister. When I became a fairy, I went to find her, and eventually found out that she was the Fairy Godmother of Cinderella. While in Neverland, I was able to still keep contact, using the magic beans, until one day, I found that the Dark One had killed her."
"Oh, Tinkerbell," Blue sighed. "I'm so sorry."
Tamara nodded to accept the apology, taking another step forward, putting herself within arm's reach of the Fairy leader.
"But now perhaps you can see why it was so important to ensure the Dark One was expelled from our realm," Blue added.
Tamara shook her head.
"The Dark One will pay for taking her life, believe me." She smiled. "But he did many of the things he did, in order to find a way to reunite with his son."
"Vengeance is not the fairy way." Blue told her. "Doing the wrong thing for the right reason is still the wrong thing,"
"So what do you call lying to a little boy in order to get rid of his father?" Tamara asked.
Blue stared at Tamara in disbelief.
"Are you trying to say that I am responsible for all the Dark One's actions since he was separated from his son?"
"I'm saying you're allresponsible for everything," Tamara stated. "And you shouldn't count out vengeance, Blue. It can be quite the motivator. For while you've failed to discover a way to dispatch of the Dark One without creating a new one, I believe I have actually found a way."
Blue's eyes widened.
"Really?" She asked, shocked. "How?"
Smiling, Tamara withdrew her wand from her pocket.
"A Fairy wand tends to attract attention in this world. Outside Storybrooke, at least," she explained as the wand slowly morphed into a taser. "But no one would really question a lone woman carrying a stun gun to protect herself."
"And," Blue began curiously, "how will that work against someone like Rumplestiltskin?"
Tamara smiled slowly.
"When my wand is in this form," she explained, "it has the ability to suck the magic out of anything, storing it for future use."
Blue's eyes widened.
"You could use that to strip the Dark One of his powers?"
Tamara nodded.
"There is, however, a catch," Tamara granted. "The more magical a person is, the more magic is...ingrained into their very being... the more life threatening this device is."
Blue eyed the device in Tinkerbell's hand warily.
"The Dark One would be killed," she whispered.
"Most certainly," Tamara confirmed.
Blue shook her head.
"There's no way we could even get close enough to him to use it," Blue doubted. "He despises fairies, we'd never get near him."
"You're the only other immortal in this world," Tamara told the Blue fairy. "You're the only one powerful enough to challenge him."
Blue took a deep breath.
"I no longer have my wand," she admitted reluctantly. "I'm currently powerless."
"No longer," Tamara held the Blue Fairy's wand before her eyes and she reclaimed it eagerly.
"You found it?" She smiled, watching her wand glow with magic in her hands.
Tamara smiled, watching Blue's wand light up.
"Well, a wand is only as powerful as the one who wields it, as it's the wand that hold's the fairy's magic," Tamara recited. "And as long as that fairy lives, their magic, shall serve no other. It's why The Dark One had to kill my great aunt to obtain her wand."
"Yes," Blue nodded. "And now I will be able to protect our realm."
Tamara's smile grew wider.
"No you won't."
Blue gasped in shock and pain, as Tamara jabbed the taer into her stomach.
Tamara's eyes were on fire as sparks flew from Blue's wand until it shattered.
Grinning triumphantly, Tamara released her hold, and Blue's body fell to the ground, lifeless. The shattered remains of her now colourless wand lying around her like a broken halo.
Tamara watched the taser in her hand turn back into her own wand.
She felt the grin spreading across her face as her wand changed from its usual bright orange, to a deep shade of dark blue.
As the wand began to glow with an almost indigo light, Tamara began to laugh softly.
She was now the new Blue Fairy.
~..~..~..~..
"What about the beanstalk?" David asked, glancing at the smouldering remnants of their crop. "Maybe some beans survived the fire? Maybe one can take us home, we should search the ashes."
"Hold on," Emma ordered firmly. "Before we try that, we need to make sure Regina doesn't get to Henry first. Kind of defeats the purpose of going anywhere, if our family's scattered."
"Right," Charming nodded, realising he was getting too far ahead of himself.
"So," Belle began, "what bean did Regina get?"
"No idea," Neal sighed.
"It doesn't matter whereRegina's going," Emma was struggling to keep everyone focused on the most important thing. "If she gets to Henry before we do, she'll take him away."
"But we still have the other beans," Rumple assured the Sheriff. "So, even if Regina does take Henry to the Enchanted forest, we have a way of following her."
Emma was getting frustrated. Why were they standing around talking? Regina could have transported to Henry's school and taken him to another world by now, for all they knew!
"I don't care about the beans!" She snapped, getting everyone's attention. "I care about my son! And I am not going to lose him again!"
Closing her eyes, Emma focused, and within moments, she disappeared.
