Chapter 5
Free Merlin

"Mommy, Daddy, you're back" cried Tally cried running up to Emma and Neal upon their arrival followed by Hook.
Emma said "sorry we had to leave for so long sweetheart but I was feeling out of sorts".
Suddenly the dreamcatcher in Emma's hand started to glow Tally asked "what's going on"?
Emma said "something must have activated it, but I'm not so sure it was me".
They watched intently and saw a young man calling for the dark one with the dagger and a hooded figure with a mask appeared. The man accused the dark one of destroying the only woman he ever loved but before he could destroy the dark one his grief prevented him and the dark one turned him into a tree with his own tear. Emma said "do you know what that is"?
Hook asked "what"?
Emma said "we are right by Merlin the tree, this is his memory of how he became a tree and showing us what we need to free him. A tear of a first loves heartbreak". Then someone else's memory appeared in the dreamcatcher and when they saw it Neal said "Robin where's Regina and the dagger"?

Emma got to Regina, Mary-Margaret and David in time to stop them getting the dagger. Emma immobilized her parents and told Regina in the dreamcatcher she saw Arthur and Guinevere place a spell over them. "How do I know this isn't the darkness rearing its head".
Emma said "I'm not asking for the dagger, now we don't have much time, Arthur will be expecting them soon".
Regina replied "he's the king, are you intending to take on all of Camelot"?
"Of course not, we need to free Merlin then he can free my parents from Arthur's spell".
"Which would be great if we had any idea how to free him".
"I may have one, something else the dreamcatcher showed me was how a previous dark one imprisoned him, with a tear of the loss of his first love".
"So you think we can make an antidote with a similar tear like with the venom of snakes and spiders".

When they got to the Sheriff's station they found Grif missing. David said "there's no sign of tampering".
Arthur replied "then he must have lied about having the bean. He must have hidden it on his person and used it to escape".
Guinevere asked "how could he be so selfish we could all be home right now"?
Neal replied "some people can only think of themselves".
Guinevere said "our people want so badly to return home, we must do something to raise their spirits".
Mary-Margaret said "you're right, the people need hope. And as your hosts and leaders of this town it's our job to provide it".
Henry asked "how about a party"?
David had seen Henry texting with someone when he mentioned it and asked "trying to find a way to ask your girlfriend out on a date".
Regina asked "girlfriend"?
Henry quickly said "she's not my girlfriend".
Regina asked "who's not your girlfriend"?
Tally answered "this pretty dark haired girl from Camelot".
Before Regina could pry more and Tally could give away more about the girl Henry's liked Mary-Margaret said "I think I party is a great idea. We'll organize it straight away".
Hook said to Henry "if you need dating tips mate..."
"it should come from his father" Neal interrupted. "You know I won your mother over when I played 'Only You' for her".

The moment they left Belle came running up to them Mary-Margaret asked "Belle is everything okay"?
Neal noticed the rose she was carrying was in one piece so he added "and last time I saw that Rose it was almost out of petals".
Tally asked "did something happen to Grandpa Gold"?
Belle answered "I noticed the petals reattaching themselves to the Rose so I hurried back to the shop to find him missing".

Emma told Gold he wasn't going anywhere until he got her the sword
Gold asked "you have so much power, why do you need Excalibur"?
Emma asked "when you were the dark one did you advertise your plans"?
"My plans were always hidden, but whatever you want with that sword can't be good".
"Let me ask why did you erase a certain event from Neal's memory"?
"You know why, I had to protect his soul".
"And I need that sword to protect everyone".
"You'll forgive if I have my doubts about that".
Emma called "Merida"
She came out from the shadows and said "yes Dark One"
Emma replied "get him out of my sight, take him to the woods and turn him into a hero".
Merida asked "how long do you think you can hold my heart"
"As long as it takes to get what I want".
"Maybe, but I'm thinking I can break your spell".
As Merida attempted to attack her Emma squeezed her heart stopping Merida in her tracks. "Now do as I said".

