Chapter Ninety-Six—"Winds of Change"

Rumplestiltskin's magic deposited him and Henry in the front hall of his house, and for a moment, he just closed his eyes and let the feeling of safety wash over him. He was home. The ten day long nightmare was over. He had the dagger, and he was free.

"That was so cool!" Henry gushed, ruining the quiet moment. But Rumplestiltskin didn't mind. The brilliant grin on his grandson's face—he had a grandson!—was compensation enough.

"Henry?" a familiar voice called from the other room, and Rumplestiltskin's heart skipped a beat. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey, Belle!" was Henry's cheerful response as footsteps approached.

Suddenly, Belle was there, framed in the doorway leading from the living room. Rumplestiltskin froze, almost dropping the dagger as he drank in her presence, just staring at her and unable to speak.

"Rumple?" Belle whispered, her blue eyes huge.

"Hi," he breathed, utterly unable to come up with a more fitting greeting.

That didn't matter. Belle flew at him, rushing forward and literally throwing herself into his arms. Drawn to her, Rumplestiltskin moved at the same time she did, catching her and holding on tight, clinging to her as her arms wrapped around his neck. He was careful to keep the dagger from cutting her, but that was his only coherent thought. Rumplestiltskin just melted into her embrace, finally feeling safe and whole.

"Belle…" he whispered shakily, barely aware of the tears running down his face.

"You're back," she replied, and she was crying too. Drawing back as her feet hit the floor—he couldn't hold her for long; his muscles were too wasted—Belle leaned her forehead against his. A hand touched his cheek, and Rumplestiltskin closed his eyes, reveling in her touch after too long away.

"Yes," he finally managed to say, smiling despite his tears. "I'm home."

"You have the dagger!"

Nodding, Rumplestiltskin opened his eyes and swallowed back the rage boiling inside him, pushing his curse away far more easily than he might have under other circumstances. "Henry…" He smiled wryly. "Apparently, I have a grandson."

"So you do," Belle smiled back at him, but then her expression sobered. "Cora sent you after him?"

"I didn't know," Rumplestiltskin murmured, feeling broken. Belle stroked his cheek gently, but another voice answered:

"No one thought you did, Papa," Bae said, and Rumplestiltskin's head whipped around to look at his son, who was standing with his hand on Henry's shoulder. "I didn't either. Not until Emma told me, anyway."

"Bae." The whisper came out hesitantly; Rumplestiltskin wasn't entirely sure where he stood with his son. Their last conversation had been so short, and the two before that had been fraught with emotion. Bae had every right to be angry with him, still, and Rumplestiltskin knew that even an honest apology only went so far—

Belle stepped away from him, and he almost whimpered when she did, until suddenly his son was hugging him tightly. He was so surprised that it took him a moment to return the embrace, a relieved shudder running through his weakened body.

"I'm so sorry, son," he said again.

"I know, Papa. You came back for me. That's what counts," Bae said, and Rumplestiltskin closed his eyes on tears.

"Rumple?" Belle asked quietly, her hand landing gently on his shoulder as Rumplestiltskin tried to swallow the need to cry. "Are you all right?"

"I'll be fine," he lied unconvincingly. Bae released him, clearly not believing it any more than Belle did; both of them were looking at him like he was crazy. Rumplestiltskin let out a shaky breath. "It was just a long ten days."

The glance shared between his son and his wife said volumes about how well those two had come to know one another, and Rumplestiltskin felt another unexpected flush of warmth. He couldn't quite catch what they silently agreed upon, but there was obviously something there. For once, however, Rumplestiltskin's habitual paranoia didn't engage, and he was content to let them plot behind his back. Besides, he was far too tired and too hurt to try to try to figure it out. His head was trying to spin, and only magic kept the pain in check now.

"Hey, bud, why don't we go call all three of your other parents and let them know you're here?" Bae suddenly asked Henry.

"Okay." How had he never noticed how much that smile reminded him of Bae? But you did, years ago. Even when you were just Gold, he realized as Henry turned to him. "I'm glad you're back, Grandpa."

"Me, too, Henry," he said quietly, glad for Belle's hand on his shoulder. It kept him anchored, let him know that this was real. "And I am sorry."

"It's okay." Another sunny smile, and Henry followed Bae out of the room, leaving Rumplestiltskin alone with his wife. But someone else was missing.

