AN: Thanks for all the incredible responses! Keep them coming! I know replies get long, but I love that so many are still following me on the incredible journey that is this story. See previous chapter for explanation on realms. Now that the realms are united, everyone is on Storybrooke time and aging for adults is very slow due to the Chalice.
Thanks for the great reviews! Keep them coming! The feedback gives this story life, so please consider leaving a review! Unless you're a troll, because then your reviews get deleted. You can also follow me on Tumblr Lilacmoon83. All my stories, plus artwork is posted there, as well as all things Snowing and Charming family. So give me a follow!
This story is now updated bi-weekly. I love Finding You Always and this story is going to continue, but I want to give attention to my other verses that are not getting updated. So I hope you'll continue to enjoy this story and my other verses. As always, reviews on all stories are very much appreciated, so please consider leaving reviews. :)
I also had a request for some face claims of original characters and villains. Some of those are on the artwork for the story when it's posted on Tumblr so some might have seen those. But here's some written out face claims and names that can be googled for anyone that wants to.
Face Claims:
Leo Charming Nolan: Matt Lanter
Eva Charming Nolan: Bailee Madison
Summer Charming Nolan: Joey King(young) and Luna Blaise(older)
Bobby Charming Nolan: Logan Lerman (for now. This one is probably going to change as he ages)
Christopher Sean: Dr. Paul Sakura
Aphrodite: a blonde Ginnifer Goodwin
Xander(Robert) Nolan Charming: David Cubitt(the actor they cast for Robert in canon)
Clayton(even though he's finally dead): Vincent Irizarry
Mephisto: in the movie Ghost Rider, Mephisto was played by Henry Fonda so that's who I'm using here too.
Amora the Enchantress: Laura Dern
Seth: Rami Malek (which pains me, cause I adore him, but I have based Seth on Set from Egyptian mythology as well as Typhon from Greek Mythology so using Rami Malek as an Egyptian God is too perfect). He is my favorite part of the Night at the Museum movies.
If I missed any, let me know and I will add to the face claims. :)
Here are individual responses to reviews:
Grace5231973: Yep, Jekyll is well on his way to blowing things up. Seth is a brat and a big baby that throws a destructive tantrum when he doesn't get his way. I think the battle that is to come with be very interesting. :)
Naomi Blue: Yeah, it's not surprising that some of the ones that are with the resistance ended up there as early as they did. Both Jekyll and the Major do not have their memories...yet. So now she has genuine affection for this little family so it will be interesting to see if that will conflict with her real objective once she has her memories back.
Jennifer Baratta: Thank you, glad you enjoyed it! Yes, Mephisto and Arthur's days are numbered.
Number Ten: Yep, Regina will always have a quip when it comes to Charming romance. Yes, Mephisto is the epitome of evil, next to Seth and he really makes his intentions known in this chapter. And Jekyll, as usual, is disgusting. Yep, Seth is like a giant baby that can just destroy anything with a snap of his fingers. His attempts for the serum were probably genuine at one time, but severally misguided. :)
Princess Me 21: Thanks! Glad you liked it. :)
Carpathian Princess: Thanks! So glad you enjoyed it!
Sexystarwarslover: Yep, the resistance is underway and hopefully Seth's days are numbered. Yeah, jealous parents indeed. Even cursed, their hearts still call to each other. Yeah, I love the sibling banter too. Yes, David will be very proud of the leader Fandral has become. Yes, you get to see Captain Swan together and soon in a big way starting in the next chapter. Yes, as usual, cursed or not, Jekyll is very sick and an immediate threat to Margaret/Snow. Yeah, as if there wasn't enough problems, Arthur and Gawain are an issue again. I know, no hiding from Seth. everyone has to endure him for now. Yep, Regina staged her own death and Rumple knows they are getting close to unraveling everything. :)
Beth1980: Welcome back! No worries. Sounds like me. I never had any medical issues and then all the sudden, bam, gallbladder had to come out. Yeah, January seemed long. Yeah, I hate that troll. Fortunately, seems like they went away for now. I loved that scene too. Facilier was long overdue for that. Yes, as usual, Jekyll is gross and demented. Yeah, it made sense that Fandral might have nightmares concerning his past. Charming...he's trying to take on a huge burden for his family and it will weigh heavily on him. Thanks, 200 chapters is insane, but in a good way.
Beth1980: I wouldn't judge you for that. In fact, I always assumed dark magic would smell badly. There's plenty of evidence for it in all kinds of media. Yes, Seth is akin to a child. He is extremely powerful, but prone to fits and easily distracted. He likes shiny, flashy displays and can be easily manipulated. Oh yes, a girl's night would be amazing! That is totally going to happen when this arc is over, lol. Yep, Amora has been neutralized, which is good news for Dashing Rose. Yeah, Rumple is a little passed those days of asking for unreasonable favors. It was a sweet family moment at Emma's ultrasound. Glad you liked the Snowing times two talk too. Glad you like David and Margaret's curse back story. I know, right? Summer and Bobby are so grown up now and I was just writing about them being babies a couple years ago. Geez...I've been writing this story for over four years. Yeah, honestly Midas surviving two years was a miracle. Yep, Jenkins is Jekyll and he's still psycho. Oh yeah, he's going to unravel quickly now that he has met Margaret's family and knows he has no chance. Yeah, I figured Fandral might have some immunity the others don't have, being that's he Asgardian. I know, bringing Arthur back was ugh...but this just means I have a good reason to kill him now, haha. Ha, no...no one was surprised that Grumpy ended up in the resistance so early. Yeah, that was rough for James for a moment, thinking his twin killed his wife. Fortunately, he knew it wasn't true very soon after. Still not great though.
