A/N-Wow..hehe...this is totally not late. But come on. Look at this thing! 13,000 words!

Sorry to anyone kept waiting. I was planning to finish this at least way before the mid-season finale ended, buuuut life happens. Yeah.

Okay, going to get into a little rant here. Feel free to skip. I really, really hate how Rumple's turning out this season. Just freaking hate it. What happened to all that character development?! It's like it all went out the window! I mean, there might be some room for redemption, but he seriously has a lot of explaining to do. I mean, this is one of the instances where you want to go into the TV and strangle a character for being stupid/evil/totally making you insane. Then again, I guess it's not really that OOC for Rumple, but like I said, all that character development is now out the window and flying circles around the sun.

Okay, now done with rant. I will let anybody who's still paying attention read. When your done, feel free to leave a final review if you like it, if not, well, you can leave a review anyway. I don't really care.

Thanks for reading!

Part 5-Thaw

(Hyup! Ho! Watch your step! Let it go!)

After visiting the trolls, Elsa stayed in her room all day, ignoring Anna's questions and pleas to come out. She thought she overheard Kristoff quietly filling Anna in, but made no attempt to contribute to the conversation. Instead, she let no one in her room.

She kept replaying the night's events in her head, one fact in particular playing over and over in her head.

My magic is powerful enough to take out Rumpelstiltskin.

It scared her. No, it didn't just scared her-it absolutely terrified her. She could have killed the Dark One. She had the power to do it. If she could do that, what else could she do?

Be the good girl, you always have to be.

She couldn't even stop her own storms. For all she knew, they were still ravaging the kingdoms, taking more and more innocent lives.

Make one wrong move-

She had to fix this somehow. The power inside her-how could she possibly control it? How could she possible protect Anna while she was inhabiting strong magic she couldn't quite control?

Elsa was so deep into her thoughts that she didn't even notice the ice spreading underneath her feet, freezing everything in the room.

Conceal, don't feel.

Don't let them know.

She had to do something. Before she hurt someone (Anna).

(Hyup! Ho! Watch your step! Let it go!)

Regina got the call just as she had left the hospital, the potion that she and Sydney had brewed tucked safely in her purse. Immediately, she left to her car, cursing. This is the kind of thing that happened when she turned her back on everyone for less than a day!

Unfortunately, she had just started the car when she realized that she had an annoying little stowaway.

"Hi!" Olaf popped out from the backseat, making her jump in her seat so high that she nearly reeled forward into the dashboard. "How are you doing?"

Taking a deep breath in annoyance, Regina turned around to glare at the snowman.

"What the hell are doing here?" Regina snapped.

Immediately, Olaf looked stricken. She started to regret her tone when Olaf started sniffling, and little drops of snow began to appear in his coal eyes.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry, you just startled me is all. Um-" Olaf sniffed again, but he still didn't look that happy. In a desperate attempt to appease him, Regina held out her arms awkwardly. "Um-hug? You like hugs, right? Will that get you to shut up?"

Olaf immediately beamed, and wrapped his little stick arms around her tightly.

"Okay, okay, that's enough." Regina pried him off of her and plopped him in the passenger seat. "What are you doing here?"

"I was exploring Storybrooke!" Olaf said excitedly. "I love it here! So quaint...but I realized I couldn't find anyone, so I went around looking for people that I recognized, and I saw you driving, so I followed you here. But you were already inside the building when I got here, so I decided to wait in here for you!"

Regina sighed. "Well, I'm going back to town. There's been a bit of a mishap with Elsa and her sister."

"Did they find Anna?" Olaf asked, his face immediately contorting into childlike joy. "I missed her soooooo much!"

Regina bit her lower lip. "I'll explain on the way there-" She stopped when she realized that the snow outside was beginning to fall, and it was falling hard. "We better hurry though."

"What did I miss?" Robin asked as he burst through the diner.

"Daddy!" Roland, who had been brought in from the guest rooms, immediately ran over for a hug.

"Hi Roland." Robin returned his son's hug and glanced over at the assembled Charmings, dwarves, werewolves, Belle, and Hook.

"Quite a lot," Snow said, then set off explaining what had happened with George, and the two sisters from Arendelle.

"They took her." Robin suddenly noticed the blond-haired woman that was hunched over in the corner booth, her face tight with misery. Sitting across from Elsa was a rugged man in animal furs, as well as-

"Will?" Robin asked in disbelief. "Is that you?"

Will Scarlet blinked up at him, holding an ice pack over the left side of his face. "Robin Hood?"

Robin grinned, making his way over to him. "Been a while! How are things with Anastasia?"

Will winced at the mention of his lover. "Um...interesting."

"What happened?" Robin asked, frowning.

"It's a long story. But right now, things are going all right. I guess."

"Have you heard from Regina?" Emma suddenly asked, breaking up the conversation almost immediately.

"Not yet." Robin's frown grew deeper. "Have you?"

"We called her. She said she was on her way. That was twenty minutes ago. Where did she go?"

"She said she was going to go chew out Rumpelstiltskin," Robin said, glancing over at Belle as he said this. Belle gave him a tight smile.

"Speaking of Rumpelstiltskin, he should have been back by now," Granny said, glancing out the window at the snow, which was starting to fall harder and harder.

"By the way, um, Elsa?" Emma said, following the other woman's gaze towards the mini-storm outside.

"I know," Elsa murmured, not even having to look out the window to see all the snow. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right honey, just take your time," Granny said encouragingly.

"What are we waiting on Rumpelstiltskin for?" Robin asked.

"He's getting an ingredient for a tracking spell," Will said, and held his ice pack out to Elsa. "Um, do you mind refreezing this?"

"Sure." With a single touch, Elsa's ice re-chilled the slightly thawed ice pack. Will took it back and held it back to his bruised and scarred face.

"Thanks," He said.

David's phone suddenly rang. He checked the caller ID, and frowned.

"Who's calling?" Snow asked.

"Rumpelstiltskin." David answered it, and held it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Is he all right?" Belle asked, looking slightly worried despite herself.

"Put me on speaker, or I won't continue."

"George," David snapped, immediately getting the attention of everyone in the room.

"What's he saying?" Elsa asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Put me on speaker right now," George hissed.

David's eyes narrowed as he complied. "Okay, you're on speaker. What do you want?"

(Beautiful!)

"You'll never guess how I got the Dark One's phone," George hissed, smirking at the tied-up Rumpelstiltskin and Anna, who were both glaring daggers at him.

A pause on the other end.

"Here, I'll have him tell you." George held out the phone, which had also been put on speaker, out to Rumple. "Go on. Tell them."

Rumple by then had had more than enough, and decided to respond appropriately by biting into George's hand.

In his defense, the crazy king was totally asking for it.

(Powerful!)

"AGH! GET OFF OR I'LL SHOOT YOU!"

The screaming suddenly ceased into cursing, and Belle, Hook, and Robin all winced despite themselves.

"That's Rumpelstiltskin all right," Emma muttered. "Dammit."

(Dangerous!)

George glared furiously at Rumple, who was silently congratulating himself while spitting out little gobs of George's blood. Ugh. It was disgusting. Anna meanwhile, was giggling into the gag, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

Both of them were silenced when George suddenly responded by landing a sharp kick into Rumple's leg, and the sorceror cried out.

(Cold!)

The cry echoed into the phone, and Belle tensed in shock.

"Now," George's tone was cold. "It's simple. I will meet David at the clock tower in twenty minutes exactly. He and Madame Mayor will sign the entire town over to me. I already would have gotten Rumpelstiltskin's signature by then."

"Don't hold your breath dearie-AGH!"

At Rumple's snark, George must have landed another kick or punch on him, due to his sudden yelp.

"Shut up. If David and the Queen comply, then I will let both Miss Anna and Rumpelstiltskin free. If they do not, they will be killed. Although the Dark One seems to be on the brink of death himself..."

"What?!" Belle and Elsa both exclaimed.

"Don't believe him-OW!"

