All Magic Comes With a Price:

Page 43: Death:

Emma looked at Neal after the news that Belle just told her. Neal saw the worried expression on her face before he screamed out in pain.

"Neal? Neal?" Emma exclaimed as she moved to his side, while he groaned in pain. "Neal, what did you do?" Emma asked, looking at the mark on his hand.

Emma almost jumped out of her skin when Neal's face started to morph with Gold's. He was screaming in pain, but it was really weird and gross.

"I think Gold is inside you. I think that's how you're still alive." Emma said to Neal, who kept groaning in pain.

"Yeah, I can hear my father's voice in my head. He's in there; he's in me." Neal mumbled through the pain.

"He said there was no room. He meant you."

"I need you to help me, Emma. Use your magic. Separate me and my father..." Neal said, grabbing ahold of Emma's arms.

"Are you kidding? Then you'll die." Emma scoffed at him, worrying that she would end up killing Neal by doing this.

"I know. But you need my dad more than me. To figure out who the witch is, to save the town. You need to do this." Neal continued to tell her, still wincing in pain.

"I've never done anything like that before. Not that big."

"Do it. To save you and Henry. Do it. Please." Neal begged, starting to tear up.

Emma sighed, moving to grab Neal's hands. She closed her eyes, trying to use her magic to separate Neal and Gold. It worked. A blast of magic came out when Neal flopped onto the ground. Gold looked confused at Emma who was blasted back a bit.

"Neal! Neal, are you okay?" Emma asked, after a small moment of confusion, when Gold realized what just happened.

"What have you done?" Gold asked Emma.

"It's okay. Papa, I told her to." Neal said as Emma helped hold him up a bit.

"But why?"

"So, you can tell her who the witch is, so you can defeat her..."

"Zelena," Gold said with spite in his voice.

"What?" Emma asked, knowing that was the name of Mary Margaret's midwife.

"Zelena." Gold repeated.

"She's the witch? What does she want?" Emma asked Gold as Gold looked at his dying son.

"What she doesn't have." Gold sighed, knowing most of her plan.

"There has to be some way you can save him, right?"

Gold sighed, standing up, while he looked at his dying son. "It's too late, Emma," Neal said, weakly, when he looked up at her while she started to cry.

"Just hang in there, please. You haven't even had a chance to see Henry. For him to remember you." Emma begged, crying as she looked down at him.

"It's okay. He doesn't need to. He just needs to know that in the end, I was a good father. I saved this for you. To give to you again." Neal said, reaching into his pocket. He handed Emma a key chain. "Take it. Go find Tallahassee. Even if it's without me." He said, weakly, trying not to cry.

"Neal..." Emma sighed, still tearing up.

"Hey... I'll be watching over you guys from somewhere. Promise me. Just promise me that you'll both be happy." Neal said as Emma promised him.

"I promise. I promise." Emma promised him, while she moved to hold onto him.

"No. No, no, no. I can fix this." Gold said, moving back down to them.

"No, you can't. You can't. Thank you, Papa. For showing me what it is to make a true sacrifice. It's about saving the ones that you love."

"No..." Gold sighed, shaking his head while he tried his hardest not to cry.

"It's my turn now," Neal said, with a weak smile, holding Gold's hand.

"No... I don't wanna let you go." Gold cried, squeezing his son's hand, while Emma closed her eyes as she cried for a moment.

"I need you to... Please. Let." Neal said, weakly, when Gold moved one of his hands to Neal's face. He continued to look at his boy. His firstborn son, who he risked everything for.

"I love you, son."

"I love you, Papa," Neal said, weakly, before turning to look towards the sky, before his body turned lifeless. Emma looked up at Gold, while they were both crying for a bit.

*The Hospital*

Dream was changing little Evangeline's diaper, while Hook eating the lunch Granny brought over. Granny was smiling, while she was holding little Sebastian.

Suddenly, Dream felt a strange sting feeling in her chest. She moved her hand to her chest when she saw flashes of Neal's death.

"Dream?" Hook quickly got up, rushing to her side as she gasped, stepping back a bit. "What's wrong?" Hook asked, holding onto her when Dream looked mortified.

Granny moved over to make sure that baby Evangeline was fine in the bassinet, while she continued to hold baby Sebastian.

"N-Neal..." Dream started to tear up when one of the tears rolled down her cheek.

"What about him, love?" Hook asked, holding his hand on Dream's back, when she looked down, seeing the teardrop to the floor. She watched as the ground glowed gold for a moment when she closed her eyes.

*In the Woods*

Emma and Gold were still in shock, looking at Neal who was lifeless in Emma's arms. Emma's only thought was Henry. What was she going to tell him? His father was gone. For good this time. Gold was about to drop Neal's hand, but he noticed the ground glowing gold around them. He furrowed his brows, while the glowing was like a vine when Neal's chest started to glow gold.

"What's going on?" Emma asked when she noticed the glowing too.

"I have no idea..." Gold said, watching as Neal's whole chest glowed bright yellow gold. Within seconds, Neal's chest moved again, going up and down. He opened his eyes when he shivered for a moment before he let out a breath like he was holding it. Neal looked at Emma and Gold in confusion. "Bae..." Gold smiled when Neal was alive. He was back.

"What happened?" Neal asked, looking at them. He just died.

Gold did not know what to say as he kissed Neal's hand that was in his hands. He did not have to lose his son.

"Gold..." Emma said, softly, when she looked next to Neal, seeing a golden rose, glowing and sparkling.

"Dream," Gold said when she moved to touch the rose that shriveled up as soon as he touched it. The golden rose went back to dust, returning to the ground when Emma and Neal just looked confused.

"What about her?" Emma asked when Gold turned back to look at them.

"She's cheated death," Gold said, squeezing Neal's hand.

"How?" Neal asked, moving to sit up since they were still in the middle of the forest.

"I cannot answer that... No one has ever done it before. Not even myself." Gold said when he just smiled at his son who he had back.

~season 3, episode 15: "Quiet Minds"~

~1150 words~