11

Baby Mine

While Regina was gallivanting with Rumple through FAO Scwartz, the girls were entering Macy's Baby Boutique, a huge floor dedicated to all things for mothers-to-be, fathers, babies and their families. Belle just stared at all the . . . things around her, feeling overwhelmed and excited at all the variety and uncertain of what half of these things were for. She had not really had time to prepare properly for Alina when she was pregnant with her, as most of that time had been spent fighting with her father to get him to accept her unborn child . . . a futile effort, and so the rest of her time had been spent knitting a few things, like a blanket and booties and caps and sewing some gowns but nothing like what it should have been for the child of a royal house. She had held her newborn daughter for barely a few hours before Alice had spirited her away in a basket disguised beneath some bread to Rumple, since Maurice had put out a warrant to expose the "abomination" she had created with her beastly lover.

She looked down now at the girl beside her, the tiny baby grown and hovering on the cusp of womanhood, whom she had lost and then found again . . . and missed all those firsts she should have shared . . . her first tooth, first lock of hair, first word, first step, first pair of shoes, first dress, first day of school . . . all the things Rumple had shared with their child . . . but now they would finally experience together with this new life growing within her.

She put her arm around Alina, and looked around, saying in a small voice, "I . . . I don't know where to begin. There's so much . . . to see . . ." She made her way over to a beautifully carved white oak cradle with vines along the sides and a headboard with gorgeous hearts intertwined with roses. "Oh! This is . . . so beautiful . . . look!"

"Wow! I really like that, Belle!" Emma said, caressing the wood.

"It's gorgeous!" Snow exclaimed. "Look at the way the grain runs . . . and how the finish is so . . . shiny . . ."

"And look at the hearts and roses!" Alina pointed to them. "It's perfect, Mama! You need to buy it!"

Belle cupped a hand over her belly, still flat, still unnoticeable . . . except to her, who knew of the life she bore within. "Do you think so, Alina?"

"Yes! True love and roses . . . how much more perfect can you get?" her daughter said, her brown eyes shimmering, reminding Belle of her husband. Rumple's eyes shone just that way when he was excited.

"Okay . . . I'll take it," she agreed. "But . . . we'll have to ship it home. Can they do that?"

"Belle, they can do whatever you want," Emma assured her. "Gold's got a Black Am Ex. Once they know that . . . they'll jump through fire for you. Trust me."

"What's a Black Am Ex?" Snow asked, puzzled.

"Gold's credit card," Emma explained. "Black American Express. It's an exclusive card, given only to filthy rich businessmen. It has no limit . . . ever."

"You mean . . .?"

"She could buy Macys if she wanted," Emma laughed.

"Let's go shopping, girlfriend!" Snow giggled.

"Well . . . I guess I should buy a few things . . ." Belle said, still awed.

"Yeah, spend Gold's money, Belle," Emma encouraged. "You know he wants you to."

"Let us help you, Mama!" Alina said, grinning.

"You need to pick out a theme for the nursery," said Snow.

"Yes, but . . . shouldn't I do that with Rumple?" Belle said.

"Sure, but let's get a set of sheets and a blanket for the cradle," Emma said, and pointed to the array of sheets, blankets, and bumpers available.

Belle examined them all, and sought the other women's and Alina's input, finally selecting a soft golden yellow sheet with colorful skeins of yarn and a kitten playing with it, matching thick pads and bumpers and a small comforter. "I'm sure Rumple will want to . . . make stuff for the baby . . . like he did for Alina and Bae. And I can sew too, I made you a bib and a little hat before you were born, Alina."

"I think Papa still has them . . . somewhere in the attic or in his shop basement," Alina said. "He almost never throws anything away . . . he's got this book from when I was a baby . . . with this stuff in it . . . like a tooth and some hair. . . you should ask him to show you it sometime, Mama."

"I will. And we'll have to get a new book too . . . for this little one," her mother said.

"We can have a baby shower for you when we get back home," Snow said excitedly. "Emma and I can do it, right, Emma?"

