Title: Vengeance, Sacrifice, and Forgiveness
Author: AoN
Word Count: 4,600
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Feedback: Please and thank you! Let me know what I'm doing right or doing wrong.
Summary: With the Evil Queen's curse weakening and Regina struggling to keep Storybrooke under control, hidden secrets and lies from long ago are beginning to surface – and they want their happily ever after.
Chapter Ten
The puny little creatures of the forest had been unable to quench the gnawing hunger that defined the monstrous wolf's being, not when it had desired more meaty, juicy, and fat. Its nose caught the scent of something more promising and filling than rabbits and the occasional low flying blue bird. It lead the creature from the deep forest to the shallow woods. The town was close; it would not wander any closer. The village meant certain danger; this isolated house nestled between a few trees did not.
Smoke, billowing from the chimney, carried the smell of an early dinner that was slowly cooking over the burning embers of the fireplace. Stew. Rabbit. The creature wrinkled its nose in disgust. However, the scent masquerading behind the stew was enough to cause it to salivate, urging itself to burst through the door and rip that old woman to sweet succulent shreds. Yellowing teeth yearned to sink into that flesh while dry tongue soaked in warm wet blood. Soon, the hunger would be satisfied – the monster would be satisfied.
Movement caused the creature, deemed the Big Bad Wolf by many of the townspeople, to draw its ears back and crouch even closer to the forest ground, deeper into the shrubbery that concealed its figure from view. The movement came from within the cottage, a shadow had crossed the window – nothing to cause alarm, but the beast remained alert. Its eyes never strayed from the small house, not risking missing the golden opportunity to strike down its oblivious prey. Without moving a muscle, the Big Bad Wolf stayed silent and waited.
And waited.
An occasional blue bird interrupted the silence with its tweeting, but their songs were never very long and quickly subsided after a few moments. The only movement came from within that cottage; the human figure would walk across the window every now and again. The smoke had disappeared from the chimney, signaling that dinner had been prepared. Perhaps the woman was feasting, completely unaware that she was seasoning and fattening herself up for the next feast she would attend – one where she was the main dish. The beast began to droll once more, resisting the urge to charge through that window and disrupting its prey's last meal.
Its wait would only be a few minutes more. The door to the cottage opened and the old woman that had been watched by the Big Bad Wolf stepped out onto the porch, carrying a rolled up tablecloth. The crucial moment was quickly approaching and the monstrous beast was more than prepared to strike. The old woman, holding onto the edge of the tablecloth, flung her wrists forward, causing the cloth to come swinging up. The crumbs from the meal flew off which was the motion's intention, but it also blocked the woman's view, providing the Big Bad Wolf with the cover it had been seeking.
The beast struck.
Granny did not see the creature until it was too late. As the tablecloth came down, she saw only one of two things: this wolf-like monster was in mid-air, coming down straight on her, teeth and claws bearing, ready to draw blood. Fear blinded the old woman from the familiar dark haired man who was running down the path from the forest; axe in hand – one of the most skilled hunters from the nearby town. No, the only being she saw was the beast crashing down on her, its sharp claws digging deep into the flesh of her lower arm. Granny opened her mouth to scream, but no sound escaped her. Not only had fear blinded her, it also silenced her.
Muzzle open wide, the Big Bad Wolf lowered its head with the intention of tearing into the old woman's throat, but before yellowing teeth could touch sagging skin, the creature threw its head back with a howl. Its grasp on her arm tighten as it drew down, slashing into the muscle. This time, Granny's cry was drowned out by the creature's howl.
The Big Bad Wolf released its hold on its prey and quickly turned around. Granny saw the handle of an axe running down the back of the beast, blade dug deep near its shoulder blade. Her frightened eyes darted to the axe's wielder and they instantly widened. The color drained from her face as the Big Bad Wolf swiped its already stained claws across the young man's throat, ripping open the flesh which sprayed blood. The man never had the chance to react.
As soon as the man fell to the floor, the Big Bad Wolf turned its attention back to Granny who was still too frightened to move. It raised its arm up into the air, but before it could bring its paw hurling down, another wolf tackled into the creature's side, causing it to lose its center of gravity and knocking the beast off balance.
