Part Two.

"I never thought we'd make it out of there alive."

Rumplestiltskin glanced down and was surprised to see one of the teenagers that he'd freed from their battle had fallen into step with him. The others seemed wary of the Dark One and huddled in their groups. Some looked as if they'd prefer the ogres that had been ready to tear them limb from limb if it meant that they'd get away from him, but now they didn't have that choice. The fighting had ended and they were going home.

"Or in one piece," he answered her and she smiled.

"I know you. You're Baelfire's papa, even though you look different. Your limp is gone."

"Yes it is."

"When did you learn magic?"

"When I needed to to save Bae."

Morraine smiled up at him. "You're a good papa. Bae's lucky to have you."

They topped the hill and the reality that they were free to go home seemed to sink in. A couple of the younger boys ran first, calling for their mamas and their papas as they raced down the hillside. The older kids were slower, less trusting, but after a moment they too followed. The little blonde girl at Rumplestiltskin's side took hold of his hand and wouldn't let go as she pulled him along, finally releasing him only when her parents stepped out of their crumbling home. She flung herself into her father's arms and he picked her up, spinning her around and laughing through the tears.

There were some moments in life that even the darkest of curses could not taint, and this, Rumplestiltskin thought as he watched it unfold, was one of them. A small smile perked his lips as he started for his own home. Maybe this was enough.

"Rumplestiltskin?"

He stopped, his name catching his attention and he turned, finding Morraine's mother standing with her husband and daughter. He waved off her impending thank you and started back the way he'd been going.

"They took your son."

Rumplestiltskin stopped dead in his tracks, a terrible, cold dread setting deep within him and driving out any of the warmth that the peace of the moment had brought with it. "What?" he managed, his voice faltering.

"I'm so sorry. There was nothing we could do. He was a sorcerer and he took Baelfire. There was nothing-"

He raising a hand, silencing her sputtering excuses. They didn't matter. Sedrick. It had to be Sedrick. He'd taken his son and Rumplestiltskin would take his life in return. No, he'd do more than that. He'd rip out his heart and crush it between his fingers while it was still beating. He'd make him watch. He'd make him scream and writhe and beg. There was no suffering too great, no pain that he did not deserve. He'd taken his Baelfire and Rumplestiltskin would burn down the whole damn town if he had to do get him back.

For the first time since he'd joined with it, he and his curse were in agreement.

A small door opened at the bottom of the larger one and a tray of mush was pushed through. Baelfire wasn't even sure it qualified for food. It was soggy and the spoon stuffed down inside of it sent a strange sort of bubble to the top. Well, Bae hoped it was the spoon doing that. He wrinkled his nose and pulled the wooden spoon out, the goop dripping off of it sluggishly and he tried not to feel a little sick. They'd eaten some pretty thin soups before, but this didn't even qualify. It smelled like a garbage heap, and he was certain that if they were in the Duke's castle - or, rather, the Duke's dungeon - that someone could have found a spoon that didn't have to be wired together just to work.

"That's it," he breathed, dark eyes focused in on the wire. His fingers were cold and didn't want to work properly, but he finally got it loose and was rewarded with a long, thin wire that he could bend to fit into the lock. Lock picking wasn't a great tradition or anything for poor spinner's kids in the Frontlands, but he'd seen a couple of the older boys pick one or two over the years.

Bae leaned against the door, chewing on his lower lip just a little as he fit the wires inside the lock and started exploring the inside of it. He felt the individual pins and went to work, trying to recall what the boys had told him. He clicked and turned, searching for the right combination of moves until finally he received a satisfying pop and the door swung open a little. He breathed a sigh of relief, pushing it so that he could get out, and was immediately met with a mountain of a man in uniform on the other side. What someone like that was guarding a fourteen-year-old boy, he couldn't fathom, but he did manage not to cry out too loudly as the man hauled him up by the front of his shirt and pitched him back into his cell so that he collided with the nasty would-be soup that they'd given to him. It went everywhere, soaking through his shirt and he groaned. It was cold enough without being wet too.

He sprang up before the door closed again and rushed the man with determination. "Let me out of here!" he shouted. "I haven't done anything!"

"You haven't, but your father has."

"He hasn't done anything wrong," Bae argued, even if he knew that wasn't true. Was this about the dagger? The fire? Both and all?

