AN: Sorry for the maaajor delay! Thanks for sticking with me, reading and reviewing (and hopefully sharing with others). I promise this story won't be abandoned:) Here we go:
Kelemon waited another hour before moving from her post; at her estimate, about two days should have passed in the outside world. She hadn't seen any other disturbances.
She made her way back to the castle.
The attack on the barrier had been brief, but disturbing; the newfound friends of Camelot hadn't been gone long at all before the Dark One had appeared at their gates, apparently led by the former queen. And she had used magic. Nothing that threatened Merlin's protection spells, of course, but it was quite troubling to see fireballs launched her way no matter how harmless they were. This Dark One was strong if she was able to summon any kind of power before the barrier worked its own magic on her. Kelemon had seen the woman fighting for her life against invisible foes. It was said that Merlin's defenses used the target's worst fears against them; any who were lucky enough to survive usually went mad. She couldn't imagine what the Dark One's fears must have looked like.
She met the rest of the council at the Round Table.
"Kelemon," the king said. "What do you have to report?"
She gave them every detail of what she had witnessed; the knights exchanged worried looks with the king and queen.
Her father leaned forward. "We must assume our friends have been defeated by the Dark One," he rumbled.
Arthur rubbed his beard. "It would appear so, Sir Kay."
"It would appear?" Kelemon's words were out of her mouth before she could think. "My apologies, Your Majesty."
"It's alright, Kelemon. Speak your mind, please."
"Sir…the Dark One vanished into a portal with Regina, who was the only member of their team with magic. The others must have already met their fate. And…" she lowered her voice. "And they've left the boy behind."
"Where is he now?" Gawain said.
"With Sir Percival in Merlin's tower," her father replied.
"Good," Guinevere said. "Merlin's apprentice sent these people to us for help; one of them remains free from the Dark One: the child. Her child."
Sir Kay frowned in thought. "You believe the boy is meant to be here."
"Yes. Not the former queen with her magic, and not the others from the Enchanted Forest…but this child from the other world, the son of the Dark One."
Arthur looked to Kelemon, a gleam in his eye. "So you see, my dear…our friends may have the appearance of defeat, but all is not lost. There is still hope."
"But what do you propose we do to help this child?" Sir Kay asked.
The king was quiet for a long while. Finally, he said, "We trust him. We take care of him. We give him access to all of Merlin's work, and trust that the sorcerer will guide him, as he has all of us even after his death."
Kelemon leaned forward. "But what do we tell him about his family?"
"Nothing," Sir Gawain said quickly; she looked at him in surprise. "Not yet. It's much too soon, and if he is anything like the rest of his family, he will want to take action. It was enough of a battle to convince him to stay behind the first time."
"Lying to him doesn't seem to go hand in hand with trusting him, or Merlin."
"You're right, Kelemon," Guinevere said softly, "but he is still a child. I say we do not volunteer this information because he will only worry; however, if he asks us, we will tell him the truth. We'll keep no secrets from him."
…..
"What have you done?" Emma asked, her eyes filled with hatred.
Truly it was less about the what—it was the how that concerned her. With Rumplestiltskin dying (or dead), and Regina under Emma's influence, there was no one left whose powers could even hope to challenge her own. Her mind raced. It was possible she had made another mistake in assuming the dragon had only allied herself with Regina, hoping to protect her in the Enchanted Forest. But this entrapment required power and quick thinking—something she had assumed Storybrooke had gone without while their leaders were in another realm.
"I'd say we've done quite well," Granny answered. "Caught ourselves a Dark One on the first try."
Emma ground her teeth and glanced over at Regina; the other woman had a hand to her head and was staring at the bars of their cage. She hadn't said a word, but her eyes said everything—Emma's magic was starting to lose its effect.
She could still feel her powers—the cell couldn't remove them, its enchantments could only stop her from using them. She slammed her hands against the bars in frustration; she had been in here before, and only escaped because of the squid ink Rumplestiltskin had left behind on parchment.
She would never get her son this way.
"You're going to regret this. All of you," she seethed.
Granny lowered the rifle as Lily came back into view. Lily hesitated when she saw Emma watching her, then said, "She's on her way."
