A/N: Takes place sometime after 2x12.
"One coffee, no sugar. I don't know how you can drink it like that."
Victor honestly hated the taste of coffee. He had tried to sweeten it with sugar once or twice but he had never really had a taste for sweet things. All he really needed was the caffeine, so he ordered his coffee black and pretended he liked the taste.
"It's not so bad, once you get used to it."
Ruby smirked at him from across the counter. His trips to the diner had become more frequent since his recent...attempted midnight swim. She never brought it up, which he appreciated. She just smiled when he walked through the door, whether it was borne out of pity or politeness he didn't know. He appreciated the effort all the same. It had been a long time since anyone had even pretended to be happy to see him.
"Yea well, I will take my cavities over your black coffee any day. You heading to the hospital?"
"My shift starts in twenty minutes."
"Stop by later, Granny's making some of her famous lasagna. I'll save you a slice."
"I'll try."
He would do more than try. He would be here. They both knew it, she could have said that Granny was making a stew out of rats and he would have been first in line to try some. As long as she asked it. He knew it was nothing more than gratitude on his part, perhaps a bit of hero-worship. She did save his life. It was natural to gravitate towards someone who was so much stronger than you were. Especially in the state he had been in. And she was obligated, as the hero, to make sure the person she saved didn't try to off himself again so soon. It was textbook psychology. He was sure this...companionship between them would eventually fade away.
"Where is everyone?" He was only now realizing that the diner was mostly abandoned. Completely abandoned actually. There should have been at least one or two people getting their morning coffee and donuts right now. Even Granny was missing.
"The town hall. They are having some big meeting, something to do with getting everyone home. Rumpelstiltskin thinks he may have found a way, some untapped source of power that could open a gate or something."
"Oh." It wasn't odd that he wasn't invited to it. He rarely had any say in the coming and goings of the town. He was just there to patch everyone up when whatever plan they were working on inevitably blew up in their faces. Hell he might have been invited to it. He was often oblivious to what people around him were talking about. He had a tendency to zone out of a conversation if he found the topic uninteresting. However...
"Why aren't you at the meeting? Aren't you usually included in things like this?" Ruby had been David's right hand when Mary Margaret and Emma had gone missing. Most of the townspeople looked to her for leadership as much as anyone else.
"Yea well. Granny said she was going to go, so I thought I would stay and leave the diner open in case anyone wanted something to eat."
"That hardly makes sense if everyone was going to the meeting anyway. The diner is empty, you're just wasting your time."
"Some people might not have heard about the meeting. Or were too busy with their work to know it was going on. It doesn't feel like a waste of time."
Victor still thought she was crazy, she had an important voice in this town. It was silly of her to not be included in something so vital just so a few stragglers could have a hot meal. He wanted to argue the point further, but was worried he might offend her. It was her decision, he really had no right to question it.
"Besides, when whatever they are planning blows up spectacularly, they are going to need us to race in and rescue them."
"Us?" He hadn't meant to say it. It was purely out of surprise, a gut reaction. He wasn't opposed to helping out, quite the opposite. But it was still so...new to him, for others to simply assume that he would help. That he was one of the good guys.
"Sure, I mean, they get themselves in all kinds of trouble. Makes sense to have some people sitting on the outside of it." He was still mulling over the 'us' aspect of her words. Clearly she meant it in a friendly, the people in this particular area, sort of way.
"I'm sure it's not that bad. I mean it's not like..." He wasn't even sure why he started that sentence. It was like daring the universe to do something, to come in and smack the normalcy right out of the moment. The loud boom echoed through the town, and rattled the windows of Granny's diner. The lights flickered.
Ruby caught his eye.
"Its taking all your effort not to say 'I told you so' right now, isn't it?"
"You got your medical gear on you Doctor? Cause I think we might need it."
"I'll grab it out of my trunk." He sighed as he placed his coffee back on the counter. Didn't even get to finish it.
