Chapter 8
Remmy was happy to finally have a job to occupy her time. David and Emma brought her on at the Sherriff's station. Rumplestilskin still hadn't returned from his trip with his new Bride and Remmy was getting antsy. She wanted a normal life, and this was the first step towards that. She knew that regardless of the outcome when she confronted The Dark One, this was her last mission. While she would still work on perfecting her magic, she wasn't going to waste any more time chasing him down. She had dedicated far too much of her time. Will had been right, her father would want her to be happy. And while she wouldn't throw away all of her hard work when she was so close now, she couldn't imagine trying to work towards another plan. She couldn't help but smile. The way he had kissed her that night was soft and tender, but full of passion. She felt so foolish getting so wrapped up in someone she just met, but she couldn't help herself.
Hook hadn't been thrilled with her spending time with him. He had heard stories of him from Wonderland. She had quickly reminded him that there were stories of him as well and if Emma could look past that and give him a chance then he shouldn't have blinked at her doing the same for Will. She stopped him any time he tried to tell her a story, for she knew it was when he was without his heart. And even if he would have had it at the time, she still wouldn't have cared. She knew he was being protective of her and while she appreciated it, she wouldn't let him or anyone else ruin this for her.
"You look a million miles away" David's voice snapped her out of her daydream.
"Guilty." She smiled.
"Are you sure that you want to move into your own apartment? We love having you." He smiled back.
"David…there are too many people living in your home. And honestly, with how often Henry spends his time with Regina, I'd like to limit my contact with her. You and Snow may have accepted that she's changed and looked past the murder and destruction she has caused. But I can't. And quite frankly I'm surprised that Snow can. She murdered his father, tried to blame it on him and then terrorized her. I get that people deserve second changes. But there are some things you can't come back from." Remmy just couldn't understand.
"It's Snow's way." David stated simply. Remmy shook her head. "But I understand where you're coming from."
"I appreciate that. And I appreciate your kindness." Remmy was eternally grateful for Snow and David. They made her feel welcomed and safe.
"Well…remember that appreciation when we need a babysitter" David laughed.
"Of Course." Remmy laughed with him. She felt like for the first time in a long time that she had a family again. She looked up as Hook and Emma walked into the station.
"Gold is back." Emma stated. Remmy froze. She felt her stomach do a flip flop and the color drained from her face.
"Are you okay love?" Hook stared at her concerned. She cleared her throat.
"Yes. " she responded meekly.
"You don't have to do this Remmy. You can just continue on as you are." Emma could see the fear in her eyes. A fear she understood. While Gold seemed to have mellowed, she knew how dangerous he was. And he knew Remmy would come off as a threat to him.
"No…I have to do this." She grabbed her short trench coat. Storybrook was strangely cool for this time of year. It felt like fall instead of spring. "And I have to do this alone" She stared at Hook.
"I can't let you do that. I'm going with you. You're not going alone. I don't care what you say." He stared her down.
"Fine. But stay outside." Hook nodded and followed her out the door.
Remmy stared at the door of the Pawn Shop. It still said closed, but the door was unlocked. She glanced at Hook and opened the door, closing it quietly behind her.
"We're not open" She heard a woman's voice. She looked up and saw the gorgeous brunette behind the counter.
"I'm actually here to wish both you and your husband congratulations. I'm an old friend of Rumple's." Remmy smiled. She felt like she was going to lose the contents of her stomach. Belle smiled at her.
"Well…I'll go get him" And she went into the back room. Remmy looked around the shop at all of the trinkets. She wondered what belonged to who and what as magic and what was not. Rumples walked out from the back room and Belle followed him. He stopped shortly when he saw her. He knew who she was, he could feel her presence. He'd only seen glimpses of her as a child, but he could never mistake her for anyone else.
"Hello Miss Watson." He said politely.
"Hello Rumple." She smiled at him. "I hear congratulations are in order."
"You hear correctly." He turned to Belle. "Would you give us a few moments? I'd like some time to catch up with Miss Watson as I'm surprised to see her in town" He had no idea how she had arrived in Storybrook. She wasn't brought over with either curse and he wasn't aware of any portals. As soon as Belle disappeared he turned to glare at her.
"So you've come to kill The Dark One have you? Well good luck finding the dagger." He sneered.
"I don't want to kill you. And I know the dagger is in this shop somewhere. As well as you can feel me, I can feel the darkness of you as well. And I could feel it when I walked in the shop." She wouldn't let him see her fear.
"Well…if you're not here to kill me, then what are you doing here?" She could sense his surprise.
"Well…I hear you've changed." She ran her finger over one of the glass cases as she walked towards him. "I wield light magic. It's not my nature to just kill you. You know that. But I do have a proposition. While you in of yourself are a very dangerous man, what is even more dangerous is the ability of others to control you with your dagger. I'm simply offering a trade. You give me the dagger, I place it in a safe place where no one can ever get it and use you to hurt anyone else again. And in return I'll give you something that is very valuable to you." Rumple wasn't sure what to make of her.
