Alright guys, we've reached the end of Season 2 and the polls are closed. And the results: Emma and Nicholas will be the new and final main pairing for this story which I will continue. For those of you who still want it to be Ruby, sorry. It would have been really hard to fit Ruby into this without making her a minor character seeing as she's fazed out of the show at this point. Don't worry though, I have every intention on making Emma and Nicholas's relationship very interesting.
Uh, Hook will obviously not have as big of a role now that he and Emma won't be together. He'll still be in this, but he'll just be Emma's friend, nothing more. Ha, who knows, maybe he'll hook up with Tink or Merida?
Anyway, before we get to the chapter, fair warning, the torture scene will involve Nicholas and his will be a bit more traumatizing than Regina's was. Just in case anybody doesn't want to read that. Hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time or its characters.
Two weeks following the confrontation between Snow and the Mills siblings, Regina and Nicholas joined Gold as they watched from afar as Henry crossed wooden blades with his father. Jealousy and longing coursed through their veins as they watched the boy have fun with someone other than them.
"Seems like the three of us have been pushed to the sidelines." Regina commented as she stood next to her old teacher and rival.
"What are you two doing here?" the dark one asked.
"The real question is, what's your son doing with my nephew?" Nicholas asked dryly.
"Oh, that." Gold smirked, "That's right. Neither of you got the birth announcement, did you? That's Henry's father."
Shock filled them both as the truth was revealed. "What?" Regina asked lowly.
"Do I have to spell it out for you?" he asked, "Ms. Swan and my son-"
"We got it." Nicholas cut off feeling uncomfortable with the topic for some reason.
"You're Henry's grandfather?" Regina asked.
"Guess that makes us family. He's got my eyes, don't you think?" Gold taunted.
"You did this." Regina accused as they followed him.
"Trust me, dearie, it was a much a shock to me as it is to the both of you."
"Puh, I find that hard to believe. You must have known." Nicholas argued, "When Regina and I adopted him, it was you who procured him for us. You expect us to believe that that was a coincidence?"
"No, not coincidence. Fate." Gold corrected, "And apparently, fate has a sense of humor."
"Please," Nicholas scoffed, "There's no such thing as fate. And don't act like you're the loving grandpa all of a sudden. None of them will accept you. No one. Be it your son, or any of them. You're in the same boat as us right now, dark one."
"We'll see." he replied aloofly.
"We've already seen, Gold." Regina argued, "I've seen your dark heart, and it always wins out. You always choose darkness."
"You know, you think you know me, dearie. But you don't."
"We know you well enough. If your own son couldn't bring out the good in you, who will?" she asked as they walked away.
As the day went on and Regina further tormented Gold by giving Belle her cursed memories, which were of her being a bar skank, Nicholas tried to settle back in his old routine by taking a walk through town. As he walked by the docks, he spotted the town's beautiful sheriff sitting with Henry's book in her lap.
"Reading up on Henry's father?" he asked trying to sound playful, "Or maybe his grandfather, perhaps?"
"I take it you and Regina know?" she asked grinning sheepishly as he sat down next to her.
"Yep, and my dear sister is very unhappy. Well, a bit more than usual." he remarked.
"Well, I was going to tell you, but I was kinda busy trying to stop you, your sister and your mother from killing me and my entire family." she retorted with a grin which went away as soon as she saw Nicholas's downcast look.
"…I wasn't…I wasn't trying to kill you." he whispered, "I was in a bad place at the time, Emma. My plan was to keep my mother from killing Gold and just let Hook's poison finish him. Needless to say…that didn't work."
"Yeah." she said softly, "You know, I can't find your story anywhere here in the book."
"That's because it's a book of fairytales. My story belongs in a book of horrors." he replied bitterly.
"I read your journal." Emma blurted.
"Which one?" Nicholas asked sadly.
"The one where you wrote that you want to die three times."
"Ah. That one." he recalled, "Well, it's not like anyone needs to worry about me committing suicide. Not that anyone would really care aside from my sister."
"Don't say that." Emma scolded.
"Am I wrong?" he asked, "Name one person in this town who would actually miss me if I was gone, besides Regina. You can rule out your parents because all they see in me is the same 'evil' my mother and sister had/have. None of the dwarves because I almost killed Mary Margaret and David. Ruby won't because I found out earlier that she only went out with me because of her leftover lustful urges from the curse. Henry wouldn't because he just sees me as a monster. Nobody in this town would care."
"That's not true." Emma said grabbing his limp hand and looking him in the eyes, "I would. Nicholas, you're my best friend."