They left the diner and headed towards the town hall. He could feel the magic in the air. Could see the wisps of black and purple smoke that were swirling through every molecule of oxygen.
"What is that?"
Victor followed Ruby's line of sight. He stopped. He couldn't move. No.
"Victor? What is it? Are you alright?"
Please no. Not this. Not her.
"I...Ruby I can't..."
A scream pierced the air, forced its way past the magic and noise. Ruby turned to it. She would have to go. She would try to save anyone she could. She would run into the unknown, into an un-winnable fight, she was so much stronger than him. She grabbed his wrist.
"Victor come on, people need our help."
His legs followed her command. He knew he would go with her, knew he would go anywhere she asked him to. He wouldn't let her face this alone. He couldn't let her go into this fight alone, not this time. Not again.
The wind was blowing everywhere. It was like a tornado within the small meeting hall. He saw everyone pushed to the edges of the room. Emma and Mary Margaret, Regina and Rumpelstiltskin, the dwarves and Dr. Hopper. Countless people whose names he knew, whose injuries he had treated over the years. The force of the wind was holding them in place, some pinned several feet off the ground against the wall. Debris swirled around, crashing and cracking, splintering in the air and moving with a force only nature could produce.
And there she was. In the center of it all. Just as beautiful as he remembered her. Just as cruel.
She was laughing the wrong laugh. Not the one that used to make his heart race, that made him want to be more. Be better. This wasn't that laugh, this was the new laugh. The one he had forced her to adopt. After he made her this way, his second monster.
Ruby moved to help David, valiantly trying to protect his family from any harm. Victor grabbed Ruby's arm.
"Don't."
"I can't just do nothing. I have to help them."
"Wait just one moment. Please." It was one thing to forgive a person for being Dr. Frankenstein. To look past the horrors and see the original intent, the good that could have been. But this was different. There was no forgiving him for what he was about to have to confess to. Ruby...Ruby couldn't forgive him for this. He certainly had never forgiven himself for it. He knew what she would think of him. What his actions would cost. But he had always known. Always known that his past would find him, destroy him. God. Why now?
"Victor we have to stop her."
"I know Ruby."
"She is going to kill them."
"I know." She would kill them. She would shatter their bones and scatter them across the town. Then she would forget all about them. Find another town, find more people to kill. She would never stop. He could only assume that Regina or Rumpelstiltskin were behind all this. They were the only ones stupid enough to think they could control power such as hers. The only ones so blind to the danger that they would release her from her cage. The fact that they were both bound to the wall with the rest of them gave him little satisfaction. Maybe he should let her kill them then try to save everybody.
No, they probably wouldn't like that. He was relatively new to this whole hero thing but he was fairly certain they were very much opposed to allowing people to be murdered in front of them.
"If we can get Regina or Gold free then maybe they can help defeat her."
A good idea. But ultimately futile. No power they possessed could match hers. He could only hope that she didn't rip him to pieces the moment she realized he was there. That she would give him a chance to talk to her. To the real her.
"Victor if we don't..."
"Ruby. I...I'm sorry. I'm not. I'm sorry I wasn't as good a man as you make me want to be."
"What? Victor what are you talking about?"
"I just, wanted to say that in case she kills me."
"You know her." It was a simple statement. A fact. But it burned through him, it brought memories to his mind he had buried long ago. Memories he had to keep down, if he had any chance of making it through this with his sanity intact.
"I'll distract her. If I can't talk her down, you can at least start freeing people and sneaking them out the side door." Ruby was going to argue. He had to go now before she talked him out of it. More than likely, it wouldn't have taken more than a simple "don't."
He moved quickly up the aisle. The wind pushed his hair and clothing around. He didn't move his arms up to protect his face or eyes, though he wanted to. He just moved forward, slowly and with a confidence he hoped no one could tell he was faking.
David spotted him first. He looked concerned. Victor was oddly touched.
"Whale! Get out of here!"
