3

An Extraordinary Discovery

Emma arrived in her Bug and started canvassing the area, asking all the kids and the parents in the vicinity if they had seen Regina recently. Meanwhile, Snow went partway into the woods, trying to follow her daughter's trail, but soon lost it as the child's footprints were so light they didn't hold at all well on the dry soil. Frustrated and angry at herself for being unable to find her little girl, Snow came back to stand next to David and she said agitatedly, "What if we can't find her, David?"

David looked at her and said calmly, "Snow, we always find each other."

"Now's not the time for your infernal optimism, dammit! Our baby's lost and this was your idea!" she growled.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know she'd wander off?" he countered.

"Because she's Regina, dearie, and she usually does," Gold put in, appearing beside them.

"Rumple! Thank goodness you're here!" Snow exclaimed. "Regina's gone missing and my asshole husband thinks if he hopes hard enough, she'll be found instead of doing something!"

"Oh, now I'm an asshole?" David snapped. "Why didn't you keep a better eye on her?"

"Don't you blame this on me!" Snow glared at him.

"Before you two tear out each other's throats I want to know one thing," Rumple interjected. "Which way did she go?"

"That way . . . I think . . ." Snow pointed off towards the woods.

"Thanks, dearie. I'll try and find her while you two play the Blame Game," Rumple said, a trifle sarcastically, before he cast a locator spell and followed it into the woods, moving like a shadow into the trees.

"I'm going to go talk to Emma," David sighed and then moved across the lawn to speak to his eldest daughter.

Snow turned and found Blue at her elbow. "Blue, can you . . err . . . search for her too? You can fly, you can do a sweep in the air."

"Of course I can, Snow," Blue said affirmatively. "And I'm sure I'll find her before the imp does."

"Blue, this isn't a grudge match between you and Rumple. I just want my baby back," Snow told her.

"And I'll be the one to do it," Blue said smugly. Then she shrank into her small size and flew off.

Page~*~*~*Break

Meanwhile, Regina wandered deeper into the woods, crying in fits and starts. She wanted to be brave, like Emma, Belle, and her mommy, but she was frightened of the trees and how tall they were, and the way there were strange noises in the brush around her. Sunlight filtered through the treetops and speckled the path she was on, but it seemed quite dark and scary to the toddler, who was used to the streets and lawns of Storybrooke. Dragging her Easter basket, she ran down the path towards a streak of sunshine.

She thought maybe she had found the park again when she emerged into a glade of bright sun and a green meadow with pretty little pink, white, purple, and gold flowers. "Pretty!" she gasped, then she ran forward to pick some, kneeling on the grass to gather them. She turned to put them in her basket, and then suddenly realized she couldn't show them to her mommy or aunt or anyone.

She sat down on the ground and sniffled. "Mommy! I want my mommy! Or Emma! Or Unca Rumple!" Tears trickled down her face.

As she went to wipe them away, something caught her eye.

It was a rabbit, hopping in the grass, close by her. It had white fur and beautiful eyes the color of violets. And it seemed to glow.

Regina's eyes widened as she saw . . . wings protruding from its shoulders, which it fluttered in the air as it hopped, its nose twitching. "Oh! You're funny, Easter bunny!" she giggled, unable to help herself.

The bunny suddenly turned and hopped over to her.

Regina smiled and twitched her nose like her uncle Rumple had taught her. "Hey, Easter bunny! You wanna give me bunny kisses? Unca Rumple showed me how."

The angel bunny hopped into the child's lap and stood up and wriggled its nose at her.

Regina smiled and twitched her nose in return and touched it to the bunny's.

"Bunny kisses!"

Her small hands stroked the bunny's silky fur and brushed the wings, which were a sparkling pure white with silver edging.

The angel bunny curled up in Regina's lap serenely.

"Aww! I love you, Easter bunny!" she cooed.

Just then Rumple emerged from the trees. "Regina, dearie, I've come to take you home," he said, noting with relief that his niece seemed unharmed.

Then his eyes widened as he saw what else was there with Regina.

His hand went to his mouth and he halted in shock. "Oh . . ."

"Unca Rumple! Lookit! The Easter bunny came to me!"

"Regina . . ." Rumple began, unsure how to articulate his observation. "That's . . . an Angelique, dearie. She's very special . . ."

He came closer, peering at the magical creature nestled in Regina's lap.

He knelt a few feet away, so as not to startle the winged bunny. He slid his phone out of his pocket and snapped a few quick photos for otherwise no one would believe him when he told them what had gone on in the forest. An Angelique was among the purest of beings, sent from on high as a messenger of love and hope, and legend said it only appeared to those who were pure in heart and innocent, like little children, and only on certain days of the year.

This was one of those days, it seemed.

"Unca Rumple, d'you want to pet her?"

"Dearie, I don't think . . .I mean . . ." he stammered, thinking, me, the former Dark One, touch an Angelique? Even though a seraph has vouched for me twice, I am not worthy to touch such a one . . .

"Yes you can, Unca Rumple!" insisted the toddler. "She told me so."

"You . . . can hear her?"

Regina nodded. "Uh huh. She has a voice like a whisper. Pet her!"

Rumple reached out tentatively and his fingers brushed the angel bunny's fur. To his shock, the Angelique nuzzled his hand, and he felt as if he had been given a great gift. He shut his eyes, letting the peaceful serenity the Angelique radiated flow through him, and he wept for joy.

"Unca Rumple, don't cry," Regina said, concerned. "Are you sad?"

"No . . . no . . . these are tears of joy . . ." he said, and quickly wiped them away.

"Why's the Easter bunny gots wings?"

"Well, she's a special bunny, as I said, and that's how she was made. I think . . . I think she came here to . . . bless you, since this is what an Angelique does . . ."

