Enter the Dragon

Gold paused as he entered the main room of his cabin, two cups of hot beverages in his hand as he looked at Piper. She was sitting on a small armchair pulled up to the fireplace, barely even looking at the fire within. He knew she hated fire, but it was chilly and it was small and he was right there…and it really did appear that she wasn't even aware it was flickering before her, so lost was she in though. He shook his head, knowing that overhearing Mary Margaret and her reasons for doing to Emma what she had had shaken his true love. Oh Piper had guessed why the woman did it, but guessing or wondering was FAR different than knowing for certain. Without knowing she could hope she was wrong.

But she hadn't been.

It was no surprise to him, Piper knew her cousin's mind well enough after so long. It was how they'd worked out what Snow White and her charming prince's reactions would be, what would lure them down to Maleficent's ashes. All of it rested on how well Piper knew her cousin…and it had worked flawlessly. So it wasn't a shock that she could guess why Snow White had done what she had. It still hurt though, he could see it, despite her hardened heart, it still hurt.

Because Piper, for as Siren-like as she was, was still part human.

"Pip," he called out gently, handing her a hot chocolate, hoping it might be a comfort to her even though he had made himself tea.

"Many thanks," she murmured, taking it, taking a sip of it, smiling ever so slightly as she looked up to him, "It should not hurt," she remarked.

"It always hurts," he sighed, "Even when we hate them, what they do still hurts," his mind drifted back to Milah for a moment. Oh how he had come to hate that woman, and as much as he did hate her, what she did still hurt him. He shook his head, moving to sit in another chair beside her, "Pip…" he reached out to take her hand, making her look at him, "I may have something that would cheer you though."

She blinked, frowning, "What?"

He took a breath, "When Belle sent me the scans of the spell she found," he began, "She didn't just send a page of it, she sent the one before and after."

"I do not understand what that has to do…"

"I may have a way to restore your boy."

Piper stared at him a long while at that, feeling her breath leave her at what he'd just said, "August?"

He nodded, setting his tea down on the floor and taking her hand in both of his, "There is a restoration spell that…had truly escaped my mind," he told her, staring into her eyes so she would know he spoke truly, that he genuinely had not recalled the spell and wasn't just hiding it or keeping it from her, "I have not read that spell that Belle found in…in many decades," he added, needing her to understand that he would NOT keep this from her, "You know me Pip, I never want you to be in pain or hurt, if I had thought of it sooner I would have told you instantly and restored your boy and…"

Piper leaned over and kissed him quickly, "I know," she breathed, "I know you would have told me of such a spell if you had recalled it," she smiled a bit, "Over 300 years of magical knowledge in your head, Rummy, I would be shocked if you did not forget something every now and then."

He let out a gentle breath he hadn't known he was holding at that, so relieved she wasn't angry with him or, worse yet, thought he'd withheld the spell from her on purpose, "Thank you Piper."

She nodded, "There is one question though…" she sighed, putting her hot chocolate down, "Belle sent you the texts in New York, why have you not said anything about it till now?"

"I didn't want to get your hopes up," he reached out to touch her cheek, "We didn't know if we'd be able to get back into Storybrooke, if there was a way in. I didn't want to tell you it was possible only to have us never be able to set foot in the town and see it through. And, even now…there is one rather large obstacle that would keep me from enacting the spell."

"What is it?"

"I require a 'wand' that has been around the boy when he was a man to begin the spell. I need my Dagger, Pip."

Piper closed her eyes at that, regretting how she had let her anger and hurt get the best of her that night weeks ago. Mary Margaret had had the dagger, had passed it to Emma and, when Gold had been sent over the line, it was like everything else was blurring around her. She hadn't thought, at all, about the dagger or anything else, just getting back to her love, not letting him face the world alone. She hadn't realized till they were a good distance down the road that she had left the dagger behind. She had tried to reassure herself that it wasn't important to keep any longer, that it couldn't control her love ever again…but it could still kill him. The Dagger may have been a limit on his power, but it was still a source of it. The Dagger was the only thing that could kill him and it was in the hands of those that would.

If Mary Margaret could send Gold over the line without a second thought, if David had been so eager to execute Regina in the Enchanted Forest…she did not doubt that, should it come to it, the heroes would make the sacrifice 'for the greater good' and kill him. She hoped that Mary Margaret would come to regret what she had done, that even out of guilt alone she would give Gold a chance to survive in Storybrooke before declaring he needed to be killed. She hoped that they would realize that just because Gold was free of the Dagger did NOT mean that the next Dark One would be as well. The spell was only for the person whose name was on the dagger and no other. If anyone killed him, thinking it would end the Dark One, they would just become the next Dark One, complete with the limitations of the dagger upon them once more.