Granny forced herself to sit up and watch the scene unfold. The much smaller wolf was standing its ground. The fur on its back was standing on end as it bared its white teeth. The red eye which Granny saw was staring, hard. As the Big Bad Wolf started to stand, the runt pounced, elongating its figure to reveal fresh pink ragged scars on its own side. They were the battle wounds her granddaughter, Red, had treated. This was the wolf from which Granny had warned Red to stay away. Wolves were trouble which was why Granny normally stepped outside armed with her crossbow. She had not expected to be ambushed while dusting out the cloth and, frankly, she should have known better. The hunter would still be alive.
He was dead.
The fierce growl snapped Granny back into reality, but she did not know from which animal it came – nor did it matter. The runt had sunk its teeth onto the back of the monster's neck which it had pinned down, but it was struggling to do so. Granny scrambled to get to her feet, ignoring the blinding pain omitting from her wounded arm, and bolted instead the house to fetch her weapon.
She was only gone for a few seconds at most. Upon her return, the Big Bad Wolf had raised to its feet, the runt hanging from its back. Granny quickly took aim as the creature grabbed the runt by the skin of the neck. It was able to toss its smaller four legged counterpart to the side with little difficulty. When the small wolf tumbled onto the ground, Granny fired an arrow that found its new home, lodged into the Big Bad Wolf's side with a terrible loud howl.
Growling, the runt was quickly back on its four paws and charging at its enemy. Instead of attacking the weaker animal, the Big Bad Wolf retreated. The beast started running in the opposite direction of the charging runt that was now snapping at its feet. Granny took aim once again and figured.
She was not sure if she hit her original mark, but she heard a yelp regardless.
xxxx
With all the strength she could possible muster in that short moment, Lucy rolled onto her back after tumbling forward onto her stomach in an attempt to run with Mary Margaret away from danger. Attempting to scamper away now would have kept her back exposed to the creature which would have guaranteed her death, not that her actual course of action had increased her odd of survival by much. At least she could see the Big Bad Wolf hurling itself at her; she could see its shiny yellow teeth coming uncomfortably close.
The Big Bad Wolf had her pinned to the ground with one paw pressed against her left shoulder, claws tearing into the leather jacket Emma had given her the morning after entering the bed and breakfast through the window. Its other paw was against the patch of dirt, dangerously close to her head – one swipe and she was a goner. Its powerful jaws were snapping menacingly, barely inches away from the tip of Lucy's nose.
Her own arms were extended outward, hands wrapped around the beast's large neck as best as she could. She was squeezing as tight as she could, hoping she could crush of cause some sort of damage to the creature's windpipe, but Lucy knew she was far from doing any of that. The only thing she was doing was delaying the Big Bad Wolf from crushing her skull for a few more extra moments; she was not injuring the creature at all and she would not be able to hold out much longer. Her arms were burning, threatening to give out. She forced herself to kick her legs against the beast's body, but even that attempt to protect herself was weak.
This was it.
After everything, this was how she would die (well, again, technically) – by the hand of the creature whose downfall she witnessed many, many years ago. Lucy would laugh bitterly had she not been preoccupied with those sharp fangs. She probably should have been paying attention to those claws as well. The sound of leather ripping informed Lucy that she owed Emma a new jacket, one that had two completely attached sleeves. A glanced confirmed Lucy's assumption. Her left shoulder was exposed, bearing the horizontally straight scar caused by a flying arrow during another encounter with the Big Bad Wolf.
Surprisingly enough, there were no new cuts – just the material had been torn, but now the claws were sinking into her arm. Lucy grunted as she tried to squeeze tighter, but she knew she was not returning the same amount of pain. It was no use; she could not fight the beast off like this. The transformation, its side effects, had made her unbearably weaker. Not only did she feel powerless lying there on the ground, she knew that she actually was.
When the Big Bad Wolf raised its free paw in the air, ready to strike, Lucy closed her eyes tightly. It would all be over soon. She would greet death again and it would not be so bad, she managed to convince herself. It would be okay because it was her – her and not Snow. Snow had to live, had to see the end of the curse. Snow had a proper life to return to once the curse broke. Family. Friends. Lucy – no, Lily – had none of that. No one really knew that she was alive. Red would mourn her, yes, but she would mourn the wolf, not the princess. Then there was Regina, the woman who had already buried her child and could not comprehend that Lucy had once been that little girl.
