"Damn!" cursed Rumplestiltskin as he snapped his cell phone shut. He ended the call as Belle cried out, "Will no one pick up?"

Rumple shook his head as he resumed his focus on the road. A flurry of dreaded thoughts swarmed their minds. The silence was deafening and their bodies ached from all the tension. Before she could allow her mind to set off another panic attack she spoke to break the silence. "Rumple…"

Rumple temporarily broke his trance from the road to quickly glance at her.

"Rumple… there's still magic in Storybrooke…" Belle remarked looking over at her husband from the passenger seat of the Cadillac. Magic was something they hadn't had to worry about in years and the mere thought brought about an unsettling form of anxiety. The sun was slowly rising as they made their way across the interstate towards Maine. Rumple casted Belle a nervous look and replied with great trepidation, "… I know."

"I don't understand. Everyone knows that we're done with that life. Most of them were probably relieved to see us go."

"Well, evidently, someone wants us back."

"But why?" questioned Belle anxiously. She sighed heavily staring out the windshield. "What could they possibly want from us?" Silence filled the space between them and it left Belle realizing that he was withholding information. His reluctance was foreboding. "Rumple, our daughter's life is on the line. What do you know that you're not telling me?"

Rumple let out an anxious sigh, twisting and stretching his shoulders as if suddenly becoming uncomfortable in his seat. "Belle, during that summer… before we left Storybrooke and moved to New York… I had discovered one of Henry's traveling spells…"

"Yes, I remember… and you mentioned that you had been traveling back to your castle…" Castle. It felt strange as the words left her mouth. In this world that they had already assimilated to, the mere thought of magic and castles seemed foreign, fantastical and downright ludicrous. It was another life. This… was supposed to be their happy ending. "…to collect dark magic…"

Rumple nodded, "One of those dark items that I sought after was the Sorcerer's hat… and this Sorcerer went by the name of 'Merlin'."

"Merlin? As in, Camelot and… Arthur…" That was the connection. "This doesn't make sense. Why would Arthur come after us? How could Arthur have come after us in New York when he's from our land?"

"If… he existed."

"If?"

"So during that summer while you were pregnant with Lily, I went to the Enchanted Forest and heard from a man that Merlin was nearby. Now legends say that Merlin has the power to travel through time and realms and if that's true... then Belle he's more powerful than me! All of his magic comes from a hat and I wanted it. I wanted it because that power would have been enough to break me from the Dark One dagger and let me keep my magic outside of Storybrooke."

"Oh Rumple…" Belle commented while shaking her head in disapproval.

"But that was then! Obviously I didn't get it," he said defensively, doing his best to look at her and drive at the same time. "Hey…" he said softly, waiting to make eye contact with her. She turned to face him and saw him looking seriously at her. "I'm glad I didn't," he said with sincerity.

"I know," she replied more sympathetically.

He continued, "So, I had collected items and clues to his whereabouts, but every time I had gotten close to meeting him he would disappear and evade my grasp. The last remaining clue I had that hadn't checked out was a cryptic note I had acquired from him a long, long time ago saying, 'We cannot meet until we meet Arthur.' So for months, that summer, I scoured the land in search for Arthur, but found nothing. Then Henry had gone off to see Hercules and I was never able to resume my search."

He hesitated for a moment, choosing his next words carefully. She trusted him and he needed to trust her. Once they reached Storybrooke, there wouldn't be anyone left that he could truly trust with his intentions, so he proceeded, "Belle, as soon as we return to Storybrooke I must get into my shop to retrieve Henry's pocket-watch."

"Why?"

"Henry's pocket watch is the only realm traveling device left. I need his pocket-watch to travel back to our land and retrieve my dagger from the Dark Castle."

"You left it at the Castle? You mean you had brought it with you! I thought it was still at the hiding spot we agreed upon in Storybrooke."

"Well, it's not and I'm going to need my dagger."

"Rumple, don't you see? This is a trap. What if this Arthur already has your blade and is just simply luring you back into Storybrooke to control you?"

"It's impossible. I distinctly remember cloaking the dagger at the castle using blood magic."

Rumple had lied to her twice now about the dagger and she started to doubt whether or not he had reverted back to his old ways. With the lies and mixed feelings over his old power-hungry habits, she asked skeptically changing the subject slightly, "So what's your history with Arthur?"

"I don't have any."

"Not even with any of Arthur's family? This wouldn't be the first time someone has tried to come after us to seek revenge," she said, remembering Hook's gun-shot to her shoulder. Even though Rumple had healed her all those years ago, she could still remember the pain of impact and she began rubbing her fingers over the phantom wound.

"Arthur is as it is in this land… a legend."

