Baelfire could only stare between his father, the woman and the little boy in his father's arms. He had a brother? And his father was married? What the hell sort of world did he fall into? Maybe he needed to get more sleep. Yes, that was it. This all had to be some sort of crazy, messed up dream. And then he'd wake up and he wouldn't be in some insane world.

"Bae?" the man asked quietly, looking at him in concern. "Please say something."

What did one say in a situation like this? It wasn't exactly common for boys to come back after three-hundred years and find out that their immortal father is no longer immortal and re-married with another child. No, this was not what normal situations were made out of.

Instead, the boy took a deep breath as he tried to focus on what was happening. He did need to say something after all. He was just too surprised to think right now.

"Rumple," the woman – Belle – said softly. "I think we should give him some time. Come on. Go get ready for Emma's lesson and I'll take Gideon to play in one of the other rooms."

His father only nodded, quickly heading out of the room with the child – Gideon – in tow.

"I take it Emma didn't mention that part of your father's life?" David asked softly.

Bae dropped into the chair behind him, his legs unable to hold him up any longer. "No. She didn't," he whispered. "Not that I'm angry with her for not but…"

"It's a lot to take in," David finished for him. "Understandable."

Bae nodded, glad that it seemed someone understood what he was feeling right now, before putting his head in his hands and taking a deep breath. Part of him was glad Princess Emma hadn't told him about his new family members. The other part of him wished that he could have been given a warning before having to see his father.

But none of that was Princess Emma's fault, and Baelfire knew that. She and her father both at least respected the fact that he hadn't wanted to talk about his father.

"Mr. and Mrs. Darling," David said, turning to look at the couple. "My wife and I were speaking last night, and we know there are some empty plots of land in the town outside our castle's gates. We could help get you a home built and find jobs. We could use some help in the castle and you could stay here if that's what you wish."

"Us? Really?" Mrs. Darling asked, looking at her husband. "We'll have to seriously discuss what is best for us in terms of jobs, your majesty. But I think we're both in agreement that we would like our own private residence. It might help us adjust to being in this place easier."

David nodded. "Of course. Whatever will help you find your place in this world."

This wasn't like the Duke and his men at all. Baelfire was quite relieved to realize this. He'd known Emma wasn't like the Duke, but her parents were another story. They could have been like anyone. But they were good people. Good rulers. And it was a relief that his second family would find a ruler like this.

"I think I'll introduce Nana to Wilby. Wendy, John, Michael, you're welcome to join me if you want," Baelfire said, standing up and looking at the Darling children. He needed air, and he knew he wouldn't be any help in deciding jobs or housing for his second family anyway.

"Oh… thank you Bae but I'd like to stay here. I'll explore a bit later," Wendy replied with a small smile. John and Michael, naturally, nodded in agreement with their sister.

That was fine with Bae, really. He just needed to get out of here and get some air.

"C'mon Nana, let's go outside," Bae said, rousing the dog from her position by Wendy.

Heading outside with her, Bae took a deep breath of the fresh air as he went over to the barn, where he spotted Wilby chewing on a bone.

"Hey boy! C'mere!" he called quietly, watching as Nana's tail began to wag in excitement. Bae watched in amusement as Wilby woke up and trotted over to Nana, and immediately, the dogs were off playing in the large field.

Bae sat on the grass and smiled as he watched the dogs. He tried to focus on the animals, but he couldn't stop thinking about what he'd learned earlier.

Papa had a family while I was gone. He had another son. Another life. And now I'm back here. Am I just going to be in the way if I go with him? I know I said I would but…well, at least he isn't the Dark One anymore. That's something good at least.

But still… where do I fit in with them anymore? I'm a boy who was abandoned by his father, found a new family, and then spent time in Neverland. I'm not the same as I was when I left. What if I changed too much and he doesn't want me around? What if I scare the kid – er… what was his name again? Gideon. Right. What if I scare him?

He sighed and shook his head. Maybe it was a bad idea to go back to live with his father.

"Baelfire, Mary said I'd find you out here," a kind voice said.