Lucy braced herself for a swing that never came. She had expected for the claws to rip across her face and neck, making her the beast's next meal. Instead, she heard a blunt object collide against the Big Bad Wolf's face based on the creature's yelp as it stagger off Lucy who immediately looked up.
Mary Margaret was standing over the younger woman, her hands gripping the end of a fallen, decent sized branch she had picked up off the ground. The expression on her own face expressed that even she could not believe what she had done. It was not like her, but it was definitely Snow and Lucy was grateful for that.
"Come on!" Mary Margaret urged, holding out her hand to Lucy who grabbed it. Mary Margaret, with a pull, helped Lucy onto her feet. Branch still in hand, Mary Margaret turned around to head to her truck, dragging Lucy behind her who was still staggering along.
"Look out!" Lucy warned.
Not only had the Big Bad Wolf regained its footing, it was now charging at Mary Margaret, vengeance shinning in its eyes. Mary Margaret stood, frozen, eyes widened. Ready to return the favor, Lucy grabbed the branch from Mary Margaret's grasp. As the Big Bad Wolf approached closer, Lucy thrust the branch forward. The jagged rough edge which had been ripped from the tree who knows when struck the roof of the Big Bad Wolf, causing his neck to snap back, disrupting its momentum.
"Run!" Lucy demanded, pulling the makeshift weapon back.
"Not without you!" Mary Margaret automatically replied.
"Trust me," Lucy grunted, planting her feet firmly against the ground. "I'm right behind you!" she stated, swinging her upper body as she extended her arm and, by extension, the branch out. Before the Big Bad Wolf could recover from its new dental work, the branch collided hard with its cranium.
The creature staggered back as Lucy dropped the branch. They did not have much time. Both women immediately turned on their heels and bolted to Mary Margaret's car. Mary Margaret's hand was shaking, she could not unlock the truck – the key would not enter the lock and Lucy's mumbling of 'come on' repeatedly on the opposite side of the truck did not exactly calm her nerves either. She knew yelling at the woman to shut up would not help their situation, so she forced herself to stay silent. What Mary Margaret needed was a cool head so, instead, she took a deep breath.
Her shaking subsided long enough for her to finally unlock the truck. "Got it!" she announced, pulling her door open. She heard Lucy's 'good' as the woman scrambled into the passenger seat. Mary Margaret quickly climbed into the driver's seat and locked the doors.
Lucy looked over her shoulder as the engine roared to life. She could see the fallen figure of the Big Bad Wolf through the back window. It was twitching, slowly regaining its sense of being. A sense of panic finally defeated the adrenaline rush that had kept Lucy fighting.
"Drive, drive, drive!" Lucy shouted as the truck flung forward down the dirt road path.
xxxx
Henry had asked if he could go play with a couple classmates at the new playground this Saturday morning. Initially, Regina's answer was 'I'll think about it' – an answer Henry was never fond of hearing, but it was one he heard quiet frequently. However, she did think about it. At first, Regina was fairly certain it was simply an attempt to trick her into allowing him to spend more time with the sheriff. She could not put that past him – ever since that woman showed up, Henry started flat out lying to her.
He did bring up the event again as the weekend approached, insistently. This time, she knew he would refute her 'I'll think about it' response simply because she already said that – a 10 year old's logic. Regina could have easily said 'no,' but she refrained from crushing the boy's spirit. He even went as far as to inform her that one of the other children's mother would be there to watch over them. Was he fabricating the lie even further?
In the end, Regina agreed to allow him to go. After all, it would not hurt Henry to spend more time with his classmates, but Regina insisted of driving him herself – she had to stop by her office anyway (or that is what she told Henry). When Henry did not protest, Regina found herself relaxing a tiny bit out of relief. Perhaps he truly did not have an alternative motive. Perhaps all he had wanted was really to play with the other children. She hated this sense of distrust between them, she truly did.
Their relationship was so much simpler before that damn book.
When Regina pulled up to the playground and shifted the Mercedes into park, Henry quickly got out, muttering his barely audible 'bye.' She watched him run over to a small group of boys, eliminating the majority of doubt she had against him. For a moment, Regina lingered and did not shift the car into reverse until she spotted the mother Henry had mentioned sitting at one of the benches. She recognized the woman, of course, from dropping off and picking up Henry from school. The woman probably knew there would be consequences if anything were to happen to Henry; Regina did not have to remind her.
