Chapter Fifty Three: Pool of Tears.
Alison heard a burst of something as she looked down to see that a hole burst open, allowing water to pour. Beyond frightened as the water poured in, Alison screeched as another hole exploded near her head. Water sprayed her in the face as she cried even harder. It didn't matter if she was huge, the room was filling with water and she couldn't breathe underneath.
Then she felt the floor that was under her feet give out.
She was much smaller as she fell into the water, crashing into it. She sunk underneath, thrashing and desperately trying to get to the surface. But her vision grew blacker as her chest felt tighter. If only she had known how to swim.
But something else did for that something else grabbed her.
Alison gasped for air as something pushed her hard. It kept doing so, keeping her above surface. For a while, all Alison could see was bright lights. But eventually, Alison was able to kneel in the water, as sand was beneath her. Coughing up the water, Alison looked over to see a rather large mouse standing on her hind legs.
"Thank you," Alison said, staring in amazement.
However, the mouse seemed not so happy. It was screeching at her and speaking in a language that she could not understand. Alison only caught a few words, and it sounded a bit like the language she heard her father speak. Finally the mouse said its last sentence before she finally repeated what she thought she heard.
"Où est ma chatte?" Alison murmured, "What a strange language you speak…"
The mouse screeched loud, making her cover her ears. Then the mouse scampered away, half swimming in the water washing up on them. Alison tried to chase after it saying, "Wait! I need to go home! Please!"
But the mouse was gone.
Alison was beside herself, stomping her foot in the water that stretched to her knees. Her blue dress was soaked as was she. Looking around, she saw trees in the distant, as if a forest laid beyond. Looking towards the horizon, Alison was surprised to see that there was nothing but endless sea.
"How…" Alison said, her voice timid and frightened. There was a loud ruckus that was gradually growing, causing Alison to look to her right. Walking in that general direction, Alison waded through the water with disdain.
"Well this is a shocker."
Alison woke somewhat to those words, as the person promptly sat on her bed. Turning under the blankets, Alison peeked out from beneath the covers to see Gold smirking at her. Pulling the blankets over her head, Alison groaned. She couldn't see his smirk anymore, but she could feel his taunt from beyond her hiding place. Her blanket became pinned as he moved to lie down next to her. Alison couldn't help but smile a bit as Gold said, "A rarity… I've never seen you sleep in longer than me. But of course, there had to be a time that I could get even for all those rude awakenings."
"Like you need to get even for anything," Alison voice was muffled. Alison squeaked as he purposely leaned on her saying, "Is that attitude you're giving me? After you FAILED to deliver my apples yesterday, I don't think you should be doing that."
A sense of mocking dread filled her stomach. Alison tried pushing him off, which was extremely hard to do with both him and the sheets pinning her. Gold smirked at her struggling and embraced her through the blanket saying, "My, my, looks like someone's tangled in her own web."
"I'm not a spidee-!" Alison shrieked before she could finish, as he had started tickling her through the blankets. Gold smirk turned to his impish grin as he said, "I still cannot get over how ticklish you are. I could just breathe on you and you'd be double over in giggles."
"I would not!" Alison shrieked, her laughter choking her words. Gold did not stop, however, instead continued to tickle her sides. Finally, Alison was able to pull out away from the trap, poking her head out from under the blanket. Gold grinned, finally allowing her to breathe as he stopped attempting to tickle her. Alison's eyes were full of play, her smile wide. Gold's grin calmed to a smile, a warm fatherly smile. Gently pushing her hair out of her face, Gold said, "Finally, a beautiful smile."
Alison stuck her tongue out briefly before looking over at the clock. After seeing the early hour of seven, Alison looked back at him saying teasingly, "Now here is the real question, what are you doing awake? Did Belle have to go and wake you up?"
"No," Gold shot back, tickling her briefly to make her giggly, "Mischievous little child. I was actually awake."
"Oh really?" Alison said, grinning.
"Yes really," Gold said, "As I said before, someone for the first time in the history of our deal making failed to live up to her end of the bargain and I wanted to make sure you didn't escape from me when I asked you why."
Alison's eyes sparkled as she said slyly, "You mean like this?"
Gold blinked and she was gone from the bed. Sitting up straight, Gold glanced about the room as he saw Alison standing in the door way. His impish smile returned as she stood there with her Cheshire Cat worthy grin. Standing up, Gold said, "No one breaks deals with me, dearie. Especially not you."
"So did she get what she needed?"
Emma, Snow, and David were walking down the street. All of them had cups of coffee from Granny's. Emma couldn't help but roll her eyes as she said, "Yes she did. I'm not quite what it is. But she said it was real important to getting the spell to work."
"Good," David said, "We're just one step closer to getting back home."
"Can we be sure that Regina can be trusted?" Snow said, her voice sounding a bit hasty, "I mean, she cast the curse to begin with."
"I know," Emma said, "But she's made quite the effort to help us and that's good enough for me."
Snow shifted slightly as David said, leading them a bit around the corner as he said, "So where is Henry?"
"Spending time with Piper," Emma said, shrugging, "They're out at the forest doing something."
"They've been spending a lot of time together," David said, a tiny bit of protectiveness in his voice.
"Yeah, after we got over the initial awkwardness," Emma said, as they approached closer to the station. Snow smiled a little more warmly as she said, "It's good that he's getting some time to spend with his father. Especially with school starting so soon."
