Chapter 29

The Madman


(Daniella's POV)

The plan worked well. Snow was put behind bars in the sheriff station. The town believes that Kathryn Nolan's disappearance was in the hands of Snow. Everything went well until the afternoon came when I was walking home from school with Henry. He received a message from Emma on his walkie talkie, telling him that Mary Margaret had somehow escaped. Immediately, that made him rush towards the station to have a look. I knew I couldn't leave him so reluctantly, I followed, only to find Rumplestilskin in the same room as Emma.

Before I could approach Rumple and demand why he was working with Emma, the saviour exclaimed, "Henry? And Daniella? What are you two doing here?"

Henry replied, "I came to congratulate you."

"For what?"

"Your genius plan!"

Rumple looked sideways at me and questioned, "And what plan's that, Henry?"

My brother glanced at me and looked down awkwardly. I crossed my arms. "And how come I wasn't informed of this plan?"

Henry looked up and snipped back, "You're on Regina's side. I'm not going to tell anything to you."

I huffed and held my head up as I approached Rumple. Then, I used an innocent tone and pleaded, "Mr Gold, may I please speak with you?"

To my surprise, he nodded and walked out to the corridor with me. When he made sure that we were alone and out of eavesdropping distance, he smirked and said, "What's wrong, your highness?"

Although my heart was thumping, I told myself that there was no reason to fear the dark one in this realm without magic. So, I glared at him and accused, "Why are you helping Snow and Emma? Mother cast this stupid curse for you and it seems as if you want the curse to be broken."

"Stupid curse? I'm sure I don't need to remind you that the curse is saving your life right now."

Quickly, I replied, "Which is exactly why I'm concerned."

There was a pause. Then, the Dark One reverted partially to his Enchanted Forest voice and whispered, "Oh yes, that's right. Things aren't going to look good for you if the curse breaks..."

I felt blood rush through my ears. Then, it stopped altogether for a second. I shakily stated, "Once the curse breaks, I'll die right?"

"Hasn't your dear mother mentioned that to you?"

I glared at Rumple and avoided the question.

"Or...maybe she doesn't know...you should tell her you know. It concerns you both."

I took a breath and despite my interest, suppressed the questions that arose. "That's not the point of this conversation. I want to know why you're helping Snow. Why do you want her to be released? I thought you were on the same side as us..."

"My reasons are my own."

"So you want the curse to be broken?"

"I never said that."

"But you've implied that."

There was a pause as Rumple swapped the hand holding his cane. Whilst leaning on it, he peered down at me and commented, "You should be asking less questions, girl."

I huffed and replied with narrowed eyes, "It's either Daniella, or 'your highness'...I don't appreciate being called 'girl'. I don't care if you're the Dark One, or Mr Gold, but know that you've chosen the wrong side."

"Fiesty. Just your mother. You know, your appearance threw me off a bit." The Dark One chuckled and continued, "Be careful dearie...I'm the one with the power around here, contrary to what you might believe"

I have to admit, I was visible shaking at Rumple's words. He wants the curse broken; which means that I would die. Giving him one last glare, I strode back down the corridor to where Emma and Henry were standing. As I walked away, I heard Rumple chuckle slightly. My cheeks burned red. Since when did I speak to people like that?...

When I entered the sheriff station once again, Henry was sitting on a chair, reading his book of fairy tales. He came up to me and whispered, "What happened?"

In a low voice, I replied, "Nothing. Just needed to talk to him."

Henry raised his eyebrows but didn't reply. Then, Mr Gold came into the room and addressed Emma, "Her arraignment's tomorrow. If she's not there-"

The saviour answered, "She's a fugitive. Doesn't matter if she's convicted for Kathryn or not, she's screwed. I have to go and find her before someone notices that she's missing."

"Oh, you mean Regina." With that, Rumple threw me a glance and said directly to me, "You are going to follow Ms Swan until Mary Margaret is found."

"What?! Why?"

"We wouldn't want you telling the Mayor about Mary Margaret's disappearance would we?"

Emma added in a sarcastic voice, "I'm sure Regina will be here bright and early to celebrate her victory."

I rolled my eyes and picked up my schoolbag. "Fine. I'll come with you to find the missing prisoner."

Henry stood up behind me. Then, we followed Emma out of the Sheriff's department and into the car park. We got into her yellow bug and set off. After an hour or so of driving around and no success, I started to become worried. In the silence, I whispered to my brother, "We're supposed to be back an hour ago!"