"I should gag you! Now shut up! Clock tower in twenty minutes David. Bring your family, the Ice Queen and the Dark One's little beauty along with you. Be prepared to sign over the town. I hope that you'll comply."

"Anna!" Elsa shouted, right before the line went dead.

(Ice has a magic)

Rumple shivered as more of his hair suddenly turned bright white. George stared at him in fascination.

"Interesting...what ailment has poisoned you, Rumpelstiltskin?"

"**** you," Rumple said, gritting his teeth. He shivered again, growing colder and colder as ice continued to take over his heart.

"Anyway..." George produced several papers from his pockets and displayed them for Rumple and Anna to see. "Know what these are?"

"The deeds to the town," Rumple growled. "You stole them, I assume. I'm not signing."

"You don't need to." George whipped out a pen, and scrawled almost an exact replica of Rumple's signature on the paper.

Dread settled in Rumple's stomach. "How did you-"

"I was a lawyer in a past life, as you recall. I've seen your signature on many land deeds. I know exactly what it looks like." George neatly folded up the papers and replaced them in his pocket. "Now I'm off to kill Prince Charming."

"And leave us here?" Rumple asked sarcastically.

"Yes. Leave you here to die." George walked over with ease and opened all of the windows, letting the freezing cold air in.

Rumple immediately began shivering violently when he felt the cold wind hit him. Anna began shivering too.

"I'll turn on the air conditioner too. The more cold, the faster you two will freeze to death. I assume you'll go first." George pointed at Rumple. "You, Princess, will take a little longer. But I fully intend to keep your friends distracted for as long as it takes."

"What exactly, do you hope to accomplish through all of this?" Rumple snarled.

"Simple. The Ice Queen will be so disraught by her sister's death that this town will be frozen forever. You on the other hand, are a powerful enemy. I really don't want to deal with you in the future. Right after I'm given the town, then I'll kill David, and maybe take his wife as my own." George grinned wickedly.

"What is this, the Dark Ages? We're not in the Enchanted Forest anymore George. And besides, they'll never let you win. Even if Anna and I die, you'll be done for if the Charming's have anything to say ab-about i-i-it." Rumple's teeth were beginning to chatter as more of his hair turned white.

George grinned. "They won't put up a fight if an innocent life is at stake. Not yours of course, put the princess's."

"You u-un-underestimate them. I-I-I did-didn't think you-you-you'd m-m-make that m-m-mistake ag-ag-again."

George's eyes narrowed. "Have a nice stay in hell, Dark One."

"I'll s-s-s-see you t-there." Rumple spat.

George turned around and stalked out of the room. Both Anna and Rumple attempted to lunge at him. Anna managed to make it all the way to the front door just as it closed and locked, but before he had barely gotten three feet, Rumple felt himself give a great shudder as the cold overtook him suddenly and he toppled to the ground shivering. His hair was now completely white.

(Can't be controlled)

"He must be crazy if he thinks we're going to give him the town this easily," Emma spat.

"We have to be careful though," Snow said, her eyebrows tied tight in a worried arc. "He has Anna and Rumpelstiltskin."

"How did he manage to kidnap Rumple?" Belle demanded. "I doubt he managed to get the dagger."

"I don't know," David said, running an anxious hand through his hair.

"We need to find them," Elsa said determinedly. "They can't be far."

"We can't go and look for them, we literally have fifteen minutes! He requested all of our presences!" Red pointed out.

"What would he do?" Robin asked grimly. "Blow them up from a distance? He can't do that." He paused. "Can he?"

"Maybe," David said slowly. "He's unpredictable at this point.

At that moment, the bell jingled, and Regina walked in, Olaf in tow.

"Hi guys!" Olaf said, though he seemed a lot less cheerful than usual. "Anna hasn't really been kidnapped, has she?" He waddled over to Elsa and wrapped his arms around her protectively. Elsa absent-mindedly patted him on the head.

"Along with Rumple," Belle murmured.

"What?" Regina exclaimed. "What else did I miss?! Fill me in right now."

(Stronger than one! Stronger than ten!)

Standing in front of the Dark One's castle wasn't as terrifying as last time, which was ironic if you compared the circumstances of this visit to the last one.

Elsa tapped on Rumpelstiltskin's door gently. When that got no response, she decided just to sent a wave of ice at the thick wood. Slowly, the wood splintered and crumbled to the ground and Elsa took that as her cue to come in.

So far, the castle was abandoned. As Elsa wandered the halls she had used as her training grounds not so long ago, she evaluated what she was about to do, tried to find any flaws in her plan (admittedly, there was a lot) and decided there was no going back now. She had already busted down his door. He was going to be even more angry with her now.

Without warning, the carpet underneath her feet suddenly twisted and arched, sending her flying. With a gasp, she fell to the ground, only to be caught by the rug, which rolled tightly around her and trapping her inside.

"You've made a terrible mistake dearie," A familiar high-pitched voice hissed.

"It was an accident," Elsa said lamely as the imp came sauntering up in front of her and glared down at her.

"Well, why have you come? You know I'm just going to kill you."

"I was hoping you'd reconsider."

"And why on earth would I do that?" Rumpelstiltskin snarled.

"Well, you like making deals don't you? I have a deal for you."

He glared at her. "You have ten seconds to explain. Go."

"In return for you unfreezing the kingdoms and keeping my sister safe, I'll do whatever you ask. I'll-I'll be your servant, or-"

"I already have a maid dearie. I don't need another one."

"Well-Then how about I do you a favor? If-"

"Sorry dearie, I already have several people to run errands for me. Is that all you can offer? Or should I just kill you?"

Elsa felt her throat begin to lump up. "Please. I'll do anything as long as you protect my sister."

"From what? You still haven't explained that dearie."

"From me!"

Elsa let a sob escape from her throat, but fought back any more tears. She was already tied up via rug and lying in front of the devil himself. Tears would just make everything worse, both for her situation and her dignity.

Rumpelstiltskin regarded her carefully. The anger in his eyes dimmed slightly, but not by much.

"Stop sniveling," He said after a minute.

"I did." Elsa sniffed again.

"Look dearie, your constant angst is starting to annoy me. You're not dangerous in any way whatsoever. Why the hell are your going on and on that you are?" Elsa opened her mouth to respond, but he cut her off again with a wave of his hand. "Actually, I don't care. Please, just shut up about it and get on with this conversation."

Elsa swallowed down another lump in her throat. "Look, do what you want with me. Just give me your word that you'll protect Anna."

Rumpelstiltskin again studied her for a minute. From her angle, she could see the white streak curled around the back of his neck.

"Tell you what," He said after a while. "I won't kill you. I'll just lock you up."

"What?" Elsa asked lamely.

With a snap of his finger, Rumpelstiltskin produced a silver jar from the neat puff of smoke that appeared in his hand.

"I'll lock you up in this. for the next several years or so, you'll be my own genie in a bottle. When I call on you, you'll do as I say. In return, Anna will be kept safe." He grinned at her wickedly. "How does that sound dearie? It's not like you have a choice. Ha!"

He was right. She didn't have a choice. Not anymore.

Elsa stared at the jar for a minute. Was this what the rest of her life looked like? Spending it cooped up in a jar?

At least you won't be able to hurt anyone, the small, quiet voice in her head said. If you can take out Rumpelstiltskin himself, then who knows what you can do? Better stay locked up.

"Okay."

That clearly wasn't the reaction Rumpelstiltskin was expecting. He stared at her for a minute. "What? You're-fine with it?"

"I suppose so." Elsa couldn't take her eyes off the jar, which was, in a nutshell, her future.

Rumpelstiltskin sighed. "All right, I'm done. No more angst. I'm putting you in here, and I'm not letting you out."

I'm fine with that.

"Just keep Anna safe," Elsa said softly.

"Right..." Rumpelstiltskin muttered. With that, he opened the jar, and silver tendrils of mist began to crawl out and envelop her.

Elsa felt herself dissolve, and it was a strange feeling. The world around her slowly faded away, and the last thing she saw was Rumpelstiltskin's grinning face.