"Speaking of school," David said, "I heard Alison and Henry aren't in the same class."
"Seems to surprise everyone," Emma said, "But the teacher's make a good point. They do have a tendency to run off."
"I can attest to that," Snow said, but then let out a small sigh, "I am going to miss having them in my class though. They were quite the pair."
"So you decided to keep teaching," Emma said, smiling softly.
"Of course!" Snow said, grinning sincerely, "Besides, who's going to make sure those two don't cause any trouble."
"Good point," Emma said, "Especially with them on an Operation Cobra kick. I'm kind of tired of falling down holes…"
Snow and David exchanged looks as Emma went to unlock the door. However, as she went to put the key in the lock, she realized the door was open a crack. Looking back at David, Emma asked, "Did you leave the door open last night?"
"No," David said, "Why?"
"Because," Emma said grabbing her gun, "It's open."
Snow and Charming look stricken as Emma opened the door. David pulled out his own gun as they crept in after Emma. Everything seemed normal until they had reached the office. Turning on the lights, Emma held her gun up as she looked into the office.
It was like someone had turned the office upside down. Papers had been dumped all over the floor, things on the desk knocked over and drawers left open. Emma's stomach lurched as she saw the file cabinet was torn apart as well. Emma narrowed her eyes as she looked around. Snow peered in from behind and gasped. Emma took another good glance before putting her gun down saying, "All clear in here."
"Who would do something like this?" Snow asked, shocked. Emma put her gun away as she looked up at the security cameras. Emma made a face as she saw that they were broken. Emma turned away from them as Snow walked around the office carefully. Emma then said, "I don't know, but they seemed to be looking for something."
"We are all clear in the building," David said, coming back into the office. He stopped briefly as he looked around the room. Carefully walking over to Emma as she went into her part of the office, David asked, "Wha- why?"
"I'm not sure," Emma said looking around, "But I'm going to find out."
Emma sat down at the desk, seeing that the computer was on. Frowning, Emma saw something loading in the task bar. Clicking on it, Emma's stomach lurched even more when she saw a page that looked like it was from someone's file.
"Hey, I found something."
Emma looked over to see David picking up what seemed to be ripped fabric. Snow White immediately went to see it closer as Emma said, "A piece of cloth? Anything on it?"
"Nothing," David said with a heavy sigh, "Wish there was."
Emma looked extremely troubled, getting up and going over to a safe. Clicking the combination, Emma heard Snow White said, "Maybe there is another clue here in this mess. Why don't we start cleaning it up?"
"Maybe we can see if Red can pick up a scent as well," David said.
"Can't," Snow said, "She and Belle are going to make some finishing touches for the wedding and they will be busy all day."
"We have to try. How else will we be able to track these vandals down?"
Emma let out a sharp gasp, her eyes narrowing. Shutting the safe with a snap, Emma stormed over to them taking the scrap of cloth from David's hand. Snow made a noise of protest as David said, "Emma?! What-?"
"I'm going to deal with this problem," Emma said angrily, "Don't even worry about it."
Charming and Snow White looked at each other, the shock on their face apparent. Charming let out a small huff, "Well, I guess we'll just clean this place up."
"We shouldn't go after her?"
"No," David said, with a sigh, "We shouldn't… not when she's like that."
Snow made a face, looking after Emma with a sad expression. It was a usual occurrence when things like this happened. David gave her a kiss, rubbing her back briefly as he said, "Give her time, she's coming around..."
The forest was beginning to dull.
The colors on the trees were not as bright as they had once been. Some of the leaves on the plant branches were beginning to change. The ground was damp from the rain that kept coming during the night. The sun shone through the tree's casting a light upon the ground. Birds twittering above suddenly took off, hearing intruders come near.
"So," Piper said, following Henry down the beaten overgrown path, "We are searching the forest for a horse?"
"Not just any horse," Henry said, in his usual informing tone, "The Horse of the Headless Horseman. Well… former horse of the Headless Horseman."
"I see," Piper said, his voice slow. Henry nodded, more to himself than the man behind him as he said, "He's Alison horse now… well I mean, He's her friend. He doesn't actually belong to anyone but himself."
"What? Is he particular?" Piper said, his voice holding a tint of amusement. Henry didn't pick up on it as he said, "Ever since the Headless Horseman was defeated, he doesn't like people riding him. Trust me, I know. I've tried riding him before. It didn't go very well."
"What? Did he buck you off?" Piper asked, his amusement changing to concern. Henry shook his head as he said, "I couldn't even get on him. He kept jumping and galloping away."
"Okay," Piper said, "If he's really on the wild side, why are we looking for him?"
"Because he's not wild," Henry said firmly, "He's well trained. It's just that Alison hasn't seen him for a while and neither have we. He's never gone this long."
"Henry!"
Henry turned to Piper, as the man pulled the radio out of his pocket. Henry took it as he clicked the button saying, "What's up, Paige?"
"We found tracks near the brook side," Paige's voice crackled due to the static, "There all over the place…"
"Where exactly near the brook are you?"
