All Jefferson had to say was 'Hook', and Dagian accompanied him to his house without any questions. Any worry about 'bringing him in on it' was forgotten about and both their children were packed into the car and they went to the house on the hill. Leaving nothing behind but a note hastily written by Dagian telling where she would be.

Let Charming and the others come to her.

They spent the car ride in silence. Jefferson had purchased a car seat since he and Dagian spent time together so thankfully Dagian didn't have to hold her daughter in her arms without a seatbelt.

He pulled up to the house and helped Dagian out. She leaned heavily against him as he helped her up the stairs. Grace held Lily and walked ahead of them to unlock the door.

"I don't want to be a bother," she told him.

"It's not a bother," he assured her, "Don't worry. You can stay here while you heal."

"They might find me," she whispered.

"I don't think that they will," he assured her and helped her inside, "I don't think the queen's mother is interested in you and it's not like Hook is going anywhere."

"Do you know what happened?" Dagian asked.

"No, I just heard the sheriff screaming at the nurse to hide him," he helped her up the stairs to the second level

"I guess they found him before Rumpelstiltskin did," she muttered.

"Or else, Belle girlfriend persuaded him to be merciful."

Dagian scowled; Stupid Belle getting in the way of justifiable revenge.

Jefferson guided her to a guest room and helped her sit down on the purple comforter. She pulled off her boots, "Thank you for letting me cover myself with your jacket.

"Well…your shirt was ruined," he averted his eyes, "If you need help changing clothes, Grace will help you. I'll let you have one of my shirts to sleep in. I…I would go for your clothes at your house but I don't want to risk being followed."

"I understand," Dagian said.

"I'll…buy you some clothes in the morning," he told her awkwardly.

"Okay," Dagian whispered and ran a shaky hand through her hair.

"Is there anything I can get you?"

"No," she accepted her daughter and kissed Lily's head, "Thank you."

"Okay," he cleared his throat, "I'll check on you later."

"Okay," Dagian said, "Goodnight."

He nodded his goodnight and left the room.

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It was a terrifying thing…looking at the love of your life while she had another woman's memories with no knowledge of him.

He'd hoped that she remembered him from before the curse broke but that didn't seem to be the case. She didn't seem to recognize him at all even though she'd been sent to find him while harboring false memories.

Hook had taken away her identity…he had taken away her love for him unwillingly. He supposed this must've been what Charming and Snow felt like when he did the same to them but that was different. She had practically begged him to take away her love. Hook had taken Belle from him unwillingly.

He had spared him. He had listened to Belle and he spared him. Everything in Rumpelstiltskin justified how right he'd be just to ignore her. After everything Hook did, after the threat he served to Rumpelstiltskin's family, he didn't deserve to live.

But he had let his doubt gnaw at him. He was reminded of the things he'd done to others. If Hook deserved to die for his crimes then what did that mean for Rumpelstiltskin? If he brutally murdered Hook for what he'd done to his family then he would lose Belle. Especially if he murdered him right in front of her. HE couldn't lie or hide it or manipulate it to his advantage. He would murder Hook and force her to witness it and he would lose her. No matter how in the right he felt he was.

And Belle would never forgive him for that.

He told himself that Hook wasn't worth the loss of Belle. So he listened to her. He spared the pirate and warned him. It was far more than the pirate deserved.

At the same time it was far less than what Dagian and his daughter deserved too.

But at the end, he lost Belle all the same. In a far more permanent basis. He couldn't rely on the fact that he could see her one day; he couldn't rely on the hope that he might be able to justify it. He couldn't bring Dagian in one day and show Belle Dagian's wounds and have Dagian tell her what the pirate had put her through.

What was done could not be undone. He was a stranger to her now. She would never know who she was or who he was or what they'd shared. She'd never know how beauty tamed the beast where many had tried and failed.

It was a gutting feeling.

Perhaps this was his punishment for the things he'd done. Perhaps this was a high power's way of letting him know what happened when he played God and matchmaker and chess master and whatever other roles he'd played.

And the innocents had to pay for his crimes. OF course he wouldn't be punished directly. He could take whatever punishment a higher power dealt him…it'd dealt so many over the years. He supposed the biggest blows to him would be the few people he did care about getting hurt.