"Where's Gabi?" he asked, sudden worry gripping his heart.

"It's one o'clock," Belle said gently, taking his free hand and squeezing it. "She's still down for her nap."

"Oh." Relief made him want to cry, and before he knew it, Rumplestiltskin was wrapped in her arms again. "Oh. All right."

"You want to look in on her?"

"Yes," he whispered, the word a plea.

"Come on, then." Lips touched his cheek before Belle pulled away, leading him by the hand to Gabi's room.

There she was, his little girl, wrapped up in her blue nightie and sleeping peacefully. Part of Rumplestiltskin burned to burst in, to wake her up and hold her tightly, but he was able to stop himself. He was in no shape to do that right now, not mentally or physically, even as he belatedly told his magic to begin healing his various wounds. Gabi would wake in an hour or two, and by then he could put himself together enough to be the kind of father she needed. For now, it was enough to know she was safe. My entire family is safe, he realized, relief making his knees go weak.

With an effort, he stepped away from the door, closing it quietly and slumping against his wife.

"Do you want to hide the dagger before we get you cleaned up?" Belle asked, squeezing his hand. He almost bristled, almost demanded to know why she thought there was anything wrong with him, but Rumplestiltskin caught himself. Belle had been the veteran of far too many nights spent with Cora back when her caveats worked; she knew that he was far from all right. He could lie to her, but why? She'd know, and if he tried to be all right, Rumplestiltskin knew he would fail. Besides, one look at him probably told Belle everything she needed to know.

"Yeah," he answered, all too aware of how tightly he was still gripping the dagger. He didn't want to let it out of his sight, but once it was safely hidden behind his old defenses, no one would be able to reach it except him.

"Then let's do that, and then go upstairs."

It hadn't exactly gone according to plan, but Henry was all right. That was what mattered, and after Bae had his son recount every last detail of the story, he pulled out his phone to call Emma. She'd freak out a little bit, too, but that was all right. In fact, everything was better than all right.

His father was safe and that psychopathic bitch of an 'Evil Queen' was going down.

"What's up?" Emma answered the phone on the third ring, and Bae ignored Henry's grin.

"Well, I've got news. It turns out Cora's a bigger bitch than we thought," he started, only to have Emma snort.

"Not possible."

"Yeah, it is. Apparently, she was pissed off enough to send my dad after Henry—who's fine—and well, Pop's got the dagger back, and he's home," Bae told her, and then repeated for good measure: "Henry's fine. He's here, too."

"You're sure?" she demanded, and Bae thought he heard something crash to the floor in the background.

"Yeah, he's standing next to me grinning like an idiot," he answered. "Apparently, Cora wanted Papa to rip Henry's heart out, but since that's covered by the contract, he got the dagger back as soon as he tried."

"But how could he—"

"He didn't have a choice, Emma," Bae cut her off. "He didn't want to. He feels awful, particularly now that he knows Henry's his grandson."

"Right." There was a long pause. "Sorry. I just…"

"Me, too," he breathed, thinking about how he would feel in Emma's shoes. The very idea of Henry being hurt was enough to paralyze him or send him into a towering rage, and Bae only imagined that feeling would grow with time. "You want to let Regina and David know? I don't think Cora knows yet—apparently she hadn't gone along for the 'fun'—but they need to know he's safe."

"Yeah. Sure. I'll call them."

"Henry and I can come down to the station if you want. I think Pop and Belle are gonna want some alone time."

"That would be…nice," Emma said, and Bae thought he could hear her hesitant smile. "I'll be here."

"So will we."

Hanging up the phone, Bae headed with his son to meet his fiancée. Only once they were halfway to the sheriff's station did the horrible thought occur to him, though—what if Emma didn't want to get married now? There was no contract to force their hands, and even though she said that she wanted to do this for them, what if that changed?

Then I'll keep trying, he told himself, trying to keep the worry out of his expression. I'll never stop loving her, but if she wants me to let her go, I will.

Belle had helped him undress, knowing that when Rumplestiltskin shook and twitched away from her, it wasn't really her touch he was shying away from.

"I'm sorry," Rumplestiltskin whispered after he jerked back violently, making Belle miss the bottom button of his shirt.

"I know," she said softly, reaching up to cup his face with her right hand. "It's not your fault."