"Near the old mill," Paige said, looking over to see the large abandoned house. It was clearly left in shambles a long time ago. Nicholas was sitting by the river as Ava examined the tracks. Ava pressed her hand against one of the tracks as she said loudly, "The tracks are still somewhat fresh. We'll need to follow them now if we're going to catch up with him. Someone should stay and wait for Henry."
"We'll be there as soon as we can," Henry said, as Piper went walking off the path. Henry did a double take, looking between his father and the radio. Finally chasing after his father, Henry asked, "Dad, where are you going?!"
"I know a shortcut," Piper said, walking through the brush, "Just follow me."
Ava sighed as she stood up as she looked down the track trail. Paige pulled out her phone as Nicholas said, "We don't have to stand near that old place? It looks haunted."
"Really?" Ava said a little heatedly.
"Why don't you guys go on ahead," Paige said abruptly, "I'll call Alison and tell her what we found out while I wait for Henry."
Ava and Nicholas exchanged looks before nodding. Both of them walked away as Paige dialed the phone number on her phone. It rang a couple of times before someone picked up, "Hello?"
"Alison, it's me," Paige said, "We found some horse tracks."
"Did you find him?"
"No, not yet," Paige said, "Ava and Nicholas went on ahead. I'm waiting for Henry and his dad to show up."
"Okay, keep me posted if you find him."
"Are you sure you can't come?" Paige asked, "Where are you anyway?"
Alison grimaced as she grumbled, "The Overlord's holding me captive."
The phone was plucked out of Alison's hand as she made a look of protest. She was currently sitting at his desk, a large book and papers in front of her. Gold, who was on the other side of the desk, clicked the button as he said shortly, "This is not social hour, dearie. You have work to complete before I send you to go get my apples."
"Which is boring and useless," Alison shot at him, "All you are having me do is crossing off items you have in inventory on this list. I'm pretty sure you already know all this stuff inside that all knowing brain of yours!"
"Despite what you think," Gold said, his voice sounding a tad bit testy, "I don't know everything. There is a great deal of work that goes into my plans dearie."
"Why do you call everyone that?!" Alison demanded, obviously quite miffed. Gold gave her a pointed stare saying, "Get back to work."
Alison grumbled, but picked up the pen and started where she left off. Gold turned his attention back towards his work table, many vials and tubes that resembled a chemistry set. Alison couldn't help but peer over at him, watching him pour some black looking powder into a vial. It shimmered strangely as Alison looked back down at the work in front of her. Gradually picking off the items of the list, Alison kept peering up to see Gold working. After the fifth time of doing this, however, Gold finally let out a small growl as he said impatiently, "Would you keep your mind on your work?"
"I'm sorry, I can't help it," Alison said, her own annoyance shining through, "I want to know what you're doing!"
"I'm making potions if you must know and I hate having someone constantly looking over my shoulder," Gold said, turning away from her once again. Alison rolled her eyes before saying, "I'm not looking over your shoulder. I'm too short for that."
Gold bit the inside of his lip, repressing a smile. However, his smile soon disappeared as Alison let out a small scoff. Turning around once more, Gold leaned against the work table as he said, "How am I going to get any work done if you keep making noise?"
"Sorry," Alison said with her Cheshire Cat grin, "Couldn't help it."
"And why is that?" Gold asked, crossing his arms. Alison gathered up the papers a look of triumph on her face. He knew that look all too well, it was usually when she knew something that was in her favor. But she didn't seem on elaborating as she gathered up the papers saying, "I'm done. There are about ten objects on the list that you don't have."
"Mhm," Gold said, staring at her intently, "What are they?"
"You don't have the Gryphon's tooth," Alison said, "Or the Golden Coronet, which you're not getting any time soon."
"Oh?" Gold said, mildly intrigued, "And why's that?"
"It's currently guarded by an entire army of soldiers you can't see," Alison said, "And no, I'm not telling you where. The next few items are Invulnerability rocks, the venom from the Bandersnatch, and a Mermaid's scale. Useful potion ingredients, I hope you don't plan on killing either one of those living things because I absolutely won't help you."
"I didn't ask for help," Gold said, letting his amusement come through. Alison paid no heed as she said, "Golden egg, seven league boots- I think a thief has a pair of those."
"I know, I'm the one who traded them to him," Gold said, "There are a few of them."
"I know," Alison said with a grin, "Pyry, Antic's famous gem stone, even though I can't figure out why you would want that."
"It has special properties," Gold said, smoothly, "Not that you would be able to use it, not without poisoning yourself."
"I wouldn't want to!" huffed Alison said, "It's at the top of a mountain in Antic that constantly storms. A demon is supposed to live up there and I don't feel like fighting something I know nothing about."
Gold smirked as he said in a taunting voice, "I wouldn't say live up there. More like occasionally visit for gemstones for my amulets."
Gold's smirk remained ever in place as he said, "I promise, dearie, I won't kill you."
Alison had gaped a little but shook her head saying, "That remains to be seen. The last two you are never going to get. The Oracle's Timepiece and the Book of Beasts."
"Oh really?" Gold said as Alison neatly put the pages on the desk. Alison gave a triumphant grin as she said, "Yes really. They are far out of reach."
"And how do you know all this… information," Gold said, his amusement clearly just as obvious as his disbelief. Alison grinned as she stood up, putting her hands behind her back. She walked forward as she said, "I make it my business to know where such things are. You're not the only one that has to do business after all."
