A/N: Some dialogue from S3; E20 (Kansas) has been inserted in this chapter.

Chapter Twenty-One

Not one of the five heroes was surprised to realize that the locator spell—poured on an argyle sweater that Regina would have once assumed Rumple would never be caught dead wearing—was leading them back toward the witch's farmhouse.

"Really," Hook remarked, "we could have driven and been here faster."

Regina waved a hand at the sweater floating in the air before them. "You really think I could drive with that hovering in front of my windshield? It's only flying at around three miles an hour. Besides," she added as the sweater turned off the road and began drifting across an empty field that looked as though it hadn't been mowed since the previous curse, "my Mercedes isn't designed for all-terrain."

Emma glanced over her shoulder. Her mother was lagging behind. "Are you all right?" she asked.

Snow gave her an apologetic smile. "I did just give birth yesterday," she pointed out. "I thought I was doing okay—and Dr. Whale agreed; that's why he released me this morning—but I guess I'm not back to normal, yet."

"We're almost there," David reassured her.

At that moment, the sweater made an abrupt U-turn and headed back toward town.

"Oh, for… Someone please tell me we're on Candid Camera," Emma exclaimed.

David blinked. "How…?"

"He must have teleported," Regina snapped. "Come on! Wait." She turned to Snow. "Robin's camp is only about a mile or so ahead. Why don't you head there and tell them we might need reinforcements? You can rest there and we'll come back for you later." Regina's smile dimmed slightly. "Always assuming that there is a later."

Snow nodded. "Henry's right," she said. "You can use light magic. The two of you together have to be strong enough."

"We hope," Emma murmured.

Snow smiled. "Exactly."

"So, we're walking back to town," Hook said flatly. "You know, by the time we get there, it may already be too late."

Regina considered that. Then she raised her hand aloft. The sweater stopped its slow flight. For a moment it seemed to hang indecisively. Then it flew back to Regina. "Let's hope we're right about where Rumple's headed," she said, "and that my sister didn't send him somewhere else en route. I'll transport us back to the center of town and we can turn this," she gave the sweater a gentle shake, "loose again and see where it leads us."

"How will Robin know where to find you?" Snow asked.

Regina sighed. "Well, he's pretty good at finding a trail, but if we're headed into another witch fight, I… don't think that's going to be a problem. They'll probably see the light show in Passamaquoddy."

"There," Zelena pointed with one hand, while holding the baby with the other. "Dig."

Rumple had no choice but to obey. The dagger couldn't be fought and he'd given up trying. It wasn't as though his fiercest efforts had ever even slowed his compliance. It was far less frustrating to carry out the witch's commands without attempting to resist them and try not to think about what he was doing or why. Still, something must have shown on his face, because Zelena's expression hardened. "You think I'll fail," she said.

"I think destiny is destiny." The pattern he was digging resembled a compass—or a shooter's target: concentric circles, quartered by a cross aligned with the four cardinal points. Zelena had placed shallow bowls at the northern, southern, and eastern points. There was a wicker basket with a flannel blanket at the west. Rumple really tried not to think about what that was for. He didn't like harming children as a rule, and he had just helped to bring this one into the world. He had no desire to help it—the task was easier if he didn't think of the baby as a 'he'—to leave.

Zelena laughed. "You're wrong," she retorted. "I can change it." Her casket was open now and in it, Rumple could see the golden brain she'd made from his spun straw, a heart—Regina's, he presumed, although he would have expected hers to be far darker than the specimen before him—and a sword hilt. He kept digging and tried not to notice when she lifted the brain out of the casket and put it in the bowl at the north point. "Once I fix the past," Zelena continued, "my mother will keep me. Regina will never have been born, and I'll get everything she ever had." As if for emphasis, she set the heart down in the bowl at the south point. "With the right ingredients, I can do anything." She spared a glance for the floor. "Make sure the pattern is six inches deep throughout," she ordered, holding the dagger.