Then she was lying in a small, bare room. The walls were the same color as the jar.

This was it. She was alone.

Surprisingly, she was still fine with it.

Elsa sat up, slowly, and sat cross-legged. The image of Anna's face flashed in front of her eyes, and suddenly, Elsa began to feel her eyes grow moist with wet, hot tears.

No. You're doing what was best for her.

Elsa wiped away the tears, and stared uselessly at her hands. What to do for the rest of eternity? With no one around to talk to?

Don't cry. Don't cry. You're doing the right thing.

To distract herself, she opened her palm and a flurry of snowflakes appeared from her fingers. The temperature in the room dropped considerably, but Elsa barely noticed.

After all, the cold never bothered her.

(Stronger than hundred men!)

Anna had managed to shake the gag off her mouth, but her wrists remained bound. Anger was coiling in her stomach as she helplessly heard George bar the front door.

"No!" Anna proceeded in slamming her body over and over into the door, as George's silhouette, viewable from the windows, walked away and soon dissapearred in the snowy haze. "Don't you dare leave us here you son of a bitch!"

"It's no use," Came the view voice behind her.

Anna turned around to face Rumpelstiltskin, and regarded him in contempt. He was a lot scaly looking, sure, and he was kneeled on the ground pathetically, shivering and pale, but he was still that man who took her sister.

"I'm not giving up! I'm getting out of here somehow, and I'm going to find my sister, whom you stole from me!" Anna made sure to shoot a glare at him.

Rumpelstiltskin winced. "What happened with you sister happened a long time ago."

"Oh, and I assume you're going to go on and on about how you're a changed man!" Anna glared at him.

"No," He admitted. "Because in all honesty, I'm not sure how true that is."

"Damn right!" Anna angrily kicked the door, almost losing her balance with her hands tied. "She froze your heart, didn't she?"

"Yes," Rumpelstiltskin admitted.

"Well that's just great. Right when we need an all-powerful sorceror, it turns out he's completely useless."

"Dearie, what's just as useless is you kicking that door. It's made out of thick mahagony. It would be quite difficult to kick through it."

"I am not in the mood for your sass mister!" Anna snapped.

"Here." Rumpelstiltskin held up his bound, shaking hands in front of him. "I'll untie you. And you can, I don't know, break a window or something."

"Don't even come near me." Anna narrowed her eyes at him.

"Listen..." Rumpelstiltskin took a deep, shaking breath. "I-un-understand why you're-you're upset. B-b-but this is g-g-getting us n-n-nowhere, you r-r-realize that, d-don't you?"

Anna regarded him in such cold contempt that it even surprised her.

Let him untie you, some rational voice in her head said. You can do more with your hands untied.

"Fine." Anna went over and held out her bound hands in front of his own. Rumpelstiltskin slowly began to unravel the knots around her wrists, his fingers trembling violently. It took him a while to undo the ropes, and as soon as they slid off her wrists, Anna was immediately up and back to pounding at the door.

"I already t-t-told you that wouldn't help," Rumpelstiltskin muttered.

"I don't care! We have to help them!"

Silence. It took her a minute to realize what she just said.

"I mean, me! Me, uh-I have to help them! You can just do whatever!"

"I'm d-dying dearie," Rumpelstiltskin said flatly. "I doubt I'll be m-much help."

Anna took several deep breaths. A feeling of hopelessness settled onto her as she slowly stopped beating the door and instead rested her forehead on it's smooth, polished surface.

"I came all this way for nothing," Anna said softly. The coldness of the room was starting to set in, and she felt herself beginning to shiver. "I spent so long trying to find my sister...for nothing. And now we're going to die."

"I m-m-might," Rumpelstiltskin agreed. "B-but you might not."

"Will you just shut up?!" Anna whipped around, glaring at him. "You took my sister from me! I don't care if you die!"

Another pause. Rumpelstiltskin, despite being in his weakened state, stared at her in cool calculation.

"I know you don't mean that," He said quietly.

Anna let out a moan. "I know. I know. But I do, and just...don't you have any idea what you did?!"

"Trust me, I d-do," Rumpelstiltskin replied. He gave a shudder, as frost began to curl around his face.

"Urgh!" Anna stomped over to the other rooms and began searching for a blanket. When she found one, she stomped back over and tossed it at the man, hating herself for doing it. "Cover up with this!"

Rumpelstiltskin complied without complaint. His shivering subsided slightly.

"If I s-said I was s-s-sorry would you believe me?" He murmured.

"No." Anna immediately snapped.

"Would you f-forgive me?"

"It'd take a whole lot of begging and groveling to get me to forgive you." Anna began to pace. "And I don't have time for that. I need to find a way to escape."

"Have you e-ever though about breaking a window?" Rumpelstiltskin asked sarcastically.

Anna paused. Immediately, she felt like the dumbest idiot on earth.

"Good idea." Another thought occurred to her. "Wait. George would probably expect that."

"S-so you think he booby-trapped th-the windows?" Rumpelstiltskin asked, the sarcasm evident in his voice.

"I'm just saying? Isn't that too easy? Why would he-"

"I-I'm n-n-not sure if you've noticed dearie, but George is a li-little mentally off," Rumpelstiltskin grumbled. "In his mind, everything sh-should go his way. He's been through a lot of frustration n-not to think otherwise."

Anna stared at him for a minute. "How would you know?"

"L-let's just say I kn-know a thing or two about i-insanity," Rumpelstiltskin said, without a trace of emotion in his voice.

Another pause.

"O-kay," Anna said slowly. "Is there anything I can use to break the window?"

"Be creative," Rumpelstiltskin said wryly. "A-and if you c-c-can find another bl-blanket that w-would be f-f-fantastic."

Anna sighed. "All right." She walked around for a minute, looking for something to break the window. Finally, she came across the gold-tipped cane Rumpelstiltskin had been carrying originally, and mentally smacked herself for not thinking of using it earlier. She picked it up, and Rumpelstiltskin watched her silently as she gripped it like a baseball bat, and swung with all her might.

When it hit the glass, it only cracked slightly. She had to swing the thing a few more times before the glass finally shattered. Immediately, a rush of cold air swept into the room, reducing the temperature even more than before. Rumpelstiltskin continued to shiver.

"Do you know where Elsa would be?" Anna asked, dropping the cane to the floor.

"Yes," Rumpelstiltskin replied.

"Well," Anna pointed an accusing finger at him. "If you want me to forgive you, you're taking me there."

"F-f-fine, dearie," Rumpelstiltskin said dryly. "B-b-but who s-s-said I w-w-wanted y-y-your f-f-f-forgiveness?"

Anna glared at him. "Look, do you want to escape or not?"

"I'm d-d-d-dying d-d-dearie. Th-th-there's n-n-not m-mu-much for m-m-me to d-d-do, o-or w-w-want."

Anna sighed. "Right. The frozen heart thing. Only an act of true love can thaw your heart, right?"

Rumpelstiltskin nodded.

"Well, isn't that a dilemma." Anna knew that was kind of cruel, but she knew it was probably true. "Is there anyone who loves you?"

Rumpelstiltskin fixed a blank stare at an empty space aside from her. "N-n-not anym-m-more."

That wasn't the answer she expected.

"Anymore?" She asked after a moment's hesitation.

"My w-w-wife," He said shortly. "And my s-s-s-son."

"You have a son? And a wife?" Anna was incredulous. "Was this before, during, or after the green skin thing?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, obviously growing annoyed.

"L-long st-st-story," He grumbled. "Are w-w-we g-g-going or n-n-not?"

"Uh." The new piece of information was still taking a while to set in. "Sure. Uh-need help?"

Rumpelstiltskin wordlessly glared at her, making Anna feel a bit indignant. He was the one who brought up his supposed wife and son, not her! Nevertheless, she gave him her arm and helped him move towards the broken window, ready to climb through it.

(Born of cold and winter air and mountain rain combining)

Anna was in a panic.