"So you are a thief," Gold said, a hint of surprise in his tone. Alison said, grinning, "I prefer the word Acquirer."
"Alison! Are you here?"
Alison froze as the curtain swished to reveal Emma standing there. Alison went a little bit straighter at the sight of her face. It was cool and relatively impassive as she watched her. The two exchanged awkward silences as they both looked at Gold. Gold, who looked thoroughly annoyed, turned around and turned off the fire underneath a bottle. Grabbing his coat, Gold said, "Well, since I can't concentrate on my work, I think I will go retrieve our lunch. You have a half an hour."
Gold left them promptly, going past them both. The two remained motionless until the little bell rang. Emma's eyes grew a bit glassy as she began to tap her heel nervously. Alison noticed her rigidness and immediately knew that something was wrong. Going over to her, Alison asked, "What's the matter?"
"I didn't want to say anything to Gold just yet," Emma said, "I don't need him disposing of any possibly suspects."
"Suspects?" Alison asked, her frowned.
"I need a tracking spell to find this suspect," Emma said, "It's very important that I find it."
"I'm not in a position to be doing spells right now," Alison said, frowning a bit, "Besides, I'm sort of grounded."
"What?!"
Alison jumped a bit as the curtains swished as Regina entered. Emma didn't look surprised as Regina looked at her in surprise as she said, "Now what did you do? Steal something from his shop?"
"I didn't steal," Alison said, "I may have forgotten to bring his apples…then may have tried escaping… by trapping him in a web of vines... now I'm stuck doing inventory in his shop at running the risk of being turned into a toad..."
Emma looked a bit bothered as she said, "So you can't help us?"
"Not true," Alison said, "I can't leave the shop, but that doesn't mean I can't give you something. Give me a little time and I can whip up a locator potion for you to use."
Both women seemed satisfied by the answer as Alison clapped her hands together saying, "Chesshire! I need my potion things."
There was a swirl of smoke as Chess appeared, holding a big box in his hand. He grinned at her and said, "Here you are Milady."
Alison smiled sweetly at him and said, "Thank you."
Regina shifted as Chess glanced over at her. Alison began to take things out of the box, waving her hand. Objects moved to clear a space, hopping onto other objects. Emma gaped, walking over to it. She watched the last of the items hop out of Alison's way and said, "Whoa… so… how do you do that-?"
"I put magic in it," Alison said, "I make things… lively."
"You make it come to life," Emma said as Alison set up a series of bowls in a line. Alison grabbed the bottles, pouring some grounded powder into one of the bowls. Emma watched Alison in interest as Chess said loudly, "Well… if it isn't the Evil Queen."
"Cat," Regina said, going rather stiff, "Shouldn't you be leaving?"
"Only when My Lady requests it," Chess said, a challenging tone in his voice, "After all, I don't have to take orders from you anymore."
Emma looked back in confusion as she asked, "Anymore?"
"I was her prisoner," Chess answered, before Regina could say a word, "All because she tried attacking Jefferson while he was trying to get home."
"Really?" Emma said flatly. Regina made a face but held a look of discomfort. Chess, who held a good natured look, said, "It's alright. You both did provide good entertainment the other day and there is nothing like a good show to mend the tension."
Regina's look of discomfort turned to sourness as Alison said irritated, "Chess, stop causing trouble. I'll mess up this potion."
"Sorry," Chess was at her side in a split second as he leaned close towards her, "I'll see you later."
Chess kissed her cheek before disappearing in smoke. Alison seemed unfazed as Emma and Regina exchanged looks. Grinning, Emma said, "He's a little sweet on you."
"He's a cat, they are naturally affectionate creatures," Alison said, like it was obvious, "They also have a bit of a God complex, they think everything revolves around them."
Alison poured a gold liquid into the bowl on the far left before putting down the vial. Grabbing the bowls on either side, Alison dumped the two into the large bowl at the same time. Emma yelped as the puff of smoke billowed upwards. Alison put the other two bowls down as she waved her hand. The smoke dissipated, revealing a blue looking liquid at the bottom. Alison grinned and poured the potion into a large vial saying, "There. One locator potion. Just pour it on an object that belongs to the person, activate it with magic, and it will take you right to them. Just a word of warning, DON'T get the potion on somebody."
"What?" Emma asked, baffled, "Why?"
"Just trust me," Alison said, "Don't do it."
Emma watched Alison's serious face as she took the potion. Emma walked away from the desk, examining the potion. Regina and Emma began to walk to the front of the shop where it was very empty. Emma then said to Regina, "Can you use it?"
Regina began to nod only for Alison's voice to interrupt.
"There is a catch to the potion."
They looked back to see Alison coming through the curtain. She looked at them simply as she said, "Only someone with light magic can use the potion."
"Oh come on," Emma said, irritated as Regina let out an exasperated sigh. Alison shrugged as she said, "You asked for the potion, not her. I'm sure Regina will be able to teach you how to use it."
"Kid!" Emma said as Regina watched Alison suspiciously.
"No buts," Alison said, "That's the only catch. Now I would hurry before the Overlord comes back."
Emma bit her lip as Regina walked closer to her. Alison moved so she was sitting on the stool behind the counter. Emma was clearly uncomfortable as Regina said, "You can do it, this is not particularly hard."
