A/N: Again, thank you all so much for the wonderful comments. I am so glad you are enjoying the roller coaster ride. And for those of you who are upset that Future Emma is gone all I can say is wait for it because we are not done with her or that alternate future timeline.

In the present

Regina started toward the door.

"Where are you going?" Emma asked.

"I need to go," Regina said. "There is something I need to check."

"What about the videos, we need to watch them." Emma had the flash drive in her pocket, not wanting to leave it behind at Regina's.

"I know. I will be back. Besides, if my guess is right you are about to have company and it's probably best that I am not here when Hook returns," she said.

"How long are you going to be gone?"

Regina looked back at the couch where future Emma had been. "I don't know," she said.

"Regina," Emma said taking a step toward her. "You are doing it again, that thing where I know you know something. What is it? Is it about what she said about Alex?"

"I'm sorry," Regina said. "Text me when your guest leaves."

"Wait," Emma said, but Regina hurried out the door before Emma could stop her. "Damn it." So much for doing this together, she thought.

This had all gotten out of hand way too quickly for her liking and she felt like it was spiraling out of control even more and she didn't know what to do. She knew her future self had disdain for that alternate future, but until she saw her on the couch moments away from returning to it, she had no idea that she feared that future. She knew that look on her face, it was one of fear. Something about that timeline had freaked her out, but what.

She was tempted to fire up her laptop and watch the videos but she also knew that Regina was right and she would soon have company. How did she even begin to explain any of this to Killian? She hadn't even processed the fact that he was the one who killed Regina in the future. Did he really work with Gold just to get his ship back?

She had too many questions and not enough answers.

If her future self was here again she would gladly slam her against the wall and make her tell the things she should have told her in the first place. Perhaps if she had been upfront about everything they wouldn't be in this mess. But no her future self was so obsessed with Regina and getting back to her own timeline that she didn't even seem concerned about the alternate one until it was too late. "Fuck," she swore.

She sat down on the couch trying to calm down. It wouldn't do her any good to be angry at her future self when the woman wasn't even here any longer. She needed to concentrate on the present and making sure Regina was safe. "Damn it," she cursed again. How was she supposed to keep Regina safe when she just let the woman walk out the door by herself? "Some protector I am," Emma said. She pulled out her phone and dialed Regina's number but it went straight to voicemail. "Regina, it's me. Call me back when you get this. You shouldn't be off by yourself until we figure all this out. Just … just don't get yourself killed and call me."

She was almost angry enough to throw the phone at the wall, but common sense prevailed – for the moment at least.

Now all she could do was wait – wait for Regina to call her back or wait for Killian to show up. What the hell was he doing here anyway and why was he in her bedroom with her future self? She had nothing even remotely believable to tell him about how he ended up back on his ship. Then there was what her future self had said – that she had been trying to get him to leave but he wouldn't.

She wasn't ready to deal with this right now. She needed to keep her mind focused on preventing this future from happening. Mentally she cursed her future self again – why wasn't she just upfront about all of it? Then again Emma knew why – she wouldn't have believed her if she had told the truth.

She didn't have to wait long before there was heavy knock on the door. She got up and opened it.

"What is going on?" Hook demanded walking into her apartment. Emma closed the door behind him and turned to face him.

"I am sorry about the whole magic thing," Emma said, realizing she couldn't tell him the truth. "I am still not very good at controlling it."

"So that was what, an accident?"

"Yes an accident. What did you think it was?"

"I don't know, you are the one who has been acting strange lately. I think I am owed an explanation."

"Excuse me," Emma said. "I don't owe you anything. I've been busy; I have tried to explain this to you."

"Through lies. You say you have this case that has been keeping you busy, a case you said has nothing to do with Regina, yet I find you with her in Gold's shop, then a few nights ago I see you coming out Regina's house well after midnight, and then you cancel dinner with me only to show up at the boat, but the moment things start getting interesting you are suddenly not in the mood. I come here to see about picking up where I left off and you are clearly sick or something, and when I show concern you tell me to leave. All I want is an explanation as to what is going on with you?"

"How did you know I was coming out of Regina's house after midnight?" Emma asked.

Hook backed up a step.

"Did you follow me to Regina's?"

"No!"

"Then how did you know I was there?"

"So you admit you were there?"

"Yes, I was but how did you know? Have you been following me?"

"No," he repeated.

"Then how did you know?"

