Rumplestiltskin clenches his jaw, his eyes ablaze with fire. He stares down to look at the sleeping figure in the bed. Belle lays a hand on his shoulder, breaking his menacing glare to the girl's sleeping body. "Do you know if you can help her?"

"I do know.. that I can't help her. She needs True Love's Kiss to awaken. Something neither of us can give her," he responds with gritted teeth. Belle frowns. "What, why can't we give her True Love's Kiss? We love her, like, truly love her," the brunette asks. Mr Gold shakes his head. "I know curses. I've inflicted them many times before. They are a part of someone's destiny, and her waking up now by our hand is not part of her destiny.. though I'd rather it was."

Belle groans and pulls at her hair in frustration. "What can we do?" Rumple shakes his head. "Nothing, for now, except making sure that she is safe. Her being asleep is a great way to harm her. After all, she would not be able to do something back." The pawnbroker places his cane against the wall and spreads his arms, palms down. He slowly raises them and so, raises magic as a wall around her.

"Nothing can harm her now."

"Are you sure? I-I cannot bare having something happen to her right now," Belle asks in a whisper tone. Rumplestiltskin places an arm around her shoulder and both of them stare at Winter's sleeping figure.

As madness and panic spread over town, none realise the danger flying over their heads, looking at them with shiny, ruby eyes. It flies over the town, searching around and feeling for the right.. human being.

The right shadow, to be exact.

It rushes through the air, absorbing all darkness around it, and finds the right window soon enough. With a simple flick of its hand, the window opens and it pools inside. When it looks to it's left, it grins menacingly. A grin that would cause many children nightmares. Bingo.

It was about to step towards the bed, reaching out for the sleeping figure in the bed. It almost succeeded, was it not for the magical barrier around her bed, protecting her from invasion. It hisses when the barrier casts it against the wall.

What is this, it thinks. What keeps me from finishing my mission?

, another voice in its head says, commanding it to come back to him. The thing does as commanded of it and leaves the bedroom and the sleeping girl, closing the window behind it. Leaving no trace as the shadow leaves Storybrooke, going back to where it came from.

After the dwarves explained that whenever someone crosses the town border, their cursed selves become reality for good, it was even more chaos in town. Gold had gone back to his shop since he figured people would come after him. That afternoon he was busy studying his spell books, trying to find a way to bring Winter back without breaking her destiny.

Even though he was very concentrated, he did hear the front door of his shop opening, the sound of heels on the floorboards and the noise of rummaging through his belongings. Gold stands up by putting pressure on his cane and walks through the curtains. He smiles when he sees Regina Mills, who didn't notice him.

"The library's beneath the clock tower," he remarks with a grin, catching the black haired woman's attention. "You closed it, remember? But after using my little magic word, you gave me the key, to appease my little princess. When you still had power."

"I need the book," the Evil Queen says, sounding quite stressed," I need to get my son back." "Which book? Oh-" Gold laughs when he realises what the woman means," So it's come down to that, eh? You need your mommy's help." Rumplestiltskin was taunting her and that did not sit well with Regina.

"Do you really need to smell of the written word to get the magic flowing again, love? Maybe if you relaxed, it would just happen." "I don't have time. It worked once, I know I can do it. I just.. I just need a shortcut back." The Queen was getting a little emotional. "Yeah, well, I don't have time either. Leave, so I can focus on the same problem as you have: getting my child back. Please."

Regina was waiting for the impact of her deal with Mr Gold, the irresistable impulse to leave.. but it never came. The Evil Queen flashes him a nasty, satisfied smile. "Well.. how about that? Your 'pleases' have lost their punch." Gold was not fazed by the loss and responds with the same calmth as before. "Well, the fact remains.. jump-starting your magic is not in my best interests."

"You know what else isn't in your best interest?" The Queen was getting her smart mouth back now that he has lost some control over her. "Having everyone know the Enchanted Forest still excists. Knowing that you and I are keeping that little secret. You're up to something.. and it doesn't involve going back home. Can it be.. to prevent fate from striking your princess or.. other reasons.." Regina tries to open the chest next to them, but Gold slams it shut with his hand.

He waves his hand and purple smoke surrounds it. When it faded away, it reveals a book. "I was done reading it anyway." Regina reaches out to grab it, but Rumplestiltskin holds it back. "Careful, dearie. These are straight-up spells. Rough on the system." But the Evil Queen eagerly takes the book into her hands and snarls. "I don't care if they turn me green. I'm getting my son back."

The woman turns around and leaves in a slight haste. She was stopped by Gold, who was chuckling. "Oh, my." Regina turns around and snaps:" What?" Rumplestiltskin points at her book. "It's just holding that.. I told you once you didn't look like her, but now.. Now I can see it," he says with a satisfied glint in his eyes while the woman before him looks mostly annoyed. To show her annoyance, she leaves without saying a word and slams his door shut.

Emma and Mary Margaret, now in a whole different realm, were captured by a warrior lady and a princess. They were forced to walk behind their horses through rough land for over hours. The two women were taken to a large camp on some sort of island, connected by a path of sand to shore. The princess and the warrior step off their horses and march into camp, sending the two strangers before them.

In a hopeless act, Snow White pushes Aurora to the ground and yells for the two of them to run. They might have made it, if Mulan did not knocks Mary Margaret out. The two were dragged towards something they called 'the pit' and were locked up there. Inside their prison cell, they meer another woman who's name was Cora.

When Cora went asleep and Mary Margaret was still unconscious, Emma sits by the wall. It was dark and there was no way she could see anything. It was getting hopeless, but she reminds herself of something Henry once said, which he got from Winter. "Don't give up on hopes and believes. I'm trying so hard, Winter, but it really seems hopeless now."

The blonde hangs her head, takes a deep breath and exhales loudly. No, she can't give up. Not now.

"When we get out, we find a way to get back to Storybrooke. We will find a way to break your Sleeping Curse. I promise." After that, she falls asleep from fatigue.

What she didn't know was that Aurora, who was walking outside after waking up from a nightmare, was listening to her words. Her mind was rattling. Winter? The only fairy tale figure that is called like that is, after all, Winter.. her fiancé's sister. Was she trapped in a Sleeping Curse? But why didn't Philip tell her that?

Or maybe.. he didn't know at all.

"Is something wrong, princess," a familiar voice asks. She looks up and sees Mulan, still dressed in armor. The warrior had just returned from her shift in the patrol of the camp. Aurora looks the woman in the eye. "You joined Philip and Charming in their journey after they left my palace, so you might not know this, but.. Philip promised to return to me once he found his little sister."

"Princess Winter," Mulan agrees. "Philip never explicitly said he found her and I haven't seen her in the camp. Now, I hear the prisoner say that a certain Winter is trapped in a Sleeping Curse and... what happened during my sleep?" The warrior sighs and runs a hand through her hair.

"I promised the prince to take it easy with telling you what happened and I'm not the one to break a promise. He did not find Winter, that's correct, but why and how is a story for another time," Mulan promises. The warrior orders the princess to go to sleep, which she tries.

Yet her mind is filled with nightmares of a flaming room, a screaming boy and a sobbing girl, begging for someone to take her, only Aurora could never hear which name she was calling.