Henry shrugged and replied, "Emma will take care of it."

"I will do what?"

Emma looked at us through the mirror on the front of her. Then, Henry spoke a little louder, "You'll tell Regina why we were late."

Emma sighed. "I should probably do that now. You're not supposed to be with me for so long."

Henry widened his eyes. "No! Please, don't call her yet."

"Ok look kid, she's probably worried about you two. I'll call her and say that we're heading back."

"But are we?"

"No, not yet. Not until I find Mary Margaret."

I saw a grin light up on Henry's face. However, as Emma was retrieving her phone from her pocket, the car suddenly swerved. My heart felt as if it had been swung sideways and out of my body. The bug suddenly screeched to a stop and Emma breathed a quiet "shit."

She peered out in front of her and got out of the car. Henry and I looked at each other before getting out ourselves to see what had happened. There was a man lying on the ground and Emma was helping him up as she nervously exclaimed, "I'm so sorry! Are you ok? I didn't see you there..."

The man replied, "I'm fine. I'm just not used to sharing the road with cars so late. You're the Sheriff, aren't you?"

Then, the man turned over and took a glance at me. I held in a surprised gasp, just like the man did. The Mad Hatter shifted from my gaze and asked Emma, "What brings you here so late?"

The sheriff answered casually, "Oh, nothing much really. I'm just looking for a lost dog."

"With your son and the Mayor's daughter?"

"They wanted to come."

I nearly rolled my eyes. I did not want to come. Although, it give me a chance to tell my mother about Snow's disappearance when I get back. The Hatter smiled and stood up slowly. As he limped away, Emma shouted, "Oh, you're hurt."

"Nah, I just twisted my ankle. I live a mile down the road, I'll make it there alright."

Emma sighed and insisted, "No, let me drive you. There's space in the bug for one more."

"Thank you then. I'm Jefferson."

"Emma."

Then, the Hatter followed us into the car. I felt uneasy around him for some unexplained reason. I tried to tell myself that he was under the curse, that he couldn't harm me. However, I couldn't shake off an odd feeling ever since he and I glanced at each other with surprise in our eyes.

When we got to Jefferson's house, Henry looked out of the window and exclaimed, "Wow, this is your house? It looks more like a hotel!"

Emma added, "You must have a huge family, Jefferson."

Quietly, the Hatter replied, "No, it's just me."

When Emma stopped the car, she turned to us and said, "Stay here, both of you. I'll be back soon after I drop Jefferson off inside."

The Hatter protested, "No, I'll prepare some tea for you all. Afterall, you might want to warm up for your search. It's going to get cold out there."

Emma bit her lips and gave in, "Fine. You two, come out."

Henry got out with way too much enthusiasm than I would have thought was possible. When we entered the house, Jefferson hobbled through the corridor and lead us to a large sitting room before disappearing to the kitchen.

Henry fished out his book and was flicking through it whilst waiting. Emma pulled out her phone and called our mother after a minute or so. The conversation was short and when it ended, Emma raised her eyebrows and said, "I'm going to get grilled when I drop you two back home but that's alright."

I smirked, "Which is exactly why we shouldn't have followed you here."

"Kid..."

At that moment, Jefferson came back into the room. He set down the tea tray and said, "Here we go. Oh, and I've also brought this." He pulled a large piece of paper from beneath his arm and continued, "I'm a bit of an amateur cartographer. Mapping the area is a hobby. Maybe this will help you track down your dog."

We all peered at the map and whispered a silent, "Woah..."

Jefferson's mouth twitched up into a smile as he asked, "What's his name?"

Emma looked confused for a second. So, I cut in, "It's a she. Accalia. That's her name."

"A name fit for a wolf, hm?"

There was a pause. Then, I narrowed my eyes slightly and asked, "What do you mean by that, sir?"

Emma frowned at my choice of words as she sipped her tea. She was about to respond when Henry suddenly slumped on top of me, dropping the teacup in his hands. Emma tried to reach out to him but she also dropped her cup as she fell over. My heartbeats ceased as I looked up at Jefferson. He was sporting a wide grin on his face which shadowed the glistening pupils of his eyes.

I stood up and glanced around, only to find that the doors had been locked, with the keys looped upon Jefferson's finger. He looked at me and whispered in a demonic voice, "Why didn't you drink the tea, Princess?"

