Rumpelstiltskin burst through the doors of the hospital that had given him the call.

Dagian had awakened her neighbors with her screaming. They found her with a head injury on the floor, it could've easily attributed to her hitting her head on the nightstand but he had gotten the call since he was still Dagian's emergency contact and with a quick word to Belle he left her at home and went to see his ex-wife.

"I'm fine," she said as soon as he walked to the bed where some nameless doctor that wasn't Frankenstein was stitching her head.

"It's a deep cut, and a concussion," the doctor said.

"I'm fine," Dagian said again, "Darling…I promise you that I'm not hurt."

"What happened?" he demanded and shot a glare at the doctor as if it was his fault. Dagian was a light sleeper and usually had nightmares but he could never recall her actually falling out of the bed.

"Nothing," Dagian said and then shot a glance at the doctor.

Rumpelstiltskin got her hint immediately, "Give us a few minutes alone when you're done."

They sat in awkward silence until the doctor got done bandaging her up and he stepped closer as the doctor stepped away, "Now, what happened?"

"Someone was in my room."

He didn't even let that sink in before he felt the surge of anger. This was his ex-wife. She had nothing to do with anything that he'd done. While Jefferson had given her some idea of his deeds in the realms she still didn't know the full extent of his actions…and his desperation… surely no one in their friendly little town would hurt her to get back at him.

But Dagian wouldn't lie to him, "Who was it?"

"I've never seen him before," she whispered, "He um…he had black hair and a beard…and he was in all black and he a sword next to him and in his left ear…there was an earring."

Rumpelstiltskin tilted his head, "A lot to remember."

"It's not the first time I've seen him," she admitted.

"Dagian, it was just a dream," he told her and put a hand on her shoulder, "You're just dreaming. Nothing more. "

"It feels so real though," she whispered.

"You know how it is with sleeping curses," he told her, "Your dreams were just…put on hold for 28 years and now they're going to haunt you, but I assure that you they will fade in time. You just have to remember that what you're seeing…this man that's haunting you isn't real."

Dagian just watched him, "But I feel like I recognize him."

"It's just part of the dream state," he said quickly, "You know how in dreams when you feel like you've been somewhere before or recognized-."

"Rumpelstiltskin," she said in exasperation, "Stop. Please"

Rumpelstiltskin stopped; he knew that his game was up, "Dagian, it can't be him."

"Oh," she muttered sarcastically, "So you DO know who he is?"

"Yes," he said, "But he can't be alive, Dagian. It's impossible. The time he was alive…was over 400 years ago. He's dead."

"Then how do I know him?" she demanded.

"Because you were in his care for two months," Rumpelstiltskin told her, "When we were both human, he had you on his ship."

Dagian scoffed, "I think I would remember him."

Despite their divorce, Rumpelstiltskin felt a bit jealous by the way she said that, "You wouldn't if the dark one decided you didn't."

Dagian scoffed, and why on earth would Zoso of all people care what I remembered and what I didn't?"

"Because he was trying to stop you without having to resort to killing you," he told her, "Because shortly after you left and you were struggling to survive, there was a time when you expressed a desire to return home."

0000000000000000000000000000 0000000000000000000000000000 0000

A desire to return home

Rumpelstiltskin hadn't told her more than that. He only had the memories of the previous Dark One to go by and for all he knew…or claimed to know…Dagian was taken aboard the man…who he called Killian Jones…and was held there for two months and then she was released. And when she still wanted to go home, he extracted just enough of her memories for her to repress the rest including any wish to see her husband again.

She wasn't angry that Rumpelstiltskin never told her about this. She wouldn't have wanted to know in some ways. The idea that she could've had happiness or could've made it at least right with Rumpelstiltskin and wasn't able to because Zoso kept interfering, hurt her deeply.

But she was at least…somewhat happy to know that during all of what she put him through…there was a time when she wanted to see her husband and her son. For what little time she was regretful…she wasn't a complete monster.

But he'd removed that desire and he'd changed her.

Rumpelstiltskin took her home from the hospital and left for his own house. He expressed a desire to return to his new girlfriend and while she knew that was a lot of the reason for his quick exit, she also realized that he didn't want to answer any of her questions.

So when she got some rest and morning came, she decided that she was going to go see him. There was something that he wasn't telling her, she was aware of that much, she just wasn't sure what.

And then she would go see Archie and whatever memories were buried in there were coming out.

