Can I interest you folks in a game? I don't know if it's been obvious or not, but in keeping with the spirit of the show, I've been dropping little clues, like so many breadcrumbs, about characters back stories, and how everything is going to play out. So if something seems like a random aside, it may not be. Or it might be. Anyway, I've been having fun with it, but I've come to realize I might be playing by myself.

Author's Notes: A small warning: just a quick, veiled reference to child abuse. It's in the first paragraph, so if that's something that triggers you, skip to the 2nd. Also my many apologies for the ridiculous amount of typos in the last chapter to those that read it in the first 12 hours after I published it. I did a second reread of this one, so hopefully it will be mostly polished.

Also, it should be noted that Henry, and thus Cora's after marriage, last name (Alys, for those that don't recall) is pronounced in such a way that it rhymes with 'malice' or 'palace'. A small, but important detail for later on.

Once. Evil. Regal: Glad you liked the apology exchange - I was afraid it might have been a little melodramatic. You never know how hammy the actors in the reader's heads are ;) Regarding the husband confusion - that's probably a good indication that I should be using a beta reader. I can see why it would be confusing. Basically, Regina was assuming that if Emma was protecting Snow from David's advances, they weren't married in this world. So they weren't married in the Enchanted Forest either. Before that info she'd assumed, correctly, that the pair were married. I did a lot of changing up the order of how the dialogue played out, so I'm not surprised it's about as clear as mud.

Anyway, on with the show.

Chapter 10: The Spider's Parlor

"Antiquing?" replied Henry, clearly confused. Regina leaned forward unconsciously, glad to have someone else who wasn't following either, to ask for her. Asking questions in her family garnered ridicule at best - and 'corrections' at worst, should her mother believe Regina was being purposely obtuse. She absently rubbed her fingers across her right hip joint, realizing suddenly that it hadn't bothered her once all day. She'd had what she jokingly referred to as a 'trick hip' that had a tendency to slip from the socket on occasion and ache after a particularly vigorous day. It was her most permanent side effect of one of her mother's 'lessons', and what had drawn her to riding bareback to begin with. Saddles forced her legs further out and to the side, aggravating the injury. The last thing she had expected was for her body to be in better condition forty years hence. It had to have been a magical cure... she wasn't sure how she felt about that.

"Oh!" Henry cried as it suddenly hit him. "Mr. Gold's!"

"Is he an associate of Rumpelstiltskin's?" asked Regina. She'd heard the two names together a few times now.

Henry opened his mouth, eager to explain, but quickly snapped it shut, his eyes looking for permission from the adults. Snow smirked and nodded. "She knows of the curse. And that an evil queen sent us here, where time was frozen, until Emma came," Snow explained, the way she emphasized certain words making it clear that Henry should be mindful of his words.

Since the curse had broken, Henry had found himself in a position any 10 year old boy with a taste for fantasy would envy: town loremaster. As much as every citizen was an expert on the Enchanted Forest, most only knew what everyone, no matter the realm, does: their life, the people in it, and the few events and names big enough to become famous. Which meant everyone knew of Snow, but few knew Gepetto's name. Thanks to the book, its origins still unknown, Henry had become to go-to guy when information was needed on a person or an event. Plenty of disputes continued to crop up between residents, and without records, it was one person's word against another's when it came to property, feuds, and even family members. To Emma's endless frustration, it turned out that magic had a way of complicating issues, making decisions muddy at best, without a little did you rule on elves, or former elves, claiming their OSHA rights were violated while the shoemaker claims they were contract workers? Most residents were just as unknown after the curse as they had been before, but somehow, all the biggest issues were tied to names known to almost all children in this world.