"Because … because I was following Regina."

"What? Why?"

"Gold. Gold paid me to keep an eye on her. Just her comings and goings and let him know."

"Why would he do that?"

"I don't know. I don't care."

"Then why would you do it?"

Hook looked down at his feet and then up at her. "He can help me get my ship back."

This time Emma took a step back. This wasn't happening. It couldn't be happening.

"I am sorry, I should have told you," Hook said coming toward her.

"Get out," Emma said opening the door.

"No, we need to talk about this."

"There is nothing to talk about. You leave now. You and I are through, do you understand? I don't want anything to do with you from this moment on."

"You don't mean that."

"Yes, I do," she said through clenched teeth. "Get out."

"Fine, I will wait until you calm down and we can talk about this rationally," he said stepping into the doorway. "We have something special Swan. I feel and you feel it. We're connected."

"If you continue to follow Regina or come anywhere near her the only connection you are going to feel from me is my knee into your groin," she said pushing him the rest of the way out and locking the door behind him.

She ran her fingers into her hair, holding her head. This couldn't be real her mind told her. But it was. Hook getting his ship back, Gold and Hook working together, it was just like how the future happened. She was so upset she was shaking.

She sunk to the floor, her back against the door, her breaths coming rapidly. They're going to do it, she thought, Gold and Hook were actually going to kill Regina. She fished her phone out of her pocket and dialed Regina's number again, but it again went to voicemail.

"Regina, I need you to call me back now. Call me and let me know where you are at, please," she said. "I … I think you are in danger."

….

Regina stepped into her mausoleum going directly over to a chest that contained many things including a certain book she was looking for. Getting down on her knees she moved around the objects inside until she found the book. It was actually hidden by magic in the form of a harmless book so that if anyone would come across it they would not know what it was. She pulled it out now and released the spell that cloaked it and sat on the top of the chest holding the small tome in her hand.

Even touching this thing made her uneasy, it always had. The cover was made of some sort of flesh that had long since hardened. It wasn't the cover that bothered her – it was what was inside of it that did.

She hadn't understood when future Emma had said Alex was a vessel. She was too wrapped up in Emma's pain and the emotions she realized they were both feeling to think clearly about it. Even when the thought came to her she was still unsure, this is why she decided to leave Emma's apartment so she could check for herself. It wasn't the only reason though. She had not been expecting to feel such an overwhelming loss with future Emma's departure.

She hadn't expected the hurt she felt now in her chest.

Emma was gone.

She thought about feeling those lips on hers in those last moments. The declaration of love and the full knowledge that while she wasn't this Emma's wife, that somewhere, some time she got her happy ending made Regina happy and sad at the same time.

But future Emma wasn't headed back to that happy ending. No, she was headed back to the alternate future where she was dead and her soul was inside Emma.

The feeling that her happy ending had been stolen from her crept into her thoughts and suddenly she felt like that young girl who had to watch Daniel die. In that moment she had felt her happy ending destroyed and there was nothing she could do to stop it and that is how she began to feel again.

She tempered down those thoughts and feelings. She couldn't let them consume her like they once had. No, she told herself, she needed to stay focused.

She opened up the book and flipped through the pages until she found what she was looking for. Unlike her other spell books, this one wasn't written in Elvish. At the time she was given the book she didn't know what the language was, and still couldn't read the book except for these couple of pages. These pages had been translated for her.

When she came to this world, she came across the same language which surprised her. Here they called it Sanskrit.

There was a time when that translation had been tucked away inside the book, but she had long since destroyed it. She should have destroyed the book entirely. Knowing what little she did of the book was enough to convince her that no good could come of it.

She almost had to laugh thinking about it – there was a time as the Evil Queen she would have used anything at her disposal to get what she wanted. It turns out it was almost anything – this book had stopped her. There were some boundaries that weren't meant to be crossed.

Yet once upon a time she had considered crossing that boundary.

"Incompetent fools," Regina said entering her chamber. "They let Snow slip through their fingers once again."

She picked up a bottle of perfume off of her vanity and flung against the far wall where it shattered. It didn't make her feel any better, but she had to do something besides order the death of the idiot captain who had failed to return with Snow.

"I am sorry they have failed you," Genie said from inside the mirror.

She didn't look at him; she hated his presence even if she did find him to be useful at times. It seemed that no one understood that Snow White needed to be destroyed. People were actually helping her despite the rewards Regina had offered for her capture. She needed to look into Snow's eyes as she died – just like she had to watch Daniel die.