Henry spent time with Violet as she groomed her horse. When she left he picked up a sword and said "what's that Lady Violet if I pull Excalibur from the stone I will be forever your hero". The sword was heavier then he was used to but swung it a couple of times but when he held it over his head it made him fall over backwards. Violet's father came in and said "you're one of those visitors". When he got a better look at him he added "you're the one who's been hanging around my daughter".
Henry replied "Henry, you're Violet's father".
"It's Sir Morgan to you. How old are you"?
"Thirteen sir"
"And you have no skills with a sword or horse riding".
Henry replied "I have some skills, I fought a pirate with a cutlass not too long ago and won. My grandfather was going to teach me how to ride a horse but after an incident in the stables my first day he decided to wait a while before taking me back but we never got round to going back".
Sir Morgan asked "what kind of a squire do you intend to be"?
Henry replied "I don't, I'm a writer".
Sir Morgan said "a writer, tell me do you intend to protect my daughter from Ogres with your pen. Violet belongs with a knight, a hero, who knows this land and it's ways, none of which are you".

They decided to make the party a block party so Henry went to tell Violet. She was discouraged because her horse had run off, her father was trying to lure him out with pumpkin since it was his favourite treat. Henry suggested the party might get her mind off it but she didn't feel she could go to a party while her horse was still out there so Henry went to Emma. He asked "do you remember why I brought you to Storybrooke"?
"Operation Cobra" replied Emma. "Return all the happy endings".
"I know someone who needs their happy ending".
"Henry things are different now".
"Show me the old you is still in there"."She is, this is me now"."Prove it, help me bring back my friends happy ending". Emma couldn't deny him and agreed.

Emma and Regina found Henry trying to use a sword. When he saw them he said "hi mom, and mom. I was getting in the Camelot spirit".
Emma asked "does this have anything to do with a girl around your age with dark hair who likes horses".
Henry replied "her father suggested I should try to fit in".
Emma said "swinging a sword isn't you Henry. You should never change to fit someone else's expectations of you".
"But if I train maybe I can be better than I am" Henry explained.
Emma said "you are a wonderful version of yourself. A persistent believer, a good friend, a courageous writer".
Henry said "that doesn't really add up to much here".
Emma said "my point is your dad was always himself, and that was the man I fell in love with".
Regina said "do you think a girl from Camelot would be interested in someone who's just like everybody else. Do you remember Daniel my first love" Henry nodded. "What I loved about wasn't that he tried to impress me by being just like the others. It was because of how different he was from every other man I'd met".
Emma said "in Camelot you're a handsome mysterious visitor from an exotic land, use it".
Henry replied "I think I can work with that".
As he ran off Regina said "Emma I think I know where to get our missing ingredient, from me".

Back in the castle Emma got one of her dreamcatcher's and got the memory of Daniel's death. They watched as Cora pretended that she'd let them be together. Then as she pretended to give Daniel advice she ripped out his heart and crushed it. Regina wept and said "it was like it was happening all over again".
Emma said "I'm so sorry I had no idea how hard it was for you. I knew Cora had killed him but I had no idea. To raise your happiness then destroy it. How could any mother do that".
"My mother thought being Queen would make me happier. She was wrong, but she thought it was for the best".

While Henry and Emma were looking for Violet's horse and Mary-Margaret and David were preparing the party the others went to look around Emma's house. Neal said "we didn't really get a chance to look around last time we were here, Emma just wanted to have lunch together as a family".
Regina said "and Henry is going to let us know when she's headed back".
Tally asked "is this really necessary? Mommy said what she's doing is what's best for everyone."
"Sugar Plum" said Neal. "Grandpa Gold also told you he was planning to turn villains into heroes, remember how that turned out. When it comes to Dark Ones there it will always end with more darkness".
"The second Regina touched the handle a protection spell forced her hand off. "A protection spell, more effective than any security system".
Hook said "it would seem she doesn't want us interfering".
Tally pushed the door and it opened, Neal said "of course, she would let Henry and Tally in no matter what".

