Daniel heard Cora leave her room and he snuck out after her, surprised that she went down instead of up to see Regina. She had not been very forthcoming on their trip there about how she knew where the Dark One's castle was or what she feared would happen. About all he got out of her was that they had to get there before the Dark One convinced Regina to cast a curse. The knowledge that Regina had magic was startling to him which Cora apparently could tell as she did go on to explain that Regina was born with magic just as she was. Cora had said she never wanted Regina involved in magic so she never told her daughter that she had these skills.
Based on that demonstration last night Regina not only knew now, but she had also become at least somewhat skilled in it.
Daniel didn't understand what Regina was doing here in this castle. He didn't believe the Dark One or Regina when they had said Regina was not a prisoner. The Dark One was powerful and all he could think of was that he had Regina under a spell of some sort.
How else could he explain why she wouldn't have returned to Emma?
He supposed that Regina could be mad at Emma and would have every right to be based on her actions in all of this. They may be related but he hadn't forgiven Emma yet. He had been waiting to see if Regina was okay before he would even consider it.
He didn't want to think ill of her, but the truth was Emma had acted selfishly, and if it weren't for her obvious love for Regina and the hurt she caused he would have told her that she didn't deserve Regina.
Once Cora had disappeared downstairs Daniel went up. He knocked on several doors before Regina answered. She seemed surprised it was him at her door.
"Sorry to disturb you so early," he said after she continued to stand there saying nothing.
"It's okay," she said smiling at him. She took his hand and pulled him into her room. He noticed right away it was a big chamber with this sitting room before the bedroom. She gave him a hug he wasn't expecting but when she didn't remove herself quickly he wrapped his arms around her and breathed in the scent of her. For a moment he let himself forget why he was there.
"Regina," he said pulling away but keeping his hands on her upper arms. "We have to get you out of here."
This time she moved away from him. "What are you doing here with my mother?"
"We came to get you," he said.
"How did you even know I was here?"
"Emma."
He watched as she turned her back to him and put some more distance between them. He noticed the clenched fist that was at her side.
Regina turned finally, a forced smiled on her face. "I am sorry you came all this way, as I have no intention of leaving," she said. "As I said last night, I'm not a prisoner here."
"Then help me understand," he said coming toward her. "Is this about Emma? Are you angry at her for making this deal with the Dark One?"
"She told you about that?" she asked in surprise.
"Yes. She told me everything. She told me how you two had been seeing each other, and your plans to run away, and finally about this ludicrous plan she came up with. That is why I am here," Daniel said. "I went to your parents after finding out and your mother brought me here with her to bring you back."
"I am not going back," she said more forcibly this time.
"Why not?" he pressed.
"Because I am not strong enough yet." She took a step back as she said it and Daniel wondered if that was indeed what she meant to say because she too seemed surprised she said it.
"Strong enough for what?" he asked softly.
Again he was treated with a forced smile. "Daniel I am fine here. I don't want to leave; I hope even if you don't understand it, you can at least respect it."
"I don't understand it and I can't respect it until I am sure it's coming from you alone," he said. "The Dark One is not to be trusted. Is there any story out there involving him that doesn't end in misery?"
"I am not an idiot," she said. "I know his reputation, and in my time here I have gotten to know him a little, know him for more than the stories told about him. He is teaching me magic, and yes he is doing it for his reasons. I know this. He has told me why he wants me to learn magic."
"To cast some curse," Daniel said. "Your mother told me on the way here that he wants you to cast some curse."
"It's a spell," Regina said. "One I am not even ready to cast yet. He lost someone long ago, and he needs my help to find this person. I see nothing wrong with that. He wants to use me, so what, it's not like I am not getting something in return. I am learning things that will mean I won't have to rely on anyone else."
"Is that what you want, to not have to rely on anyone else?"
"Yes," she said. "If I don't rely on anyone but myself I don't have to deal with the disappointment when others fail."
"I don't understand what is going on here, but this isn't you," he said. "This is not the Regina I know."
"Maybe I am not. Maybe you never knew me," she said. "How could you when I didn't know myself. The person I was before was a fool, but I will not be her ever again."
"That is a shame because the Regina I knew before was someone I really liked, someone I loved and she was someone that Emma loved."
"Emma didn't love me. If you are looking for someone who is deceitful in all of this, look to her," Regina spat out.
"I don't agree with what Emma did in making a deal with the Dark One, but she does love you. She has been making herself sick with worry over your disappearance even though she knew where you were at."
"Exactly, she knows where I am at, yet you are the one standing here in front of me, not her. What does that tell you about her supposed love for me?"
"Emma knows I am here," Daniel said. "She wants, no needs to know that you are safe. She loves you and you must love her or you wouldn't have been willing to risk everything to run away with her. You should be wanting to leave this instant."
Regina's eyes narrowed giving Daniel a look he had never seen before on her face. "Come with me."
She led through the castle and into a room with a pool of water. She said some words that Daniel didn't know and the pool shimmered. He immediately recognized the castle where Emma lived. There was a lot of activity going on as preparations for the ball geared up.
"You see," Regina said. "Do you see them all preparing for the great ball? The one where they will announce Emma's engagement to Killian? Because that is what I see. I don't see Emma here. I don't see any attempt on her part to come get me. Say what you want about her loving me, but the first time I came up here to see her because it had been so long I found her in the garden, the garden where she and I first met, and she was kissing Killian. It wasn't some forced kiss or some peck on the cheek. She kissed him. She kissed him like she used to kiss me."
"I don't know about any of that. I can tell you that Emma is devastated right now. She doesn't want to marry Killian. She hates that her parents are forcing her into this," Daniel said. "Come home with us and you will see."