"And what's that dearie? I can't imagine YOU would have anything I would want." He scoffed at her.
"I can bring you back your son. And you'll get the real second chance you deserved before Zelena traded his life for yours." She shot back at him.
"You can bring someone back from the dead." He stared at her in disbelief.
"Well…if they die under normal circumstances. But you and I know that Bae's death wasn't a normal circumstance. He was tricked into trading places with you. And as I told Ms. Swan, if you were to dig up his grave, there would be no body. It's back in the Enchanted Forrest, in your tomb. The same tomb you went to after you sacrificed yourself to get rid of Pan. By using the dagger and my light magic, I can bring him back." She felt pleased with herself.
"No. Don't you know all magic comes with a price? I won't make him pay it." The Dark One was in shock. He couldn't believe she would suggest such a thing.
"The Price, dear Rumple, is the dagger. The dagger that you will willingly give up for your son. You lost him once to your obsession with power, you're willing to do it again?" She hated playing on those emotions. Regardless of who he was, she saw the pain in his eyes.
"GET OUT BEOFRE I KILL YOU WITH MY BARE HANDS!" he demanded. She nodded She heard Hook open the door behind her. He must have heard him scream at her. She clearly had found his weakness.
"Don't you threaten her!" Hook glared at him.
"It's fine, Killian. I'd actually like to see him try." She smiled. Rumple charged for her but was abruptly stopped with a burst of light magic. "I'm no longer afraid of you Dark One. And I am much more powerful than you can imagine. I'm trying to do you a favor. And just so you know, I wouldn't ever do anything that would bring harm to Bae. While you were in the Enchanted Forrest regretting giving him up. I was with him. I was comforting him. And I was loving him. And don't you forget it. I suggest you think about my offer." She turned and stalked out of his shop. Hook stood there amazed and followed her out. She had ran quickly away and he bolted to catch up with her. When he finally did he grabbed her arm and could feel her whole body trembling. She was quite the actress because he could see the terror in her eyes. Hook pulled her in his arms and held her tightly.
"You were amazing. You didn't falter, not once. Didn't you see how you got to him? He was terrified of you. He saw how much power you have. He knows that he can't touch you." He tried to calm her. It reminded him of when she was a child. Whenever it would storm when they were at sea, she would shake, terrified of the open ship as the rain poured down, thunder cracked and lightening lit up the sky. He felt her body relax. He was happy he went with her. He had promised her father on his own life that he would protect her no matter what the cost. He had failed her for so long, focused on his own selfish need for revenge. He felt her pull away and she wiped the tears from her face. Before she could open her mouth to utter a syllable Will Scarlet came running up to the. Hook rolled his eyes and stepped away from her.
"Are you alright?" He grabbed her shoulders looking down into her eyes. "I went to the station to bring you some coffee and The Prince told me where you went. I wish you would have called me first so I could have gone with you." Hook cleared his throat.
"She wasn't alone mate. I would never let her go after him alone. I made sure she was safe." Hook was angry. Although he wasn't sure exactly why Will Scarlet having such an interest in her bothered him so. Maybe because he still saw Remmy as a young girl that needed his constant protection. Will looked at him, confused by his tone.
"I didn't mean to make you think I thought you couldn't."
"Guys…let's just get off the street." Remmy said. She pulled away from Will and continued forward to the station. The realization that he shot her down and that she had failed was sinking in. All her sacrifices were for nothing.
Emma was surprised that Gold had turned Remmy away. She couldn't imagine him not taking the chance to get Neal back. But maybe he was right and Remmy was wrong. Perhaps the price of bringing Neal back was far greater than just dagger itself.
"So now what?" She asked Remmy.
"I don't know." She shook her head feeling so defeated.
"Well I do." Will stood up. "You walk away from this. You stop dedicating your life to trying to bring this man down and live it for yourself."
"He's right." Hook agreed, as much as he didn't want to agree with Will.
"I need some space; please don't follow me. I'm fine. I just need to sort things out in my head". Remmy begged. Both Hook and Will nodded. She smiled at Emma and headed out the door.
As she was walking, she saw Rumple's wife coming towards her. She took a deep breath. She didn't know what he had told her, but she was certain it wasn't good. But when she approached her, she smiled.
"We didn't get a chance to be properly introduced, I'm Belle." She smiled and stuck her hand out. Remmy shook it.
"Remmy Watson."
"I overheard the conversation between you and Rumple while I was in the back. He doesn't have the dagger in his possession. I do." Belle pulled it out of her bag and handed it to Remmy. "He may be right about bringing Neal back. But if you having this means no one else can ever control him again, I want you to have it. You're more powerful than I am. You can protect it better." She put it in Remmy's hands and quickly ran off before she could utter a word to her.
Remmy examined the dagger and smiled. This wasn't The Dark One's dagger. She knew the dagger just as well as The Dark One. This one was a fake. He had lied to his wife. And now Remmy had the ammunition to get the real dagger from him.