AnonSnowing: Yeah I probably need to try and watch some of Big Love. But the subject matter for me turns me off, I agree. I'm so behind on watching stuff though as it is. I would say it's more like I occasionally tolerate Red Snowing if it's well written. But no, I really don't care too much for it. It can be cute at times, but I don't take it seriously. Yeah, there really isn't anything quite like Snowing's love story out there. It's so easy to re-write, modernize and re-invent it. That's why I wanted to do this modern curse arc with them, because it's really fun. Yeah, Bobby's ship name would be something with quakes in it, but I like him just being a teen right now. Yeah, since I went to bi-weekly with both FYA and Dreaming Out Loud, I feel like I can breathe and I'm getting bi-weekly updates with A Darker Curse too now. Plus working on a few other things. But with the schedule, I feel like I can take a night off and get a break when I need it. I picked Summer's because I love watching gymnastics. That and swimming. I could have made hers swimming, but dancing and gymnastics is a bit more exciting. Bobby's became soccer, mostly because I had that flip trick shot he did in mind and then burning the ball through the net. I know, I had to get in a line about Ginny's run in there. How Bobby will get his powers and memories back will be interesting. Yep, their powers are very much connected to who they are and yes, as always, Jekyll is a creeper. Yeah, it's probably best that it's just a fanfic. The budget would be out of control and I'd have to scale some of those scenes down. Glad you liked the scene with Dashing Rose. I thought it would be interesting if he was immune to it. I mean, if Asgardians can breathe in space then I figure they're probably not going to be too affected by a curse. Yes, the executions are fake, so Charming is walking a dangerous line. Yep, Hope is very cute. I haven't described her yet, but I imagine her having dark hair and green eyes like Emma and Snow. Yep, Jekyll's back story mirrors his real back story. And you're right, he's creepy and has no chance. It is hard with them not remembering their real lives, but it won't be long now. Yeah, in chapter 205, the story has hit the press so that will be a mess. Yeah, Seth is the epitome of narcissism. I didn't get it in this chapter, but I'll make sure that Roland gets a mention in the next. Glad you enjoyed it. :)
Finding You Always
Chapter 204: Change in the Tides
By the time they got back to the office, their top analyst had pulled everything that his David's boss had asked for and they gathered in the conference room with him. The guy, Trevor, was your typical analyst, David supposed. Introverted, yet quirky and sporting a look that might be described as a nerdy hipster hybrid. He was a nice kid, but he always looked at him weird, like he was trying to figure him out. And finally, after two years, David decided to say something while his boss was on the phone.
"You know...if you want to ask me something, you should just do it, because the staring is getting creepy," David said, without looking up from the report he was reading. The young man fidgeted and looked embarrassed.
"I'm...I'm sorry, you just look really familiar. Have you ever been to Seattle?" Trevor asked.
"Like on a case?" David asked.
"Uh...no, like have you lived there?" Trevor replied. David shook his head.
"Can't say that I have," David said.
"You sure?" he asked. The blonde sighed.
"Do you really think I wouldn't remember living somewhere?" he asked. The analyst shrugged.
"Maybe...weird stuff happens," he said and watched David, almost like he was trying to gauge his reaction.
"I think you're spending a little too much time on the dark web," he quipped, as Pat hung up her phone.
"Okay...what do you have?" she asked.
"A really long list," Trevor replied, as an endless list of names filled the large television sized screen.
"Good God…" Pat lamented.
"Do you think we can rule out a female perp?" David asked. She tilted her head in consideration.
"Normally I don't like to assume when it comes to serial killers, especially since I think this is less about killing and more about experimentation...but the violence in the death would suggest a male perpetrator," she replied.
"Though a woman definitely would naturally be easier for our victims to trust and be comforted by," David pointed out. She sighed.
"Okay...let's not rule out females yet. But I think we can rule out educators without any doctorates. The level of sophistication in this drug likely means that we're dealing with someone highly intelligent," Pat said, as Trevor put in those specifications and unfortunately, the list didn't get much shorter. She sighed.
"Highly intelligent...like a genius," David muttered, as something pricked the back of his mind at that.
"What are you thinking?" she asked.
"Well...it's pretty well known that sometimes there can be a fine line between genius and insanity," David replied, as he looked back at the screen.
"Just give us the people with three or more doctorates," he said. Trevor did as he asked and the list got significantly shorter, though still a good sized list.
"That's still a lot of over-achievers," Pat commented.
"But manageable. Seventy-three names between the five universities," he said, with a sigh.
"Okay...the rest of the team is on another case, so it's the three of us. Trevor, print out all these profiles. I'll order us lunch and good coffee, not that sludge out in the squad room," she said.