Elsa hadn't come home in almost two days. Well, technically, Anna hadn't seen her in two days, because as soon as she and Kristoff had returned from the trolls (excluding her involvement, which Anna was still a little upset about), Elsa had shut herself in her room and refused to come out.

That day, Anna had decided to just go in anyway, and had entered to an empty room.

Elsa was gone.

"Where could she have gone?" Anna demanded, pacing up and down the palace halls. She had sent guards everywhere, and they had both came back in the evening reporting no sign of their Snow Queen.

"I don't know," Kristoff responded. His eyebrows were drawn down in the center of his forehead. Elsa's disappearance troubled him too. Anna could tell just by looking at her. "She'll turn up. She has to."

"What if she doesn't?" Anna cried, whipping around to face him. "Come on, think. Where else could she have gone?"

"I dunno-" Kristoff stopped suddenly. "Oh no."

"What?" Anna asked sharply.

Kristoff swallowed. "I just thought of something. Or someone. Dammit. Oh goddammit, no."

"What?" Anna snapped anxiously.

"Rumpelstiltskin," Kristoff said weakly.

Silence. An intense horror began to grow inside on Anna's stomach, clenching it so tightly she thought she might throw up.

"No," She croaked. "He wouldn't. She saved him-"

"Rumpelstiltskin doesn't work that way." Kristoff said, fists clenched. "If someone hurts him, they pay."

Without another word, Anna turned around and ran, arms and legs pumping, braids flying behind her until she reached the royal stables. Ignoring the stableboys' questions, she climbed onto the nearest horse, yelled a 'hyah!' and kicked as hard as she could. The horse took off riding, bursting through the stables and was off riding to it's destination.

Before she knew it, Anna burst into Rumpelstiltskin's castle. There were no arrows this time, which Anna didn't know what to think of. That could either mean something very good or very bad.

"Where is she?!" Anna screamed. "WHERE"S MY SISTER YOU BASTARD?!"

"No need to shout dearie." She heard a puff of smoke behind her and whipped around to face the grinning imp. He folded his hands in front of him politely.

"What did you do to her?!" Anna snarled. The ferocity of her tone surprised even her, but she was too enraged to care.

"Who?" Rumpelstiltskin said innocently.

"Elsa. My SISTER! Where is she?"

"Oh her!" Rumpelstiltskin snapped his fingers as if he was just remembering. "Oh yes. She's long gone, dearie. you don't have to worry about her anymore."

With a furious scream, Anna lunged at Rumpelstiltskin. He gave a start in surprise as she tackled him to the ground, to shocked to even dissolve into smoke. Anna managed to punch him a few times in the face before he finally got over his shock and disappeared, reappearing behind her looking less than happy.

"Don't push your luck dearie," He growled. "I had no intention on killing you, but I'm starting to change my mind."

"You bastard!" Anna screamed. Tears were spilling out of her eyes and down her cheeks. "You-she saved you! How could you kill her?!"

At this Rumpelstiltskin snorted.

"Kill her? Oh no no no, dearie. I didn't kill her." Rumpelstiltskin's face drew into a sneer.

"Wait-what?" Anna sniffed, looking up at Rumpelstiltskin with wide eyes. Dare she hope?

"You're right dearie. She did save me." Rumpelstiltskin didn't look happy about that fact. "I owed her a debt. So I didn't kill her. I merely...sent her someplace else."

"Where?" Anna demanded.

"Sorry," Rumpelstiltskin snapped. "Can't tell you that. Better start looking for a new Queen, dearie."

Anna glared at him, wiping away any remaining tears. "Look pal," She began. "You better tell me where she is or I swear, the armies of Arendelle will come knocking at your door-"

"Blah blah. Blah blah. Go away." With a wave of his hand, Anna felt herself dissolve into smoke and before she knew it, she was standing in front of the palace she knew and loved.

She stood there in plain shock for a moment. This couldn't be happening. Elsa was coming back. She had to come back. What would she do without Elsa?

She wanted to scream. She wanted to burst into tears again. Something besides just stand there. But she felt numb. Like none of this was real.

She had no idea how long she stood there. Eventually, Kristoff came running out of nowhere and he wrapped his arms around her in a familiar soft embrace.

"Where have you been?" He demanded in her ear. "I was so worried, Anna, why would you-"

"She's not dead," Anna interrupted. "She's not dead."

Kristoff was silent for a minute. Eventually, he drew back, but kept his hands on her shoulders. He tilted her chin up to face him.

"Then where is she?" Kristoff said softly.

"I don't know." The tears were coming again. "I don't know."

At that point, she dissolved into sobs. Kristoff continued to hold her and let her cry into his shirt. She could feel citizens start to crowd around them, whispering worriedly. Eventually, he helped her back inside and into her room, where he finally left her alone to pur out her misery and tears into a pillow.

Her first instinct was to remain optimistic. But her soul, gut feeling was that she knew she wasn't going to see Elsa for at least a very long time.

Within a month, Elsa's disappearance became official. None of the guards or scouts had received any word of her whereabouts. And more importantly, neither had Anna. This was a problem. Arendelle needed a Queen. Someone to be in charge and run the country.

So before she knew it, Anna was being led across the palace church, a crown was being placed on her head, and golden coronation instruments were being placed in her hands. The words 'Queen Anna of Arendelle' were chanted at her, and it all felt so wrong she wanted to cry.

(This icy force both foul and fair)

"We'll split up." David, despite the infant in his arms, stood in front of the large group of various fairy-tale characters, from traditional to non-traditional, ever the take-charge prince ready for action. "Elsa, Regina, and anyone else willing to stay will confront George under the clock tower. Meanwhile, we'll sent a small rescue team to Gold's mansion. Any volunteers?"

"I'll go," Kristoff said immediately.

"Me too," Belle added.

Something in the corner of Belle's stomach was twisting, her instincts screaming at her that something was wrong, very wrong. Somehow, George had managed to contain Rumple. Belle knew from experience it wasn't easy to contain a Dark One, especially Rumpelstiltskin.

But somehow, George had done it. This troubled Belle deeply.

"You can't,' Emma pointed out. "George said you had to be there."

"What?' Belle demanded, before recalling that fact herself.

"I want to go too," Elsa protested.

"George specially requested your presence at the tower," Regina said stiffly. "If you don't go, he'll know something's wrong and who knows what that lunatic will do."

"All right." Elsa looked like she wanted to say anything otherwise, but resisted. Instead, she turned to Kristoff, giving him a cool glare that was suited perfectly for her icy nature. "Take care of her."

"Always." Kristoff looked grim. "When have I haven't?"

"Fair point." Elsa then leaned forward, and gave him a quick hug. Kristoff's eyes widened in visible surprise before she retreated. "It's good to see you," Elsa added.

"You too," Kristoff said, smiling a small, half-smile that quickly faded, likely due to the circumstances.

"I wanna rescue Anna too!" Olaf suddenly chimed in.

"You're staying here," Elsa told him firmly.

"But-" The snowman's face fell.

"I don't want anything to happen to you Olaf," Elsa said softly.

"And you can watch Henry while you're here too," Emma added.

"What?!" Henry cried indignantly.

"Sorry kid. As soon as George comes, you're staying in here and you're not coming out no matter what," Emma said stubbornly.

"For once, I agree with Emma. You're staying here," Regina told Henry.

"Same goes for you Roland," Robin told his son. "Stay with Henry, okay?"

"Okay," Roland said in a small voice, not fully understanding what was going on but fully comprehending the seriousness of the situation. "Where's mama?"

Robin visibly winced at the question. Regina cast a casual glance in his direction but quickly looked away.

"She's...resting in our room," Robin said after a minute. "You can go see her after we're done taking care of things, all right?"

"Okay."

"You should get going," David said, glancing at the clock on the wall. "The rescue team I mean."

"Anybody want to come?" Kristoff asked the group. "If not, it'll just be me and Sven."

"I'll go," Hook volunteered from his corner.

Everyone who knew his history with Rumpelstiltskin turned around to study him, just to make sure he hadn't gone mad.