He had no measuring stick, but the magic understood and would compel him to dig until he met the specification. It would take some time. The packed dirt floor was hard and Zelena seemed to think that the digging needed to be done through sheer manual labor. Rumple had no idea whether it was necessary for the spell, or whether she simply delighted in keeping him from using his magic to make the task easier. Still, as his shovel blade dipped once more into soil, he grunted, "Whether it works or not is irrelevant, dearie." He lifted the shovelful of earth and tossed it well outside the spell area. "Because," he continued, digging down again, "no matter what you change of your past, one thing shall remain the same." He tossed another shovelful away and smiled unpleasantly as he kept digging, dimly aware that Zelena had set the sword hilt in the eastern bowl. Were it not for the dagger, he might have considered whether the satisfaction of flinging the next shovelful of dirt at her outweighed the punishment she'd certainly exact from him. Sadly, there could be no such defiance with the dagger in play. He had only verbal resistance at his disposal—at least, unless she got it into her head to forbid him even that avenue. Meanwhile, he was still free to goad her. He noticed that she was waiting for him to finish his thought. His smile grew wider as he did. "You will still be yourself. That is a fate you shall never escape."

For a moment, her face turned, not green, but red—and he wondered whether he'd pushed her too far after all. But she only smiled and replied sweetly, "We shall see." And then, with deceptive mildness, she added, "Dig faster, dearie," raising the dagger once more.

As his already aching limbs struggled to obey, Rumple wondered whether his jibe had truly been worth it.

"Did we overshoot?" David asked, as he watched the sweater drift back toward the town line.

Hook sighed. "Perhaps she only sent him off on some errand, and he's returned to her cellar."

"No," Emma said, "wait." She pointed across the street at Granny's. The sweater had just veered off abruptly in a new direction. "It's headed toward the lake!"

Regina laid a cautioning hand on her jacket. "Don't get too excited," she warned. "We have to stick together—you and I in particular. Your magic…"

Emma stopped struggling. "I know, I know. I'm not back to full strength and our best chance is to work together."

"Which means not running too far ahead," Regina said pointedly. "If you go charging in and Zelena gets the drop on you… I don't know if I'm up for this." She rubbed her lower back and winced. "I've faced her three times, and each time, she's wiped the floor with me."

"I thought the first time was a draw," Emma protested.

Regina shook her head. "It was only a draw because she didn't get my heart that time." She pointed to the clock tower. "Notice anything different?"

Emma's jaw dropped. She didn't know how she hadn't seen it before. "The clock face…?" she said faintly.

"Zelena tossed me through it. After flinging me into Doc's Miata."

"She must really have it in for that car," Emma muttered, remembering what the hail had done to it.

"I think your focus is misplaced," Regina snapped. "It wasn't a draw, it was a," her voice grew softer, "…a sound defeat. The only thing I did right was leave my heart with Robin before the fight, so when she beat me, she still couldn't take it. She got it in the end," she added bleakly. "It just took her another couple of days."

Regina's hand was still on her arm. Emma covered it with her own. "Hey. It's not the end, yet. It can't be," she said, trying to inject a bit of levity. "It'd be happy."

Regina exhaled noisily, but her lips twitched in a brief smile. "I think that sweater's getting too far ahead of us," she said, sounding a bit more like herself. "We should catch up."

"See," Emma said, "this is the kind of thing I miss. A disembodied sweater goes floating through town and," she gestured toward the passersby on the street, who were calmly going about their business, "nobody even bats an eye in this town. I mean, I know New Yorkers have a reputation for being jaded, but I don't think they're this jaded. Let's go."

The sweater floated clear across the lake. The heroes watched with dismay. "Should we conjure up a boat?" Emma asked.

Regina shook her head. "I'm not even sure teleporting was wise," she answered. "It's going to take a lot to beat Zelena. The more we expend now, the less we'll be able to call on later."

"Had you not transported us," Hook pointed out, "we'd likely still be on the road back to town. And we all might have arrived here too late and too weary to do anything. Besides, you do have a bit of additional help."

Regina tilted her head to one side. Her arched eyebrows spoke volumes.

"Hey, come on," David grinned. "If we need someone to draw Zelena's fire… Or Gold's, for that matter... I think he'll do fine."

Hook scowled. "Just see if I ever attempt words of encouragement again," he muttered.

"Guys," Emma held up her hands, "enough. It's like Neverland. It's going to take all of us."

"You don't know that," Regina said.

"Do you know it won't?" When Regina was silent, Emma continued, "We'd better figure out the fastest way around the lake."