She hoped, in the extreme, that none of the heroes would consider doing that so as not to risk 'tainting' themselves with the darkness that came with being the Dark One.

They were planning to get the dagger back, eventually, as, because it was such a powerful and enchanted object, it couldn't just be poofed to his hand without him knowing where it was first. Now though, it seemed they truly needed it back as soon as they could manage.

She never should have left without the dagger.

She opened her eyes when she felt Gold lifting her chin to look at him, "We will get it back, Pip," he promised her, "And you will have your boy back."

She hesitated a moment, "Must we?"

He blinked at that, "You don't want…"

"I do," she nodded, "I want my son back, badly…" she admitted, "But…he is Pinocchio now, he is…he is with his father again. If it were any other child save Henry, I would not hesitate. But…August is my son, but he is also Gepetto's and was Gepetto's first. I am not certain I can take his son from him a second time…"

"I can reverse it," Gold assured her, "If August chooses to, I can reverse the spell as easily as it was cast. Pip…" he sighed, "He may be the only one with answers about the Author. Answers he didn't get a chance to tell you."

There had been SO much she had had to learn about her son from other people, things she knew he would have told her about if he'd had the time, but once he'd started to turn into wood, there were other things they needed to focus on, things that had to be seen to, and by the time it was all resolved…he was a boy again. She had his possessions, she had notes and papers that seemed to be part of the storybook Henry had, but August was the one that had studied them. When she had first gotten the bag of August's things from Gepetto, she couldn't bring herself to look at them, had stored them away in Gold's home. Then there had been the curses, and then the banishment, and she had only JUST gotten them back now with not enough time to dedicate to looking them over. Not now.

Time was truly of the essence, for her and Gold, and they had to take the quick way in this case. August was the only one that knew, that had looked at those papers from every angle, the one that seemed to know more about the Author than she did.

And…she missed her son.

"Very well," she nodded, "We shall get your dagger first…" she smiled a bit, "And I think I know just how to do it."

~8~

Emma stood before her parents in their apartment, gaping at them after the information they had just revealed to her, "I'm sorry. Regina's doing what?!"

"She's going undercover," David stated.

"With someone who could turn into a dragon?!" Emma stared at them, completely disbelieving they were going along with this, "Are you out of your minds? Why didn't you call me?"

"There wasn't time. She told us the plan. That was it."

Emma's eyes narrowed at that, making her mother shift, which was just another fact that was bothering her. That was a lie, that was yet ANOTHER lie from these people! Honestly did they think she was stupid? 'She told us the plan' no, no she very much doubted that it was Regina that had come up with this. Regina had other things to worry about than figuring out what the 'Queens of Darkness' were up to.

Which begged the question, WHY had her parents come up with this plan? Were they really THAT paranoid about the Queens? And why? Ever since the two women had appeared in town her parents had been on edge, suspicious, on a war path basically of pointing fingers and seeming to want to catch the women doing something terrible.

Honestly, as far as they knew, it could be that they thought Maleficent deserved a happy ending too!

So why were they lying to her about this? If THEY wanted Regina in there, why? Just say so and tell her WHY.

"You should've told me," she muttered, not about to let them know she was suspecting the truth. If they were going to keep secrets, she would hold her silence till they eventually told her what the truth was.

And if they didn't?

Well then they weren't very good heroes were they?

"Why?" Mary Margaret sounded very nearly like she was scoffing, "You really think you could've stopped her?"

Emma raised an eyebrow at her mother for the tone, "I could've helped. I was a bail-bonds person. Pretending to be someone else was part of my job."

"I know that," Mary Margaret sighed, "But I really think Regina can take care of herself."

"I hope you're right," Emma huffed, "When is she supposed to check in?" but the two looked away, "Hey!" she almost shouted, making them look at her, "When is she supposed to check in?"

David sighed, "About an hour ago."

Emma shook her head at them, "You should have told me," she repeated before she turned and stormed out of the apartment.

She was really getting sick of the lies.

~8~

Piper looked up as there was a knock on the door of the cabin, getting up from her armchair and walking over to it, smiling as she drew nearer, hearing the song drifting through the wood from the other side.

Henry's eyes widened in surprise before he grinned and threw himself at her with a cry of, "Aunt P!" hugging her tightly as she returned the embrace just as strongly.

"Hello Henry."