But Henry had the real stories. While he wasn't officially adjudicating anything, the once friendless boy had found himself being courted by everyone in town. He was in the unique situation of being the only true child in Storybrooke, for while the other kids still had the same immature reasoning skills and emotional maturity of children, they had 28 years of experience to make use of. Many brought to mind children of the corn more than fairy tales, to Emma. She, Snow, and David had all worried that Henry would suffer for it. Emma, that he wouldn't realize that his horde of new friends were largely only interested in his friendship to use him - or even worse, would later realize as much, suffering a mortal wound to whatever innocence he still possessed. Snow and Charming worried the flow of gifts and favors would corrupt the boy, turning him into the worst kind of privileged royal they'd both seen plenty of. To the pleasant surprise, and pride, of all, Henry proved yet again just how smart a kid he truly was. He didn't take sides, only relating the facts as he knew them, and donated all the toys and treats to the new abbey full of orphans. While he had found friends, he turned down the majority of social invitations. It was the shy ones, quiet, just like he'd been before finding the book and Emma, the ones who weren't pursuing his attention that he was drawn to. This had turned out to be, aside from Hansel and Gretel, largely the orphans. He had taken the lessons to be found in fairy tales very much to heart. He'd received what he considered to be the greatest compliment of his life just the day before when August had told Henry that he was more brave, truthful, and unselfish than he could ever be.

Henry eagerly turned to Regina, beaming an infectious grin so earnest at her that it warmed her heart in a literal way that she had never believed real. "Everyone here got a codename... er, a fake name to hide their identity from themselves. So, like, Jiminy Cricket became Doctor Hopper." At Regina's blank nod, he continued. "Get it? Crickets hop! Every name was a clue - it's how I figured out the curse. Well, that, and no kids aging. You know how weird it is for the kids you played with in pre-school to still be toddlers? So, Snow White was Mary Margaret Blanchard. I figured out that Blanchard is French for white, and when I saw in the book that she was on the run from the Evil Queen, she used the fake name 'Mary Margaret'!"

"Like your favorite pony," Regina remarked to Snow.

Snow looked puzzled for a moment, then smiled as she remembered the old mare. "Huh. I haven't thought about her for years... decades, actually, I suppose." She cocked her head to the side. "How do you know about her?" There was a tint of suspicion in her tone.

"You just told me about her yesterday - from my perspective that is. She threw a shoe. That's why you were on the horse that ran off on you."

"Right..." Snow shook her head. "I'd lay money on Cora getting a little help from Rumpelstiltskin to arrange that 'accident', now that we know she'd dealt with him before."

"She arranged it - knowing I'd save you," Regina stated in amazement as she put two and two together "That witch...

"To get my father to propose," Snow confirmed.

"She knew about our spot..." Regina said, thinking aloud. She flushed in anger, her face twisting into an angry visage they were more accustomed to her wearing. "That blasted witch knew. Just biding her time..." she growled. "She just couldn't let me live my life. She won't be happy until she gets her way! Even if it put an innocent little girl's life at risk, " she growled. Images of Cora's hand plunging into Daniel chest flashed in her mind. "I didn't think even her heart so black! I guess I'm just another one fooled." It was then that she noticed Henry had drawn back away from her, instinctually huddled nearer to Emma. The bloodrage in her eyes was immediately extinguished at the alarm in his. "I - I'm sorry. I didn't mean to - she's just taken so much..." Words failed her and she sighed. "I apologize if I scared you," she said with a naked genuineness Henry had only seen once before today - the moment before she'd run for her life, when she'd declared her love for him.

He had kicked himself untold times for freezing up in that moment. For all the misery she'd caused, Mary Margaret's opinion about Regina had been right. She was a broken, lonely person who deserved pity before malice. Seeing her as she'd once been when she still had a whole heart, had made that abundantly real to him. He found himself dealing with conflicting emotions that no child had words for. He felt like he was beginning to understand how people could love and hate someone at the same time; why they viewed so much stuff in shades of grey. Why they said things were 'complicated' all the time. He was beginning to feel his childhood slip away. And it scared him. He made a mental note to track down Peter Pan; he needed to talk to the man who had vowed to never grow up. He wasn't sure what he was after, he just knew to follow his heart; it had yet to lead him astray.

Regina swallowed nervously. "So... Rumplestiltskin is Gold, huh? Funny..."

"A laugh riot," Emma replied flatly. "And Henry, before you even ask, you need to stay here."

Henry pouted. "Aww, c'mon..." A loophole suddenly occurred to him. "But you said no one should be anywhere alone... not with things being so crazy."

Emma pulled a face, clearly irritated for a moment at the downside of Henry's intelligence. She'd found herself, against all odds, sympathizing with the frustrations Henry had put Regina through in his quest to break the curse. "Can you stay with him, David?"

