SUBJECT 204

Notes: I AM ACTUALLY UPDATING NOT A MONTH LATER HURRAY. Before we start, I just wanna say that lol even if I said that everyone was going to share at the campfire, things got reaaally long and the characters got ahead of me, so I'm cutting this chapter in two. About half the group shared stuff in this chapter. The other half will talk in the next one.

Also, this chapter was sponsored by Leticia who I had a few writing sessions with since she was also working on something for a Swan Queen event. ON THAT NOTE, if you haven't yet read the prequel she wrote for this fic, starring Emma and Regina, let me know so I can link you to it since it's on Ao3.

Oh and lol I started writing a Pricefield piece set in this subjectverse AU, check it out if you're a pricefield shipper, I will love you 50x more than I already do.

CHAPTER THIRTY FOUR

The chilly night air gave Ruby a sense of calm. There was the occasional hoot of an owl and the leathery flap of bat wings. She tried not to flinch when they hit her ears, but they startled her every time, seeming to echo through the trees. Still, it wasn't enough to dispel the serenity she felt as she hugged her knees and watched the glow and crackle of the campfire.

A cold, damp bottle was in one of her hands, growing warmer as she put off drinking it. The first few sips felt hot and sour and strange in her throat. It made her grimace every time. At this point, she wasn't sure if she was going to finish it, but she didn't want to offend Killian by giving his offered beer to someone else.

Before the facility, Ruby had her fair share of secret drinking sessions with Peter, Dorothy and Merida. It was gross, but they had fun and they said things and did things. Truth or Dare games were commonplace during those sessions. A smile tugged at Ruby's lips as she remembered the notorious game where Peter had to shave his hair. It grew back into his usual spiky style in about a month or so, but Dorothy wouldn't drop the egghead jokes for weeks.

There was another one where Dorothy had to color her hair orange to match Merida's ginger. Peter had proposed that dare as vengeance and it backfired since Dorothy and Merida gained power couple status that year.

Those were the wilder games.

A few were more tame, like getting Merida to speak in an American accent or getting Ruby to prank call the popular kids.

"What are you sitting there smiling about?" Merida walked over to the cooler next to Ruby and claimed her second bottle.

"Just…" Ruby cleared her throat when it came out gravelly. "Just before… When… we used to…" She pointed at the bottle in her hands. "Truth or… D-dare."

Merida managed a smile but it didn't reach her eyes. "My favorite was the one where Peter made Dorothy dye her hair. Everyone loved it. She got a bit of a talking to from her Aunt and Uncle, of course. But that was a fun time. I still don't know why the school liked it so much."

Ruby shrugged. "Looked… good on her."

The stiff smile faded as Merida sighed and sat down on the ground next to Ruby. "I miss her so much." She took a swig of her beer. "Even now… I can't help but think of what she might say or do if she were here with us."

Lost for what to say to that, Ruby occupied herself with taking a sip of her own drink, grimacing as she did.

"Not enjoying that much, are you?" Merida raised an eyebrow.

"I…"

"Want me to finish it for you?"

Ruby blinked, then glanced across the fire to Mrs. Dunbroch, who was watching her boys like a hawk, making sure underage drinking didn't take place tonight.

Following Ruby's gaze, Merida let out a short laugh. "It's fine. We're not minors anymore, right?"

Still hesitant, Ruby handed the drink to Merida, who accepted it and started to drink from it. Mrs. Dunbroch noticed and was now watching with a raised eyebrow. "You best slow down, dear. I won't have you being sick in front of the fire."

"Got it, Mum!"

"Oy! Ladies, gents and whatever." Killian stood up, and called their attention, his voice louder than it needed to me, "Why don't we share shit like we're in some sort of AA meeting."

"What's there to share when Emma already read almost everything about us?" Neal said, his arm around Emma's shoulders. He ruffled her hair until she squirmed out of his hold. "No offense, Ems!"

Killian huffed. "C'mon, mate. Just coz Emma knows all our shit, don't mean everyone else does too." He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and adjusted his pants. "Look, okay, I'll start, mates."

"Keep it PG, mate, or Mama Bear will ground us for traumatizing the cubs!" Emma shouted.

There was a ripple of laughter through the circle, though Ruby picked up Mrs. Dunbroch whispering to her husband that there was truth to Emma's words.

When there was quiet once more, Killian audibly cleared his throat and took a step closer to the fire. "Now if you all can stop raining on my parade, I'm going to start." He took a sip of his bottle, draining what little was left before straightening up. "Before all of you idiots, I didn't really belong anywhere. Had a shit dad, no mom. Didn't have a lot of friends in school. But swimming…"

Killian exhaled loudly then toyed with the empty bottle. "I guess we can say swimming saved me. Gave me focus, gave me something to do. I was doing great at it, too. I was winning shit and I could have had a scholarship in some college or some shit."

"There were a lot of articles about you as a rising swimmer." Belle spoke up from her spot on the other side of the cooler, where she was sitting with Mulan and Aurora. "We found them when we were trying to track you down.

Nodding, Killian continued. "But I fucked up and-"

"Killian, language!" Mrs. Dunbroch interrupted. "You've been swearing up a storm. Could you please tone it down a tad?"

Killian's eyes were so wide, Ruby could see the firelight reflected in them. For several seconds, he just stood there in stunned silence.

Emma snickered. "I warned you, didn't I-"

"Emma, that means you, too."

Clearing his throat, but unable to suppress a smirk fired at Emma, Killian spoke again. "I… Yeah, I messed up. I was dealing since pocket money is a foreign concept to a shit- I mean to a… bad... dad." Killian blinked a few times, glanced at Mrs. Dunbroch. She gave him an approving nod and gestured for him to continue.

"Right… okay. And… well… I got caught." He shrugged. "Did my time, met Neal. We got ourselves into more trouble and sshhhstuff." He managed to stop himself from letting out another swear. Mrs. Dunbroch noticed and gave him another nod.