The Dark One raised an eyebrow at the young woman who was trying her best to appear confident in front of her, but was failing miserably. "You've lived your whole life without your mother, but now you won't take action without her? My, aren't we regressing."
She watched the ever-present darkness cross Lily's face before Granny said, "That's enough out of you."
Emma leaned against the bars, eyes only for her friend. "Finding your parents isn't all it's cracked up to be, is it? I've found that the Enchanted Forest casts a very long shadow. Those who were in charge in their realm are given the same power in ours…even though they know nothing of our world. Not like we do, Lily. Not like you do."
"I know what you're trying to do…" Lily started.
"Don't let them take your power. You were always smart, you were always resourceful; if people from their realm hadn't stacked the deck against you, you could have had anything you wanted in this world. They took your power from you back then…don't give it to them now." Emma smiled. "Not now, when you have so much more."
"Stop twisting things; I haven't given away any part of myself."
Emma saw the glint in Lily's eyes, the gold of the serpent fighting through. Good. "Please, you've rolled over completely for these people. You've spent your life trying to find yourself and as soon as you did, you gave her away."
Lily charged; Granny grabbed her by the arm before she made it to the cell, which was disappointing. However, it was good to know that even without her magic she still had the desired effect on people.
"If you can't control yourself around her," Granny said, her voice low, "then you shouldn't be here. That isn't Emma; it's the Dark One. And she's trying to get you going, see what you'll do."
"Not that it matters," Emma said, "since you'll even let the cook tell you what to do."
"You used me."
The Dark One blinked, thrown by the quiet voice; she looked over at Regina, whose eyes glistened with emotion, her jaw tight. "What?"
"You used me, to get to our son." As Regina pushed herself to a standing position, Emma saw her trembling…and it wasn't with fear. "It was so easy," she whispered. "You just…slipped right inside my head. And you…you took something." She looked out at Granny, her eyes wide. "The others, are they…?"
Granny nodded. "They all made it back in one piece, though we're trying to restore their memories."
Regina was shaking her head at Emma, her hands clenched into fists. "Something happened. Something big. Some of my thoughts are just…jumbled. But this…this thing I can't remember. It's a huge blank space of time for me, but trying to focus on it makes me feel…it makes my heart ache in my chest." She took a step toward the Dark One. "What. Did you do."
Emma glared at her, irritated to be faced with the same question about the same incident yet again. She couldn't answer her—Regina had reacted poorly when she'd witnessed Emma saving Robin firsthand; she certainly wasn't going to bring it up while trapped with the other woman in a cage. She grit her teeth. "I didn't do anything you didn't ask me to do, Regina."
"Regina."
Maleficent had entered the cavern; she gave the two of them the once-over and sighed. "I am so sorry to have trapped you as well—we weren't sure what to expect so we planned for the worst." She gave Emma a wry smile. "And we've gotten it, haven't we?"
The Dark One glared. "If it wasn't for your amulet, she would have been sent back with the others."
"Leaving you alone in the Enchanted Forest to kidnap her son?"
Emma wrapped her hands around the bars of her cell. "Henry is my son. They abandoned him in Camelot, and now he's trapped there. They endangered him, not me. I'm trying to get him home. We only came back here for your help."
Maleficent raised an eyebrow at Regina. "Is that the truth?"
Regina was shaking her head again. "I…I don't know."
The dragon softened. "That's all right."
Their dynamic angered Emma; Regina was supposed to be on her side. They had crossed realms together, multiple times, for their family. For Emma's family. She ground her teeth together, trying to gain access to her magic through sheer force of will—these people were working together to keep her from what rightfully belonged to her. Henry was hers. Regina, her parents, all hers. Maleficent, Lily, Granny…they had trapped her like an animal, when she had never done anything to them, and in fact had yet to do anything worth punishment or anger. She had protected herself from the wolf. She had saved a man's life even though he meant to kill her. She had sent everyone home, and had taken Regina to try to save their son.
They had all turned against her, frightened of what she had become. They had assumed the worst. They didn't see that with her powers she could give them everything they wanted; all they could think about was the darkness, assuming it was evil, forgetting the Savior was underneath all of it, controlling it, bending it to her will.
They didn't understand and they didn't care to try.
Emma turned to Regina. "You said you trusted me, that trust is how we work."