It was fine; she wasn't going to harass him anyway. She was just going to use an excuse to talk to him. She left a couple of sweaters at his house in case something like this happened. Dagian really didn't think she needed an excuse to go see her ex-husband but…she didn't really know. It was just in case.

Dagian was considering whether or not she should knock or just open it when someone on the other side opened it for her. Dagian blinked when she saw that Belle was wearing some sort of nightie.

She hadn't considered that Belle would be the one to open the door. Great, now she had to deal with this awkwardness as well as waiting to deal with him, "Hi…I…uh…I left some….I left a couple of sweaters here."

"You're Dagian," Belle said and then broke into a smile, "Hello."

"You know me," Dagian said slowly.

"Of course," she looked down the hall, "He has pictures of the two of you everywhere."

Dawn. He has pictures of Dawn.

Dagian averted her eyes awkwardly, "I imagine that you're probably wishing that he takes those down."

"No," Belle said quickly, "No, I mean it is your home and you've been here for 28 years and I know that it must be awkward for you and um…"

Dagian closed her eyes, she didn't have the patience to deal with this, she was living on too much coffee and not enough sleep and the fact that this woman was living in what used to be her home was starting to irritate her and she knew it was wrong because she signed those divorce papers and had no right to this house or her ex, "Rumpelstiltskin probably knows where the rest of my things are, do you know where he is?"

"Actually, I know where they are," she said quickly, "It's still in your closet."

"Well it seems to be your closet now," Dagian muttered and realized how bad that sounded, "Forgive me, this is just going to take some adjustment."

Belle looked like she shared the same sentiment of wishing she was anywhere else but here at this moment.

Dagian took her first look at the girl since they'd glanced at each other in the pawn shop. She had innocence about her that Dagian knew she never had to offer her husband. Even when they'd met she was scarred…traumatized...and while Belle was very plain, there also was an inner beauty about her that shown through.

Belle cleared her throat, "I'm sorry your baby was born early."

"These things happen," Dagian said, reverting to the robotic phrase that she'd been spouting to every well-wisher in this town.

"IF I had known that he was going to introduce magic, I would've talked him out of it."

"Well operating on half-truths is what he does," Dagian said, "But I'm not sure if it was even his fault or not."

"He showed me pictures of her," Belle offered, "She's beautiful."

"Thank you," Dagian said and tried to find a compliment to give the girl as well, "You got him to clean the living room…that's a first."

He was establishing a home with her. Dagian tried not to care but the Dawn personality felt raging jealousy. For the 28 years, he'd treated their home as storage for the items he couldn't pawn off and Dawn had broken more toes trying to find her way in the dark…and now here they were tidying up.

Belle looked behind her and then back at Dagian, "May I ask you a question and you not get offended?"

"You may," Dagian said.

"Do I…have to worry about you trying to get him back?"

"Absolutely not," Dagian said quickly. Even though the idea of this child taking her place made her bristle she did NOT want him back as a husband, "I have absolutely no intention of coming between whatever it is that you have. In fact I'm honestly quite thrilled that you're here because now I don't have to worry about that easy temptation to go back to him because it's easier."

"Oh," Belle looked down and so Dagian continued.

"But you do have to understand that Lily and I will be in your lives and you have to accept that just like I have to accept that you're going to be in mine."

"It's just that…you were with him for 28 years."

"He was not with me," Dagian said, "He was with a version of me that he felt was better."

"Yes but you were with him when he was practicing magic and I know that you were forced to tolerate it and I'm worried that he's going to expect the same thing with me now that he's still doing it and I can't."

Dagian looked up sharply, "He's what?"

"He's practicing magic again," Belle said, "I saw him practicing it in the basement this morning."

"Bloody figures that he'd learn nothing."

"Perhaps we should talk to him."

Dagian scoffed and glared daggers in the direction of the basement. She really hoped that he felt that look, "He's not going to listen to me, Belle. He never did. He doesn't care what I think. If you're so bent on changing him then you do it. I can't waste my time for something that I know is going to be futile."

"Why did he bring magic back?"

"You're going to have to ask him," she muttered, "Me, I'm not playing this game. I have things to do…therapy to attend…pirates to remember…"

She turned and walked down to the car and realized as she drove down the street that she forgot those stupid sweaters. And both Archie's office and that of Sidney Glass's was going to be freezing.