They decided to go in the basement and work their way up. When they saw Excalibur in a stone Neal said "I think we just found Arthur's sword".
Hook "she probably doesn't want anyone to see this and with good reason, look at Excalibur's remind you of any other blades".
Belle said "the dark one dagger. The design, the edges, they're the same".
Regina said "what could she possibly want with this, and with Gold"?
Robin said "seeing as she took our memories I'd say nothing good".
Hook said "then let's take a better look at it".
Before he could Neal said "we can't for Merlin said "who so ever pulleth the sword from the stone is the rightful king".
Hook asked "you remember meeting Merlin".
Regina answered "he means from the story of King Arthur, Merlin put the sword in the stone knowing only Arthur could pull it out".
Belle who'd been taking a better look said "apparently the specification for removing it has been widened". They looked on the other side of the stone where an inscription read

Only A Noble Hero
With A True Heart
Can Pull Forth This Sword.

Neal said "I guess the good news is a noble hero with a true heart can't be a dark one".
Before they could speculate any further Regina got a text from Henry on the way out Neal saw a dreamcatcher out on a table. Robin asked "what is it"?
Neal replied "fly paper for nightmares, it's called a dreamcatcher, Emma and I found one years ago and that was when we decided we wanted to settle down, it was suppose to symbolize our life together".
Tally said "maybe it proves Mommy still wants us to be a family".
Neal replied "except this is one isn't ours though".
Belle asked "then why does she have it out".
Regina said "because these our more than just folklore, when imbued with magic they can be quite powerful. I think I know how Emma took our memories".

Emma and Regina had told everyone else to go back to Granny's knowing once they freed Merlin staying Camelot wasn't an option. Regina and Emma worked on the potion in front of the tree. Finally it was time to put in the final ingredient but when they put in the tear a teal smoke came out then got sucked back in. Regina wondered why it didn't work but Emma understood. When Merlin was turned into a tree he was still grieving over his first love but Regina was with Robin now, her heartbreak had healed. Then Henry came up to them, it was obvious he was upset. He had tried to have a date with Violet his way but she had told him she just wanted to be friends. Regina wiped away his tear telling him he might not be a hero in her world but would be in theirs. Suddenly Arthur appeared with a few knights, he commanded she give him the dagger. Regina produced a fireball and gave Emma the tissue with Henry's tear. Emma quickly put the tissue into the potion and dark and light magic came out. Emma absorbed the power and directed it at the tree and the power encircled it and when it stopped there was a man standing there. He said "I've been waiting a long time for you Emma". Turning to Arthur he said "And you, the boy who would be king, I had such high hopes. How you've disappointed me" With no way to defeat him Arthur and his knights left.

At the block party they told Arthur what they found. "She has Excalibur" Arthur said.
Neal said "well yes and no, it's back in a stone and she obviously can't get it out but the stone it's in is in her basement".
Arthur said "I have to get it back at once".
Hook asked "does that have anything to do with its striking resemblance to the dark one dagger"?
Arthur asked "how do you know about the dagger".
Hook said "I spent years trying to destroy the Dark One, at least the former one anyway. In that time I learnt much about the dagger, but your sword is another matter entirely".
Arthur replied "they were originally formed as one with the purpose of cutting immortal ties however shortly after its creation it was broken and the Dark One at the time took the tip and turned it into a dagger and tied his life to it".
Neal commented "because he knew with the ability to cut immortal ties it was the only weapon that could kill him. And with his life tied to it whoever killed him would become the new Dark One, except for this time. Probably why it took six weeks for the darkness to take over".
Arthur continued "when Excalibur and the dagger are once again one it could destroy all Dark Magic".
Neal said "that's great".
Arthur added "and it could also destroy all Light Magic".
Neal said "that's not".
Hook said "that's her plan".
Mary-Margaret asking no one in particular asked "what happened in Camelot? How did Emma fall so far"?
At that moment everyone saw Henry riding into the party on Violet's horse straight up to her and after giving her horse back he went up to his family. "She helped me find the horse" he said.
Neal replied "I can see that".
Henry mentioned "if she can still bring back someone's happy ending then maybe the old her isn't completely gone and maybe we can get her back".
Trying to hide his scepticism Neal replied "sure, there's always hope. Now Tally is playing some of the games with Belle, you could go join them but I have a feeling you'd enjoy spending time with a certain dark haired girl more".
When Henry left Hook asked "do you really believe that"?
Neal said "nothing I've seen suggests it but I can't tell Henry or Tally that. Four years ago they lost her for weeks and it tore them up inside, I couldn't take away their hope".