"The point is, I made a lot of mistakes. And I never belonged anywhere. But with you idiots. Excuse me, Mr. and Mrs. Dunbroch." Killian flashed a sheepish smile at Merida's parents. "You all… I feel like I'm actually somewhere. And Aurora's grannies contacted me recently. Said they have more legit work for me when all this is over."

"Wait, really?" Aurora asked.

Killian nodded, then another sheepish smile played at his face. "That is of course after I settle my own debts and serve whatever I'm going to serve if I turn myself in."

"Good on you, man." Neal lifted a hand for Killian to fistbump. "I'm not sure if I can still go the legit way after all this. Depends on how things pan out with the investigation, I guess."

"They might have work for you too." Killian said, then looked around at the crowd. "Just… yeah. That's all I wanted to say. I didn't belong nowhere, but here… Around our little campfire… I feel like I belong somewhere."

"Amen to that." Emma raised her beer.

Killian did a little bow, then gestured with his arms wide. "Now who's next? I shared my piece."

"Funny how things work themselves out." Mr. Dunbroch's voice rumbled over the crackle of the fire. Ruby looked at him and saw that he was also holding a beer as he sat with his arm around his wife's waist. "I dreamed and prayed for the day our family would be whole again and I thought it would never happen. Gave up hope for it, I did."

He lifted his bottle. "And it might never have happened if it weren't for you five. Killian, Neal, Belle, Aurora, Mulan." Mr. Dunbroch's voice wavered, and he sniffed loudly. "You planned it all out and tried again when it failed and that's more than I can say for myself."

"It was a crazy move." Neal admitted. "Crazier even than our usual stunts."

A low chuckle rippled through Mr. Dunbroch's beard before he spoke again. "Well I would have liked to have a reunited family under… different circumstances. But I'd take being hustled into a van and going on a wild ride across the countryside over that old lonely life again. I'd take that again any day."

"I'm not sure if I'd do this all over again the same way," Neal said, "But really, if it weren't for Aurora, Belle and Mulan tracking us down and guilt-tripping us, we wouldn't even be here. None of us would be here, so I'd say we should toast to them."

Ruby watched as those with beer started to lift their bottles, until Aurora interrupted. "I don't think I should take credit for this, though. We wouldn't have made so much progress with our plans if we didn't have Mulan on board. And neither of us would even be doing anything if it wasn't for Belle convincing us to take action." Aurora nudged Belle, who was smiling, her face flushed pink from the warm glow of alcohol. "I still remember how cranky and sleep-deprived you were when you called me in the dead of night and begged me to meet you before work."

"It's not like you were already sleeping that time, you insomniac." Belle nudged back, then her face grew serious and she straightened up. "In all seriousness though, I don't think I would have made any move to take action if it wasn't for Emma and Regina reaching out to me. Actually, a lot of what set all of this in motion was Emma. It was her mind links and telepathic messages. She got us all moving and she got us all connected. And she was the one who found out about Ruby and wanted us to dig deeper."

Lifting her glass, Belle looked over at Emma and Regina. "I say we toast to Emma."

As most of the group lifted their beers, Ruby lifted her cup of water, mirroring the triplets who did the same. There was a scattering of "To Emma"s that Ruby joined in saying, though with less confidence as she still struggled with her own voice.

Lifting her head and enjoying the attention, Emma raised her hands and bowed. "Thank you, thank you. I like that you can all give credit where credit is due. I-"

"Emma Swan, is humility a foreign concept to you, or-"

"Hey, calm down, Reggie, I was also going to say something sweet about you but now I'm not sure if I still will."

Regina rolled her eyes.

Smirking, Emma said, "Okay, I'll say it anyway. As much as I got everyone moving with my annoying mental messages, I probably would have lost all hope of getting out if Regina didn't keep me going. Regina made the long, endless days bearable." Emma's voice had grown quiet and serious. She leaned forward, staring at the fire. In the flickering light, her eyes looked shiny. "I don't think I'd even still be around if I didn't have her for company."

All the talk of the facility made Ruby uncomfortable, but she surprised even herself with how in control she felt. There was a bit of an elevated heartbeat, and her hands were shaky as she put the cup back down. But besides that, her breathing was normal and she didn't feel her eyes warming up or her fingers hardening.

She glanced at Merida, who was hugging her knees and grimacing, staring intently at the ground.

"You… okay?" Ruby asked.

Merida shook her head. "Just… don't wanna think about that place ever again."

"This is nice," Mr. Dunbroch was speaking again. They all turned their attention to him. "Being among friends and family. I… I missed this a lot." He scratched at his beard. "I hated holidays and weekends, you know. The ones when we had no arranged visit at Baelfire. I hated being alone. The empty house drove me mad."

"Dear…" Mrs. Dunbroch's eyes were pained as she put a hand on her husband's chest and leaned into his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

Mr. Dunbroch put a hand over his wife's. "Not your fault, love. I just… I'm just saying it was rough. I found myself taking on more work, just so I could avoid being at the house or at a bar."

His beard twitched as he smiled, tears in his eyes. "There was one christmas where I bleached my beard to white so I could drop by different shelters as Santa Claus. I'd give out presents since I had spare money from the extra shifts. I told some stories and sang some songs. It really brought a smile to the faces of the kids staying there. 'Specially the teens kicked out of their homes. They would hug me and tell me how they wished I was their dad."

He let out a heavy sigh. "Meanwhile, I wished so badly that I could be with my own children."

"At least you're with us now, right, Dad?" One of the boys said.

Mr. Dunbroch smiled. "Right you are, Hubert."

"What was it like?" Merida interrupted, causing all eyes to turn to her. "For you three? Was Gold… nicer? He let you room together." She ran her hands through her own short hair. "I mean he gave us all our haircuts when we screwed up, but he… he seemed…" Shaking her head, looked down at the ground and fiddled with the near-empty bottle on her lap. "What was he like with you?"

The triplets exchanged glances.

"It… I think we didn't have it as bad as you and Ruby did." One of the boys spoke up. He looked around, seeming to notice that the attention was on him now. "Um… hi?"

