Present Time

Storybrooke, Maine

"There's just something here that doesn't make sense", Clarissa said while flipping through the storybook Toby had brought.

"Except for the fact that all stories are suddenly intertwined as one?" Wolfgang asked.

"Yes, except for that", Clarissa groaned. "It's that Zelena-woman Toby met who bothers me."

"If it is because she's not in the book, don't worry about it", Rachel said, scribbling things in her notebook as they went along. "She's probably not mentioned by name due to being a midwife, but now that they're all real I suppose she needs a proper name."

"Well, true, but I agree with Clarissa", Miranda said. "Just hearing that name makes me feel... I don't know, uneasy."

"That was how I felt when I met her", Toby admitted. "Something's not right about her, something we should know."

Jade sat down on the bed as well, glancing briefly at the storybook before bouncing up again.

"Well, if you Ravenclaws are done pondering over a book, would you mind trying to help us get these ropes off of our wands?" she asked.

"We've been at it since yesterday, Jade", Miranda responded. "None of us can do it, so we'll have to figure out if someone else can. Meanwhile we need to understand as much as possible about who people are in this town in order to understand why they act the way they do."

"Hey."

They looked up and saw Chris standing in the door of the room, holding a bowl of Jell-O in his hands.

"Where did you get that?" Tessa asked.

"The cafeteria", Chris answered. "Where's Neal?"

The others looked across the corridor into the other room, finding the previously occupied bed empty. Hook was, however, standing outside the door.

"Don't know", Rowan said. "I never saw him leave. Maybe you should ask Hook?"

"I heard you, mate", the pirate pointed out. "Your friend hasn't closed the door yet."

"So, where is he?" Chris asked, turning to face him.

"Neal went off to find his father", Hook responded, "and I decided to let him do so."

Before anyone could say anything Chris dropped his bowl of Jell-O onto the floor, sending the green goo in every direction, before sprinting down the corridor.

"What the hell was that about?" Hook asked.

"Remember how I said I had a connection to David, which we believed was due to us being close in the Enchanted Forest?" Rachel asked. "I think Neal is the one Nick got close to, but considering the way he was running off..."

Emma's old phone started ringing and Tessa answered it, pressing the speaker so that everyone would be able to hear. On the display was the name Belle.

"It's Maryse", a familiar voice said. "Guys, is Neal still at the hospital?"

"No, he disappeared to search for his father", Filipi responded. "Why?"

"Because we figured out what the mark on his hand means", Maryse answered, "and it's nothing good."

Maryse flipped through the thick book Belle had handed her, occasionally looking at the messy drawing on the table with the symbol they were looking for; a triangle with squiggly lines surrounding it. After being locked up for several days, though without means for counting time, it felt good to be able to do something that might help figure out what was going on, and when it came to research and finding answers in books – well, she was definitely not someone to say no to a day's reading.

"Wait, I think I found something", Arianne suddenly said, placing her own thick book in front of her on the table. "This looks like the right symbol."

On the page she had flipped open was a drawing of a key. The top of the key was a flat circle with the symbol they were looking for drawn on it.

"Belle, we found it", Maryse said, alerting the older woman. She immediately came over.

"Can you read it?" Arianne asked. "I think it's in Latin or something like that."

"Yeah, I can read it", Belle said, skimming over the page with her eyes. As she did her face turned pale.

"What is it, what's wrong?" Maryse asked. Belle answered by pulling up her phone.

"I have to call Emma", she said. She dialled a number and the other two sat in silence, waiting for her to get across. Finally the Sheriff answered and Belle wasted no time explaining what they had found.

"The symbol on Neal's hand", she said, "it's from an ancient talisman; a key, which opens the vault of the Dark One. I think he may have used it to resurrect Rumple back when we were in the Enchanted Forest."

Emma responded with something the others could not hear.

"That's where it gets unclear", Belle answered to some question Emma had asked. "The vault will only restore the Dark One in exchange for another life."

"Oh crap", Maryse said, realizing where Belle was going with all of this.

"It's a one-for-one trade", Belle continued. "If Neal used that key... he should be dead right now."

A scream suddenly echoed over the phone, loud enough for Maryse and Arianne to also hear it, before the call disconnected.

"Was that him?" Maryse asked.

"Isn't Neal still at the hospital?" Arianne asked.

"I don't know", Belle answered.

"Here, let me", Maryse said, grabbing the phone and scrolling down the list of contacts until she found one marked with Emma (old number). When the call was answered she could hear someone working on the phone, probably pressing the speaker button.