"I'm glad you're ok," Henry murmured, squeezing her one more time before he pulled away, "I thought, when you told me to find grandpa's cabin in the woods, that there was something hidden here that would help you send something to me not that YOU were here," he seemed very pleased with her being there though, "This is SO much better," his expression fell just a moment, "Grandpa…"

"Is right here," Gold called, stepping out from the back room, "Hello Hen…" he didn't even get to finish before Henry was half flying across the room to nearly tackle his grandfather in a bear hug.

Piper smiled as she saw Gold blink, genuinely startled that Henry was hugging him so tightly and seemed so happy to see him, before he started to smile as well and wound his arms around the boy, closing his eyes to enjoy the moment.

"Hello Henry," he breathed, squeezing the boy tightly, feeling tears in his eyes at how Henry was actually happy about this, that the 'heroes' hadn't managed to make him seem like a monster about to go on a rampage now that he was free to the boy.

"How did you two get back?" Henry beamed at them, pulling away.

Piper let out a scoffing breath and shook her head, "I knew Snow White would say nothing."

Henry blinked and frowned, "Grandma knew?" he looked between them, seeing them both serious, "She knew and she didn't tell me?"

"Oh there are many things she has not told you nor your mother Henry," Piper sighed, moving to sit on the armchair again, yawning widely, it had been a…long night, one she hadn't been able to find sleep in.

Henry though almost seemed to expect that and let out a huff, shaking his head at being kept in the dark, "I hate it when they keep things from me. I missed you guys," he looked at them, offering a smile again, "I'm really glad cell phones work though."

Piper felt herself smile again at that, Henry had been a clever boy, had thought to try her cell phone a few short hours after she'd left Storybrooke and, luckily, the connections worked between the town and the outside world. Henry had expressed how sorry he was for what Mary Margaret had done, how Emma had told him what happened, how it wasn't fair that they gave the Evil Queen a chance but not the Dark One, and it wasn't right.

He called them at least three times a week since they'd gone.

And he'd called last night, saying he needed help.

Now they were all together once more.

"We missed you as well Henry," Piper told him, though she grew serious a moment later, "You said you needed my help with something?"

Henry nodded, "Operation Mongoose, that's the thing I was telling you about before," he looked at Piper, "That mom and I are trying to find the author. She wanted to talk to Pinocchio, see if he remembered anything…"

"He has no memory of his time as August though…"

"I know, and mom knows it now too," he agreed, "She was hoping though," but shook his head, "She went to see Gepetto and he said that you had things that belonged to August, I just wanted to ask if there was anything you had that might help mom find the Author?"

Pipe glanced at Gold at that, leaving it to him to decide if she should offer the few pages she had found in August's belongings to Henry. It wasn't that she didn't want to give it to him, she did, because Henry, she had no doubt, would pour over those papers and do them justice in finding clues for the Author, he would do what they couldn't. It wasn't even that she doubted Henry would keep them in the dark about things he found, it was just…the reason they were trying to find the Author now as well, it had more to do with Gold than her, it affected him much more so and so she would leave it to him.

Gold gave her a subtle nod and she smiled at Henry, "Let me go check," she told him, getting up and slowly making her way out of the room.

Henry frowned as he watched her go, "Is she ok Grandpa?" he looked up at Gold, he had noticed that her voice had been a bit weak over the phone when she'd been in New York, he'd thought it was just the connection though. Seeing her now though, she sounded stronger, but she seemed paler as well, more tired.

"Many things happened in New York, Henry," Gold sighed, "Many things that affected the both of us," he shook his head.

"But now you're back here," Henry frowned, "You're both ok now, right?"

Gold gave him an almost sad smile, "Let's just say…we would like a word with the Author as well."

Henry eyed him, "I feel like something else is going on and you're not telling me."

"Perceptive."

"Grandpa…" he hesitated, "Mom, er, Regina, and I ran into two other villains in town before. Cruella and Ursula. They're in town, and so are you and Aunt P…"

Gold sighed, knowing that it wasn't quite question but that Henry was giving him the chance to explain, was waiting to hear what he had to say. He nodded, gesturing to the two armchairs by the fire and moving to sit down with Henry.

"Henry," he took a deep breath, "You know about what happened at the townline," Henry nodded, "And you understand that Piper is…half-siren, yes?"

"Yeah."

"What your grandmother did," he shook his head, "It hurt Piper, deeply. She and Mary Margaret were only just about to try and repair harsh words that were exchanged when I was banished. Your grandmother doesn't trust me, Henry, and in doing what she did, she severed Piper from her true love, her…uh, mate," he cleared his throat at that word, "That's a siren's love," Henry frowned as he listened to him speak, "That act, banishing me, cutting me off from Piper and her from me…it was a betrayal."

