A/N: This is the final chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing. And I am sorry for letting Belle slip a bit and get mad at Rumple.

Chapter Twenty-six

The distant sound of footsteps came closer as the moans and soft screaming drifted through the darkness and the soft glow of lights shimmered around certain objects sitting on marble pedestals. Some of the objects shimmered in eerie light from within the objects and one or two objects floated off the surface of the pedestals. A white light shimmered on a stand which sat a gold frame with a piece of paper under the glass and the illustration on the page was an iron door framed in darker iron and a small barred window showed fingers wrapped around the iron bars and Isaac looked out with a sad look on his face. Merlin had placed him in the illustration after finding him being held by the SBPD and tears rolled down Isaac' cheeks

Master, I am so sorry! Please let me out! was under the illustration.

The footsteps came closer while Merlin walked by the pedestals as he glanced at some of the objects then stopped at a pedestal when a blue light appeared and he removed Pandora's Box from the folds of his robe. He slid his hand and the box through the blue light as the box slowly rose then floated in the blue light and he looked at the box. He could hear Zelena's voice screaming and begging to be released then Emma whispering how she would get out and destroy him and Merlin shook his head.

"I'm sorry," he said softly then turned and walked away while the darkness enveloped him.

Gold's house

The sunlight cast multi-colored shadows on the hardwood floor while Karri sat on the dresser and was watching her mistress dress her master. She had been worried when he didn't return to the Wise Wizard's home and had walked the shadows, trying to find him. She finally found him sleeping in the clean place and he had smiled when she jumped on the bed and snuggled next to him. She was also surprised when he introduced her to his cub, but the cub was gentle with her and she spent the dark time keeping watch over him.

Belle buttoned the white shirt when her fingers grazed the edge of the bandage covering the stitches and Rumplestiltskin looked down. Doctor Whale was a little reluctant about him being discharged, but Belle assured him she would make sure her husband would take things slow.

"Did I hurt you?" she asked.

"No," he said with a shake of his head and she buttoned the rest of the buttons. He was wearing a charcoal gray Armani suit with a light gray silk handkerchief in the breast pocket of the suit jacket and the sunlight sparkled off his diamond cufflinks and the moonstone ring. He was also wearing a black leather belt, black socks and black leather shoes. She moved her fingers under the collar to free some of his hair when she placed the black silk tie with silver swirls around his neck then noticed the look in his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"Oh, I was just thinking," he said and she finished fixing the tie.

"What were you thinking about?"

"It's a lot of things. Mostly about how ill I have been since I…came back."

"I have been thinking about that as well and have figured something out. You had been using potions and elixirs to keep the darkness at bay, but that changed when you became Zelena's prisoner. You had no access to anything which would stay the darkness and it spread."

"You mean like a virus or an infection?"

"That is exactly what I mean," she said while buttoning the suit jacket and straightened the handkerchief. "Once you were clear headed enough to make the potions and elixirs, you didn't take them because Neal was inside you."

"I did make potions, but he stopped me from drinking them."

"Why would he do that?"

"I believe he might have thought I was trying to…"

"He thought you were going to harm yourself?" she asked and he lowered his head. She lifted his chin up as he sighed and she kissed his lips. "When you were finally separated, you just stop taking them."

"You're right. I did."

"Which caused the darkness to spread even faster," Belle said and he nodded.

"It would have finally consumed me if the Apprentice hadn't removed the darkness and I was put into a coma."

"Are you sorry that I asked him to remove the preservation spell?" she asked and his eyes widened,

"We've been through this. No, I am not sorry," he said as he placed his arm around her and carefully moved her closer. She slid her arms around his waist as he stroked her hair and she placed her forehead against his shoulder. Moving back, she sadly smiled at him and he brushed the hair out of her eyes.

"What really irritates me is getting tired when I use my power. But getting a hook slammed into my chest comes in a close second," he said with a small smile and she placed her hand against his chest. She felt the gentle rise and fall as he breathed then she noticed the look in his eyes.

"What else is bothering you?"

"I guess it's losing my house," he said. Both of them were shocked when Regina had found the Victorian had vanished. The land where the house resided was now covered with trees, grass and flowers and a large boulder sat where the house used to be. When she had David questioned the neighbors, he reported they told him there had never been a house there. Belle used the restate section of the Mirror to find them a new home and found a house which looked almost like the Victorian, but was painted a light blue and had a white picket fence around the property.

"Be honest with me. Do you think you could live there after what Emma had done while living in the house?"

