A/N: Thank you Gwenhyfer for your review and to everyone who has reviewed, followed, favorited, or PMed me so far.

To answer your questions: Zelena did not do that earlier because she did not know that Hook loved Emma enough for him to make that vow (and thus for the spell to work). If you're asking why she didn't curse Walt that way, I assume that was because he was over the town line and thus the spell would not work (but you would have to ask the show's writers for a definite answer - I was following cannon on that one).

Emma made the choice she did because she knew (from her superpower) that Zelena was quite sincere - she would have killed Henry right then if Emma had not done it, and would not have (at least not right then) if she did. Neither of her options were good ones, but it was between Henry definitely being killed now or possibly being killed later. Also remember that Emma does not know about Glinda's prophecy (because no one has remembered it yet) - she does not think of her magic as essential for defeating Zelena. While you could argue that she should be able to infer that by the way Zelena considers it so important, Emma literally had only a couple of minutes to make her decision; she did not have very much time to think and was focused on Henry's safety (the same applies to why he would be willing to go with Robin - that is a practical problem she would have dealt with later). I hope that clears it up.

Warnings: psychological manipulation/torture, rape

Off Script

Chapter 25: Answers in the Past

~Catspook

"You can't be serious," Regina said, incredulous.

"She threatened Henry," Miss Swan objected, "I had no choice."

"So your magic is just gone? How can she even do that?"

"I don't know, but she did it. I tried my superpower on Hook; even that's gone."

Regina looked at Elsa. "I guess it's down to you, me, and the fairies then, snowy."

"There's more," Emma said.

"More?"

"I tried to negotiate for Henry's safety-"

"And clearly you did an excellent job."

"Shut it, Queenie," the dwarf said, "Let her finish."

Regina grit her teeth, but let the Savior - ex-Savor - continue. "She agreed to let him leave town, with a chaperone."

"A chaperone?"

"She tried to get me to leave with him, but I knew that wouldn't work. I have to stay; even without my magic, I need to find some way to defeat her. But I wanted Henry out of the line of fire."

"Good thinking, Emma," Charming said. Regina sneered.

"So who then? The puppet? He can take him to Atlantic City, take in a show…"

"Robin," Miss Swan said.

"Me?" Robin asked.

"Him?" Regina repeated.

"She offered August, but I tried to negotiate for Mary Margaret or David instead; she wouldn't go for it."

"Of course not," Mary Margaret said, rubbing her belly, "She needs my baby."

"And David's courage, I think so. She's the one who suggested Robin, I think just to hurt you," Emma said to Regina.

"Hurt me? How-"

"We all know you're dating," the dwarf said, "Don't bother lying about it."

"It really does all come back to you," Emma said. "It's about ruining your happiness."

Regina looked at Robin. She didn't want him to go. She didn't want Henry to go. But they were both safer away from her sister, in a land without magic. "What about Roland?" she asked.

"She included Roland in the deal."

"You have to go, then," Regina told Robin.

"Not so fast," Emma said. "She never formally agreed."

"What to you mean?"

"She got inpatient. She was going after Henry, and I was out of time. I kissed Hook-"

"What?" Regina asked, incredulous.

"Yeah, what?" the dwarf repeated.

Miss Swan glared. "That's how she delivered the… curse, or whatever it was. Anyway, I don't know if she'll hold up her end."

Regina tossed up her hands. "So it could all be a trick. You gave up your magic, willingly, and for nothing!"

"She did let something else slip."

"What?"

"She threatened Bae to get Gold to cooperate; that's how she got the dagger in the first place."

"Lovely. Another piece of information that tells us absolutely nothing. It doesn't matter how she got the dagger; she has it now."

"It does matter," David said. "It mean we have to keep Bae safe; if Zelena gets her hands on him, it might not matter that we manage steal the dagger back."

"That's true," Baelfire admitted. "Remember what happened with Cora. He can't always think clearly when we're in danger." He and the librarian exchanged glances.