"Figured I ruined that the moment I did nothing when Cora killed that old woman Snow knew." he grumbled as his eyes filled with grief.
"No. I get why you sided with Cora. I…we didn't give you a chance when you deserved it. I let you down."
"It was an air-tight case. Not like you know anyone else who can use alchemy to change his appearance at will."
"Do you know who can?" she asked.
"…I don't wanna talk about that anymore, Emma." Nicholas replied, "But I did not kill that child." he stressed.
"I know. I believe you."
"You didn't believe me before." he countered.
"You're right." she nodded gently with guilt, "And I'm sorry that I didn't. I should have, but I didn't."
"Whatever." he shrugged, "Can't change the past."
Emma just looked at the man who used to be filled with so much life and being when she met him. Now he was a shell of that man wallowing in his grief and negative emotions. "Nicholas, what's wrong?"
"What's wrong?" he asked looking out at the sea, "What's wrong is that for the second time in my life, I've had to stand over my mother's coffin. I've found out that nearly all of the people who I thought were my friends lied to me just so I would protect them from my sister. My nephew will never see me for more than a monster and I just found out that my ex-girlfriend was using me just for pleasure. I-I…I just don't want to be constantly in pain anymore."
Before he could continue to mope even further, Nicholas felt a quick pain coming from the back of his head. He looked up and saw Emma with a stern look on her face and her hand raised.
"Did you just slap me upside the head?" he asked bluntly.
"Yep. And if you don't stop feeling sorry for yourself, I'm gonna do it again." she informed. Nicholas just stared at her with a blank look for a few moments before chuckling at the blonde who eventually joined him.
"Thanks, Emma. I needed that."
"Anytime." she relied still smiling, "Besides, if I can't hit your sister, the least you can do is let me hit you once in a while."
"What are you talking about? You slugged her last year." he reminded.
"Oh, yeah." Emma remembered grinning, "That was a good punch."
And just like that, Emma Swan and Nicholas Flamel became best friends again. Sounds a bit cliché, right? Maybe. But sometimes, all someone really needs is for somebody they care about give them a good smack to the head to get them out of a funk.
They spent the rest of the day just hanging out and making up for lost time. Eventually, night fell and they wound up at the loft having a heavy discussion about which was better, the Harry Potter movies or books.
"How can you say that?" Emma asked laughing with a beer in her hand, "The fifth movie was way better than the book!"
"Oh, come on!" Nicholas groaned as he took a swig of his own beer, "That movie clearly lacked the finer details regarding the background of Dumbledore's Army. Not to mention, it explained how Fred and George managed to get enough money for their shop. You're just mad that Dumbledore admitted to Harry that he knew about all the crap in his life in the book."
"Let's get something straight," she said trying to act serious but failing, "Dumbledore did not admit he knew everything about Harry's crappy life."
"Yes, he did." Nicholas laughed, "He flat out told Harry he knew about the abuse he went through with the Dursley's and that he knew Sirius was innocent. That was an entire chapter's worth, right there."
"…Which chapter?" Emma asked.
"You know that scene when Dumbledore takes Harry to his office to talk? In the book, that's when he comes clean."
"Oh, my god." she said as the memories filled her head, "Okay, okay. But the fight scene between him and Voldemort was totally badass, you got to admit that."
"That I will agree with." he nodded raising his beer.
"Hey, you know what I just remembered?"
"What?"
"You were pretty much the main reason behind the whole ordeal for the first book. Care to explain?" Emma asked with a playful grin.
"Hey, don't look at me. As far as I know, Hogwarts doesn't even exist." Nicholas laughed as someone knocked on the door.
"I got it." Emma said, as she walked to the door, Nicholas noticed that she added a little extra sway in her hips; and he certainly didn't mind. "What, did you tranquilize him?" Emma asked as she saw Neal carry Henry over his shoulder while he slept.
"I just gave a couple bourbons." Neal joked as he walked in, "Kid's a real lightweight-"
As he talked, he noticed Nicholas sitting on the couch drinking his beer. "Oh, hey, how's it going?" he kindly greeted, "We haven't been properly introduced. Nicholas Flamel, I'm Henry's adoptive uncle."
"Uh…Emma?" Neal asked nervously, "I think you might want to call David. Tell him to bring his gun and a lot of bullets."
"Oh, stop." she waved off smacking his free shoulder, "Nicholas, come on, get up. Let Henry sleep there."
"Well, since milady asked so nicely." he teased as he got up letting Neal set the boy down. After covering his son with a blanket, Neal looked at his former flame with a baffled look on his face.