She didn't turn. He had no magic, was carrying no weapon. She couldn't possibly perceive him as a threat. And it wasn't like Whale was a name she would be familiar with. He had to do this. Had to face this. To finally accept what he had done. She raised her arms, he heard the crackle in the air. One of her nastier fire spells no doubt.
"That's enough Theodora."
The wind stopped. The crackle of her magic in the air vanished. Silence. She turned slowly. Her eyes focused on him. She didn't speak, just walked towards him. Each step was deliberate, more calculated than she was usually capable of. She wouldn't be hasty when she killed him. He didn't deserve a quick death. He tried not to flinch when she brought a hand up to his face. He wasn't entirely successful.
"It's really you isn't it?"
He had to be quick, had to get through to her.
"I want to speak to Glinda."
She laughed the wrong laugh again. It twisted her face. Pulled it in directions her face never used to move.
"Oh of course you want to speak to her. Of course you do. It's always her isn't it. She's the one you want to talk to. She's the one. Always her. Always her. You only cared about her. Not me. That made you a liar didn't it. After you swore and swore and all it was, was pretty little lies."
"Please. Just for a moment."
"Oh I should shouldn't I? I should. That would teach you wouldn't it? Would hurt you more than the fire ever could. Perhaps I will. Perhaps I will let her sweet voice be in your ears one more time. Maybe you have forgotten what she sounds like. Maybe you want to hear her beg you one more time. Maybe this time you will actually do what she asks. Will you? Will you do it? No...No you won't. Hahahahahaha oh Victor. You are too easy to torture you know that? You ask for it. You live for the pain. I will let you talk to her, one last time. Because I know it won't matter. You will never do what she wants, what she begs me every day to do. And she does. She begs for it. For what she knows I or you or anyone else will ever be able to do. Every day she begs. Does that hurt you Victor? To know what you sent her to, what you willingly let happen?"
"I didn't..."
"LIAR. You knew. You knew and you still did this to us. To her. I should kill these people in front of you Victor. One by one. All the little bodies lined up in a row, ashes beneath my feet. Dust to swirl in the wind and fly away like little birds. Would you like to see that again Victor? How great would that be to see again? Just like old times. But you don't have those fools with you this time, to lock me away. Your cage won't hold, and while I sat in quiet and burned, shadows crept in through the cracks. You haven't been home in a long time Victor. Do you know what's happened? Have you seen the shadows that stalk the children and push away the light? You don't do you? You don't know what's happened since you ran away."
"Theodora. Let me speak to Glinda. Now."
"So serious all the time Victor. No wonder they wanted you to rule. No wonder you ran away."
"I..."
"Victor?" It was her. He could hear it in her voice, the confusion, the innocence. Theodora could never fake Glinda's voice. She could never fake the look in Glinda's eyes. She was never able to trick them into thinking that Glinda had control of their body.
"Glinda?" He didn't know why he questioned it. He knew it was her.
"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here, if Theodora takes control...Are...where are we?" She was putting it all together. The strange place. The people laying on the ground. The magic holding others to the walls. The violence. The pain.
"Oh god, what have I done? Did I hurt..."
"You didn't do anything. It was Theodora." He put his hands on her shoulders. He wanted to comfort her. To hold her. To fix her.
But there was no time. This would be a game to Theodora. She would let Glinda have control for only a few minutes then she would take their shared body back and start burning everything in sight.
"Glinda listen to me, we don't have a lot of time. You have to..."
"Go back into my cage. I know Victor." She put her hand to his face. His head instinctively moved towards it. "You look like you haven't aged a day."
"It's a long story."
"It always is with you." She laughed the right laugh. The one that made his heart ache, that made his chest tighten in agony. "Tell who ever brought me here they need to send me back now. I can feel her trying to take control back."
"That would be me dearie. You see I..."
"Do it now Gold."
A light flashed behind them. Some sort of portal. He could only see her. So much he wanted to say, to make right. She moved away from him. Back into her cage. He would never see her again. He should have been able to think of something to say.