Henry's eyes widened, "Sirens don't do well with betrayal," he murmured, "Did…" he swallowed, "Did Aunt P's heart harden?"

"It did."

Henry let out a breath, "Against Mary Margaret or…"

"Just her," Gold reassured the boy, seeing a genuine concern that he might have lost his aunt because of his grandmother, "She's just cross with Mary Margaret, not you, not Emma, not Neal."

"But she feels like Mary Margaret betrayed her…" Henry worked it out slowly, "The only way for a Siren to heal from that is to…to take revenge," he looked at Gold, "But Aunt P would never hurt grandma!"

Gold chuckled at that, "Even at her absolute worst, I don't think she could either," he agreed, glancing at the door Piper had disappeared through and back to Henry, "But she is very hurt and things are complicated."

"Complicated how?"

Gold sighed, "Snow White IS very important to Piper," he knew that better than anyone, he had seen everything she had done for her cousin, everything she suffered and endured for the woman, that sort of care…he couldn't see Piper ignoring all of that, "But she is very hurt and it's hard for her to cope with it. On one hand, Henry, the siren in her wants revenge, true and utter revenge against the woman that wronged her. But on the other hand, she's still human, and that human part of her still loves her cousin, I think."

"She's not going to hurt Mary Margaret, is she?" he asked, continuing before Gold could think that he was afraid for Mary Margaret, "She would regret it a lot when her heart heals. She never wants anyone to hurt us. If SHE did…"

Gold just looked at his grandson, pride in his eyes for the boy's foresight and understanding. He wasn't blaming Piper for something she biologically couldn't control, he truly didn't want her to hurt his grandmother not because it would hurt the woman, but because it would affect Piper after she came back from this. He admired his grandson greatly for that.

"That's what I'm here for," Gold told him, "Among other things. I know how much Pip loves her cousin. Even if she can't quite reach that feeling right now, even if she might WANT to hurt Snow White, I won't let her," he promised Henry, "I…DO care about your family Henry, and I care about Piper and her heart more than anything. If she truly harmed Mary Margaret, it would haunt her once she'd healed her heart. And I won't see her suffer that."

"Then what ARE you going to do?" Henry asked, "And can I help?"

Gold shook his head at Henry, more in fondness than in telling him no, "I would like your help," he smiled at the boy, "It could be our own Operation."

"Operation Bluebird!" Henry supplied, "Snow White's favorite birds are blue birds, but it's also the farthest animal from a sea creature, a bird, incase anyone gets suspicious."

"Sounds perfect," Gold chuckled, "Henry…" he grew serious, "Revenge, what Piper needs to see through in order to soften her heart to Mary Margaret, it can take many forms. You know what Pip did to Cora, how that was revenge against Regina?" Henry nodded, "And how Regina and Piper are now on…something of a truce?" he nodded again, "Piper is in a delicate position because any revenge she takes against Mary Margaret will, undoubtedly, affect you and Emma and other members of your family. She needs to be able to…" he sighed, hating to have to say this to the boy, "Cause equal harm and heartache to Snow White, but she can't do something that would truly harm you or Emma."

"Then what is it?" Henry frowned, "What could she do that doesn't hurt us?"

"There is…a secret your grandmother is keeping from you, from your mother, from everyone," Gold began, being very careful about his words, "Piper means to expose it. It is something your mother deserves to know, in the long run, and something that would upset Snow White to have revealed. It is…a tenuous revenge, but it may be enough to cause Snow White enough pain while also protecting you and Emma for Piper to overcome Snow White's betrayal."

Henry nodded slowly at that, "Wouldn't she not need to…to take revenge though?" Henry wondered, "You and Aunt P are back, the banishment's over, doesn't that sort of negate things?"

"It still happened," Gold shook his head, "Mary Margaret still proved that she WOULD betray her cousin in such a manner, and it's not something Piper is having an easy time overcoming. And, as I said, Henry, more happened in New York, than you know."

"So tell me," Henry looked him in the eye, "If…if I'm going to keep this from grandma, if…if I can help Aunt P, I want to know everything. I want to know what the secret is. What happened in New York…"

"You may regret wishing you knew," Piper's voice spoke as she entered the room, a small bundle of papers in her arms, "Henry…it may change your view of Snow White."