Regina glared at her. "I trust Emma; you're clearly something else. Because Emma would never violate my mind like that." She took a step closer. "But you didn't hesitate. You didn't trust me with something, so you just took it to make sure I wouldn't question you again."
Emma shook her head and stalked to the other side of their cell.
"We'll find what it was, Regina," Maleficent said. "In time. For now, everyone is safe."
"But my son is in another realm," Regina said, her voice tight with emotion. "He's…"
"He's safer there," the dragon said quietly. "Don't you agree? The story from the others is you all left him in Camelot because the outside world couldn't touch him there. You'll get Henry back, Regina, but now…" she fixed her gaze on the Dark One, who glowered. "Now would not be the ideal time for him to return."
Regina closed her eyes and nodded. "You're right."
Emma was seething.
Regina leaned against the bars. "Mal…there's something I need you to keep for me."
Her magic may have been contained, but even without it there was one thing Emma Swan had over Regina Mills any day: brute strength. When she saw Regina reach under her jacket for the dagger, she threw herself across their enclosure and tackled her to the ground. Regina fought back, managing to twist herself around so they were face to face. The brunette's eyes bored into hers; the amount of anger behind those eyes was unexpected, and Regina took full advantage of Emma's hesitation to jab an arm into her throat.
As the Dark One reeled, choking and gasping for breath, Regina was able to shove her away. By the time Emma had recovered enough to grab Regina by the arm, the other woman had already thrown the dagger through the bars of the cell. Emma hauled her up and slammed her into the wall. "How could you give control of my life to her? Do you hate me that much?"
Regina's eyes were burning coals. "In this moment," she spat, "Yes."
Outside of the cage, Maleficent was staring down at the dagger, her hands clenching and unclenching. Lily stepped forward. "Mom," she said quietly. "Just leave it."
The Dark One's eyes flashed; she shoved Regina away and pressed against the bars. "Leave it, dragon. Listen to your pup, for once. She's smarter than you let her show."
But Maleficent ignored her and looked at Regina. "You would give this to me?"
"I would keep us all safe," Regina answered, "which means keeping the dagger away from the Dark One."
Maleficent nodded once. Lily stepped forward: "Mother. No."
But Maleficent stepped aside and gestured to Granny. "You have to take it."
The old woman growled. "Like hell I do. That's all I need."
"Take it," Maleficent continued, "and hide it; don't tell us where. Don't tell anyone where. The dagger…it's too much." She cleared her throat. "And not all of us are above such temptation."
Lily put a hand on her arm as Granny reluctantly picked up the dagger. With a last dark look at Emma, the old woman vanished into the cavern.
The Dark One slammed her fists against the bars of her cage in frustration. "I will not be kept prisoner again. Ever." She locked her eyes on the dragon. "When I get out of here, you are going to pay dearly for your interference. All I want is what is mine."
"Mmm," Maleficent said, crossing her arms. "That's the trouble with the darkness though, isn't it? You think everything is yours."
…
Mary Margaret sat watch next to Ruby's hospital bed, gently holding her best friend's hand. Mulan was in the adjacent bed, so the two wouldn't be kept apart. Mary Margaret felt her husband's strong hand on her shoulder and leaned back into him. "Hi."
"Hi." He set a to-go cup on the windowsill. "Thought you might like some coffee."
She squeezed his hand and took a sip, grateful.
Her heart shattered into a million pieces every time she looked at her best friend, but she couldn't stay away either. One thought kept sounding over and over in her head: Your daughter did this. Emma had meant to kill Ruby, who had sensed the Dark One immediately. There had been no fooling the wolf. But the rest of them…
They had been fools indeed. Tears burned behind her eyes as she watched the shallow rise and fall of Ruby's chest, then Mulan's as they breathed. The doctors had assured them that the two women would recover, but it would take time. What was less clear was how they would clear their heads of the false memories Emma had created. She was grateful, more than ever, for Leroy—had the dwarf not returned to Storybrooke before them, there was a chance they never would have known the truth of the attack in the cabin.