The guard sneared. "From this point forward, everything he does is wrong. He must be controlled."

The door slammed back into his face and Bae huffed, tipping back onto his backside again. His papa would come for him, he knew that he would. He just had to be patient.

The guards tried to stop him, but they didn't stand a chance. They were dead before they hit the ground and Rumplestiltskin's curse cheered. Nothing could stop him. Nothing could contain him. He could be and would be the most powerful being to walk the kingdoms of the world and this little insect of a sorcerer would be the first to see it. He would break every bone in his body, starting with those hands he'd used to snag his boy. He would take his time, one by one, letting him hear them crack and snap beneath the Dark One's magic. He would kill him, and then when he was sure that he was gone, he'd put life back into him so that he could start all over again. He would smear the stones of the castle with his blood and put his head on a spike for all to see, and the people that he'd hurt - people like Bae - would be as grateful to him as that little girl that had taken his hand earlier that day. They would cheer him and he would use his curse to do what they'd always wanted to. He could free them.

Servants scattered through the hallways as he walked, dark magic swirling so heavily around him that it was visible to any onlooker and he threw the doors at the end of the hall open to find Sedrick overseeing the cleanup of his last visit. "Get out," he growled and the room shook.

Sedrick motioned for them to leave and turned a lazy look on him. "There is no need for all this fuss. We could have handled this like civilized men, you know. Perhaps then you would have even been able to keep your precious freedom."

"You're not taking anything from me," Rumplestiltskin snarled and magic leapt out from him. It crackled through the air, but it was untrained and new to him and the older sorcerer deflected it easily.

A smile tilted his lips. "I already have, Dark One."

"I have a name."

"Do you? I hardly think it matters. You're nothing more than your title now just as you were nothing when you didn't have it. Now, have a seat and we'll discuss this like-"

The second attack slammed into him with all the fury that he felt and Sedrick was thrown back into the throne that tipped over with him. He rolled when he hit the ground, but stood quickly, pushing his hair back out of his face and turning an irritated look on the spinner as if he were nothing more than a nuisance. "That's quite enough. You do want to see your son alive, don't you? That's what all this is about?"

Rumplestiltskin froze. Yes, that was what this was all about. He had to find Bae. "Where's my son?"

"He's safe. For now."

Fury boiled inside of him and his magic teleported him so that he was directly in front of Sedrick, his hand latched around his neck and he gripped down hard. "Where?"

"Well I can't quite call without… being able to breathe… can I?" He loosened his grip ever so slightly and a smirk tilted the older man's lips. "Bring him in," he called out and turned back to Rumplestiltskin. "Now where were we?"

Power lashed out, slamming into the startled Dark One and throwing him backwards. He skidded across the stone floor and across the ornate rug until he finally came to a stop, head spinning and body aching. He hadn't known he could feel pain with all this power rushing through him, but it was much easier to push aside now and he did so as he leapt to his feet, calling darkness to his hand and it came in the form of fire. The ball burned bright as it left his fingertips, swirling around Sedrick instead of hitting him head-on and he couldn't force it all away. It left his robes smoldering and his hair singed. He turned an approving look on Rumplestiltskin. "Very good. Apparently you can learn."

"That's not the question at hand," he Dark One said lowly. "The question is: can you?" He didn't know any spells, not yet. All he knew was what his curse fed to him and it fed information faster than Rumplestiltskin had ever received it before. Images, understanding, and instinct were his teachers and it all pulled together and lashed out in darkness, the rage building on itself until might just consume him.

A single, small voice stopped him though. "Papa?"

Rumplestiltskin's dark curse that he hadn't even known how to create died before it ever found its mark and he turned, golden eyes wide as he saw his boy being dragged into the room by a man at least twice his own size. There was no care being taken for the boy's safety, but instead one meaty hand had hold of his collar and he was dragged until he swung him around so that he was in front of him and the guard pulled a nasty blade out of its sheath and put it to Baelfire's throat. For all the fear that he should have been feeling, Bae stood bravely.

His father, on the other hand, didn't. "No! Let him go!"

"You've proven that you cannot handle the power under your own free will, Dark One. Give over the Kris Dagger and I may be willing to release the boy back into your care."

"Then you could control me," Rumplestiltskin breathed.