She reversed out of her parking spot and headed back to the main street. Instead of heading to her public office as Henry was under the impression that is where she would be, Regina pulled over adjacent from Granny's diner, in front of the small apartment. This was not a random, casual visit, no. Far from it. The apartment had been vacant, unchanged for days, but something did catch her attention, something Regina had to witness and investigate first hand.
Unlocking the door and stepping inside, Regina spotted the object which had struck a chord. She could see the vase on the kitchen counter from the doorway and she could see the batch of flowers that they held neatly in place. The sight of them made her mouth become extremely dry, made her realize that she had been lied to by this woman.
White Easter lilies.
Who the hell was she? What was she playing at? What kind of magic, what kind of curse was this? Did she really think she could trick the Evil Queen? Make her look like a fool?
Regina walked up swiftly to the counter and reached out for the flowers, but stopped when something else on the counter caught her attention. A stale, slightly moldy apple pie. Her lips thinned slightly, almost frowned as she felt a pang in her chest. She had been so foolish. She had actually believed, even for a few short moments that maybe, possibly…
"Fancy seeing you here, your majesty."
She did not have to turn around to discover to whom the voice belonged, but Regina did so anyway without a word.
"But then again," Mr. Gold began, closing the door of the apartment behind him to grant them completely privacy. "Once I removed all your little eyes and bugs, I knew you'd be running down here as fast as you could," he explained with a slight smirk. "Enjoying the flowers, are you?"
Her eyes narrowed a bit as the corner of her lip twitched at the man's question. "You sent them here," Regina stated. He did not need to answer, especially when that ridiculous grin of his had already done all the talking. Only he would dare to taunt her, to get into and mess with her mind that had already been reeling from all the recent events.
"They suit her, don't you think?" Mr. Gold responded, taking a few steps into the kitchen and gesturing towards the vase. "A beautiful flower reflecting upon a beautiful young lady with the same name, but then again, you know all this. You're her mother after all – and you must be so proud," he teased. Regina knew very well he was dangling the flowers right in front of her (metaphorically, of course), just as she had done with that chipped cup to him.
"Lily is dead," Regina stated firmly, her tone indicating that the topic was not up for discussion. She was a mother who buried her child and that was a pain that could not be imagined or forged. It did not matter how much time had passed, Regina could still vividly see Lily's bluish body lying on those rocks and she had never touched anything so cold. "I don't know who that woman is, but there is one thing of which I'm certain, Rumple," she lacked his name with a tone of annoyance. "Your trickery will not work on me."
Mr. Gold instantly chuckled lightly at the dear mayor's accusation. He shook his head slowly. "Oh dearie, had I known it would get you this ruffled up… I wish it were – what did you call it? My trickery?" he asked, leaning on his cane. "Why are you so bothered by it? Would it really be so bad to have our dearly departed princess return to us?"
"Taking your obsession with deals and contracts into consideration, you should know the fine details of the curse," Regina pointed out curtly.
"You don't need to lecture me about the curse, dearie," Mr. Gold replied. "You see, I'm quite familiar with it."
"Then clearly you understand why that woman cannot be her."
"But then again, what if she is?" Mr. Gold questioned, slowly limping his way over to the counter. Regina kept her eye on him as he reached out to gently touch one of the lilies in the vase. "The return of a lost daughter – most mothers would be so… happy," he stated, pulling the flower out of the bunch.
"She's not lost, she's dead," Regina corrected coldly. How many times did she have to repeat herself, of something they were both aware? She was steadily growing more and more annoyed.
Mr. Gold brought the flower to his nose, admiring its faint delicate scent. "It still has a deep hold on you, doesn't it, your majesty?" he grinned slyly. "The thought of that precious little girl, her death. It makes you sick, haunts your dreams – it destroyed the person you once were."
Her jaw clenched tightly, Regina remained silent.
Returning the flower to the others, Mr. Gold met her eyes. His grin had turned into a smirk. "You were on a very slippery slope, weren't you, dearie? With a mother like yours, it was difficult not to be, wasn't it?"
"That's enough," Regina hissed.
