Hope you guys enjoy! I just thought I would let you all know that this story will likely be about 22 chapters and an epilogue, so it will be coming to a close shortly. I do hope you all are still enjoying it! And as always...reviews are always appreciated :)

They checked the baby again on Friday. Emma was a wreck that morning before Dr. Whale brought the ultrasound machine into the room.

"What if he hasn't grown anymore, Regina?"

"Sweetheart, I'm sure he has. Remember Victor said that it was astounding how much he had grown last time? I'm sure he grew. We'll see in just a few minutes, dear, but I'm sure of it, alright?" Regina soothed, giving Emma a small smile and brushing the blonde strands away from her face. "Are you hungry?"

Emma shook her head. Her eating habits had improved over the week since she had eaten some fries on Monday, but she still wasn't eating normally. She especially didn't eat when she was panicking, and in that moment that's exactly what she was doing.

"We don't know that he has grown, Regina."

"No, we don't. But we will, soon. Have patience, my love."

"Right," Emma growled. She pulled at her fingers and fidgeted with her sheet.

"Darling, I know it's impossible right now, but do try to breathe, yes? He will be here in moments." Emma nodded slowly, reaching her hand out to pull Regina to her and wrapped her arms around her standing girlfriend's waist. Regina returned the embrace, wrapping her arms around Emma's shoulders. "I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you too, Regina. Please don't leave me." Regina recoiled and pulled away to look into Emma's eyes.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm broken. Why would you want a broken person?"

"Emma," Regina whispered, lifting her hip to sit next to Emma on the bed. "Don't talk like that. We've talked about this before. You have too many things on your mind, don't let us breaking up be one of them. It's not an issue and I'm certain it never will be. Remember, our hearts are bound…we are True Loves. And even if we were not, I would still never want to leave you, Emma. You and I…we were made for each other, do you understand me? You are what I want. And you aren't broken, and I don't want to hear you say that anymore, please? It breaks my heart to hear you think that leaving you would be so easy for me." Emma nodded against her chest, and when they heard Dr. Whale knock on the door, she pulled away and Regina wiped her tears before sitting down into the chair next to the bed.

"Doing alright, ladies?" he asked as he pulled the cart in behind him.

"We're fine, Victor, thank you," Regina answered.

"Well, let's get started then. Emma, would you pull your gown up and cover your lower half while I power up the machine?" He turned to the screen and set up the ultrasound while the blonde woman did as he asked. When he turned around, she was lying back on the bed and Regina was holding her hand tightly. He squirted some gel onto Emma's stomach and rubbed it in with the wand. Usually, the measurements took 10-15 minutes, but this time he putted with the machine for nearly half an hour. Finally, after watching the doctor's brows furrow and his eyes squint, Regina cleared her throat.

"Victor? Everything is ok, right?" she asked in a warning tone.

"Yes. I apologize for worrying you, I just…the machine…I thought maybe it wasn't working right."

"Why is that? He didn't grow at all, did he? Oh my god!" Emma panicked. "I told you, Regina! I'm defective! I can't even grow our baby."

"Emma, calm down. First, you've already grown one baby and you are doing a fine job with this one. Second, again, you aren't defective or broken, now stop." She turned to look at Dr. Whale. "Victor. Tell us why you say that."

He shook his head to release his worried thoughts. "It's remarkable. He's 15 ¼ inches, he grew, two and a half inches in four days. He's 3 pounds already. He's still on the small side of your 29 weeks, but…Emma, Regina, it's unheard of. He's growing incredibly quickly and…I'm sorry, I'm shocked. It's outstanding, really. I think if we wait until Wednesday, like originally planned, I have complete confidence that he'll be big enough to survive without any issue at all."

"Really?" both women asked.

"Barring any complications, babies can be taken home at five pounds, that means that he only needs two more pounds. And, he's a little short, and even if he grows two and half inches again, he'll still be short, but you two are short anyway so it isn't anything to be concerned about." Regina glared at him and he responded with a smile. "Hey, don't take offense, it's not an insult."

"I can accept that, but you watch yourself, Victor," Regina teased, smiling widely in her happiness. She turned to look at Emma. "Sweetheart, do you hear that? We can be holding our baby in less than a week!"

Emma smiled widely and brightly for the first time in weeks and it warmed Regina entirely through.

"We're gonna have our baby," Emma whispered in response.

"We are. We're going to have our baby and he's going to be healthy and beautiful." When she was certain her wife was ok enough to be left alone for a few minutes, she walked out of the hospital room and called Rumplestiltskin.

"Hello, dearie. To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"

"Rumple…do you…have you ever heard of a baby being magical in the womb?"

"Magical, you say? No, I have not. Most young sorcerers do not gain their powers until somewhere around the age of ten. Why do you ask?"

"Somehow, I don't know how or why, but mine and Emma's baby is growing at a remarkable speed. Victor was shocked nearly speechless and, don't get me wrong, but as magic always comes with a price, I'm worried."

"Yes, I can see why you would be. I will say that you and Emma are two of the most powerful sorceresses to ever live and that could be why your baby may possibly have magic already. It's also a possibility that the cost of magic is Emma's condition."

"Her depression? But how, it was worse before the baby somehow magically got better!"