"What?" Emma asked, "I invited him over. Me and Nicholas are friends again."
"He tried to kill us."
"Actually, I was trying to kill Mary Margaret. You guys were just in the way." Nicholas smirked as he grabbed his coat, "Water under the bridge, by the way. I think I'm gonna head out, Emma."
"Really?" she asked slightly disappointed.
"Yeah, I have some things to check on. See you tomorrow?"
"Count on it." she replied before giving him a hug and letting him leave. As he walked happily through the brisk Maine evening, Nicholas took in a feeling he hadn't felt in weeks; happiness.
Like most days in Storybrooke, it had rained earlier so naturally there were multiple large puddles in the street. With a large one in front of his path, he so no issue with just walking through it. As he walked through the water, Neal's fiancé, Tamara watched him from the driver's seat of her car. She then reached into her purse and pulled out a powerful Taser while glancing at the alchemist.
Nicholas was completely oblivious to the stranger following him. As he was about to finally get out of the puddle, Tamara crouched down to where it began and stuck her Taser into the water shocking Nicholas and bringing him to the ground unconscious.
It wasn't until later the next morning when Nicholas finally regained consciousness. He found himself strapped to a chair and had rods protruding through his arms, legs and shoulders which kept him pinned even more. He tried to shift around but stopped as he felt his nerves enflame with pain from the rods.
"I imagine that stings a bit." Greg Mendel said smugly as he approached his prisoner.
"I don't know. How's about you and I trade places?" Nicholas asked through his pain.
"Oh, I-I'm good, thanks." Greg replied smirking as he pulled up a chair and sat in front of him, "You have no idea who I am, do you?"
"No, I know who you are." Nicholas replied, "You're like everyone in this town. You answer to two different names. Currently, you go by Greg Mendel; Storybrooke's guest who crashed his car and is on the mend. But the last time you were here, you went by little Owen Flynn; an innocent boy who stumbled upon a strange town with his father in 1983."
"And you're Nicholas Mills; the younger brother to Storybrooke's Madam Mayor and the Immortal Alchemist, Nicholas Flamel." Greg/Owen replied.
"I'm curious, why come back now, after all these years? Did you forget about us?" Nicholas asked mocking him, he knew fully well why he was in town and why he didn't show up sooner.
"You know why. I'm here for my father." Greg informed becoming serious.
"No, there's more to it than that. You wouldn't have gone as far as kidnapping me if he was the only reason. Finding Kurt is just an added bonus. Now I'll ask again, why are you here?"
"Magic." Greg replied, "You know, unlike where you people are from, it's pretty rare here, and every time it shows up, terrible things tend to happen. I'm what you could call…a magic hunter."
"A 'magic hunter?' Really?" Nicholas asked finding the title lame.
"Yep. And our mission, people like me who know just how dangerous and evil magic is, is to destroy anything to do with magic."
"Impressive." Nicholas said with sarcasm and false amazement, "So there really is a job for everything out there. I take it that you aren't exactly fond of the residents here, then?"
"You 'people' are nothing more than freaks parading around looking like actual human beings." Greg scoffed, "It's disgusting."
"You're the disgusting one. Acting all high and mighty with a holier-than-thou complex. It's people like you who make me sick. Although, it was a nice touch keeping me pinned with these rods. Won't do you much good when I deconstruct them and kill you, though." Nicholas remarked as he tried to use his alchemy only to see nothing happen. Nothing he tried worked, not his shield, not his shadows; the only thing he could do was have his wounds try to heal around the rods. "What the hell did you do to me?"
"What, you didn't notice the gift I got you?" Greg asked pretending to act hurt. He then pulled back Nicholas's left sleeve and revealed a black leather cuff on his wrist with a transmutation circle etched into the center. "This little accessory cuts off your alchemy. I was hoping it would make you mortal again, but I'll just have to deal with what I've got."
"How did some orphaned little brat like you come across this thing?" he asked glaring at his captor, "I doubt it came from an old friend of your dad."
"Let's just say that when somebody talks about something for as long as I did, some people will listen once in a while."
"Oh, and I bet you talked about the mysterious town that no one could find was holding your father hostage for a long time. Too bad the Twilight Zone wasn't making new episodes back then; you could have been the inspiration for their comeback." Nicholas teased.
"Where is my father?" Greg asked as he began to lose his patience.
"Do I look like I'm going to tell you?"
"Fine." he sighed, "We'll just have to move along with your little torture session, then."