I sucked in a wavering breath and stated, "I don't eat or drink anything given to me by strangers. Besides, since too many people have tried to kill me, my mother's taught me to recognise the scent of poison."

"Hm, well then, even though you didn't faint like I would have liked you to, I guess you'd still be of good use to me."

Before I could process his words, he took out a handkerchief and pressed it over my mouth. My mind and sight blanked out immediately.


(Emma's POV)

My mind slowly opened itself back to reality as I blinked several times. Son of a-

I looked around the room and got up steadily, hoping that I wouldn't fall over because of the sudden jelly-like feeling in my legs. When I had stood up successfully, I the soft sound of a shrill slide of a blade. Peeking past the door, I saw the madman sitting on a stool in another room with a pair of scissors in his hand. He was frowning as he sharpened it. Considering his concentrated face, I decided that he was probably well emerged in his job. I held my breath and quietly snuck out of the room. In the corridor, an endless selection of doors met my gaze. He must have taken Henry and Daniella to another room! Shit, if they're harmed, Regina's gonna do much more than just kill me...

Biting my lip, I opened a random door on my left and slipped through. At one end of the room, there was a stream of blue light from the moon which flooded in through the window. It shone upon a woman tied upon a chair. Wait, Mary Margaret?!

I immediately rushed over to her and removed the gag from her mouth. Then, she whispered, "Oh Emma, thank god."

I frowned, "What are you doing here?"

Stammering, my room-mate replied, "I was in the woods, trying to get away and this man appeared out of nowhere. Emma, why are you here?"

"I was trying to find you! You escaped, remember? How even did you get out?"

"There was a key under my pillow. Someone put it there."

What the hell..."Who?"

"I don't know, but I'd like to know just as much as you do."

Right after I had untied the ropes around her legs and feet, there was a horrible patter of footsteps down the hallway. Suddenly, the click of a gun sounded through the silent air. Then, the madman's voice said, "I see you've found your dog. Now, tie her back up."

The blood drained out of my face. However, I turned towards Mary Margaret and whispered, "It's gonna be ok." Then, I did as I was told. After that, I turned around and grunted, "What do you want?"

The man smirked as replied simply, "I need you to do something."

I followed him out of the room and into another. He gestured for me to sit down in front of a table. I did so, and glanced at the sewing machine, rolls of fabric and pins on the surface. I glared at him and said, "I don't know what you think you're doing but if you hurt my friend, my son, or the Mayor's daughter for that matter, I swear I'll make you regret it."

"Regret it?" Then, the man started to chuckle. "I'm saving your friend's life."

I frowned, "And how the hell do you plan to do that? And why?"

The man's next words took me by surprise. "Don't play stupid, we both know what happens when people try to leave Storybrooke."

"What are you talking about" I asked in a tired voice.

Jefferson stood up and walked to the window opposite the desk. Then, he turned the two armchairs around to face me. I gasped when I saw Henry and Daniella's unconscious forms on each of them. Then, Jefferson answered my question, "The curse."

I allowed a pause to hang in the air before sighing. "What curse?"

"The one that's been keeping us all trapped. All except you...and a few"

I looked at him warily. "Have you been reading Henry's book?"

"Aha. Henry. And his book of stories, the ones that you chose to ignore. Maybe if you knew what I know, you wouldn't."

I wanted to cut in but he continued, "Because for the last 28 years, I've been stuck in this house, day after day, always the same. Until one night, you, in your little yellow Bug, rolled into town. You see, I know what you refuse to acknowledge, Emma. You're special. You brought something precious to Storybrooke-"

My mouth hung open, "You're insane..."

"Because I speak the truth?"

"Because you're talking about magic."

"I'm talking about what is obvious and right there in front of you."

This guy is absolutely bonkers. "Really?"

"What's crazier than seeing and not believing? Look, since you weren't able to open your eyes by yourself, I'm going to help you."

I couldn't hold my patience anymore. "What the hell do you want?!"

"I want to help you." Then, Jefferson strode over to Daniella and bent down to the level of her face. He whispered softly but with a strong tone, "Wake up, your highness. Let's show the saviour the truth shall we?"

To my surprise, Daniella stirred and her eyelids fluttered. I held my breath as she shook her head a little and stared at us. Then, the madman stood up and said to the girl, "Tell her, princess. Tell the saviour that the curse is real."