"Uh, sure. I mean, I never had one, but . . . it can't be that hard," Emma said. "We can do a baby library too . . . I know a lot of people are doing that nowadays . . . and everyone we invite can bring their favorite kids book as part of their gift."

"It'll be fun!" Snow enthused. "Back in our first home, we had this big party when we learned I was pregnant with you, Emma, and everyone brought a little gift . . . why I think Rumple has your mobile in his shop still . . . that was his gift, you see . . . now let's take a look over here and see what else there is."

They moved further into the store, and Belle saw more furniture, cribs and rocking chairs and dressing tables, armoires and changing tables, all things she was familiar with and that she planned to shop for with Rumple. But she made mental notes of things she liked, so she could point them out to him later.

She paused beside a small shelf of books and baby magazines, perusing them and thinking she needed to subscribe to several of them once she was back home in Storybrooke . . . and then she saw one titled What to Expect When You're Expecting and picked it up and put it in the cart Alina was pushing. "I think I need to get this one now," she said. Then she spotted another one for fathers called She's Having A Baby—and I'm having a breakdown. "And I think Rumple needs to read this one!"

Emma read both titles and cracked up over the last one. "Yeah, get it, Belle! Can you imagine his face when he sees it?"

"But it might come in handy," Snow said, giggling. "You should have seen David when I was carrying . . . oh my God, he was like so hilarious . . .!"

"Papa'll read it," Alina smirked. "He'll read anything if you give it to him, Mama."

So Belle added that to the cart along with the sheets, as well as a tiny book called Oh, Baby! The Places You'll Go! A book to be read in-utero. Somehow that seemed fitting, for her to read to her unborn child, since she was, after all, a librarian and the wife of a learned sorcerer.

She came to a huge display of baby seats, baby 4-in-1 carseats and strollers, bassinets, and baby swings. "Oh . . . my God!" she gasped. "What is all this?"

"Uh . . . well, this is like the carseat I have for Regina, only it's for a newborn," Snow said, looking at a Graco model. "And you'll need it for when you bring the baby home. See, you can also use it like a seat to carry the baby in and to put on the floor or a table, and it can go into the stroller."

"That's why it's called a 4-in-1," Emma said. "They're really handy. If I had kept Henry, I'd have definitely gotten one of those."

"I think . . . I'm going to have to keep a list of all these . . . things," Belle said. "Back where I came from, we had a carriage, but mostly we just . . . carried the baby everywhere in a sling. Or . . . if you were a noble, you had a nanny carry the baby."

"I wouldn't have," Snow said, with a wistful glance at Emma.

"Look, Mama! There's baby slings here," Alina said, showing her something called a Snuggli. "Aren't they cute?"

Belle looked at it, marveling at the soft texture and the way it was put together. "Yes, I think I'll get one of these. I want to be able to do things and hold the baby too. And Rumple will also."

Alina started laughing at the image of her father in his Armani suit with a baby sling over it, carting the baby around the shop and showing him or her off to customers. Which she had no doubt he'd do, for Rumplestiltskin had always been proud of his children. Alice had told her that even cursed, he'd never hesitated to introduce a toddler Alina to people who came by his shop when he was minding her, which he did more often than people thought.

Down another section was loads of diaper bags, disposable diapers, wipes, creams, gels, diaper bags, and something called a diaper genie. "What's this?" Belle asked, pointing to it. "Does some . . . man come out and help you change the baby?"

"I wish!" Emma laughed. "No, but it's a system where you can throw away a soiled diaper and not worry about germs and stuff, since it's all locked in here in this bag. Of course, Rumple could probably banish it if he wants to."

Belle snorted. "Uh huh. Could you imagine if he did that all the time when he needed to change the baby? He'd be so exhausted he'd not be able to walk!" She pulled out a small notepad and a pen from her purse and began writing things down.