"Just for the sake of you guys who still can't tell us apart," The middle boy pointedly looked at Emma, "Or needs to poke inside our minds to remember our names…" At being called out, Emma shrank behind Regina, smiling sheepishly. "That's Harris, I'm Hubert, this is Hamish."

Ruby put in effort to commit their names to memory this time, but it was still difficult to tell them apart. For now she tried to associate their names with their clothes. Telling them apart again tomorrow would be yet another struggle.

"Could you guys like just introduce yourselves every morning for the next few days?" Emma asked, "Otherwise I'm just going to poke your brains again to doublecheck what to call who. I can't even give out wacky nicknames yet and that sucks."

Hubert rolled his eyes but Harris nudged him and said, "Guess we could try that for a bit, ya."

"Back to the question," Hubert poked at the fire with a stick. "It sucked, yeah. No phones, no TV, no internet, no videogames… no Dad… and hanging out with Merida and Mum was… tense."

"We didn't get a lot of time to hang out with them much." Harris explained. "And our conversations tended to be through our… room… cell walls."

"But we kind of just got used to it after a while," Hamish added, then cringed, "I do remember a few tests that were pretty bad." He glanced at Mrs. Dunbroch and hesitated.

Mrs. Dunbroch was tense and stiff as she nodded. "Go on."

The triplets huddled close to each other and Ruby thought she could pick up "endurance test" and "healing test" amidst their whispers. As she waited for them to get ready to share their experiences, she couldn't help but rub at her wrists where her cuffs used to be. The skin was discolored from where the silver had been in contact with her without respite.

Ruby noticed the tattered old bracelet from Peter. It was a reminder of the both of them. The boy she loved and the girl she was afraid to love. They were a tightly knit little group but they made room for Merida.

They just never got the chance to get a matching bracelet for her.

Glancing over at Merida, Ruby couldn't help but think about how Merida had been such a source of happiness for Dorothy. They were great for each other and it had been petty for Ruby to be jealous and cold. There had been tension sometimes, and now…

Now, Dorothy was gone.

And all Ruby had left to remember her by was an old bracelet that said "Wolfie". The stupid nickname had been such a source of happy feelings. It used to be funny and just a little embarrassing. Then it became a painful trigger, reminding her of what she was as she fought to keep the monster within her from coming out.

Now, it reminded Ruby of loss.

Would Merida want it since it was connected to Dorothy? Or would she just find such an offer insulting since it had Ruby's nickname on it?

Not that Ruby was sure she was willing to give it at all.

"Okay." Harris straightened up. "We weren't always being tested by Dr. Gold, and we had some scientists that were pretty nice to us. Dr. Lumiere and Dr. Cogsworth would sometimes sneak us some snacks. And they'd check on us after the tougher tests."

"I'm pretty sure they were dating." Hubert added. "They argued like an old married couple."

Harris nodded. "They kinda did, yeah."

Hugging himself and rubbing his own shoulders, Hamish said, "But Dr. Yzma was pretty intense. More cranky and creepy than Dr. Gold, I think."

"When Dr. Gold was still trying to figure out if we could magically heal fast like Merida and Ruby or at a more regular pace like Mum, we had to do some tests with different…" Harris exhaled and rubbed at the back of his head. "…different blades. And that… wasn't fun."

"He apologized after and gave us some snacks but…" Hamish sniffed. "It sucked. And with the strength tests and the other tests, Dr. Yzma was harsh about seeing how much stronger and faster we were than… than normal people."

"The healing tests didn't last too long… and it's not as bad as y'know… Merida and Ruby but… well…"

A low grumble came from Mrs. Dunbroch, and in the flicker of light, it was clear that her eyes had blackened into that of her bear's. "Those are still tests that no children should ever have to go through."

"I mean we're not, like… kids," Hubert protested, but another growl quieted him.

"You should not have been put through that." Mrs. Dunbroch was baring her teeth, several of them sharpening to points.

Seeming to notice that her bear was trying to surface, Mrs. Dunbroch closed her eyes. Her ragged breathing echoed through the woods at first, but they eventually quieted down until she was able to speak again. "It was never supposed to be a curse. I grew up raised on the belief that it was a blessing. An honor even."

"An… an honor?"

Such a concept was completely foreign to Ruby. The shapeshifting was a painful curse. Their animal forms were dangerous and monstrous. They were beasts with raw power and a predisposition towards violence and ferocity. How could something like that ever be considered an honor?

"Yes, Ruby." Mrs. Dunbroch said, "Back home, we had some small communities. It was a family trait that was passed down from generation to generation. Sometimes it skipped generations, sometimes it mutated to something a little different. But it was treasured enough that in our little society of shapeshifting folk, those who had it were considered blessed."

Ruby felt her jaw drop. She felt utterly blown away by this whole concept. Turning to Merida, Ruby tried to stutter out a request for confirmation but only managed to let out an awkward croaking sound.

With a raised eyebrow at the sound, but understanding in her eyes, Merida nodded. "Our grandda was even disappointed when it was looking like the boys and I didn't have it."

"There were some people, of course, who didn't take well to it and sometimes infiltrated our ranks and attacked us." Mrs. Dunbroch continued, "And while the methods of those people aren't right, they did have reason to be concerned. Where there are people who are careful about their use of their gift, there were also people who abused the powers given to them and-."

"I can name a few people who fit that description." Emma said.

Regina gave Emma a look that was somewhere between teasing and exasperated. "Oh, you mean like you and Neal with the criminal use of your powers during your con days?"

Putting her hands up, Emma looked over at Neal and Killian, "Hey, in my defense, I was like fourteen when I joined Bonnie and Clyde."

"Hey, hey." Killian was wobbling as he pointed his bottle at Emma, spilling some of the alcohol. "Don't act like I was some bad influence or some shit, you were already starting to run your own cons before-"

Mr. Dunbroch cleared his throat. "Let Elinor finish, please." Chastised, Emma, Regina and Killian quieted down.