He turned around, grateful to be broken out of his thoughts, and found Queen Snow standing behind him, before scrambling to his feet and bowing.

"Your majesty…" he said softly. "How are you?"

The woman smiled. "No need to bow, Baelfire. It makes me feel like I'm above everyone else when I'm not. Do you mind if I join you?"

He felt flustered as he nodded. What could the queen want to do with him?

She sat next to him on the grass, smoothing out her gown carefully. "I heard that you found out the truth about your father. I'm sure it was a lot to take in," she started carefully.

He nodded, picking at the grass in front of him. "Yeah."

"Your father is a good man, Baelfire. He helped David and I more that I can say. Without him, we never would have known how to contain my stepmother and stop a curse that was supposed to have struck," she explained.

"Curse?" Baelfire asked, tilting his head in confusion. "What sort of a curse?"

"It was to take us to a land without magic. We were going to be separated from our friends and loved ones… and from Emma," she replied, shivering. "But your father helped us figure out how to stop her before her curse was going to be cast. Despite what happened in the past… your father has really become a hero. This might seem minor, but he's also done something I didn't think was possible."

He felt rattled at the news of a curse that would have brought them to the Land Without Magic, but he wanted to know what else the woman had to tell him about his father. "What's that?"

She smiled a little as he looked at him. "He made me see that magic isn't inherently evil."

Baelfire blinked in surprise as he looked at the queen. Of all the people to help show her that, it was his father?

"He did?" he asked, tilting his head, although he knew she had no reason to lie to him about that.

She nodded. "I wasn't sent out here by him to try to convince you to follow him. I just thought you'd like to know what he's done for our family and for our kingdom."

"Thank you your majesty," Bae replied. "It… does mean a lot to know what he's done. Normally I heard horrible things about him, and saw them before I left to go live with the Darlings. It's nice to hear good after being away for so long."

Snow smiled. "It's my pleasure to help you. I like to think that this could be a happy beginning for the two of you. And maybe, even if you decide not to go back to stay with your father or if you change your mind about staying with him… it's not always about the ending. But about being together. Your father knows you're alive and where you are, and you know that he is no longer the Dark One. Whatever happens after that…" she trailed off, shrugging, "well that's up to you to decide."

He nodded. "Thank you, your majesty. That's really helpful."

"You're very welcome," she said, standing up and smoothing out her gown. "I'm sorry to rush out on you like this, but I need to attend a meeting with King Thomas."

"Of course your majesty. And thank you again."

She nodded, leaving Baelfire to compose his thoughts further. What she'd told him was really comforting. He supposed he'd just have to see what happened when it came to his decision. Clasping his hands together, he continued to watch the dogs run around and play in the large field.

"Bae!" a small voice called.

He stood, eyes widening when he saw young Gideon running toward him from the castle, and then without warning, the young boy grabbed him around his waist.

"Hi Bae!" the boy giggled as he looked up at him with a wide smile. Bae could see bits and pieces of his father in him… and seeing bits of himself too.

"Er… hi Gideon," he said, awkwardly patting the boy on the back. "Where's your mom?"

"Inside," was all the child said, blinking up at him innocently.

Bae blinked back at him. "Oh. O-kay…" he drawled out. What did he say to this child? He couldn't exactly be rude considering, well, it was rude to be mean to kids, and this kid in particular was his half-brother.

"Gideon! What did I say about running off like that?" Belle finally called after an awkward silence had settled between the two brothers, and Bae couldn't have been happier to hear her voice.

"Hi mommy!" Gideon said with a wide smile, finally letting go of Bae and skipping over to the woman with a giggle.

The brunette smiled and lifted him up into her arms, before she looked at Bae. "I'm sorry, Baelfire. Usually he's much better behaved than this."

"It's okay," Bae said, picking at the grass again awkwardly. "He's fine."

Belle nodded, smiling a little. "Good, I'm glad. Um… Rumple is almost done with the lesson with Princess Emma. I don't know if you wanted to join us back inside or not. I know you mentioned possibly coming back to the castle with us…"

"Yes… I spoke to the queen about whether or not I should."