"Torture?" Nicholas scoffed, "I've experienced more pain than anyone. Whatever you have in store for me, won't work."
"We'll see." Tamara said smugly as she walked in with a pair of wireless headphones and an iPhone. Unfortunately, Nicholas had his head strapped so he couldn't do anything to stop her from putting the buds in his ears. She then pressed play and waited to see his reaction. At first, there wasn't any sound; Nicholas began to wonder what they had planned for him just before his thoughts were interrupted.
"CRACK!" The sound of a whip rang through his ears causing him to jolt in panic. Five seconds later, the sound came again and sent fear through his body as memories filled his mind.
"You may not be afraid of pain, Nicholas," Greg began to say, "But you are afraid of something; your past. And evidently, whips."
Crack after crack made him think back to his days as a slave. The merciless lashing from his master and the other nobles along with the vile monsters who captured him in the first place. Nicholas was completely helpless as the sound repeated itself every five seconds.
"We know that you were a slave." Tamara added, "Can't exactly walk away from the scars that left behind, now can you? We may not be able to kill you, even though we really want to, but we can make you relive your worst nightmares."
"But we can also stop them." Greg reassured soothingly as he bent down to meet Nicholas's bloodshot gaze, "Just tell me where my father is and we'll let you-"
Nicholas cut him off by spitting in his eye, trembling in anger and hysteria from the constant cracking.
"Fine." he huffed whipping his eye, "I wonder if Regina will be more cooperative."
"You know, I may not be a religious man, but I swear to God, if you lay one hand on my sister, I will kill you both; slowly, and painfully." Nicholas snarled before jolting at the sound of the whip again.
"Seeing as you're the one strapped and bolted to a chair, that's unlikely." Tamara grinned as she left the room with Greg behind her.
"I'm gonna get out of this chair sooner or later, Owen, and when I do…I'm gonna tear out your trachea." he threatened coolly.
"Oh, I-I-I'm sure you will." Greg chuckled leaving the alchemist to suffer with the ghosts of his past. Flashes of the trauma which plagued his mind for decades filled Nicholas's mind for hours. He was drenched in cold sweat and his eyes were bloodshot from the mental torture. It drove him mad enough to the point of throwing a fit to where he snapped the strap around his head; unfortunately, a few seconds afterwards, Nicholas hyperventilated to the point of throwing up.
With his head limp and his mind numb, the Immortal Alchemist was a twitching, drooling unfortunate soul unable to remove the ear buds and forced to watch his sister be electrically tortured through the broken glass of the room before him. Eventually, Greg stormed in and dragged Nicholas's chair to the room Regina was in.
"Nicholas," Regina whispered hoping to gain her brother's attention, "Nicholas? Can you hear me? Brother? Abba?"
Even with his real name being uttered, Nicholas was unresponsive.
"They found us." Tamara warned.
"Who, Emma and Neal?" he asked, "I thought that you took care of them."
"Yeah, so did I. We need to go."
"No, no. No, no, no." Greg denied anxiously, "I-I need more time with them."
"Greg, if you get caught, this whole thing is blown." Tamara stressed.
"We wouldn't even know about this town if it wasn't for my dad. I'm not leaving until I find out where he is."
"Fine. Meet me at the rendezvous point when you're done." she said before leaving.
"I'm moving up the timeline." Greg informed as he increased the voltage and connected Nicholas to the machine, "Now I'm gonna give you two one last chance. Tell me where my father is."
Neither sibling said anything.
"Okay, time's up."
As soon as he said this, Nicholas gave a wicked, slurred chuckle which increased into maniacal laughter.
"Where is he?" Greg asked over the laughter.
"Dead." Regina spat, "We killed him. The minute you ran away."
"We made him an all-you-can-eat-buffet for the maggots of Storybrooke years ago." Nicholas laughed tiredly.
"No, you're-you're lying to me." denied Greg.
"You don't believe us?" Regina asked, "Go see for yourself."
"We left his corpse at your campsite." Nicholas spat, "I'm sure he doesn't get too many visitors there. Poor little Owen. Looks like you weren't able to save him after all."
Having heard enough, Greg slammed his fist on the machine and electrocuted the brother and sister.
"You feel that?" he said through his teeth, "Huh? That's the end of you. That's scary, ain't it? Now neither of you are going to hurt anyone ever again."
Suddenly, David came in and shot the machine causing Greg to hold his hands up in surrender.
"Don't move!" he shouted; of course, Greg shoved his equipment at him and made a break for the nearest exit. As he was about to chase after him, Snow stopped him.
