Author's note: Some dialogue taken directly from canon.

A small crowd had already gathered in the time it took them to walk down the street. Maleficent was there before them, waiting. Rumple stopped next to her, giving her a nod of encouragement, the trace of a smile on his face hinting at bittersweet memories stirred up by another parent's re-union with a long-lost child. Belle pressed closer to comfort him even as Maleficent stepped forward.

Emma led a young, dark-haired woman out from her yellow Bug. "Hey. Maleficent. This is your daughter."

Then Emma turned away to greet Henry, clearly rebuffing her own parents' attempt to talk to her.

"Emma!" Snow trailed after Emma, David following with a sigh.

Maleficent and Lily vanished in a swoosh of purple smoke.

"Regina must have gone straight to meet Robin Hood," Belle said when she didn't see her car. Cruella, on the other hand, parked right outside the diner. She and Ursula took their time getting out of the car, carrying themselves with the air of celebrities deigning to bless the local rubes with their presence. Belle watched them warily, muttering, "Do you think three decades in the Land Without Magic has improved their characters?"

Rumple snorted. "Not in the slightest." He patted her arm. "Don't worry. I won't let them hurt you."

"I won't let them hurt me," Belle retorted. "It's the rest of the town I'm worried about."

"Ah, sweetheart..." Then he focused on someone coming through the crowd from the far side and fell silent. One or two of the bystanders had been recording the scene on their phones, but this was a man with a big black traditional film camera.

He snapped a quick series of shots and announced himself, "Sidney Glass, Storybrooke Daily Mirror..."

He had showed up the week before to cover the trial, but now, with the principals already gone from the scene, he focused his attention on the new arrivals.

Cruella welcomed the spotlight with a predatory smile. "Oh look, the press!"

Ursula turned away with a muttered, "Hell, no." Her glance fell on Rumple and Belle and she approached now with a impressively solid stride for what Belle's vision insisted was a sea creature with a multitude of squirming tentacles.

Belle forced herself to stand her ground and smile politely at the sea witch.

Ursula gave her a once-over, snorted to herself, then jabbed a finger in Rumple's direction. "So this is where you've been hiding yourself, Dark One? Playing happy families with your domestic staff?"

"The Dark One has no need to hide, dearie," retorted Rumple. "Especially not from the likes of you."

"A lot of talking, not a lot of delivering on your promises."

Belle rolled her eyes. What were they trying to prove? "Rumple..."

"Yes, yes, as it happens, I'm not the only one who found a taste for small-town living." Rumple drew it out, scoring a point when Ursula grew visibly impatient.

"Just spit it out, already."

"A certain one-handed pirate captain..."

"Hook? He's here?"

Rumple gestured carelessly. "Trailing after the Savior like a lost puppy, or loitering by the docks... He'll be easy enough to find." He summoned a glass jar to his hands in a puff of dark smoke. Something fleshy floated inside. Were those fingers?

Belle stared. "Is that..."

"Yes." Rumple concentrated for a moment. The floating hand slowly rotated, seeming to point. He set off in the direction indicated. "This way."

Ursula followed them, leaving the crowd behind. She eyed the hand in the jar. "So you think the pirate is as much of a pack rat as you? He still has what he stole from me?"

"What did he steal?" asked Belle. "Rumple wouldn't say."

"Just as well. Never listen to a man, my dear," Ursula advised. "Back-stabbing liars, the lot of them."

"I'm the Dark One, dearie. The clue's in the name." Rumple smirked, until Belle swatted him in the shoulder.

"I wish you wouldn't say things like that," she said. "You're better than that... or at least you're trying..."

"He's trying, all right," grumbled Ursula.

"Yes, well, so is Captain Jones, or so I hear. Playing the hero in order to win the heart of his lady love. Very romantic," Rumple said without a trace of sincerity. Belle knew how painful it must be every time he saw Hook with the woman Rumple's son had loved, when that loss was still so fresh in his mind. Never mind their already acrimonious past with Milah... It was a miracle of restraint that Rumple hadn't murdered him yet. She wondered if they were pushing their luck now in actively seeking the man out.

As they continued walking, Ursula told her story to Belle, seeming to appreciate having a sympathetic ear. Belle could imagine how difficult it must be to live in the Land Without Magic where she constantly had to guard her tongue lest she be taken for a lunatic.

"He stole your voice? The only thing you had left of your mother?" Belle shook her head, appalled. "And your father? He didn't stop Hook?"

"All he wanted was to force me into his image of the perfect, obedient daughter," Ursula said. "So I left."

Belle winced at her bitter tone. "Yeah. I know what that's like."

They all three fell silent for a while after that.

They caught up with Hook at the docks. Rumple held Belle back, yielding the lead to Ursula with a murmured, "It's your show, dearie."

Ursula immediately seized Hook in her tentacles and dangled him over the water. "You!"

The pirate struggled in vain. "Ursula! Wait..."

"You know what I want," growled Ursula.

Hook glanced over at Rumple, and his eyes narrowed. To Ursula, he said, "And you know what I want."

