It's here! The final of the 'Savior' series! Thank you all so much for your support with this story; not just the story but also the stress with having this story copied and 'edited' so that someone else is claiming it as theirs. That has honestly made me want to just quit writing (especially when I see the same people who leave great reviews on mine, leave good reviews on hers and don't get how frustrating it is to have your work copied). Anyway, I'm going to try and look past that and get on with the story. I hope you enjoy!
Read~Review~Enjoy
Chapter 1
The four adults paced the living room as Millie sat on a chair, curled up. She wanted her mama but didn't want to annoy her when she was obviously so upset. She wanted to tell her all about the room with fire and how scared she was and how happy she was that her mama saved her. She wanted to tell her about how Ms. Blanchard told her that her Nana and Gramma were evil and would hurt her after the curse. She wanted to tell her all of it, but as she watched Emma pace, she didn't know how. She didn't believe the lady about her grandmothers, but if the lady was telling her that, maybe she was telling other people the same thing.
"I feel like I should be out there. I broke the curse; I should be finding out what's going on." Emma said, running her fingers through her hair.
"Your job is done, my ducky." Mal said, cupping Emma's face and looking into her eyes. "You broke the curse; that's all you were meant to do. Whatever happens next isn't on your shoulders."
Emma's eyes filled with tears. "It is if something happens to you, Mom, Lilly, or Millie. It would be all my fault for breaking the curse."
Mal gave Emma a stern look. "You had to, Emma; there was no other choice. It was all destined long before you were even born."
"It was her fault, Mama." Millie said in a quiet voice. "The lady in the lunchroom. And my fault because I drank what she gave me when I shouldn't have."
Emma saw Millie's eyes fill and instantly felt guilty. She hadn't once asked how her daughter was. She rushed over and pulled the girl on her lap, holding her close. "None of this is your fault, Millie. None of it."
"Ms. Blanchard told me that Nana and Gramma were evil and that I had to do my part to get the truth out there. Mama, I know they're not evil, so I said that I'd drink what she gave me to prove it. Then I was in a room with flames all around me. I was so scared, Mama, but I kept telling myself that you'd save me." She looked into Emma's eyes. "And you did, and Nana and Gramma aren't evil. She's evil."
Emma held Amelia close and wiped at her eyes. "I'm so sorry she did this to you, baby girl. I'm so, so sorry."
"It's not your fault, Mama."
There was a knock on the door, and everyone grew stiff. "Girls? It's Cora and Zelena." Came Cora's voice and Mal went to open the door.
"Come in." Mal looked at Regina. "I called them. I know that no one here other than Snow knows them, but I thought it better if they were here."
Regina nodded. "Of course."
Cora looked at her daughter. "What's wrong?"
"It's just…I don't have my magic. I thought once the curse broke, we'd at least have our magic to protect us."
"None of us do." Zelena said.
"I think we're about to…I should take the girls outside." Mal said, looking out the window.
Regina saw the purple cloud coming towards them and took a deep breath. "Girls go with Mal. Listen to her and don't do anything stupid."
"You think we all will turn?" Lilly asked, feeling a little excited at what was about to happen.
"I honestly don't know, but I'd rather be prepared." Mal said, leading them outside. "I know that you, Lilly have shown more signs than Emma and Amelia, but you're all three a part of me." She watched as the cloud approached. "When the cloud hits us, you'll all feel something; whether it's magic or dragon or both. Try not to freak out and just go with your instincts."
Emma felt Amelia hold her hand tighter and she knelt to her level. "It's okay Millie. No one here will let you get hurt." She gave her daughter a brave smile. "Our lives are about to change, baby girl, but I promise you, I will always be here for you." She wrapped her arms around Amelia and braced them for the cloud to hit.