"David! We can't leave them. Regina will die if we don't get her help."
"We gotta get her to Mother Superior." he suggested.
"Help me get these things out of Nicholas." Snow pleaded as she tried to pull out the rods.
"Emma?" David asked over his radio, "You gotta block the exits."
"Already on it. You guys alright?" she asked.
"Oh, we're fine. We found Regina and Nicholas, with Mendel."
"Wait, what? Nicholas is here too?" Emma asked in a panic, "What happened? Is he okay?"
"They had him skewered with a bunch of metal rods that we're trying to get out. He's looked better, that's for sure."
"I'll be better as soon as somebody gets this damn cuff off of me." Nicholas slurred as Snow finally yanked out the last rod.
"Here, let me." she said as she took it off. Feeling his powers return to him, Nicholas leapt from the chair and grabbed one of the rods before transmuting it into a cavalry sword.
"When I get through with them, no one will be able to tell them from the chum on the floor." he growled before storming off to join Emma. As he tried to find them, he heard gunfire and followed the echo. When he found the source, Nicholas saw Tamara nearly pressing her gun against Neal's forehead while Emma struggled to rise from the ground.
"I'm sorry, Neal." she said.
"Not yet, you're not." Nicholas spoke up as he extended his claws to nick Tamara's hand and break the gun.
"It's over." Emma said as she finally got up.
"No." Tamara spat reaching into her pocket, "It's not."
Spotting the object in her hand, Nicholas's eyes dilated in panic as he realized it was a magic portal bean. "Oh, not again." he muttered as Tamara threw it at their feet, "Emma, get out of the way!" he cried pulling her way.
"Bye." Tamara said as she escaped.
The portal was made and just like with what the hat used to make, it tried to suck in the three of them to its destination. With quick thinking, Nicholas dug his free claws into the floor as he held onto Emma's waist. Unfortunately for Neal, the portal began to eat at his area of the floor.
"Neal!" Emma cried as she grabbed his arm.
"Emma! Nicholas can't all of us! Just let go!" Neal pleaded.
"Yes, he can!" she shouted. As Nicholas struggled to hold on, he felt his body shift just slightly closer to the portal. Now remember, Nicholas's shield gave him incredibly sharp claws; so sharp that sense the floor was made of wood, his claws were cutting through it because of the portal trying to drag them in.
"Guys, I'm slipping!" he warned.
"You're shot! If you fall through that portal, you'll die no matter what world you land in!"
"No, but, Emma, Henry needs you. He can't lose both of us. Don't make him grow up like we did."
"Then don't let go." Emma pleaded through her tears, but Neal didn't listen. He let go of her hand and fell into the green vortex. "No!" she cried.
Upon sensing that someone went through it, the portal closed leaving a pit in the ground and Emma sobbing. Nicholas didn't say a word. He only did what he knew he had to do more than anything; hold his dear friend as she let lose her pain and tears.
After Emma composed herself, Nicholas helped her out of the cannery and back to the loft, not taking his arm away from her even for a second. When they arrived he saw his sister unconscious on Mary Margaret's bed as Mother Superior healed her. Looking to see Emma nod at him, he finally let go of her and went to check on his beloved sibling.
"We're just bred for all kinds of trouble, aren't we, sis?" he whispered as he stroked her hand with his thumb as Snow watched, "Why did you save us?" he asked the former bandit.
"Because after everything you've done for us and all I've done to you…it was the least I could do." Snow replied with regret.
"And despite our differences, we're family." David added with just as much guilt as his wife.
"Where are they?" Regina asked as she came to, "Where are Greg and Tamara?"
"For now, they got away." Nicholas replied as he helped his sister sit up.
"So they still have it." she exhaled.
"Still have what?" Snow asked.
"My trigger." Regina whispered.
"How in the hell did they get their hands on that?" Nicholas asked in shock.
"A trigger?" David asked.
"A failsafe with the power to destroy Storybrooke…and everyone in it." Nicholas explained, "My question is, sister dear, why were you strolling around with the damn thing in your pocket?"
"She was going to destroy us, Nicholas." David answered.
"I was going to use the beans to take Henry and Nicholas back to the Enchanted Forest." Regina replied flatly.
"And in the process, kill us all." Snow concluded.
"You want to talk about justification?" Regina asked hotly, "You were going to abandon my brother and I here and take Henry over there yourselves."
"You were?" Nicholas asked before waving off his own question, "We'll discuss this later. Right now, the very thing capable of destroying us all is in the hands of two psychopaths with a vendetta against magic."