"Maybe having the baby, the pregnancy was the magic and the depression was the cost. That still leaves to explain how the baby is getting better so quickly, but I daresay it could be because it was the creation of such magical women. It's quite possible that even if the baby doesn't have magic, or that it isn't displaying magic, the powers inside of Emma might be doing it without her knowledge."

"But then won't there be another price?"

"I'm not sure, dearie, but I am inclined to say no. I believe that healing usually comes without a price because it repairs damage. There is no purer magic than that of healing magic."

"Does that mean you think that things are going to be fine?"

"Would you like it if I came to look at Emma?"

"…I'm not sure."

"She doesn't know you're talking to me."

"No."

"Dearie, dearie…you must learn from your mistakes. Speak to your Emma, then give me a call if you want me to come see her."

"Thank you, Rumple."

"Of course, dearie." She hung up the phone after his parting words and she looked through the glass into Emma's room. The blonde was sitting on her bed fidgeting with the hem of her blanket. She shook her head to herself and pushed through the door into the room.

"Emma?" The blonde looked up with a small smile.

"Regina…you're back."

"I didn't leave long, sweetheart. I just wanted to make a phone call."

"Who did you call?"

Regina sighed and sat down on the bed with her hip next to Emma's, but so that she was facing her.

"Emma, I'm sorry. I should have spoken to you first, but I called Rumple."

"Oh."

"Oh? You're not mad at me?"

"No. I trust your judgment. …but, um…why did you call him?"

"Emma, darling, I was thinking that there was some way that the baby had magic and that was how he is healing so remarkably and I wanted to ask Rumple if he knew anything about it."

"But…no! Magic always comes with a price! He can't use magic…he'll have to pay a price! Regina!" Emma yelled, trying to push herself off the bed. Regina placed wrapped her hands around Emma's biceps, trying to hold her still.

"Sweetheart, calm down. He's not concerned. He's certain the baby will be fine. Healing magic is purer than any other type of magic, so he doesn't think it will hurt the baby, ok? …Rumple was wondering if we would like him to come look at you, to see if he can sense any magic that I'm not sensing."

"Yeah…ok."

Rumplestiltskin arrived in an hour's time, still allowing around an hour before Henry would arrive for his evening visit. He walked in, greeting both women with a slight nod of his head and a half smile.

"Hello, dearies. Emma, how are you feeling?"

"I've been better."

"Right, yes…so I have heard. Shall we waste no time?" he asked, walking to the far side of Emma's bed, across from Regina. He waved his hand slowly in a hover above Emma's body. What appeared to be a purple force glowed beneath his hand, but it didn't extend into her body, it just hovered near his skin. Once his hand had made it's entire trip that extended the full length of her form, he pulled his hand back and turned it palm up, flattening his hand as much as possible and pushing his hand a couple of inches higher in the air. That action caused a clear sphere to appear above his hand, it looked almost like a crystal ball.

In the sphere, the three could see a silhouette of a small baby, the entire form was outlined with yellow sparks and a bright yellow glow. Regina and Emma gasped and Rumple hummed. Regina reached her hand out to touch the sphere, but he pulled his hand back so she couldn't reach. After another moment of the three staring at it, he closed his hand into a fist and released it to his side.

"That was magic? The baby has magic?" Regina asked.

"It would appear so," Rumple answered.

"What do we do?"

"There's nothing you can do, at least not until he's born. My hope is that he is using the magic because he needs it, he needs to grow and to heal, and once he is out and at a healthy weight, he'll stop using it. If that is not the case…well, I think the two of you would be interested in putting a binding spell on him until he can understand the difference between light and dark magic and using it for convenience and using it to damage."

"You…you can do that?" Emma asked.

"Well, certainly I can, however, I think that it would be wiser to give you the spell and have the two of you do it. I don't want to use magic against anyone in your family any longer."

"Rumple, I—" Regina started, but she was interrupted by the older sorcerer.

"Regina, I have done a great many terrible things to you and I will never be able to take it back or right the wrongs I have performed against you, but you truly are much like a daughter to me and there are no thanks required within family."

Regina's eyes welled up with tears and her throat tightened. She didn't know what to say, so instead of speaking she offered him a small smile and put her arms around his neck in a hug. He was surprised by the action, surprised that the woman to whom he had caused much harm would willingly touch him, forgive him, not hate him, even. He put his arms around her waist and slowly, used his right hand and patted her on the back.

"Thank you, dearie," he whispered low enough so just the two of them knew he said it. She nodded against him and pulled away.

"Thank you," she mouthed to him, offering a small smile afterward.

"Well, let me get out of your way."

"Wait," Emma called. "Isn't there a price?"

"No, no there is not. As long as there is something I can do to help, for you two and your children, there will no longer be a cost for my assistance."

"But there's always a price."

"And you won't have to pay it to me, dearie. Feel better, Emma. You two enjoy that baby." With a parting smile, he left the room.

"What the hell?" Emma asked when she was sure he was out of earshot.

"He has no way of making up to me the things that have happened in our pasts. This is his way of doing that, sweetheart."

"But…but…that's Rumplestiltskin! He has to be playing some game!"

"You know, dear...I truly don't think he is this time."