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Summary of the Previous Chapter: Regina, Emma, Killian and Mary Margaret head an important meeting at Regina's office for Elsa and Belle, where they discuss what's been happening and what they need to do next.
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Chapter Seventeen: Lost Item Found
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Turning the engine off, but leaving the keys in the ignition, Emma then her passengers quickly spilled out of the yellow car and rushed over to the ice wall.
Returning to the same area that Elsa had emerged from all those nights ago, Emma scanned that frozen expanse in front of her as she quickly pulled on her jacket. Though it was her suggestion to search this area again and it beat waiting around, she had her doubts. The wall was too thick and too wide for her crew to properly search everything. Not to mention that the last time Elsa was here, she needed her sister, or the memory of her, to activate her powers, but it was all worth a try.
Let's just hope that I don't get stuck in it again, she thought cheekily.
"Spread out and search for any nooks or separations of ice," Emma directed, running her gaze over the chunks directly in front of her. "Hopefully we'll find the necklace in one of them."
The other three agreed and quickly set out to find crevices; Belle and Elsa headed to the right while Killian hesitated to leave Emma, who was too concerned with the ice wall to see him waver behind her.
"I'll be fine," she then said, sensing his lingering presence with a slow smile. "You don't have to worry about me. I'll scream if somebody tries to kidnap me."
"Please don't jest about that," he replied seriously, blood rushing from his veins at the thought. Not taking his chances, he then moved to stand beside her, trying to concentrate on the ice wall but failing. Giving her a sideways look, he gave her a playful nudge, which made her spare a glance at him."I like these feelings of yours. They're rather handy in these sort of situations."
Hiding the blush on her face, Emma immediately shifted her gaze in the opposite direction. "Are you referring to the one that helped me find you?"
"Aye, Swan," he admitted, his heart fluttering. "You never did tell me how that came about...even when we were strolling over to the hospital hours ago."
"That's because I don't know why it happened," she answered honestly. Taking a couple of side steps away from him, she tried to focus on her objective and not on the warmth she could feel radiating off of him. "Or, why it keeps happening."
"Your magic could be advancing?" He suggested, following her movements as his eyes scaled the wall, his head tilting backwards. A flirtatious smile then tugged at his face, revealing a small dimple in his cheek. "But I'd prefer the concept that we're connected than you just sensing anybody in danger."
Emma's heart skipped. "You would, would you?"
"Aye, Swan."
"And what connection are we talking about?" she boldly asked, stopping what she was doing to look at him, which he responded to by immediately facing her. Her hazel eyes searched his blue ones. "We didn't establish what we are now on said walk to the hospital. You just kept apologizing the entire time and kept asking about my dad, which was sweet, but..." she then paused, itching to take a step closer to him but resisting the urge. "...it became precious when you then apologized to my mom, who, I can confirm, was really appreciative of that."
He could barely breathe as his eyes caressed over her face. "What can I say? I'm a gentleman."
The grin he then gave her melted everything inside of her.
Should I give him a sign that I want him back? Emma thought as she watched him turn to tap his hook against the ice, causing small chunks of it to fall away. That I don't want us to be just friends? Emma's fingers twitched nervously when she boldly decided to challenge him. "Too much of a gentleman to give me a kiss?"
He froze, the smile gradually falling from his face. He looked at her, analyzing her features for any signs of her joking with him, but when he found nothing but honesty, his eyes grew intense.
Clearing her throat at his expression, Emma's face grew hot and she waved a dismissive hand. "Nevermind," she began, on the verge of turning away to resume searching the wall. "I was—"
Killian then moved forward, surprising her for a split second when he swiftly closed the gap between them and pulled her in close. Emma gasped when he cupped her cheek and rested his forehead against hers, their noses slightly touching when he brought his lips inches away from her own. While her hands gripped at his shoulders, he held her eyes with his. "No," he then responded, his tone hoarse with need. "Never for a kiss."