David looked from left to right. Then he frowned. "Do you hear hoof beats?"

They turned to see a horse with a cloaked rider cantering toward them. As he drew nearer, the rider lowered his hood.

"Robin?" Regina exclaimed. Then, smiling, "Where did you get the horse?"

Robin smiled back. "Apologies, Milady. After Snow delivered her message, I thought that haste was of the essence. The horse was grazing in a pasture along the way and, well, I am an outlaw…"

That got a genuine laugh from Regina. "We'll deal with that afterwards. Let's go." She pointed across the lake, to where Rumple's sweater hovered before a large wooden structure. "I believe they're in there. At least, Rumple should be." She sighed. "I'm not sure whether I should be transporting us across when we're going to be heading into a battle as soon as we get there. I suppose we'd best go around."

It took the better part of an hour for them to reach the opposite shore and another half hour to reach the warehouse, but Regina wasn't concerned. The air around them was charged with magical energy, but it felt dormant, as though it was still waiting for something. "Quietly," she cautioned, as they approached.

The warehouse doors were open. Regina suspected that only the magical wards that Zelena would have placed before casting her spell prevented the sweater from flying inside and losing them the element of surprise. Flames of silver, orange, yellow and red swirled from the spell pattern cut into the floor. Actually, she realized, that wasn't correct. The flames originated from the four objects surrounding the circle, one of which was a baby!

Zelena's back was to them. Regina didn't think she was aware of their presence. "You see," she was saying to Rumple, "once I change the past, you and I shall meet under different circumstances. And Rumple, you will choose me, and I will be enough."

"No, you won't," Rumple replied with calm certainty. His gaze flicked past her for a moment and his eyes widened slightly. Regina knew he'd spotted them, though he gave no other outward sign as he continued speaking. "And no matter where you go in time," a menacing edge came into his voice, "I will find a way to kill you."

Zelena chuckled. "Don't worry, dearie," she smiled. "Once all this is over, you won't remember a thing."

David was done with waiting. "It's not over yet!" he shouted, blowing their cover. Regina hid her irritation. She'd been about to announce their presence anyway.

Zelena turned calmly to face them. "And who'd going to stop me?" she demanded. "Your savior's looking a little wobbly, there."

Emma had spotted the baby. "Go," she told her father. "Get him. We've got your back."

Robin smiled as he moved past Regina. "And I've got your heart."

Regina gave a slight nod. When she spoke, it was with the authority she'd wielded both as mayor and as queen. Whatever fears and worries she had, she seemed to have left them outside. "Zelena," she said in ringing tones, "stop now. We're not going to let you succeed."

Zelena chuckled. Then she held up the dagger. "Rid—"

Emma whipped out a small leather pouch and hurled it at the witch. It had travelled, perhaps, half the distance, when Zelena raised a calm hand and the pouch vanished in a puff of green. The smell of smoke mingled with the fragrances of spearmint and catnip. Zelena blinked. "Silencing powder?" she asked, sounding amused. "I'm surprised you didn't try a bucket of water." She directed a magical blast at Emma, who was barely able to conjure a shield in time. Out the corner of her eye, she noticed that Hook and Robin had their hands full dealing with more monkeys.

"Regina!" Emma exclaimed. "Help me keep her off balance!" White lightning arced from her fingertips and streaked toward the witch. Zelena raised a shield of her own with one hand. With the other, she traced an intricate pattern in the air. Four winged monkeys materialized and formed a tight circle around her. Emma's jaw set. Gold had been right about Zelena's fighting style, but the holes in the defensive formation were a lot bigger than the light bulbs he'd had her targeting—to say nothing of the Lite-Brite pegs Regina had employed. She sent another lightning attack toward the witch, missing the monkeys with ample room to spare.

Most of her magic was deflected by Zelena's shield, but some of it got through and the witch cried out. Then, with an angry snarl, she waved the monkeys aside and aimed a bolt of pure magic at Emma's shield.

Emma gasped at the impact. Her shield held, but the force jarred her arm and she felt it from fingertips to shoulder. Out the corner of her eye, she saw Regina stagger back, purple smoke dissipating from the mayor's fingertips. "Regina!" she called. "Light magic!"

"I'm trying!" Regina shot back.