"Thank you." Mrs. Dunbroch nodded towards Emma and her group before continuing. "Even though Gold's tests have proven that our kind is more in control of our gifts than Ruby's is, we are also still prone to issues when we find ourselves dealing with intense emotions."

From her spot next to Ruby, Merida nodded.

"There was an incident back in Scotland. The boys were being bullied in school. I won't go into detail about it since that's their story to tell, but… but when the school failed to do anything about it, I…" Mrs. Dunbroch's hands were shaking. "You could say I lost control. I didn't cause permanent damage on the school staff, but it was enough to cause concern."

"It took money and a whole lot of begging to convince them not to press charges." Mr. Dunbroch put a large hand on his wife's trembling shoulders. "We agreed to leave and start over here. We contacted Baelfire and they helped get us set up. The only condition was... Elinor had to stay as an in-patient."

"We signed all this paperwork for them to run tests and do just about whatever they wanted." Mrs. Dunbroch's voice had gotten softer, and most of the group started to lean forward to hear her better. "We thought he would help. We were so desperate and humiliated that it was easy enough to be convinced that they could cure us or help us or… something."

A moment of silence followed as they digested Mrs. Dunbroch's words and as she wiped at her eyes, trying to calm herself. Her lip trembled when she spoke again. "It wasn't having this condition that hurt the most. It wasn't even being put in the facility full time. I thought that was a necessity. And the worst wasn't even when I found out that my children had inherited dormant forms of the abilities."

Mrs. Dunbroch's voice broke as she continued, "It was when I found out they were going to be kept in the facility." She sniffled and took out a handkerchief to wipe at her eyes and nose. "That… that was my lowest moment. When I knew I truly failed as a mother."

"Mum, no." Merida's pained whisper was soft with tenderness and heavy with emotion. She stood up and crossed over to sit by her mother. "You did your best."

Shaking her head, Mrs. Dunbroch put her arms around her daughter and held her close. Tears were now freely trailing their way down Mrs. Dunbroch's cheeks. "It pains me so much to find out what they put you all through. To find out how much they tried to make Merida into something else. I'm… I'm so truly, terribly sorry."

"I don't blame you." Merida whimpered, hugging her mother tighter.

The sight of such a raw, emotional moment made Ruby squirm and she found herself looking away, not sure if this was a moment that should be private or not. Ruby looked over the cooler at Belle, who was carrying an expression that looked pained and sympathetic.

Seeming to notice Ruby's eyes on her, Belle turned her head and offered a stiff smile. Ruby tried to mirror it, but couldn't.

Belle put a hand over the cooler, a quiet offer of comfort. Without hesitating, Ruby took it, intertwining their fingers and taking comfort in the warmth of the contact between them.

The talk of the facility and the sight of the Dunbroch family in such distress was difficult. It brought along a tangled mixture of thoughts and emotions that Ruby couldn't even begin to sort through.

Somewhere in the mess, she couldn't help but think about her own mother.

The memories were vague now, but when Ruby tried to recall them, she had the vague sense of their being a sense of pride and carelessness to Mother that Granny didn't have. If memory served right, Granny was careful and controlled. Which was why it didn't make sense that Granny was taken away and blamed for the murders.

Topping off that turmoil of confusion, Ruby also couldn't help but think about why Mother left her own daughter at the facility and never came back, never even looked back. She just disappeared and Ruby had hardly a clue how to ever find her. Or if she even wanted to be found. Surely, she would have heard the news of her daughter escaping Baelfire.

And the thought of maybe running into her again scared Ruby.

"Ruby, that's a bit tight." Belle said.

Realizing she'd been tensing up, Ruby forced her hand to relax its hold on Belle's. "Sorry."

"What were you thinking about? Belle asked.

Clenching and unclenching her jaw, Ruby redirected her pent up energy into slowly rubbing circles into the back of Belle's hand. The motion of it was easy and predictable. It helped to ground Ruby back into herself, giving her enough distance from her own head to be able to answer the question. "My… my m-mother."

"Your mother?" Belle repeated.

Ruby looked away before nodded.

"You wanna talk about her, Rubes?" Emma asked.

Surprising even herself, Ruby nodded. "Okay."

The moment the response left her lips, Ruby felt all eyes turning towards her. Being under the spotlight like this reminded her too much of being put on display for Gold's investors and board members. Even if they were gathered around a fireplace, dressed in comfortable, casual clothes (some even bundled up in several layers, like Regina and Belle).

Even then, the men and women in suits still hovered at the corners of Ruby's vision.

Warmth enveloped her hand as Belle clasped it in both of hers.

This was a safe place.

Nobody was going to shock her with a prod or cut her open with a silver blade. There was no more piercing sound to drive needles into her ears and bring her to her knees. Gone were the silver-lined collars and cuffs capable of electrocuting her. No more needles to sedate her when she got too riled up.

No more Gold.

"Okay." Ruby repeated, taking a deep breath. She held it in for a moment, then released it slowly. "My… my mother. I think… I th-think…" The disconnect between the words in her head and the stutters that tripped out of her mouth were frustrating, but Ruby did her best to keep going. This was something she felt she needed to say out loud. "…I think sh-she… she was the serial killer."

There was no way to confirm it, but the more Ruby thought about it, the more it sounded like a possibility.

It couldn't be Granny. Otherwise why did the house still sometimes smell like blood even after Granny was arrested? Growing up, there had always been a distinct scent, usually coming from the basement or clouding the kitchen. It wasn't any smell she could name or recognize at the time. That and she had been so used to it that it had just faded into the background to be a part of the house.

But now, after having bathed in blood herself, after resorting to making herself bleed to cope, after being made to bleed by Gold… Ruby knew.

"Do you want me to help you?" Emma offered. "I could link everyone to you or I could link with you and translate your thoughts for you."

It was a tempting offer, but Ruby was too unnerved by all the times they'd linked minds in the past. And glancing at Belle, Ruby realized this was also something she had to try and do on her own. A small step towards recovery.

"No." Ruby shook her head. "I… I'll d-do this."

Emma nodded. "You've got this, Rubes."