"Apparently, it's going around," Regina deadpanned.

"You would have done the same thing," Miss Swan objected. "At least I hope so."

"I wouldn't have let it get that far. If you had learned how to use your magic properly-"

"Stop!" the pink fairy barked. She was getting pushy with this whole referee business. "Fighting won't help."

"Yeah," the dwarf agreed, taking her hand. The two of them were getting as bad as Snow and Charming. "So we're down a magic user. So what? We've still got more than she has, and you gotta know that Gold will destroy her as soon as we get that dagger back."

"If we can get it back."

"Hey, I'm trying to be optimistic here; you could try it."

"Optimism is not what we need! What we need is a way to defeat my sister!"

"We're open to suggestions if you've got any."

"We need more information on her," Regina said, beginning to pace. An idea was starting to click in her head.

"There's nothing left in Rumple's journals; he took everything," the librarian said.

"And Blue won't help," Mary Margaret added. "I tried again, after Emma and August spoke to her. She wouldn't tell me anything." Charming rubbed her shoulder comfortingly, as if Reul Ghorm being a treacherous insect was anything new.

"No," Regina said, looking at Swan. "You said it yourself; it's not about Rumple, and it's not about the blue bug; this is about me. My family. It's not Rumple we need to talk to. It's my mother."

The blond raised an eyebrow. "Won't that be kind of hard? Cora's dead."

"Yes, she is," Regina said flatly, "But it just so happens that I know a ritual that will allow us to talk to her. It's simple, but not often performed."

"Wait, if it's that easy to talk to the dead, why not do it more?" Swan asked.

"Because to do it, you need two things: the murder weapon, and the murderer." Regina looked at Baelfire. The arrow he'd shot into the back of her mother's skull was enchanted; there was no chance in hell that Rumple hadn't kept it.

"It wasn't murder," the librarian objected, "He saved Grace's life, and the rest of us as well."

Regina sighed. "This is magic, not the people's court; legal distinctions don't matter. He killed her; it counts."

"What's involved in this ritual?" the kid asked. He, at least, wasn't puffed up with righteous indignation.

"There's a tea I have to brew; it summons the Dark Vortex. And, if my mother cooperates, we can talk to her through it."

"Because Cora was always so cooperative," Charming complained.

"Don't try to be snarky," Regina said, "You're not very good at it."

"Do you honestly think this will work?" Baelfire asked.

"It's the best idea I've got."

"How can we trust you?" the librarian asked, looking at the Savior.

"Well, since Swan decided to give up all her magic, including her little superpower, you're going to have to make a decision, aren't you?"

"It's OK, Belle," Baelfire said. "She has as much to lose as the rest of us." He looked at her and nodded. "Let's do it."

Regina said that her house was the best place to hold the ritual, apparently because Cora had spent time there in life. Bae and Belle made a small detour to the shop to retrieve the magic bow (and arrows - Regina was specific about that), and arrived just behind everyone else.

Bae would have been found the décor of Regina's home unsettling if he hadn't already seen the inside of the Mayor's office before Mary Margaret had started redecorating. It was pretty much the same - black and white, with accents of red and a motif of bare branches. Though no less opulent, Bae vastly preferred the inside of his father's house. At least it wasn't so 'matchy-matchy', to use August's phrasing. Bae wondered what it had been like for Henry to grow up in such a cold place.

"In here," Regina said, impatiently herding them into a study that actually looked more like it belonged in the pink Victorian. Bae wondered if it was something about the magic; maybe you couldn't perform a ritual in too sterile a space.

"Take a seat." They gathered around a circular table. Regina had asked only a small group to join them: David and Mary Margaret, Emma (who would have refused to stay behind anyway), and Bae and Belle. When Leroy had objected, Regina had pointed out that Cora was more likely to be cooperative if she wasn't 'being gawked at like a circus attraction'.