"I don't want you to have to deal with—" he cut off in a sob, and Belle just pulled him into her arms. He hesitated before hugging her back, but then clung to her with a vengeance. Immediately, Belle felt his quiet tears wetting her neck, and she just held him tightly.

"I love you, Rumplestiltskin," Belle told him. "I can only imagine how horrible that…woman was to you during the last ten days, but I'm here now. And no matter what, I'm staying here. I don't think less of you because she hurt you."

"They both did." She could feel him shudder as the words came out, and rage bubbled up inside her so quickly that Belle could barely contain it. She had to swallow hard to keep her voice even when she asked:

"Zelena, too?"

Rumplestiltskin nodded miserably.

"Oh, Rumple," Belle breathed, kissing him lightly on the cheek. She couldn't think of her own fury, not now; her husband was shaking and very nearly broken, and he needed her. "I love you," she repeated. "No matter what."

"And I love you," he said softly, and for several long moments, they just held onto one another. Finally, Rumplestiltskin's trembling slowed a little, and she could feel him begin to relax.

"Let's get you into the shower, all right?" she asked, remembering how desperately he always wanted to wash away Cora's touch before. Now, after ten days with those two, she imagined that he was doubly in need of a good shower.

"All right."

He flinched a little as she pulled back, and Belle almost wrapped her arms around him again, but she knew that if she did, she might never let go. So, she helped Rumplestiltskin shrug out of his shirt, noticing the half-visible cuts, burns, and bruises marring his chest and his back. These wounds were worse than any Belle had seen Cora inflict in the past, and were of varying ages, showing that Cora had refused to let him heal himself after she had her 'fun'. Some of the wounds were nearly black and looked poisonously infected, stacked up like neat lines along his abdomen and his back. Disgust welled up in Belle's throat like acid, and again she had to swallow before she could trust her voice.

Biting her lip, she decided that she needed to ask. "Are you able to heal yourself?"

Rumplestiltskin nodded. "It's in progress," he said quietly, and when he met her eyes, she could see how dizzy he was. "What I can heal is, anyway. It's…slow. Everything hurts so much that my magic is sluggish."

"Will some rest help?"

"It should," he said, trying to get his pants off. But his hands were shaking too hard to manage the belt buckle, so Belle gently brushed him aside and helped. Soon enough, he was undressed and Belle could see the full extent of the damage that Cora had wrought—and be grateful that she had seen such wounds (though never so terrible) before. Fortunately, Rumplestiltskin had at least learned from their previous experiences, and was not trying to hide himself away in shame.

"Do you want me to leave you alone to shower?" She didn't want to go, but Belle knew Rumple was touchy in moments like this, and heavens only knew when the last time he'd truly been able to be alone was.

"No!" Panicked brown eyes met hers, and Belle took his hands. Rumplestiltskin's voice dropped to a barely-audible whisper. "Don't leave me."

"I won't," she promised, squeezing his fingers. "Not ever."

He was taking too long.

Taking a deep breath, Cora resisted the urge to pace, sitting down and reclaiming the Dark One's dagger from where it sat on her desk. Carrying the weapon was a nuisance, albeit one she was more than willing to bear under most circumstances. Still, since she knew that it could not be summoned with magic—even (or perhaps particularly) by the Dark One—it was something of a relief to be able to put the dagger down when she was the only one in the room. Controlling Rumplestiltskin was certainly more challenging that she had anticipated; no matter how badly she hurt him, he continued looking for loopholes, always trying to defy her. She would have to break that habit out of him, and would eventually, but in the meantime, he was an exhausting pet to keep.

Of course, she realized. I didn't tell him that he had to return right away. Is the fool trying to talk to the heroes, or did Regina try to kill him for Henry's death? She had to admit that the thought of her daughter attacking the Dark One for her beloved 'son's' death was rather amusing, particularly since she had forbidden Rumplestiltskin to harm anyone of her bloodline. Henry wasn't included in that prohibition, of course, which only made things that much sweeter.

Still, she was tired of waiting, so Cora rose from behind the desk, straightened her shoulders and turned to the center of the room. She raised the dagger and spoke calmly, willing Rumplestiltskin to appear on his knees before her.

"Dark One, I summon thee."

She loved the power of having the most powerful sorcerer in the realm at her feet, impotent and furious—and frightened. Cora never tired of ordering him there; it was such a spectacular sight, one that filled her with power and lust like nothing else.