Rubbing at the itchy hair growing out at the back of her head, Ruby gathered her thoughts and tried to explain. "Before… when I was… young." She was how old at the time? Seven? Eight? What she did remember was her mother telling her to stay in the room and hide under the bed. That was when she could scent men coming into the house. And they spoke to Granny. "They t-took… Granny… away."

"Your grandmother was 115 in Baelfire's files, right?" Belle asked, squeezing Ruby's hand.

Ruby nodded. "Gold had… her. I think… he made… deal…" She narrowed her eyes and tried to recall what little was said that night. Granny had spoken to the men who were taking her away. "I think… he was supposed to… leave us alone. If… if she went."

"He probably went back on that deal after he…" Emma stopped herself. She fiddled with her hands. "Well, y'know."

"I think he went too far with his tests on her." Belle spoke softly, her eyes focused on Ruby. "I'm sorry, Ruby."

Shrugging, Ruby just focused on continuing to speak. "Even after… after she was gone. The house…" As she continued to talk about it, Ruby could recall more distinctly now how the house felt and smelled. It was always at its worst during the Headache Weeks. "…the house still smelled… like blood."

As the memories started to come creeping back, Ruby shuddered. "Especially during… Headache Week." She corrected herself. "Week of… the full moon."

"Wait, do you mean to say that your mother was a raging werewolf and she's still out there?" Neal's wide eyes reflected the firelight as he leaned forward. "Ruby, do you know where she is?"

Ruby shrugged. "C-canada… maybe? She… always wanted to… move there." It was a topic that was discussed several times in the house. Often enough for Ruby to have wanted to run away so she could stay with Peter and Dorothy. Maybe Mother managed to go there and was loose there now, hunting as she pleased, free of a daughter who wouldn't even follow her rules. "Maybe Gold… helped her."

"That's… interesting." Neal was rubbing at his chin and furrowing his brow.

"Why?" Ruby asked.

"Some people, the anti-psychic ones," Neal said, "they've been using Cora and her sketchiness as an argument against whether or not Regina should get to walk free. Then there's the group of people running wild with the idea of werewolf packs being on the loose and how dangerous the next full moon is going to be."

The next full moon was indeed going to be a problem if they didn't find a way to restrain Ruby, and probably Merida as well. Hurting anyone in this circle of friendship and family was a painful thought that Ruby would rather not turn into a reality.

"How did you deal with the full moon before?" Emma asked. "Like before Gold and Baelfire and everything."

Memories of playing doctor in the basement crept their way into Ruby's consciousness. The images were hazy and confusing at first. There was the medicine that burned her throat and chest, making her choke and cough until she was on her knees, throwing up. There were chains, too. Bolted to the floors and walls of the basement. There were more as she got older.

Light, gentle circles being stroked into the back of her hand brought Ruby back to the present. Not completely, as the images still swam through her mind. But enough for her to be able to get herself to answer Emma's question.

"Playing doctor… in the basement."

"Playing doctor?" This time it was Belle's turn to show her confusion. "What do you mean by that?"

Looking across the fire, Ruby caught Merida's eye. She had calmed down from her moment with her mother and was now staring with a tense set to her features. "I remember you mentioning that before. Dorothy and Peter assumed it had something to do with herbal remedies your mum made you for your headaches."

That was what she lead friends to believe. Ruby nodded.

"What really happened in there?" Merida asked.

"Every full moon…" That was what it really was. Ruby had gone on for too long calling it just headache week when she now knew what it really was. "…we… went to the… th-the b-basement."

She could see it now. Aside from a lumpy, torn-up mattress on the side and chains scattered across the floor, it was empty. Whenever she went down to the basement, the headaches were at their peak and she rarely took in any of what was happening. It was just a haze of pain and doing whatever she was told.

"Mother… told me to drink… something." Ruby frowned, recalling how a similar test had been run at the facility, when they wanted to observe the effects of a particular substance. "It was w-wolfsbane."

"You drank wolfsbane?" This time it was Belle's turn to tighten her grip on Ruby's hands. "Why?"

Ruby shrugged. "Maybe… m-maybe to make me… easier to control."

"So she made you chug wolfsbane then left you in the basement?" Emma had put her beer down and was now leaning forward, forearms on her knees. "Or was she in there with you?"

Did she stay in the basement?

Ruby squinted at the ground, watching the dancing shadows until the basement came back to the forefront of her mind. "No. She… wouldn't stay." She rarely stayed. There were hardly any memories that Ruby could call forth that didn't involve Mother turning around and closing the door behind her.

"I remember… stripping…" Sometimes it was before the wolfsbane, sometimes it was after. Ruby could vaguely remember Mother saying the clothes were too soaked with sweat and that she would come back with fresh clothes. But she never came back until morning came.

Feeling conscious of all the attention on her, Ruby took a sip of water. She gathered her thoughts and searched for the words that were within her reach so she could best tell this story."…and… I remember being chained."

The chains weren't as specialized as the ones in Baelfire. They were crude and heavy, but they did the job of keeping her restrained since Ruby couldn't recall waking up anywhere other than back in the basement. The only time she ever woke up in a different place on the full moon was the night with Peter.

"M-mother would… come back… in the morning." Ruby managed to get herself to continue instead of dwelling on Peter's fate. "Unchain me… t-tell me to… to clean up."

"And this was going on your whole life?" Regina asked.

Ruby tried to remember how young she was when the doctor games started, but it was hard to pinpoint how long ago that was when her sense of time and aging was so distorted by her endless days in the facility.

"Not always. I was… five? Six? When doctor… started." Before the doctor games started, she just stayed in her room, locked her door and hid under her bed once a month.

"Granny… used to be… part of it." Ruby said, recalling what playing doctor was like in the early days. "She made it… almost fun. And… w-would… would c-comfort me… when the headaches came." Granny had been warmer about the procedure, holding Ruby close when the bouts of headaches would come and go. She would tell jokes and stories as she setup the chains. Then she would chain herself as well. "Granny stayed. Always."