I saw something glint in Daniella's eye as she muttered, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, yes you do."

To my horror, Jefferson took out his gun and pointed it at Daniella. I gasped and shouted, "No! Don't you dare..."

He turned to me and smirked. "I won't shoot, just as long as she cooperates."

"You're insane! Stop it. You're scaring her."

"Oh, believe me. She's faced worse."

I felt my breath leave my body. What has she faced, if getting pointed with a gun isn't the worse she's seen?

Jefferson continued, "Alright, Princess. Tell the saviour about the Enchanted Forest. About the curse. About what your mother did to all of us."

I wanted to cut in but Daniella opened her mouth and whispered, "Is this about Grace?"


(Daniella's POV)

I held my breath as Jefferson's eyes fixed on me. Then, he seethed, "Your mother promised that we would be together and she broke that promise. She left me in Wonderland, without telling me what happened to Grace."

I wanted desperately to tell him that Grace was safe and that she had gone to a boarding school in George's kingdom. However, I caught Emma's gaze and remained silent.

Emma saw the look in my eyes and took it for fear. She stood up and exclaimed, "Stop talking nonsense to the girl-"

The Hatter spun to face her and roared, "It's not nonsense! She knows perfectly what I'm talking about. She's behind this. All of this."

I am behind this? My face reddened as I countered, "How am I supposed to be behind the fact that you're grieving over a lost daughter?"

Jefferson took a step towards me with his gun which made me shrink back. At all of the shouting, Henry finally stirred on the armchair beside us. The room fell into silence for a moment as we watched him open his eyes and wake up. When he caught our glances, he sat up straight and looked between us. Jefferson was the first to speak. "Oh, good. You're awake Henry. Let's show your mother the truth then, shall we?"

Henry frowned for a second before exclaiming, "You're awake?!"

Before the Hatter could answer, Emma shouted desperately, "Henry, don't talk to him. He's mad."

"I'm mad? Well, I'll come back to sanity if you just do something for me."

Emma opened her mouth only to clam it shut again. Jefferson led her over to the table and sat her back down. He put a hat in front of her and a roll of fabric. Then, he grunted, "Make one."

"You want me to make a hat? You don't have enough?"

"Well, none of them work do they? Or else, you wouldn't be here. Now make a hat and get it to work."

"I don't-"

"You have magic. You're the saviour."

Emma frowned and looked up at Jefferson. After a brief glance towards Henry's direction, she accused, "You've been talking to Henry."

"No. Never met him."

"Well, you must have read Henry's storybook then, but I'm not the saviour."

"Oh, call yourself whatever you want, but you can't deny it. Everyone in this room except you knows the truth. You just fail to see it even though it's right in front of you."

Henry stood up at the corner of my eyes and walked over to me as Emma looked around. Then, she muttered, "The hats, the tea, your psychotic behaviour...you think you're the Mad Hatter."

"My name's Jefferson."

"Alright. Well here's the thing, Jefferson. This is the real world and I don't have magic."

"Magic does exist." Then, Jefferson turned around to face me and questioned, "I refuse to believe that you woke up from your coma just like that. Something triggered it, am I right? Perhaps...pixie flowers? They're known for their abilities to wake up the unconscious."

I kept my gaze on Jefferson without speaking so, he spoke, "She's not replying but she knows I'm right. Henry does too." He turned back to Emma and leaned in towards her. "Magic is real. It comes from a real world. How arrogant are you to think that yours is the only one? You have to open your mind. There's an infinite number of realms; The Enchanted Forest, Wonderland, The Land Without Colour...they touch one another, pressing up in a long line of lands, each just as real as the last. All have their own rules. Some have magic, some don't. And some need magic... Like this one."

Emma gave Jefferson a tired look as the Hatter continued to speak, "You, Henry, Daniella and Mary Margaret are not leaving here until you make my hat. Until you get it to work."

Henry nudged me and whispered, "Ms Blanchard's here?"

I shrugged and answered under my breath, "I never knew either..."

Emma picked up the scissors on the desk and some fabric in her other hand. She shakily snipped at the fabric before grunting, "I can't make it work. What you're asking me is impossible."

"No! It has to be possible. If it's not, I'm never going home. I'll be cursed to live in this house forever."