"No, I don't think I could," he said while shaking his head and Lachlan walked in the room. He was wearing a smaller version of what his papa was wearing and his hair was brushed back. After examining him, Doctor Whale assured them Lachlan was in excellent health, but Lachlan wasn't happy about getting childhood inoculations. Having his first taste of ice cream and the box of sugar free lollipops Mary had given him seemed to help him recover. Mary was shocked when they asked her to be his godmother and had cried a few tears at his naming ceremony. It didn't take long for him to adjust to their world and they had decided to wait for the start of the new school year to register him.

"Papa, do I have to wear my hard shoes?" Lachlan asked as he walked closer and held up his black shoes and his white Minion sneakers. "Can't I wear these?"

"They don't exactly match what you're wearing," Rumplestiltskin said and Lachlan pouted.

"My hard shoes pinch my feet."

"My sling makes my shoulder ache, but I'm wearing it," he said while Belle helped him put on the black cloth sling and Lachlan snorted a breath of air.

"But, Papa…."

"Tell you what," he said as he went down on his knees and placed a hand on Lachlan's small shoulder. "You can wear your sneakers until we get to the park then you have to put your hard shoes on during the ceremony."

"Do I have to wear them the whole time?"

"Yes."

"Then I can take them off and put my sneakers back on."

"Right," he said, standing up.

"Ok, Papa," Lachlan said then looked up at Belle. "Mama, will you please help me put my sneakers on?"

"Since you asked me nicely, yes, I will help you," Belle said as they walked to the bed and he climbed onto the mattress.

"Is Karri coming with us?" Lachlan asked, looking at the black cat while Belle placed the sneakers on his feet.

"No, she has to stay here," Rumplestiltskin said as he walked to the dresser and scratched Karri's ear.

"Won't she get lonely?" Lachlan asked as Belle stood up and picked him and his shoes off the bed.

"She'll probably just take a nap in her favorite sunspot," he said and Karri purred, her tail slowly moving back and forth.

"Well, we better get going," Belle said as Rumplestiltskin walked to them, took Lachlan's shoes out of her hand then they walked to the door and left the room. Karri hopped off the dresser when she walked to the bed, hopped up then turned in a circle and settled down. Closing her eyes, she softly purred as she drifted off to sleep and her tail curled around her legs.

Henry Mills Park

Belle looked at the people sitting in the chairs around her while Lachlan sat on her lap and Rumplestiltskin sat to her left. Henry was sitting between Rumplestiltskin and Robin, Roland was sitting on his papa's lap, and Penelope was sitting in the stroller next to Robin's chair. Penelope was a sweet looking baby, but there was something in her green eyes that frightened Belle. When Rumplestiltskin held her, Penelope screeched and slammed her fist into his chest, hitting his stitches. He said a few bad words then handed her back to Regina and Belle swore the baby was smiling. The baby stopped smiling when she looked at Lachlan, who was glaring at her, and Belle had felt a protective aura coming from her son. He had given Penelope one warning and Penelope, even at such a young age, knew she wasn't going to get a second.

Rumplestiltskin looked at David and Mary Margaret as she held onto Neal and she looked tired. Regina had threatened to fire the reporters who were hounding them for interviews, but her efforts didn't stop several articles which painted Emma as some sort of monster. He remembered how worried Belle was about Killian's crew retaliating after they found out she was the one who killed Killian, but Smee had assured him they wouldn't harm her and the Jolly Roger had gone back to Neverland. He was surprised to learn Will Scarlet had gone with them and he placed his hand on top of Belle's hand. Smiling, she wrapped their fingers together as Regina walked to the podium and placed her hands on top, looking at the crowd.

"Good afternoon," she said with a small nod. "What makes a hero? Is it something which is born from within or is it something else? Can their lives turn them into a hero or can it turn them into something they're not?"

"Oh you got to be kidding me," Leroy said.

"Is she going to defend that monster?" Nova asked.

"I'm out of here," Victor said and people started to stand up.

"Sit down," Regina growled as people sat down and she glared at them. "What defines what is heroic? Is it being able to withstand what is thrown at us or is it facing off against insurmountable odds with no hope of survival? How many of us can say we have done heroic things, but are seen as something else? That what we have done has made us look like something vile, dark and evil, but the truth is what we have done was done without malice or cruelty. The reasoning behind what we did seemed right at the time, but, in the end, our efforts were shunned and turned against us. Why even try? Why even associate with those who feel nothing more than contempt and hatred? The answer is because you need to help even if those who are in need do not wish or want your aide. That is why you keep going even when the need to stop tells you otherwise. When the end comes, you do not face it with fear. You face it with the inner courage you didn't know you had. You do one final act and hope those who care and love you will see the goodness inside you and carry that goodness inside them. And when they speak of you, it is with a smile on their faces and not malice in their voice. Today, we honor such a person. For this person never wished to be a hero. All they wanted was a better life and for some sense of belonging. They rose above their former life and became something greater. They tried to use the gifts they were given properly, but sometimes failed to see the price they had to pay. They lived through hardship, pain and strife, but never forgot their true goal. They evolved into something fair greater than even they expected and finally achieved their happy ending."