Surrendering to the powerful currents that sparked and sizzled between them, he crashed his lips against hers, making her shudder in his passionate embrace. Moaning when Killian's hand moved from her face to rest at the back of her head, Emma moved her arms up and wrapped them around his neck, hugging him to her. Tilting her head, she deepened the kiss, eliciting a groan from the back of his throat when she pushed her tongue inside and tangled with his. Moving his hand then down her spine, he savored the feel of her until air became another burning need.
After pressing one more kiss to her lips, Killian gently pulled away, his breathing ragged. I love you, he wanted to whisper. I love you with all that I am and with every fiber of my being.
He wanted to say all of that, but he didn't.
Even though he knew that she felt the same as he did, he didn't want her to feel pressured to say it back. She'll tell me when she's ready, he thought lovingly, pressing a soft peck to her cheek when he saw her leaning in for another kiss; a hazy look in her eyes.
"Satisfied, love?" he asked, a boyish laugh following the question.
Relinquishing some of her grip, Emma leaned back to look at his face. "No," she teased back with a giggle. Unwillingly breaking his hold on her by taking a step away, she tried to calm her thundering heart by combing her fingers through her hair. When she casually tossed her locks away from her, she then gestured to the ice. "We should, uh... get back to work," she coughed out with a shadow of a smile.
"The ice certainly isn't going to handle itself," he agreed, his eyes still on her.
"I'm sure another kiss could melt it entirely," Emma tempted, giggling again when he playfully rolled his eyes at her—but didn't voice a disagreement.
After forty minutes had past, with nobody finding anything, a more serious Emma then summoned them all back and looked at Elsa, who could automatically sense what was going to be asked of her. "We need you to try and bring it down," she began, lifting her hands up to stop the other woman's readied contradictions. "We can do this together. I'll help you..."
Glaring at the ice wall then back at Emma, Elsa shakily agreed with a tiny nod.
Calming her nerves, she took in a deep breath before releasing it slowly. Raising her two hands up, she held them out in front of her, her fingers stretched. Thinking about her sister, she focused on dismantling the entire thing, as well as summoning the necklace to her. A silvery blue emitted from her tips and struck the ice. It crunched and circled, creating deep dents in the thick structure, but as she continued to focus on her objective, the familiar pangs of doubt began to creep into her mind.
A static, distorted voice whispered into her ears, telling her that she ruins everything she touches and how worthless she was to her family, especially to Anna.
Arms now shaking under the strain, she bit at her bottom lip; her magic faltering.
"You got this, Elsa," Emma said beside her, recognizing the fear that was surging in her features. Arms raised too, Emma managed to call her magic into her hands and push it out at the barricade of ice, but it just scraped at the surface, causing some sawed frost to sprinkle to the ground. "Don't listen to that voice," she rasped. "You can do this. Your sister believes in you. We all do."
But Elsa's posture had already fallen. Dropping her arms, her body snapped back when she rescinded her magic, the air around her crackling with energy. Shaking her head, she closed her eyes. "I'm sorry. I can't...I can't..."
Stopping as well, Emma breathed heavily, her eyes scouring the ice wall with mixed emotions. She was about to tell them to go back to the car, when she then spotted something falling from the cracked and exposed dent Elsa had created.
Something different.
Raising a brow, Emma carefully jogged over to it, treading over the patches of snow they had just dislodged.
"Emma!" Killian called out, the feverish memory of her being trapped inside bubbling inside of him. "Emma!"
"It's ok!" she yelled back over her shoulder. Crouching down, she began digging, her fingers becoming cold the further she pried into the ice chips. She was going to shift over to a nearby pile when her pinky brushed against something metallic. Using both of her hands, she prayed for her reddened fingers when she scooped a large chunk up and flung it to one side, a shivering grunt escaping from her lips.
There, she thought, finding what had caught her eye.
"Emma?" she heard, footsteps mere feet away. "Did you find something, love?"