She was astonished that in this world they had things like disposable diapers, wipes, and all kinds of creams and stuff for a baby's skin—lotions, ointments, and the like. It was a far cry from the cloth diapers and washcloths and homemade salves they'd used back in Fairy Tale Land. "How . . . do I know what's good and what isn't?"

"Well, a lot of this stuff is pretty similar," Emma said. "They're just different brands of the same thing. And . . . your OB/GYN should be able to give you a few tips. That's the doctor who'll take care of you during your pregnancy. Ashley can tell you about him or her."

"When should I make an appointment?" Belle asked.

"Probably soon after you get home," Emma told her. "I . . . can go with you for the first one, if you want. Since I know what to expect there and can tell you so you're not nervous."

"Thanks, Emma," Belle said, relieved. "What about Rumple? Shouldn't he come?"

"Yeah, but I think for the first time it's better if you and I go ourselves," Emma said. "That way next time you'll know what to expect and he can come and you can brief him on it. I know plenty of wives who go to their own appointments when it's early in the pregnancy and don't have the husbands come until they do the first sonogram."

"What's that?" asked Alina.

"That's like . . . a picture of the baby while it's in your mom's tummy," Emma said.

"A . . . picture?" Like a . . . drawing?" Belle repeated.

"No . . . like a real picture of the baby inside you," Emma told her. "It's done in the doctor's office, with a special machine and a tech and you get to see the baby inside you before it's born."

Belle gaped at her. "Is it magic?"

"No, technology. And they have such cool ones now, you can see the baby in 3D and color, better than what they had when I was pregnant with Henry," Emma said, smiling wistfully. "If you read that book, you'll see what I mean."

"So . . . you can see the baby . . . before it's born?" Belle said, amazement coloring her tone.

"You sure can. And not only that, but they can even tell what the baby is before it's born," Emma told her. "I knew before I had Henry that it was a boy, and you can too . . . unless you'd rather be surprised. But sometimes it's easier if you know, then you can pick out names and clothes and things."

"You mean . . . they can tell if the baby's a girl or a boy . . . before I deliver?" Belle gasped. To her that sounded like the most fascinating magic.

"Yeah. They can tell with the sonogram, usually," Emma said. "The sonogram shows lots of things nowadays . . . it'll show how big the baby is, and how its laying inside you, and how it's developing, even if you're having twins. It's really neat."

She recalled her own sonograms, because even in prison they'd had her seen by a GYN, and it made her suddenly long to experience them all over again . . . this time without the stigma of being a jailbird and knowing she was going to give up her baby for adoption.

If Bae and I have another kid . . . we could do all this together . . . and this time I could be a mom from the beginning . . . the way it should be. Hmmm . . . maybe we ought to talk about this sometime . . . when we're alone. She picked up a diaper bag in lavender with a pattern of fluffy lambs and clouds on it. "Hey, I think this is cute, Belle. Why don't you get some things, like a starter kit?"

"Okay. Why don't you help me pick them out?" Belle said, still uncertain and afraid of choosing unwisely.

"I can do that too," Alina said. "I've watched all the commercials."

So together, Snow, Emma, and Alina picked out some commonplace things to put in the diaper bag Emma had chosen, and put it in the cart.

Then they arrived at the clothing aisle, and all the girls had fun picking out adorable clothes for the newborn, sticking to neutral colors and shades, and Alina put in a stack of burpees and two receiving blankets.

"I'm sure Rumple will make the baby one, and I can crochet one too, like I did for Emma," Snow said. "I can even put his or her name on it, once you pick one."

Belle smiled. "Thanks, Snow. That would be lovely. Of course, Rumple and I might take a while deciding on a name."

"You can make another list for that, Mama," Alina said, leaning on her slightly. She was quite excited to have another addition to the family, for she had always wanted a sibling, but at the same time she was a little . . . jealous because the baby would have a mother from the beginning, the way she never did.

And that bothered her, for she was not normally prone to such feelings. How could she be jealous of a baby—the child her parents had hoped for? Biting her lip, she withdrew and went to look at some small crib toys and rattles down the way.