"Revenge, revenge, revenge. Yeah, you're a real one-note wonder," sneered Ursula. The tentacles squeezed tighter, causing Hook to fight for breath. "Too bad you don't have much room to bargain..."

But it seemed Hook was too stubborn to give in, or perhaps he was gambling on Belle's presence to stop the others from actually killing him.

Rumple's expression darkened. Perhaps he had come to the same realization. He took a step forward. "You know, pirate, Emmma's parents have severely disappointed her. Are you sure you want to add your name to the list of people she's put her faith in who end up letting her down?"

Hook visibly ground his teeth.

"Killian, please," Belle put in. "A hero makes amends to those they've wronged. You owe it to Ursula to help her if you can."

"Or don't help her. It's up to you," said Rumple. "But should Ursula pursue recourse through the law, no doubt she will give Sheriff Swan all the relevant details..."

"Blackmail?" Hook spat. "Not very heroic, crocodile."

"Emma will find out, either way," Belle pointed out. "It's only blackmail if we offer to help you cover up the truth."

"Fine." Hook looked at Ursula. "Put me down and I'll do what I can for you."

Ursula took him at his word. Her tentacles retracted into nothingness and Hook dropped with a messy splash into the water.

He climbed out spluttering and wiping wet hair out of his face. "And here I thought you told me you didn't want to drown humans."

"And you're not drowned, are you?" retorted Ursula coldly. "So where did you bury it?"

"Oh, I didn't. It's aboard the Jolly Roger."

"So where's the Jolly Roger?" Ursula looked ready to dump him in the harbor a second time.

Hook was as bad as Rumple, Belle thought. Never a straight answer. After a few more rounds of questioning, he admitted that his ship was still in the Enchanted Forest, that he had traded it for a magic bean.

Ursula's sea magic extended to the creation of portals. She didn't need the Dark One's help to find the ship in question, once she had a piece of its rigging that Hook had kept as a souvenir.

"Bloody hell." Evidently, Hook hadn't expected that the Jolly Roger was now a miniature ship trapped inside a glass bottle.

"Really, dearie?" Rumple was obviously trying not to laugh.

"It's rude to tease a man about the size of his ship," Belle chided, keeping a straight face.

Hook looked murderous.

Ursula rolled her eyes. "A little help, here?"

"Of course. All part of the deal." Rumple turned to Belle. "It's not a complicated spell, but it must be done with care. An uneven expansion can destroy the target even if you do manage to restore it to the desired dimensions..."

Belle nodded. He guided her through the steps as they worked the magic together. Rumple tossed the bottle into the water as the spell took hold. It took only moments for the ship to return to its original size.

"I'd almost be impressed," muttered Ursula, "if only the two of you weren't so revoltingly clingy."

"Pay her no mind." Rumple stared out into the harbor. "Look. The ship wasn't the only thing trapped in that bottle. There's something in the water."

Belle followed his gaze. "Not something. Someone." Even through the distorting layers of water, she could sense a familiar aura. "That's Ariel!"

The mermaid's head popped above the surface a moment later. She took in her surroundings, looking confused but calm.

Belle waved eagerly. "Ariel!"

"Belle!" Ariel smiled and waved back. Soon she was back on land, human legs under her again. Then she marched past Belle and slapped Hook across the cheek. "And that's for tossing Blackbeard overboard before he could tell me where Eric was. I had to rescue that awful man to find him."

Ursula scoffed. In an aside to Belle, she muttered, "What'd I tell you? Men. Can't trust 'em for shit."

"You shouldn't generalize," Belle said, more out of habit than conviction. "What happened, Ariel? How did you and the ship end up in a bottle?"

The Jolly Roger was empty as far as Belle could see, with no signs of any crew still aboard, not even the ship's cat. Only the rats remained to make free with the stores, now that the stasis spell was lifted.

"Blackbeard used that ship to terrorize a lot of people, including some royals from Arendelle. The queen trapped the ship as punishment and I got swept up in the magic by accident. Thanks for letting me out." Ariel gave them a wide-eyed look. "Is that really... Ursula?"

Ursula snorted. She curled a tentacle around Hook. "Get on with it. The little mermaid can have your sorry carcass once you return what's mine." A swirl of magic sent her and the pirate to the deck of the ship.

"It's really Ursula!" Ariel sounded surprised. "No one's seen her in so long, we were afraid she might be dead."

"She's been in New York, apparently," said Belle. "Emma brought her back."

Ariel nodded. She had spent enough time in Storybrooke looking for her prince to recognize the name of the Savior.

"And Prince Eric? He's all right?" Belle asked.

"He's fine." Ariel smiled brightly. She explained how they had crossed paths with pirates, but they had survived to find their happiness again.

Ursula was not so lucky. Her angrily raised voice carried clearly across the water from the Jolly Roger. "Lying, selfish waste of space!"

"I delivered your voice," returned Hook. "It's not my fault if your magic can't get it out of the bloody shell!"

Ursula left him behind, vanishing and reappearing on the dock, a pale, pearlescent shell in her hand. "Useless."

"Here, let me." Rumple took the shell for a quick magical appraisal. Then he shook his head and handed it back to Ursula. "Your voice was sealed inside by a god's magic. You will need the same to free it."