Rumplestiltskin had been listening carefully to what she was saying when he realized Regina wasn't talking about Emma and Regina softly smiled at him. With a wave of her hand, the white tarp which was covering what was on the marble base dropped to the ground and they looked at the statues.

"Papa, that's you," Lachlan said in a loud whisper and Rumplestiltskin slowly stood up. He walked to the marble base as he looked at the plaque which read MISTER GOLD and the statue was dressed in the same outfit he was wearing and the hands were folded over the handle of the cane. He walked around to the back of the marble base when he looked at the plaque which read RUMPLESTILITSKIN and smiled. The statue was dressed in a waist coat, a shirt which was open at the top, a belt, tight trousers and boots with laced up to its knees. One arm was draped over the stomach and the other had its hand up with the palm facing the statue. Marble spinning wheels stood on either side of the statues and roses and chipped teacups were etched in the upper right and lower left corners of the plaques. Blinking back the tears, he walked around to the front of the marble base and Regina held her hand out.

"When did you...?" he asked as he looked from her to the statues then back and she smiled. She gave him a sideways hug as he gently kissed her cheek when they moved back and he looked at the others.

"Go on," she said as he slowly walked to the podium, placed his hand on top and made a little cough. He was used to talking to crowds, but old insecurities filled him and he looked down at his hand. He thought for a few seconds when he looked up and his eyes locked on Belle and Lachlan.

"Well, this is a surprise," he said as he looked back at the statues and some of the others laughed. "Never in my long life did I ever think I was deserved such an honor." He looked back at them as he saw the love in Belle's eyes and smiled. "I never thought I deserved anything. My...my father constantly told me I was nothing more than a worthless burden and no one could ever love me. If you hear something often enough, you start believing it. I pushed away any chance for happiness. I failed at most of what I tried to achieve and ended up marrying a woman who didn't love me. She was never happy with anything I did and the only happiness I experienced was the night she came home drunk and dragged me to bed. The upside of that was my son, Baelfire."

He paused when he looked down then pressed his lips together and sighed. He felt a little pain as he half closed his eyes and balled his hand into a fist. Belle wanted to get up and hold him when Rumplestiltskin looked up and looked at them.

"Imagine how hard it was being a parent when you can barely walk and your wife took every coin you made so she could gamble or drank it away. I remember the day I found she preferred the company of pirates instead of her husband and son. She just laughed and so did the pirate she was with. He told me if I wanted to have her back, I was to come to his ship and fight for her. He made his point about me being a coward when I refused to fight him and I made my point years later when I cut his hand off after finally having a duel with him," he said with a small smile. "After my wife left, I did everything I could to keep my son safe, fed and sheltered, but I was never looked upon as anything more than a crippled coward. When the Children's War occurred, something inside me changed. I wanted to end the war. Not just so my son wouldn't have to go to war, which he told me he wanted to do, but I wanted to prevent other children from being killed or maimed. The Duke's true power lied with the Dark One and I knew if I could control the Dark One then I could achieve my aims. If I had known the price for such folly, I would have thought of something else. Instead, I ended up cursed and had this demon inside me. I had the power to do what I wanted. I could make people obey me. I could make them pay for how they treated me and my son. I listened to the dark voices, but, to my dismay, I lost my son. He didn't want anything, but me. Once he was gone, I knew nothing mattered, but getting him back or going to him," he said then lowered his head. He was silent for a few minutes then looked up and sighed. "Do I regret the things I have done? For some things, yes, I do, but other things, no. I do regret teaching a miller's daughter magic. I also regret falling in love with her. In the end, she admitted she was using me until she succeeded in her plans to gain power and become queen. But I do not regret teaching her daughter magic."

Regina gave him a small smile as he nodded his head then looked at the others.

"Did I make her into the monster she claims she is? I may have had a hand in her becoming the Evil Queen, but there were other circumstances which lead her down that dark road," he said as he looked at her then looked at David and Mary Margaret. "Do I regret helping a young man find the woman he loved? No, I don't. Do I regret sending him off to place an egg inside a dragon? Well…"

The laughter filled the air as he looked at Maleficent and she gave him a little shrug. She whispered in Lily's ear what he was talking about and Lily laughed.