Belle stared outside the car window and speculated what a king and his round table of knights would want from Rumplestilstskin or herself. How did Arthur even know that they had conceived a child together? There was something missing to this puzzle. Something he was omitting and she sensed it. She looked over at her husband and needed to look at his face more clearly, but he was too focused on the road.

"Stop the car," Belle commanded to her husband.

"What?"

"Pull over right now and stop the car." Rumplestiltskin did as was requested of his wife and pulled over where he could. As soon as they were able to pull off to the side of the highway safely, she reached for his hand and looked into his eyes. "What are you not telling me?"

"About what?" he questioned, feeling her accusatory gaze probe his face.

"About Arthur!" exclaimed Belle.

Rumplestiltskin sighed as he turned his head away from Belle and stared outside the window. Belle reached forward for his face and gently turned his head back toward her, wanting to read his facial expressions.

Worry wrinkled his face as he thought of his response, "The legend speaks of a boy named Arthur and his destiny to rule the kingdom Camelot. Camelot is said to be this… this utopia of sorts. Of all of my years of living in the Enchanted Forest and searching for ways to get back to Bae, I've never come across him. This legend… was prophesized by the sorcerer Merlin and it is said that the two were fated to help one another. No one has seen him, not even his knights. Arthur never existed until now."

Belle wanted to make sure that this Arthur wasn't just a coincidence, that they weren't simply mistaking him for another Arthur. So she asked to double-check, "So Arthur… You mean, the Knights of the Round Table?"

Rumplestiltskin nodded, "One and the same."

"But according to the books I've read, the knights aided Arthur while searching for the Holy Grail."

"The Grail supposedly gives one eternal life, but with my being immortal already I wasn't exactly interested in that old relic. No, I was interested in finding Arthur. His knights were searching for Arthur too. Some people even thought that Arthur and the Grail were one and the same; one synonymous with the other. During my travels, I tried to avoid the knights where I could. Their religious pursuits didn't exactly align with my own."

"Could we be dealing with zealots?" Belle asked, worried over the new threat.

"I doubt that we're dealing with any of the knights. They were too wrapped up in themselves and their cause that they couldn't get anything accomplished. The last time I interacted with any of them was before we had even met and they were dealing with an indiscretion of their own. I wanted to know information about the whereabouts of Merlin and his hat so that I could use the hat to find Bae, and they wanted to find Arthur. At the time I figured wherever Arthur was, clues to Merlin's whereabouts would be there too. When I encountered the knights they believed that the reason why they weren't successful in their discovery of Arthur or the Grail was because someone within their group wasn't pure in heart. They wanted a way to test the purity of their hearts within the group. So in exchange for an enchanted object that would tell them so, they told me of their next intended destination. As it turned out, a man named Lancelot had given his heart to another woman."

"When you went to that destination, did you find anything there?"

"Nothing but that note about Arthur… Well," he began nonchalantly, "there was the Grail. So it wasn't a complete waste of my time."

"This whole time you had the Holy Grail?! You mean, you actually touched it?" she replied, her expression changing suddenly from scrutiny to awe.

"Trust me. There wasn't anything spectacular about it. Just a glorified paper weight if you ask me. Anyways, while they were busy squabbling amongst themselves over the purity of hearts, I went on ahead to see if their information checked out. Turns out… it did, except nobody was there. Just the note." Rumple had no reason to believe that the knights would be after them or their daughter. So their primary suspects circled back to Arthur and Merlin.

He continued, "So I continued my search for Merlin, but mostly because of the power he possessed to travel across realms. And… as I've said before our paths never crossed." He took a breath as he stared earnestly back at Belle. "That's all I know." He could tell by the incredulous look on her face that she was dissatisfied with his answer. "It's the truth! I'm not lying to you, if that's what you're thinking. She's my daughter too, why would I lie to you?!" he said in his defense.

After hearing his honest reply, she knew deep within her bones that what he said was the truth. He wasn't suspicious like he was before because this time he had no reason to be. "No," Belle said shaking her head dismissing the skeptical notion. "You're not lying. I'm sorry. I'm just tired and distraught and confused. It's just… none of this makes any sense! I'm sorry I doubted you."

She withdrew her hand from his and Rumple started back on the road again. Belle sat there in silence and stared out the passenger window as she racked her brain for possible solutions. Things seemed hopeless. She drew the back of her hand up to her mouth to mask the pout that was forming on her face and began sobbing.

Noticing her tears, he called to her gently and reached for her, "Hey." She turned with tears on her face to look at her husband and saw that he was hurting too. "We'll find her."

She scooted on over closer to him on the passenger seat and took comfort in shoulder by learning her head on his. She took his hand and wrapped her arm around his arm. In between sobs she cried, "Rumple, what are we going to do?"