Regina placed small, metal cups in front of each of them, scolding David when he tried to drink his. "That's a deadly poison, Charming. Besides, we need it to summon the vortex." Then she turned to Bae. "I don't suppose you have any idea which arrow was the one that pierced my mother's skull?"

Bae shook his head. "No."

"I need the entire quiver, then." She held out a hand, and he hesitated just a moment before handing it over. She pulled out the arrows one by one, pricking her finger on each tip. When she got to the forth one, the drop of blood she spilled turned black. "It's this one." She placed the arrow, still tainted with blood, on a tall, black pedestal, then extended her hands to Mary Margaret and Bae. "Everyone hold hands."

"Really? That's not just a thing cheesy psychics do?" Emma asked.

"Yes, really. Sometimes, real magic does find it's way to this world; you know that. Apparently, parts of actual rituals sometimes do as well."

They joined hands. "Now what?" Emma asked.

"Focus on Cora," Regina said.

"Do those thoughts need to be positive?" Emma asked. Bae wondered that as well.

"No, just strong," Regina replied, shoulders tense.

"I don't think that should be a problem with this group," Emma said.

"Shh," Regina scolded. "Focus."

Bae watched the black blood drop glisten in the low light. He felt the tension in the room build until the windows started to rattle, and a cold wind began to swirl around the space. Regina looked up, and Bae followed her eyes, watching as a blue vortex opened up above the table.

"Cora? Mother, can you hear us?" Cora did not answer. "Don't ignore me now, Mother, you owe me this!" The wind picked up, but still Cora did not answer. "Mother!"

A gust of wind rattled the arrow on its pedestal, and Mary Margaret shrieked, abruptly letting go of Regina and David's hands. With the circle broken, the magic could not maintain itself, and the vortex collapsed.

"Sorry! Sorry," Mary Margaret said. "Something startled me. Can we try again?" she asked Regina.

Regina sighed. "No. There's no point. It worked, the portal opened, but nothing came from it. She doesn't want to talk to me. I guess whatever secrets lie in her past, she wants to keep buried there."

Bae looked at Belle. "That's not good enough," Belle said. "We need this information."

"And what do you propose we do, bookworm? She'd dead; there's nothing we can do to make her talk. Not like she could ever be strong-armed in life either," Regina added, muttering.

"Then what now?" Emma asked.

"Now we need a new plan" Regina replied matter-of-factly. "Any ideas?"

No one had any.

"I don't suppose you'd be willing to let me look at your books?" Belle asked Regina. "It's the only collection in town I haven't been through yet-"

"I may not go through books like the pirate goes through rum, but I do know how to read," Regina snapped. "My books don't have anything."

"Maybe you should let her have a look," Mary Margaret prodded.

Regina glared at her. "I'm telling you, there's nothing there."

Mary Margaret regarded her for a moment, then turned to Belle and Bae. "Thank you both. Perhaps it would be best if you went home and got some rest. I'll stay here with Regina and help clean up."

"I don't recall inviting you to do that," Regina said, but Belle could see that she was, in some small way, touched by the offer.

"Fine," Bae said flatly. He'd cleaned the arrows and returned them all to the quiver. It was currently slung across his back, the bow with it.

"Remember that we do still have one advantage," Mary Margaret said. "Zelena still doesn't have Regina's heart or David's courage."

"Yeah," Bae said quietly. "Good night, Mary Margaret. David. Emma."

"Good night, kid," Emma replied.

Belle bid them all good night as well. For months, she had worried endlessly about Rumple, about where he was. After learning about Zelena, she worried what she was doing to him. With today's events, she couldn't help but conjure up a dozen different scenarios, all of them horrible.

Hang on, Rumple, please. We will find a way to save you, I swear.

She and Bae turned to go. Belle's hand was on the front door when windows began to rattle, and they all heard a loud creaking that was all too familiar. A spinning wheel - Rumple? It can't be.

It was Cora.