She reached for Daniel's ring, finding comfort in touching it. She began to calm down slowly.

"Having a bad day dearie?"

Her annoyance level skyrocketed at that voice.

"You aren't welcome here," she said whirling around to face him.

"Now, now you don't even know what I have come here to offer," Rumpel said.

"I am not interested in anything you have to say."

"But what I have to offer is equally beneficial to us both."

Regina laughed, "I highly doubt that. You don't believe in equally beneficial."

"Under normal circumstances I do not, but in this case there is something I was hoping you would assist me in procuring. And if you do so you may find that it will also be helpful in fulfilling one of your own goals."

"You mean Snow White's funeral pyre," she turning from him dismissively.

"No, I mean the return of your true love."

This time when she turned to face him, she did so with a fireball in her hand. "Speak quickly imp or I swear you will see just how powerful I have become."

"You can't defeat me Regina, we both know this. You have your power because of me so show some gratitude," he said.

"Speak."

"There is a certain book out there – a book of magic that I have heard of and would be interested in getting a closer look at," he said pausing whether for dramatic flair or to annoy her, she wasn't sure but she wanted badly to burn that smug look off of his face.

"What kind of book and why does it interest you?" Regina asked extinguishing the fire.

"Why it interests me is none of your concern."

"Then why should it interest me?"

"Like I said, it could mean the return of your precious Daniel."

"Say his name again in my presence and I don't care if it destroys me in the process, but I will kill you."

"Touchy, touchy your majesty," he said walking over to the wall and leaning on it, next to the mirror. "This book is said to contain some very powerful magic, including a process by which you might be able to bring back the soul of someone who has passed."

"You keep using words like 'might' or 'could.' I am not interested in fairy tales."

"Well I don't know for sure because I have never seen said book, only heard of it, which is why I am here for your assistance, rather the assistance of your mirror here."

Regina looked at the trapped Genie. "What assistance do you think he could give you?"

"The location of the book. It comes from his land Agrabah. And I know he knows the location just like I know he isn't going to tell me where without your permission."

Regina smiled and walked toward the mirror. "You want me to have him tell you where this book is so you can retrieve it, yes?"

"Yes."

"And after you are finished with said book you are going to just turn it over to me?"

"Yes. Do we have a deal?"

"No," she said walking away from him.

"I assure you Regina that while I have not personally seen this book, the magic it can unlock is quite powerful," he said. "I can understand why you would wonder or doubt how it could help you in your particular situation, and I can offer no guarantees that it will help you …"

"Then you are offering me nothing," she interrupted. She was done with this conversation. Perhaps she would go watch that failure of a captain get beheaded after all – it would be better than wasting her time with him. "Show yourself out."

She got to the door when Rumpel spoke again, "It's called the Resurrection Book."

"No," Genie said and Regina turned back around coming not to Rumpel but to the mirror.

"What do you know of this book?"

The Genie glanced at Rumpel first before looking at her. "It is a book of great magic, but dangerous magic. It is not to be messed with my queen."

"Can it do as he says, can it bring my Daniel back?"

"I do not know. It was locked away to keep it from being used. But I do know that within its pages was the curse that made me a genie in the first place."

"Powerful magic indeed," she said and then looked at Rumpel. "Is that what you want it for? To make a genie to grant wishes?"

"No," he said. "As your genie can attest to those wishes never come out as expected and usually end in misery."

"Tell me what you want the book for and I will consider your request," she said.

"Fine," he said moving away from her. "It is my understanding that the book contain a spell for creating a vessel."

"A vessel. I am going to assume, you aren't referring to a ship, but of a container of some sort."

"That is correct."

"What kind of vessel."

"One that can contain very powerful magic," he said. "And that is all you need to know. It doesn't concern you beyond getting that book. Do we have a deal?"

"I don't do deals with you. Like the genie's wishes, they don't quite end the way we think they will."

"You are willing to pass up on the chance that this book contains something you want as well? Something that is more important to you than your revenge?"

She thought about it a moment. "I may have the mirror tell me where the book is at. I may even retrieve it," she said. "But if I do the book stays with me. Whatever this spell is that you want, that is the only part of it you get. That is if I decide to get the book."

Rumpel came close so they were standing inches apart. "We both know you are going to get the book, so I accept your terms."