Mal was the only one with her eyes wide open and she inhaled the magic as it hit them. Her eyes turned deep orange and she let the dragon inside her take over. She shifted quickly and then looked at the girls. Lilly's eyes opened and were the same shade of orange as her mother's and when she shifted, she was a magnificent black dragon. Emma and Amelia's eyes turned more of a violet and, to Mal's pride, they both also shifted. Emma was an almost translucent blue and purple while Amelia, being young still, was almost white, but had hints of Emma's blue in her.
"Mama! I'm scared!" Emma heard in her head and though she wanted to calm her daughter, she was a bit scared herself.
"Don't be scared, little one. Just take deep breaths. This is just another side to us." Mal said and Emma realized they were all speaking through their minds.
Emma reached her wing out to wrap around her little dragon and did her best to show things were okay. "Open your eyes, baby. It's pretty cool. We can see better this way."
Amelia's purple eyes blinked a few times and she peaked her head over her mother's wings to look around. "Nana?"
Mal stood in all her glory, clearly the elder in the group. "Yes, baby. You have nothing to fear."
Lilly, who had completely embraced this, started flapping her wings. "I want to fly."
"We will, but right now, we need to shift back. Unfortunately, we have to worry about other things right now."
Emma chuckled as Lilly's dragon pouted. "Why do we all look different?"
"Because we're all different inside." Mal stated. "Amelia will change as she gets older. All young dragons are born white so their mother's can always find them. Okay girls, focus on your human bodies and let your instincts do the work."
It didn't take long before they were all back to human form, though Lilly's change was much faster. "That is so cool. I can't wait to do that again."
"You will. You're all part dragon, but Lilly, I think yours is stronger. I have a feeling that magic will be easier for Emma than it will be for you."
"Because Regina carried me?"
"Not necessarily. Simply because it's come to you even when it shouldn't have been able to. Come, let's get back inside."
Regina had been watching and hugged the girls as they came in. "You all look so beautiful in your dragon forms." She then took Emma's hand. "Can you feel it inside you? The magic?"
Emma nodded, squeezing her mother's hand. "It's like bolts of electricity."
"I feel like bugs are in my skin." Amelia said, itching her arms.
"Will she have magic?" Zelena asked while Cora knelt down by the little girl.
"I think she'll end up being the strongest of all of us one day."
The women spent time teaching the girls some basic protection spells and Zelena had fun teaching Millie how to make bubbles with magic when there was a knock at the door. Regina held her hand out and everyone stopped, watching with bated breath. When she opened it, she was surprised. "Graham?"
He gave a bow. "Your majesty. I wanted to inform you that Prince David would like to speak with you. Everyone is confused and looking for answers and all Princess Snow is saying is that you're evil."
Regina stared for a moment. "Graham…" She lowered her voice. "I gave you your heart back. You don't need to…I mean, you shouldn't be kind to me."
He gently squeezed her arm. "I am doing this of my own free will, Queen Regina. There is more to Snow than the others know or want to know and if I may say so, she needs to be exposed."
"He's right. Regina, she's already spreading vicious lies about you." Blue said, coming up to the door. "We need to nip this in the bud sooner rather than later."
"Regina." Regina turned and saw David by himself. "Can we please talk?" His eyes were filled with tears. "Emma…is she okay?"
Regina pinched the bridge of her nose. "I need to make sure my family is safe. Blue, you can come in as I trust you. David, there's…there's some truths you need to hear and Graham…"
"I'll stay and keep the permitter safe. I know it may seem odd, your Majesty, but I promise my loyalty is to you."
Regina searched his eyes and nodded, finding she could trust him. She then looked at David. "If you swear no one is at risk of getting hurt, you may come in."
"I swear. Regina, I need answers and all Snow will say is that I should be with her and we need to punish you and Mal for taking our daughter."
"Come in. I swear, there's so much to talk about and no time to do it." Regina said as she came in following him.
"I can fix that." Blue said, holding out her wand. "David, do you want the full truth?"
"Yes." He said, looking at Emma. "I want what's best for her, no matter if she's mine or not."