Snow pointed out several types of bottles and a breast pump to Belle, and the two spent awhile discussing the merits of nursing over bottle-feeding, and the kinds of formula available in case Belle couldn't nurse her baby.

Emma watched her mother and her mother-in-law, a little enviously, for she hadn't had the opportunity to even consider that aspect with Henry, and she noticed Alina standing beside the toys, looking pensive. She suddenly felt a strong kinship with her sister-in-law, who was probably feeling a combination of happy and a little apprehensive.

"Hey," she said, going over to the eleven-year-old. "It's kind of . . . overwhelming, huh? That your mom's . . . having another one, I mean."

Alina looked up at her. "Yeah. I mean, I'm really happy, I've always wanted to be a big sister, and I know my parents really want more kids, but . . . sometimes . . . I think about . . . everything I missed by not having a mom . . . you know what I mean?"

"Yeah. Boy, do I ever," Emma said, hugging her. "You, me, and Bae. We all missed out on that."

"I know," Alina said, leaning against her. "And there's nothing we can really do about it, so there's no sense crying over it. But sometimes . . . I think about what this baby's gonna have . . . and I can't help feeling . . . a little jealous. Isn't that stupid?"

"No," Emma said seriously. "It's not, kid. It's normal. That's kind of how I felt . . . after my parents adopted Regina. I was happy for her and for them, and yet, a part of me was like, how come she gets to have what I never did? What I used to dream about when I was little?"

"So what did you do?"

"Well . . . I talked to Bae about it, for one thing. And he told me that the only thing I could do was to spend more time with my mom and dad now that I had them. It wouldn't make up for the years I'd lost, but it would help me feel like part of their lives now. So I did . . . and he was right. And gradually I started to enjoy having Regina there too, because she was funny and cute and she . . . looked up to me, and I'd never had that from anybody before, except Henry. So I stopped resenting her and now that I've put aside the past, I found I'm a lot happier." She smiled down at her small sister. "We've got a kooky family, but at least it's ours."

"Yeah. But I wouldn't trade it for anything," Alina said. "Want to help me pick out some toys, Emma?"

"Sure, kid. But you do know that your dad's gonna buy out like a department store when he goes shopping with your mom later on?"

Alina laughed. "Yeah, I know. They'd better rent a U-Haul."

Emma grinned. "The kid's gonna be spoiled before it's even born."

"Only a little," Alina remarked. "Because the funny thing is . . . about my papa, he can buy whatever he wants, or whatever any of us wants, but . . . he's never been about things . . . I mean he likes them and all but . . . he's not obsessed with them like a lot of rich people are. I guess that's because of where he comes from . . . and what he used to be . . . when I was little, he used to tell me a story about a man who gave everything away to some orphans, and he'd get me whatever I needed like for school or whatever, but I never got things for nothing."

"You mean, he made deals with you?"

"Umm . . . yeah, but I also had to . . . earn stuff I wanted. I had chores to do with Alice around the house . . . I still do, because he says that if you work something you appreciate it."

"He's right. You do," Emma said. "I know that better than anyone." She picked up a soft rattle shaped like a dog's face. "Woof! Woof! It's Pongo."

Alina chuckled. "I hope Archie's having a good time with Nala while we're away. I wonder how Nala's going to be with the baby? Now she won't be Papa's only baby anymore."

"I don't know, kid. Cats were never my thing, but I guess if you introduce her to it the right way, she'll like him or her."

"Papa can do it, since she's his chosen human," Alina smiled. Their cat loved all of them, but especially Rumple. Which was funny, since he was the one who'd objected the most to the kitten she'd gotten from Henry as a birthday gift.

While Emma and Alina talked, Snow and Belle picked out more things for the baby and Belle spoke with a salesperson and arranged for them to all be delivered to their hotel suite and some of them, like the cradle and the sheet set, shipped home to Storybrooke.