He turned from her. "Let me know when you have it," he said before disappearing.

"Do not do this my queen," the mirror said. "This is not magic that you want to have any part of."

"Tell me where to find the book," she ordered.

The genie told her where to find the book, and she sent men after it. She had sent more than 50 men – only four returned, all of whom refused to talk about what had happened or what they had seen even under her threats of death.

She took the book from them and discovered later that all four had killed themselves in varying ways.

The first time she held the book she could almost feel its darkness, like a well of ink you dipped a quill in. But when she opened it she screamed in anger. It was in a language she did not know.

She wasn't about to hand it over to Rumpel, whom she was sure had means to read it. She didn't trust him to tell her what part of the book she needed. Since the book came from Agrabah though, she had one source that could help her.

When she presented the book to genie he again begged her not to open it or do any of the spells. She ordered him to shut up and look at the pages to tell which of the spells could help bring Daniel back. He found it about three-fourths of the way back and she sat and wrote down what he told her it said.

She wasn't really thinking about the spell as she wrote it down as she had time to think it over after she got the words translated. But she knew immediately she would be dealing with very dark magic. This wasn't a spell to resurrect a person – this was a spell that could resurrect a soul.

Once the translation was complete, she left the room – wanting to go somewhere where she could be alone to think. She went to her garden and sat on the bench.

She knew about souls and how powerful they were, but according to this spell it would be possible to resurrect a soul from someone long dead. That shouldn't be possible based on what she knew. Souls were too fragile. They didn't stick around after death.

This wasn't the first time she had looked for a solution to bring Daniel back. He was dead, but she believed the magic was powerful enough to bring him back. She believed if she could get his body to come to life, his soul – wherever it was – would return to it. Souls knew where they belonged – that is why things like true love were possible – true love, which she believed she and Daniel shared, was nothing more than two souls recognizing they belonged together. If Daniel's body could be brought to life then his soul would come back with it.

But this spell suggested the opposite – that with a soul life was possible.

If she could resurrect his soul inside his body then the body would live.

It sounded simple, which made her suspect it. The spell itself was not simple – quite complicated in fact, but not impossible. It was the concept she was wrestling with because it was too simple. Magic came with a price, so what was the price here?

She needed more information before deciding what to do. Someone must have performed the spell before – she needed to know what the result was.

Regina had discovered what the result was, which is part of the reason why she should have destroyed the book upon finding out. Yet she hadn't and here it was sitting in her hands once more. That spell wasn't exactly why she had gone looking for the book, although looking back she could see why here mind had jumped to it. But her soul hadn't been resurrected it, it had been torn from her. She hadn't died before her soul was taken so it never went to wherever souls went upon death. The book wasn't clear on that part either, only that it was possible to recall that soul from wherever it was.

She flipped back a few more pages and ran her finger along the inside binding where two pages had been torn out. She had torn those pages out herself and had turned them over to Rumpel. It was the spell he had been after.

She had turned it over to him but not before having the genie translate the spell for her. She wanted to know what Rumpel was up to that he was willing to come to her to get this book.

The spell hadn't been what she was expecting when Rumpel said it was a spell to create a vessel.

Given what she knew now she knew she could see the spell in a different light; could see that it did indeed have the capabilities of containing a soul. Back then it would not even have occurred to her. She had wanted nothing to do with the book once she knew what the resurrection of a soul actually did so she had turned the pages over to Gold without asking him what he wanted it for. She didn't care what he wanted it for, she wanted nothing to do with it.

She didn't know if he had ever actually done the spell back then and if so what the purpose would have been for it.

In fact when she had the genie reading the titles to the spell she had almost passed this one over based on its title. But it was also the title that had given her pause and made her have genie translate it.

For all her knowledge of magic, she knew there were still fundamental rules about magic. Of course, one of those supposed rules had recently been proven false by her sister – time travel. One of those rules was that magic is power or energy, but it's not life. It can be used to affect life, yes, but independently it not life itself. Magic wasn't even inherently light or dark – that depended on the user. She had been taught dark magic and had used dark magic throughout her life, but it didn't make her incapable of light magic – something she pulled off solely because of Henry's belief in her.

But what if like time travel, magic could become life – then what would that life be like?

She felt sick to her stomach thinking of that spell now. It was titled, "Living Magic."

"What have you done Gold?" she said out loud to herself.