If you've see OUAT, you know what's about to go down.

Yay! Another chapter :)))
Just to tell you guys, gals and non-binary pals, there most likely won't be another update soon. School is getting busy and yeah, that's basically my excuse.

Anyhoo, hope you enjoy! :)

Regina and Hook had arrived at the library without any hassle. Seeing the door of the elevator that led deep into Storybrooke's honeycomb of tunnels, Hook voiced his curiosity if this was the reason the mission was a two-man job. Rolling her eyes she explained that was how it used to be and then proceeded to operate the lift with magic.

To combat the empty silence between them, Hook decided to become somewhat philosophical on the way down into the mines. "You ever wonder if this constant pursuit of revenge is reason we have no one who cares for us?" Earning a puzzled look he continued. "I mean, when all this is over, and I know the Crocodile is dead, for good and all, I'll have nothing look forward to. My life will be empty. Revenge may sate your being. But don't misunderstand me, my dear, it's an end. Not a beginning." They came to a brief stop.

"For you, maybe. Not me. I have Henry and Bellatrix," she muttered the last bit under her breath. "And destroying Storybrooke?" she looked up at him breaking into a smirk. "Well, that seems like a small price to pay to allow us to live in peace."

Hook extended his arm out to motion for them to continue on. Some of his sleeve rode up his arm, revealing a leather cuff to his companion. "Where did you get that?" she demanded. "It belonged to my mother."

"Yes. Well, she enchanted it so I could climb the beanstalk in our world. She-"

"I don't care why she gave it to you. It's hers and I want it back."

"You plan to blow this town off the map and you're worried about a scrap of cowhide?"

"She was my mother."

"Well, she was my friend."

"Hardly." Regina gave him a glare and took the cuff off of his wrist, attaching it to her own. "Now, follow me closely," she ordered.

They walked into a large cavern. As they came into it there was a steep drop where one wrong move could potentially end a life.

"Precarious," Hook said as he looked over the edge. "You couldn't have just hidden the trigger in the back of your wardrobe?"

"It had to be both well-hidden and well-guarded. I put it somewhere no on would ever think I'd go."

"Yeah… when you say well-guarded, who's guarding it?"

"A friend. She's been through a lot. There's powerful spell here that sustains her in whatever form she's in." "She turned around to look him in the eye. "In fact, Hook, she's the reason why this is a two-man job."

"And that am I exactly here to do?"

"I'll get the trigger, and you? Well, you're the distraction."

"What?"

Regina pushed Hook down the steep underground cliff into the guardian's lair. After falling in, Hook looked around to see particles of ash swirling around, concentrating on one area of the lair. They continue to swirl until a humanoid form comes together. Recognising the horns on the form, Hook couldn't help but say, "Maleficent. Love you in earth tones."

Aggravated by his words, Maleficent lunged at him. Killian side-stepped and slashed her with his hook, earning an ear-splitting scream as she continued to attack.

Her screeches could be heard echoing in the higher areas of the cave where Regina was. She saw a light being reflected deeper into the cave. Walking towards it, it becomes clearer. There, many metres below ground, lay Snow White's glass coffin.

Regina smashed on of the pieces of glass in the coffin and rooted around, looking for a small object. Taking off a bit of wood inside it, she reached in and grabbed the little velvet pouch from within. Opening the pouch, she tipped the contents out of it: a large brown diamond.

Smiling to herself she made her way back up into the library, only to find Hook, alive and well, waiting for her.

The journey back to Storybrooke took less time than the journey London. Probably had something to do with her increased magical power or, the rotation of the earth. Despite being eager to return to Storybrooke, her stomach told her otherwise.

Alas, stricter magic laws still existed. She couldn't just conjure food. Almost passing out with the hunger, she reformed in an alleyway in the nearest town. Shuffling towards the smell of freshly cooked meats, she came upon a diner. The diner was not very busy with only a few patrons about. Discretely putting her hand on her wand, she confounded the man working at the till after ordering her food.

She practically collapsed into one of the booths facing the door. Sighing heavily, she put her hand on her face, rubbing her head. The food she had ordered came. At the same time the door opened.

The patron who walked in gasped in surprise. Bellatrix glanced up and froze like a deer in headlights. The woman who came in tried to speak but all her moth could do was open and close uselessly. Shaking her head she approached the witch quickly and sat in across from her.

"How, in Merlin's beard, are you here?" she hissed.

Bellatrix got over her shock and blinked a few times.

"Nice to see you too, Andy."

"How?" Regina said in shock.

"Startling aren't I? Some people say striking."

"You couldn't have survived that."

"Well, you should know by now, the one thing I excel at is surviving. The amazing thing is, you almost had me. All that stuff about a fresh, clean start, just killing 'em and moving on… it kinda touched me. For a moment there, I thought we had a real connection. And honestly, I almost put a stop to my plan."

"Your plan?"

"Well, their plan, but I fancied it. And they did save me from that wretched… whatever Maleficent is. Do you, uh, know these two?" he asked moving to the side. Greg and Tamara came into the room through another entry way. "Well, they have a way with magic, Or should I say, a way against magic."