"I'm going to call Margaret and check in with her," David said, as he took his phone out and stepped out of the room.
Meanwhile, Trevor hit print on the very large file and then pulled up a website he had been looking at earlier. The date was from about seven years ago and was an article about the strange weather event that had occurred in Seattle that day. At least, a weather event was what the government tried to explain it away as. Many bought the official story, but there were a lot of people that didn't. Conspiracy theorists were still going strong on the web with speculative explanations for that day and he had always been fascinated by so-called fringe topics.
So Trevor had been extremely surprised when he ran across an article about a Detective David Nolan and his wife Margaret. He had read the entire sordid story about them and was enthralled by the whole thing, especially when many conspiracy theorists claimed that this David and Margaret Nolan weren't who or what they appeared to be.
After disappearing all those years ago, the rumors of where these strange people went were as wild and outlandish as they could possibly get. And then like they had never left, they had seemed to surface again, right here in Boston this time. And so far, he seemed to be the only one that noticed. For now...at least until he could be sure it was them. If it was, something strange was going on, because he didn't think David was lying about never living in Seattle, for he genuinely seemed to not remember. It was very curious and he decided to do more digging when he had a chance.
"Hey you…" Margaret answered, as he dialed her.
"Hey beautiful…" he said, feeling solace just at the sound of her voice.
"I take it you're still at the office?" she asked.
"I am...but I wanted to call you. I just...need to hear your voice," he replied.
"Is it a bad case?" she asked.
"Yeah...it's bad. I guess they're always bad. Hopefully, we'll make some progress though," he replied.
"I know you will...you're the best at what you do," she said.
"Only because I have you. I love you so much," he said.
"I love you too, please be safe…" she pleaded.
"I will...I'll see you tonight," he promised, as he hung up the phone and went back into the conference room, as Trevor put the stacks of paper on the desk.
"Okay...let's eliminate some names and find some possible suspects," Pat said, as they went back to work.
Fandral and Charming dueled furiously that afternoon and the latter found himself on his back, not for the first time that day. Charming growled and got to his feet again.
"I know I'm stronger, but I never beat you this easily...there's something eating at you," Fandral said, as he knocked him down again.
"It's nothing…" Charming snapped, as they went back to dueling, only for him to end up shadow boxing with the Asgardian.
"You are never this sloppy," Fandral chided, as he won the duel and Charming stalked off to the side to grab a towel.
"It's Mephisto...he is getting more and more suspicious. I fear what he may do," Charming said.
"If he figures out what we're doing...the consequences will be catastrophic. But if Jekyll has found his way to Snow...you know it won't be long until the curse unravels," Fandral reasoned.
"If our ruse is discovered too early...it won't matter, you know he will go after the ones we love first," he reminded him. Fandral sighed.
"I hate to...but perhaps it's time Rose and I seek help from Sif and Thor," the Asgardian said.
"But I thought Hermes said she was unable to access the All World River with the curse in tact?" he asked.
"She is...but that restriction wouldn't apply to the bi-frost. If I can...somehow get a message to Thor some way, getting his assistance may be possible. I have no idea how we're going to do that, but Rose may be able to find something in her books," he replied.
"It's a long shot, but the back up would be welcomed. Until then...we just have to hope my other half wakes the hell up soon," he growled.
"You know when it comes to protecting Snow that he will come through. The moment he senses something is off with that deranged doctor, it will accelerate his awakening," Fandral reasoned.
"Let's hope so...keeping up this charade is getting harder by the day and Mephisto needs to be dealt with...once and for all," Charming stated.
"I'll return to Rose and we'll work on getting a message through to Sif," he said, as he left through a portal back to Andresia. Charming sighed deeply and had it not been for the love of his sweet, beautiful Winter, he knew the burden he was carrying upon his shoulders would have crushed him long ago.
With that, he disappeared through a portal back to their palace and sought her out. But what he found in his own Throne room chilled him to the bone…
Winter gently kissed her baby granddaughter and lay her in the crib in the nursery they kept in their palace for her. She was happily watching her for Emma this afternoon; something she did often and did with great joy.
"Sleep well my little one," she whispered, as she quietly exited the nursery and went down the winding staircase. She wore a beautiful, shimmering silver and black dress, truly looking the part of the Queen she was. But she gasped suddenly when Mephisto appeared before her suddenly and grabbed her arm. She cried out, as he yanked her down the stairs and tossed her to the ground at his feet.
"Where is your idiot husband, wench?!" he growled. She glowered at him and managed to get to her feet.
"My husband is none of your business and I don't think I have to tell you what he will do to you when he finds out you dared to even touch me," Winter retorted. The demon surprised her again though back angrily backhanding her and sending her crashing to the floor again.
"Answer the question, you little bitch!" he growled.
"He constantly disappears and I know he's up to no good. Tell me where he is now!" he roared. Winter got to her feet and glared at him.
"If you must know, my Charming is on a training retreat with some of his men," she lied.
"I don't believe you...all your soldiers are accounted for. I checked," he snapped.