"You're not confronting that imp without my blade beside you," he replied seriously, giving Regina her first real glimpse at the heroic prince inside Snow's shepherd husband. Even without details, she could see why the pair had overcome all the trials thrown at them. She didn't envy the Evil Queen her task in going up against the couple.

Emma turned toward Snow, but threw up a hand before the brunette could say a word. "I know better than to ask," she said, the smirk and roll of her eyes undercutting any shortness in her tone. She pulled out her phone in exaggerated frustration. "Some families go on picnics, we interrogate megalomaniacal man-trolls," she muttered as she dialed.

"Imp. Trolls are much larger. You have to get quality time with your family where you can..." Snow replied wryly, earning her a raised brow that asked 'really?' just as clearly as if Emma had voiced it.

But the blond's attention was pulled away before she could form a snarky response. "Hey - August. Listen, can you make a beeline over here and stay with Henry for a bit?" A pause as he said something. "Right. That's fine. Just try not to wander off to the island of misfit toys or something while he's with you and we're golden." The voice on the other end seemed to grumble at the jab, making Emma smile mischievously. "I'll see you in five, Eeyore."

"Moved on quickly from the marionette jokes?" asked Snow. Second bright side of to having a grown child? No need to pretend certain inappropriate behavior wasn't funny in the interest of teaching wasn't sure if it was flirting or more of a sibling-esque thing, but decided that the mom's business line would probably have been crossed if she asked. The two were connected in a very obvious way. Henry's pet theory was that Emma's superpower to tell if people were lying was because she went through the wardrobe after Pinocchio. As far fetched as that was, who was she to discount anything as far fetched?

Emma shrugged. "I can't help that his reactions are so hilarious. I've decided on a revolving selection of Pinnochio jokes."

"A lazy susan of jests?" remarked Snow with a chuckle. "You're awful!"

"Says the woman who sarcastically calls her true love charming," smirked Emma. "Gee, I can't imagine where I get it from."

True to his word, August knocked on the door five minutes later. After a quick debriefing, Emma, David, Snow, and Regina had departed, leaving a disappointed, if resigned, Henry in their wake. The walk was a surprisingly short one, even if Regina was becoming accustomed to the dense nature of the town. Having grown up in a royal manor close to a day's ride away from the closest village, the centralized nature of the town was fascinating for her. She liked to think that if they had lived in such a close-knit setting, perhaps her mother would have been able to see the trees for the forest, as it were. To view subjects as people, not pawns. She'd like to, but nonetheless, knew it was a fantastical idea. If her father Henry's stories about Cora's father were to be believed, and she trusted her father above all else, then her grandfather had been a kind man; and Cora herself hadn't always been the power-mad witch. Something had twisted her, but her father refused to tell. It was the only thing he'd ever been able to deny her.

They soon arrived at a small shop that oozed history. To Regina, it felt like every object contained within was watching her. There was a strange energy about to the place - never mind the odor. For Emma, it was like a museum every time she entered, except that it was the antithesis of sterile. In her time in the foster system she'd seen more museums than most kids. Every kid went on field trips, but while many adults would envy the chance to spend a work day leisurely learning, for most kids, it was more like a jail break. Emma had found herself in the oddball position of having memorized exhibits, despite not having an exceptional interest in most of what she saw, long before visiting them with a school group. It was a weird irony of being in the system. Group homes and foster parents alike viewed museums 'entertainment' that made them look like they cared for the ultimate well-being of their charges while also spending as little time - and most importantly, money - on the actual nurturing of each kid's interests. The foster parents in particular liked to simply drop her there or the library, like it was a babysitting service. But, of course, most of the kids, while eager, were flighty and easily bored. Museum pieces were always cleaned meticulously, or behind glass, which meant that despite them being witness to history, they were as detached from being 'real' to her as recreated object meant to illustrate the real thing. Rumpelstiltskin's shop was more like walking into a personal collection. While all carried a little musty scent, their odors combined to give the dark space a vibrant energy of life, even before the curse. She could practically feel the ghostly eyes of passed generations on her every time she stepped inside. It was unnerving in its mildest form and downright terrifying now that magic had returned. Or existed. Whatever.