Blue nodded and tapped the wand to David's head, sending him her memories and everything she knew of the situation. David gasped and shook his head, sitting down. "Regina I…I had no idea. I never would have been okay with this. I'm so sorry."
Regina let out a sigh. "I know that, David. Believe me, we place no blame on you. I'm sorry you were involved in this at all."
He ran his fingers through his hair and looked at Emma. "I'd be so proud to call you mine, Emma, but I'm glad you're with your true family."
Emma gave a nod. "Where's Kathryn?"
"She's at home with Abby and Jacob. She knows I'm here but wants to keep the kids far from Snow. I think she was afraid that as soon as we found out, I'd have left and ran to Snow but…I just couldn't. They're my family and I feel closer to her than I ever did Snow." He sighed. "Now I know why. Snow was never who she claimed to be." He then looked at Lilly and Mal. "I owe you two the biggest apology. I'm so sorry I ever let her talk me into doing what we did. I had no idea the baby would be sent to another realm. It doesn't excuse anything, but I am sorry."
Mal looked at Lilly who nodded. "Thank you. I've moved on from that, but if you really are sorry, you can show it by being on our side. We have the truth with us, but there's no telling what the rest of the town will believe."
"You're right about that, but from what I did hear, most people are surprisingly okay with everything. Ruby was saying how she hasn't missed wolves time and even the dwarfs were talking about how great it's been doing things other than mining." David stated. "Regina, I think the sooner you talk to everyone, the better."
Regina looked at everyone and then nodded. "He's right and maybe I shouldn't ask this of you all, but I don't want us to be separated. Will you all come with?"
Everyone nodded and Emma lifted Millie to her hip. "We'll always be with you, Mom. It's time the town finds out the truth about Snow."
Regina nodded and then looked at David. "Town hall in one hour. Please spread the word."
"I will." He then left and talked to Graham, the two of them working a plan to get everyone to town hall.
Mal looked at Emma and saw her chewing her lip. "Duckie? What's wrong?"
"This is more than just Snow." She said, putting Millie down and pacing. "Snow gave Millie the sleeping curse, but she has no magic. The curse broke and there still was no magic until that purple cloud. Who released that? Snow is dangerous, sure, but whoever is helping her is even more dangerous."
Mal, Regina, Cora, and Zelena all looked at each other. "Rumple."
"Rumple?" Lilly asked. "You mean Mr. Gold? But I thought he didn't remember."
"I'm willing to bet that actually never worked." Cora stated. "I bet he never forgot but instead, played along with you."
"Emma, remember when you were fourteen and you ran away? Gold took you, remember? He said something about how he needed you in the outside world until you were twenty-eight."
Emma nodded. "That's right. He said he had plans for me out there and that he needed me to go. I wonder if he figured out another way to get what he wanted and now just needed magic." Emma shook her head. "I don't know; this is all confusing."
Regina went to Emma and wrapped her arms around her. "Emma, it doesn't matter. You broke the curse, now we all work together as a family. You're not alone and you don't have to work this out alone. Come on, let's go to town hall." She looked at Mal who took Lilly's hand and then smiled at Amelia. "Take your Mommy's hand, Sweet Pea." When she did, the group all poofed into various clouds of smoke and then showed up at town hall.
"That was so cool!" Millie exclaimed. "Like…POOF!"
Cora chuckled. "Yes, like poof."
They got things ready and Mal had the girls help her put a protection spell over the stage, agreeing they'd all stay up there with Regina. People started arriving, some with smiles and greetings, some looking a little suspicious and some with simply hate filled eyes. It was hard for Emma to see people she'd known for her whole life look at them with disgust. Ella came in and walked right up to the stage. "How could you, Emma? These women are not your mothers! They took you from your true family and have torn us all apart!"
Emma shook her head and noticed others listening. "Except they didn't. Just wait, you'll hear the truth about your precious Snow White."
Ella just shook her head and looked at Emma with pity. "They've really gotten to you, haven't they?"