"Whoa!" David and Neal exclaimed simultaneously.
"She's a very fast learner," Rumple commented drily.
"Where's she gone?" Belle asked slowly.
"To Henry, most likely," Rumple explained. "The fear a parent has for the life of their child is a very powerful motivator."
David turned to Happy and Doc, who had recovered from their brush with Regina and had made their way over to the group.
"Happy, Doc, I want you to go and find Anton," David instructed. "Tell him about the beans, and that Regina has one. We have two for Neverland, but don't know what Regina has. Send some dwarves down here to search the ashes for any surviving beans."
"Yes, Sire!" The two dwarves saluted and ran off.
"We need to go after Emma," Charming adressed the rest of the group. "She can't take on Regina alone."
"No, certainly not," Rumple agreed. "But now that she's tapping into her magic, that may change."
~..~..~..~
Emma materialised just outside of Henry's school. Regina was nowhere in sight.
Emma barely had a moment to feel pride at her first successful act of instant travel, before she fell to her knees.
"Oh, God" she moaned, trying not to chuck. "How do they do this all the time?"
"You get used to it."
Looking up, Emma found Gold standing beside her.
Belle and Neal helped Emma get to her feet.
"Henry," she voiced the thing forefront in her mind.
"We'll get him, Emma," Neal assured her.
"But you need to recover," Rumple told Emma firmly. "While transporting yourself was impressive, you weren't ready to handle the effects and now, you can barely stand."
"I'm fine," Emma said stubbornly, pushing Belle and Neal away, only to crumple to the ground again trying to take a step forward.
"Magic comes with a price Miss Swan," Rumple reminded the Sheriff before turning to Belle.
"Make sure she's stays out here to recover, please Belle?" he requested and Belle nodded.
"You just go get your grandson back safely," she told him.
~..~..~..~..
Henry was in the middle of a math lesson, when he saw his adoptive mother standing outside his classroom.
'Oh, no.' he thought, feeling his stomach grow heavy.
Regina smiled happily at him from the doorway.
"Henry," she greeted warmly.
Henry's teacher looked up from the group she was working with. As Miss Blanchard was still teaching ten year olds, Henry had been moved up to an older class at the beginning of the school year.
"I'm sorry, Madame Mayor," Henry's teacher began slowly. "You can't be here."
"I'm still his mother by law," Regina's eyes went from warm to fiery in less than half a second. "And I need to see my son."
"It's okay," Henry said quickly, not wanting his mother to throw a fireball in his class. "I'll come."
Regina smiled.
"Good boy."
Carefully, Henry made his way to the door, and his mother placed a hand on his shoulder possessively to lead him out into the corridor.
"What is it?" Henry demanded, wishing his mother, or father, or…someone would show up soon.
"Henry," Regina whispered proudly. "I've found it."
"Found what?" Henry asked warily.
"I found the way we can be happy together," Regina told him, showing him the green and brown bean in her hand.
"Is that a magic bean?" Henry asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"Yes, it is," Regina smiled, seeing his reaction as positive so far. "And I think I know where it goes."
"Where?" Henry asked.
Regina leaned down to meet her son's eyes.
"The place you've always wanted to go," she whispered. "The Enchanted Forest."
Henry's eyes widened.
"That bean can open a portal to the Enchanted forest?" Henry repeated, afraid he'd misunderstood.
"Yes," Regina breathed. She was so relieved that Henry seemed happy at the idea. Maybe this could work?
"Henry," Regina began carefully. "I know that you've always wanted to see our homeland, the place where you should have grown up. This bean," she held it up in her fingers, "can take us there. I can show you the world in which you were born to be a part of."
"Regina!"
Looking up, Henry saw both his grandfathers and his father approaching.
"Let my son go," Neal demanded.
"He's not your son," Regina told him. "You didn't even know he existed until a few days ago. You have no right to him. Henry's still mine by law."
"Still trifling with technicalities I see, Your Majesty," Rumple said smoothly as he stepped forward.
"You've found your son, Rumple," Regina gestured to Neal. "Why can't I have mine?"
"Do you really think that kidnapping Henry will make him love you?" Charming asked.
"She said the magic bean she has will lead to The Enchanted Forest," Henry explained.
"I can rebuild my kingdom," Regina announced proudly. "And Henry can finally be the prince he was born to be."
"You're not taking my son away from me," Neal said firmly, holding his hand out toward his son. "Henry, let's go."
"No," Regina objected, holding Henry tightly and blocking him from Neal's sight. "You will not take my son from me."
"And you will not threaten my son," Rumple told the former Queen. "Or take my grandson from his father."
Flicking his wrist, Rumple pulled Henry into Neal's arms magically before transporting their group outside, where Emma and Belle were waiting.