"The retreat is in Andresia. He is overseeing a training exercise with Fandral," she said without missing a beat.
"Such was not mandated by our Lord," Mephisto replied.
"Charming oversees all the armies, you know that. He has full approval to make sure everything is in order in each Kingdom," she refuted. Mephisto was silent at that, for it was true. She whimpered though when the frightening demon King grabbed her arm and pulled her close.
"You will tell me the truth now...or bad things are going to happen to you and the brat upstairs," he warned and her breath hitched, as his hand slithered to her cheek.
But he was suddenly and thankfully ripped away from her and her husband began to pummel the demon angrily with his fists.
"How dare you even think of touching her?!" he growled, as he kicked him away. He was about to charge him again when Seth appeared.
"My Lord...he just attacked me!" Mephisto claimed.
"My Lord...I found him threatening to harm my Queen and he dared to put his hands on her!" Charming growled, as Winter sided up to him and he pulled her into his arms.
"Then he was sufficiently punished. You will do no more," Seth decreed.
"My Lord...he struck her. He must pay for it with his life," Charming insisted. But Seth raised his hand.
"You will not kill him today," he ordered and Charming reluctantly obeyed. Mephisto smirked, as he stood up.
"I will not intervene next time, Mephisto. Please keep your hands off the lovely Queen Snow or I'll allow him to dispatch you accordingly," Seth warned. Mephisto bowed deeply.
"I understand, my Lord," he said.
"Come...both of you," he called to the Charmings.
"I wish to make an impromptu visit to Camelot," he said.
"Of course, my Lord," Charming replied, as he offered his arm to his wife. They quickly called Eva, who arrived promptly to watch Hope, and they were off to Camelot with Seth. Mephisto seethed, as they left. He was more determined than ever to expose their treachery and he was about to do take the first step into doing just that.
Mephisto entered Nephilim and observed his new charges, training with their new powers. The entire training room was lit ablaze in their practice, evidence of their rage.
"Well? Did you find anything that might expose him?" Arthur questioned.
"No...but I knew I wouldn't. You could torture that little wench and she'd never loosen her tongue when it comes to her beloved," Mephisto replied.
"Then what was the point?" Gawain questioned.
"To set Charming on edge. Nothing gets under his skin faster than harming his lovely Winter," Mephisto answered.
"But if he is on edge, he may be even more dangerous. He knows you're going to try something," Arthur stated.
"He knows I am...but he won't be expecting the two of you. It's time to make a visit to Camelot," Mephisto responded.
Margaret checked her list and checked off one more thing, as she looked in the boxes. The science fair was tomorrow already, but fortunately, she was just about ready. Some of her students had helped her set up the heavy tables in the gym and all the supplies were waiting in tubs.
"My, my...it seems you have nearly everything under complete control," Dr. Jenkins said, as he entered with a box full of beakers and test tubes.
"I think we should be ready for tomorrow," Margaret replied, as she looked around.
"I could have never been ready for this without your help, Margaret," he said with admiration.
"It's no trouble...I love organizing events. My husband likes to joke that I should have been an event planner," she said.
"Well, I think you'd be good at anything, though I think you're a bit too brilliant to be something like an event planner. I have viewed your work, after all. I am a bit surprised that you never went for your doctorate," he mentioned. She shrugged.
"I never really thought much about it actually. David is always so supportive, but I just didn't have any desire to spend my evenings in night classes instead of with my babies," she said, making him frown.
"I love teaching...but I love being a mother the most. And a wife," she said fondly, as she thought about her family.
"Perhaps now that your children are older...you might think of it? The only reason I ask is that I teach some night courses at Boston University. You would be a wonderful addition," he mentioned.
"Oh...that's kind of you to say, doctor. But to be honest, I'm really happy with things the way they are. I can barely stand to be away from David during the day so I can't imagine doing so in the evening," she replied. He frowned again and was about to say more when her son's team trudged in from practice.
"Hey honey...you're a mess," she said. He grinned.
"It was fun though," he joked and she laughed.
"Go shower and we'll head home," she said, as he headed off to the locker room.
"I do hope you'll consider classes in the future. You could have quite a career in the sciences," Dr. Jenkins mentioned.
"Oh...I don't know," she said. He was about to press her further, but heard her gasp. He looked to the doorway and saw the rest of her family there.
"I thought you were working late?" she asked in excitement, as David closed the distance between them.
"We still have a lot of names to go through, but we need a break. So I picked up peanut and we ordered takeout," he said, as he pecked her on the lips.
"That's perfect, because Bobby should be out in a few," she said, as she cuddled against him.
"Daddy let me drive the truck too, because he's tired," Summer added.
"You always liked field work better than office work," Margaret said fondly.
"I do, but I wasn't too tired to grab these on my way," he said, as he pulled a bouquet of snow drops out from behind his back. She gasped and brought the flowers to her nose.
"You spoil me," she gushed, as she kissed him.
"It is what I live for," he replied, as he kissed her again, just as Bobby hurried out.
"I'm starved," he mentioned.
"Don't worry...I ordered enough take out to fill even your stomach," David said, as they prepared to leave.
"Oh, I'll see you tomorrow, doctor. I think everything is about done," Margaret said. Jenkins forced a tight smile.
