Rumple and Belle walked side by side, their hands entwined, watching their son run playfully through the large snow filled courtyard at the rear end of the castle. Finn laughed as a few small birds landed on his shoulder tweeting happily into his ear. The boy nodded as if he could understand exactly what his new friends were saying. Rumple watched his son take a lump of snow into his small hand, a flash of light erupted from the snow ball he had formed, a flash that startled both mother and father.
"Finn?!" Belle called in a worried tone.
The boy turned and ran back across the courtyard to his parents. He presented his mother with a perfect snow sculpture of a song bird.
"Here, Mama" said Finn happily.
Belle's eyes widened with disbelief, her baby boy was only two years old and he could had created something as beautiful as this. He placed the delicate sculpture in her hands, as her eyed welled up with tears.
"You made this with magic. Did your father teach you?" she asked, choking back her tears, trying to not let her son see her cry.
"Hmmm-hmm" said Finn, as he shook his head proudly.
"Thank you, sweetheart" said Belle
"Well done, son" said Rumple proudly.
Belle planted a kiss firmly on his forehead, and he ran back to play under the big oak tree in the center. Belle continued to stare at the sculpture. She wished it would never melt, but the feeling of water seeping through her closed fingers was a sign that it was well on its way to becoming a puddle of nothing.
"You taught him how to do this?" Belle asked her husband.
"No. This he learned on his own" he said with a slight smirk.
"You aren't teaching him dark magic, are you?" she asked, the concern clear in her voice.
"Never. Dark magic requires a great deal of sacrifice. I could never put that burden on my sons. Bae has lost enough; things will be different with Finn. I promised him that the day he was born."
Belle smiled at him, the last remnants of the sculpture melted in her warm hands. Rumple put one hand on her shoulder and waved his other finger around her palms. Belle watched in amazement, as Finn's sculpture quickly reformed. He took his hand off her shoulder and pulled a small glass box out of thin air.
"Here" he said, opening the box and motioning for her to put the bird inside.
Belle, with great care, placed the snow bird into the box. Rumple closed the lid and placed his right hand on top. Her eyes were wide as she watched his hand glow with a blue aura, the glass around the box chilled, and frost formed in the corners. He gave the box to his wife; she smiled and bit her bottom lip in excitement.
"Thank you, my love" she said, placing a hand on his cheek.
"Of course. I just put a freezing spell on it. As long as the bird stays in the box, it will never melt."
While Rumple was a legendary magician, Finn was very impressive for his age. He had near perfect control of it, and he was only two. His infant years were the worst, sometimes very powerful storms with deadly lightning would form just because he was hungry. When he had a nightmare it would start massive forest fires. Luckily, they memorized his feeding pattern and knew exactly how to calm him, and they hid his talent well from local villages. The fortunate thing for their family was there was nothing suspicious about forest fires, they happen, Rumple would use his magic to put out the flames, and make up some story the villagers would believe and go from there. Things calmed down after Finn's first birthday, when he began to realize his talent. Now he was happy every day. Rumple always smiled when he thought about it, the idea that his magical legacy was being passed him to his son gave him an overwhelming sense of pride. He had missed so much with Bae, that all these new feelings he felt as a father excited him. He put an arm around Belle's shoulder and pulled her smaller frame closer to his warmth. Belle looked up at him, the proud expression on his face as he watched their baby boy made her heart flutter. Finn was the product of true love, and was therefore destined for greatness.
It was getting later and colder as Finn played, the boy oblivious to the rest of the world. Belle realized it was time to get him ready for bed.
"Honey! Come! Time for bed!" she called
Finn waved sadly at the birds he played with, as they flew away. Rumple could sense a storm coming; his bones were getting stiffer and his body colder. Belle took her son's hand and went inside the warm castle. Rumple stood behind and gazed at the black clouds looming over the mountains in the distance.