"Really, because I don't know the first thing about using magic," Emma said, her voice kind of hushed. Alison watched them briefly before going through the sales book sitting on the counter. Regina glanced at the young child as Regina said, "Magic is about motivation and peace of mind. You can't think, you can't let emotions be running rapid. Focus on the one thing, focus on making the potion work like it is the only thing that matters."
Emma closed her eyes as Regina waited. Emma then opened her eyes as she took the cloth out of her pocket as she poured the liquid on it. Giving Regina an unsure glance, Emma closed her eyes again and took a deep breath in. Regina waited as Emma was quite quiet.
Then it happened.
Regina gasped as the cloth began to glow, floating in the air. Emma opened her eyes and gaped her eyes wide. Alison smiled coyly as the cloth floated quickly out the window. Emma and Regina exchanged looks before chasing after it, slamming the door loudly. Alison smiled coyly as she said, "Good luck."
Paige heard a noise.
She was standing by the old abandoned building, waiting for Henry and his father. Ava and Nicholas had been gone for a while, the breeze being her only comfort. The noise that she had just heard had been a small cluttering noise. Dismissing it, Paige pulled out her phone to call Henry.
The noise occurred again, this time louder and she was able to hear that it was inside the building. Usually, curiosity was not her thing. It was more of an Alison trait. However, the noise happened again but this time it sounded like a moan. Grace tried peering between slightly broken up boards. She couldn't see much as she heard a shuffling noise from within the building. The moan sounded one of pain as Paige said, "Hello? Is anyone in there?"
There was no loud answer but the groans kept happening. Pocketing the phone, Paige made her way around looking for an entrance to the abandoned building. There was a sliding door, much like a barn door as she pushed at it. It was stiff and unwilling as Paige pulled and pushed it every which way. After one more large push, she was able to get the door open. The light from above shone in, lighting her way. Paige peered in and saw someone standing in the shadows. The person's groan seemed clearer as Paige said, taking a few steps in, "Hello? Are you in pain?"
"Paige?!"
Paige turned, seeing Henry and Piper coming out of the trees and onto the bank. Both looked around until Piper saw Paige. Tapping Henry's shoulder with his hand, Piper shouted, "Paige? What are you doing?"
"There's someone in here," Paige said loudly, turning back towards the room, "I think they're hur-!"
But the figure was gone.
Paige tilted her head, looking ever so confused. Piper and Henry finally made their way over as Henry asked, "What did you say?"
"I-Nevermind," Paige said, "I was just waiting."
Piper glanced around the shack narrowing his eyes slightly. The two children didn't notice his expression as Henry said, "We should go after Ava and Nicholas. They'll wonder where we went off to."
"Yeah," Paige said, shaking her head a bit, "Let's get going."
The two children started walking towards the train of hoof prints as Henry felt a suspicious absence. Turning, Henry saw Piper still staring into the old building. Taking a few steps closer, Henry asked, "Dad, what's wrong?"
"Hmm? Oh nothing," Piper said, snapping out of his trance, "Just a creepy old building. Let's get going before either of your Mom's call."
The three of them disappeared down the path the tracks were leading them. The wind began to pick up as soon as they were out of sight. It twisted and turned, making the tree bend to its will. In the midst of the wind, a laugh could be heard. It was dark, frightening, and chilling to the bone. Even though no one was around to see it… something definitely was there.
"So this is the place?"
Emma and David were standing across the street, staring at a local bar. Emma nodded as she said, "Yes, the cloth brought us here. We saw him sitting in the corner, reading. He's been there all day according to the waiter. He said he heard him talking to someone on the phone, saying that he had information to trade.
"Sounds suspicious," David said, "Are you going to tell me what this is about?"
"I'll explain when we get him," Emma said.
David let out a sigh as he asked, "So what are we waiting for?"
"Who is he's meeting," Emma said, "We'll be able to catch and arrest."
"How do you know who it is?"
"Trust me," Emma said, shortly, "I'll know."
The two sat in silence as David watched Emma with a quiet look. She was staring out at the bar as she crossed her arms. Looking down at her boots, Emma heard David asked, "So how did you find him? All the evidence there was in the office was a scrap of cloth."
Emma was quiet a moment before she said, "Through…magic. Alison was able to get us a locator potion for us to use."
"Us," David repeated, "So Regina used Alison's magic… never thought she would help the Evil Queen."
"No, she didn't exactly," Emma said, her voice a bit rigid, "I was able to spell the potion."
David gaped as Emma scanned the street. Emma heard David inhale sharply as he said, "You can use magic… Snow did tell me you possessed it."
"Yeah," Emma said. She was expecting a lecture, a magic always has a price, but she was not expecting David to say the next words.
"I think it's a good thing."
"What?" Emma asked, staring at David in surprise. David nodded as he said, "I think it's good for you to know magic. I mean, we can't rely solely on Regina to do all the magic work."
"We have Belle and Gold," Emma prompted, "And Alison as well."
"Gold is… Gold," David said under his breath, "Belle's too gentle for using magic. Alison would be good if she wasn't…"
"Wasn't what?"
"She's the Mage of Wonderland," David said, "I know she's still young but what happens when Wonderland needs her, or demands her to come back?"
Emma didn't have an answer for that, instead she looked around and her head perked up when she saw someone dressed in a fancy long overcoat. It was clearly a woman, the hood covering her face. Emma then said, "Let's go."