"Of course...have a good evening, Margaret," he said, trying to quell the anger inside him. But such was useless and he stormed back to his lab with fury.
Lancelot and Guinevere bowed deeply to Seth, as he arrived in their Kingdom.
"Welcome to Camelot, my Lord. This is an unexpected, yet wonderful surprise. Our palace staff is at your command," Guinevere said.
"Very good...I do hope they can prepare some delicacies while I am here. I do enjoy gourmet goods," he mentioned.
"Of course...they will prepare you an array of delicacies right away," she confirmed.
"Excellent...until then, I would like to see that your Kingdom's state of affairs is up to par," he requested.
"Of course...we can begin with the round table and by then, we will have a grand feast and celebration ready for you," Lancelot said, as he met Charming's gaze and then led them to the double doors that attached to the Throne room. They swung open and the current Knights of the round table stood still at attention, after each bowing deeply to the God.
"Ah yes...the illustrious Knights of the Round Table," Seth said, as he observed the empty seat.
"And why does this seat remain empty?" he questioned.
"It actually last belonged to your right hand, my Lord. Technically, it still belongs to King Charming. Only the most powerful and honorable Knights have ever sat in the Siege Perilous," Lancelot informed him.
"Yes...you once sat there as well, did you not?" Seth questioned.
"Yes my Lord," Lancelot answered.
"Until you disgraced yourself by stealing your King's Queen," Seth goaded. Lancelot knew he was trying to egg him on into some kind of reaction. Well placed insults to the royals was common with him. His own son and Elsa had been insulted thoroughly on their most recent visit to Arendelle. Fortunately, his son had kept his temper in check and though it burned Charming and Winter, they always let the insults roll off.
Midas had never been able to do this and it was why he was eventually unseated. If not for Charming's ruse, Seth would have allowed Mephisto to actually kill him. Charming could have actually used someone like Lancelot in the resistance, but he hoped that the other Knight held his tongue.
"I have made mistakes in my past, my Lord, but I truly believe that Guinevere and I belong together," he responded in an even tone. Seth smirked.
"Yes...I suppose if it's true love, that makes infidelity okay," the God jabbed and Charming clamped down on his emotions. It would not have been the first time that Seth had tried to tear down true love.
"Perhaps you fancy an exhibition duel, my Lord? My Knights can put on quite a show," Lancelot offered instead of taking the bait. Seth smirked and he took a seat in the Siege Perilous.
"I do love to be entertained…" he agreed. Lancelot motioned to two of his Knights, who took their places in the center of the room. But suddenly, a stream of fire swept into the room and in the blink of an eye, the Knights were slain, both killed gruesomely by the deep burn slashes on their chests and necks.
Winter gasped and put a hand to her mouth, as she watched her husband unsheathe his blade and his eyes dart around the room. The chalice sword lit with pure power, just as two more Knights were slain like nothing.
Charming jumped into the fray and his blade effectively blocked the flaming weapons wielded by the assailants. When the smoke and flames cleared, Charming glared at the wielders.
"What the hell are you two doing out of prison?!" he growled, as his gaze flicked to Mephisto.
"As if I didn't know," he hissed.
"What's the matter, Charming? Afraid of a challenge?" Mephisto goaded.
"These two are hardly a challenge," Charming snapped in return, as he dueled them both. Winter watched with bated breath and inched forward. But Seth put his hand up.
"You will not interfere, my dear Queen Winter," he forbade. She swallowed thickly and clutched her pendant to cover it, hiding the glow, as she willed her power to her husband.
"I hope you are enjoying your brief respite from prison, because you are going back there very soon," Charming threatened.
"I don't think so. We made a new deal," Gawain said smugly.
"I see we're not the only ones that have undergone some changes since our last meeting," Arthur observed.
"So you made a deal with the devil? You really think that's going to work out well for you?" Charming questioned.
"Oh...it's working out quite well for us, but you...not so much…" Gawain said, as his eyes briefly flicked to his wife.
"I see she's still the fairest of them all. I'm glad she's here to witness what we're about to do to you," he goaded, as they flailed their fiery chains around and the former prince parried each of their attacks in rapid succession. But he knew he wouldn't be able to maintain that pace long, even with the chalice sword. He felt her willing her power to him and it was very risky. Seth was thankfully occupied with the display of their duel, but he would not take any chances in him realizing that she was disobeying him and employed the full might of their power in the flashiest way possible. The two demons were paralyzed by the power of his sword with two expert swipes and Charming brought his blade to Arthur's throat.
"My Lord...it would seem that Mephisto has betrayed you by releasing these two from prison," Charming stated.
"Their desperate souls called to me, my Lord. They were severally wronged by King Charming and his fair Queen," Mephisto explained.
"Camelot is my birthright!" Arthur shouted.
"And they held the sword that was mine, while ousting me from my Throne!" Arthur claimed angrily.
"And then King Charming and the fair Queen Snow placed the man that betrayed me on the Throne next to my Queen!" he continued.
"You know I do not like when you do not consult me about acquiring souls," Seth chided to the demon King. Charming smirked smugly, but it fell away at Seth's next utterance.