It was so quiet in the circle that the chirp of crickets was deafening and the wind sounded like it was pressing fists into her eardrums.

"And neither of them ever told you?" Aurora said, "About being a werewolf?"

Ruby shook her head. "Never." And she had no answer as to why.

"Didn't your Granny try to stop your mom?" Mulan, who had been quiet for the most part, voiced a question. "Because it sounds like she was more in control than your mother was."

Thinking back, Ruby thought she could recall arguments breaking out between the two. But they tended to tell Ruby to leave the room when their fights escalated. "Not… sure. I think… maybe?"

"She did take one for the team." Emma pointed out. "Sounds like she turned herself in to Gold so that Mama Lucas and Ruby would be left alone. That didn't last though, did it? Since Gold's a guy who loves to take advantage of the fine print."

Ruby focused on Belle's hands, at a loss for how to respond. She didn't know what else to say anymore, but she did feel a strange sense of lightness after admitting the things she admitted and coming to terms with what the doctor games really were.

She was shivering pretty badly though, and her teeth were chattering. Belle noticed and moved around the cooler to be able to sit next to Ruby and wrap arms around her. Leaning into the contact, Ruby let herself be grounded in the present.

That past was behind her.

"It's kind of a cause for concern that a rogue werewolf is out there somewhere." Neal said, "Although I don't doubt that there are others yet that aren't related to Ruby. Still, I'll keep an eye out for any reports about Mrs. Lucas. What was her first name?"

"Anita." Ruby answered, unable to help the cringe that went through her at Mother being referred to as Mrs. Lucas. If Ruby should be stripped of the Lucas name because of misdeeds, shouldn't Mother as well? If any of them deserved to keep their name, it was Granny. She tried so hard to keep the family together and protect them.

And now she was gone.

"Alright then." Neal clasped his hands together. "But that's a worry for another time."

"I volunteer Regina to go next."

"Miss Swan!" Regina bristled.

"Well we're talking about shitty moms now, so you'd be staying on topic." Emma's put her arms around Regina. "C'mon. Might help to get a good rant out."

Regina rolled her eyes but muttered. "Maybe."

Tremors were still going through Ruby's body, the excess energy working itself out of her system. But otherwise, she felt good. She said her piece and it was a weight off her chest. Now, she was ready to listen to the next speaker while holding Belle's hand.

"From the times that we've linked minds, some of you were given glimpses of my mother." Regina started. Shadows were etched deeply into her tense face as she continued. "She wasn't particularly a model parent, and after I accidentally killed my father, she was my only parent."

Mr. Dunbroch's thick brows rose up to almost touch his hairline. "What happened with your father?"

That was the incident Ruby recalled seeing when they shared visions at the facility. It had been a tense, frightening night, with a younger, less controlled Regina full of terror and pain at the sight of her arguing parents.

A pained smile pulled at Regina's scarred lips. "It was an accident. I was a child. My parents were arguing. My mother was drunk and escalating the situation. I just…" She sniffled and looked upwards at the starry night sky. "I wanted them to stop fighting. I didn't realize my power and I didn't realize what I was doing. I had blown forth power and energy that Mother easily blocked while Father…"

Releasing a shaky breath, Regina returned her gaze to the firelight. A twig on the ground next to her floated upwards on its own before tossing itself into the fire.

"He didn't survive the blast." Regina glared at the burning twig which such an intensity that Ruby huddled closer to Belle. "Mother though… she looked at me for the first time with something akin to pride."

It crossed Ruby's mind to wonder what her own mother may have expected from her daughter. Would she be like Regina's mother and hope for a violent monster-in-training, only to be disappointed by the lack of backbone Ruby showed when she awoke to Peter's remains? Or was she hoping to bring Ruby to some sort of pack and have her trained there?

The memories were distant and scattered, but Ruby thought she recalled a conversation with Mother where she was criticizing Peter and saying that in Canada there were friends available and a boy named Quinn.

"From there, all Mother wanted to do was control me and control my abilities." Regina started speaking again, her expression still hard and tense. The shadows cast on her face made her eyes look darker while her tensed jaw seemed to be carved from stone. "And of course when she didn't get her way, she had the options of supernatural, physical or verbal abuse to inflict upon me as punishment."

Regina observed the ground until she spotted another twig. It rose upwards but didn't go straight into the fire this time. "When she found out I wanted to be a doctor, she was livid." The twig snapped into two before falling back down to the ground. "I went to school in a cast the next day. Had to tell some stupid story about falling down the stairs."

"That was before I learned how to heal myself." Regina pointed at her lips. "This, too. This was the first Christmas without father. I couldn't stop crying and Mother… wanted to drink her alcohol in peace. That naturally involved throwing her third bottle at me. Empty, of course. Otherwise that would be a waste of her drink."

A loud sniffle came from Emma, who was looking at Regina with shiny eyes.

"I really want to be a doctor." Regina said. "And with my abilities, I could be efficient and accomplish so much more. Mother disagreed. She thought power was our ultimate destiny. Not that she would have had me go into law or politics anyway since she was hell-bent on keeping me close so she could continue to live off of the stipend that Gold was giving her in exchange for experimenting on me."

"You'd make a great doctor though." Emma said.

Regina pointedly looked at Mulan. "That remains to be seen."

When attention started to move on to her, Mulan shifted uncomfortably and held her injured hand closer to herself.

"Did I mention she burned my books and acceptance letters?" Regina drew all eyes away from Mulan and back to herself. Taking some more twigs and leaves with her hands, Regina lifted them up. "I tried applying to some schools and my excellent grades meant I had several offers for scholarships."

The twigs and leaves in Regina's hands started to smoke, then flickers of light sparked along the edges of the leaves. "I used my own money to buy medical textbooks. Mother found them and…" Fire erupted from Regina's hand, burning the leaves and twigs in a flash of light before leaving only ashes. "…got rid of them."

Letting the ashes fall from her hand, Regina said, "I hope she and Gold face consequences for their actions, though I fear they may still have the resources to avoid more than a slap on the wrist."

