Chapter 36

2x14 Manhattan

Sorry for this short chapter the next one will be a lot longer :)

I didn't know if it would work but I had to try. I knocked on the door and without waiting for a reply I pushed it open and walked inside.

"Lucy what- what are you doing here?" Belle asked.

I took in her appearance; very disheveled still, her once beautifully curled ringlets hung limp around her face. She was doing nothing, literally, staring at a wall when I walked in. I smiled warmly, "I thought you could use some company." I gave her my saddest look, "Do you want me to leave?"

I think she debated it for a second but then she put on a very fake smile, "No it- it's alright."

"Great! I brought something for you. Well for us. I- I thought it might help." I said as I walked over to the VCR.

She narrowed her eyes at me, "What is it?"

I opened my bag and pulled out the VHS. I chuckled to myself at how old this was, nobody even used Cassette Tapes anymore. But in the enchanted forest they hadn't even discovered electricity, life was so beautifully complicated right now.

I put in the tape and grabbed the remote. I sat carefully at the edge of Belle's bed and rewound the movie all the way to the beginning.

I turned back, "This was my favorite movie when I was a kid, I used to watch it on replay, it used to bother my mom so much. It's pretty ironic actually that this was my favorite movie with the way things turned out."

"With the way what turned out?" Belle inquired.

I smiled intent on not telling, "Just watch the movie. Maybe it'll make sense."

"What movie is it?" Belle asked still confused.

"Beauty and the Beast." I said quietly.

Belle nodded once as the tape paused itself after it rewound, "you… came here, to watch a cartoon…with me?"

"Just watch it. Do you really have anything else to do?" I said sarcastically, slightly annoyed.

She chuckled, surprisingly, "I guess not."

I smiled, "Good" I scooted backwards on the bed towards Belle, "Now slide over, I'm not going to be sitting in that Chair the whole time." Belle slid over and I leaned back against the bed, our arms brushed briefly and I hit play, hoping that by some miracle she might remember that this was her story.

As the movie progressed I could sense Belle's annoyance at me pausing every scene to analyze it for her and point something else out that probably seemed miniscule to her but meant everything to me. As Belle traded her place for her father's I excitedly turned to my Belle. "See Belle! You see how good the Belle in the movie is? How kind, how noble and brave, she gives herself to the beast to save her village from the war!"

Belle looked at me like I as crazy, "What are you talking about? Didn't she just trade for her father's place so he could leave?"

Oh fuck. I was mixing up the movie with what actually happened in real life. I scrunched down, "Yeah, I mean of course. It's there's just a book I read that said Belle traded places to save her village."

Belle looked thoughtful for a moment, "Belle…. Is that why you showed this to me? Because you think I have the same name as the main character." Belle asked.

Sure…. let's go with that. "Exactly, I thought if you heard the name it might help you remember." I said innocently.

Belle smiled and grabbed my hand, "Thank you that was…very sweet." I almost broke down sobbing right there and asked her to remember me. But I didn't. And she didn't remember me. Belle pulled her hand away to soon, "Lucy? You and your father were, very concerned when I was injured. Why?" Belle narrowed her eyes, "How did we know each other?"

I breathed in deeply, " You and my father were…close. Very close. We all were."

Belle tilted her head, "How close, were… your father and I?"

"You were dating." I nodded as Belle looked shock. My father wasn't that bad looking. And he was a good man, deep down, even if he didn't know it.

"And you and I we were close too?" Bell asked.

I felt my heart splinter away. "Yeah, pretty close." I thought about telling her how close we were. Biologically close. Since she was my mother. But Belle wasn't that much older than me. And especially because of the weird frozen in time age conundrum she probably would have had to be a young pregnant teenager for our ages to fit accurately now. Probably best to avoid broaching that subject if I wanted to have any semblance of a relationship with her now.

Belle smiled, "Well I'm glad, you're the opposite of me, and I like that."

I smiled and leaned back again pressing play. Daringly I gently rested my head onto Belle's shoulder. She froze for a few seconds and then carefully rested her head on top of mine. I smiled as the movie continued on.

I don't remember falling asleep. But I woke up to Belle vigorously shaking my arm and the uncomfortable sound of static waves filling the air, "Lucy! The movie's over."

I jumped up and went to pause the VHS to stop the static sound on the tape. I shook my head, "Sorry I- I didn't mean to fall asleep."

Belle smiled, "It's alright."

"Did you like it?" I asked eagerly sitting on the edge of the bed facing her.

She nodded, "Yes, I- I loved the characters, I loved how Belle learned to love the Beast and her love- it strengthened him, and he was able to become a man again. It's quite an amazing story."

"Do you believe in love Belle?" I asked actually curious.

Belle nodded, "Absolutely, I- I hope to have it someday."

She did have it! With my father she still could if it wasn't for that fucking moron Captain Hook. I could- I could kill him. I wanted to kill him. I don't know why but in that instance Derek popped into my mind. "How do you know, when you're in love?" I asked timidly.

Belle sat up a little bit straighter, "You know, to me, love is… Love is layered. Love is a… A mystery to be uncovered. When you love somebody you know one hundred percent that you want to be with them. There are no doubts. And once you find something worth fighting for you never give up, and love is worth fighting for."

"What kind of love is worth fighting for?" I asked.

Belle cocked her head, "I- I don't understand the question."

I shook my head, "True love is worth fighting for but what about the love between siblings, or friends or…a mother and daughter."