"What is so cursed about your life? Look at this place, it's beautiful. It doesn't seem cursed to me."

"It's cursed because, like everyone else here, what I love has been ripped from me by the Evil Queen." Jefferson gave me a glare as he bite out these words. I crossed my arms and tried to return the glare. Emma saw this interaction and said, "Jefferson! Stop tormenting that poor girl. She's done nothing to you."

"Oh yes she has. She's taken Grace away from me. She's killed, tortured and hurt many under her mother's approving gaze."

Now that, was wrong. I've only killed the Blind Witch because she was about to kill me! And torture? That's not me. As for Grace? I tried to vouch for her. She left me with a glare...she could have been my friend but she hated me for what my mother has done. Angrily I shouted, "I've done no such things!"

Emma entered the conversation in place of Jefferson. "She's ten for goodness sake! You're absolutely mad. How can you accuse Daniella for being a murderer?"

"She's taken hearts out! Squeezed them to dust in her bare hands!"

I tried to concentrate on Emma's baffled face instead of the tears that have started to well up at the sides of my eyes. Why am I always accused of things that mother has done? I've never killed willingly! I don't want to see people tortured! I didn't want Grace to be separated from her father!

I felt my nose become suddenly stuffy. After I gave a small sniff, Emma stood up and took me to one side whilst Jefferson continued, "Don't feel pity for her. She's not worth it-"

Emma hastily whispered to me, "Don't pay attention to him." Then, she approached Jefferson and asked, "Fine. Then. I'll listen to what you say about the curse if you stop tormenting Daniella. Where's your daughter then?"

He gestured towards a telescope so Emma walked over and looked through it. Jefferson answered, "Her name is Grace. Here it's Paige...but it's Grace. Do you have any idea what it's like to watch her day in and day out, happy, with a new family? With a new father?"

"You think she's your daughter?"

"I don't think. I know. I remember...and Daniella does too."

"Leave Daniella out of this."

I couldn't help but feel relieved that Emma was defending me. I certainly did not want to be part of this mad conversation.

Jefferson exhaled and continued, "Fine. But Grace has no idea who I am. Our life together, where we come from...but I do. I remember every second of it and that's my curse."

Emma questioned, "To remember?"

"Yes. What good is this house if I can't share it with her? And I can't destroy her reality either. I can't go up to her and tell her that I'm her father. I'm trapped by knowledge. How cruel do you think I am? You think I'd inflict that awareness on my daughter?"

Emma lowered her voice to barely a whisper, "That's why you want me to make the hat work, isn't it? You just wanna take Grace home, to your world."

No...she isn't believing is she? Henry came up to me and nudged me with a smile on his face. One that I didn't repay.

Emma spoke again, "If what you say is true, then that woman in the other room is my mother. I want to believe that more than anything in the world. So maybe you're right. Maybe I need to open myself up more. Maybe if I want magic, I have to start believing."

I curled my hands into fists and looked worriedly at the situation in front of me. She can't believe! The curse will break and I will fall back into the coma...or die.

Jefferson grinned and questioned, "So you're gonna help me? You can make it work?"

"I can try." As Jefferson turned and picked up the hat, Emma quickly picked up the telescope from it's stand and brought it down onto his head. Henry gave a small cry as he fell onto the ground, unconscious. Then, Emma turned to us and quickly said, "I've got to get Mary Margaret out of here, but you two, run to the car and wait for me inside. Here, I'll give you the keys." Emma fumbled with her pocket and fished out the keys in which she handed to Henry.

"Go! Don't wait for me!"

I took Henry's arm and we ran out of the room. We made our way through the hallway and down a large flight of stairs. I looked around for the main door until I heard Henry exclaim, "Here! It's here, Dani!"

I turned in the direction of my brother's voice. Henry had already pushed open the door so I sped past him and towards the car. He followed me and after he unlocked it, we quickly slid inside. After we both caught our breaths, Henry asked quietly, "Do you think Emma will be alright?"

"Yeah."

"Dani?"

"What?"

"The things that Jefferson said-"

I scoffed even before Henry could continue. "No, they're not true. He wasn't describing me. He was describing Mama...maybe."

"So you haven't killed anyone?"

Seriously?! Why does everyone have to ask this question? I lied and shook my head, hoping that Henry wouldn't see past the glint in my eyes. Silence grew between us as we waited nervously for Emma to emerge out of the house with Snow.