"Henry!" Emma exclaimed in relief as Henry threw himself into his mother's arms. "I thought we were too late."
"Got there just in time," Charming assured his daughter. "Regina's bean apparently can take us home."
"What?" Emma asked as Belle's head shot up, her eyes darting to Rumple, worried.
"You heard right."
Turning, they found Regina standing boldly in front of them, holding up the bean in her hand.
"Hand over the bean, Regina," Charming demanded. "We need it to get home."
"Or you'll what?" Regina laughed. "The only ones who will be returning to the EnchantedForest will be me and Henry."
"Over my dead body," Emma spat through gritted teeth as she attempted to stand, but was still too weak from her most powerful act of magic to date, and so ended up using Belle and Neal for support once more.
"Well, you look close enough to it," Regina laughed.
"You're not taking Henry anywhere," Charming said firmly, stepping between Regina and his grandson, still being held in his daughter's arms.
Neal stepped forward.
"If you want Henry," he challenged, "you'll have to go through us first."
Regina smiled.
"Tempting." She said. "But I don't have to."
Waving her hands, Regina engulfed the group in purple smoke, and when it dissipated, they were surprised to find themselves at the wishing well.
"Where are we?" Neal asked as Regina hurried over to the edge of the well.
"This is where Mary-Margret and I came through from the Enchanted forest," Emma whispered, realising what Regina's plan was.
"Correct," Regina smiled, tossing her magic bean into the wishing well.
The wind picked up as the vortex opened, tapping into the magical properties of the water below, that linked Storybrooke to LakeNostos in the EnchantedForest.
Regina climbed onto the rim of the wishing well, smiling at the swirling vortex of water and light below.
"Now, Henry," Regina extended a hand towards her son, and he disappeared in a swirl of smoke to reappear in her grasp.
"It's time to go home," Regina smiled in anticipation. She could finally be happy. Now, she and Henry could be together, in the land he was born to be a part of.
And Emma, Neal, Rumple and Prince Charming were there to see her finally win.
"No!" Emma struggled to stand, and Belle and Charming had to steady her, lest she fall again.
"Henry!" Neal ran forward.
"Bae!" Rumple called out a warning.
Just as Regina was about to jump into the portal, Henry in her arms, Neal leaped forward to pull Henry out of Regina's hands.
As Henry and Regina fell hard onto the ground beside the well, Rumple got the chance to magically summon Henry to Emma's side.
"No!"
Rumple looked over to where Regina was getting to her feet beside the well.
"You can't have my grandson, Regina," Rumple told her firmly. He knew that his son could be a wonderful father, and, damn it, Bae was going to get the chance.
Neal grinned.
"I'm glad to see you're doing better this time round, Papa," he told his father, a hint of pride in his voice.
Regina cast her eyes from her son gripped protectively in Emma's arms, to Rumple gazing at his own son, who was still standing beside the wishing well.
She couldn't get to Henry now, but the vortex wouldn't stay open for long.
And she didn't want to waste a magic bean...
"Rumplestiltskin," she called
"If I can't have my son," she hissed, "then you can't have yours."
Thrusting outwards with both hands, Regina magically pushed Neal backwards, causing him to topple into the wishing well, and the swirling portal below.
"Bae!"
"Neal!"
"Dad!"
Unable to run, Rumple transported himself forward, as Regina disappeared. Looking into the well, he was relieved to see his son, still clinging to the edge of the stone rim of the well.
"Papa!"
Rumple could see the fear in his son's eyes, the same fear he knew was showing in his own. For a moment, Rumple saw his son as the fourteen year old boy he had been when he'd fallen into that first portal all those years ago.
Rumple was determined not to make that same mistake again.
Reaching down, he grasped his son's wrist with both hands.
"Don't worry, Bae," he told his son. "You'll be alright."
"Don't let me go this time," Bae begged, and the fear in his eyes was plain to see as he struggled against the pull of the vortex below.
"I promise, Bae," Rumple told his son. "I won't let you go."
However, Rumple struggled to lift his son's weight against the pull of the vortex, and his bad leg, with no cane for support, was beginning to falter under the strain.
He couldn't risk freeing his hands to use magic, and even if he could, he was so terrified, that he thought any spell he tried would freeze.
And Emma was still too weak...
"Someone, help me!" he called over his shoulder.
Just as Belle and David reached Rumple's side, Neal was ripped from his father's grasp and he fell into the vortex, which closed behind him.
Rumple gazed down into the rippling waters of the well as they settled.
"Bae?" He whispered. "No! Not again."
Sobbing, Rumple collapsed beside the wishing well in grief, barely feeling Belle's arms around him, trying to comfort him.