When another of Emma's lightning strikes caused Zelena's shield to waver, the witch aimed a powerful blast at the ground beneath the savior's feet. Emma staggered and fell backwards, landing on her rear, but she kept her own shield up.

Zelena regarded her furiously. The witch wasn't laughing or mocking now. "Perhaps I can't attend to you as I'd like," she snapped, "but you can't protect them all, savior. Before I destroy you, I'll have the Dark One destroy each of your companions."

She raised the dagger again and pointed it at David. "Rid me of that pest! But protect the child!"

"Dad!" Emma instinctively flung a second shield up to surround her father. Gold's hand began to pulsate with a deep purple light as he bore down on the barrier. As he did, Emma felt something pressing on her skull.

Gold regarded her, his face expressionless. "If I could stand down," he told her, "I would. Get the dagger. Then the Dark One will be on your side."

Because Rumpelstiltskin, the man behind the Dark One, already was. Unfortunately, if she couldn't get the dagger, that wouldn't help her. She pushed out at Gold, not with lightning, but with a modified shield, a sort of magical airbag. It slammed him into the wall of the warehouse, knocking the wind out of him.

Meanwhile, Regina had taken advantage of Zelena's distraction and tossed another fireball. The witch turned at the last moment and batted it back, forcing Regina onto the defensive.

"You can't stop me," Zelena gloated. "Kill the prince, Rumple! And make sure the savior sees every—!"

Emma's lightning strike found the witch at the same time as one of Regina's attacks. Zelena opened her mouth again, but no sound emerged.

"I don't need silencing powder," Regina smirked.

"Unfortunately," Gold said, already recovered and dissolving the last bit of her airbag, "that won't be enough. I…" He blinked. And then, a faint smile came to his face. "I have no choice," he said, as he reached into his pocket and held up a small bottle. "I trust y-you know what this will do."

Emma recognized the bottle immediately. And almost as swiftly, she realized that, in all likelihood, Gold's stammer had been a deliberate message. I trust ye. You know what this will do. What he was asking was risky. If she miscalculated, if she missed, she could do him some serious damage. But she'd been hitting smaller targets than this for a while now. Gold knew that. Moreover, he'd just watched her attack Zelena through a crowd of monkeys. He trusted her to hit this target, too.

She nodded to him. "Yes," she admitted. "I do." Then she pointed at the bottle and a bolt of lightning shot forward from her index finger.

The bottle didn't shatter, so much as explode, spraying its contents over several square feet. Most of the ink splattered on Gold's suit—Zelena would have to have given him Armani today. Some just splashed to the ground. But a good amount landed on Gold's face and hands, and it only took a single drop of squid ink on bare skin to immobilize someone magical. As he felt his limbs lock into place, he smiled broadly. "Now, savior," he cried, "get the dagger!"

Grinning back, Emma whirled to face the witch… and moved directly into the path of one of Zelena's blasts. She tried to raise her shield, but this time, she was too slow and the blast lifted her several feet into the air and slammed her entire upper body into a support post. Emma's head knocked against the solid oak beam hard enough for her to see stars, before she slumped to the ground, her arms and legs feeling like rubber. Her heart was pounding. Her head was spinning. She felt a warm trickle on the back of her neck and when she put her fingers to the spot, they came away bloody. Above her, Zelena wasn't smiling anymore. Instead she looked on Emma with loathing. "You," she snarled—evidently Regina's silencing spell hadn't lasted long. "Do you really think this stops me? Look at you, savior. You're weak, powerless, and all but defenseless. The Dark One will recover from the ink and then, I'll cast my spell anew. Pity you won't live to see it—"

A blast of purple force flew at Zelena, but she turned and blocked it with ease. "That won't do you any good, Sis," she taunted. Magic seized Regina by the throat and lifted her into the air. "Only light magic can harm me. And you're as dark as they come. It was your destiny to be this way. And will also be your undoing!"

Regina's shoulders, which had already begun to slump in defeat, suddenly straightened and she lifted her head, her eyes blazing despite her predicament. "Don't… tell me what I can be!" she choked out.

Zelena only laughed. "I tried to be good once," she chuckled, "but it wasn't in the cards. This is who I am and it's who you are!"