"That's rather the point."

"No."

"Suit yourself, then. Kill him."

Unbridled fear swept through him as the knife bit down against his son's throat and he saw bright red against pale skin. His scream bounced off the stones of the tall room and he didn't even think as he rushed forward, magic coming to his unconscious bidding and the guard fell dead. Bae, eyes wide and confused, started down after him, his legs not holding his weight.

Rumplestiltskin caught him though and grabbed hold tight, falling with him so that Bae wouldn't hit the ground. "Bae? Bae look at me," he begged, his voice rushed and afraid. He was bleeding too fast and he couldn't stop it. He didn't know how to stop it. "Please please please," he whispered frantically and unfocused dark eyes flickered up to him. "I'm so sorry, Bae."

"Pa…" he tried, but he couldn't speak

His papa pulled him close and pressed a tearful kiss to his forehead. "I don't know how to stop this," he managed. "Please make this stop."

A warmth flushed through him and Rumplestiltskin looked down to see his son was glowing very softly. He watched with wide, curious eyes as the wound that should have killed his only son knit back together quickly, sealing up and stopping the loss of blood that would have been his undoing. Bae stirred groggily in his arms, but didn't quite wake. He pressed another kiss to his head and eased him down. "I'll be back, Bae," he promised. His magic had saved his son, and as he was quickly learning, everything came with a price. He would learn how to heal correctly so that he didn't have to rely on his dark curse to do it for him but today was not that day, and he owed it the blood that it called for. He couldn't say that he minded much either.

Sedrick looked like he'd seen his end coming and he began backing away. "Dark One, this doesn't have to-"

"My name is Rumplestiltskin, and yes. Yes it does." The words had no sooner left his lips and he was on him, hand plunged deeply into his chest and he pulled his beating heart from it. Dark spots littered it, but a bit of red could still be seen and he applied pressure, pulling a terrible sound from the trapped man. "As I understand it, I now control you. Is that correct?"

"Yes."

"And I hold your life in my hands?"

"Yes."

"Wonderful." He squeezed, and Sedrick let out a yelp of pain. The heart cracked and splintered, and as the fissions ran deeper and wider he collapsed fully to the ground and the hart turned to dust in Rumplestiltskin's hand.

"Papa?" a weak voice called and he turned, finding his son looking at him.

He moved over to Bae, scooping him up with an ease that he'd never had before. "It's okay, son. I'm taking you home now."

"You… killed him, didn't you?"

"To protect you."

There was no thanks in Baelfire's eyes, but Rumplestiltskin wasn't sure if it was due to fear or exhaustion. It didn't matter. His son was safe, and no one was ever going to hurt him again. He would sure of it.

Bae slept through the day and all through the night. Rumplestiltskin didn't. He paced and worried and fidgeted, checking his son's pulse and his breathing every five minutes if he was able to wait that long. He stoked the fire for a moment, stirred the broth that he planned to have waiting as soon as Bae woke, but at a certain point he had to take it off the fire lest it burned. Bae slept and slept and slept and no matter what he tried he wouldn't wake.

Rumplestiltskin didn't dare leave the hovel. He wasn't sure how many hours actually passed before Bae finally started to stir, but he was at his side instantly, dropping to his knees by his bedside and taking his hand. "Bae? Baelfire, can you hear me?"

The teen moaned softly and he was mumbling. Rumplestiltskin had to duck his head closer to hear him, but the "no's" became more distinct the longer he listened, and Bae sat up suddenly with a scream escaped him as he jolted upright. He turned wide, frightened eyes on his father and the fear didn't diminish.

"Bae, please, it's alright," his papa pleaded with him, pulling him close and trying to console him. He trembled in his arms, but finally relaxed into him.

"Papa?"

"I'm right here," Rumplestiltskin whispered, banishing as much of the curse as he could from his voice. He would be there for his son and he alone.

"I had a terrible nightmare," Bae said roughly.

"It was just that, Bae. It'll fade soon," his papa promised and his magic started wrapping around his son. Somewhere deep in his mind he hoped that he was doing the right thing - though he hardly knew what he was doing as it happened - as he pulled the memories out as gently as he could. One by one he took them, watching them as they faded into nothing. They were gone from his son's mind and gone from the world. He saw each and every moment and felt his temper flare. They were dead and his curse told him there was nothing more that he could do than he'd already done. There was no bringing Sedrick back from the dead just to kill him again. He'd done everything he could and now his responsibility was to keep his son safe.