"What?" Emma asked, visibly shocked.

"I'll go." Hook shrugged. "What? I want to make myself useful."

"If you lay a hand on him..." Belle began.

"I'm a changed man, Belle. I swear I won't do anything to him. Although he deserves it after what he did to you-"

"Killian!" Emma snapped.

"That's my business, Captain, not yours," Belle said coolly.

"Sorry." Hook raised his hands sheepishly, then rose.

"Hurry." David returned baby Neal to Snow's arms, then nodded at the clock. "You have ten minutes."

"C'mon," Kristoff nodded at Hook, and the two men exited the diner. Belle watched them go, worry twisting her heart. Don't get her wrong, she was still impossibly angry and upset with Rumpelstiltskin, but she wasn't going to lose him. Not again.

(Has a frozen heart worth mining)

"Sorry, I didn't catch your name." Kristoff said as he and Hook headed towards Sven, who wagged his tail at the sight of Kristoff.

"Call me Hook." Hook extended his hooked hand at Kristoff in greeting.

Kristoff stared at it. "Okay. That's easy to remember." He hoisted himself up onto Sven's back, and scooched forward a little to make room for Hook. "Are you getting on?"

Hook stared at Sven's back for a second. "We're riding that thing?"

Sven snorted indignantly, and gave a pointed look at Kristoff. Kristoff glared at Hook.

"His name is Sven. And yes, we're riding him."

"I've never exactly ridden an animal before-"

"Just get on."

Hook obeyed. He awkwardly climbed on, and sat up on Sven's back, feeling completely out of his league. Or below it.

"Hold on," Kristoff ordered, then turned his attention to Sven. "Hyah, Sven!"

"All r-AGH!" Hook nearly went flying off the reindeer's back as Sven took off at top speed, huffing and panting off into the growing swirl of snow.

(So cut through the heart, cold and sheer)

Rumpelstiltskin stared at his car in dismay.

Or, to be more exact, the car-shaped mound of ice and snow.

"Where's this carriage you were talking about?" Anna asked after a minute.

Rumple opened his mouth to speak, but another blast of cold wind caused him to shake so hard he almost lost his balance. Anna caught him, and sling his arm over her shoulders, grunting in discontent under her breath.

"Well?" She demanded, raising her voice slightly over the wind's increasingly loud howl.

Rumple wordlessly pointed a shaking finger at the mound of snow. Anna cursed under her breath.

"N-n-no," She stammered, the cold beginning to affect her as well. "W-what d-d-do we d-d-do now?"

Rumple had no idea. Whatever hope he had left was beginning to die. It would have probably been better if they had stayed inside, but now it was too late. Anna had already broken a window, so the temperature of the house was probably equivalent of that of a refridgerator. So there was no point going back inside to try and keep warm.

"W-we can t-try w-w-walking," Anna pointed out after a minute.

Rumple let himself nod, even though he knew that idea was pointless. They'd never make it. One or both of them would just end up freezing to death. But what else could they do?

Slowly, they began shuffling down the driveway and back towards the town. The falling snow was growing so thick that they could barely see where they were going.

Leaning heavily on Anna, Rumple could feel his limbs beginning to stiffen, frost beginning to build in his veins. He was tempted just to close his eyes and let the cold take him, but something, probably Anna, kept him on his feet. Neither of them said anything as they slowly trudged through the snow.

So this is how I die, Rumple thought. Not a bad way to go, actually.

Minutes ticked by. Rumple felt himself grow colder and colder. Not a soul appeared in the snow-covered landscape. Just as he was giving up whatever shred of hope he had left of being rescued, he felt Anna stiffen, and then she stopped.

"D-d-did you h-h-hear th-that?" Anna stammered.

Rumple lifted and turned his head to give her a quizzical look, but then he heard it too. The faint sound of hoof beats thudding against snow.

"Kr-kr-kri-KRISTOFF!" Anna screamed.

"Anna?" A voice, sounding not so far away, sounded in response, and then suddenly a reindeer practically burst through the thick snow. Anna let out a sob. Rumple felt a twinge of relief, but then he saw the riders.

There was Kristoff, yes, but then hanging onto the back for dear life was none other than Hook.

Sven slowed to a stop when he reached them. Kristoff immediately jumped off and ran towards Anna, looking like he was about to hug her in greeting but stopped when he saw Rumple's condition.

"What happened to him?" Kristoff asked, looking startled.

"Elsa f-f-froze his h-h-heart," Anna gasped, giving Kristoff a sort of a clumsy one-armed hug.

"What?" Hook by then had jumped off of Sven's back and was staring open-mouthed at Rumpelstiltskin. "Bloody hell Crocodile."

"I'm assuming we ave to take him back to the town?" Kristoff said gruffly.

"W-w-well, we c-c-can't leave him h-h-here," Anna pointed out.

"Sure we can," Hook said simply.

Rumple shot the nastiest glare he could muster in Hook's direction.

"C'mon," Kristoff sighed. "You owe us Rumpelstiltskin. We've already saved your life, I don't know, like twice by now?"

Rumple turned the glare in his direction, but before he knew it he was being helped onto Sven's back by a slightly reluctant Kristoff and a smirking Hook. Then Kristoff helped Anna on next, and he and Hook climbed on next.

"Guess you are really cold-blooded, huh?" Hook said, looking slightly pleased at himself for coming up with that one. Rumple attempted to crane his head around to glare at him, but he decided just to curl up into himself more. He was so damn cold.

"He's dying," Anna said from the front.

"Yeah, I know," Kristoff replied. "We need True Love's kiss, don't we?"

"Mmm hmm."

"Well. All right then."

Kristoff didn't point out what they were all probably thinking. Who would ever love a beast?

If he had to be honest with himself, Rumple had to admit that he himself wasn't sure. It was the truth, but like they say-the truth hurts.

(Strike for love and strike for fear)

Anna had been queen for only one week, and she was already wondering how Elsa could have stood it.

There was just so. Much. Paperwork.

Eventually she just decided to order some of the servants to complete a stack or two, just to take off some of the load. Combined with her grief over losing her sister, it was all just too much to bear.

"Hey," Kristoff said one day, two weeks after her coronation, coming up behind her where she was working at her desk and placing a hand on her shoulder. "Have you eaten anything today?"

"Yeah." Anna replied, not looking up.

"Really?"

Anna's shoulders sagged. "No."

"That's what I thought." A plate sudden slid in front of her, and on the plate, was a sandwich. Anna took a moment to blink at it and nudged it to the side almost immediately.

"I'll eat when I'm done," Anna said.

She heard Kristoff sigh. "Okay. if you're not going to eat, why don't you sleep? You could certainly use it."

"I'm fine Kristoff."

"See, you say that, but I don't believe you."

"I'm fine." Anna placed down the quill and turned towards Kristoff. She knew she looked tired, but there wasn't much she could do about that. "Thank you for your concern though."

She turned back to her papers. That hadn't sounded like her, and she knew it. But after being a queen for a while, she was used to sounding proper and official. She had managed to train herself so that it had become a habit.

She heard Kristoff sigh. "Okay. I wasn't going to give you these until I considered you to be in your right mind so we could talk it through, but..."

Before she knew it, Kristoff had thrown yet another thing in front of her.

Anna picked it up. It appeared to be a small, mini-knapsack. When she undid the string, three small beans came out of the bag.

She blinked. She looked up at Kristoff.

"Beans," She said.

"Magic beans," Kristoff corrected.

Anna stared at him, feeling a flicker of annoyance. "Okaaaaay, so these are good how?"

"Okay," Kristoff began. "So we can't find Elsa here, right?"

"Right." Anna didn't need the reminder. After her coronation, she had ordered guards to go and search the entire kingdom, to search every nook and cranny until Elsa was found. There had been no success whatsoever.

"So I came up with the theory that maybe Rumpelstiltskin transported your sister to another land. Somewhere where he thinks we can't get to her."

Anna felt herself stiffen.