She smiled the right smile. And then she was gone. The people trapped to the walls fell to the ground. He heard other things happening. People helping each other up. He stared at the spot she had been standing in. He could sense them staring at him. Ruby, David, Emma, Mary Margaret. Gold moved to his right side.
"Well, it would seem that it is extremely fortuitous that you have such a sordid romantic past my good doctor. She seemed..."
"You brought her here?"
"Yes, you see I..."
"I'm going to kill you." His voice was quiet. Emotionless. Clinical. "Not right now. But one day. You are going to die, slowly, and in agony, and I want to know that even if I am not there myself, I will be responsible for it. I will be the one who finds the way to kill you. And it will be because of this moment."
He couldn't muster up the energy to care that he had just threatened one of the most powerful wizards in any realm. Or that he had done it in front of every so-called hero in town. So much for attempting to be one of the good guys. Clearly he was not cut out for that sort of thing. Gold was staring at him.
"You won't be able to..."
"You remember the first time we met? You offered me all that gold, all that money. And what did you want in return? My first born child? My obedience? For me to kill someone for you or bring someone back? No. You only wanted me to teach you. To show you the things you couldn't understand. All your knowledge comes from ancient texts and old ways. You knew then the same thing you know now. One day, I would out pace you. One day the things I would be capable of would surpass even your abilities. You knew if anyone could find a way to kill you, it would be me. You knew one day you would be afraid of me. Today, is that day Mr. Gold."
Emma stepped in between them. A pointless action. He wasn't going to try to kill him now. He wasn't ready yet. Soon. But not yet.
"Ok guys, why don't we all just take a few steps back and breathe. No one is going to kill anyone."
"You think I'm afraid of you, you pathetic little..."
"Gold! That is it. Get out now."
Emma was attempting to maintain the peace. Trying to remove the biggest threat from the room. Didn't want Gold to use some sort of magic and start another battle so soon after the last one ended. She didn't realize that Gold wasn't the biggest threat. She had no idea the kinds of things Victor was capable of.
"Your wish is my command dearie."
Victor turned to leave as well. He supposed he should have expected he wouldn't make it very far.
"Whoa, hold on Whale. What the hell was that?" Most of the hall was still filled with people. The whole town would know about what happened here soon. But he would be damned if they knew everything.
"I was just threatening Mr. Gold. I'm sure it can't be that unusual. People probably do it every day. Now if you will excuse me."
"Not with him. Although we should probably really talk about that too. About the green witch who just tried to burn all our faces off. Was that the Wicked Witch of..."
"Don't call her that." He shouldn't have said that, he shouldn't have snapped at the savior. He should have walked quicker to the door. Everyone was staring now. He couldn't see Ruby. He didn't know why he looked for her. She would want nothing to do with him now. Not after she learned the truth. Screw it. Bravery was meant for heroes and he was hardly one of those.
He brushed off Emma's hand and ran for the door. He made it down the street, passed several buildings and just kept going. He had no destination in mind. Just away. He knew he was going to have to explain. Have to tell them everything. Just not now. Not when he could still see her smile and hear her laugh. Still feel her hand on his face.
He was deep into the forest before he stopped to breathe. Ruby would be able to track him here. He had to find a way to mask his scent. Buy him some more time to think, to breathe.
"Not heading for the docks are you?"
Damn it.
"Of course not. If I tried to throw myself off a bridge every time something horrible and soul-crushing happened to me, you would have a full time job."
She didn't look pleased by that. Perhaps it was too soon to joke about his suicide attempt.
"Victor..."
"I'm fine, I just...I just needed to get away so I could breathe for a moment. I swear, I wasn't going anywhere near..."
"I know. I was just worried about you is all."
She wanted to ask him about it, he could see it. Wanted to know who the woman was, how he knew her. But she didn't ask. She was looking at him with concern. He didn't want her to know the truth, didn't want her stop ever looking at him like that.