Before Emma could answer, the door burst open and Snow appeared. "Why are they not arrested? Graham, you have orders to arrest them!"
Graham cleared his throat. "I don't take orders from you, Snow. Now if you're going to be here, sit down and stop with this nonsense."
David, Kathryn, and their kids walked in and Kathryn held their newest Abby in her arms. Snow looked over and smiled. "David, you've come to your senses. Come here, my love."
David shook his head. "I am not your love, Snow. I know the truth about you and the horrible things you did and even if I didn't, I love Kathryn; I love my family."
"But it's all lies. You were under a curse; she's not really your love."
"She is. You took her away from me once, you won't do it again." He then put his hand on Kathryn's back and the family took their seats.
Snow huffed and went to sit by Ella, both whispering away at how ridiculous all of this was and how it was only a matter of time before things would be normal.
Regina noticed Rumple wasn't there, but she couldn't hold off any longer and she cleared her throat, causing the room to go quiet. Everyone else from town was there and were waiting to hear what she had to say.
"Citizens of Storybrooke, I know this is all rather confusing, but I thank you for coming here today." She went on with her speech, apologizing for her past, admitting all her wrong doings and regrets. "I know I can never be forgiven, however, there have been some truths that have come out and I think it only fair that you all hear about them. I may have been evil, but there is someone here who was worse. Blue has agreed to share everything she knows."
Emma noticed Snow turn even more white than normal and she couldn't help but smirk. Blue stood and went to the podium. "There are actually two people worse than Regina and Maleficent; one we all know about and we will have to deal with, but the other…the other has paraded around as innocent since she was barely ten years old. Now that I'm free from the blood oath, I wish to share with you the details. It's easier for me to show you than to tell you." She dimmed the lights and used her wand to produce a film of sorts on the projection screen.
Everyone watched in silence as a young Snow came onto the screen. Even Regina and Maleficent were confused on this and they watched as Snow set about poisoning her own mother. When Blue asked the girl about this, she explained that she wanted to be queen sooner.
Regina looked at her mother and was at least glad to find out she didn't kill Eva as she had suspected.
It then showed how Snow threw a fit when her father announced he was getting remarried. She didn't want anyone standing in the way and she saw Regina as another obstacle. She couldn't wait to tell Cora the truth about Regina and Daniel but was mad when she found out that backfired on her as well. It showed how Snow quite often told the king lies about Regina, causing her to be unfairly punished.
Maleficent squeezed Regina's hand as Regina let a tear trickle down her cheek. She had no idea Snow was the reason behind the cruelty the king showed her all those years.
Finally, it showed Snow's horrible plan with Emma and how she tricked Blue into taking Regina and Mal's baby and impregnating her. "So, you see, a lot of what was done could have been prevented." Blue said, explaining why she was forced to do the Princess's bidding. "I'm not saying that all of Regina's actions are forgivable, but neither are Snow's. As far as Maleficent goes, she was never as dark as she wanted everyone to believe…but that's not my story to tell."
"What does all this mean?" Ruby asked, standing. "Sure, it means Snow is much more vile than we thought, but do we forgive one and punish the other?" She looked at Emma. "I'm not saying Snow shouldn't be punished for what she did, what she planned with you, Emma, but a lot of lives were lost because of…your mother."
"And a lot of lives were saved because of her other mother." Granny stated. "Your cape came from her. Potions masked as tonics came from her to help many of us."
"True, but that was Maleficent, not Regina." Another said. "I think both Regina and Snow deserve punishment. Banish them! That would be the punishment back there. Banish them from town!"
Emma shook her head and took Regina's hand. "No! No you can't send my mother away!"
Graham stood. "With all due respect, if Regina had never been pushed, she'd have never had to do the things she did. You all saw that; you all saw what she went through. Can you all honestly say you wouldn't have snapped if that were you?"