Kristoff pointed to the beans. "These can transport people to different lands. They're really rare. I got them from the trolls. They only have three, but there are other ways of traveling through magical worlds."

"Are you saying-" Anna swallowed. "That these beans can help us find Elsa?"

"Uh-huh." Kristoff nodded.

Hope dared to blossom up inside of her. It grew and grew until Anna suddenly felt more alive than she ever had in the past few months.

"Look," Kristoff added quickly. "You can't forget about Arendelle. Just saying. You're a queen now, and you have no idea how long we'll be gone-"

"I'll find a way." Anna stood up, papers long forgotten. "I'm not giving up on Elsa."

Her mind was set. As soon as she found someone suitable enough to run the kingdom, she was going to find her sister.

(There's beauty and there's danger here)

(Split the ice apart)

They stood in a line.

There was Charming, with his sword sheathed and hanging next to his gun on his belt, Regina, who stood arms crossed next to him, the white strand decorating her hair like a battle scar. Robin stood next to her, bow slung over his shoulder, and then there were Will, Belle, Red, Grumpy, and Emma, who had her gun strapped to her waist. And finally, there was Elsa, who was steeling herself for George's arrival, Olaf positioned firmly by her side.

From across the street and inside the diner, Snow, who had made it very clear that she had wanted to stand with everyone else but had eventually relented to stay inside with baby Neal, watched from the window, Granny and Henry standing at her side.

Then, Elsa recognized George's strange-looking carriage (Emma called it a car) rolling along through the snow that was falling thicker and thicker. That fact made Elsa feel more than a tad guilty, but it wasn't as if there was anything they could do.

"Remember the plan," Regina hissed as the car stopped, and George exited, slamming the door behind him.

"Stall him," Charming muttered. "Right."

George strolled over to them lazily, looking extremely pleased with himself. Elsa felt a strong feeling of hatred directed straight at him.

"Do you have the deed?" George asked smugly.

Regina, with a wave of her hand, summoned the deed that held the property of all of Storybrooke in her hand.

"Good." George shook his head slowly, looking delighted. "You know, I must say I didn't think you'd go to such lengths to save the Dark One and some girl most of you have never met."

"Why are you doing this George?" David asked softly, launching into stall topic number one. Prior to gathering outside, they had composed a series of different topics that they thought would keep George busy in order to give Kristoff and Hook more time to find Rumpelstiltskin and Anna and bring them back safely.

"Why wouldn't I do this David?" George shook his head again. "After all you did to me?"

"May I remind you that you attempted to kill my family multiple times, steal my happy ending, among numerous other crimes?" David said slowly.

"You locked me up underground and left me there for years!" George shrieked.

"Technically, it was only two."

"Not one soul came to check on me! No one!"

"Actually, us dwarves took turns bringing you food," Grumpy pointed out.

George laughed bitterly. "Do you think I'm stupid? None of you came! You just magicked the food there! There was no one! No one!"

"Uh...no." Grumpy blinked. "One of us came three times a day. I came several times myself."

"No! No! No one! No one!"

"Okay..." David stared. "Look George...you're not in your right mind."

George laughed again, but this time, it was pretty much a high-pitched giggle, disturbingly similar to the ones Rumpelstiltskin used to make. "Oh, you think I'm insane do you? Well I have news for you, Davy!"

"Davy?" David blinked. "Did you just call me Davy?"

"I think he did," Olaf chimed in. "And I'm pretty sure he's insane. Just saying guys."

"I'm not insane!" George waved his arms in emphasis. "What's wrong with wanting a little revenge? A little credit? A little of what I deserve? That's not insane. That's human! I'm human! I'm not insane!"

Elsa was seriously considering telling him otherwise, when Red gasped, and pointed.

"Look!" She yelled.

Elsa looked, and saw the silhohette of a reindeer through the rapidly falling snow. As it came closer, she could make out it's rider, or two riders, or...three! There were at least three people riding Sven, back to them.

Relief and happiness settled upon her almost instantly, and almost immediately the snow stopped falling. She could now make out Kristoff's face, and Anna's and vaguely Hook's and Rumpelstiltskin.

"They're here George," David said coolly. Regina, on cue, waved her hand again and the deed disappeared. "It's over."

"No!" George yelled. "No! No they're not here! I win! I win!"

"Anna!" Crazy man forgotten, Elsa ran towards the reindeer as it came to a stop aside her. Anna leapt off of Sven's back and greeted her with a hug.

"Rumple!" Belle was by her side next, a reluctant Red trailing along next to her, when they both suddenly stopped.

Elsa looked up at Rumpelstiltskin, and that's when the shock slowly set in.

"Hello," Rumple muttered weakly, as Hook dragged him unceremoniously off Sven's back. His face and his hair were both a bright shade of white, and frost was travelling up his face, neck, and hands.

"They're not there! They're not there!" George shrieked.

"Sure they're not." Emma coolly pulled out her handcuffs and began walking over to him.

"No!" George, hands fumbling, pulled out his gun and pointed it towards them.

"Anna! Rumpelstiltskin!" Olaf cried cheerily as he joined them, then stopped when he realized what was going on. "Oh...oh no..."

"Rumple?!" Belle looked shocked. "What the hell happened to you?!"

"You know him?" Anna suddenly turned to Belle.

"Yes, I-I'm his wife..." Belle was still staring at Rumple. "What the hell happened to you?!"

"You're married?!" Anna whirled to face Rumple, who was leaning against Hook, in shock. "You. You're married."

"Will you please refrain from insulting me while I'm slowly freezing to death?" Rumple muttered.

With a wave of Regina's hand, the gun flew out of George's and into the snow.

"No! NO!" George attempted to run, but with a loud yell, Grumpy charged, leaped, and tackled the older man to the ground. Emma the walked over and smartly snapped the handcuffs around George's wrists.

"Freezing," Elsa said slowly. "Your heart's frozen. I-I froze your heart."

Rumpelstiltskin winced. "D-d-don't remind me."

"You love him right?" Anna demanded, now facing Belle.

"I-" Belle blinked. "I-yes, but-"

"Then kiss him!" Anna shoved her again unceremoniously towards Rumple.

"What's going on over here?" Regina snapped, everyone else finally noticing what was going on, and they all stopped.

"What-" Emma stared at Rumple. "What the hell-"

"Happened to me?" Rumple asked through gritted teeth. "My heart's frozen. I'm magically freezing to death."

"Wait-how-" Regina looked confused for a minute before her mouth set into a grim line. "Elsa..."

"It was an accident!" Elsa's chest felt tight, and she was having a hard time breathing.

"Kiss him!" Anna yelled at Belle. "Kiss him-uh, what's your name?"

"Belle," Rumple murmured. "Belle, don't kiss me."

"Wait, what?" Hook stared at him.

"What'll happen if I kiss him?" Belle asked.

"Only an act of true love can thaw a frozen heart," Elsa explained, somehow a lot more calm then she thought she would be. "Like True Love's kiss."

"Well what are you waiting for?" Regina snapped at Belle. "Kiss him!"

"NO ONE'S THERE!" George screamed in the background, Grumpy still sitting on top of him.

"Shut up," Grumpy growled.

"No-" Rumple gasped. "No, don't kiss me."

"What?" Belle stared at him incredulously.

"What's going on?" At that point, Snow, Henry, Granny, and baby Neal exited the diner and out to where everyone was gathered. Upon seeing Rumpelstiltskin, they gasped in unison.

"What the hell-" Granny began.

"For the l-l-love of-" Rumple jerked away from Hook, who, despite the circumstances, looked extremely glad that he had. But almost immediately, Rumple collapsed to his knees in the snow, and reeled forward.

"Rumple!" Belle kneeled next to him, a worried-looking Olaf waddling over and peering over her shoulder. "Rumple, let me kiss you-"

"No," Rumple gasped. "No-no-n-n-not u-u-unless you f-f-forgive me..."

To Elsa's horror, just as she kneeled next to Belle, ice began to form over the surface of his hands, spreading up his arms, chest, and rapidly spreading throughout his entire body.