Regina sighed, "What is waiting for me if I return home? Do you think Emma is going to throw herself into my arms and tell her parents that I am who she wants to be with? If she had any intention of doing that she could have done it before she decided to put this plan into action. But she didn't. No, don't let the princess fool you, this deal, this was never anything more than to get me out of the way."
Daniel could hardly believe he was hearing this. None of this was how he had been expecting this to go. He thought if anything he would have to battle the Dark One to get Regina out of here, and he had been prepared to do it. But this resistance coming from Regina herself was not something he had been prepared to deal with.
They said nothing to each other and finally Daniel broke the silence. "Maybe we should go find your mother."
He was hoping that Cora could perhaps make Regina see reason, or determine if she was under some sort of spell.
…
Cora could tell there was tension between Daniel and Regina once they had sat down to the breakfast that Rumplestiltskin had provided. She figured the two must have spoken and from the look on both of their faces she could tell it didn't go well. She knew the young man had feelings for her daughter, and she was more than willing to encourage those feelings as they would make a good match and it would secure Regina's social standing.
But all of that was now changed.
She had thought this "friendship" between Regina and the princess was nothing more than a phase, but the consequences of it were now deadly. She needed to get Regina away from this place and now she wished the princess Emma was here instead of Daniel. Perhaps Emma would have had no issue in getting Regina to return with them.
She had to get Regina out of here. Even looking at her now, she seemed less like her daughter than ever before. There was a hardness to Regina, which wasn't there before.
It wasn't that her daughter was meek, but she was generally more reserved and cautious. It was surprising to her when she found out that she had formed a friendship with Emma as Regina had shown no interest in court and royalty despite Cora's insistence that she attend functions.
She always assumed that whatever marriage Regina ended up in, it would be her spouse who would be the dominant personality in it. What she saw from Regina last night had her second-guessing that assessment. It appeared that Regina had found confidence she hadn't previously shown and Cora suspected that mostly had to do with the magic. She remembered what it was like to feel that infusion of power. At the beginning of her tutelage, she had felt indestructible when she used magic.
It was a great feeling and now Cora was going to have to convince Regina that it wasn't what she thought it was. It would be an uphill battle – after all if someone had tried to convince her to give up magic at that time in her life she would have laughed at them and then showed them exactly what she could do with that power.
The meal was eaten in silence and once it was done, Cora stood. "Regina we must speak. Alone."
Regina glanced over at Rumplestilskin who merely nodded and then excused himself.
"Belle, would you be so kind as to perhaps give Daniel a small tour of the castle so I might speak to my mother?" Regina asked.
"Certainly," Belle said and she indicated that Daniel should follow her.
Once they were alone Cora sat back down. The two women stared at each other as if they were playing a game of chess between them and were assessing their next moves.
"You can't stay here," Cora said.
Regina smiled, a sly smile as if to say "is that all you got?" to her mother.
"I know you don't want to listen to me right now. Believe it or not, I was once in your shoes, being here, learning from him."
"I know," Regina said. "He told me. As I told Daniel earlier, I am not naïve, I know that I wouldn't be here if Rumplestilskin was getting something out of it. I even know what he wants."
"If you believe that then you are naïve," Cora said.
"Why didn't you tell me about the magic?"
Despite knowing that Regina would be asking her this, Cora was still unprepared to answer it. "Did you know that Rumplestilskin can't break a deal once it is made?" Cora said. "Therefore whatever deal he made with Emma he has to fulfill and he told me as much this morning. It sort of begs the question of what exactly that deal was. He isn't known as a trickster for nothing. These deals are never what you think they are, so what do you know of the deal?"
Regina was silent.
"Be angry with me if you want, but I am not going to sit aside and let him manipulate my daughter," Cora continued. "Again if you think he isn't manipulating you then you are a fool, Regina. I need you to tell me what the deal was so I can help you, help Emma."
"I don't want, nor do I need your help," she said standing. "It appears we have nothing else to speak of."
Regina walked to the door and Cora got to her feet and waved a couple of fingers and the door shut in front of Regina, who twirled around to face her mother, again with that smile on her face.
"Oh mother, don't start a fight unless you think you can finish it."
"Are you that secure in your magical abilities?" Cora asked. "If you are, open the doors."
Regina continued to stare her down but Cora watched as Regina raised her hand and waved it in front of her and the doors behind her opened. Cora gave her an appraising look.
"That was one of the first things I learned," Regina said. "Now if that is all you have in you, why don't you gather up Daniel and leave."
Regina turned her back on her mother and again walked toward the doors. This time not only closed them with her magic but as Regina turned Cora used her magic to push Regina against them, pinning them to her. She walked slowly over to her daughter who was struggling to get off the door.
"You want to know why I didn't tell you about the magic, this is exactly why," Cora said. "The magic changes you if you let it. I almost let it change me, but thankfully I met your father and I fell in love with him. If it weren't for him I shudder to think what I would have done with this power. Don't let it change who you are my daughter."
She released the magic and Regina moved off the door and Cora saw nothing but anger in Regina's daughter.
"Come home," Cora said, trying to soften her tone. "Nothing has happened that we can't fix. I will even put aside my opinions about Queen Snow and speak to her on your and Emma's behalf. That is how much you mean to me."
"Go home, mother," Regina said. She turned and pushed the doors open with her hands and walked out of them to see Belle and Daniel standing in the foyer. "Take yourself and my mother from this place, now."
She began to walk up the stairs and then she stopped and looked down at all of them. "And Daniel if you would be so kind as to give a message to Emma," she said. "Tell her I will see her at the ball."