But he did not appear. What is this? Cora glared furiously at the dagger, and then spoke again, more insistently.

"Dark One, I summon thee now."

Yet Rumplestiltskin still did not appear. Only then did Cora realize that there was something wrong with the dagger in her hand. The weapon felt the same, at least in a physical sense. It was the right weight and right size, and looked identical to the one she had been carrying for ten days. Yet there was something…off. When she sought to channel her power into the dagger, nothing happened. It responded like any other weapon, absorbing the magic and thereby acquiring some minor but temporary magical properties of its own. However, the dagger, the real Dagger of the Dark One, did not absorb magic. It enhanced it, channeled her power, her desire through its metal and into the Dark One, reinforcing her will and forcing him to obey.

Wide-eyed, Cora turned the blade over in her hand. And then again. The dagger looked right…but it wasn't real. This was a fake.

Someone had stolen the dagger, and she would murder whomever had dared.

Rumplestiltskin had been drifting in and out of sleep, letting his magic wrap a warm cocoon around him, healing his broken body while wrapped in Belle's arms. Intellectually, he knew only ten days had passed since he'd last been home, but he hadn't felt safe in what felt like a lifetime. It had taken his body a very long time to remember how to relax, but Belle just laid down with him, stroking his hair and helping him calm the shaking mess he had become. Then they had both drifted off, just a little, until he felt the slight tug on his magic and his eyes flew open.

The room was dark, but he didn't need to see to know what had happened. Cora had tried to summon him, had used the fake dagger. Rumplestiltskin hadn't been completely sure that the swap would go unnoticed; he'd worked the spell to substitute his old duplicate dagger in for the real one in case the contract was broken, but the odds of Cora noticing the exchange had always been high. The fact that she hadn't made him want to laugh hysterically, made a high-pitched giggle well up within him and his body shake with mirth. Perhaps he was a little unhinged; perhaps he was in no mental condition to decide what was funny and what was not. But the thought of Cora impotently summoning him again and again and again was hilarious.

He was free of her. He was safe and free and he was going to rip her into tiny little pieces. Relief flowed through Rumplestiltskin, making his limbs feel weak and his body shake. He was finally, truly, free. The bed he lay in was not Cora's, and the woman curled up next to him was the woman to whom he had given his soul by choice. I'm home. It finally sank in, and the nervous laughter welled up within him finally boiled over. He was home.

"Rumple?" a sleepy voice mumbled from his right, and Rumplestiltskin tried to stop giggling, but he couldn't. He was home. Belle repeated his name, sounding worried. "Rumple?"

"I'm all right," he finally managed to gasp, not sure when the laughter had turned to tears. "I'm all right."

She shifted, and Rumplestiltskin let himself retreat into his wife's arms, sobbing and laughing and half trying not to imagine the look on Cora's face when he never arrived.

"I love you," he whispered, holding onto her for dear life. "And I'm home."

"Mother?" Cautiously, Zelena stuck her head through the door to Cora's office, having heard the crashing noises. She was a little concerned; odds were that her mother was simply disciplining the Dark One, but Zelena had thought she'd heard the window break, and that could mean trouble. "Is everything all right?"

"Everything is fine," Cora snapped, turning to face her. But Zelena's eyes widened, anyway; it looked like a tornado had torn through the office, upending the desk, tearing both chairs into pieces, and destroying the beautiful painting that had hung on the far wall. Now its frame was cracked and broken, with the canvas itself burned and melted away.

"Did something happen?" she gasped, unable to stop herself despite the warning look on Cora's face. "Are you hurt?"

"Of course I'm not, you stupid girl," her mother snarled, and Zelena jerked back, feeling like she'd just been slapped. Her mother had never called her stupid. Something terrible must have happened!

"What…what happened?" Zelena asked hesitantly, looking around at the disaster. The large double window to her left was broken, and the room was an utter mess. Yet the window looked like it had been broken from the inside, not by someone trying to get in.

"This happened!" Cora gestured viciously with the Dark One's dagger.

"What did Rumple do this time?" Her heart leapt; maybe she could help. "Oh, please let me punish him, Mother, please!"

"He's not here." Now the words were quiet and dangerous; Zelena could see Cora gathering herself, magic whipping around the room as her fury was made tangible. Had her mother done this?