"No!" Belle cried, and immediately leaned in and kissed him.

But her lips only touched ice.

She broke away, eyes widening in horror. Elsa thought she heard Snow gasp, and she was vaguely aware of Anna covering her mouth in shock. But she was too busy trying to process what was happening right now to comprehend anything else.

Rumpelstiltskin was now an ice statue, kneeling in the snow and looking up with Belle with pleading eyes.

Then Belle started to sob, cupping Rumpelstiltskin's frozen face in her hands. Red crouched down next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. Tiny droplets of snow were starting to form in Olaf's coal eyes too, and he sniffled.

Elsa slowly placed a her hand on Rumpelstiltskin's shoulder, now a block of ice. For a minute they just sat there.

"What have I done?" Elsa said softly, her voice shaking.

No one dared to move. Regina, Emma, Snow, David, and Robin hung their heads, Grumpy, Granny, Henry, Will, Hook, Kristoff, and Anna all stared at Rumpelstiltskin with wide, unbelieving eye. Because surely, Elsa wasn't powerful to kill the Dark One. Surely.

Elsa knew better.

Then, Belle sniffed loudly, and rested her forehead on Rumple's icy forehead.

"I forgive you," Belle whispered softly, barely loud enough for Elsa to hear. "Rumple, I-I forgive you. J-j-j-just please, please come back to me..."

(And beware the frozen heart)

He was frozen.

He was sitting in his shop, but it was snowing. Snowflakes fell and settled on the counter tops, dusting precious artifacts in a layer of white.

The bell jingled.

He had a customer.

"Hey papa." Bae came strolling in, hands in the pockets of his black coat. "See you finally decided to join me."

"Yes," Rumple said. "I did."

They were silent for a minute.

"I want to see it," Rumple said.

"Don't know what you're talking about."

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. I need to know, Bae. Please."

Bae rolled his eyes, and held out his palm. In it, rested a small pocket mirror.

Rumple snatched it before Bae could do anything.

"NO!" Bae screamed. He lunged for his father, but Rumple sidestepped, shoving him away.

"That's mine!" Bae yelled. "You can't have it!"

Rumple ignored him. Something pounding in his chest, but certainly not a heart, he held the mirror up and to his face. He saw his face, pale, and etched with frost. He saw his veins, bright blue and criss-crossing under his frosted skin, all leading up to his heart. It was still. It was pitch black, just like Rumple thought it would be.

Then he reached into his chest. Found his heart. And squeezed. Squeezed until it split in half.

More black tendrils were there. It sank in from where the darkness covered the surface of his heart. But on the inside, there was an unmistakenly bright red glow. And among the glow, there were even specks of gold. Corrupted by darkness, yes. But still there.

Feeling suddenly numb, Rumple let go of the mirror. It fell, tumbling to the ground, and then it shattered to pieces.

He turned around slowly and saw Bae, who was suddenly completely calm.

"You lied to me," Rumple said shakily.

"Yes," Bae said tiredly.

"You're wrong. My heart's not-it's not-" Rumple's voice cracked.

"Yes. Now go and move on with your life already Papa." Bae replied.

"But-" Rumple swallowed. "Bae. Why?"

"You had to move on somehow," Bae said, looking sad. "That witch took a lot from you, Papa. Left you with a lot of ghosts. I wanted to be the one to help get rid of some."

There was so much Rumple wanted to say. But when he opened his mouth, he couldn't find the words. Then suddenly, he heard the loud sound of what he soon realized was ice cracking. When he looked down at his hands he realized that the ice that made them up had cracked, and had fallen to the ground, revealing flesh.

"Looks like she forgave you Papa," Bae said.

"Bae," Rumple said softly. The ice was cracking, falling off of him, returning him to his previous state.

"Don't worry," Bae murmured. "I'll be okay. Just move on with your life. Maybe even create a new one. Make yourself deserve a happy ending."

"I love you," Rumple whispered.

"I love you too Papa." Bae leaned over and kissed Rumple on the forehead, just like Rumple used to do to him at bedtime.

Rumple felt the last of the ice crack and fall off of him, returning him to his unfrozen state. A burst of warmth flowed through his body, and the last thing he saw before he faded away was the smile on Bae's face.

For a minute nothing happened, and Belle descended back into sobs. Red placed her other hand on Belle's other shoulder gently, but at the same time, firmly.

"Come on," She said softly. "Come inside. There's nothing you can do-"

But right as she said that, the outline of Rumpelstiltskin's hands shimmered, and the shimmering spread throughout his entire frozen form.

And slowly, ice turned to flesh.

Olaf let out a delighted gasp. No one else made a sound, not even George, who had previously descended into hysterical sobbing.

Then, a full flesh-and-blood Rumpelstiltskin was there, kneeling in front of Belle.

Again, no one dared to move.

Rumpelstiltskin blinked, then looked over towards Belle, who's eyes were brimming with tears again.

"I'm not dead anymore right?" He asked.

Belle let out a final sob and wrapped his arms around his neck, burying her head in the crook of his neck.

"But-" Regina looked stunned. "How-"

"Forgiveness," Elsa said softly. She was extremely surprised at how well she was taking all of this and honestly, kind of pleased with herself for keeping her emotions in check so well. She rose to her feet. "Forgiveness is an act of true love, apparently."

Her eyes flickered over to Anna, whose eyes were also brimming with tears. Without another word, she went over and hugged her sister all over again.

As she let herself enjoy it, Elsa felt the snow around her feet begin to thaw.

48 Hours Later

Rumple stared out the frost-less window, out at the snow-less skyline of Storybrooke. Within minutes of getting Anna back, Elsa had somehow managed to thaw out Storybrooke.

He could honestly relate. Sometimes he felt that the only way he kept his own powers in control was the thought of the ones he loved. Being the Dark One meant handling a lot of power. When he'd first gotten it, there had been some instances where he'd accidently let himself go a little too far and some property had been destroyed. He'd managed to keep those instances successfully from Bae though, and in a way, that was the reason he hadn't lost control again. Because Bae had been there. When he'd lost him, he hadn't lost control of his powers in the physical way where they were literally destroying everything in their path, but in a way where instead the power controlled him. Made him hungry for more power.

In that way, he felt like he could kind of relate to Elsa, even though their situations were much, much different.

But there was also a second part of it. The part where not only would there loved ones be there to help them control themselves, but where they needed to be willing to control them too.

That was where it got tricky. For him, at least.

But now, Rumple thought he was finally ready.

"Rumple?"

Speaking of which.

"We need to talk." Belle leaned against the door frame, face serious but pretty as always. She was wearing a loose, cotton sundress that brought out the shade of her eyes quite nicely.

"I know." Rumple turned around to face her. "But you forgive me?"

"I do." Belle studied him. "But that doesn't mean...well...you know."

"I do." Rumple took a deep breath. This was going to be hard. "I can't make excuses for lying to you. Especially on the eve of our wedding. But-" Rumple tried not to wince at the memory of Zelena's smirking face, holding the dagger in front of his eyes.

"I know. I thought about it." He saw Belle swallow. "She did a lot to you, didn't she?"

"I don't really want to think about it."

"I know. But I think maybe we should have waited to get married. Waited until we could make sure you were doing all right. After-after Bae-"

"Bae." Before his heart got frozen, saying his name would've opened a fresh wound. But now, it felt...not normal, because the sound of Bae's name would never be normal again, but less...hollow. "Belle, I'm sorry. I really, really am. You deserve so much better than me. I hope that someday, I could be the man you deserve, but I'd be lucky if I come a small fraction of the way close-"

"Stop." Belle went over, and placed a finger on his lips. "Stop saying that you can't change. If you don't believe that you can change, then how can you? Believe that you can, Rumple. I believe. Bae believed." A smile played on her lips. "Olaf believes."

"Olaf." Rumple groaned aloud at the mention of the snowman. "That thing is following me around everywhere..."

"He adores you. It's adorable."