Suddenly, the witch's eyes widened. Emma's head was still throbbing and it took her a minute to process what was going on. Then it struck her. The magic flashing from Regina's hands was no longer smoky purple… but glowing white. Regina smiled then, and it wasn't a pleasant smile. "You're wrong… Sis."

"What are you doing?" Zelena gasped.

Regina was still smiling. "Changing." Then she lashed out and knocked Zelena off her feet. The dagger flew from her grasp and fell to the ground. Regina bent down and picked it up.

"What?" the witch gaped at her. "How?"

"I make my own destiny," Regina replied, a trifle smugly. Then she bent over her sister and tore the green gemstone choker from the witch's neck.

A green haze hung over Zelena for a moment. Then it vanished and the portal flames died. Around them, the monkeys began changing back and the baby began to cry. Hook reached over and lifted him from the basket. David ran to bend over Emma.

"I think I'm okay," she murmured. "Just… winded." She tried to rise and winced. "And dizzy."

"Don't try to move," David urged her, stripping off his jacket.

"Is the baby all right?" Robin asked.

Hook nodded. "It should be fine, once we find Aurora."

"Aurora?" one of the former monkeys echoed. His eyes opened very wide. "Is this… my child?"

"I suppose you're Phillip?" Hook guessed. When the other man nodded, he smiled. "Yes, I believe it must be." He passed the baby over. Phillip's confusion yielded to wonder as he slipped his little finger into his son's palm.

Regina stood over her sister. "You've failed," she said. Seeing Zelena's eyes darting in all directions, she shook her head. "You're not going anywhere."

"At least," Gold spoke, his voice thick with hatred, "not until this wears off. Then…"

Regina shook her head. "Then nothing," she snapped. "This ends now." Her eyes flicked meaningfully down at the dagger.

"After everything she's done," Gold exclaimed, fury and disbelief mingling in his eyes, "you're going to protect her?"

Regina regarded him, her face calm. "Good magic stopped her. And good magic doesn't exact vengeance."

Fury won. "She killed my son!" Gold nearly screamed.

Regina shook her head. "How many lives have we taken, trying to get what we want?"

"You can't be serious," Gold told her flatly.

"I am," Regina replied. "Heroes don't kill."

"So now you're a hero."

She smiled. "Today I am."

David pulled out his phone. "I'm calling an ambulance," he said. "I saw how hard you hit that post. We need to get you checked out."

Emma closed her eyes. "Okay," she said, too spent to argue. "What about Gold?"

David looked over his shoulder to where Rumple stood helplessly fuming. "I'll tell them they might want to send two."

"I don't need…" Gold started to snap.

"It's a good idea," Regina said. She weighed the dagger experimentally in her hand. Then she raised it and looked at Gold. "Let them look you over. Answer their questions honestly. And don't leave the hospital until Whale or some other doctor lets you know that," she hesitated, "they don't feel a need to keep you there any longer."

"Regina…" Emma protested weakly. "Don't…"

Regina looked searchingly at her for a moment. "I really think it's best this way. If Zelena did anything lasting to him, it's better we catch it now."

"Not like this," Emma insisted.

Gold's expression was murderous. "So, this is how you're playing it, your majesty?" His voice was cold.

Regina nodded. "It's for your own good," she informed him.

"And who appointed you arbiter of what's best 'for my own good'?"

Regina regarded him for a moment, her face expressionless. Then she walked away, slipping the dagger into her belt as she did.

After that, everything seemed to muddle together. Emma knew that her father was talking gently to her, pressing something soft to the back of her head—probably his jacket. Hook was there, too. Both men were reassuring her that she was going to be all right, and that everything was going to be fine, but whether from the blow to her head or from her fading adrenaline high coupled with yesterday's exertion, she found that she couldn't focus on anything.

Then the ambulances arrived and paramedics helped her onto a stretcher. She saw the second crew doing the same for Gold. They seemed to be having a hard time maneuvering his limbs. Hands picked up her stretcher and carried her toward the waiting vehicle. As she passed by, she flinched at Gold's thunderous expression. She couldn't blame him.

On the way to the hospital, her eyelids seemed to grow heavier and heavier. But before she drifted off, she remembered the look on his face and knew that she couldn't just leave things as they were. Something would have to be done.