Zelena had experienced some pretty impressive magical tantrums in her youth, but she had never managed to create quite so much destruction.

"What?" she echoed stupidly. "Can't you just summon him?"

"This dagger is a fake," Cora spat. "Someone stole the real one."

Shock made Zelena rock back, blinking. "But how?"

"I don't know." The wind finally calmed; Cora's fury was under control again. "But I aim to find out and make whoever did it suffer."

"I'll help," Zelena promised, but her mind was racing.

Her mother had lost control of the Dark One. She had never thought her mother could fail, had never thought Cora would so much as falter. But someone else had control of Rumple now. What would that mean for her?

Rumplestiltskin and Belle slept for another hour or so. Meanwhile, his magic raced through his body, no longer fettered by Cora's desire for him to be in pain. There were things he could not heal, such as any wounds made by the dagger, but the two hours he spent in bed did worlds of good for the rest of Rumplestiltskin. He'd still be weak, of course; magic could compensate for malnutrition but not correct it, and Cora had been determined to starve him into submission if she could not break him. He'd never been a heavyset man, but Rumplestiltskin knew that he'd lost rather more weight than he was comfortable with. His ribs were easy to see—Zelena had mocked him for that just the day before—and the lethargy and muscle fatigue born of malnutrition had already started to set in. Sleep couldn't fix that problem, of course, but time would.

By the time the door opening jerked him out of his surprisingly peaceful nap—the nightmares would come later, perhaps when he was less emotionally drained—his magic had managed to heal about half of his wounds, which at least left Rumplestiltskin feeling enormously better.

"Mamma?" a quiet voice intruded even as Rumplestiltskin desperately redirected magic from healing to his own defenses, cursing himself for being caught so off guard. "Why you sleep in middle of the day?"

"Gabi?" he whispered even as Belle stirred at his side. His daughter had woken from her nap, and he'd been thinking of turning her into a slug. Rumplestiltskin had never felt like more of a fool.

"Papa? Papa!"

Belle turned the light on as Gabi practically flew onto the bed, dropping her stuffed purple crocodile and crawling into his lap. Quickly, Rumplestiltskin wrapped his arms around his little girl, holding her tightly as smaller arms snaked around his neck.

"Oh, sweetie, it's so good to see you," he breathed, blinking back the almost overwhelming desire to cry.

"Mamma said that you had to go away to protect us," Gabi said, snuggling into his shoulder. "She said you had to save Bay-fire."

"I did," Rumplestiltskin confirmed, managing not to laugh at the mispronunciation of his son's name. "But I'm back now."

"For good?" Clever little girl that she was, she knew to ask.

He kissed her forehead. "For good," he promised.

"Missed you." She hiccupped a little, and Rumplestiltskin felt his heart break—both for his daughter and for his wife, who reached out to rub Gabrielle's back gently. His eyes met Belle's over Gabi's head, and he tried to give her an apologetic smile. Rumplestiltskin didn't have to ask to know how hard on Belle this separation had been; she'd been left to deal with a three-year-old who just didn't understand why her father had to stay away.

"I missed you, too," he said around the lump in his throat. "And I love you, and your Mamma, and your brother, very, very much."

"We love you too!" Gabi declared, and Rumplestiltskin felt his heart twist in his chest. He didn't deserve love like this, not the beautiful love of his children or the amazingly pure love of his wife. He was a monster dressed in a human shell; his time in Cora's hands had reminded him of that like nothing had in years. Someday, somehow, he knew that he would do something to prove to them that he didn't deserve them…but being married to Belle had taught Rumplestiltskin a little about fighting for those he loved.

Terrified though he still was, he would have sacrificed himself again for them in a heartbeat.

Snow had always been closer to Graham than Regina had, but the Huntsman had tried to help both of them multiple times. So, it was no surprise that they went to the asylum together to see him. Of course, Graham didn't have to stay there now that he had his heart back, but they'd all been wary what might happen if Cora decided the crippled Huntsman made an easy target.

"How would you like to use those legs again?" Regina asked by way of greeting, and Graham's eyes went wide.

"Can you do that?" he asked, sounding a little breathless.

Snow shot Regina a huge smile, and that was certainly reward enough. All magic might have come with a price, but this one was definitely worth paying if it made her sister so happy. Besides, Graham was a good man who her mother had victimized one too many times, and Regina always appreciated the opportunity to pry Cora's 'creatures' away from her. Particularly the unwitting ones.