In any case, knowing that the 'beast' could transform people into an object with a simple wave of his hand was unnerving in this setting. How couldn't it be when the aura of the object that seemed to be eyeing could have easily actually had eyes at some point?

"Well, what a happy family, " Gold drawled.

David drew up on the glass showcase that stood between he and Gold, palms planted, as if preparing for the pounce like a jungle cat. "Stuff it! You pretend to see everything, so if you do, you know why we're here - and why you must choose your words with care."

Gold drew back, pulling himself to his full height, which while it was still shorter than the blond, he'd found posture counted for more than actual size. "Just to be clear?" he sneered "I only see the possibilities. Ya still need to make it happen. Fate won't ever do the work for you." He leaned on his cane. "But yes, I believe I know why you're here." He snapped his gaze on to Regina like a hawk on a rat. "Long time no see, my lady. Must be quite... disorienting being here."

Regina met his gaze, and from his demeanor and every one else's, it was was evident to her that she'd had more interaction, in the years she didn't recall, with the terrible half-man than she'd ever intended to. She shrugged as nonchalantly as she could manage. "Yes. And what of it?" She was determined to not relay any more than necessary, and hid any fears, as best she could.

He narrowed his eyes. "Would you give me your hand? Please." Regina hesitated, looking at him warily. In that space of a few moments he'd learned what he needed and waved it off. The clause in their contract for him to create the curse wasn't part of the curse itself, leaving that spell intact. Her need to obey any request by way of a simple 'please' was something only she and he knew. Were it an act, she'd have had no choice but to obey. But still, she hesitated. Her cold "Pleased to meet you" before proffering her hand, assured him.

"This is most certainly not an act of subterfuge. And what's more... much more interesting, is that her soul has been released of any magical binds placed before her last memory. Yes, quite interesting..."

"What's so interesting?" Emma shot back sharply.

"There is no dark magic that can do such a thing. It comes with a price, and in this case, dark magic would never release its wielder, or target, from something so deliciously costly as a contract of servitude. Not without a mighty price."

Snow raised an eyebrow. "Such as?"

Rumpelstiltskin shrugged flamboyantly. "Ah, well, usually I couldn't pin it down. Life is full of so many possible sacrifices... but to undo the conditions of a contract... given Regina's situation in that area, there would be only one thing she could have paid with. Ah, but I suspect if I value my life I won't be jogging any memories for young Regina here. Suffice to say, that is if young Henry lives, it was not a dark spell that brought Regina to this state." He reached out his hand but paused millimeters above the skin of Regina's hand. "May I?"

She eyed him. He could tell she was doing her best to seem intimidating, but compared to the maturely dark Regina, it may as well have been a puppy's bared teeth. "If you must."

He shot her his best irreverent, but predatory, smirk. "I must!" he replied before he laid hands on her. To his surprise, there was no fairy magic running through her, but simply the residual energies of Nostos and true love distilled from Snow and Charming. He had been pleasantly surprised when he'd returned magic that, unlike blue fairy magic, or his dark magic, the purple energies he'd unleashed were the most neutral of any magic he'd tasted. Love was love, after all. The fact that Bae and Belle could still love him, even knowing the cruelty he'd inflicted - that Regina's father stood by her to the bitter end - was testament enough to its neutrality. Many other dark magic users had considered even that unconditional love to be weakness, but his origins as a father first, assured him otherwise. It had brought him this far, after all.

It was what made magic still unfamiliar and how it worked less reliable to all magic users in Storybrooke. It was a new, unfamiliar flavor with no ties. It would take time for all to learn its idiosyncrasies.

As for his ultimate goal, over a century in the making, revealing the scheme would finally play into his hands.

"I suppose you want me to undo whatever caused this?" he asked.

Emma, Snow, and David looked to Regina, but she was clearly ambivalent about the idea. After learning just a little, she already knew her life must have had a lot of darkness in it. Did she want that knowledge back or was this a fresh start? Snow turned back to Gold. "We'll get back to you on that."

"Well, if it's not my magical expertise you require, then I hope it's information you're after. I'm afraid I'm fresh out of any more family heirloom weaponry."