"It's Maryse", she said. "Guys, is Neal still at the hospital?"

"No, he disappeared to search for his father", Filipi's voice answered. "Why?"

"Because we figured out what the mark on his hand means", Maryse answered, "and it's nothing good. In fact, Neal is supposed to be dead."

"That's what Chris sensed, wasn't it?" Tessa asked, aiming her question at the others.

"Wait, what?" Maryse asked.

"Chris rushed out when he heard Neal was gone", Clarissa's voice responded. "We think he might have been close with Neal in the Enchanted Forest and that he, subconsciously, remembered what had happened. He must be out searching for him right now."

The agonized cry echoed through the forest, causing David and Indira to stop.

"That wasn't Gold, was it?" Indira asked.

"No", David responded, before setting off in the direction of the sound. As they heard no more of these cries they had to hope they were moving in the right direction to begin with.

"Look!" Indira suddenly called, noticing a man up on a hill nearby.

"It's Gold", David responded, setting off towards him. Climbing the hill they could hear someone crying.

"You never even had a chance to see Henry. For him to remember you."

"Emma!" David called, rushing the last bit up the hill. Once there they were faced with Emma sitting on the ground cradling Neal in his arms and Gold standing close by, his back towards them and his face pained.

"It's okay", Neal now responded, his voice weak. "He doesn't need to. He just needs to know that... in the end I was a good father."

Gold turned towards them, hardly seeming to notice the arrival of David and Indira.

"I saved this for you", Neal continued, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a necklace, "to give to you again. Take it."

Emma slowly grabbed the silver chain, sobbing. The scene seemed so private that neither David or Indira made a move to speak or do anything. It was as if they were watching it all from the outside.

"Go find Tallahassee", Neal breathed, "even if it is without me."

"Neal", Emma sobbed.

"Hey", Neal said, managing to smile, "I'll be watching over you guys from somewhere... promise me, just... promise me you'll both be happy."

Emma, hardly capable of speaking due to the tears flowing from her eyes, forced a smile and nodded.

"I promise", she whispered. "I promise."

She hugged him to her and, suddenly, Gold moved again.

"No", he said, moving forward to kneel next to them. "No, no, no, I can fix this."

"No, you can't", Neal protested, his voice barely audible for the other two. "You can't..."

Gold pulled back somewhat, his face constricted with unshed tears. Neal gave a hint of a smile.

"Thank you, Papa", he said and swallowed, trying to keep going, "for showing me... what it is... to make a true sacrifice."

Indira covered her mouth with her right hand and stifled a sob, causing David to wrap his arm around her shoulders in support.

"It's about saving... the ones... that you love", Neal continued, his breathing becoming shallower with every word.

"No", Gold said, his lower lip trembling.

"It's my turn now", Neal said. He reached out and grabbed the older man's hand.

"No", Gold begged once more, now unable to keep himself from crying. "I don't want to let you go."

"I need you to", Neal breathed. "Please... let go..."

Gold reached out a trembling hand and touched his face, sobbing.

"I love you, son", he whispered. Neal took a few deep breaths before he was able to respond again.

"I love you, Papa..."

With that his head fell back and his eyes stared, unseeing, up at the sky, his body relaxing completely. Emma looked up in shock, tears still streaming down her face, and David forwards to embrace his daughter. Gold raised his son's hand to his lips and kissed it before gently pulling his eyelids closed, making it look like Neal had just fallen asleep, before dropping his hand. He turned his head slightly as he cried and spotted Indira, remaining in the same spot as before but with tears now flowing uncontrollably down her cheeks. The man in a suit slowly rose and approached her, wrapping his arms around her as also he cried over the loss of his son.

"Indira", he breathed between his sobs. "Indria."

Suddenly, footsteps were heard running up the hill and Chris appeared, staring at the scene before, as if in slow motion, falling to his knees with a sob.

"I should have saved him", he whispered, before covering his face with his hands.

When none of them had any tears left to cry, Emma and David left to catch the Wicked Witch, whose name Emma had found out through Mr Gold. The other three were too numb to even react when they left, but eventually Indira managed to get her thoughts working normally again, at least as long as she did not look at Neal's body.

"How did you know my name?" she asked Gold. He looked up at her from the log he was sitting on.

"You told me to remember it", he responded.

"When?"

"A very long time ago", Gold responded, "and you said you wouldn't know me when I met you again, but you wanted me to tell you one thing."

"And what was that?" Indira asked.