"Yes," she said happily. Slightly spinning, Emma then stood up, dangling a chain that had a large snowflake drooping in the center of it. "We now have the necklace."
"Thank the stars!" Elsa cried out, rushing forward to hold it.
Slipping it into the other blonde's hands, who then cradled it preciously, Emma rubbed at her raw and blistering fingers before placing a hand onto one of Elsa's shoulders. "You did it," she complimented.
"We did it," Elsa corrected, giving her a thankful smile.
"Can I see it?" Belle asked, moving closer to the two. Curious, Elsa nodded before holding it out for her to take. Gently picking it up, Belle inspected it with interest, remembering a feature she'd learned about at the Pawn Shop. Taking in the stunning pendant, she briefly looked around it before noticing a latch. Pressing on it, it opened with a small click, revealing a soft velvety pocket that was filled with a grey sand-like substance.
"What is that?" Killian asked, leaning in for a closer look.
"Wait," Emma interjected, looking at Elsa as she remembered the story she and Regina had told. "Since you told me that Anna wore this all the time, and she was under that spell...could this be some of that Shattered Glass?"
Carefully lifting it up to her face, Belle observed it more closely. "It...it does look like mirror dust." Tilting her head, she then shut the necklace, coming to a conclusion. "My guess would be that this is some of the remnants of that spell, which means that Anna definitely can be used to create the counter measure."
"Thank the stars," Elsa whispered, quickly retrieving the necklace when Belle held it out for her. "This also means that we can use that tracking or locator spell to find Anna."
"Wouldn't that only work if she's in the town?" Killian asked, not trying to damper the young woman's spirits.
Elsa nodded, meeting his eyes. "I believe she's here somewhere. I can feel it."
Nobody argued with her, though it took some restraint on Killian's part.
"Come on," Emma said, rubbing her hands together to spark some warmth. "We should head back and get that to Regina for the potion. Afterwards," she gave Elsa a knowing smile, "we can look for Anna."
Quickly leading the others back to her car, majority of them trying not to slip on the misplaced snow, Emma suddenly stopped within a few feet of it, her movement threatening to trip Belle and Elsa. "What's that?"
They all followed her gaze and instantly felt their blood run cold.
Through a clearing of trees, that showed glimpses of the town, they could see a strange dark cloud beginning to form above Storybrooke. Gliding forebodingly, it slinked into every direction, covering up what little rays of light they got from the already murky day.
"It's the Snow Queen," Elsa concluded, her mouth agape. "It has to be."
"It looks like she's getting ready to strike," Belle followed, walking a little bit past the passenger's side of the car to get a better look of the cloud. "We need to hurry."
Emma glanced down at the ribbon that was still wrapped around her wrist and frowned. Telling everybody to get in the car, she pulled out her phone from her jacket and dialed Regina's number.
"Find anything?"
"We have the necklace," Emma immediately replied, practically ripping open her door to climb into the driver's seat. "We'll meet you back at the office. We need to begin making that locator potion," she continued, waiting for everybody to climb in. Looking at the darkening cloud in her rearview mirror, she tried to steady her nerves. "We're definitely running out of time."
…
On their way into the town, Belle had asked to be dropped off at the Sheriff's Station. She wanted to confront her husband before doing anything else.
Hearing the car sped away, the small group heading over to the next location, Belle quickly entered through the front door and made her way to the enchanted cell Emma had told her about. Heels clicking on the hard floor, she turned one corner and immediately spied her forlorn looking husband.
He was sitting on his cot, staring blankly at the wall in front of him. He didn't seem to have heard her approach but that mattered very little to Belle, who walked right up to the bars and glared at him.
"You lied to me," she stated firmly. "You've been lying to me since the beginning, haven't you?"
He said and did nothing.
He didn't even look at her.
Belle's eyes hardened. "You promised me you'd change but that doesn't seem to be the case. Apparently, our wedding vows were sacred only to one person and that person sure as hell isn't sitting in a cage." Heart aching, she carried on. "I want to hear it from your mouth. Do you know what the Snow Queen is planning and did you have a hand in it?"