"We think the key to unravelling this is in something you know," replied David evenly. "We know you had dealings with Cora. That Regina had to make a choice." He was in complete agreement with Emma in his opinion that if the Blue Fairy was correct in her belief that Regina was led down the path of darkness by Rumpelstiltskin, that he'd tricked her into casting the curse for him, taking away Regina's second chance would be injustice of the highest degree. How could they take her happiness a second time? For as much as he despised the Evil Queen, he'd never believed Snow beyond redemption when she'd lost her heart. What if they could have all been saved if just one person had believed in Regina enough to save her? He hoped they could get the rest of the council to see things their way. Jiminy would be easy, but the rest were iffy. Never mind the entire city.

"Well, in that case, you would be right. But before we get to that, you'll all need to know what happened before. I assume you'd like to know why your mother became... who she was?" He eyed Regina. As much as he knew of the woman after she'd let the darkness into her heart, he knew equally little about the woman before the ultimate battle between mother and daughter had been waged. As a squalling infant, precocious child, and rebellious young woman she'd held little interest to him, and certainly not worth tangling with Cora again. His revenge would be inflicted by her daughter; the punishment being exactly what she'd done to him, would be done to her.

Regina pulled her hand back. "I always suspected it was at your... claws," she replied, trying to make it clear she didn't consider him a man. Or frightening.

"Petty insults rarely hit the mark, little miss," he replied, turning away, as if he weren't interested. "Besides, it's clear you've never understood your mother if you think she didn't bring it on herself. Strange that she'd hold so little regard for the person she sacrificed so much for. Perhaps she was right when she told me you couldn't handle such a burden." Cora had never said such a thing, but he knew nothing drew Regina in more than her insatiable need to prove herself to those who dismissed her. It was part of what made her battles with Emma so deliciously entertaining. The blond was very much like her step-grandmother in that way.

There was a pause so long that Rumpelstiltskin began to worry that perhaps he'd misread the now untainted Regina. But then, to his relief, it came. "You can tell me how it came to pass?" she replied quietly. "Why she..." Memories of the litany of cruelties she'd suffered at her mother's hands, or witnessed done to others, mingled with her new-found memories of Daniel's fate. It was her mother. She wanted to understand, even if forgiveness was a possibility long passed.

"Why she became the twisted witch?" said Rumpelstiltskin. "Knowledge won't bring absolution, you know," he drawled.

"Yeah, but it sure as hell makes it easier to understand," replied Emma. The true story of her abandonment hadn't brought her acceptance of the many sadnesses of her life, but they made the suffering feel a lot less pointless. Just as the parents of missing children said that not knowing their child's fate was a worse agony than knowing their child was gone, she'd found being on the other end of that equation the same. Answers were powerful things. "But if it isn't relevant, just drop the game and we'll leave you to... whatever you're up to now. I'm busy woman, thanks to you and your damned magical carpet bomb."

"Magic or not, for every reward there is a cost. You get your mummy and daddy back, but now you've no time to enjoy it."

His amusement at her family's expense was palpable, but Regina had given Emma plenty of practice at reigning in her feelings. She rolled her eyes, but her right arm shot out to her side lightning fast as she sensed Snow and James both about to jump the imp. She shot them a look that made it clear she wouldn't let them take the bait before turning back to Gold. "Yes, it's all hilariously ironic. I'll be sure to inform you if I find myself with 10,000 spoons when all I need is a knife, since it seems to bring you such pleasure."

"No need, dearie. Now, wouldn't you like to hear this little tale or not? You'll have the honor of being the first, in three worlds worth of people no less, to know what the ultimate goal of every deal I've ever made was. The purpose to everything all four of you, and countless others, have been through." He brought a triumphant Bond villain ton mind. Clearly he'd been chafing for years for someone to fully understand his brilliance. She would be only too happy to indulge his little ego trip if it meant bringing his monologuing ass down just like one of those villains.

"Why do I get the feeling that whatever your goal is, it could never justify the means?" mused Snow flatly.

Gold shrugged. "We all decide what's right for ourselves. It's the beauty of free will."

"In no world could the number of lives you've destroyed be worthwhile, let alone good," David shot back.

"Is it worth your daughter's life? Honestly, what happened to gratitude? Probably died under the corpse of chivalry, eh? No matter," Gold said with a wave of his hand.

"Gratitude?!" blanched Emma.