There were murmurs and Lilly suddenly stood. "Stop her!" She pointed as Snow quickly left the building. "Damn it! Look, I get you're all pissed about what my mom did, but Snow is dangerous! Mom sat here and admitted to everything, apologized and was honest while Snow has done nothing but lie. Does redemption mean nothing?"
David stood. "All those in favor of forgiving Her Majesty, raise your hand."
Emma held her breath, closing her eyes for a moment before she opened them, seeing most hands in the air. She smiled and let out her breath.
"All in favor of keeping Regina as mayor, raise your hand."
Again, most hands went up and Regina couldn't help but feel grateful. "Thank you. I promise, you won't regret it."
"Now, we really do need to find Snow." Blue said. "Please, if anyone sees her, call the sheriff's station; do not approach on your own. You may think you know her but…"
"But none of us do." Ella said and looked at Emma. "I'm sorry, Emma."
"It's okay."
After Town Hall cleared, the Mill's family went home. Regina and Mal put protection spells up and Cora and Zelena decided to stay the night. Emma got Millie bathed and lay in her bed, tucking her in.
"Mommy? Is that lady gonna leave us alone?"
Emma ran her fingers through Millie's hair. "I don't know baby, but what I do know is you are safe and will always be safe."
"Mommy, I don't wanna go to bed."
"Why not, honey?"
"I don't wanna go back to the room with fire."
"Honey, you're not under a curse anymore; you won't go there."
"But when I fell asleep earlier, I was back there."
"She's right." Mal sighed. "Once someone has been under the curse, they go back to that room when they fall asleep. After a while, it goes away."
Emma sighed and shook her head. "I hate Snow White. She was under the curse so she would know this. How could she do this to a child?"
"Well, being that I made the curse, it's a good thing I know a secret." Mal said, waving her hand and filling the room with candlelight. She looked at Millie and tapped her nose. "Candlelight will keep you from going to that dark room, sweetie. Close your eyes; I promise you you'll be okay."
Amelia closed her eyes, but then looked at Emma. "Will you stay with me, Mama?"
Emma nodded. "Let me go get changed and I'll…" She looked at Mal. "What?"
"Use your magic."
"I don't know how."
"Just think about your pajamas, and will them on you."
Emma closed her eyes and did just that. When she opened them, she gasped to see she was in her pajamas. "I did that?"
"You did, Princess." Regina said from the doorway. "I'm so proud." She came in and kissed Emma's forehead before kissing Millie's. "You two get some sleep; it's been a long day. I love you both so much."
"I love you, mom." Emma said, hugging her.
"Love you, gramma." Millie echoed.
The two cuddled up and in a matter of moments, they were asleep. Mal and Regina then went to Lilly's old room, glad they could talk both their girls into staying in the main house.
"Mama? Can we do dragon things tomorrow?"
Mal chuckled. "Yes, Lilly. I think we can do some dragon lessons tomorrow. Now, get some sleep."
"I love you, sweetheart." Regina said, kissing Lilly's forehead.
"Love you both."
When Regina and Mal were cuddled in bed after double checking on the protection spells, Regina sighed. "Everything is going to change now. We need to find Snow, figure out what Rumple is up to, keep our girls safe. It's just…I'm going to miss pre curse days."
"Me too, my love. But remember, we can always leave. At any time, we can just go."
At the border, Rumple cursed as she tried to break through the barrier. He thought he'd had it all figured out but it seemed him bringing magic back didn't get rid of the barrier. He rolled his eyes when he heard footsteps behind him. "I'm afraid we can't leave yet, dearie."
"You said! Now everyone knows about me. I must leave. Rumple, we've been working together since I was a child. You promised."
"I though magic would lift the barrier, Snow. Until I figure this out, stay in my cabin in the woods. I'll make sure you have enough food and clothing. You'll be safe there." He lit a path for her. "Go. I'll keep you safe."
She sighed, but followed the path, all the while trying to plan how to kill Regina and her family.