Nothing.
"Did you plan on stealing Emma's magic through the use of the Sorcerer's Hat?"
Nothing.
Tapping some fingers on the bars, she bit at the inside of her cheek to stop the heat rising in her eyes. "Now this one, is the most important question of them all: did you give me a fake dagger in order to make me think that you trusted me when really you just wanted to pacify me until you spectacularly revealed that it was no longer a threat to you?"
He looked down at his hands but still didn't answer her.
"Why?" she asked, losing the battle to her emotions when a tear fell from one of her eyes. "Why didn't you just trust me?" When he still didn't reply, she banged a hand against his cell. "Well, then you shouldn't have given it to me!" she screamed. "You should've just kept your secrets and left me alone!"
Heartbroken, she stormed away, reaching deep into her pockets for her cellphone. "Emma?" she said into the receiver when answered. "I just wanted you to know that I'm heading over to the office now." Trying to keep her composure as she rounded a corner, she breathed in deeply before continuing. "I'll be there in 15 minutes."
When the last echo of her footsteps fell away, Gold leaned his head back against the wall behind him, his eyes hard with his unspoken words.
…
Wiping at the corner of her eyes and slapping her cheeks to stay focused on more terrible things than the state of her marriage, Belle paused at the doors of Regina's office before opening them, her face slightly pinker than normal.
Killian was the first to see her enter. Noticing her appearance, particularly her red rimmed eyes, he approached her. "Are you okay, lass?"
She didn't look at him, not completely. Adjusting the collar of her jacket, she nodded her head. "I'm fine. It's just...cold outside..."
Killian gave her a pointed look but just nodded his head, watching as she moved around him to get to the desk. Though, on her way there, she stopped and felt her eyes widen with surprise.
Standing right beside a concentrating Regina and a watchful Mary Margaret, was a helpful Robin.
As they stood behind the desk, the chair pushed away for more room, Robin was moving the empty vials, as well as corking the ones with liquid inside, onto a tray; intent on keeping their working space clean.
"We were surprised too," Emma said, approaching her. She had been talking to her son and Elsa, who was cradling her baby brother when she noticed Belle's demeanor. Lowering her voice, she continued. "Apparently, he hadn't moved when my mom and Regina got back from the Diner and refused to leave. So, she put him to work."
"The more, the merrier."
"Agreed," Emma responded. She then walked away to stand directly in front of the three. "How's it coming?"
"It's almost done," Regina said, carefully eyeballing an ingredient she was pouring in. When she finished that, she glanced behind herself to look at the cloud formation through her large window. "This is growing into a nightmare," she added, before asking Robin for a certain tool, which he promptly handed to her. "Judging by how dark it keeps getting with every minute, I can only assume that we have until sundown till she releases the spell, which is in..." she stopped to look at the clock on her wall.
4:21PM
"...about two hours."
"That's very specific," Killian commented, moving to stand beside Emma.
"I'm assuming based on how more effective it would be at the cusp of nighttime."
Regina then called Elsa over, who promptly responded. Handing Neal over to Mary Margaret, she unclasped the jewelry, which she had fastened around her neck for safety, and held it out, which Regina took from her. Gently squeezing the pump of her tool, she dropped a tiny bit onto the necklace, which instantly came alive.
Dancing in the air for a few seconds, it then took off; gracefully spinning through the open doors.
"Follow it!"
Everybody, but Mary Margaret, the baby and Henry rushed out of the office, their eyes turned to the sky; however, the three who stayed behind did follow them to the door, wishing them good luck.
By doing that, none of them saw one of the items that Regina had, once again, left behind on the top of her desk disappear in a cloud of smoke.
...
The group had followed it all the way to the ocean; their feet trampling hard down the Harbor steps into the sand below. The necklace soared over to the shore and hovered, making quiet circles before Elsa plucked it from the air, the object still glowing.