"I've lost him," he whispered. "I've lost him again."
"But we'll find him, Rumple," Belle told him. "You've travelled worlds to reunite with your son, you can't give up now."
"Yeah," Henry piped up, hurrying over, supporting Emma. "We have the Neverland beans, right? We can go and find some more beans and then go and get my dad."
"But," David hated to put a dampener on their hopes, "how will we know where to find him, even if and when we do get more beans?"
Emma's head shot up. "Because we have a contact in the Enchanted Forest," she reminded them, looking at David and Henry.
"Aurora!" Henry remembered. "I can go back to the Netherworld in my sleep, and tell her to find my dad at…"
"Lake Nostos," Emma supplied.
"And then we can keep each other updated, and when we find the beans, they'll be right there when we come through," Henry finished.
"See Rumple?" Belle smiled at her love encouragingly. "There's hope. We'll find Bae."
Slowly, slowly, Rumple got control of his breathing.
"It seems we're going to Neverland," he whispered, his voice filled with raw determination.
The sound of Emma's phone ringing broke through the silent air.
"Sheriff," she answered.
"What?"
All eyes turned to Emma, watching the shock spreading across her face.
"I'll be right there," she said numbly, hanging up the phone.
"What is it?" David asked.
"Neverland might have to wait a little bit," Emma announced slowly.
"And why is that?" Rumple demanded.
"The Blue Fairy," Emma told the group sadly. "She's dead."
~..~..~..~..
Author's note: So, what did you think?
I said I was going to make Tamara more ambitious, didn't I? Don't know what she's really going to do with that taser, but I'm willing to bet it's actually her wand. And as we saw Rumple using his stolen fairy wand to absorb all the diamonds in the mines, I'm pretty sure Tamara uses her wand, in it's taser form, to steal magic. I'm thinking her ultimate goal is to kill The Dark One, not only for his power, but to avenge the fairy he killed, which I'm assuming is Tamara's great aunt.
Please don't hate me for killing the Blue Fairy! But if tamara's plan is to take out the Dark One, she'll think she'll need all the power she can get, and the Blue Fairy is the only other immortal being in Storybrooke: Prime target.
I also saw a video of her and Greg Mandel with Henry on set down at the docks by the Cannery. Greg threw something into the water- I'm assuming it's a magic bean- then the three of them backed up, before running to the edge.
Looks like Greg and Tamara are going to kidnap Henry and take him, I'm assuming, to Neverland.
When I found out that Neal ended up in the Enchanted Forest, presumably on his own, I wondered how the heck he would have got there, and why? Neal had spent his whole life trying to get away from that world, why would he go back? Then I thought: maybe he fell through another portal? And the only scenario I could come up with that made sense to me was the one you've just read. And why were Mulan, Aurora and Philip there? I thought that they'd be given a heads up by either David, Snow or Henry.
My original idea was to have Regina fall into the portal with Neal, but then I thought: how could Tamara convince Greg to kidnap Henry, if he didn't think they could use him to get Greg/Owen's father back as a trade?
That's something that annoys me though: We've had teasers about what Snow, Emma, Henry, Rumple, Neal and even Belle are doing in the finale (Belle was spotted with Emma and Co at the pirate ship in a set photo), but I've yet to hear what Regina is doing? Does she go to another world? Or does she stay in Storybrooke? I'm planning on her trying to follow Henry, once she realises Tamara and Greg have taken him. Maybe recruit Hook? I saw a picture of him standing alone at the docks; looks like he gets his ship comandeered.
There were also set photos of Henry playing at, what looked like a park, while Rumple watched. Emma then appeared, taking Henry aside, and they have what appears to be a sad/serious conversation. I'm assuming they're talking about getting Neal back, or maybe the Blue Fairy's death.
I also knew there was a set photo of Emma and Neal having a discussion/argument on a beach, and had trouble figuring out where to put that scene, as I knew it had to happen before he went to the Enchanted Forest. I hope it fit well into the chapter, and didn't detract too much from the urgency of the story.
That conversation I wrote between Rumple, Belle and David was one I'd been wanting to fit in to my story for a while, and I'm glad I finally got the opportunity to write it. David gave Rumple advice to help with Belle, so I thought Rumple and Belle could give him advice to help with Emma.
And I was relieved when I saw the new photos for 'Lacey' of Lacey playing pool in a bar, as it looks like she's NOT a prostitute after all (thank goodness!) but she's definately a 'bad girl' of some variety, ignoring Rumple to chat up another guy. As Robin Hood is featured in the episode: perhaps he's the Sheriff of Nottingham?
Stay strong Rumple, don't give up on something worth fighting for! We need Rumbelle back!
That's all my theorising and rambling for now.
Please, please please review!
Celino