As she helped her "sister" pick out baby things, Snow found she was also suffering from a bit of nostalgic longing, since she hadn't been able to go through this with Emma. Thanks to the curse, she had missed out on her daughter, like Belle had with Alina, and Emma with Henry. So many lives had been broken due to the Evil Queen's curse.

But now, she thought, maybe they could all pick up the pieces and go on. They all had a second chance now, and they mustn't waste it. And perhaps . . . just perhaps . . . it might be time to discuss with Charming the possibility of another child . . . one that she could raise, like Belle's new baby, from the beginning. They would have to see, she mused. She was happy for Belle, knowing how much she had wanted another child, but Snow also wanted a child she could raise from a newborn, and experience everything she had missed out on with her two girls. Just maybe . . . a little later . . . like after Belle had her child.

"Look! Isn't this bib adorable?" she held up a bib with a dish and a spoon on it and the familiar Hey Diddle Diddle nursery rhyme.

"Yes, and how about these socks with giraffes on them?" Belle picked up a pair of tiny socks, imagining how it would be to dress her baby for the first time.

She imagined holding the new life inside her, and sharing all the moments with Rumple she had missed out the first time because of the Evil Queen and her fanatical father, who had torn her family asunder out of hate and jealousy. But not this time. This time they would all be together, a family forever, and nothing would ever separate them again.

Page~*~*~*~*~Break

Three hours later:

After they'd awakened Rumple, the Gold men had made another quick detour into the candy store to get a few surprised for their wives, Alina, and Regina. Regina was so exhausted she remained asleep even after Charming took her from Rumple.

"Looks like you tuckered her out," David said to his "brother".

"She did the same to me," Rumple stated. He told David about all the things Regina had done, including the fact that he'd been forced to spank her for being a total brat just before he'd fallen asleep with her on his lap. "I didn't really have a choice—" he began.

"Hey, I'm not mad at you," David hastened to tell him. "You're family, you're free to correct her when she needs it, Rumple. I trust your judgment, and if you hadn't done it, I'd have had to . . . so thanks for sparing me that. This time at least." He looked at the stuffed panther he'd been carrying around. "Guess I'd better pay for this, huh?"

Rumple nodded. "I have a few things I need to pay for as well." He turned to Henry and whispered something in his ear.

Henry nodded and whispered something back.

A few moments later, Gold went up to one of the Personal Shoppers employed by the company and spoke to him for several minutes, then went to a register and paid for several things in cash.

Bae looked at him, puzzled. "What were you buying, Papa?"

"Christmas presents," Rumple answered.

"Christmas presents?" Bae repeated. "In July?"

"I don't like to wait till the last minute," Gold replied. He had bought presents for Regina, Bae, and Henry, unknown to them, including the fairy wand and costume Regina had been wearing today, the Barbie Dream House, and a video game each for his son and grandson. He would, of course get Henry and Bae something else, but it was a start, at least.

They met up with the girls as planned, and returned to hotel, happy but tired from the day's excursions. They ordered sandwiches and pizza from the pizzeria and the sub shop next to it, enjoying the simple food and also the candy the guys had picked out from the sweet shop.

Henry and Bae had made peanut butter chocolate cats for Alina with the candy designer at FAO Schweetz, and Regina had a caramel apple cake for dessert, while Henry had little candies that were called cinnamon vanilla soda suckers, another custom made treat.

Just as they were finished eating dinner, there came a knock at the door of the suite.

David opened the door to find several bellhops standing there with various packages and bags. "Can I help you?"

"This is a delivery for Mrs. Belle Gold, sir. May we come in?"

"Uh, sure," Charming stepped back and the parade of bellhops and porters spilled into the suite.

Belle directed them to put certain things down, and the men all stared at the array of packages.

"My God, Emma, what'd you girls do, buy out Macys?" asked Bae.

"Something like that," his wife laughed.

"Looks like you had fun, dearie," Gold said, smiling at Belle.

