Chapter Text
~~~~~Storybrooke 7:00 p.m~~~~~
~~~~~~~Gold's Pawn Shop~~~~~~~
Rumplestiltskin collapses on the floor of his shop as Belle tries to wake him up and the Darkness slowly kills the man behind the beast…
~~~~~Storybrooke 7:25 p.m~~~~~
~~~~~~~Granny's Diner~~~~~~~
Everyone is celebrating Henry's defeat of Issac and the return of their happy endings…
“Hello love…” Robin says as he kisses Regina then joins her and Henry at the booth where they were re-reading the story of Snow White and Prince Charming…
“So, not to puncture the party, but how is Zelena?” He asks wanting to make sure that Zelena is locked back inside her cell at the hospital…
“Yes, she's still locked up, still pregnant… but that's something we'll be able to deal with…” Regina says as she smiles at Robin enjoying the happiness in the moment…
“Together…” Robin says as he holds Regina's hand… “So, Will is looking after Roland and I was hoping I'd be able to tear you away from Henry for a stroll in the moonlight?” Robin asks hopefully and Regina blushes as she looks towards Henry…
“Go, have fun and be gross somewhere else…” He says teasingly as Robin ruffles his hair and Regina kisses his forehead and they both get up leaving Henry with his book as they leave…
“I didn't mean to kill you… to be fair though I didn't have my heart…” David says as Snow lightly elbows him in the arm, “So it's my fault? What I think he means to say is we're both sorry.” She finishes look at Hook and Emma referring to Issac's twisted versions of their stories…
“Well you don't need to be sorry, though I do intend to hold it over both your heads for a very, very long time.” Hook says jokingly.
“I think we both know what happened in that world wasn't real. Although, seeing you guys as real villains made me feel sorry for holding a grudge over you guys for so long…” Emma admits as she hugs her mom for the first time in a while.
As the music continued and everyone was talking with each other thanking whatever gods were put there that they were able to catch their breath for once Belle comes storming in and rushes up to Emma…
“Rumple… his heart, he said it's almost gone… and, uh, he said we're all in danger…” She explain as Emma, Hook, Snow and David, Henry and The Apprentice follow Belle to the Pawn shop…
~~~~~Storybrooke 7:45 p.m~~~~~
~~~~~~~Mr. Gold's Pawn Shop~~~~~~~
The Apprentice holds his mentor's hat and sets it next to Gold as he prepares to do what he hopes is the right choice…
“He tried to use the Hat to free himself from the dagger…” Hook says out into the space.
“This is not unlike that. We’re pulling the Darkness that plagues him from his heart and containing it.” The Apprentice states wisely.
“D-Does that mean he will be healed, that he’ll be who he once was?” Belle inquires as she's bent over Gold examining him as The Apprentice answer.
“Perhaps, if the strength is there.” The Apprentice says as he reaches into Gold’s chest and pulls out his Darkened Heart. “This is more Dark power than the Hat has ever been asked to contain…”
“Do what you need to do.” Emma says as Henry steps back and watches closely…
“Purest Evil, Blackest Bloom… Darkness, too, can find its doom.” The Apprentice chants a spell as he holds the heart of The Dark One in his hand and opens the Hat and points it towards the heart in his hand. “Never dying but contained. Bound inside the Falcon’s chamber. Storm of anger, thrones danger. There forever to remain!” The Apprentice finishes as the Hat starts to pull out the Darkness from Gold's heart.
The heart's Darkness is sucked into the hat as the Dagger of the Dark One starts to glow as the name Rumplestiltskin disappears from the blade, returning Gold's Heart to one of innocence before The Apprentice gives the heart back…
“H-He’s barely breathing.” Belle says as the group looks on concerned…
“Rumplestiltskin was the Dark One for centuries. His return to the man he used to be will not be easy…” The Apprentice states as he puts a preserving spell over Gold. “This will preserve him until we discern if we can help him.”
“If?” Belle asks as the Hat glows and swirls as the group stands back and sees the stars on the box disappear in the Darkness.
“Everybody, step back.” Emma says in defense.