"But Arthur should reclaim his Throne. He has obviously proved that he will be a stronger King that will force Camelot to serve me to its fullest extent," Seth announced.
"My Lord…" Charming started to protest, but he felt himself be forcibly silenced when the God raised his hand.
"I have made my decision. Arthur...as new King of Camelot, you will serve me. Do not make me regret this appointment," Seth stated. Arthur smirked.
"I shall not, my Lord," he said, as he bowed and cast a smug glance up at Charming.
"And what of these two? Perhaps two souls for my realm?" Mephisto asked.
"I'd rather them be alive, if you permit it so, my Lord," Arthur requested.
"They left me to rot in prison...and I wish to inflict the same upon them. Death is much too quick in this instance," he added.
"Very well...please escort them to the prison, my right hand. Then you and your Queen can take your leave," Seth ordered. Charming bowed deeply and sheathed his sword. He cuffed Lancelot and Guinevere without a word, as Winter hurried to his side. They marched the prisoners forth and once they left the palace, she hooked her hand on his elbow, hoping that her touch could quell some of the rage in her husband.
This had been a clear shift in power tonight and they both knew it would not bode well at all for their future. Mephisto had undermined them in a very big way, which meant that it was only a matter of time before their entire facade collapsed. Their light halves needed to wake up and they needed to do it soon…
Margaret giggled, as they sat on their couch at home, cuddled close and she met his gaze, as he fed her another bite with the chopsticks. Her legs were draped over his lap and she was content to be cuddled against him.
"Mmm...that's so good…" she said, as she picked up her chopsticks and repaid the favor by feeding him a bite too.
"Best Chinese in Boston," he agreed, as she sighed and rested her head against his chest.
"Is the case bad?" she asked curiously.
"Yeah...I'm afraid so. We thought it was serial...but now we think it's someone experimenting," he told her. Generally, he wasn't supposed to talk too much about cases and would rather protect her from the ugliness in his job. But he knew he could tell his beloved anything and she'd never breathe a word to anyone. She was his full confidante and source of strength. He dealt with that ugliness in his job far better than many might, for her love gave him light, no matter how many dark places his work took him to. And as far as protecting her, she insisted that she was strong enough for anything and wanted to know everything he was going through. They faced absolutely everything together and neither of them would have it any other way.
"Experimenting?" she asked. He nodded.
"We've never seen a drug like this before. We don't have any live victims to know what kind of brain activity is going on when they ingest the drug...but the reports we do have say they just...lose their minds in an instant," he explained.
"The one student I did see before he died kept saying that he didn't want to be bad, like something was telling him to do bad things," he said shaking his head.
"A complete personality change," he added. She sighed.
"Those poor people. I can't imagine going through something like that...those parents. Oh David...if something like that happened to one of our babies...I don't know what I'd do," she fretted.
"I know, my darling...but I promise you that I'll never let anyone hurt you or one of our babies," he promised, as he pressed a kiss to her hair.
"I think that's part of the reason our experimenter has changed his victim pool. Students are risky, even though they all had drug abuse history. He's now picking homeless people that he or she thinks won't be missed," he said.
"That's horrible...who would do something like this, let alone create a drug like this?" she wondered.
"I don't know...but if I profile it, then it's someone that's very sick and seems to be trying to find a way to get rid of that sickness," he said.
"Sounds like a Jekyll and Hyde situation," she commented offhandedly and he looked at her with scrutiny.
"What do you mean?" he asked. She shrugged.
"That's kind of what Dr. Jekyll was trying to do in the story. He was using a drug to keep his dark side at bay. Didn't really work though," she replied. He looked at her in surprise.
"I...I hadn't even considered that, but it's exactly what this is like. The student that killed himself...he kept saying he didn't want to do bad things," he said, as he surprised her by kissing her soundly.
"God...you're brilliant," he praised. She looked at him shyly.
"I just read a lot," she replied.
"Still going to go with brilliant...I'm going to add that to our profile. It might help narrow down our suspect pool even more," he said. He wasn't sure how yet or if it was even relevant, but if their suspect had some serious mental illness, there could be undertones or clues in their file.
"So...you think I'm brilliant?" she teased. He smirked and kissed her cheek, before trailing his kisses down to her neck.
"Most definitely...my beautiful, brilliant wife. I am certainly the luckiest man in this or any world," he replied, as she closed her eyes, enjoying all the things her husband's lips were making her feel.
"Mmm...I think I'm the lucky one," she said fondly, as she caressed his handsome face.
"We have such a wonderful life and somehow, I know our love is special," she said. He smiled and kissed her tenderly again. Their eyes met and not for the first time, they felt that mystical connection between them. They had never quite been able to explain it, but it had seemed to always be there since the day they met. If they didn't know any better, it was almost like their hearts were beating in sync. It sounded crazy, but somehow they knew it was exactly what was happening. Their hearts thrummed together and they could nearly read each other's thoughts with just a look between them.
"We're soul mates for sure," he agreed.
"Then you don't think I'm silly for believing in true love...that we have true love?" she teased, as he squeezed her hip.