"I'm not the best healer you'll ever meet, but I preach a lot less than the fairies," she said with a wry smile. "It might take me a few minutes, but you'll walk again when I'm done."

"Where do I sign up?" the former sheriff asked immediately. "I hate being useless."

"You aren't useless, Graham," Snow said compassionately, but he just shook his head.

"Not having my heart was almost a comfort when I was stuck in this chair," Graham explained. "Then I could tell myself that I'd only endanger anyone who trusted me with secrets. But now that no one can control me, I hate not helping."

"Well, let me get to work, and then you can give us all the help you want," Regina interjected before Snow could go all reassuring on them. Snow meant well, but sometimes her touchy-feely personality was more than Regina could bear.

Healing Graham turned out to be far more straightforward than she thought, and Regina only needed to look one or two things up in the book she'd swiped from Rumplestiltskin's shop. Within an hour, Graham was up and walking, and Regina had never felt quite so good about helping someone as she did when he hugged her.

Bae was a little surprised how happy the Charmings and Regina had been when he'd told them that his father had the Dark One's dagger back. He had expected a little more suspicion and a lot more mistrust; after all, although no one wanted Cora to be able to command the Dark One, Baelfire knew from personal experience how very dangerous the Dark One was. He wanted to trust his father, wanted to believe that Rumplestiltskin had changed, but he hadn't exactly been able to talk to his father much when Rumplestiltskin was in possession of his own powers. Yes, his father had apologized—and it had been an honest and heartfelt apology, exactly what Bae had needed to hear—but did he still turn people into snails at the slightest provocation?

Belle had tried to tell him that Rumplestiltskin didn't do that these days, but Bae knew that he'd probably have to see it for himself before that sank in. After all, he didn't really know her very well, either. He'd had no idea Belle or Gabrielle even existed eleven days ago, so as much as he'd come to like his stepmother in the ten days since his father had traded himself to Cora, Bae still felt cautious. He'd expected the heroes of Storybrooke to feel the same way, but they all seemed a bit more comfortable with the situation than he did. Then again, they're not going to a family dinner with the man, so I guess I get a different view of things, Bae thought wryly, letting himself into the house.

Immediately, voices drifted out of the living room.

"No, you aren't cooking, Rumple, so just stay down and relax," Belle said firmly, in that don't-argue-with-me tone that even Bae had learned not to ignore.

"I'm not an invalid!" his father protested.

"Rumple."

"Belle, I'm—"

"What's an in-valid?" Gabi interjected, and Bae snorted to himself, wandering forward to stand in the doorway leading into the living room from the front hall. Gabi was on the floor building a castle out of blocks, while his father glared up at his stepmother, who was standing in front of Rumplestiltskin's armchair, her arms crossed and looking fierce.

Her face softened when she looked at her daughter, though. "An invalid someone who needs rest, sweetie. Just like your father."

"Papa should rest!" Gabi announced, and Bae didn't miss the triumphant look that Belle shot his father.

Once upon a time, someone looking at him like that would have been turned into a toad. Or worse. But now Rumplestiltskin just scowled.

"That was low," he grumbled.

"Very," Belle agreed, and then dropped into a crouch in front of his chair, taking Rumplestiltskin's hands in her own. Her voice quieted. "Please, Rumple? I know you're perfectly capable of cooking, but let me take care of you a little, all right?"

"All right," Bae's father gave in with a sigh, which made his eyebrows go up. Then again, Bae wasn't sure he would have been able to refuse those pleading blue eyes, either.

"Good." Belle's smile was radiant. "I already called Dove, anyway. He'll be by in a little while with everything we need, including some soup that should be easy on your stomach."

That got her another half-hearted glare, but when that fizzled out immediately when Belle rose and kissed Rumplestiltskin on the forehead. Gabi, meanwhile, looked up from her castle and spotted her older brother.

"Bay-fire!" she got up to run over to him, barely managing not to trip over her blocks on the way. "Bay-fire is home, Mamma!"

"So he is," Belle turned with a smile as Bae picked Gabi up and swung her around. In some ways, having a kid sister was pretty cool. She was a cheerful little bugger, anyway, and impossible not to like.