Darkness erupts from the box that holds the Hat and goes after the Apprentice trying to kill him as Emma uses her light magic and sends the Darkness out into the night of Storybrooke.
“Mom, Dad, go after it we'll be right there!” Emma says as she turns to her son and Hook “Help me make him comfortable.”
The group splits and Hook, Henry and Emma move The Apprentice into the back room as Belle stays with Gold.
“What was that?” Emma inquires as she kneels down beside The Apprentice.
“Long ago, before your stories began, The Sorcerer battled the Darkness. He was able to keep from consuming the Realms of Story. He tethered it to a human soul that could be controlled with the dagger…” The Apprentice says telling his mentor’s story.
“The Dark One.” Emma states.
“Yes. The Sorcerer is the only one with the power to destroy the Darkness once and for all, before it destroys everything.” The Apprentice continues…
“Where is he? Wh-who is he?” Emma asks.
“He’s far, far from here.” The Apprentice responds.
“Find him. His name is… Merlin. You must stop… the Darkness… Find Merlin.” The Apprentice finishes as the group decides to meet back up with everyone.
~~~~~Storybrooke 8:00 p.m~~~~~
~~~~~~~Town Center~~~~~~~
Emma, Hook and Henry make it out into the town's center after giving Belle the go ahead to look over Gold and The Apprentice to find Snow and David looking around aimlessly.
“Where is it?” Henry asks upon seeing nothing around them.
“We don't know.” David says, looking around. “It just disappeared into the night.” Snow respond exasperated.
“Hey, what's going on?” Regina says as she and Robin approach the group. “The Dark One is no longer tethered to the crocodile.” Hook says as they look around.
“What? Where the hell is it?” Regina asks as she also begins to look around. “It hasn't gone anywhere. The Darkness, it's surrounding us.” Emma states as the group looks frantic.
Regina gasps as the Darkness sweeps around her, locking her in a destructive whirlwind…
“Regina!”
“Mom!!” Henry and Robin scream as Regina is stuck in the Darkness trying to kill her. “I…” Emma voices looking at Robin and at Regina feeling a sense of doom as Henry approaches her…
“What’s it doing?” Robin asks…
“What Darkness does. It's snuffing out the light.” Emma says as she, Robin, and Henry approach the swirling void…
“Well I'm not going to let it…” Robin says as he tries to get her only to be blown back. “That's not gonna work on this thing!” Emma screams over the storming voids destructive yell. “The Apprentice told me we have to do what the Sorcerer did. We have to tether it to a person to contain it.” Emma says as…
…Henry, sensing what his mother was going to do and seeing how much both of his mothers struggled to get their happy endings, grabs the Dagger from her and rushes toward Regina…
“Henry No!!” Emma and Regina say only too late as Henry has already made up his mind.
“No! Henry, there has to be another way!!” Regina says in pain as Henry approaches.
“There isn't… if you or Mom become the new Dark One you'd be too powerful to stop… and we'd never get you back unless you work with us… you've both worked too hard to lose your happy endings…!” Henry says..
“Henry! Don't do this!!” Emma yells as she holds onto Hook.
“Lad listen to your mother!! Come back!!” Hook says desperate as he finally got through both Emma’s and Henry’s walls around their hearts…
“Henry…!” Snow and David say looking at him in fear and hopelessness…
“No!” Emma yells as Henry turns around Dagger in hand…
“You figured out a way to remove the Darkness from within Mom once you'll find a way to do it with me… you're the heroes… I'm no one…” Henry says breaking his families hearts all at once as he plunges the Dagger into the Darkness…
“Henry, Henry Please don't do this!!” Regina says from within the storm…
“I love you, I love you all…” Henry says as the Darkness envelopes him and creeps up his arms and through his veins leaving ice and venom in their wake before reaching his heart. Henry grunts in pain as the Darkness warps around Henry and destroys any ounce of light in his heart turning it into the Heart of the Darkest Believer as the Darkness whisks Henry away to the Vault as the Dagger twists in Darkness revealing a Darker Blade and Henry Mills written on it…
Storybrooke 8:15 p.m
Henry Mills is The Dark One