The next day, Ida was sitting in the courtyard reading a book. Snow approached her, a confused and hurt look on her face.
"Snow, what is it?" Ida stood and approached her cousin. "What's happened?"
"A guard has been killed. H-He heard something strange in father's bedchamber, and when he went to investigate; two vipers came from under the bed and bit his leg; he was dead in seconds. When another guard was able to kill the vipers, he was able to identify their species. Agrabahn vipers. If they were from Agrabah, and they were found in father's bed, then that means-"
"The Genie did this." Ida finished.
"Yes, but what reason would he have to kill my father? The man who freed him and showed him nothing but kindness. I thought that we could trust him, I thought-"
"He fooled everyone. Don't worry, he'll pay dearly for this."
Snow scoffed and wiped away some stray tears. "No. Vengeance would solve nothing. Father wouldn't want it."
Ida sighed. "I know; but I also know that we must get answers. Have the guards found him yet?"
"No, not yet. Regina told them to search every inch of the palace."
"I'll help them look. It's best if you stay here and gather your thoughts." Ida said and Snow nodded in agreement.
Ida left the courtyard and began her search for The Genie. She wondered from room to room and hallway to hallway. She paused halfway down a hall and sighed; trying to decide which direction to go next.
"You fooled me. You never loved me."
Recognizing that voice as The Genie's, Ida followed it to Regina's bedchamber. She pushed herself against the wall, and inched her way towards where she could see what was happening. Needless to say, it was a great shock when she saw that The Genie was talking to her aunt.
"Loved you? I wanted the king killed and you killed him. You are no longer of any use to me. Be grateful I'm offering you an escape. Now flee the kingdom and never turn back."
"I can't live without you. I won't live without you."
"Did you not understand me? I don't love you. There's no way we will ever be together."
"There is one way."
Ida watched as The Genie took his lamp from his pocket. She could feel her heart beat against her chest; knowing this wasn't going to end well.
"There is still one wish remaining. I wish to be with you forever. To look upon your face always. To never leave your side."
Suddenly, blue smoke engulfed The Genie and he vanished, his lamp clattering to the floor. She could tapping and horrific yelling.
"Looks like you've got your wish. You will be with me. Forever." Ida heard Regina say.
Maneuvering herself again, Ida was finally able to see just what had happened to The Genie. Inside her aunt's mirror, she did not see Regina's reflection looking back at her; but The Genie's.
Ida gasped in terror. "No."
As Ida backed up, she accidentally knocked over a vase and it shattered upon hitting the floor. Regina quickly looked in the direction of the sound, and smirked upon seeing Ida.
"Hello, Ida." Regina said.
Ida recoiled slightly, but then remembered someone very important: Her uncle.
"I know what you've done, Regina. I heard it all. You used The Genie so that he would kill Uncle Leopold. I will be certain that you both pay for your crimes."
"Oh, don't bother The Genie, he's already found his prison. As for me? I don't take too kindly to threats."
Ida shook her head. "That's was no threat. All I have to do is tell Papa and he'll order your arrest on the behalf of my uncle."
Regina laughed shortly. "You really think that Magnus has that authority? I am in charge here, I am the queen!"
"You'll find, Your Majesty, that loyalty to my uncle and to all of his family runs very deep in the kingdom. Papa was once this kingdom's prince; long before you even came here. Do you really think that The Royal Council will believe you? Or me?"
Regina looked Ida up and down, and then scowled. "You're right."
Regina quickly lifted her hand, and Ida started to gasp for air.
"You have magic." Ida choked out.
"Surprise!" Regina said with mock enthusiasm.
"Kill me then. It's the only way you'll win!"
"Oh, no." Regina put her hand down and Ida took a deep breath, coughing violently. "Another body only means more suspicion. So then, I'll just have you removed."
"Removed? To where?"
Regina smiled and looked towards her mirror. "Somewhere that you may reflect upon your decisions. Don't worry, at least you'll have company."
Ida was suddenly surrounded by red smoke. When it cleared, she found herself surrounded by thousands and thousands of mirrors. The sky was a darkened orange, and the place surrounded with mirrors and tall, bare, and withered trees. Ida saw The Genie sitting nearby, his head lowered.
"You!" Ida stormed up to The Genie and hit him across the face. "You killed my uncle! You're a monster!"
"If you want to kill me, then do it. I don't care anymore."
Ida clenched her fists tight, until her knuckles turned white. As badly as she wanted to harm The Genie; she also knew that killing him would make her no better than him and Regina. She frowned and was able to relax her fists.
"No. I won't. I won't be a killer." Ida turned away from The Genie. "I'll find a way out of here and I'll do it alone. With no help from you."
Ida squared her shoulders and walked away and began to make her way through the wasteland.
One morning, Heather woke up and dressed for the day ahead. After brushing her teeth, she started to brush her hair. She suddenly froze and looked deep into the mirror, staring blankly at her reflection. She snapped out of it, when she heard the door to her apartment open.
"Anyone home?"