"It's not, it's annoying as hell."

Belle's smile grew for a minute, then faded. "Rumple. I mean it. Believe. For me. Please?"

"I'll try." Rumple swallowed. "I-" He trailed off.

"What?"

"I used to see Bae. Everywhere."

That got a frown from her. "What?"

"His ghost, I think. He came in different forms. When he was a child. And adult. A teenager." Rumple's hair stood up on the back of his neck at the memory. "He told me things. He teased me. And then, when I froze, and I saw him again-he told me to let him go. He said-" Rumple swallowed down the lump in his throat. "He said he loved me. And then I was back in your arms again. Alive."

Belle was silent for a minute before speaking again. "Have...you seen him since?"

"No." Rumple shrugged. "Either I let him go...or he did."

There was again another period of silence from Belle. Then she leaned forward, and gave him a long, deep kiss.

"Let's start from the beginning," She murmured. "Let's pretend we got married yesterday. You never gave me the dagger. None of that ever happened. Okay?"

How could he say no to that?

"Okay."

Regina knew it was considered vain to not only carry around a pocket mirror, but to continuously look at it as well. But she was debating whether or not to cover it up with hair dye. Henry had told her that it looked cool, but she wasn't sure if he was saying that just to appease her or if he really did think that it looked neat.

"Regina?"

Regina immediately slammed the pocket mirror closed when she heard the voice call out to her from behind the crypt's doors, but it took her a little longer to recognize it. That voice hadn't called her name in quite some time.

Robin suddenly appeared through the doorway, but stopped, almost hesitantly.

"Hello Robin." Regina gave him a strained smile. Her mind was reeling, trying to come up with a reason why he was here.

"We need to talk." Robin cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"About Marian." Ah. So this was it. He was going to tell her. Tell her that he was done with her, and that he wanted to stay goodbye.

"Yes." Robin cleared his throat. "I understand...that this is a bit awkward..."

"No kidding," Regina sighed.

"So." Robin's eyes, which had been darting back and forth to everywhere except to her, finally flickered over to meet hers. "I wanted to tell you..."

"Yes?" Regina braced herself. This was it, this was it...

"That I hope to resume our relationship."

"I understa-" Regina stopped. "Wait. What?"

"I would like..." Robin swallowed. "To resume our relationship."

Regina was fairly certain at this point that she had gone deaf. "What?"

"I've given much thought about this." Robin's gaze fell away from her again. "I know I made a commitment to Marian. But..." Robin hesitated.

"But what?!" Regina stared at him incredulously. "She's your wife!"

"She's-" Robin looked pained. "For whatever reasons, she's not the same woman I married. Or at least, she doesn't seem like it."

It took Regina a minute to comprehend that. "What do you mean?"

"It's...hard to explain." Robin swallowed. "But there's something...off about her. She seems much more...how do I put this...aggressive. We've been arguing...a lot. She refuses to accept the fact that you've changed. She wants me to cut all ties with you."

"That hardly seems like an unreasonable reaction." Now it was Regina's turn to look away. "You are her husband. And I have been seeing you."

"Yes...but the Marian I fell in love with would have seen the truth." Regina heard, and sensed Robin coming closer to her and her heart began drumming in her chest violently. "Or at least, I think she would have. I'm not even sure of that now."

"You realize it may be my fault that she's changed," Regina said quietly. "I wasn't exactly kind to my prisoners when I was the Evil Queen."

"I know. But you weren't you." His fingers intertwined with hers. She immediately felt her breath catch in her throat. "Regina...the thing I love about you-" Regina immediately winced when he used the l-word. "-Is that I can tell who you are. I never knew you when you were the Evil Queen, but I know you now. And isn't that really all that matters? I see more than just the Evil Queen, and I think you deserve happiness. Marian...maybe it would be easier to stay with her if she would be willing to give you a second chance...like the Marian I thought I knew. But she won't. And I know that sounds a bit one-sided of me, but I feel like I know you. In a way that I've never felt with Marian."

"What are you saying?" This couldn't be happening. This was just too good to be true. Villains didn't get happy endings. Never.

"I'm saying-" Regina dared to tilt her head up at his words and met his gaze somewhat hesitantly. But it held strong. Like he never wanted to let her go. "I'm saying I choose you."

Silence. Joy filled her, and almost immediately she knew she was going to throw away the potion she and Sydney had brewed. Why had she ever thought she needed it?

"What about Marian?" Regina asked in a soft whisper. "She's the mother of your child. You can't abandon that for me."

"This is my choice Regina." He lifted a hand to gently trace his finger along her jawline. "Let me worry about the consequences. But the fairy dust brought you to me for a reason. I've made a lot of decisions I regret in the past, and I feel like if I don't take a leap of faith, then it'd be the biggest regret of them all."

Okay. That was enough for her.

She kissed him then, and she kissed him hard. As she felt Robin's arms go round her waist and pull her closer, she felt warmth stir within her chest, fueling the strange optimism that everything would be all right.

Granny's had gained two new regulars. Anna turned out to be a huge fan of hot chocolate (omigosh, chocolate is a drink now?!), and as she and her sister worked to resolved any issues caused by Elsa's disappearance, the table in the far corner of the diner had become their usual spot, and no one dared to interfere.

"So no more unexpected winters?" Red asked Elsa teasingly as she brought their usual rounds of hot chocolate. After a day or two recovering from the gunshot she had received from George, it was her first day back on the job.

"I doubt not," Elsa replied, giving her a smile. "You look better."

"Thanks. I'm just glad it wasn't silver." Red gave her a final friendly nod, then walked away to the neighboring table to take their order.

Anna reached forward, and began sipping the warm liquid out of her mug. "Seriously, why didn't we ever do this? I mean, chocolate as a drink. That's brilliance in itself."

"Anna..." Elsa's hands closed around her mug, feeling the warmth radiate from the surface. She didn't like it, she preferred the cold, but she loved the drink so she bared through it. "Are you doing okay?"

Anna blinked. "Me? Yeah. I'm fine. Why?"

"You were kidnapped," Elsa said frankly.

"By an old guy. Compared to all the other stuff we've been through, that's not so bad." Anna let out a little sigh. "I dunno. I was scared, yeah...but I was more scared for how it would affect you." Her voice cracked a little bit at the end of her sentence. "Really scared."

Elsa reached over and took her sister's hand. "I'm so sorry. I never should have let myself be locked in that jar. But I was scared...scared I was going to hurt you..."

"We've been through this." Anna squeezed Elsa's hand. "You'd never hurt me. You can control your powers now, right?"

"Yes...I suppose." Elsa felt a little hesitant admitting so.

"No. Bad Elsa. No doubt." Anna smacked her hand lightly, making Elsa crack a smile. "No doubt. You can control your powers. You don't need me to do it. You have it in you. I have faith in you."

A bell chimed, signaling the arrival of new customers. Elsa looked up to see Rumpelstiltskin and Belle stride in hand-and-hand. They both looked happy, the kind of happy you could only feel if you were with someone you loved unconditionally.

As Belle let go of her husband's hand to greet Red and give her a hug, Rumple's eyes flickered over to meet Elsa's.

He didn't smile, he didn't wave. But he did give her a small, curt nod from across the room. Then his eyes were all for Belle again, as Red lead them to take a seat in a table all the way across from the diner.

"Hellooo?" Anna said, frowning. "Earth to Elsa?"

"Sorry." Elsa refocused her attention on her sister.

"Say it."

"Say what?"

"Say that you can control your powers, silly."

"Okay." For the first time in what felt like forever, Elsa felt a flicker of optimism. It grew faster and faster, until it was curled in her chest and filling her with the only warmth her magic would permit.

"Say it."

"I can control my powers." Elsa smiled. "Happy?"

"Yes." Anna was beaming brightly.

"Good." Elsa let go of Anna's hand and sipped at her hot chocolate. "Now, do you have any idea when Kristoff is going to propose?"

Anna's grin grew wider, and Elsa smiled.

Yes. Everything was going to be alright.

*The End*