"We'll figure out a way," he said doing his best to console her, "There's always a way…"

The long drive was excruciating. Belle exhausted herself from crying and decided to give her eyes a bit of a reprieve and closed them temporarily. Even though the morning sun remained cloaked by the dark clouds overhead, Belle still couldn't sleep. In fact, they both felt restless knowing that their child was kidnapped by someone from their world.

Someone from their world…

Belle's eyes shot open as she came to a realization. How could someone from their world get to this world? How was Arthur able to find Storybrooke from this world? How were they? "Rumple! How are we going to find Storybrooke?"

"In the note, Arthur wants us to come back to Storybrooke, which means that he has the means and ability to cross Storybrooke's border without issue."

"Is Arthur known to have that kind of magic?"

"No. According to the legend, the only thing enchanting about Arthur was the sword he wielded; Excalibur. And the only thing magical about that was the sword's ability to determine the rightful ruler of Camelot, which was to pluck the sword-"

"-from the stone," finished Belle. She too, had also heard of Arthur's legend, but from books of this land.

"No, I don't think we'll have an issue getting into Storybrooke. I mean, why bother setting up protection spells against us, if we're the ones being invited back? He's expecting us to come for Lily. Arthur has somehow found a way to leave and enter Storybrooke, which means that if he can, so can we."

"I suppose that makes sense," agreed Belle. His assurance gave her hope, or the illusion of hope. She gave out an exasperated sigh. "For years nobody from that world has bothered us or us them. We were peaceful and happy. Why couldn't we have been left well enough alone?" said the worried mother rhetorically.

"I don't know."

They sat in the car as they speculated some more. Rumple spent years to get Regina to cast a curse to get to this world. How did Arthur do it in such a short period of time? Why now all of a sudden? So she reasoned out loud, "To enter this world from our land, Arthur would have had to have come through Storybrooke first somehow, right?"

"Unless he's found a magical bean… but nobody's seen one in years and Arthur was very clear on us coming to Storybrooke. There are two things we know for certain, he's found us and he knows about Storybrooke."

"Bean or not, if he knows about Storybrooke, then he also knows that it's the only place in this world that still has magic. Somebody back in Storybrooke would have called us if…" She wanted to say, 'If they knew a threat was coming for them', but the truth was nobody has called them; not Emma, Regina, or even Henry. Emma and Regina's loyalty to them was doubtful at best, but Henry carried no animosity toward them and would have called right away. Despite their questionable loyalty, Belle had to believe that they were both mothers and as mothers would have done the right thing and alerted them.

The car fell eerily silent. Nobody from Storybrooke was answering their calls and nobody has called them, which meant that there was a breach in Storybrooke. Someone or everyone had been compromised. Not good. Rumple replied, "Something tells me that Arthur wasn't alone when he kidnapped Lily. With the Sorcerer by his side, Arthur could have entered this world by other unconventional means."

"The Sorcerer? You mean, Merlin?"

Rumple nodded at the correct insinuation, "I suspect that Merlin is involved. I think he's the one that's been assisting Arthur getting to and from worlds and if that's the case, anything is possible. Merlin's magic is that powerful. As potent as his magic is he's also just as enigmatic and elusive. Even I wasn't able to find him."

"So you think Merlin and Arthur are in cohorts together."

"Yes. Though, I think it is as you've said… they both made it into Storybrooke and have somehow gotten past Henry's magic. If you can remember, it was Henry who had the ability to turn magic on and off in Storybrooke and it was Henry who also made it possible for us to leave Storybrooke and still retain our memories. If Arthur and Merlin somehow made it into Storybrooke, then that means Henry was either compromised into telling them our location and was used to get across the border, or they already knew where to find us and have somehow found a way to bypass the town line's cloaked border without him."

Neither scenario sounded good. Henry was technically and magically their last line of defense from people they knew from their world. They both sat in the car pondering over the current state of the cursed town and the kind of horror awaited them beyond the line.

"Say Henry had been compromised… what could Arthur have hoped to gain by us coming back? We were of no threat to him and as far as we knew he didn't even know about us."

"I'm not entirely sure what Arthur's intentions are, but we're soon gonna find out." In an instant, Rumple's face quickly morphed from distress to anger. In a stern low voice, he growled, "And when we do, I promise you he will pay for what he's done. After I'm done with him, his penance will be nothing short of legendary if… he lives long enough to serve it."

Arthur had clearly woken the beast, a side Belle hadn't seen in him in years. Belle wasn't quick to defend or encourage his vengeful thoughts, but she also knew of how quick and easy it was to follow that dark path. She couldn't blame him for wanting justice for Arthur's actions. She wanted justice too, but she had to know more before she could draw her own line in the sand.