Henry shook his head slowly at how, even now, Piper was still showing her care not just for him but, in a small way, Mary Margaret as well. He knew a majority of what she was saying was for his protection, she didn't want to harm HIM with what he wanted to know. But a tiny part of it was that she didn't want him to think badly of Snow White.

"Tell me."

~8~

Gold looked up from where he was poking at the fire as it died down, Piper curled up in the armchair once more, eating a sandwich he'd prepared, when the door opened and Cruella, Ursula, and Maleficent finally decided to return from their rather lengthy time away. As far as they'd agreed, the two Queens would be filling in Maleficent and then return back there…and now it was late in the afternoon, the women only just coming back now.

"Well, where the hell have you been all night?" Gold glared at them, as though he and Piper hadn't been keeping tabs on them in the crystal ball, cracked though it was.

"Don't be nasty," Maleficent rolled her eyes, "Regina came to find us. We had some catching up to do."

"Regina?" Piper played along, "And what, pray tell, did she want from you?"

"She was sniffing around for information," Ursula remarked.

"I do hope you were wise enough to tell her nothing," Piper glanced over at the sea witch, "Or has the time dealing with cleaning chemicals affected your mind?"

Ursula glared at her, taking a step towards her, her tentacles out…when she was pushed back against the wall, "Now, now, dearie," Gold lowered his hand, releasing the woman, "She has a point."

"We were careful, darling," Cruella muttered, unamused, "She doesn't know a thing."

"Very interesting plan, bringing us all together," Maleficent considered, "You and your little maid," she smirked at Piper.

"Careful dragon," Piper smirked, "I can kill you, human or dragon."

"Too bad your plan requires us to be alive."

"Our plan is just beginning," Gold cut in, though he did enjoy watching Piper taunt the women without even needing to get up, "But Regina does present an intriguing possibility."

"Do you really think she'll help us?" Maleficent turned to him.

Gold glanced at Piper, "What do you think Pip? You were there when she launched her attacks."

Piper swallowed the last bite of her sandwich, "Heartbreak can turn even the purest of hearts into a twisted monster," she mused, knowing he hadn't asked her that to bring up the past, but to make a point to the Queens that THEY were the power duo, the ones in charge, and that she had just as equal a say in what they did as Gold himself, "For a heart only starting to heal to be broken once more?" she shrugged, "I would not doubt Regina is in a great deal of pain."

"Pain always makes you stronger," Maleficent murmured.

"Indeed it does," Gold agreed, moving to sit on the armrest of Piper's chair, "When war hits Storybrooke, everyone's gonna have to pick a side, including Regina."

"And what war is that?"

"Oh, the one we're about to start," Gold grinned, "And tonight We're gonna throw the first punch."

Piper fell silent as Gold explained what the women would need to do, thinking more about Regina and how they would have to handle her. They knew, of course they knew, that she was playing the part of villain to get information. But THEY would control the information that the woman was given.

And…it would be rather amusing to see how long the Evil Queen could last, how frantic Snow White would grow when information wasn't quite as forthcoming as she would like.

~8~

Henry looked around as he entered the apartment, it was late, night now, and he'd been gone all day. He shook his head, it really was a testament to just how obsessed Snow White and her Shepherd were to keeping their stupid secret that they hadn't even bothered to check in on him. Emma had, mostly to tell him she was going to the library with Hook, Mary Margaret, and David, to meet with his mother…who was acting as a spy for them against the Queens of Darkness, against his grandfather and Piper.

Really, did adults think that EVERYTHING had to be done in secrets? Hadn't they learned by now not to underestimate him? His mother didn't have to be in danger just because Snow White wanted to keep a secret. She shouldn't be expected to keep one after the chaos Snow's inability to keep one caused. His mother shouldn't even be there because HE had just gotten a majority of their plan from them.

But he was not going to speak a WORD of it to the heroes.

Piper had been right when she told him it would change how he saw Snow White, what she'd done, what happened in New York because of what Mary Margaret had done on the townline.

He used to think they were heroes, that they were infallible, that they were always just and right and good. He'd been wrong. He'd seen villains with more nobility and honesty than some of the heroes in his own family. He couldn't believe he'd thought they were so great that he said all the horrible things he had to his own mother, that he'd thought with such firm resolve that good and evil were two separate entities and that no one could cross the lines and that good never did evil.

He'd been wrong, so wrong.

He felt disillusioned now, knowing what he did about what Snow White and Prince Charming had done, knowing what he knew now about what Mary Margaret's action had led to in New York.

