A/N: The next chapter will be much longer, I promise.

Chapter Seven: The Beginning

During the night, Regina used her magic to make the shed. Or whatever the technical name for it was. It was smaller than a garage but slightly bigger than a shed. And it was out back next to the apple tree. Inside the shed had wooden floors and a mirrored wall with a barre. The room was a clichéd as they came but Nadja loved it. She thanked Regina with a hug the next morning when she saw it.

After lunch, Nadja went out to the shed to practice. Regina had also gotten her leotards to wear. She'd forgotten the thrill that dance brought her. It had been far too long since she danced. The choreography was lyrical and her instructor had taught her months ago. Nadja was going to perform it the night she fell through the portal.

The routine was cut short when the music from the radio stopped. Nadja turned to see Mr. Gold standing in front of the door.

"Don't stop on my account."

"What do you want?"

"Now, dearie." Gold pointed at her hand. "I just came to talk."

Nadja dropped the knife. She wasn't used to her magic yet. And the last time she checked she couldn't conjure up things from thin air. She just knew that she had to defend herself from Gold. Not that a regular kitchen knife could do harm to the Dark One.

"I could teach you how to control that if you'd like." Gold said.

"Regina could teach me." Nadja said. And rolled her eyes. She couldn't believe she was about to say this. "Or the Evil Queen."

"I taught your mother everything she knows."

"What are you doing here?"

"What if I could show you the rest of your father's second vision? You could see how it plays out for you. This go 'round"

"Get out."

The Dark One smirked. And without further argument, he left.


Later that evening, at Granny's, Nadja and Henry sat across from each other at a booth in the back. Regina, Snow, David, Emma, Hook, and others that Nadja didn't know by name were talking by the bar. Granny placed a plate of French fries on the table between them. The old woman had been walking around with her weapon since she'd learned about Nadja's encounter with Gold.

"You're either trying to hear what they're saying." Henry said to Nadja. "Or you're thinking really hard about something. Which is it?"

"The latter."

"I'm all ears."

Nadja told him of her theory. That Gold was trying to see what he was dealing with before he planned his next move. He'd told her that he could teach her about magic. Which meant that he only wanted her magic when it was stronger than it was now.

"Does that make sense?" Nadja asked.

Henry nodded.

When Nadja stood, everyone's eyes turned to her. She rolled her eyes and mouthed bathroom before walking away. They all treated her like a newborn. Like they'd miss something if they turned away from her for one second.

When Nadja returned from the restroom Henry wasn't alone at the table. Regina, Snow, and David were crowded around him. They stared down at the story book on the table. Which, at first, was odd. Then, Nadja walked closer.

"What the…" Nadja's voice trailed off before she could swear. "Is that me?"

In the book, on the page was a photo of Nadja falling from the portal in the sky.

So far, the book only had that one photo of her. And a couple of paragraphs of text that Nadja didn't bother to read. Apparently, her story was "beginning" as Henry put it. But every story had an end. Nadja just hoped hers had a good one.

They all did.


Nadja stood on top of a roof. She didn't know how she got there. Or why she was there. But she was. So, she admired the view. Storybrooke was a nice, quiet little town. Quite the opposite of the one she'd come from. A big city that only got louder at night.

In front of her, the clock on the clock tower moved to 8 PM. Nadja wondered why she was out so late.

She chanced a look down. And found most of the town staring up at her. They all looked horrified. Nadja didn't understand why.

Until her heart was ripped from her chest.

Nadja gasped.

And when she turned she was Mr. Gold holding her heart in her hand. It was black as coal. What had she done? Gold must've gotten control of her magic because nothing happened when she willed it.

Gold squeezed her heart.

Nadja fell from the roof as the dust of her heart floated away with the breeze.

Regina screamed.

Nadja jumped out of bed. It wasn't until she burst into Regina's room that she saw the time. 2 AM. Fortunately, her mother hadn't thrown a fireball at her or sent her flying across the room.

"Nadja?"

At the last second, Nadja changed her mind about telling Regina what she'd just dreamed.

"Show me how to control my magic." she said instead.

tbc