"No! I want justice too, but not like that. We don't even know the whole story! This can't be a simple kidnapping. I don't think this whole thing is as black and white as you think. There wasn't even a ransom on the note. He just wanted us back in Storybrooke," pointed out Belle. "There's so much we don't know. As far as we know, Arthur could just be a false name disguised as someone else... like somebody we already know that's been in Storybrooke this entire time."

"Well that's great," Rumplestiltskin said, his sarcasm quickly emerging, "Doesn't exactly cut down our list of suspects, does it? Aside from the entire town whom I'm sure would like nothing more than to see me suffer. I wouldn't even be surprised if someone from our own estranged family was behind all of this."

"I just can't believe that though. You know when we left Storybrooke we left peacefully and amicably. So don't jump to conclusions about our family, however estranged they are."

"Well then, if it is as you suggested and our kidnapper is someone we already know, then who would go to these extraordinary lengths risking their own lives to bring us back?"

Suddenly Rumple's cell phone started to ring within the trench coat of his pocket. With a confused look upon his face he dug deep into his pocket and pulled out his cell. Rarely did he ever receive a phone call. When he did receive a call it was either from Belle, Lily's school or an alert from the security system he had in place to protect his pawn shop in New York. It wasn't any of them. They both looked on the screen to identify the caller to which they both discovered, "Henry?!"

Rumple immediately received the call and then pressed the speaker button for the two of them to hear. Henry answered first, "Grandpa?" They both could detect a hint of hesitancy in his voice. It was noticeably deeper than they had remembered.

"Henry!" called out Belle, reaching for the phone cradled in Rumple's hand to hold it as he drove.

"Belle?"

"I've got you on speaker phone Henry," explained Rumplestiltskin.

"I saw that you had called and have actually been meaning to call you. Strange things have been happening in Storybrooke."

"Henry, our daughter has been kidnapped and taken back to Storybrooke. Have you seen a little seven year old girl? She has brown hair, hazel eyes…" Belle said, her maternal voice wavering under duress.

"No, I haven't. Lily's been kidnapped?! That's horrible! Where are you guys?"

"On the road to Storybrooke. What's been happening in Storybrooke? What's going on?" asked Rumple.

"I think the town has been cursed again. There's a mysterious person in town that no one can see but me. Every time I try to point him out to someone he disappears."

"What does he look like?"

"He's a bit elderly. Long hair, white beard, has a walking stick. I've never seen him before in Storybrooke until recently."

"Merlin?" mouthed Belle to Rumple. Rumple shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. He wasn't sure. He continued his questioning, "When did he start showing up and where?"

"He started appearing about a week ago and the last time I saw him he had been loitering around the shop… or, er… your shop."

"Of course, he would have," Rumple murmured dryly to himself.

"Henry," interrupted Belle, bringing the phone closer to her, "Has anyone new arrived to Storybrooke? Perhaps a young boy or young man?"

"No. I'm sorry." Belle let out a worrisome sigh. Henry continued, "How far away are you guys?"

"We've just crossed Maine's state line. We should be getting close to Storybrooke's town line in a few hours," answered Rumplestiltskin.

"Call me when you get close and I'll meet you at the border to help you in."

Belle twisted her face in confusion, "Help us back into Storybrooke?" Apparently, the 'Henry's Been Coerced' theory wasn't it, meaning that Merlin was more powerful than she had thought. What chance did they have confronting a wizard of that power?

"A lot has happened over the years since you guys have been gone. I can explain more when you guys arrive," said Henry as he hung up the phone.

Belle handed the phone back to Rumple and he slipped the device back into his pocket. "Merlin's in Storybrooke," she said out of disbelief.

"So it would seem," Rumple replied. The wrinkles on his face never faltered. He was scared, but so was she. He recognized this dreaded feeling; he was being manipulated. They were about to enter a trap, voluntarily springing it into action with no understanding of the other elements at play. Seldom was he ever at the receiving end of mischief and duplicity. He always knew things, and that knowledge was always enough leverage to get him out of even the direst of situations.

But this time, he just didn't know and the "Not-knowing" was driving him mad. Madness like what came with the Dark Curse and what he was about to take on again. In the past he would justify his horrific and deplorable behavior as innocent child's play; displacing his current pain and unhappiness for the happiness of the maniacal child within. With the second disappearance of his child, an old wound was reopening and he found himself in pain again. Pain, sadness, anger, madness. He had almost forgotten about this Mask of Madness he wore at the price of his curse's magic. He was in pain and needed his magic. So once again, he found himself needing to slip the mask back on one last time.

Thank you CrypticCobra, Imusicluver23 and ladybugsmomma for your reviews on the first chapter! It was great hearing from you guys again. Hope to talk to you all again soon. See you next chapter! :)