"Yes. Gratitude. Without me and my deals-"

"That you just said you mad to benefit yourself," Emma interrupted.

"- Cora never would have gotten her husband. There would be no Regina. She and Snow would never have developed that... very special relationship of theirs. No one to pluck a shepherd boy from poverty so be could play princey. Snow would never have been in the woods to meet her true love. No Emma. No. Henry. I think, sheriff dear, it's quite clear you owe me your life. But, I'm a reasonable man. Gratitude would be more than enough." Emma simply glared at him in response. "Now, where were we? Oh, yes, the enchanting tale of how a poor motherless miller's daughter grew up to be the most vile, and powerful, witch the realm would ever see." He narrowed his eyes on Regina, leaning forward on his cane. "No offense, dearie."

"None taken," Regina replied, a little puzzled at why he would apologize. It was the truth. The light of his desk lamp glinted off of Gold's signature tooth as smirked back. If Regina ever got her memories back, he knew she would delightfully irked by his implying her to be less powerful than her mother. "You can skip to after my parent's marriage. I've already told them what I know of that."

"Too bad you don't know the whole story..."

"And that would be?" Regina replied, using an irritated tone to mask her trepidation at just how tightly woven Rumpelstiltskin's spiderweb of manipulation went.

"Cora never knew it was I who caused the ice storm that destroyed her family's farm."

"And the reason for that?" asked Snow.

"What do you think? The same reason I caused the illness that befell Duke Alys. Why I proposed that ridiculous cure and persuaded Henry that he should be the one to search for the ingredients."

"To ensure they'd be wed. So they'd have a child. Me," said Regina.

"Glad to see you didn't lose your cleverness when you lost your memories. You'll need them before your journey is through." Gold remarked. "Yes, a child. I foresaw what a child borne of that pair of parents could become. Loved just enough by one parent to maintain a soft, sentimental core; unloved enough by the other to make her become a fighter to jealously guard that soft core. Truly, a powerful tool one day."

"The finest steel is forged in the hottest fire and tempered in the coolest water," remarked David, remembering a conversation he'd had with a blacksmith as he and Snow prepared to take back their kingdoms.

"Precisely."

"I'm no one's tool!" Regina protested, a flare of anger, flamed by a lifetime of having no control over her own destiny, sparked to life in her gut.

His eyes narrowed at the woman, a viciously cruel glint appearing within. "Ah, but you were. And you will be again, for your debt to me can never be forgiven!" he growled.

Regina couldn't help her reflexive jerk back at this sudden hostility. She'd fallen under the the false lull of safety his cordiality had woven. She felt a stab of cold fear go through her heart as his words sunk in. Not only was he not fond of her, he clearly had his sights on her. It took Regina all her self-control not to ask what she could have possibly done to deserve it. Surely her mother was the cause of it. She wasn't evil. A small moment of delight at the idea of beating the imp at his own game fluttered through her thoughts, until she realized that thought - and the calculating version of her own voice in her head - had formed in, and escaped from, the dark prison weighing down her very being. It had certainly not come from her heart. 'I'm not evil,' she thought, assailing the foreign knot of darkness inside her with the words. 'I'm not,'' she repeated weakly to herself. 'I'm not capable of that cruelty.' Even as she said it she knew she didn't fully believe it. It was a nightmare that had plagued her since she was old enough to understand what evil truly was.

A literal nightmare, that consisted of nothing but herself as a ribbon of energy, growing from the fabric of the world around her like a tree sapling. She could never shake the feeling, contemplating the dream when awake, that the energy ribbon was a dream manifestation of her soul. And a vision of her destiny. Another ribbon would come in, joining itself with her, their white light glowing like the sun as they became one. The feeling of being truly whole for the first time, they grew rapidly, stretching up and out like the branches of a tree. Then, suddenly, the other ribbon that made her whole and strong and filled with love was ripped from her. It was like having her very heart ripped out and she thought the very pain of it would kill her. She shriveled and shrank, the light fading to the darkest black, and she'd never felt so alone and terrified. She felt other ribbons, souls, around joy at finding the one that completed them. Her panicky fear was like needles when she felt another get too close, for fear another loss like that would kill her. And continued to shrivel, sure she would soon crumble and blow away like the ash of a charred scroll of paper. Soon she stopped fearing the others, for they avoided her black rotted form. She could feel their disgust with her.