Meanwhile Merida's training hadn't gone too well. She tied him up while she tried to find another more effective way. When she cut the ropes he said "please, I can't fight".
Merida told him "no, you won't fight, big difference. My father used to say if you want a lad to fight give him something worth fighting for". And she put her sword under his chin.
Scared Gold asked "what are you doing"?
"Reminding you what you have to fight for" Merida replied and held up the chipped teacup.
With a tinge of strength he asked "where did you get that"?
Merida waved it front of him as he used a stick to help himself get up. "This means something to you, doesn't it? If you want it you're going to have to fight me for it"? She tossed a sword to him but he threw it down and reached out for it. Merida knocked him over and said "I see it's chipped, must be fragile". Kneeling down she added "we wouldn't want to drop it now would we"?
"No, please, don't" he pleaded.
"So what happened did your Belle see the yellow bellied man you really were, I bet she did. That had to sting". Gold picked up the sword she'd thrown to him and swung it getting up "Did you feel that"?
"Feel what"? he asked.
"That swing right there, you weren't thinking of yourself or the limp, you were thinking of her. That was an act of pure bravery. Maybe there hope for you yet". Then they carried on sparring.

When Regina and Robin got home Regina took a look at the dreamcatcher they found in Emma's house. "If Emma used this is rip our memories out then maybe we can use it to find out what happened in Camelot".
She shakily reached out to take it then pulled back Robin asked "afraid of what you might see"?
Regina answered "Emma seems to think she had a good reason for taking our memories, what if this is a mistake"?
Robin replied "you won't know unless you look".
She picked it up and they saw the first time Henry and Violet met. Robin asked "are these Henry's memories"?
The image changed to show Violet alone Regina said "no, its that girl he likes". They hadn't even noticed Henry come in with a box of popcorn.
Inside the dreamcatcher they saw Violet get a note from Henry, Emma appeared and took out her heart assuring her she would get it back but first she had to break Henry's heart so they could get a fresh tear. After seeing that Henry dropped his popcorn letting Regina and Robin know he was there with the sting of betrayal in his eyes.

Once they had freed Merlin they took him to where they had taken Mary-Margaret and David. Merlin unfroze them while removing the sand from their eyes. At first they seemed confused then they realised what had happened. Mary-Margaret hugged Emma, "Emma we are so sorry".
"David added "if we had known how bad Arthur was we never would have confronted him on our own".
Emma replied "it's alright, I'm just glad Merlin could help" gesturing to the young looking black man on her left.
David asked "you're Merlin"?
Merlin asked "you act surprised, what were you expecting"?
David said "someone... older".
Neal said "with a long white beard, maybe a pointy hat, kinda like Dumbledore".
Merlin told David "well, being a tree is good for the skin" and turned to Neal and asked "and who's Dumbledore"?
Neal answered "just a wizard from another story, doesn't matter".
Hook said "now Merlin is here, can you do as your apprentice said, can you free Emma of the darkness"?
Merlin looked at Emma and said "I believe so, but darkness like this it takes a hold of its host, wheedles its way into the heart. At some point the line between good and evil gets blurred and the darkness will creep along bit by bit until it can no longer be concealed".
Neal asked "you mean like how my father's complexion changed".
Merlin nodded and replied "indeed".
Neal looked at Emma and said "thank goodness that hasn't happened yet".
Merlin continued "if I am to free you of the darkness Emma I must know are you ready"?
"Absolutely".

Who should the other dark one be?

Neal – 4
Anyone Else - 0