"Lots of fun, Rumple! And just wait till you see what we bought," his wife said.

They all had fun seeing what the ladies had picked out for the baby, and Belle gave Rumple the book she had bought for him.

He took one look at the title and said, "Am I that bad, dearie?" before he started laughing. "Well, I did need something to read on the plane back to Storybrooke."

Charming went pale at the mention of the dreaded plane ride, and started thinking about tranquilizers, vowing to ask Bae or Rumple where he could get some.

After they had put everything away, Bae asked Rumple and Charming if they wanted to go down and watch a football game on the TV at the hotel bar.

Rumple agreed, but vowed to not drink anything stronger than Coke, and soon the suite was left to the women and children.

Henry and Alina were watching an old rerun of The Addams Family on the TV, while Belle relaxed on the couch, Emma read a crime novel she'd bought, and Snow took a bubble bath.

Regina had been watching TV, but soon she grew bored and crawled up on the couch to sit by her aunt. Curious, she put out a hand to touch Belle's tummy, and said, "Auntie Belle, is the baby sleepin' in there?"

"It could be," Belle said. "But somehow I don't think so." Though the baby was too tiny for her to feel it move, she had a surreal instinct that somehow it was awake right now. "Would you like to listen to me read a story I bought for the baby, Regina?" Belle asked, taking out the book she had bought.

Regina nodded and Belle began to read the Oh Baby book to her and the little one. It was a short book, but it made Belle smile and Regina laugh.

"Auntie Belle, can the baby hear what you're saying?" she asked then.

"Yes. I think it can," Belle answered. "That's why I read to it just now. So it can learn my voice."

Regina put her hand on Belle's tummy and said seriously, "Okay, baby. I need you to put your lissening ears on like Unca Rumple says . . . 'cause I need to tell you something important. My name's Regina, and I'm your big cousin. And I can teach you all kinds of things . . . like how to play fairy godmother and tie your shoes and play hide and seek. Oh, and pour tea. But you gotta 'member that I'm the boss of you, like Alina n' Henry are to me, so you be good an' lissen when I tell you to do somethin', okay? Or else I'll tell Unca Rumple on you an' he'll spank you an' put you in the corner for bein' a bad baby an' . . . umm . . . dis' pecting me."

Belle's shoulders were quivering by the time the little moppet was done with that speech, and she looked over at Emma and they both started laughing.

"Boy, I guess she told the kid how it is!" Emma giggled.

"Uh huh," Belle's blue eyes twinkled.

"What's so funny?" Regina asked.

"Nothing, little imp," said her aunt, and she ruffled the toddler's dark hair. "You're such an adorable minx, Regina Nolan. And I'm sure your baby cousin will be very glad to have you teach him or her."

Regina nodded. Then she went and picked up Belle's shirt and kissed her tummy. "That's a butterfly kiss. Now go to sleep, little baby." The little girl put her head on Belle's lap then and began to sing in her childish treble her favorite lullaby.

When she was done, she yawned and said, "Auntie Belle, I'm kinda sleepy."

"Maybe I ought to get her ready for bed," Emma said, putting her book down and getting up. "C'mon, chatterbox. Let's get you into your nightgown. That way you'll be ready for bed once Mommy gets out of the bathtub."

Regina kissed her aunt and Henry and Alina goodnight, then followed Emma into the bedroom where she stayed with Snow and David. While Emma hunted for her nightgown in the suitcase, Regina went and used the bathroom next to their bedroom.

Emma helped her into her nightgown and pulled back the sheets. "Okay, now let's get you tucked in here."

Regina crawled into the bed, then just as Emma was going to pull the covers up, cried, "Oh no! Emma, I left Sofia on the couch by Auntie Belle! I need her to sleep with me. An' my new kitty, Shadow too! He's by Alina."

"Hang on. I'll go get them," Emma said, and went to fetch the doll and the stuffed panther.

But when she returned, expecting to find Regina resting, she found the toddler bouncing on the bed, giggling and singing some song about five little monkeys.