"Enough of this," Regina said, getting impatient. She put her hand out, expecting a fireball to appear, but it never does.

Seeing what she was attempting to do, Greg interjected. "Yeah, sorry. That's not going to work. Not anymore."

Looking down at her arms she eyed her mother's accessory. "The cuff. You gave me this." She turned to Hook.

"No, you rather insisted."

"You knew I would want it."

"True. They rigged it with something that blocks your magic. It's impressive."

"So little bitty Owen does grown-up magic of his own now."

"It's not magic. Actually, this is something much better. Science." As he was explaining Regina was trying to pry the cuff off her wrist but was unsuccessful. "You—you can stop doing that. It's not going to work. You might be able to get rid of the leather, but inside are the toughest metals and machinery known to man, and right now they're counteracting every magic bone in your body."

"Which one was she?" Tamara interrupted, pulling a list out of her bag.

"Uh, she was the—the Queen. The Evil Queen."

"Yes. I was… the Queen."

"But now here you're nothing."

"And what are you?"

"I'm just a man—a man on a mission."

"And all this just to try to find your father. I already told you, I don't know where…"

"Yes, you do. But that's not my mission."

"Then what is?"

"I'm not telling you." He turned to Tamara. "Bag her." Tamara approached her with a burlap sack but before she could cover Regina's head with it, she dodged out of the way. Quickly, before anyone could stop her, she pulled out the mirror in her pocket and half-yelled Bellatrix's name into it.

As the surface began to shimmer, Regina was jabbed hard into the shoulder. She fell down like a rock. The mirror, smashed to pieces on the ground.

"You're supposed to be dead!"

"Shut the hell up, Andy. We're in a public setting."

"So many people saw you die, Bella. How is this even possible? Why are you even here?"

"Questions, questions, Andy, all these pesky questions. Can't a woman eat in peace around here?" Bellatrix took a bite out of her steak sandwich.

"There's something different about you. I can't quite put my finger on it." Andromeda thought pensively. "You haven't aged!"

"Of course I've aged. Do you not see these greys?" she asked pointing to the grey streaks in her hair. "As much as I hate to admit it, you look better than I've been."

Andromeda spluttered. "Have you seen yourself? Ugh, anyways, that's not what I want to know. Why are you really here? This is the last place in the world I'd expect you to be. Although, honestly I thought you were totally obliterated."

"I could ask you the same thing. Why are you here?"

"I asked first."

"It's a long story." Hah. Story, she laughed to herself.

"I have time."

"Well, sadly, I don't. Send me an owl, would you?" she quickly finished the rest of her sandwich and left Andromeda stunned.

Once she came back to herself, Andromeda raced after her sister, grabbing her by the arm. "I'm not finished. Why? How? Where do you have to be that is so urgent?"

"Andy, enough of this foolishness! Just leave! Like you always do!" Bellatrix screamed. She felt a burning sensation in her pocket. Letting out a sigh she quickly whipped out the mirror only to see the other fall and break into thousands of shards.

Eyes widening, she ran to the closest place with the most cover and resumed smoke form. What she didn't realise was that her sister was following behind her.

"It's okay. She's not here," Emma called from Regina's office. Mary Margaret, David, and Henry made their way inside. Henry looked up at Emma with concern. "When you find her, you're not gonna hurt her, right?"

"No. We just want the beans she stole from us."

"I don't get it," said Mary Margaret. "Why would Regina leave her office unlocked?"

"Especially when she's keeping the beans here," David contributed. They all walked towards the glass case where the beans grew.

Mary Margaret noticed the lack of any bean pods on the stalk. "Was keeping them here. They're gone."

"Something's not right, Emma deducted. "Regina would never leave evidence like this behind."

"Maybe she already used them to portal out of Storybrooke?" her father suggested.

"Without Henry? I don't think so."

"What if something bad happened to her?"

Emma walked over to the keypad to the office's security alarm. "Security system says the last time someone was in the office was around six this morning." She pressed a button on the pad. What she found confused her. "They used an override code to get in."

"Why would Regina need an override code on her own alarm?"

"She wouldn't."

"You think someone else broke in and took the beans?"

"Well, we haven't found Regina anywhere and haven't heard from her."

"So something bad did happen to her."

"We're gonna find her Henry, I promise. "

"There's only one person who could overpower Regina."

"Gold."

"He's too busy with his new/old girlfriend. No, this wasn't Gold. This was Tamara."

The Charmings gave her a look, trying to get her to let go of her ex-lover-who-got-her-into-jail-and-is-also-her-son's-father's fiancé. They believed her to be jealous. This, however, was not the case. It was a shame no one believed her.

Bellatrix crossed the town line with no bother at all. Once she was totally within the town limits, she felt a rush of power wash over her. Her Dark One magic was back.

Oof.
Hope you enjoyed reading that chapter, I enjoyed writing it :)
Disclaimer: I copied a looot of the dialogue from OUAT.
Sorry for any mistakes.

Also, small note, I have been cross-posting this fic on ao3 which is the first site I update so... if you want, head over and subscribe there to get it slightly faster? Plus, comments work better over there XD

That's all for now folks *Cue Warner Bros cartoon outro*

-Snow