He understood why Piper and Gold were looking for the Author too. He understood why Piper wanted to reveal that secret of Snow White's. It went beyond just revealing it, it went towards making Snow White realize she'd been a hypocrite and a liar and could be just as bad as the villain she had so desperately wanted to keep Emma from being that she'd…

He shook his head, he couldn't think of that now, he'd just get that much angrier, and right now he had a mission that required his attention much more.

He quickly made his way through the apartment, to the heating grate near Mary Margaret's bed, getting down on his knees and prying it open. He reached down and pulled out a bundle of cloth, unwrapping it quickly to make sure and smiled when he saw the Dagger hidden within.

He glanced at the door and back to the grate, quickly putting it back down and hid the dagger in his backpack before he hurried out of the apartment once more.

~8~

"Do you think it was wise?" Piper murmured as she and Gold remained in the cabin, "To allow Maleficent and Regina to collect Pinocchio?" she looked over at him, "I would have been the better choice, Gepetto trusts me, Pinocchio does, he would know I would allow no harm to come to him…"

"And he would have been made aware of our plans," Gold moved over to her, taking her hands, "NO harm shall befall him, I promise you this Pip. This is…a way to keep the others distracted, while WE reach the next step in our plans," he placed a hand on her cheek, "It is a way for Regina to 'prove herself' to the others."

Maleficent was to meet Regina and convince her to essentially kidnap Pinocchio and bring him there, as a sort of initiation test, Ursula and Cruella were watching them from the shadows incase Regina failed and could help Maleficent deal with her. They were waiting there for them to return.

"If she harms a single hair on his head…" Piper began.

"I will hold her down while you rip her heart out," Gold cut in gently, chuckling when Piper managed a smile at that, "I like this side of you Pip," he murmured, looking into her eyes, "Instinctive, maternal, protective of your young..."

Piper hummed at that, "Pinocchio is my 'young,'" she countered, "I love him Rummy, and I will not see him harmed."

"You shall see him restored," he swore, "You shall see him soon."

They looked over when there was a knock on the door moments before it burst open and Henry ran in, smiling, "I got it!" he told them, moving to set his backpack on the armchair, digging through it to pull out a cloth-wrapped parcel, "The Dagger," he held it out them, "Is it the real one?" he asked, a small frown on his face as Gold took it, "It was hidden in the heating grate, like the knife used to frame Mary Margaret. But there wasn't any other charms to protect it and…"

"It is," Gold reassured him, and it would be like the heroes to be so SURE of their amazing defenses and hiding spots that they wouldn't even think someone would try to take the dagger, "It's real. Thank you Henry," he looked at his grandson.

Henry shrugged, "The only thing it can really do is kill you now," he grew serious, "And I don't want that to ever happen."

"Nor I," Piper agreed.

"And this'll help bring August back too?" he looked at them, knowing how much it meant to his Aunt to have August returned to his older self.

"It shall," Gold nodded, "Very well done, Henry."

Henry beamed, "You gave me the papers from August," he looked at his aunt, "You gave me something, it was only fair I give you something in return. It's a fair deal, right?" he teased them about their dual history with making deals and keeping agreements.

"That it is," Piper laughed, moving to hug Henry tightly, "Many thanks, Henry."

"I just want you guys to be ok," Henry gave her a squeeze and pulled back, "And…thank you," he told them, "For being honest with me."

"I have learned never to lie to you Henry," Piper informed him, "I think you may have a superpower of your own in that."

"Like you and mom," Henry smiled at the thought.

"And, truly, thank you," Piper continued, "For understanding. For not thinking me…"

Henry just hugged her again, "You're my Aunt P," he murmured against her, "You're part Siren, your true love is the Dark One, your cousin is Snow White, your niece is the Savior, your nephew has the heart of the truest believer," he pulled back, "You're not evil just because you're a villain, just like…just like Snow White and Prince Charming aren't all good just because they're heroes. I trust you," he looked between them, "You've earned it, and I wish other people had realized it before they hurt you."

"As do we," Gold agreed, stepping beside Piper to take her hand, "You should head back home now, Henry, the others shouldn't be much longer."

Henry nodded, "You'll keep me updated though? Tell me if you need help?"

"We shall," Piper promised.

"And I'll keep you updated on the Author and the papers," Henry agreed, stepping forward to hug his grandfather once more, "Good luck."

"And you," Piper called as Henry hurried out the door.

Gold looked down at the Dagger in his hand and squeezed Piper's, "We shall see your boy restored," he murmured, a small smile growing on Piper's face at the words.