"Glad you could make it."
The woman sat down in the chair as the man across from her sat reading a book. He was wearing a hat and his eyes were dark. His coat was thick grey wool as he put down the book. The woman slid over the envelope, without a word as the man took it. Taking out money, the man smirked. Putting an envelope on the table, he said in a low voice she could barely make out, "Thank you for your time. I hope the sheriff's information helps you."
"HAND'S IN THE AIR!"
The man nearly jumped out of skin, surprised at the sudden intrusion. But before he could do anything, the women punched him square in the face. He fell back into the booth, hitting his head. The woman pulled off her hood as it revealed to be Snow White. The few people in the bar gasped at the sudden yell and a few people ran. The man quickly tried to run, pushing Snow roughly over the seat. He rammed Emma, making her crash into a table. David pushed the man into the wall as they struggled. Emma felt wetness on her abdomen as she reached inside her pocket. Emma winced as the glass pricked at her finger. Emma quickly pulled her hand out seeing a tiny bit of blue liquid on her hand. Snow managed to get herself up as she asked sharply, "Emma, are you alright?"
"I'm fi-!"
Emma screeched as she felt her gut jerk.
Snow and David saw Emma disappear in a flash of color as the man pushed David roughly into the wall. The man put something in his mouth as David recuperated snarling, "Hey!"
But it was too late, the man doubled over as his skin grew pale. The remaining people in the restaurant, now completely frightened, Snow glanced at them and looked up to see a mortified bar tender. She said urgently, "Call an ambulance!"
"Who are you?!" David demanded. The man laughed, choking on the liquid now gathering in his throat, "It won't matter, and neither will those pretty papers. A war is coming, King, are you ready for it?"
David nearly yelped as his hands felt something scalding hot. Magic swirled about him before turning into a simple card. The card had a black backing. Snow watched in stupor as David picked up the card. It wasn't hot or cold, just like a simple playing card would be. David turned it around as he saw that it was a playing card; A Seven of Clubs card with a huge X crossing it out to be more precise.
"What the hell?" David asked, his eyes clearly confused.
"We really should be heading back."
Henry looked back to see his father looking up towards the sky. The sun was beginning to set in the sky, the afternoon glow melting into the evening. Ava was sitting, looking rather let down as Nicholas looked tired. Paige was staring off in a trance, obviously bothered. Henry tightened his jaw as he said, "But we haven't found him yet."
"The sun is setting," Piper said, "If we don't start heading back now, we'll be walking in the dark."
"We've been walking around all day," Nicholas said with a whine. Ava kicked at him gently before saying, "What if he's really hurt?"
"We'll have no luck finding him in the dark," Piper said, "Even if we did, no one would be able to come out now and move him."
Ava dug her foot into the ground a minute before finally nodding her head in agreement. Paige stared out, still very much in her trace as Henry said, "Paige, are you okay?"
"Huh?" Paige asked, snapping out of her trace quickly, "Oh yes, I'm fine. We should be heading back though, Papa will be getting worried."
Paige walked promptly past Henry as the other two children exchanged looks. The two made to get up, Ava helping Nicholas off the ground. It was quite obvious they were tired, their steps more sluggish as they followed Piper into the woods. It wasn't until there was a crash, yelp, and a scream that they all jolted out of their trances.
Henry blinked as he saw his father thrown to the ground by someone flying into him. They crashed into a tree, a loud sickening crack could be heard. All four children looked up in fright as they worried the tree might fall. The big old tree stood strong and firm as the two people made their ways off of one another.
"Geez-Emma!" Piper said as Emma groaned, trying to make her way off the ground of the forest, "What the- How did you get here?!"
"Potion," Emma said slurred, "Damn, she did say not to get it on you."
"What?" Piper asked standing up, apparently just a little bit less hurt than Emma, "Emma-Let's get you back to town, you've got a nasty bruise on your head-!"
Henry, Nicholas, Grace and Ava stood there in stunned silence. Henry watched with curious eyes as Ava asked, "Aren't you going to help her? I mean, she looks like she got whipped around like a rag doll."
Henry grinned and said, "No, I think he's got it."
"Are we done here?"
Gold couldn't help but smirk a little as he heard his granddaughter's voice. They were in the main part of his shop as she stood there with her arms crossed. The basket of apples was on his counter as he was locking up the last cabinet in his shop. Gold pocketed his keys as he said, "Well, you did retrieve my order and did all the menial tasks I asked."
"Good, so then I can leave!" Alison said, turning on her heel to grab her jacket off the stool, "Just in time for having dinner with Kathryn."
Gold raised his brows as Alison as she put her jacket on. Shaking his head slightly, he moved around the counter and made his way over to her. She did notice it, but he had been walking so casually that she truly did not expect him to suddenly scoop her into his arms, kissing the top of her head. She giggled madly, feeling his breath tickle her ear.
"I'm not sure how much I like sharing you," Gold said, "I think I'm going to have to talk to her about letting us have you for a bit longer…"
"Why? So you can keep having me do inventory?" Alison jested. Gold raised his brows, poking her side in order to keep her giggling. His smirk became more of his impish grin as he said, "I certainly hope you wouldn't keep getting yourself into trouble. But knowing you, that dream is out of reach."