"I should get to the hospital. See if anyone was seriously injured."
"Ok. I'll walk you there."
They walked in silence. It wasn't awkward, it was comforting. After the docks, they had walked back to the hospital in silence as well. It was beginning to be a bit of a routine for them. He would have an emotional breakdown and run away, she would find him and bring him back. He didn't know what he was going to do if she wasn't there to catch him. Probably keep running til he hit the town line. Til Dr. Frankenstein was just a name from a book that Dr. Whale never read.
There were people scattered throughout the emergency room when they walked in. Mostly superficial wounds, a few stitches, a cast or two. Still it was enough to distract him. He was only mildly aware the Ruby wasn't at his side any more. She must have gone to tell the others that she had brought him back again. He could only imagine what they thought of him. How long would it be until they decided he was too unstable, that they shouldn't trust him with the care of the town. He didn't know if he should be trusted to take care of these people, he couldn't fault them for questioning him. For doubting him.
Somehow between the rush of people coming and going, between setting bones and giving shots, wrapping cuts and checking vitals, he lost track of time. He honestly couldn't say how he came to be sitting in the cafeteria of the hospital nor how long he had been sitting there. His coffee was warm, almost cool. He hoped he remembered to pay for it. Wouldn't do to have people think he was a thief as well. He snorted into his coffee, he was sure they all thought much worse of him. What was a little larceny every now and then, between creating monsters.
Someone sat down across from him. They didn't speak, just sat there. Victor couldn't even muster the energy to look up from his coffee. If it was Gold here to kill him, he hoped he would be quick about it. It might be slightly embarrassing to fall asleep during your own murder.
"You alright?"
It took a few seconds for his sluggish mind to put the voice to a face. A few seconds more to give that face a name. He really needed to get some sleep.
"David."
"You look like you could use some sleep. Why don't I take you home?"
"You're hardly my type, but I will try anything once I suppose." His retort was half-hearted at best. He was trying to be non-nonchalant, to not let them see how affected he was by the events of the past few hours. If Prince Charming was there to carry him home, he doubted he was succeeding.
"Come on, my truck's outside."
"Why?"
"Because that's where I parked it."
"No, I mean...why are you offering me a ride home. Surely you have better things to do. It's not like you and I are friends." They weren't really. A few amiable conversations, an obligatory nod in passing, it was hardly the basis of a strong friendship. Not to mention the whole sleeping with his wife thing.
"Maybe we aren't, but you're one of us and it looks like you've had a rough day so..."
"I have a car. I can drive myself."
"Yea and have you crash into a light pole after falling asleep at the wheel? I don't think so. Come one."
"I have patients I need to check on."
"Everyone has been taken care of. No more excuses we..."
"I don't want to go." He hoped that didn't sound as petulant as it might have come out. He didn't want to go back to his empty apartment. Where his mind would have nothing to do but analyze and extrapolate. To formulate a way he could have saved her, if he had been quicker. How he could have used Gold to save her, or Regina, or any magical object that was hidden in this town. How he could have at least told her he had loved her more than he ever thought was possible. More than he thought he was capable of.
If David asked him to go again, he might be reduced to begging. He really had nothing left anymore, least of all his pride. Good riddance to it really. His pride had caused most of the horrors in his life. His brother, Glinda...
"Ok. But why don't you at least ease up on that mug. Seeing as you're the only doctor in town, we would have to find an amateur to sew you up."
His fingers unclenched from the mug, seemingly at David's command. They ached from how hard he had been grasping at the coffee mug. He supposed he should feel ashamed that this was twice now that David had seen him in the midst of an emotional breakdown. All he felt was tired. Weary.
"Why don't you just get some sleep."
Again his traitorous body followed David's orders. His head moved to rest on his arms on the table in front of him. His eyes closed tightly. He was slightly affronted.
"Don't tell me what to..." He was asleep before he could finish the thought.