"So what do we do?" Snow asked.
"Get all the help we can get, for one thing." Nicholas suggested, "I say we look for Rumplestiltskin."
After leaving the loft, the found the dark one watching his grandson on a swing in the park. "Gold." David called, "What are you doing here?"
"Well, my son made it clear I'm to stay away from him, so I'm spending some time with my grandson instead."
"Emma, why don't you talk to Henry?" Nicholas recommended. As she reluctantly went over to tell her son the heartbreaking news, the three of them broke it to Gold. Instead of wanting to help them take down the people who killed his son like they hoped, he succumbed to his grief and left them to their imminent doom. When they went back to the loft with Henry, the entire town shook and rumbled.
"Regina," Emma asked, "Was that-"
"Yes. The trigger was activated." she nodded.
"So we're all gonna die?" Henry asked.
"You were born here, so you'll live."
"But…I'll be alone."
"I'm so sorry, Henry." Regina apologized.
"It's not gonna happen." Emma denied, "I'm not gonna let it. You did this. Now make it stop."
"I can't. There's no way."
"Well, figure it out. It's your fault." she barked.
"Stop!" Henry shouted, "I already lost my dad. I don't wanna lose anyone else. We have to work together."
"From the mouths of babes. I'd say the lad has a point." Hook agreed as he unexpectedly showed up only to be punched in the face by David.
"That's for the last time we met." he spat.
"Bloody hell." Hook muttered.
"Now tell us why you're here before I use something other than my fist." he demanded as he pulled out his pistol.
"I think threatening to kill me is a bit redundant when we're all about to die anyway." Hook retorted.
"No thanks to you." Emma remarked, "Regina just told us you were working with Tamara and Greg to get your revenge."
"Well, that was before they told me I had to die to get it."
"We don't have time for this." Nicholas interrupted, "We have a real problem."
"Which is why I'm here, 'cause staring death in the face has made me realize there's one thing I want more than my revenge, it's my life. So should we start this thing now and then resume bickering?" asked the pirate.
"There is no stopping it." Regina repeated, "The best thing I can do is slow it down, but that will only delay the inevitable."
"Or give us the time we need." David suggested.
"For what?" Snow asked.
"To steal back the beans. Use them to get everyone back to the Enchanted Forest before Storybrooke is gone."
"How?" Emma asked, "We don't even know where Greg and Tamara are."
"Not to mention, the portals made by the beans don't stay open for long. They'll close as soon as even a single group goes through." Nicholas informed.
"Well, luckily, I know where they are. I can help." Hook offered.
"Yourself. You'll take them and leave us all behind. Why should we trust you?" Emma asked.
"No, we won't have to." David reassured, "I'll go with him. If he tries anything, I'll shoot him in the face."
"Quite hostile, aren't we?" Hook joked.
"Just being clear."
"Emma, Regina, and I will head over to sow down the trigger, give you guys some time." Nicholas added, "Mary Margaret, take Henry and gather everyone in front of the town hall. Make sure they're ready to go as soon as we have those beans. If we aren't able to get them back, take this," he said handing her a flare gun from his coat, "Shoot it into the air, wait five minutes until you see a small group of people and tell them what happened; they'll handle the rest."
"H-how will I know them from the others?" she asked.
"Oh, trust me, you'll know them when you see them." he reassured.
"Who are these people, exactly?" Regina asked.
"Just some old friends of mine." he replied.
"Henry," Regina said just before they left, "Before you go…I'm sorry for what's happened."
"So am I." Nicholas added as he crouched down with his sister to Henry's level.
"We tried to be the people you wanted us to be, and we failed."
"But neither of us will ever let you be alone. Just know that we love you."
"I love you, too." Henry said softly as he finally hugged his adoptive family for the first time in weeks.
In the depths of the mines, Emma, Regina and Nicholas followed the flowing force of power emanating from the trigger. "I can feel it." Emma informed, "It's like the oxygen's being sucked out of the air."
"Not the oxygen. The magic." Regina corrected.
"Found it." Nicholas informed as he spotted the floating, glowing diamond.
"Once it stops glowing, its destruction is achieved, and then…well, then we'll see the real carnage." Regina said fearfully, "I'll try to contain its energy as long as I can."
"It won't be long. We'll have the bean soon. Then we can get the hell out of here." Emma reminded.
"Slowing the device…it's going to require all the strength I have."
"Regina…what are saying?" Nicholas asked.
"You're not coming with us, are you?" Emma asked, "When you said goodbye to Henry, you…were saying goodbye."