"Really?" Alison said looking up at him with brightness in her eyes that made him want to smile, "Because I remember everyone saying how you seem to like me getting in trouble."
Gold raised his brows as she looked triumphant at his silence. But he certainly wasn't going to let her off the hook as he tickled her sides saying, "Speaking of trouble, that reminds me. Why did you forget to bring me my apples?"
Alison smile died all together as the brightness in her eyes vanished. Even his tickling seemed to have no positive effect as she jerk a bit in his arms. Gold inwardly cursed himself, sensing her dramatic change in personality. It was random, certain little things that most would consider trivial yet she considered bothersome. She hung her head a bit, staring at the floor hardly as she said, "It's stupid…"
"Let me be the judge of that," Gold argued softly but firmly. However, he was taken aback when Alison looked back up at him with an uneasy expression saying, "I'd actually rather you didn't."
It was honesty, but an honesty that made him nervous. The look in her eyes had grown earnest, practically begging him not to press it any further. Since when could he deny her anything? Never, that was his answer never. Letting out a small little sigh, Gold then said, "Very well… then I only have one more question before I let you leave."
Alison looked up at him curiously as Gold asked coyly, "Why can't I get my hands on the last two items on my list?"
Alison's grin returned as did the light in her eyes. She knew something he certainly did not. But being as quick as she was, Alison escaped his arms and was on her way to the door. Opening it partially, Alison said with jest, "If you are referring to the Oracle's Timepiece and the Book of Beasts… I will refer to what I said earlier. You're never going to get them."
With that she left him.
Gold held a daring smirking on his face, his hand resting on the counter. Belle, who came out from behind the curtain, looked at Gold curiously as she asked, "Did she leave already?"
"Yes, she did," Gold said turning just in time to see Belle pout. She was holding a nice box in her hand as Belle said sadly, "Oh… will she be back? I just picked her up a dress today with Red. I wanted her to try it on."
"She will be back another day," Gold said, turning to her, "I'm going to talk to Kathryn about seeing if we can have her longer before the wedding."
Gold gently tilted her chin up to look at him, giving her a warm smile. Kissing her lips slightly, Gold parted from her saying, "Then you two can get some more time to bond a little more."
Belle smiled, a little weakly as she turned back around and said, "I will go around back to the car."
"Mhm," Gold said as Belle disappeared back behind the curtains. Walking forward, Gold turned his attention back towards a certain little one who had disappeared into the afternoon glow. His smirk returned as he turned the sign to closed saying, "So you have them, my little leaf."
"Hey kid!"
Alison turned around as she saw Emma chasing after her. She was holding a file in her hand, looking quite bothered. Alison stopped entirely, waiting for Emma to catch up. The woman finally stopped beside her, panting slightly.
"You walk fast kid," Emma said, panting, "I almost thought I missed you."
"What's up?" Alison said, "Did you find the suspect?"
"Yeah, I did," Emma said, "And geez kid, could you care to warn me next time on WHY I shouldn't be getting that stuff on me. I went flying into Piper!"
Alison grinned very playfully as she said, "So sorry. I'll try and remember that next time."
"If there is a next time," Emma challenged but then let out a small sigh. Alison's grin faded a bit as she asked, "So did they find Excalibur?"
"No," Emma said with a sigh, "No they didn't."
Alison's grin faded away completely as she said concerned, "That's not good… I wonder where he is."
Emma looked at her, allowing concern to overtake her a moment. She wondered if it was a good time to even talk to her about this. Emma was snapped out of her thoughts as Alison said, "So… what did the suspect do if anything at all?"
Emma stared down at her and handed Alison a file saying, "He took our files."
"What?!" Alison said, grabbing the file and opening it. Sure enough, there were photocopies of papers and reports in there. Her heart fell when Emma said, "Our files, everything from the time of the foster system to now has been compromised. Even stuff that was sealed that no one was supposed to be able to access… it's been exposed. I don't know how they got it, but the proof is here that they did."
Alison trembled as she looked through the papers. Her heart was stopping, or at least that's what it felt like. Her chest tightened in a way that made her want to cry. Emma shifted slightly as she said, "I probably shouldn't be telling you this. But the person that we found with them turned into a card. It was a seven of clubs card, with a big x in the middle.
As if she couldn't be more horrified, Alison felt a lump growing in her throat to prove her wrong. Alison went through the file as she let out a shaky sigh. Emma looked at her sadly as she asked, "I have to ask… is that a Wonderland thing?"
"It's definitely a Wonderland thing… usually done by one person in particular," Alison said faintly, "The Queen of Hearts…"
"But she's dead," Emma said, "Regina said she made sure of it."
"I know, I know," Alison said, quickly, "But still… there are other Wonderlanders, Upper Lander roleplayers use cards as well. It's a complicated curse use so whoever used it is strong."
"How would they be here?"
"I'm not sure," Alison said, her voice small, "Potentially a rabbit hole could have been opened…"
There was something about Alison's voice that Emma didn't like. She was quite sure that there was something she wasn't telling her. But the girl looked genuinely distraught as she looked through her file and stopped on a particular page. Her eyes widened a bit as Emma said, "Well…what could they want? Why take my file as well?"