Belle smiled and brushed back a loose strand of hair from my face and tucked it behind my ear, "I think any kind of love is worth fighting for. If you're lucky enough to have somebody that loves you, don't ever give up on them."

In that instance my phone rang, interrupting our very sweet mother daughter moment. Well it was a mother daughter moment to me. Belle was probably like 'I'll say anything to get this crazy girl to leave me alone.'

I smiled apologetically and held up one finger as I pulled out my phone. It was Snow, "Hello?" -Lucy where are you?- "I'm at the hospital….Why?" –You need to come home now. We should talk- "Okay I'll be there in like 10 minutes."

I turned back to Belle, "I'm sorry I have to go. But I had a really nice time today."

Belle smiled, "Me too. Will- will you come visit me again?"

I smiled delighted, "Of course. You- you must get lonely here."

Belle nodded, "Okay well bye Lucy thank you for coming."

"Of course." I turned and started heading towards the door.

Belle jumped up, "Wait Lucy you forgot your tape!"

I smiled, "It's okay. You can keep it, I don't mind." I turned back and walked out the door hoping Belle would watch it and it might jog her memory.

I was sitting in Snow's apartment with David. In complete shock after what Snow had just told us. David didn't seem to be doing any better.

"So Rumpelstiltskin is Henry's grandfather?" David clarified.

"Apparently." Snow said nervously.

"But I'm his grandfather." David asked still processing.

Snow nodded, "You can have more than one."

"So my brother whom I have known since birth. Is also my nephew." Snow nodded again. "And I thought this family tree couldn't be any more messed up."

"And his…step-grandmother is Regina, the Evil Queen." I said

"Actually, his step-great-grandmother. And she's also his adoptive mother. Your adopted mother" Snow replied.

"It's a good thing we don't have Thanksgiving in our land cause that dinner would suck." David said.

"Or, maybe this will mellow everyone out." Snow said. Doubtful.

After our conversation ended and much convincing, and my reluctant admittance that I didn't have any plans the rest of the day, David convinced me to go ask mother superior if she could check my protection spell.

As I pulled open the door to the ex-sisters convent I heard someone angrily, yelling with a hushed tone at mother superior.

"I just don't understand why you can't look into it." I recognized that voice. It was Jim. He was wearing a long sleeve beige Henley shirt today that accentuated his muscular arms.

"Look I'm sorry there's no possible way I can do that. That's not how magic works. You could ask" Mother superior lowered her voice, "The dark one. But dark magic is risky."

"It's fine." Jim said bitterly, "I'll figure it out myself since you won't help me." He spat. Jim turned around and paused when he saw me standing there. I gave a small smile as he angrily stalked past me our hands briefly brushing just before I heard the door slam. What was all the fighting about? What was Jim trying to do and why couldn't mother superior help him?

Mother Superior smiled at me, "Lucy what can I do for you?"

"David and Snow had me cast a protection spell to protect the beans, they were wondering if you could check it though, to make sure it was okay."

"Of course, let me just get my coat." Mother Superior pulled on her blue woolen shawl and we started the walk to where I had cast the protection spell.

As we neared I abruptly stopped, "This is it mother Superior."

She stopped as well and waved her hand over it, "It's strong, incredibly strong. I don't think that I could take it down. And you concealed it so well it goes completely undetected."

I grimaced and Mother Superior turned to me. "Lucy? What is it that frightens you? I can sense your feelings are misplaced."

I looked down at my hands, "It's just my father, the dark one, his magic is just that, purely dark. Emma- Emma has light magic. What if-" I dropped my voice down to a whisper, "What if I'm evil, because of my magic, what if I turn into evil."

"Have you used your magic for evil purposes." She asked. I shook my head no. "Have you wanted to use it for evil purposes?"

I shook my head no and the paused remembering what I had just said this morning, "I wasn't thinking about my magic but I- I said I wanted to kill Hook… after what he did to Belle. Does- does that make me evil?" I asked sincerely.

Mother Superior smiled and placed a hand on my shoulder, "Lucy, I think that was a normal thought in the face of what happened. As long as you weren't planning to act on it." I shook my head.

"As for your magic, Lucy you were born with magic, and magic in its purest form is good. It's light magic, magic, is corrupted by people, like Regina and the Dark One. You're magic hasn't fully developed yet, you can choose to embrace the dark side or choose the side of good. It's entirely up to you. But you must know once you choose the side of darkness it's extremely hard to change."

"Like my mom, and Rumplestiltskin?" Mother superior nodded.

"They can change, if they truly wish, they can become good, but it takes work, and practice, and they have to want it, more than anything." She said as she removed her hand.

"But- what if there's evil in my heart, what if it's blackened." I asked, confiding my deepest fear in Mother Superior.

She smiled, "I think the very fact that you are worried about that means that your heart is good and your magic is light." She pointed to the invisible protection field, "This spell was cast with light magic Lucy. And you cast it. That means that when you do magic, you automatically choose to do light magic. Not dark magic. You don't think about your anger, and rage when you do magic. You think about who you want to help and protect. I think your heart is pure. Which is remarkable in the face of your, parents." Mother Superior finished.

Just then David came out of the spell, "Hey what's going on? Is the protection spell okay?" He asked concerned.

Mother Superior beamed as she turned to David, "I couldn't have done it better myself. Lucy's magic is…remarkable."