"He knows I love him, doesn't he?" she asked.
"Regina, there has to be some other way." said her brother.
"I'm sorry I wasn't the best big sister." she chuckled sadly, "If it wasn't for me…you never would have been taken from us."
"That was not your fault and you know it." he choked.
"You were right, Emma. Everything that's happening, it's my fault. I created this device. It's only fitting that it takes my life."
"What are we supposed to tell Henry?" she asked.
"Tell him that in the end, it wasn't too late for me to do the right thing. Everyone looks at me as the Evil Queen, including my son. Let me die as Regina."
"Sis, please-" Nicholas begged only to stop when he saw her use her magic on the device. On their way back to Granny's, Nicholas stayed quiet and somber the entire time.
"I'm sorry, Nicholas." Emma apologized taking his hand in hers.
"Alchemy and magic have always been two opposing forces incapable of working together." he said, "Both have so much power, and yet I can't use mine to do anything to help this town or my own sister. How am I supposed to tell Henry on the same day he learned that his father died that I left his mother to die?"
"It won't be easy. But I'll be with you all the way." she promised while squeezing his hand. As soon as they made it to the diner, David and Hook came in.
"We have the beans." David said.
"You did it?" Emma asked.
"Yeah."
"Okay, let's get going. Henry?" Emma called for her son.
"Wh-where's my mom?" he asked not seeing Regina.
"Kiddo, your mom can hold off the self-destruct device long enough for us to escape, but…she won't survive."
"No. No." he denied.
"Henry, we're sorry." Emma apologized, "We promised her we'd get you to safety."
"But we can't do this. She's family. We don't leave family behind."
"I know, but this is what she wants." Emma stressed, "We have a way out. We have to take it."
"We saved her from being killed by the wraith. How is this any different?"
"The wraith." Snow gasped
"What?" Emma asked.
"We sent it through a portal. Why can't we do the same thing with the self-destruct?" she asked.
"Because we don't know if it'll work." Nicholas countered.
"It could."
"Yeah." David agreed.
"It's too risky. No one will go along with it." Emma argued.
"Yes, we will." Archie spoke up, "Because it's the right thing to do. Nicholas, we didn't stand by you when we should have, and we will never forgive ourselves for it. Thanks to you, we were able to find happiness even in our bleakest moments. Let us try to help you for a change. Who's willing to repay this man for all he's done?"
"I am!" one of the dwarves yelled with his brothers following with just as much vigor.
"You can count on us, Flamel." Leroy promised.
"Me!"
"I am!"
"Right here!"
"Without a doubt."
"Nicholas, this is what we want to do." Snow said kindly.
"And will do." David added before the town shook once again.
"This plan could fail." Emma debated, "If we use that bean now, we can get away for sure. We will survive."
"But it's wrong." Snow stressed, "Emma, I killed their mother."
"You did that to Cora because you had to." she argued.
"I did it because it was easy." she said causing Nicholas to glare at her, "It was a mistake. There were other paths; harder paths, and I wish I had taken them. So please, Emma, honey, let's take the hard path. Because if we don't, we will be building a future on Regina's blood.
"…Whatever you do…just make sure Henry doesn't end up alone." he begged as he backed away to the door, "Don't let him feel as empty as I did."
"Nicholas, what are you doing?" Emma asked softly.
"I've witnessed too much death in my life, Emma." he said, "I've already had to bury half of my family. I will not do that again, not when I have the strength to stop it."
"Nicholas…you'll die. That magic will kill you" she whispered as tears formed in her eyes.
"Then I'll finally be able to pay for all the suffering I've caused. And if I die, he can't use me and all of you will be safe. I will not let my sister die alone. If I die, then I die with my sister. Let's go." he said as he led the Charmings out the door. When they got back to the mines, they found Regina right where they left her.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
"Regina," Nicholas said bluntly, "For once in your life, just shut up."
"You were willing to die to save us. That makes you a hero." Henry explained, "And now we're gonna be heroes."
"We're gonna open up a portal and throw this thing into a void." David informed.
"No." Regina argued, "You don't know that it'll work."
"We have to try." Snow retorted as Emma searched for the bean in the pouch Hook gave her.
"Emma?" David asked when he saw her do nothing.
"…It's empty." she said softly.
OUaT
Out at the docks, Captain Hook clutched the bean in question in his hand as he began to sail away.
OUaT
"I can't contain this much longer." Regina said weakly.
Realizing the situation, Emma looked to her parents and finally let down her walls. "Mom," she said shakenly, "Dad."