The last glimmer of hope vanished from Ursula's face. "Then if I can't have my voice back, I'll have the next best thing: the life of the thief who betrayed me!"

Hook only had time for a strangled yelp before he was snatched off the deck by a magically elongated tentacle. Ursula hoisted him aloft again, savagely choking off his airway.

Belle shivered with a flash of sensory memory — she knew exactly how that felt. She opened her mouth to protest, gathering her own magic to stop Ursula, but Ariel spoke up first.

"Ursula, don't! Your father, he regrets what he did." Ariel's breathless, heartfelt plea was enough to defuse a portion of Ursula's hostility, enough that she paused her assault on Hook to look over at the mermaid. "He's been looking for you, all these years. He wants to return what he took from you."

Belle glanced at Rumple. It seemed sea gods didn't have it any easier than Dark Ones when it came to finding their lost children in the Land without Magic.

He met her gaze, his wistful smile suggesting that he, too, was thinking of Bae.

Ursula scowled at Ariel. "And why the hell should I believe you?"

"I can prove it," Ariel said eagerly. "It won't take long. I can bring your father here. Then you'll see that I'm telling the truth."

"You'd better be."

"I am!" Ariel started to leap into the harbor, then paused. "And you won't kill the captain?"

"You, child, are far too forgiving. Fine. I'll let him go." Ursula tossed Hook onto the boardwalk. "Scram!"

Hook clambered to his feet, still looking damp and miserable, but he forced a grin and a cheeky wave. "Delighted to be of service, love."

Ursula ignored the pirate, all her attention now focused on Ariel as the mermaid dived into the water and created her portal. Rumple's gaze followed her as well, watching the spell with professional interest. Belle — remembering what had happened the last time Hook had been shown mercy — kept a wary eye on Hook, making sure he didn't sneak back to shoot someone in the back. Or stab them with a poisoned hook. Thankfully, this time he really was gone. Off to sweet-talk Emma for pre-emptive damage control, Belle guessed.

Now it was only a matter of waiting. Belle and Rumple settled on one of the benches that dotted the boardwalk, while Ursula sat on another. Rumple summoned coffee and sandwiches from the deli for the three of them, breaking the ice. Even so, conversation was tense and fragmented. They spoke of difficult fathers. Their experiences living in this new land without magic, of finding themselves in fictional characters. Talked of heroes and villains.

Hours after Ariel had swum away, the harbor churned again in a vortex of unnatural light. She was back, and she hadn't returned alone.

Ursula was the first on her feet. She gasped at the sight of the second figure rising from the water. "Father!"

And the sea god answered with every bit of warmth that Ariel had promised. He came ashore with words of apology on his lips.

The truth was clear. He was sorry, and so was she, and father and daughter had missed each other dearly.

Belle clung to Rumple, feeling themselves out of place in witnessing this reunion, but her eyes prickled as she watched. Poseidon accepted his daughter, no longer wishing to control her or use her in his vendetta. They still grieved for the loss of Ursula's mother, Poseidon's wife, but instead of continuing to pursue vengeance, they found comfort that her legacy lived on in Ursula.

They were going back to the sea kingdom together. Ursula looked at Rumple, giving him one last nod of acknowledgement.

"Our deal is complete," he murmured in return. "This is what you wanted..."

"Yeah. Not sure how much of that was your doing, but I'll call it even." Ursula eyed Belle. "Good-bye and good luck. Especially you, girl, looks like you're gonna need it..."

"Good-bye, Ursula." Belle bit back the impulse to defend herself and her marriage. Ursula's good wishes felt genuine, even if she delivered them with a jab.

And her singing was divine, enough to make Belle wish she had been able to hear more than the tantalizing hint when Ursula absorbed the song back into herself from the shell. Then she remembered that Poseidon had tried to turn that beauty into a weapon.

Everything is a weapon. Life is a war, the darkness told her. It wasn't something she wanted to think. Father and daughter had reconciled, hadn't they? If Poseidon could do it, there was hope for Belle's father, wasn't there? But what if Maurice turned out to be more like Peter Pan than Poseidon?

She glanced at Rumple. Did he regret what he had done? There were so many deaths on his hands, yet he lived on regardless.

War destroys. War creates. The beauty you admire was born out of darkness.

Belle shook her head. She had a choice. So did Rumple. And this time, he had chosen a path of life for someone else, even if he couldn't do it for himself. A smile welled up at the thought. On impulse, she flung her arms around him in a hug.

Rumple blinked at her in surprise, awkwardly patting her on the back. "What was that for?"

"I'm glad you helped her. Even if she did kidnap me before."

"We had a deal," he muttered, uncomfortable as ever when she thought better of him than he thought himself.

Her smile didn't diminish. "Some of the best things in life begin as deals."

He cleared his throat and looked away. "Yes, well, let's hope the rest of that one works out as happily..."

He meant Cruella de Vil. And Lily, who carried all of the Savior's darkness in addition to her own.

Belle sobered, but didn't let go of her hopes. "One step at a time."