Her ghostly form, accompanied by an equally ghostly spinning wheel, was shimmering in the middle of one of Regina's empty rooms. She turned and glared at them. "Mother?" Regina said. "This can't be. The portal was limited, it was only for speaking…"

"Well, obviously she found a way," Emma said, her hand on her gun. Cora rose up into the air.

"And what are you intending to do with that?" Regina said as Emma drew her weapon. "She's already dead!"

"She's here for me," Bae said, resolute. He'd also drawn his bow.

"That's not going to-"

Cora rushed at Baelfire, and Regina threw herself in front of him. Cora stopped short, fixing her daughter with a silent, baleful stare. "Back off, Mother," Regina growled. "You will answer my questions. What did you do to Zelena?"

Belle grabbed Bae's arm and tried to pull him away. After everything, she was not going to allow anything to happen to him. "Bae…"

"I survived Pan, do you think I'm afraid of you?" Bae shouted at Cora. The ghost sneered and backhanded her daughter into a wall. Bae turned and ran, quickly outpacing Belle (damn these shoes!). He was down the stairs and out of sight, Emma and David fast on his heels, before Cora managed to catch him. They slammed the door of Regina's summoning room behind them, but she merely regarded it a moment before passing right through the wall.

"Bae!" Belle cried, scrambling down the stairs and yanking the hidden door open. Regina was standing in front of her mother, her hands raised, entrapping the spirit in an aura of purple light.

"I don't know how much longer I can hold her off," she said. "Get out of here; maybe you can make it to Gold's before she catches you."

"I'll never make it," Bae said. "You know that."

"Well, if someone hadn't given up her magic, she'd be able to help you-"

"Really, you want to argue about that now?" Emma said, her gun trained on Cora.

"Cora!" Belle shouted. She didn't have magic or even a gun, but at the very least, she could help keep her distracted. "Leave him alone!"

"She won't listen," Regina said, grunting with the effort of keeping her mother pinned. "She only understands power and weakness."

"Like mother, like daughter," Emma said. At Regina's glare she said, "I meant Zelena!"

At the mention of her other daughter's name, Cora thrashed, breaking free of Regina spell and tossing her to the ground. Before Belle could react, Cora dove directly into Baelfire, and he dropped to the floor next to Regina.

"Bae!"

Belle stumbled over to him, as he writhed and shimmered with the same blue light that Cora's spirit appeared to be made of. When she touched him, her hands tingled unpleasantly, but she refused to let go. "Baelfire! Can you hear me?"

"Move!" Regina barked, picking herself up.

"No!"

"You want her out of there? Move, so I can do it." Belle stared at her. Regina was asking her to trust her with Baelfire's life. There had been a time when that would have been unthinkable, but Belle just didn't know anymore. Mary Margaret now trusted her stepmother completely, and she had more reason than anyone not to. "Move!" Regina repeated, resolute.

Belle had no choice, not if she wanted to save Bae. She took a step back, a knot in her belly, praying that Regina wouldn't take this opportunity to avenge herself on Rumple. Jaw clenched, Regina raised her hands, and another aura of purple magic flowed from her fingertips into Baelfire. It grabbed Cora's spirit and wrenched it loose. Her entire body shaking, Regina drove her mother up towards the ceiling and summoned the vortex once more, forcing her through it.

The supernatural wind that had accompanied the ghost died instantly, and Belle immediately knelt next to Baelfire. "Bae? Bae, can you hear me?" she asked, brushing his sweat-soaked bangs away from his face.

"Belle?" he asked weakly.

She smiled. "Yes, darling, how are you feeling?"

He struggled to sit up. "Fucking magic," he muttered, and the others started crowding around.

"You OK, kid?"

"Emma? Yeah, yeah, she… I don't think that was an attack. I think… she was answering the question."

"What do you mean?" Regina asked.

"She showed me; she showed me what happened with Zelena. She was…" Bae looked at Mary Margaret. "I don't know if it's true," he said.