While they were happy to finally hear their daughter call them by those names, they were heartbroken that it would be the last time in this life. Nicholas looked to his sister who struggled to hold her tears and simply nodded at each other; they didn't need to say anything, they already knew what the other was feeling/thinking. Henry broke from the hug and went to them to hear their last words for he would be the only survivor.
"We love you, Henry." Regina said as she began to cry.
"Looks like this is it, huh?" Nicholas asked Emma who was silently crying.
"Yeah," she scoffed through her tears, "I guess so. I'm sorry you're stuck down here with us instead of with Ruby."
"I don't want to be with Ruby, Emma." he replied.
"But…but you love her." she said.
"What I had with Ruby wasn't love." Nicholas said cupping her cheek and looking into her eyes, "It was a distraction."
Emma said nothing as she pulled him into a tight hug and cried into his shoulder.
"I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to stop this." Regina said to Henry, "I'm just not."
"You may not be strong enough." Emma said as she broke away from her hug, "But maybe we are."
"Only one way to find out." Nicholas said as he joined the two women, "Time to see if alchemy and magic really can work together."
As the others took cover, Emma joined Regina in using magic while Nicholas tried to use his alchemy to deconstruct the diamond. With each of their powers surging, it was only a matter of moments before they were sent back in a blast of energy which stopped the trigger and saved the town.
"We're alive." David said happily to his wife.
"Emma?" Snow asked as she helped her daughter up.
"We did it." she breathed happily.
"Yes, we did." Regina nodded as she helped Nicholas to his feet.
"That was nuts!" he exclaimed causing them all to laugh.
"Got to hand it to Henry, he's right about a lot of things." David praised.
"Ain't that the truth." Nicholas nodded.
"Isn't that right, kid?" Emma asked her son only to find him missing, "Henry?"
"Henry?" Regina called.
"Henry?" Nicholas tried only to see his nephew's backpack on the ground.
"Nicholas, what is it?" Snow asked.
"Those bastards took him." he growled.
As they ran out to catch up with them, Nicholas tracked them to the docks and saw Greg toss the last bean into the water creating a portal which they jumped in.
"No!" Emma cried as it closed on them, "We have to go after them!"
"Not only do we not know where they went, but Hook stole the last bean." Regina reminded in an equal panic.
"I don't care!" Emma yelled.
"Without it, there's no way to follow them."
"There has to be. We can't just let them take Henry."
"They've taken Henry?" Gold asked as he and Belle (with her memories returned) approached them.
"Yeah. You're the dark one, do something." David ordered.
"Gold, help us." Emma pleaded.
"There's no way." Gold replied, "I spent a lifetime trying to cross world to find my son. There's no way in this world without a portal."
"So that's it?" Regina asked hotly, "He's gone forever?"
"No he's not." Nicholas replied in anger.
"What is that?" Belle asked as she saw something out on the horizon. From the distance, they could tell that it was Hook's ship coming towards them.
"Hook." Emma said in hope, "What the hell are you doing here?" she asked him once he arrived at the dock.
"Helping." he replied.
"Well, you're too late." Nicholas retorted bitterly.
"Am I?" he asked.
"I thought you didn't care about anyone but yourself?" Emma asked.
"Maybe I just needed reminding that I could." he said giving the final bean to Emma.
"Enough waiting around. Let's go." Regina snapped.
"Go? Where?" Hook asked, "I thought we were saving the town?"
"We already did." David informed.
"We need to get Henry. Greg and Tamara took him through a portal." Emma explained.
"Well, I offer my ship and my services to help follow them." he offered.
"Well, that's great, Hook, but how will we track them?" Regina asked.
"Leave that to me." Gold replied, "I can get us where we need to go."
"Then let's do it." Snow declared as they boarded the ship.
On the main deck, Gold summoned a pure white globe and pricked his finger on its needle. After that, he let his blood drip on it which formed a landmass which revealed Henry's location.
"Where is that?" Nicholas asked, "Where did they take Henry?"
"Neverland." Hook replied with dread in his voice. With a mighty throw, he tossed the bean into the sea creating a portal large enough for the ship.
"So who are we up against?" David asked over the roaring of the portal, "Who are Greg and Tamara?"
"They're merely pawns," Gold said, "Manipulated by forces far greater than they can conceive. They have no idea who they're truly working for."
"And who's that?" Emma asked.
"Someone we should all fear." he replied.
"Well, doesn't that sound reassuring?" Nicholas said sarcastically as they sailed into the portal.