"Somebody's instigating… starting a fight," Alison said, shutting her file with a snap. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Alison looked at Emma. It was unusually blank. So much so that it scared Emma a bit. Emma took her file back as she said, "I'm going to have to let August and Gold know what's going on. Our information could still be out there."
Alison swallowed, her eyes going glassy. Emma noticed as her own stomach twisted and turned. Swallowing, Alison asked, "Do you have to tell them?"
"Yes," Emma said miserably, "I do…"
Alison shifted as she asked, "What if they want to see the file…?"
Emma trembled a bit, realizing what she was getting at. Alison face remained so blank that Emma almost wanted some sort of reaction from her. Emma's look of regret seemed to be answering as Alison jittered her foot nervously. Emma seemed uncomfortable but did say, "I'll try… I really don't want to. But if they ask… I'm sorry kid. The only file I can shred is the one that that's supposed to be sealed."
Alison closed her eyes as she turned, tears escaping her as she did so. Before the sheriff could say anything, Alison walked away with an air of defeat. Emma gripped the files in her hand with anger, fear, and resentment as she wondered the following thought.
If that man was just selling the information, who else did he sell it to?
Sneezy sneezed loudly as he sat behind the register at his store.
It was a boring day, the afternoon ridiculously slow. He had done inventory, cleaned the store, and stocked the shelves. The light shone in from the outer windows as he turned the pages of his book, barely registering the words on the page. Perhaps he should close up early to go get dinner at Granny's. Just as he pondered his new thought, the door opened, a small ring hitting his ears. Looking up, Sneezy saw someone step into his shop.
Sneezy had seen this man before. His hair was dark and he was dressed in a button up shirt, black slacks, and rather nice shoes. His sleeves were rolled him, his tie hanging a bit loosely. He was the music teacher, he knew that much. Uptight kind of guy, but Sneezy couldn't complain as he came to his store quite a bit. The customer grabbed some things off the shelf, obviously knowing exactly what he was looking for. Making his way back to the front of the shop, he said smoothly, "Hello, Mr. Clark."
"Hello Professor Avenant," Sneezy said, closing his book as he took the boxes from him, "Find everything you were looking for?"
"Yes," Avenant said smoothly, "I did. It seems rather quiet in here."
"It seems to be that kind of day," Sneezy said ringing up his things, "That'll be ten dollars and forty five cents."
"Here you are," Avenant said, handing him the money. Taking it, Sneezy pulled out his change and handed it to him. As he was tucking it away, Sneezy quickly pulled out a handkerchief to sneeze. It was loud and Sneezy felt a small burning sensation. The man glanced at him as he asked, "Allergies?"
"Always I'm afraid," Sneezy muttered, putting the kerchief down as he grasped her bag and handed it to him. He took it and said, "I hope you feel better. Have a good day."
"You too."
The music teacher left the shop, walking down the street as he gripped his bag tightly. He made his was down a few side streets before turning towards an older looking building. It was made of a stony kind of brick, the building several stories high. Walking up the side stairwell, Avenant pulled out his keys to unlock the door at the top.
"Fife! Is the computer up and working?"
The thirteen year old boy was underneath the desk, plugging in some wires into the wall. Glancing back, he scooted himself out from underneath as Fife said, "I haven't gotten then chance to test it. I think I just fixed the problem though."
"Oh really." Avenant came into the room as Fife stood up, leaning over to turn on the computer. The computer started up, uploading to the main screen quickly. Fife smiled as he said, "All it needed was some rewiring."
"Thank you," Avenant said as Fife moved out of the way so the teacher could sit. Fife looked about the room, the bulletin board filled with photo's profiles. Many of these photo's were pinned to the board, the boys included. There was one however that caught Fife's eyes. Reaching out, Fife titled the picture upwards to see the new face.
"She's pretty," Fife commented, "Who is she?"
"Alison Kinsleigh, once Autumn Doe before her birth certificate was found," Avenant said, "She is a violinist auditioning for the program."
"She's young," Fife commented, "Is she any good?"
"Yes she is very good at the violin," Avenant said impatiently, "If that is the question you were asking me. Your medicine is on the table. If you would be so kind to leave me to my work now Fife."
"Yes Professor," Fife said faithfully as he left Avenant alone. The door closed with a click and Avenant glanced back to ensure his solitude. Clicking at the computer, Avenant plugged in an external hard drive and clicked to open it. A passwords screen appeared as he typed away on the keyboard. He watched the computer screens open encrypted files, showing pictures and files of a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. Avenant then said lowly, "Let's see what you've been up to the past few years, Alison Kinsleigh."
Temperance Tales: I'm sorry if these chapters seem slow. However, nothing good ever comes about rushing into things. After all, I have to weave my artistic web in this story. I give credit to Bizzarieve for all the help given in this story. Characters like Avenant, or idea's for Wonderlands dialect, all come from his help so I truly must give credit where credit is due. My dear readers don't let this deter you from reviewing yourself on what you would like to see or have a thought you would like to express. I truly take people's reviews to heart and they do help me 'get out of my own head' to make it a better story.
I do not own Once Upon A Time and I give full credit to its creators. I do not own any fairytales… or I would not be a fanfiction writer on here hahaha. I give the fairytale's owners their full credits such as Pied Piper and Ice Maiden and stories that Once Upon a Time hasn't done or is just plain different from mine.