Bae fell back against his papa's chest, dark eyes fluttering. "Mm. What happened?"

"Your friends are home, Baelfire. They're home from the war."

"Really?"

"Yes."

He sat up and looked around. "Did I fall asleep?"

Rumplestiltskin tried for a smile. Morraine was a smart girl. When she realized Bae didn't remember anything she would drop it quickly. "Why don't you go see them?"

He grinned, toppling off the bed and to the door. There would be questions, but there always were. Bae had always been such a good boy at accepting what his papa told him on blind faith, and it would help him now. It had to, because Rumplestiltskin couldn't bare to have his son remember what he'd done to protect him. Anyway, he could be better going forward. He had to be or he'd risk losing the best thing that ever happened to him.

It had been many, many years since he thought about it and many more since the actual events took place. Rumplestiltskin found himself lost in the swirl of memory as he stared blankly at the far side of his shop. He wasn't in the Enchanted Forest anymore and so much had changed in the past three centuries. He'd gained and lost Bae more than he ever would, and in the end his only consolation was that he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that Baelfire was well aware of how much his papa loved him.

"Okay," Henry's voice drifted into his ears and startled him out of his thoughts. "I swept the floors - front and back - dusted the furniture and polished it. Now will you tell me a story about my dad?"

Rumplestiltskin felt an old pull on his jaded heart as his grandson beamed a smile that reminded him so much of the teen's own father. The Dark One pulled in a steadying breath and leaned against the counter. "That was the deal," he murmured and somehow that smile grew.

Henry grabbed a stool and pulled it up to the other side, seating himself down with more enthusiasm than most boys his age would have had for stories about his father's youth. "What was he like as a kid?"

"Very brave, even when he was young."

"He nearly went off to war, didn't he? At my age?"

"Just a bit older, but yes, far too young for all of that. That's what spiraled us in on… Well, it led us to where we stand today, I suppose."

Henry didn't move, but sat waiting and Rumplestiltskin loosed a long breath, a smile perking the corners of his mouth. "I think I know just the story for you. Now, I warn you, it won't be like any other fairytale that you've ever read in your Book," he murmured and his grandson grinned.

"That's okay. Yours and Dad's stories never are."

"That is most certainly true," the teen's grandfather answered and began weaving the tale his mind had been so fixated on. He told of the Duke and of Sedrick, of Bae's bravery and how he wanted to save the children that had been taken off to war. He left out some of the rather gory details, but by the end of it, Henry looked a little blurry eyed. Rumplestiltskin was very certain that he was as well.

Henry stood abruptly as the story came to a close and rounded the counter, wrapping his arms around his grandfather's middle. "I miss him," he whispered.

A soft huff left him as he returned the embrace, holding the only piece of Baelfire he still had left close and he made a silent vow that he'd protect this boy where his son could not. Nothing would happen to him as long as his grandfather lived. He was family, after all, and nothing was more important than that.

End.

A/N: So, I'm slowly coming to terms with the Winter Finale. I've also been hesitantly interested in Rumple as the big bad. He's an amazing villain and now he has lost everything. Bae's dead, Belle's gone, and he doesn't even have his centuries-old companion that is his magic to fall back on. It's going to be interesting, as long as it's done right. And damn it all, I what was just supposed to be a drabble to get some of my feelings out brewing in the background over here, dealing with all of those feels. Somehow it's managed to develop a plot and a few twists... Someone stop me now. Thankfully I'm 9 full chapters ahead in writing on my next multi-chapter, so it's okay.

If you have a chance and you're on Tumblr (and you want to feel a little more hopeful after the finale last Sunday), check out a post by ToSeeHowTheStoryEnds It's called 'Rumplestiltskin as the Big Bad', which is easier than trying to give you a URL that FFN will just eat. You'll feel more hopeful. It talks about how Belle and Rumple need to meet in the middle, and it's a fantastic little piece.

Hope you enjoyed this little two-shot! It's been on the backburner for... ages now. Close to a year, I think, so I'm glad it's finally been written. For those that I don't see over on my other stories, have a great Hanukkah/Christmas/New Years!

TS