And then she'd wake up.

Knowing what she did about Daniel now, she wondered what had become of her the first time she'd experienced that loss; with the only possible shoulder to cry on being a small princess. As much as she loved her father, she knew he'd have tried to justify Cora's actions. He was incapable of standing up to his wife, even for his daughter. Was this why Snow knew her so well? Had she married Leopold? The thought sent a shiver of panic down her spine, for reasons she couldn't pinpoint. Snow certainly didn't act as if she considered Regina a mother - and that besides, why on earth would she adopt the grandson of her stepdaughter when Snow was right there. She pushed the thoughts aside. She had to focus on what was happening before her. There would be plenty of time for midnight contemplations and questions over tea.

Just as suddenly as it had erupted into venom, Gold's temperament was pleasant again. "You've served my purposes more beautifully than I could have imagined, time and time again. But we're getting ahead of ourselves, aren't we?" He settled on to a nearby stool, propping one leg out, the other's heel hooked into the bar joining two of the legs. "About two years after Cora and Henry were married, I got word that Duke Alys was expecting his first grandchild. He died rather mysteriously not long after that... something about being pricked by a spinning needle, blood poisoning - I didn't have anything to do with that one, so I'm rather short on the details." He shook his head, the ghost of a wistful smile on his features. "I suppose I should have realized Cora was up to something right then and there. But, of course, I didn't realize she was anything beyond a dishonest and rather manipulative girl at the time. Wouldn't have stopped me collecting, but I could have saved all of us quite a bit of unpleasantness if I'd know what a bother she'd make herself." He sneered his nose at the thought of all the time wasted by her inability to accept that she couldn't have everything. Regina ended up having had the pleasure of teaching that woman that particular lesson. "So, the newly crowned Duke Henry and Duchess Cora now had a keep stuffed full of spun gold and a dutchy worth of soldiers to do their bidding. With no one but the king to answer to."

Even though she'd lived it, when phrased that way, knowing what her mother was capable of, it made her skin crawl. The idea of there being a time before that had always seemed like a dream. A dream she'd forbidden all her subjects from discussing unless absolutely necessary. As if by ignoring it would erase her humble beginnings. Regina had tried to explain to her mother that her story was inspirational for the people; that anyone could change their stars. It could provide hope to the hopeless if she'd just let it. That's when she realized her mother didn't want some street filth thinking they could challenge her power one despite King Leopold's edict that, as stewards of their subjects, all royals must put the happiness of their people ahead of their own, her mother had meant it when she called it pointless, sentimental, drivel. Her philosophy had always been that she got where she got by her own hand - that if someone was poor they had no one to blame but themselves.

"Given the open nature of our agreement - I thought it wise to drop in to collect as soon as possible."

"A piece of the bounty from their marriage," said Regina.

Gold held up an index finger. "Ah!" he cried and made a pinch-like gesture with his thumb and finger, leaving a small space between the two. "A small piece of the bounty from their marriage!"

"Their baby," said Emma, recalling the stories about him, and her own dealings with Gold.

Gold smiled, the expression much more that of an imp than a man. "I like to stick with the classics. They're classics for a reason, you know. I'm no fool. No parent will ever give away their child to the likes of the Dark One." Emma wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not, but she swore she could hear the tiniest hint of disgust with his existence in his tone at that moment. "And if they would, the child would be better off away from them anyway. No... it's all about the game. Start with a high price, so when they think they've won the negotiation by getting a lower one, they walk away happy. And a happy customer is a returning customer." He giggled, almost sounding like the dark creature he'd been in the Enchanted Forest, sending a chill down Snow and David's spines. Finally getting to reveal the details of his scheme, to pull the curtain back, as it were, was proving far more delightful than he'd anticipated. But then, he considered, it's always nice to have your work appreciated. And soon enough he wouldn't have to worry about any of them knowing his tricks. It was all falling into place. "Little did I know that Cora would be the first to find a way to have her cake and eat it too."

A/N: Ok, so I kinda made a liar of myself. Cora's story will continue in the next chapter. I thought I'd release this chapter without it, as the next will be long, in favor of a quicker update.