"How could I when I'm part of this love? There's no other explanation for the depths of my love for you," he replied, as his gaze on her made her tingle all over.
"Maybe we should go to bed," he suggested. She kissed him tenderly.
"Mmm...I like that idea," she said, as she sat up and grabbed the fortune cookies from the coffee table.
"But first we need to read our fortunes," she said playfully. He chuckled at her.
"You don't even like the cookies," he teased.
"True, they taste like stale plastic, but you know me. I love reading the silly fortunes," she teased back, as he smiled fondly at her. He could spend eternity with her and he knew he'd never get enough of her. He shook his head in amusement, as he watched her unwrap the cookie and break it apart. She discarded the cookie and sought the slip of paper inside.
"What does it say?" he asked, as he ate a piece of the cookie.
"Oooh...let's see. Nothing is impossible to a willing heart," she read.
"Very true," he agreed.
"Really?" she asked playfully.
"Of course...look at all we've been through. Your father and my step-father did their damnedest to keep us apart, but they couldn't do it, because in our hearts, we knew we were meant to be together and nothing stopped us," he reminded. She tilted her head to the side fondly.
"You always know how to put things in perspective," she praised, as she kissed him and then broke open his cookie.
"Hmm...the best way to get rid of an enemy is to make a friend," she read. He snorted.
"Not in my line of work," he joked and she playfully smacked his arm.
"Maybe not, but remember that girl we went to school with and she hated me, especially when her mother, the social climber, was dating my father," she reminded him.
"Sort of...what was her name?" he asked.
"Roni," she replied. He chuckled.
"Yeah...she hated you," he recalled and she smacked him playfully again.
"Hey, she hated me too just because I loved you," he reminded her.
"Mmhmm...but then we became friends after I kept trying to be her friend and wore her down," she said. He pecked her on the lips.
"That's because you're you...I can't believe anyone could hate you," he said fondly.
"She managed...for a while," she said.
"But you won her over," he replied, as he stood up and pulled her up with him.
"Let's go to bed," she suggested, as she looked at him slyly and he put his arm around her waist and they headed for their bedroom.
Winter and Charming appeared through a portal in their palace Throne room and she watched helplessly, as her husband's temper got the best of him and he slammed his fists against a wall. He then deflated and turned to her, his handsome face marred with shame.
"I'm sorry...I'm sorry…" he apologized. He never liked losing his temper in front of her. She put her hands on his shoulders and then folded him into her embrace. She brushed a soothing hand along the back of his neck and his anger started to ebb away slowly in her presence.
"It's all right, my love...that was not a win for us," she mentioned.
"Mephisto suspects something...I'm certain of it now," he said.
"Do you think he knows?" she asked.
"No...not about the resistance, but he knows we're not on the level. He is trying to undermine our favor with Seth and now that Arthur has gained that favor, it will only be a matter of time before my influence upon him is no more," he said.
"Then we need to step up the plan...I just don't know how," she fretted.
"You are not wrong," a new voice said, as Rumplestiltskin and Belle appeared through a portal.
"The shop was ransacked tonight and then burned to the ground. Fortunately, anything of true value or important magical artifacts are hidden in my vault inside Bald Mountain," Rumple said.
"Arthur and Gawain...Mephisto's new charges," Charming confirmed.
"Then we were right...they're looking for it. The dagger," Belle realized.
"But why? Emma reforged Excalibur and it still remains in the stone in the mines. He shouldn't need the dagger," Winter said.
"No...but he is no longer worthy of Excalibur. He cannot pull it from the stone again. The dagger is the next best source of the dark power that Arthur craves," Rumple replied.
"And he knows you two could still probably pull Excalibur from the stone...or one of your children could," Belle reminded them.
"We know Snow and David could...there's no telling if that's true about us and we're not willing to risk it for that sword. And the kids...don't have their memories," David refuted.
"Then it is time to bump up our plan, because I do not think it will be long until our ruse is revealed to Seth," Rumple replied.
"How? If Jekyll isn't even awake yet...then it could be months before they are triggered into awakening," David said.
"We know, that's why we think it's time to send someone to help them along," he said, as he revealed two pink potions in his hand.
"Did you make these from the poppies?" Winter asked and he nodded curtly.
"But Seth burned them all and cast a spell to keep them from growing in his presence once he figured out what they do," Charming interjected.
"And these are the very last of them. I managed to salvage just enough poppy pollen from the scorched earth where he destroyed them. This is it, with the exception of your chalice sword trick, but we know that requires them and everyone else thinking you have killed them and I think we know that Seth would never buy it if you do so to one of your immediate family members," Rumple explained. He was right. Seth would immediately know something was up if he didn't already.
"Then you want to wake two of our children," Winter deduced, as a mirror appeared before them and then a newspaper.
"As you can see, Dr. Jenkins isn't awake yet, but he is back to experimenting and using live victims to test on," Rumple explained, as they saw the doctor mulling around his lab. The sight of him made Charming's blood boil in rage and he clenched his fist. He had never wanted to see anyone bleed the way he wanted to see it from this man. He wanted him to die, slowly and in some excruciating way. He wanted to see the life leave his eyes and know that he would never again come near his beloved Winter of her other half. He wanted him to suffer and he wanted to inflict that pain.