"I'm going to do whatever the fuck I can to make sure that doesn't happen." Neal's voice was gravelly and unsteady, wavering in the middle before hardening with resolve. "They're not going to get away with the shit they put us through."

Regina nodded. "Thank you."

Emma raised her hand.

Rolling her eyes, Regina turned to look at her. "Yes?"

"Was Gold's relationship with Cora like… strictly business or was there a little something-something going on there?"

"I have reason to believe they may have had an affair in the past." Regina said, before looking over at Belle. "But I don't think it was longterm. Gold preferred younger women he deemed soft and pliable. There was an assistant, actually. Elena Avalor. They had something of a relationship. It wasn't explicit, of course. But I am familiar with some of his tells. And Emma could read his… thoughts about her. She eventually couldn't maintain their arrangement and quit abruptly."

"She was nice." Emma added.

"She stayed for about five years, I believe. Left about a year before the internship program with Aurora and Belle came to be." Regina said, "And we have reason to believe Gold was hoping for a similar arrangement with you, Belle. He's impulsive and erratic, but he has habits and routines that he falls back on. Emma and I noticed he was showing signs of repeating those habits to recreate with you what he had with Elena."

Belle's eyes were wide circles as she opened and closed her mouth, stammering and stuttering over a reply.

"We were pretty concerned since your thoughts made it seem like you kinda had a thing for him, too." Emma said. "But we took a chance anyway. You seemed like you might actually care just a little bit more than the others. And Regina was right about that. Or we wouldn't be here now, would we?"

"I…" Belle tightened her grip on Ruby. "Yes. You two took a risk, reaching out to me. And okay, fine. I guess I felt some semblance of something for Gold. But that was gone fast as soon as I realized what he was truly capable of."

"Which is a good thing, dear." Regina said, "It would not have done anyone any good were you to be the type of person to forgive and brush off every act of cruelty and inhumanity he were to commit."

"Okay." Emma said, also wrapping her arms more tightly around Regina and giving her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for sharing your stuff, Queenie. I'm going to cover you from head to toe in kisses tonight to make up for all the love you never got."

Though Regina was rolling her eyes and pretending to push Emma away, there was a distinct smile pulling at her lips before she eventually curled into Emma. "That would be nice. I just need a moment because reliving all of those moments has got me shaking like a leaf."

"You mean like the ones you kept burning for dramatic effect?"

"Shut your mouth, Miss Swan, or I won't wake you for breakfast tomorrow."

Emma huffed. "Fine."

Though there was a lighter energy now to the circle as Emma and Regina traded playful jabs, the air was still clouded with the mixture of emotions brought about by such loaded confessions. Ruby was starting to feel drained by the wild ride she was on, hearing all these stories from everyone. And they weren't even done yet. Just about half the circle had yet to speak.

"While we're still on the subject of shit parents and Gold being creepy as f-" Emma stopped herself upon making eye contact with Mrs. Dunbroch. With a sheepish smile, Emma continued and pointed at Neal. "Mr. Baelfire? Care to share?"

"Call me that again and I'm going to hook the speakers up in your room to play Chipmunks songs on loop."

"Fine, Mr. Neal Cassidy." Emma rolled her eyes at the name. "Are you willing to talk about your thing tonight?"

Neal didn't answer right away, swishing the drink in his bottle.

"We won't force you to talk about it if you'd rather not." Mrs. Dunbroch said.

"No…" Neal took a swig of his beer. "I think… I think I need to talk about this. If not for myself, then to give you guys more of a background on that asshole."

He looked around at them, moving his now empty bottle from one hand to the other. "So Gold's my dad."

"Just for that, I think you deserve another bottle, son." Mr. Dunbroch walked over to the cooler, got two bottles and handed one to Neal. "Cheers." They clinked their bottles together before Neal took a deep, long drink while Mr. Dunbroch resumed his spot with his family.

"Did we ever meet?" Regina asked, "Because I've been going in and out of there most of my life. There was a brief time that Father convinced Mother to stop sending me there. But otherwise, Baelfire was almost a second home to me." Then, in a lower, harder tone, she added, "As much of a home as either of those were for me as I was growing up."

After taking another swig, Neal took a moment, as if to gather his thoughts, rubbing his chin and frowning, his eyes unfocused and distant.

"I'm not sure if we met other than just… in passing." Neal looked at Regina. "But I knew of you. Gold talked a hell of a lot about the tests he was running on you and how powerful your abilities were. To be honest, I was even jealous sometimes of how much he talked about you. Especially when Ma left and it was just Gold and me. He ended up having me brought straight to the facility after school. I'd have to do my homework and shi… stuff... there. Sometimes I'd end up napping or whatever until he felt ready to go home."

"Was he already a sketchy, sadistic creep at the time?" Emma asked.

Regina frowned. "I can't quite recall if he was always that way or if something changed him."

A low chuckle rumbled through Neal before he answered, "Oh, he was always pretty obsessed with his work, but he was… well… more… patient? Merciful?" Neal shook his head. "I can't figure out the right word for it, but he wasn't too bad in the beginning. He was the workaholic dad but he wasn't the asshole dad until Mama walked out on us. I think she fell out of love with him since he preferred his work over our company."

"But yeah, around that time, he got more impatient, more irritable. And the few times I'd actually watch him work, he got really intense with some of the subjects. When I was ten he started pressuring me to actually do work while I was in the facility. I was…" Neal looked at Ruby, his expression guilty and pained. "I interacted with 115 -er… your Granny- a few times. She talked about her granddaughter sometimes… about you."

Ruby felt her hands go cold at the thought of Granny, sad and alone in the facility. In chains and a thin gown, treated like a subject that was less than human. Denied the respect and dignity she deserved.

Swallowing, Ruby got herself to speak. "What… she… s-say?"

"I… I don't remember a lot. I was ten when Gold brought her in. And thirteen when I ran away. So it's a while back, but…" Neal rubbed the back of his neck. "But I think she mentioned hoping you find a way to be at peace. She talked about hoping you never end up in the facility and that Gold would keep his word. She really didn't want you to follow in her footsteps, or even your mom's footsteps."