Unfortunately, they still had no idea what had happened after that. Everyone had returned to Storybrooke in one piece (except Henry of course, but he was safe in Camelot). And yet there was a sense of unease…
Specifically, whenever Mary Margaret looked at Robin, something in the far back of her mind struggled to come forward. He had been given a clean bill of health, like herself and David, and had wanted to get back to his son as soon as possible; his relief at holding Roland in his arms again had been palpable. He had vanished back into his camp with his merry men, wanting to focus on his family…but he hadn't worried much about Regina's absence. Perhaps that was what ate away at Mary Margaret; had Robin's memories been affected so much that he felt less for the woman he loved? And if so, why would Emma have done that? She couldn't shake the feeling that whatever it was that they couldn't remember involved Robin in some way.
David settled in the chair next to hers with a sigh. "I don't like waiting."
"I know," she soothed, "but the others are right—we're no good to them if our minds have been messed with. Hopefully Maleficent will come up with a potion soon."
"Those are words I never thought you'd say."
She gave him a wry smile, squeezed his hand, and took another sip of her coffee.
…..
Regina watched the Dark One pace their cell. She sat with her back to the stone wall, her stomach in knots.
She had been taken in so completely, and so quickly, by the Dark One's manipulations that it frightened her. She had led the Dark One to her son, she had helped her get to Storybrooke…all within an hour of being with her. Only now, in the cage that contained their magic, was Regina able to begin to sort out what was real.
"The magic at the barrier to Camelot," she began. "It wasn't threatening Henry—it was doing what it was supposed to. It was protecting him from you. That's the truth?"
Emma didn't answer; she had started pressing on various stones around the cell, looking for a weakness.
Regina continued. "And I never taught you to control your darkness at all. You planted those memories." She thought of other ones that had been planted—warm, domestic scenes between them, some even with Henry, designed to get her to love and trust the Dark One as she loved and trusted Emma. Her cheeks burned red with frustration. "And we didn't find you: you took me."
"I had been looking for you," Emma snapped. "You didn't react well to being found. I thought you were in danger."
Regina shook her head. "Is that what you did? Hid everything from me that I reacted poorly to?"
"A lot happened at once, Regina. There wasn't time to coddle you with explanations."
Regina gestured around the empty cavern; Lily was guarding them from the main area of the tunnels, and Mal and Granny had left to deal with the dagger and update the others. "We've got time now."
Emma pushed at another rock. "No."
"You needed me to trust you. That was important to you, for your plan, wasn't it?"
Emma stilled and glanced over her shoulder; for just an instant, Regina swore she could see the real Emma looking through the Dark One's eyes. "It's better when we're together."
"What is?"
The blonde turned back to the cave wall. Regina sighed. "You can't force trust. It's frustrating; believe me, I know. Spells, manipulations…they don't last, and that's if they work at all. You can't substitute the real thing." The Dark One continued to ignore her. "If it wasn't for Henry…Emma and I might never have learned to trust each other. But if nothing else, we each trusted the other to put our son first. And from there, we were able to start to rely on each other for other things."
"Do your ramblings have a point?"
Regina pursed her lips. "Right now I don't even believe that you wouldn't hurt Henry, so we have a long way to go before there's trust. But you can start by telling me the truth, if you talk to me at all."
"I want my family here, Regina. I want to see my son. I lost all of you, and for a while I didn't know what was real and what wasn't." The Dark One frowned. "But now I do, and I won't go back to that again. The darkness doesn't do well when I'm lost. The longer Henry is away…" Emma stopped abruptly.
Regina sat up straighter. "What does Henry have to do with the darkness?"
Green eyes focused on her, glittering in the limited light of the cave.
Regina stood up. "Emma—tell me."
Outside of the cell there came a muffled thump, then other sounds of a scuffle. Regina turned and gripped the bars, squinting into the shadows to try to see what was happening. She couldn't see a thing, and then all was still. A lone figure came striding toward them; her blood ran cold at the sight of him.
Emma was next to her in an instant, a warm smile fixed on her face. "Killian. You came for me."
The insufferable idiot flashed a smile at her. "Of course I did love. Did you really doubt that I would?"
Once she recovered from the sight, Regina's anger returned to her full force. "What in the hell are you doing here? What did you do to Lily?"
Hook glared at her and cocked his head to the side. "I gave that wannabe sheriff what was coming to her. She wasn't going to stand between me and the woman I love."