"There are other examples, but I will never regret the day I met a young princess who wished nothing more than for me to stop the ogres who were destroying her kingdom and had killed her mother," he said as he looked at Belle and she nodded. "If you want a hero, look to her. She came to live forever with this… She came to live forever with me and become what she thought was a slave. She was never that. She was my fleeting spark in an ocean of darkness. She chipped away at the walls I had placed around me and brought light into my life. I am not joking. She nearly broke her neck doing it when she fell off a ladder while removing the curtains covering the windows in the dining hall."

"You caught me," Belle said as she blushed and he held his hand up to silence the laughter.

"She taught me it was alright to feel again. It was her efforts that made me wonder if I was going about it all wrong and there might be other ways to deal with people other than deceit and manipulation. When she was gone, I slipped back into the safety of the darkness and used my powers to aide my former student in her machinations to create a curse which will end other's happy endings. Do I regret doing that? Not really. If I hadn't aided her, I would never have had the chance to be reunited with my son or with my princess. Do I regret things which happened after…," he said then paused and looked at David. He wasn't sure if he should say her name, but David only nodded and Rumplestiltskin made a small cough. "Do I regret things which happened after Miss Swan came to town? Again, there are some I do regret and there some which I do not. But I do not regret having the pleasure of knowing her. Without her in my son's life, I would not have my grandson."

He looked at Henry as Henry smiled at him and Rumplestiltskin nodded.

"If you want an example of me truly being heroic, that would be when my father kidnapped Henry," he said and noticed the confused looks. "For those who do not know, my father was Peter Pan. Yes, I know he was a child, but he wasn't always so." He told how his father became Pan then sighed and lowered his eyes. "I always believed the only way it would end with us was for both of us to die. I was frightened of the idea of finally having to make amends for the things I have done, but, if I had to, I would. The only regret from that is how my son and my princess went about returning me from where I ended up after I died. There had to be another way besides the sacrifice of my son. If I am being honest, I would have rather stayed dead. But I do know I will always love my son and any other child my wife and I have…for they are truly my world and my happy ending."

He looked at Lachlan as Lachlan got off of Belle's lap and ran to him. He carefully lifted up his son as Lachlan placed his cheek against his papa's shoulder and Rumplestiltskin looked straight ahead.

"Do I regret the things I have done since? Yes, I do. I was not honest with my wife. I lied to her. I did trick her. I made her feel used, but I paid the price for my actions. She took me to the city line and told me to leave. I understood why she had done this, but I also knew I needed to make amends…even if she didn't know it."

Belle looked at him when she suddenly realized the Oxford professor who helped them find a way to free the fairies was her husband and frowned.

"I don't believe this," she thought as he noticed the look on her face and sighed.

"Papa, I think Mama's mad at you," Lachlan whispered loudly.

"I think you're right," he whispered then looked at the others and cleared his throat. "Now, do I regret things I have done after returning to town? Yes, I do. I should have been honest about what was happening to me, but I didn't know how or if anyone would have helped me. I was proven wrong when some here did care and helped me recover. So, in conclusion, I still have a long road ahead of me to find the man I should be, but this…"

He looked at the statues then looked back at the others and he blinked his eyes a few times.

"This is incentive to keep trying. All I ask is you will understand if I falter because no hero is infallible or perfect," he said. The silence surrounded him when Regina started clapping her hands and the applause erupted from the crowd. Lachlan clapped his hands as Rumplestiltskin looked at Belle and gave her a small smile. Belle stood up as she walked to him then poked him in the chest where the stitches were and he winced. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"You got that right, Dearie," she said as Lachlan frowned and placed his cheek against his papa's shoulder.

Gold's house

"Where is it?" Lachlan asked while standing on the lid of the toy box and Rumplestiltskin looked at the dark sky. The wind blew through their hair from the open window and Lachlan was wearing white BB-8 pajamas. They weren't sure if he was old enough to see the film, but Henry had found some clips of the little robot and Belle assured Lachlan he could watch the series on DVD when he was older. He did have some toys from the movie and the BB-8 toy robot sat on the top of his dresser.

"I think it's…," his papa said as he looked at the stars then smiled. "It's right over there."

"That's an airplane, Papa," he said, placing his hands on his small hips and his papa tried not to laugh at the stern look he was giving him.

"No, not that," Rumplestiltskin said. "It's that little light just above the trees."

"Oh," Lachlan said as he looked to where his papa pointed. "Night, Bae!"

Closing the window and moving the curtains back, he carefully helped Lachlan down when they walked to the bed and Lachlan crawled under the Minions' bedding. After tucking him in, Rumplestiltskin knelt down then tucked the toy crocodile with green plush fur, plastic eyes and felt teeth under his son's arm and brushed some hair out of Lachlan's eyes.