Winter took the newspaper from him and read the headline.
"As you can see, Dr. Jenkins has created a new drug. He is seeking to silence the darkness in his head with a serum again, not yet aware of his past or that he succeeded all those years ago in perfecting that serum with my help," Rumple stated.
"The deaths have caught the eye of the press already...which means David will be in the spotlight soon in the middle of the investigation," Winter realized.
"Will people start recognizing him from Seattle?" Charming questioned.
"Perhaps...people in the Land Without Magic have a short attention span, but the dark web is still rampant with theories and truth seekers investigating that day...and the people involved," Rumple said.
"We think that's why we need to send someone that can run interference and look out for them, but who can also help wake them up in case the doctor's madness doesn't do it fast enough," Belle added. Charming sighed deeply, knowing who they wanted to send.
"As you can see...the doctor already is quite entranced by Margaret Nolan and his deep seated hatred of her husband has been reignited," Rumple said, as he showed them an earlier encounter. The bliss their other halves were living in was evident, but so was the doctor's clear displeasure at being constantly rebuked by the happily married Margaret Nolan. Winter put her hand to the mirror when the image focused on Summer and Bobby. He heard her choke back a sob and a few tears slipped down her cheeks.
"Bobby...he's grown so much," she murmured and he slipped his arms around her, comforting her the best he could.
"They'll be home soon, my love," he promised, as he looked at the Dark One and his wife.
"You want us to wake Emma, don't you?" he asked. He nodded curtly.
"We know she is the best one for this. She'll jog their memories, be able to interject herself into the investigation, watch David's back and protect Margaret from that psychopath if needed," Rumple explained.
"And the other potion?" Winter asked.
"We think Killian would be best as well. He'll be able to get them to Boston upon the Jolly Roger and bring them back quickly. Plus, we all know he'll support Emma in whatever she needs to do," Belle answered. Charming sighed again and Winter put her hands on his shoulders.
"I know how much you wanted to protect Emma from this...but you know she will want to do anything in her power to stop Seth and reunite this family," she reasoned. He nodded in acceptance.
"I know…" he agreed, as Winter took the potions.
"I'll call Emma and have them come. Escaping during the night is their best bet," she suggested. Rumple nodded.
"I'll cast a heavy fog spell over the harbor. Hopefully your son-in-law is as good a navigator as he boasts. He'll need to be to get through it and through the barrier with a bean," the Dark One said, as he and Belle used a bean and stepped through another portal. Winter returned from making her call and Charming took her in his arms.
"Everything is going to be okay, my darling…" he promised.
"My fear is for you, my love. If they find out what we've done too soon and Seth turns on you...I cannot bare to think about what he will do to you," she said, as tears filled her eyes. He cupped her face gently in his hands and kissed her passionately.
"There is nothing I will not endure for you and our family. Our love can never be torn asunder and even if the worst happens, I know that you will save me," he said.
"He will torture you…" she feared, almost hyperventilating at that thought. She remembered the times when Clayton had done the same to him for stepping out of line when they were in Atlantis and knew Seth would do a hundred times worse to him.
"Shh...my love, I will do everything possible to make sure that doesn't happen," he assured, as he held her tightly against his chest. She sniffed and kissed him tenderly again, before going to prepare four glasses of wine. He watched her add the potions to the two of the glasses, just as Emma and Killian arrived with the baby.
"Hey...you said it was urgent. Is something wrong?" she asked.
"Unfortunately yes...but in order to explain everything, we ask that you trust us and drink this wine first," Charming said. Emma looked at them both strangely and took her glass.
"You guys are scaring me…" she said.
"We know honey and we don't mean to...but we promise you will understand everything if you drink this," Winter replied. Emma shrugged and took a drink, knowing that her parents would never hurt her. They watched the pink magic swirl around her and lift the curse. Her eyes widened in realization and she dropped the wine glass, shattering it.
"Mom...Dad…" she cried, as she went to them and they hugged her between them. Her eyes widened. Killian watched her, looking lost, so he took a drink of his wine.
"No one is dead. Everyone I've executed with the chalice sword is somewhere safe and building a resistance," Charming told her.
"But Mephisto is suspicious and we don't know how long until Seth discovers what we've done. He has released Arthur and Gawain, making them his demonic charges," Winter added.
"Jekyll has devolved into a threat, but we fear he won't wake our light halves soon enough," Charming added.
"So...you're sending us," Killian said knowingly. They nodded.
"Don't worry...I'll wake them up and bring them home. I...just make sure you guys stay safe while I'm gone, yeah?" she asked. They smiled and hugged her again.
"We will do our best," Charming agreed. Winter sniffed.
"You have to go. Rumple managed a fog spell in the Harbor to cloak your escape aboard the Jolly Roger. But you must go now," they prodded, as they took them to their mirror portal to conceal their escape. Emma and Killian kissed Hope, as Winter took her and they joined hands, before stepping through the portal. Charming took her in his arms and kissed her hair and then the baby's head.
"This will work, my love...it has to," he said. She nodded. Once again...everything rested on hope and true love...