"What do you mean?" Mary Margaret asked.

"What she showed me… she was engaged to your father before he married your mother. Cora was pregnant by another man and your father didn't know, but your mother found out. She told him, and Cora was run out of the palace. That's why she gave Zelena up."

"That… that can't be. My mother would never do anything like that."

"People change," Regina said flatly. "Some people go bad. Others… maybe she wanted better for you."

Belle and Bae shared a look. "Well," Emma said, "If this is true, we have our answer."

David nodded. "She's going back in time… to kill your mother," he said to his wife, taking her hand.

"Which would mean that I would never be born," Mary Margaret said. "And neither would Emma."

"Or Henry," Regina said. She looked at Emma, who nodded slightly. Belle's doubts about Regina crumbled. It seemed she truly had followed Rumple's example, and conquered her own darkness.

"Or you," Bae added, rubbing his head. "Probably, anyway. I do kind of wonder what Cora was planning to do when Leopold figured out that the math didn't add up."

"Let's not find out," Emma said. "Your heart's in a safe place, right?" she asked Regina.

"Of course it is," Regina replied, crossing her arms.

"What about David's courage?"

"That's a good question. It can't be removed, not like my heart."

"Then how was Zelena planning to get it?"

"Let me rephrase; it's not a limited resource. I could find a way to remove a representation of Charming's courage, but it wouldn't leave him a coward. And if it did, what I had removed would crumble, like crushing a heart. The seat of courage, of most things really, can't actually be removed from a person like a heart can."

"Why are hearts special?" Emma asked.

"Because some evil person decided they should be and created a branch of magic in order to do it. Probably one of the Dark Ones," Regina said wryly.

Bae struggled to his feet. "So basically David just has to stay out of Zelena's way," he said.

"Easier said than done," David muttered. Mary Margaret squeezed his hand fondly, her other hand resting on her round belly.

"We'll get through this," she said, "We always do."

"Yeah," Emma said tightly. "You look pretty wiped out, kid, do you need a ride?" she asked Bae. "Should we call Whale?"

"Not Whale," he said, shaking his head, "I'll take that ride, though."

"The best place for David is behind the blood wards on the loft, right? I think we're done for the night," Emma said.

Regina nodded. "The loft is good. Yes, I think we're done for now."

"Thank you, Regina," Belle said, grudgingly. "For saving Bae."

She waved dismissively. "Rumple will owe me one."

"Oh, he'll hate that," Emma said, trying to lighten the mood.

Regina smiled slightly. "Then I supposed it was worth it."

Rumplestiltskin hated Zelena's bed. It was worse than the cage. At least in the cage, she didn't usually join him.

She was currently cuddled against his chest, basking in what he was sure she genuinely perceived as afterglow. They were both naked, and there was no escaping the revolting feeling of herbody pressed against his or her breath tickling his cheek. "We're so close, Rumple," she said. "Soon, everything will change."

Zelena had been gloating all evening that her plan to block Emma's magic had succeeded. If Rumplestiltskin had had any optimism left in him at all, he'd have noted that the villain always thought they had won right before they lost, but he didn't. His last bit of hope had died with the Savior's powers. All he had left now was anger, helplessness, and despair.

He didn't say anything, so Zelena filled the silence. "I should have taken you with me. You should have seen the pirate's face; I think you would have enjoyed that. He really thinks he loves her."

"Poor Emma," he deadpanned. Zelena laughed and started toying with his hair.

"But don't worry, darling, I have a job for you tomorrow. A chance to stretch your legs, be the Dark One for a little while."

He closed his eyes. Please, not Bae. Not Belle. They have two weeks left; let them have them. "Oh?"

"Mm." She nodded, pulling closer to him. "It's a surprise, though. Get some sleep; tomorrow's a big day."

She wasn't holding the dagger, but the command was clear. He imagined his consciousness as an animal scrabbling at the slimy walls of an old well while his curse pulled it under. He slept.