"Right, you have brushed your teeth, said you prayers, said goodnight to Bae, picked out your clothes for tomorrow, had me read you three stories and sing you two songs. Are you ready to go to sleep?" Rumplestiltskin asked and Lachlan yawned.

"Uh-hunh," Lachlan said, snuggling under the duvet and Rumplestiltskin stood up.

"Do you want me to turn the nightlight on?"

"No," he said, closing his eyes and Rumplestiltskin bent to kiss the top of his son's head. Rumplestiltskin walked to the door when he turned the light off and headed down the hallway. He stood at the top of the stairs as he thought back to Belle telling him he was sleeping in the den when he looked down the hallway, turned the downstairs lights off and headed for the master bedroom. He tapped on the door when he opened the door enough to stand partially in the doorway and looked at Belle, who was sitting under the duvet with the pillows propped behind her. She was reading as he made a small cough and she looked at him.

"I'm going to bed now," he said as she put the book on the night table, got out of bed and walked to him. He was a little surprised when she took his hand as she led him into the room and slid her arms around his waist. She was dressed in a light blue nightshirt and he was wearing the dark blue silk pajamas and she looked at the bandages peeking out from under the pajamas top.

"Did you change the bandages?" she asked.

"No," he said with a shake of his head, gently rubbing his chest. She placed her hand on top of his while the thought of him sleeping on the couch in the den caused guilt to move through her and she pressed her lips together.

"You know what? I just realized something. I didn't fall in love with you because I saw the man behind the beast. I fell in love with you because you are a man and a beast and neither can exist without the other. Without the man, the beast runs wild and, without the beast, the man loses his confidence and hides when things go wrong. It is a very perilous and delicate balance and I admit I am worried. I'm worried about the times the beast will run wild and people will start hating you again," she said.

"Then I guess there is only one thing we can do."

"And that is?"

"You will have to help me stay out of trouble."

"Alright," she said, kissing his lips. He sighed through his nose as she deepened the kiss and slid her arms around his neck when they heard giggling and he moved back, turned and saw Lachlan standing in the doorway. "What are you doing out of bed?"

"I heard you talking and thought you were fighting," Lachlan said as he walked closer and looked up at her. "But you're kissing instead of yelling. Does that mean Papa can sleep up here?"

"Yes, he can sleep up here."

"Good. He'd be really lonely if he had to sleep in the den," he said then thought for a few seconds. "So you're not mad at Papa anymore?"

"No, I'm not mad at Papa anymore."

"And you still love him?"

"Of course I do."

"But you poked Papa in his stitches," Lachlan said with a pout.

"Yes, but it wasn't very hard," Rumplestiltskin said, kneeling down and gently turned his son to face him.

"It's still mean. And she didn't say she was sorry," he said, folding his arms over his small chest.

"He's right," Belle said, kneeling down next to Rumplestiltskin and looked at her husband. "I am sorry for hurting you. I am also sorry for getting angry and punishing you because you didn't tell me you were the one who was helping us."

"I knew you wouldn't have used the information if you knew it was me," Rumplestiltskin said, brushing some hair behind her ear.

"I am also sorry for still having some doubts about you keeping the beast in check. Do you forgive me?"

"Of course I do," he said then kissed her. Moving back, she looked at the bandages peeking out from his pajamas top then looked at Lachlan.

"Do you want to help me change Papa's bandages?" she asked and Lachlan nodded. Standing up, Rumplestiltskin watched them go into the bathroom when he walked to the bed and got under the bedding. After changing the bandages and cleaning up, Belle and Lachlan climbed on the bed as they crawled under the bedding and Lachlan carefully snuggled against his papa. Rumplestiltskin kissed the top of his head while Belle smiled and he placed his arm around his son. "Now, do you understand there are going to be times when Mama and Papa will get mad at each other?

"Yes," Lachlan said, closing his eyes. "But you still love each other and will say sorry after you're done being mad."

"Yes, we will," Rumplestiltskin said, giving Belle a small smile. Belle snuggled next to them after turning the lights off and closed her eyes. Rumplestiltskin watched his family sleeping for a while when he looked at the light coming from the hallway then snapped his fingers and the light went out. Looking into the darkness, he listened to the house when Karri's red eyes appeared in the darkness and he felt his heart jump.

"Very funny, Dearie," he said then made a soft laugh as he closed his eyes while a soft purring filled the darkness and the red eyes vanished.

A/N: I am thinking of doing a small sequel to this because Rumple owes Merida a sparing lesson. :)