~8~

Regina frowned as Maleficent led her towards a small cabin in the woods, explaining to her that it belonged to Mr. Gold, which was confusing, there were far more places the Queens of Darkness could have set up their base instead of there, "Gold's cabin? What are we doing here?"

She had half expected them to end up back down in the cave under the library with Pinocchio, that Cruella and Ursula were collecting from Cruella's car.

"We needed someplace out of the way to hang our headdresses and hide our kidnapped puppets," Maleficent shrugged, stepping into the wooden room, "And this little hovel became available to us."

"No," Regina frowned, turning to her, realization dawning on her, something she should have realized long ago, "Your dark magic it's not a spell or an object. It's…"

"That's right, dearie," Gold stepped into the room, "It's me."

"And me," Piper joined him, both of them playing along. Regina was clearly trying to make it seem like she HADN'T already known they were both back in the town lines. So they were making it seem like they had no idea that Regina was spying on them.

"You didn't really think I'd stay banished for long, now, did you?" Gold smirked.

"No," Regina's lips pursed, "I didn't."

Gold nodded at that, "You see…Pip and I learned quite a bit about ourselves on our little journey outside Storybrooke," he chuckled darkly, looking at Regina intently, "You were right, Regina. Sometimes the teacher needs to learn from the student. And sometimes you need to fall very far to finally see the light."

"Well, then you've finally accepted the same truth I have," she crossed her arms, "You can't get your happy ending without finding the Author. I suppose that puts us on the same side."

"It does appear so," Piper eyed her, "Maleficent," she turned to the woman, "Did she accomplish the task?"

"She did," the woman nodded.

"Then where is Pinocchio?"

"Coming," Regina's eyes narrowed at Piper, finding it odd that the woman would allow Pinocchio to be taken and used, given her history with the puppet.

"And there he is," Gold looked over as Ursula pushed the door open, Cruella carrying the little red-haired boy into the cabin, August seeming to be asleep but unharmed, "Our guest of honor. Pip?" he held out a hand to her and Piper smirked, leaning down to pull his dagger out of her boot, having taken it from him after Henry left.

She paused in handing it to him, seeing how Regina stiffened at the sight, her eyes widening slightly in shock that they had it, "Everything alright, Regina?" she taunted.

Regina's jaw clenched, "Just fine," she nearly sneered, "Just wondering what you're all hoping to accomplish," she glanced around, "I already questioned the boy, he knows nothing."

"We're hoping to accomplish the first steps towards finding the Author, dearie," Gold answered, giving Regina a look, "Now, you can either step aside and I'll show you what that means, unless you've gone soft…"

"Never," Regina chuckled darkly after a moment.

"What a relief," Gold barely refrained from rolling his eyes as he stepped towards August, Piper beside him, his dagger in hand, "You see, we're not gonna ask young Pinocchio here to remember anything because he can't. No amount of questions or interrogations will work on him. But it will succeed on the man he used to be," he held out his hand to Piper, taking the dagger from her this time, and held it above August, waving it slightly, in gentle motions, murmuring the spell under his breath.

Piper inhaled deeply when the boy, before her eyes, shown with a white light before it faded, leaving August sitting there, "Key…"

August's eyes blinked open as he looked up, hardly seeing the other women standing around him, not even taking into consideration Gold standing over him with his Dagger, just focusing on the blonde woman who had her eyes so wide, her mouth falling open, looking at him with tears gathering.

"Mama," he breathed, pushing himself out of the chair and reaching for her, hugging her tightly as a few tears leaked out of her eyes and seeped into his shirt, making him hold her tighter, so…happy, and relieved and just…truly happy to be able to hug her again, see her and know her.

Piper wrapped her arms around the man, closing her eyes as she hugged him back, knowing, with that one word that it had worked.

She had her son back.

A/N: Apologies that there wasn't a chapter up yesterday :( The way I planned my commute to my new job gave me plenty of time beforehand to stop in the Dunkin Donuts across the street from it and I planned to use their wi-fi to upload, but ended up having connectivity problems :( I'll be planning for that better in the future, and try the McDonald's down the street for their wi-fi instead :) But when I got home, my family surprised me with a celebration dinner for my first day (even though it was technically the unofficial first day lol) and we got back too late to post :(

For this chapter though, I was SO annoyed with Snow and David in this episode, like they lied to Emma about it being Regina's plan, then they got all huffy with Regina for not prying the secrets out of the Queens in the span of a few hours and going on about how she only accomplished damaging a car? And then later, meeting her in the library, Snow tells her they were worried about her? If they were so worried they would have actually done something when Regina missed her check in time instead of letting an hour (or even more) go by :( And I always hated that the heroes got to be so selfish at times and think it was right and justified but always put villains down when they did the same :(