To make everything worse, true love's kiss didn't work. She screamed when she saw him. With his magic unable to heal her and his memories as Mr. Gold unable to help her, he was out of his element and he hated it. He hadn't felt like this in centuries…he loathed this powerless feeling with everything he had.

That was the only reason he trusted Cora to keep her end of the bargain. It was the only reason that he sealed their deal the way they used to even though everything inside him was screaming at him to break her neck before she found out where his ex-wife and daughter (who had thankfully slipped away out of danger) were on top of knowing about Belle.

When he realized how desperate he was if he made a deal with Cora to get that globe, he had gone to Belle again in a last attempt to wake her up. He only spared Hook for Belle's memory and his own promise to be better for her. He knew he would be leaving with the morning and he didn't want to leave her here with no idea what was going on and no way to protect herself.

Showing her the cup had been a frantic move and in his own exhaustion and frustration he'd only scared her more. She threw the cup in her own anger and fear and confusion and he knew that was it. He could never wake her up again. She would never love him the way Belle did.

Was it always his fate to be alone?

Rumpelstiltskin went to his car and lifted up his shawl.

No, it wasn't his fate. He still had Bae to find. He could do it now. He could cross the line.

He would find his son and God willing…he would fix at least that. He would get his son back.

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Four in the morning, Jefferson was awakened to screaming.

At first he thought it was Grace. He didn't allow himself any time to think as he threw off his covers and raced down the hall to his daughter's aide. Sometimes she suffered nightmares thanks to being left alone in the Enchanted Forest and from suffering duel identities.

But it wasn't her. She appeared in the door way; just as frantic and puzzled as he was.

In that split second he remembered Dagian and was in her room before he could even think of the risks. Someone might be in there. She might be in danger and he was unarmed.

But no, she had slept with the lamp on and he saw no threat. Dagian lay tangled in the covers. She was thrashing around and crying, another scream erupted from her throat…

It took him a few seconds to process that she was asleep and suffering from a nightmare. However, he was snapped it when he remembered that she was injured and fighting like this could open those stitches.

"Dagian," he told her, "Dagian, shh."

He touched her shoulder and she tried to scratch his face. He quickly dodged her attack and took a breath. His wife had suffered from violent nightmares too and he always settled her down if he just talked to her, "Dagian, its Jefferson. You're alright. You're just having a nightmare. There's nothing here that's going to hurt you."

He kept talking to her until her struggles subsided. He wasn't sure if she was awake or asleep but he gently crawled next to her and embraced her until her cries and sobs subsided and she was breathing normally again.

When he was certain that she was calm he checked to make sure she didn't open up her wound and then crawled out of bed. As innocent as his motives were, he didn't think Dagian would understand if she woke up with him sleeping in her bed. She wouldn't care if he was just in there to make sure she didn't hurt herself.

Lily lay in the makeshift crib that they'd assembled for her. He used a long basket full of folded clothes on two chairs so that Dagian didn't have to worry about bending too far to open her back. She watched everything with large frightened eyes but didn't cry.

Grace watched from the doorway as he picked the baby up, "What are you doing, Papa?"

"She needs to eat," he said, "I don't want her to wake Dagian up."

"What do you want me to do?"

"Stay here," Jefferson said, "She'll panic if she wakes up and Lily isn't in her crib. Someone will need to tell her where Lily is."

"And then what?"

"Then, I'll put her to bed and we'll go to our rooms," he shrugged and kissed the top of her head, "If she starts screaming again, then come and get me. I don't want you to get hurt."

"Yes papa."

"Good girl," he said, "Maybe tomorrow we'll teach you how to feed her."

He started to walk down the hall when Grace called again, "Papa?"

"Yes."

"I think it's good what you did…bringing her here even though you knew it'd be dangerous."

He smiled wryly, "I'm sorry if it scares you."

"I'm not scared," Grace told him, "Rumpelstiltskin scares me more than a pirate does."

He smiled slightly, "Yeah, he is a bit intimidating isn't he?"

Perhaps one day, Jefferson would tell his daughter stories about how he and Rumpelstiltskin used to run together.

A/N: I still think Dagian is better than Milah after watching "Manhattan."