"That you can defeat me", Gold answered. "Whatever the Witch makes you think, Indira, or what she makes anyone else think, I can be defeated, and you can do it."

"Who is the Witch?" Chris asked. He was sitting next to a tree, his face grey like ash. Gold tightened his jaw and looked at the dead body of his son before he answered.

"Zelena."

The news of Neal's death and the Wicked Witch's identity spread fast through town. After trying to ambush Zelena at Mary Margaret and David's place, the Charmings went to Gold's old pawnshop, delivering the grim news to Belle, Maryse, Arianne and Hook, who had returned there after Neal's escape from the hospital. Maryse and Arianne watched as Belle broke down and cried in the arms of Mary Margaret, while Hook's face turned to the colour of ash and David gave him a comforting squeeze on the shoulder, uncertain if he should do anything else.

Back at the hospital Rachel and Toby were currently discussing a certain section of the storybook when Chris stepped back in through the glass door. Seeing his face they, and everyone else, stopped talking, understanding without needing to hear it that the man they had seen being brought in earlier that day was no longer with them. Chris collapsed on an empty bed and stared up at the ceiling, swallowing back a few stray tears and silently wondering what his exact connection had been to the man he had now seen the corpse of.

Regina, though she had not heard the news of Neal's death, was instead faced with a different pain. After running from Robin Hood back at the farmhouse she had decided to go see him again, wandering to the Merry Men's camp in the woods that they had now, once again, moved back to. Hidden behind the trees she watched as Robin played with a young boy, probably not older than five, and how he then, with a wide smile on his face, lifted the boy up into his arms. Regina swallowed and turned around without them seeing her, feeling her heart break in her chest; whatever connection with Robin she had built up in the Enchanted Forest, she did not deserve to share in his happiness, not after everything she had done.

While all of this happened Gold stayed by his son's side, unmoving, feeling drained from all emotion.

"That was rather ill-timed", a female, British voice said behind him. He did not need to turn to know who it was.

"Your son coming to the surface", she continued, walking past him and standing on the opposite side of Neal's body, all black clothes and red hair, "staging that little escape."

She giggled her usual, manic giggle. Oh, how he hated that giggle.

"I can see he'll no longer be a problem", she said and turned towards him. He did not look up at her, his eyes were glued to Neal.

"My son may be gone", he said, "but he gave his life, so... I could tell the Saviour..."

She walked over Neal's body, her shoe close to hitting him in the face. It made Gold tense and he looked up in defiance.

"Who you really are, Zelena", he finished, "and now it's only a matter of time before she and the others find you and kill you."

Zelena's lips pulled momentarily upwards in a mocking smile.

"Unless, of course", he said, lowering his voice to a whisper, "I manage it first."

He rose, intending to grab her by the neck, but she quickly whipped out an all too familiar dagger with a jagged blade. The magic in it sent him stumbling backwards.

"Oh please", Zelena said, looking perfectly innocent, "you can't hurt me, but you're more than welcome to try. I do so enjoy watching futility wreck a man's will."

She held the dagger out in front of her again and he felt the command in his heart, making him take another step backwards and stand still.

"There, much better", she said. "Now that your head is no longer cluttered everything's working properly, and it's so much more entertaining!"

She giggled again. He wished he was able to once again command his own body, but the dagger kept him from it and he knew it all too well. He could only hope that the others would be able to destroy the woman in front of him before he went completely mad because of it.

"You may control me", he said, managing to smile, "but it's over, Zelena. They know who you are. You'll never get close to Snow White's baby now, to any of them, to whatever your unholy desires are."

"They may know who I am now", Zelena said, stepping forward with a smile, "but it no longer matters."

She pressed the dagger against his cheek, the cold material making his breath hitch.

"Not, when I have you, Rumplestiltskin. Not when I have your beautiful brain."

She smiled her wicked smile and he tried his best to fight the power of the dagger, looking at his son to draw strength.

"So beat it, my little Dark One", he heard her say, "and get back in your cage."

He fought the daggers power for as long as he managed before it overwhelmed him, forcing him to stumble in the direction of Zelena's farmhouse. Zelena followed behind him, obviously finding everything that had transpired very amusing.

What neither of them knew was that the conversation had been overheard. In the bushes close to where Neal had died, hidden from sight from both above, in case of monkeys, and from where Zelena and Gold had been, Indira lay listening to the conversation. Once she deemed the situation safe she quickly got up and rushed in the other direction, back to Storybrooke to tell the others of what she had heard and seen.

I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I honestly cried while writing this chapter and I cried while watching the actual episode because Neeeeaaaal!