Heather sighed. "I'll be right there, Emma." She called out.
Staring at her reflection for a few more seconds, Heather quickly put the hairbrush down on the sink and then stepped out of the bathroom to greet Mary Margaret's roommate, Emma Swan.
"Hey. You okay?" Emma asked.
"Oh, just a little spacey this morning. What are you doing here?"
"I came to ask you a favor."
Heather nodded and folded her arms. "Sure, anything."
"You know how I've been able to walk Henry to school? Well, I did something really, really bad last night and now Regina has threatened a lawsuit if I come near him without her permission. Which I doubt she's gonna grant anytime soon."
"What did you do?"
"I tried to leave Storybrooke with Henry." Heather opened her mouth to speak, but Emma held up her hand. "I already got the lecture from Mary Margaret. It was selfish, dumb, and everything in between. I wasn't thinking very clearly at the moment."
"That's obvious."
An awkward silence fell between the two before Heather sighed deeply.
"What about Mary-Margaret?"
"Normally, I'd ask her, but she's pretty pissed still. So, would you do this for me?"
"Sure. I'm not supposed to be at work for a few hours."
Emma arched an eyebrow. "Just like that?"
"I'm not in a position to judge you, Emma. Especially since everyone in town hasn't been acting like themselves these past few weeks."
"Thank you."
Heather nodded and smiled slightly. She followed Emma out of the apartment, closing the door behind her.
After parting ways from Emma, Heather made her way over to Mayor Mills' house. Before she could even knock, Mayor Regina Mills opened the door.
"That was fast."
"What are you doing here, Ms. Beck?"
"I'm actually here to take Henry to school. Emma thought this would be better."
"Then she told you. Well, I'm certainly glad that I finally got through to Ms. Swan. Though I am surprised to see you and not Ms. Blanchard."
"Well, the point is, I'm here now." Heather said, hoping that Mayor Mills would get the hint that she didn't wanna talk about the situation in full.
Regina smirked. "Yes, you are."
"Well, is he ready?"
"Henry!" Regina called out, without even taking her eyes off Heather.
Henry came running out of the house and smiled upon seeing Heather.
"Heather?"
"Yep. I'm on school duty today. Come on, I don't want you to be late."
Heather and Henry left the house. As soon as they were down the street, Henry breathed a sigh of relief.
"Finally, it's safe. We have a major emergency!"
"We do?"
"Operation Cobra is in serious jeopardy!"
"Oh, it is?"
"Yeah. Come here." Henry ducked behind a bush and gestured for Heather to lean closer. "Emma tried to make us leave Storybrooke last night." He said quietly.
Heather frowned. "I know she did."
"I was able to turn the car off the road."
"You did what? Henry, do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
"Not as dangerous as what would've happened if we had left."
"Oh, Henry."
"Forget about that; the point is that Emma still doesn't believe. We have to find August, maybe he can help."
"Henry." Heather kneeled in front of Henry and took his hands. "Sweetie, I know you're shaken up about last night, but you can't force Emma to believe in something that she doesn't want to."
"I know that." Henry said, and Heather smiled. "We just have to find some sort of proof and then she'll just believe on her own. If we're gonna find August-"
"You aren't finding anybody right now. You're going to school and staying there. Now, you can go search for August, but not now. I mean, if Regina really is The Evil Queen, you don't want to make her mad, do you?"
Henry sighed. "I guess not."
Heather ruffled Henry's hair. "Always knew you were a smart kid. Come on, let's shake a leg."
The two continued walking until they reached Henry's school. Henry dropped his backpack to the ground and opened it.
"What's up?" Heather asked.
"Like I said, we need to start looking for proof. My mom already told and the other teachers to take my book if they found it with me. So..." Henry took out his book called "Once Upon A Time" and handed it to Heather. "It's up to you to start looking. Can I trust you with this mission?"
"Mission accepted, sir." Heather kissed Henry on the forehead. "Go on. Scoot."
Henry picked up his backpack and headed into the school. Smiling to herself, Heather started on the walk to the shop.
It was a slow day at work, only three or four customers. Moe left early, as he still wasn't feeling completely like himself, and left Heather to lock up for the evening. After giving the flower in the greenhouse a final spray for the evening, Heather began to turn off all the lights in the shop. She paused when she saw Henry's storybook sitting on the counter; and for some reason, her curiosity was suddenly aroused. She began to flip through the book, only stopping once and awhile to admire the illustrations. Halfway through, she came across a picture of a girl, possibly a princess, who looked remarkably like her. Her heart racing, Heather flipped through a few more pages until she came across a picture of the princess being pulled through a mirror, with her trying to reach out to someone's hand. Heather ran her hand over the illustration, and all at once, her mind started to race with all sorts of unfamiliar images. They all came in a blur, expect for the last one: her kissing a man passionately and speaking to him in a voice just above a whisper.
"I'll free you from her. I promise."
Heather backed up quickly from the book, panting heavily. She wasn't sure what had happened, but she did know that she was suddenly filled with terror and sadness.