Fatal Fire: Traveler

Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time, or Wizard of Oz, for that matter.
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Trouble in Paradise

Bae walked into the diner and sat next to August at the bar. "Anything?" he asked.

"Nope," the puppet replied. "Same old same old."

"The harbor's still our only way out, then."

"And knowing Regina, she probably populated that part of the Atlantic with sea monsters and pirates."

"Sounds like fun."

August sipped his drink. "You have no idea." Bae turned on the stool to face the door, and he leaned back. The small talk the people in the diner were engaging in had little to no bearing on anything, which Bae actually found quite soothing. "Then there's the matter of how Regina will get us back," August said.

"What's that mean?"

"She's not letting us go without a fight."

"So we fight back."

"You think you can use magic well enough?"

"I've done pretty well so far."

"In life-threatening situations, sure, but what about in a place like this?" Bae glanced at August's drink, conjured a piece of ice, and dropped it in. August took a sip, blinked, and said, "Oh, thanks."

"Told you I've been doing well."

August took another sip. "Alright, you win this round."

Bae looked back at the front door just as Hook, in his now-usual black coat, entered. The captain took a seat next to Bae and ordered the strongest drink the establishment provided. "Rough night?" Bae asked.

Hook threw back a shot. "You have no idea."

"I don't know what to say to that, really, I don't."

"I don't want you to say anything."

"Alright."

"At least he can rest now."

"That's always good." Bae suddenly thought of Zoso and his father. His father lived forever now, but Zoso, he figured, had been resting in peace for just as long, plus or minus a few decades.

"Any word on if there's sea monsters out there?" August asked.

"No," the captain replied, "but I don't want to try it."

"Makes three of us, then," Bae said. Hook smirked and ordered another round.

OUAT

The commander forced herself to study her reflection as she tied her hair back, as she did every morning. She let the strands that were her bangs hang where they were, as they had ever since she left Neverland to join Hook and let him train her further. A week on the front lines of an Ogre War could only go so far.

Finally, she turned away. For reasons she had yet to figure out, mirrors made her nervous. But when she turned her back, a shiver raced up her spine. She wheeled back around, reaching for her sword. She drew it and pointed it at the mirror. Purple smoke filled the glass, and a woman appeared out of it. The commander lunged toward the woman, but she disappeared before she even reached the mirror. The commander stopped. The woman stepped out from behind the mirror. "You must be the witch we keep locked up, with good reason," the commander said, leveling her sword on the witch.

"I have a name you know," she replied. "It's Cora."

She flicked her wrist, and the sword flew out of the commander's hand to clatter to the floor on the other side of the room. Then the commander found herself magically pinned to the wall and gasping for air. "What...are you...doing?"

"Replacing you."