I hope you enjoyed the Henry and Dark Rose moments :) I could see Henry keeping in touch with Piper and Gold in the outside world. I think, in being the more 'modern' of them all, Henry would have immediately tried calling Piper's cellphone first. Whenever I leave the house I always have my phone and debit card with me incase of emergencies, so I feel like it would be understandable for Piper to at least have her phone on her while all that was going on before :)

But here's the question...what did Gold and Piper say, about Snow, about New York, that could get Henry to agree to give the dagger back to Gold and Piper? To help them with revenge against Snow White? Hmm... }:)

Some notes on reviews...

I think Gold would very much want to marry Piper :) We'll have to wait and see what happens in the finale }:)

Oh I think Snow is definitely starting to see she made a terrible mistake }:) There will be quite a few things to come that'll help drive that point home too ;)

That's ok with me if you'd like to use that :) I'm not sure if other stories have done that, where, Robin wants to go after Marian more than Regina during the Shattered Sight, I feel like it would be something that had to have come up somewhere before my story lol :)

Thank you :) I don't think I saw the tumblr, but I'll have to check it out ;) And that's awesome :) I'm not much a tattoo person, but my sister has told me she actually really wants to get a Gemini one with me, since we're both Geminis (but as opposite as light and day lol) so I'm considering it as she never wants to do anything with me lol :) And thank you, my dad's doing better every day and very happy about it, he's recently tried eating some of the foods he'd stayed away from during treatments as a treat and is VERY happy to be able to eat junk foods and other things again lol :)

Lol, I actually wrote that whole chapter and then, when I was editing it, I had the Prince of Egypt playing and was like...that really is like Piper (and Snow)! Lol :)

Thank you :) It's a combination for Rose, she DID do something that's caused the people to be hesitant and fearful around her, but it's also been a very long time since it happened and they were naturally cautious around her from her birth due to her mother :( I think the kitchen staff were somewhat regretful but also a tiny bit suspicious in maybe thinking she was doing it to gain their favor and trust for something down the road :( Lol, we'll have to wait and see what happens in the finale }:) I think, for the people, it's that, despite their king marrying a full-Siren for love, they just can't picture anyone else really wanting to marry Rose for love but more for the title or a political alliance (even though Ethan refused to let his daughter be used as a pawn like that) :( And thank you! I fixed the first two, the last one though was meant to be just 'Leopold would inherit' in an implication that, since Ethan was talking about the kingdom, Leopold would inherit the kingdom ;) Yeah, I can't see that being a good method for a show, to treat it like live-action fanfiction and just wonder what to do to grab interest because they try to do too much and put too much in too few 'chapters' :( And, when you think about it, the way they did all the Fairytale characters as 'modern/cursed' versions...they essentially made them into OCs in a way, so now they've got WAY too many OCs running around and I've seen in the past (mostly through stories that had plagiarized my work and, for some reason, added in like 7 other OCs along with their OC) it gets to be WAY too much to keep control and track of and makes it far too difficult to really maintain telling a good story with enough detail and attention to each OC and you start to lose them in the mix :( I hope they don't use Gold, but I agree, it definitely feels like they do that to Regina way too much, mistrust her and believe the worst in her...until there's a danger to the town that needs her magic to stop, and then it's all 'Oh Regina, we believe in you, we know you changed, help us!' and then right back to watching her every move after :( Lol, that's cool, I mostly just use the actresses as a sort of 'this is close to how I see the OC' but they never end up being 100% exact lol :) I think, if you mean a Howard/OC for the Captain America movies, that she would be a good actress :) Howard was born in 1917, Captain America takes place in 1943-45 so he would be about 26-27 himself then so the age works ;)

I hope Gold doesn't lose all his memories, I fell like they'd need a way to explain it because it seems more like the things he did were his own choices and not the Darkness controlling him...or he wouldn't have been so freaked out about dying and the Darkness taking him over. It sort of sounded like he was conscious and aware of what he was doing so I hope it sticks. It would be more interesting to see him 'repent' or feel guilt over what he did when 'infected' by the darkness than to have no memory of it at all, but that's just my opinion :) I think, maybe, for the Author, since he was trapped in the book or book-realm(?) that maybe he was aware of the stories being written down as they were happening but he just wasn't the one writing them or able to change them? That's all I can think of for that lol :)

We'll have to wait and see what's coming ;)

Aww thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far :)