"Hey, you," he said to the cute munchkin, kissing her on the cheek. She grinned and gave him a smacking kiss in return, but she was also clearly impatient, which was why Bae put her back down so that she could keep building her castle. "I got your text," he continued. "But if you'd told me someone needed to pick up Granny's, I could have done it."

"There's no need," Belle replied with a shrug. "Besides, I think Dove wants to see Rumple with his own eyes, anyway."

That's…interesting. Bae had found Dove's loyalty to his father and Belle a little unnerving at first, even when Belle had told him the story about how Rumplestiltskin had more-or-less accidentially saved the shapeshifter years earlier and had thus earned himself a friend. Now, with his father back in the house, it was even stranger to hear…because the Dark One hadn't exactly been one to gain friends the last time Bae had seen him.

"How're you doing, Papa?" he asked instead of mentioning how weirded out he was.

"I'm fine, despite what Belle will tell you," was the immediate answer. Belle rolled her eyes, and Bae just plopped down on the sofa next to his father's chair.

Rumplestiltskin did look better than he had earlier, when he'd seemed ready to fall off of his feet. Bae hadn't mentioned it when his father had brought Henry back, partially because he'd been too distracted by the fact that his son had been in danger and partially because he figured Belle could handle it. Then, his father had looked horrible, obviously hurting and struggling to hide it, his brown eyes unfocused and swimming with pain. Now…well, now he seemed to be a lot more in control.

But the dark circles under Rumplestiltskin's eyes remained, and Bae thought he looked thinner than he had when he'd given Cora the dagger. He looked a lot like he had in some of their worst months when Bae had been a child, back when there hadn't been enough food for two and Rumplestiltskin went without to make sure Bae didn't. Bae hadn't always realized how much his father sacrificed for him when he was young, particularly when his mother had been there to complain and put Rumplestiltskin down. But as he'd grown, he'd realized exactly what Rumplestiltskin had done for him, particularly when it had just been the two of them. Now he wore that same partially-broken but determined-to-go-on look that Bae remembered so well, and it made emotion well up in Bae's throat.

"You sure?" he said quietly, careful not to let Gabi hear his concern. "You look like you've gone through hell."

Rumplestiltskin looked away, and his slight tremor told Bae everything that he needed to know. More than he needed to know. "I'll be all right," Rumplestiltskin said softly, and then turned back to him with a tentative little smile. "But I'm…thank you for asking."

"Hey, that's what family's for, right?" Bae said, because they were family. Warts and all, rough spots or not, his father was his father. Rumplestiltskin had proven to him that he wasn't just some demon wearing his father's face, and that meant a lot to Bae. Even if I will always wish he could have shown me that sooner, I can't change the past. On a whim, he reached out to squeeze Rumplestiltskin's forearm.

His father's smile was almost pitifully grateful, and it made Bae's heart ache. "Yes. Yes, it is."

"So, um, I have to ask, but you're not going to go on some crazy murdering rampage, are you? Because that would make my dating the sheriff kind of awkward," he added as lightly as he could.

"No." Surprisingly, Rumplestiltskin snorted with laughter. "I left those behind me a few centuries ago. I…I wasn't going to make the same mistake twice, and make my own child fear me."

"It wasn't you I feared, Papa," he answered thickly. "It was the demon I thought had taken you over. I wanted you back…I just couldn't find you in there."

"I'm sorry." Brown eyes so like his own met Bae's, and this really was his father. Not just the Dark One. "It took me a long time to learn to control this darkness, and you suffered for that."

"It's okay," Bae shrugged uneasily; the raw emotion of this conversation was getting to be too much. "Besides, everything turned out pretty well. I got a really cool kid out of the deal, and…" He swallowed back what he was going to say, but somehow his father figured it out, anyway.

"And Miss Swan?" Rumplestiltskin finished for him.

"I guess so. Sort of?" Man, he hadn't squirmed in embarrassment over a girl in a long time, but Bae was so damn in love with Emma, and now he had to explain that to the man who had taught him to walk.

"You'll have to tell me that story, someday." A small smile seemed to chase away some of Rumplestiltskin's pain, and Bae found himself smiling back.

"Only if you tell me how the crazy scaly guy fell for Belle," he countered.

"You have yourself a deal."

A/N: Up next: Chapter Ninety-Seven—"Friends and Allies", in which the heroes call a meeting, Cora does some spying, Jafar and Jefferson get back, and Maurice makes a humorous assumption.