"Oh, please allow me to keep speaking," Mr. Gold requested with a faint chuckle. "Everything changed, didn't it? They day that… bundle of joy entered your life. It no longer felt black and dreary – Lillian, such a suiting name at that. It means light, hope-"
"You don't know-"
"Ah! Please, don't interrupt," Mr. Gold warned, holding up his hand to stop Regina from speaking out of turn. These royals were all so very rude. "And when she died, so did your life and hope. Nothing kept you from that slippery slope then, did it?" he commented. "That's why you won't accept the possibility of her existence here in Storybrooke. She'd be ashamed of the woman you've become."
Silence rang between them for a moment. The tension in the air was thick, almost suffocating. "I won't accept the possibility because I was the one who carried her from that river bank. I was the one who cleaned and dressed her cold body for the ceremony. I was the one who cremated her. She can't exist in Storybrooke."
"Right, she died, got it," Mr. Gold muttered with a nod. "Now, here's some food for thought. What if just her body died? What if, say, her spirit, and this may just sound a bit extreme, lived on?"
The intensity of all the glares he had received combined paled to the one he was currently at the end of. He could actually feel that coldness radiating off the mayor from where she stood – he could feel those daggers.
"I mean, you said her heart was beating, wasn't it?" Mr. Gold added with a slight tilt of the head. "How is that collection of yours going by the way?"
"There's a jeweled box waiting for yours," Regina snapped with a snare. Yes, the heart was beating and, at first, Regina could not accept it, but the proof had been in the palm of her hand. It had taken a few days for her rationality to overcome her emotions. The magic, she knew, was possible. Therefore, she had decided to keep her eye on the woman for the time being, under the impression that this was all Mr. Gold's doing.
However, Regina had not expected this form of involvement. Rage was exploding from within her, coursing through her veins. "What did you do to my Lily?" she demanded, her voice dangerously low and threatening.
"I thought you were certain she was gone."
"What did you do?" Regina hissed.
"Well, let's just say I never like to be cheated out of my deals," Mr. Gold replied seriously.
The corner of Regina's lips twitched once more. It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep her emotions in check. "I guessed your name fairly," she said.
"Of course you did, your majesty," Mr. Gold commented, eyes narrowing. He walked around her, heading towards the apartment door. "Maybe you should finally return that necklace."
"We're not done here," Regina stated, turning around.
But that did not stop him from walking. It was not she who held power over him. No, it was the exact opposite. "Oh, but if you please, I think we are and, dearie, please stop putting bugs in my apartments. My tenants rather enjoy their privacy – oh, and please do throw out that horrendous pie. It's quite obvious Lily's no longer a fan."
xxxx
The rope was stuck again.
Red pulled on it once more, hard, freeing whatever prevented the pulley from properly working. The whole process of getting water from the well had become tedious with the sticky pulley, but it was not exactly a concern for the rest of the town. There were much greater things to currently be worried about – a giant murderous wolf, for example.
It had been striking closer and closer to town. The creature had taken out the majority of the livestock and now most of the town would lock down after the sun would set. None of that stopped Red from wandering the forest, however, but even she knew it was getting dangerous which was why she decided that during her trip to Granny's today, she would bring the old woman back to town with her. Granny could no longer stay by herself – that crossbow could only offer so much protection. Having Granny with her should give her some peace of mind.
And given their current situation, some was definitely better than none.
Holding onto the rope tightly in one hand, Red reached out and grabbed the heavy bucket full of water by its metal handle and pulled it towards her. She placed the bucket down on the edge of the well, allowing herself to let go of the rope. Before Red could do much more, a moan caught her attention and she immediately looked up, eyes narrowing as she forced herself to pay closer attention.
Another moan.
It was not an animal. Someone was injured, someone just down the path from the well. Without a second thought, Red abandoned the bucket and walked around the well, instantly granting herself a better view of the path. Red's heart dropped and her eyes grew wide with immediate fright at the hunched over figure that was slowly heading her way. She knew that figured which was holding its bloody arm closer to its chest. Red knew that figure very well.
"Granny!"
To be continued
Author's Note: Thank you for being patient (I survived the dreadful midterms, papers, and translations) and for reading! I hope this chapter was worth the wait - let me know what you think in the form of a review! Also, I wanted to mention that I'll do my best to incorporate this Sunday's episode into the next upcoming chapters. I'm already aware I'm going to have to bend and twist some facts/storyline. Until next time! ~AoN