"Spread out," Regina said, looking at her surroundings as she tried to catch her breath.
The others nodded and searched the area, their eyes scanning over everything in their path. Dividing into pairs to optimize their chances, each headed into three directions; two along the shoreline, one opposite the sea, but when 12 minutes passed by with no Anna to show for it, they met back at where the necklace had stopped.
Wiping the sweat from her forehead, Belle looked up at the grey cloud, shaking her head. "At this rate, we're not going to make it." Slowly meeting the gaze of an anxious Elsa, she chose her words carefully, knowing how she was going to react to her suggestion. "I don't see Anna, but there is something we could possibly do to save the town."
"What is that?" Elsa responded, not liking her tone.
Belle's gaze flickered apologetically to the jewelry the woman was clutching. "We could destroy the necklace and try to use as a protectant..."
Elsa paled. "No."
"That may actually work," Regina whispered, glancing over at a backing Elsa. "We could use it to make a shield against the Snow Queen's spell..."
"I won't allow that!" Elsa cried, completely horrified at what they were asking her to do. Give up my sister's necklace? The only thing I have in her place? What we've all worked so hard to find? No. I won't do it. Feeling a sharp panic begin to flare in her chest, she slightly bent to the side and picked up her skirts. Clinging to the necklace with her other hand, she turned and ran along the shore, her frantic eyes moving from the dimming light to the ocean.
"Elsa, stop!" Emma yelled as she ran after her. Leading the others, she quickly managed to catch then surpass the other blonde, who was struggling to run in her dress.
Blocking her, she raised her hands to soothe her, her eyes pleading. "This might be the only opportunity we have to stop her," Emma reasoned, her lungs squeezing as she tried to talk and breathe at the same time. Seeing the others rapidly approaching, she waved one of her outstretched palms at them, signaling them to slow down.
I don't want to corner her, she thought.
"I can't," Elsa begged, shaking her head.
"Please, Elsa," Killian then said behind her, making the woman spin at hearing her name. His posture resembled Emma's but his eyes were more firm. "We're running out of time."
Mouth parting, Elsa's breathing turned jagged. Lifting up the necklace, she noticed that the potion was weakening; the glow quickly fading back to its normal coloring. Holding it out, she spied at her surroundings again, desperately hoping to find a hiding Anna, but saw nothing. Stomach aching and her throat raw, Elsa collapsed onto the sand in a heap, a powerful scream tearing from the pit of her soul.
At first nobody reacted.
Nobody approached her.
They just watched with grief and shame.
Wearing a torn expression, Emma slowly moved towards her. When she was right beside her, she then knelt down and hesitated before putting a hand onto Elsa's back. Flinching slightly at the touch, Elsa just nodded her head, finally relenting in her position.
Sighing brokenly, Elsa then brought the item to her heart, her head slightly bowed. Tears streamed from her eyes, she hiccuped. "I wish," she whispered softly, not seeing the glow flicker at her words. "I wish I had Anna here with me, right now, so we can fight the Snow Queen together..."
"I'm sorry," Emma replied sadly. "I know that—"
Suddenly, the ocean roared and churned, blaring into the ears of everyone present.
Turning to look at the sea, Emma's brow then furrowed. "Is that...?" she began, straightening her back to get a better look. "...a chest?"
Large and wooden, the water lapped at its sides, propelling it over into their direction with a spin before it got stuck in the wet sand below.
Looking at the necklace, Elsa's eyes lit up with hope. Pushing herself up, she scrambled her way over to it with a concerned Emma, Killian, Belle, Robin and Regina tailing after her. Grabbing the lock, she froze then pulled it off, her mind twirling when she unlatched it.
Throwing up top portion, she then cried out in surprise and joy.
Popping out of the chest were two soaked and tired individuals.
"Anna?!" Elsa exclaimed, pulling the lighter of the two into a tight hug before offering a hand to the bulkier one. "Kristoff?!...I found you!"
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