"Oh. And… what did you decide?"

He took a deep breath as he looked at the woman. "I'm going to give him a chance. Just one more chance."

The woman smiled at him. "You will? Oh that's wonderful. Your father will be so pleased to know that. And Gideon was so excited when he found out his brother was home."

"Home? So – he knew about me before today?" he asked, surprised.

"Well of course he did. Your father's number one goal was to find you… so when Gideon came along we didn't hide the fact that he had an older brother waiting for him," Belle told him. "We could never hide something like that from him."

"Oh… wow. I'm surprised," he replied as he stood up. "I guess I thought maybe he was thinking that I was a secret he had to keep for some reason."

"Your father takes some opening up, but once he did, he told me about you too. We've been waiting for you to come back for thirteen years," the woman said, brushing a piece of hair out of Gideon's face. "We were surprised when we found out we were expanding our family but we knew the family would never be complete until you came back."

Bae blinked. When he'd first seen Gideon, he'd been dismayed, thinking that his father had somehow betrayed him and traded him in for a younger model. Not that they had any choice in deciding if it was going to be a girl or a boy.

"Um… wow, that's really nice."

"All he did in his life was to try to find you, Bae," Belle said with a small smile. "I'm glad we can be a family together now."

"Me too."

"Belle? Gideon? Bae?" his father called, appearing from the castle. "Emma's lesson is over for the day. Are you ready to head home?"

Bae nodded, slowly making his way back toward the castle. "I just want to tell the Darlings goodbye before we leave."

"Take the time you need, son," his father said.

It felt strange, going home with his father. Baelfire had wished for it every day of his separation from him, but as the years had gone on, it had been difficult to keep a hold of it. But now it was here and Baelfire was overwhelmed with everything he'd learned from the king and queen, and from Belle. Having to say goodbye to the Darling family was going to be hard… but something he needed to do.

"Mr. and Mrs. Darling?" he asked, poking his head into the sitting room where the family sat. "I… I just wanted to thank you all for taking me in when you did. It's a kindness that I'll never be able to repay you as long as I live. But I am going to live back with my father and his wife… but I'll visit you all the time and – " he paused, tears prickling at his eyes. "You were all a family to me when I needed it the most." He rubbed his eyes quickly – Mr. Darling had always harped about men not showing emotion.

"Baelfire…" the man said as Mrs. Darling and the kids pulled him into a hug. "You will always be a Darling, no matter where you are or who you're living with. We're always going to be a family."

"Thank you, sir. I'm happy to know that," he said with a smile. "I should go… my dad's waiting for me." He gave one last squeeze to Michael before heading back to join the small family that he'd suddenly acquired.

In a puff of smoke, the four arrived at a palace.

"Papa… where did you get a castle?" Bae asked with a frown.

"From something I'm not proud of looking back on it," his father said, leading him inside and into one of the rooms. "This will be your room, Bae."

At this point, Bae was too overwhelmed to even ask what the details of that deal were, so he simply nodded, following his father into the room, which was bigger than their home was all those years ago. Wandering over to the closet, Baelfire pulled the door open and frowned when he noticed a familiar shape tucked away in the corner.

"You kept it," he said, picking up the ball he'd had when he was younger. "My ball."

"Of course I did. I kept everything you owned, Bae. Because I knew one day I'd find you again."

"Bae?" came Gideon's quiet voice. "Can we play with the ball?"

He looked over at Gideon, who was peeking out from behind Belle's skirt, and smiled softly, nodding. "Sure Gideon. Let's go outside. I'll teach you a game I learned when I was in Neverland."

As he and Gideon ran outside, he didn't notice the tension in his father's forehead, nor did he hear the worried thoughts that curled through the former Dark One's mind.

"Now do you believe Snow when she talks about happy endings?" Belle whispered late that night as they caught Gideon and Baelfire asleep in Baelfire's bed, their younger son clutching the ball to his chest.

"No," Rumplestiltskin replied softly, "but I do believe her when she talks about happy beginnings. And this is ours."