It hurt to imagine Granny in the cell like Ruby. Shocked, beaten, burned, drowned and cut into like Ruby. Talked down to like Ruby. Manhandled by guards like Ruby. Injected with foreign substances like Ruby. Isolated like Ruby. Stripped naked and hosed down in the showers like Ruby.

"Did… did they treat her…" Ruby's chin quivered but she kept herself speaking. "…like… me…?"

"I mean they got you like a good four years after I left, I-"

"Neal." Emma interrupted. "You've seen a bunch of their records and a whole lot of their security footage. I'm pretty sure you can answer that question."

Neal rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Well… Yes and no…?"

What did that even mean? Ruby straightened up from where she was leaning on Belle and fixed a hard stare at Neal, urging him to elaborate.

"Well… I know she was less isolated. She had a friend in an adjoining cell. A bear dude named Kenai. And I know they didn't keep her room lights eternally on like they did with Ruby." Neal fidgeted under Ruby's stare. "But in other ways, I think they were less careful with her. I mean, they were pretty excessive with you, Ruby. But they pushed her just as hard if not harder. I remember when-" The sentence came to an abrupt stop.

"What?" Ruby felt her eyes warming up and had to close them and focus on her breathing for a moment.

In…

And out.

In…

And out.

With a sigh, she opened her eyes and tried again. "What… do you… remember?"

There was something unnerving about the hesitation in Neal as he continued to fidget with the bottle in his hands and scratch at his hair.

"Neal." Ruby needed to know. Especially if he was being this evasive about it.

"They…" Neal avoided looking at Ruby. "They cut off a finger to see if it would regenerate. And if it would also be missing in her wolf form."

Ruby squeezed Belle's hand.

Granny had to go through that kind of torture. Other women her age would be safely enjoying their time rocking on their chairs, knitting or napping. Instead, Granny had to deal with endless agony and misery.

It was getting difficult to breathe. The fire was too hot and Belle's arms were too tight and constricting. Ruby pulled away from Belle and stood up.

There was anger. Hot and burning as it scorched through her limbs and grew behind her eyes. Digging her claws into her palms, Ruby paced back and forth, fighting the urge to turn into a wolf and go running straight back to the facility just so she could tear out Gold's throat.

The very thought of committing such a violent act frightened Ruby, but the shame and fear wasn't strong enough to overpower the anger.

"Ruby-"

Holding up a bloody hand, Ruby stopped Belle in her tracks. "I need… I need to… run." Without another word, Ruby turned and charged off, heading for the trees, giving in to the wolf and its call to run and leap and howl away the pain and sorrow.

Belle moved to run after Ruby but was stopped by a hand on the shoulder.

"I'll go after her." Merida said, and with a smile added, "Besides, if she's in a dangerous mood, I'm less likely to die if I confront her."

Reluctant to let someone else go and check on Ruby when she was in such a distraught state, Belle forced herself to see the sense in Merida's words, even if they were half-joking. Even if Belle had managed to help calm Ruby through several close calls, this one looked different. There was a greater intensity to it than before and Belle had a feeling it would be harder to talk Ruby down from this without being put at risk.

The reckless part of Belle was willing to take that risk, ready to face Ruby, come what may.

"Look, even if you did have the right stuff to calm her down, you're not going to be able to catch up to her or track her down." Merida put her hands on Belle's shoulders. "Let me do this. Please."

With a sigh, Belle fought off the urge to go running into the woods and just nodded instead.

Returning the nod, Merida took off after Ruby, running faster than any human would have been able to.

"I'm sorry…" Neal whispered, wiping at his eyes. "I'm sorry, maybe I shouldn't have-"

"Hey, no, it's okay." Belle walked over to Neal and put a hand on his shoulder. "Gold is the real enemy here." As she said this, a cringe ran through her at the thought of how there had ever been some semblance of an attraction for him.

"Would anyone mind if Mulan and I turned in ahead?" Aurora asked. "I think Ruby just needs to run things off." She fidgeted and looked at Belle. "I mean if there's any emergency and she needs us, we'll be up and about to help, of course. It's just… Mulan's hand…"

"Aurora…" Mulan's protest was soft, lacking in conviction as she cradled her hand. "I'm fine."

"She needs rest." Aurora said. "So we'll go ahead, if that's okay."

"Yeah, go ahead." Belle said, echoed by several murmurs of agreement from the group.

Neal stood up as well. "I think I need to sleep this off." He looked at Belle. "I'm sorry again."

Belle shook her head and clapped him on the back. "Just get some rest, Neal. Don't worry about it." Gradually, the rest of the group also started to stand up and head back into the cabin. Mr. Dunbroch put out the fire while Mrs. Dunbroch and the boys picked up the empty bottles. Belle overturned the cooler to drain the excess water.

Once they finished packing up, most of them retreated to their rooms, with Killian promising that they continue tomorrow since not everyone got the chance to speak. Belle had yet to take the floor, as well as Mulan and Aurora. Emma and Merida also hadn't had the chance to speak on their own, only so far giving their input occasionally.

It was almost juvenile, meeting in a circle to tell their stories and share their confessions. Belle remembered doing similar things when she was in high school and even college, but those usually involved talking about one's crushes and weird fantasies.

This felt similar, but different in the rawness of it. And hopefully talking about their experiences would help them all heal.

Belle hoped they would do this regularly. Hopefully they would be free to live their lives sooner than later. Hopefully at all.

But right now, most of all, Belle hoped Ruby would come back soon.

Note 2: THIS CHAPTER WAS A RIDE. Whose story hit you most? Who are you looking forward to hearing from in the next chapter? I know some people were pumped for more Mulan. Don't worry, if this fic decides to obey my outlines, there's going to be quite a bit of Mulan in the next chapter. BECAUSE GOSH I MISS HER HAVING MORE SPOTLIGHT, GURL STOP HIDING IN THE BACKGROUND UGH.