"Regina! Ah ah ah!" Emma half-scolded. "You're supposed to be getting in bed, not jumping on it."

She handed her small sister Sofia and Shadow.

"But Emma . . . it's fun!" Regina stated, kneeling and jumping up and down. "See? See?"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, and even though Emma knew she was far too old to be taken in by a three-year-old like this, she found herself sitting on the bed and letting Regina bounce all over it.

Next thing she knew, she was bouncing on the bed too, and Regina was singing, "Five little monkeys jumpin' on the bed! One fell off an' bumped his head. Mama called the doctor and the doctor said—"

"No more monkeys jumpin' on the bed!" Emma finished the old rhyme, and took Regina's hands and they both gave a tremendous bounce, making the bed shake.

"Uh oh!" Regina gasped.

"Damn! I hope we didn't break the bed," Emma muttered.

"What's going on in here?" Snow queried, coming in to kiss her youngest goodnight.

"Uh . . . we were . . . err . . ." Emma began guiltily.

"We were singin' five little monkeys, Mom!" Regina told her. "An' I taught Emma how to bounce."

Snow raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

"I . . . uh . . . was going to tuck her in . . ." Emma said, looking rather ashamed. "And she was jumping so I . . .uh . . ."

"You were playing," Snow said knowingly. She smiled happily. "That's great!" Then she joined them on the bed.

"What . . . are you doing?" Emma asked, staring.

Snow took one of Emma's hands and then Regina's. Then she began to sing and bounce on the bed too. "Five little monkeys jumpin' on the bed . . ."

Soon they were all bouncing on the bed and it was shaking back and forth, and the three Charmings were laughing like loons.

Suddenly, the bedroom door opened and Belle, Charming, and Rumple stuck their heads in to see what in hell was going on in there.

"What the hell?" David gasped upon seeing his daughters and his wife jumping on the bed like a couple of schoolgirls.

"That looks like fun!" Belle started giggling.

"Yeah, until the bed breaks, dearie," Rumple smirked.

"You could put it back together," his wife said.

"What's going on?" Henry asked, coming to see.

Now aware they had an audience, the three froze.

"Uh . . . hi!" Snow said, smiling brightly.

"What are you girls doing?" asked Charming.

"We're . . . uh . . ." Snow stumbled, searching for an explanation.

"They're having some mother daughter time," Belle interjected.

"Yeah," Emma agreed, flushing a little.

"Really, dearie?" Rumple raised an eyebrow.

"That's right," Snow said. "It's a new kind of therapy."

"Then I hope you bill Archie when the bed breaks," Rumple said.

"We haven't broken anything," Emma objected.

"Whatever, dearie," Gold shrugged.

Henry looked at his mother, grandmother, and aunt. "Cool! Hey, Alina! Let's bounce!" Then he took a running jump and landed in the middle of the bed.

"Me too!" yelled Alina and soon she had joined them.

"I don't believe this!" Rumple cried.

"Hey, see what you started?" Charming said, shaking a finger at Snow.

"Oh, be quiet," Snow ordered, then they all joined hands and started singing and bouncing.

"Hey, what's going on?" Bae asked. He stared at the children, his wife, and his mother-in-law and then blurted, "O-kay . . . and what the heck did they have to drink?"

"Whatever it is, maybe we should get some," David said.

Rumple sighed. "Move, dearie. You're in my way."

"What are you doing?" David wanted to know.

"It's called reinforcement," Gold answered, tapping his cufflinks together. Then he gestured at the bed. "There! At least I won't be charged for a broken bed when we leave."

"Neat trick," Bae said. "You want to do it to ours too?"

Rumple gaped at him. "Why? You planning on breaking yours?"

"You never know. Sometimes things happen," his son smirked.

"Baelfire!"

"Just saying."

"He's your son, all right, Rumple," Charming declared gleefully.

Rumple glared at him. Then his mouth curled in a reluctant grin. "I'll take that as a compliment. I think."