Emma's demeanor had completely changed; she now appeared soft, gentle even. Her eyes never left Hook's. It was all an act of course, but the pirate would fall for it hook, line, and sinker. "I knew you would rescue me," she breathed.
"In case you hadn't noticed," Regina growled, "this is a magical imprisonment, and I doubt Maleficent gave you a key."
"She didn't need to," he gloated as he whipped out a bottle. "With the crocodile…indisposed….it's rather simple to help yourself to some of his more magical items. Especially when the town thinks you're in the hospital."
Emma wrapped her hands around the bars of the cell, a look of deep concern on her face. "Oh Killian, the hospital! Were you hurt?"
Her simpering tone made Regina ill.
"I'm fine, love. And more importantly—I have the squid ink needed to release you."
"Don't," Regina snapped. "Even you can't be so stupid as to let the Dark One free. Didn't you try to tell me how much you knew about them? From your years of making mistakes?" Her answer was another dark look from the pirate. "Don't make another one, Hook. You can't let us out."
He stepped closer to the bars. "And I told you—I love Emma, and she loves me. And that is the most powerful magic there is."
"I trust you, Killian," Emma whispered; Regina's heart sank.
The pirate beamed. "Aye, love. And I trust you."
In a last-ditch effort, Regina said, "Fine. You want me to beg you? I'm begging you, Hook: don't do this. Please."
Her words fell on deaf ears; the pirate was convinced that all that was needed to save them from the Dark One was the love he claimed to have for Emma. Regina closed her eyes as Hook uncorked the bottle and splashed the contents across the bars of the cage; the bars dissolved, and the Dark One ran forward to sink into the pirate's embrace. Regina started to shake, though whether it was with anger or sadness she couldn't say; she stayed within the confines of the cell, unwilling to step out where the Dark One now had her powers.
Hook brushed Emma's hair out of her eyes and smiled, his eyes wet. "Now love: what do you say we get out of here, and find some way to get your son back?"
Emma wiped her eyes and nodded. "I would love that. You'll help me?"
"Of course."
"Emma!"
The look the Dark One gave her was not the one she had given Hook moments before. "Emma, please: don't hurt our son."
Hook grabbed her arm. "How dare you suggest Emma would ever hurt Henry when you were the one who lied to him, the one who…"
But Emma placed a hand on Hook's arm and steered him away. "Give us a moment." When his eyes narrowed, Emma kissed him softly. "It will be all right, I promise." Though he was clearly not happy about it, Hook stepped away from them. The Dark One eyed Regina before slipping back into the cell herself. "Is that better?"
Regina shook her head, her eyes wet with tears of rage and sadness. "I'm not going to let you hurt him."
"Please don't worry, Regina."
Emma stepped forward, and before Regina knew what was happening, the Dark One was kissing her. She was too startled to pull away; the gentleness surprised her, and the warmth…finally she gasped and pushed Emma back. "What was that?" she asked, her voice shaking.
"A promise."
Regina blinked. "Of…of what?"
But Emma only reached out and brushed a tear from her cheek. Regina closed her eyes…but then something occurred to her and she felt her face grow hot. "You're not treating me any different than your pirate," she whispered. "You're seducing me, telling me what I want to hear."
The Dark One sighed and withdrew her hand. "What else would you have me do?"
Regina remembered herself and stood a little straighter. "Tell me something, anything, that is the truth. No half-truths, no manipulations. Tell me the truth and I'll know there's hope."
Emma nodded. "Very well." But she held up a finger and stepped back, outside of the cell, where her magic returned to her. "Your rescue party in the Enchanted Forest was a mess. Robin tried to control me with the dagger, and then he attacked me. He fell on the blade and was near death. You begged me to save him so I did." She raised an eyebrow. "I took the life of a villager—I needed his heart, his life force. There was no other way. None of you reacted well, so I changed your memories. It seemed the best way to keep everyone safe."
Now the tears did fall, and Regina didn't try to stop them; she stared silently at the Dark One.
"That's twice now I've done as you asked, and twice that you seem to regret asking. Be careful next time."
Emma turned and walked to Hook, who was waiting in the darkness of the cavern; she took his arm, and they vanished.