"And it would never choose to bless anyone like you, Rumplestiltskin, who are tainted by your dark magic!" shrilled the Blue Fairy. She hovered over them and was shocked by what she saw below her.

"I'm no longer the Dark One, you blue bug!" sneered Rumple. "And if I was as bad as you seem to think, an Angelique would never come near me."

Regina glared up at the fairy. "The Easter bunny loves Unca Rumple! And you're a dumbass fairy!"

An incensed Blue flew at Regina, her wand out, and before Rumple could do anything, the Angelique did, rearing up and fluttering into the air, and swatting at the fairy with a paw.

Blue tumbled backwards, trying to avoid the paw that almost knocked her for a loop, while an astonished Gold watched and Regina squealed, "Get her, Easter bunny!"

It was like watching a lamb suddenly grow fangs and attack a wolf.

Blue squeaked then and suddenly blurred and was gone.

As soon as the fairy had retreated, the Angelique settled to the ground, and it was glowing slightly as it touched noses first with Regina and then with Rumple.

Rumple felt serenity and peace such as he had never known flow over him, and he bowed his head.

My blessing go with thee, Rumplestiltskin Gold. Innocence lost can be regained.

Then with that final gesture, the Angelique fluttered up into the sky and vanished.

"Bye, Easter bunny!" Regina called, waving. "Aww! Why'd it hafta go?"

"Because she needed to find other children to bless today," Rumple answered.

Regina pouted. "Aww! I wanted to play with her. This sucks!"

Rumple sighed. "And do you know what sucks even more? Now I have to punish you for your filthy mouth, young lady."

Regina shook her head. "No! Unca Rumple!"

"I'm afraid so. Because you know better than to use that language," he reprimanded, thinking ruefully, no matter how much I agree with that assessment! Then he waved his hand and made the little imp taste soap for about twenty seconds, though neither Regina or Jimmy realized that it was only the taste and not actual soap in their mouths.

Afterwards he hugged a teary contrite little girl and said, "I hope you've learned your lesson, and don't make me do this again."

She nodded against his shoulder. "That was 'sgusting!"

"Next time don't use that word and you won't need to taste soap," he reminded her.

"I won't," she promised, then she kissed him on the cheek and said, "I love you, Unca Rumple."

"Love you too, dearie."

"I can't wait to tell Mommy and Daddy about the Easter bunny!" Regina prattled, her usual intrepid self again now that she had been forgiven her transgressions. "I didn't find the golden egg though."

"But you found something much better," Rumple murmured. "You found the true meaning of Easter—hope, love, and renewal."

"Yup! And the angel bunny kissed me!" Regina giggled. "And you too!"

Rumple nodded, still in awe of that exchange. Then he picked up the basket and together they came out of the woods.

Page~*~*~*~*~Break

An ecstatic Regina ran across the lawn to hug her parents. "Mommy! Daddy! I gots lost in the woods, but Unca Rumple found me an' we met the Easter bunny!"

"You what?" David repeated.

"We met the real Easter bunny! She's an angel bunny with wings an' she let me hold her and pet her and she kissed my nose!"

Snow gasped. "David! She . . . met an Angelique! Here?"

"Uh huh! And she kissed Unca Rumple too," Regina told her. "Then the stupid Blue Bug came an' yelled nasty things at Unca Rumple and the angel bunny knocked her away and I called that meanie fairy a bad word an' Unca Rumple made me eat soap," she finished, grimacing.

Snow shook her head as Rumple came up to them with Regina's basket. "Regina, I'm very disappointed in you. You know better than to use bad language."

"Look who's talking!" her husband pointed out. He looked speculatively at Rumple. "Got a bar of soap, Rumple?"

Snow turned her head and gave him a warning Look. "Try it, Nolan, and you'll be living on the couch!"

"Never mind, dear," muttered David hastily, while Rumple burst out laughing.

"Thanks for finding her, Rumple!" both parents said gratefully.

Once the golden egg had been found by a lucky little boy named Roland, and Bae had called David to tell him his scavenger hunt was over as well, and Alina had solved the final riddle and won the grand prize of a book called 1001 Brain Puzzlers and a solid chocolate Easter bunny, all the Golds went back to the Victorian to celebrate Easter, along with Alice, Jeff, and Grace.

After dinner, which included a glazed honey ham, leg of lamb with roasted garlic, scalloped potatoes, creamed spinach, green beans almondine, a "nesting" Easter sweet bread, which was an egg bread braided into a nest with colored hardboiled eggs in the middle and sprinkled lightly with different colored sprinkles, and a special treat sent over from Nonna Tessaro—pastries from Ferrara's, a ricotta cheesecake, and a whole pizza chena-an Italian Easter pie made with ricotta, provolone, three eggs, and every kind of Italian meat you could think of, including pepperoni, cappacola, prosciutto, and Genoa salami, the adults watched the kids play outside with Grace's bunny, and Rumple showed them the pictures he'd taken of the Angelique on his phone.

"I guess it just goes to show you that even wicked sorcerers like me can get a second chance," Rumple said to Belle, as he held his infant daughter in his arms.

"You were never wicked, sweetheart, you were cursed," Belle corrected. "And now that you're not, everyone can see what I did so long ago, the good man beneath the beast. Happy Easter, Rumple!" Then she kissed him.

"Happy Easter, dearie!" he grinned, and kissed her back, then he chuckled as Daria gave a little whimper of protest. "Sorry, Papa didn't mean to ignore you, pretty baby." Then he made silly faces at his daughter until she cooed and giggled up at him, celebrating the best blessing of all, his family.

A/N: May you all have a happy and blessed Easter, Passover, or holiday!